1348

Papal bull of Pope Clement VI issued during the Black Death stating Jews not to blame and urging their protection.

1415

Czech religious reformer Jan Hus, whose criticisms of the church anticipated the Reformation by more than a century, was burned at the stake for heresy.

1535

English humanist and statesman Thomas More was beheaded for refusing to accept King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England.

1777

British General John Burgoyne captured Fort Ticonderoga from the Americans during the American Revolution.

1785

US Congress unanimously resolves the name of US currency to the “dollar” and adopts decimal coinage.

1862

Mark Twain begins reporting in Virginia City.

1928

The first full-length all-talking motion picture, Lights of New York, premiered in New York City.

1933

Major League Baseball’s first All-Star Game is held.

1933

“Nertsery Rhymes” short film starring Ted Healy and His Stooges premieres, one of the first film appearance of The Three Stooges.

1942

Anne Frank and her family went into hiding in Amsterdam on this day in 1942 and lived in a secret annex—an experience documented in her diary, which became a classic of war literature—until their capture on August 4, 1944.

1944

Fire engulfs circus big top in Hartford, killing 167.

1957

With her defeat of Darlene Hard, American Althea Gibson became the first Black tennis player to win the Wimbledon singles championship.

1957

Paul McCartney met John Lennon for the first time, at a church event in Liverpool, England, where the latter’s band was performing; the duo would later form the Beatles, perhaps the most influential band in history.

1964

Nyasaland broke from British rule and became the independent country of Malawi within the Commonwealth of Nations.

1970

California passes 1st “no fault” divorce law.

1990

“Jetsons the Movie” by Hanna-Barbera with Tiffany Darwish, premieres.

1994

“Forrest Gump” opens, wins Tom Hanks a second Oscar.

1995

Bosnian Serb forces began an attack on Srebrenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, ultimately killing more than 7,000 Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) boys and men; the massacre was the worst episode of mass murder in Europe since World War II.

2002

American tennis player Serena Williams defeated her sister Venus to win her first Wimbledon singles title.

2002

John Frankenheimer—who was considered one of the most creatively gifted directors of the 1950s and ’60s, especially noted for such classic movies as The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)—died in Los Angeles.

2010

“Incubus” singer Brandon Boyd announces the release of his debut solo album, “The Wild Trapeze”.