Historical data March 2024
Published: Thursday, Feb 1st 2024, 09:11
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FRIDAY, 1. MARCH
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the Swiss motorcycling legend Luigi Taveri died. (*19.9.29)
- 10 years ago (2014) ... the French film director Alain Resnais ("Hiroshima mon amour", "L'Année dernière à Marienbad", *3.6.1922) died
- 25 years ago (1999) ... Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones took off from Château-d'Œx VD on their third attempt at a non-stop round-the-world flight in their Orbiter 3 hot-air balloon.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... Nicolas Hayek and Daimler Benz AG announced the founding of Micro Compact Car AG, the production company for the Swatchmobile, which was later renamed Smart.
... the EU agreed with Sweden, Finland and Austria on the accession of these countries on January 1, 1995, bringing the EU to 15 member states.
... the Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber ("Under the Mistletoe", "Believe") was born in London/Ontario.
... Nirvana played their last concert (Munich)
- 70 years ago (1954) ... the American film director and actor Ron Howard ("The Da Vinci Code") was born.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the Swiss painter, sculptor and writer Martin Disler was born. (†27.8.1996)
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the British rock singer and actor Roger Daltrey, lead singer of the band The Who ("My Generation", "Who's Next"), was born.
- 90 years ago (1934) ... the Vaud writer Jacques Chessex was born in Payerne VD (Prix Goncourt for "L'Ogre", "Un Juif pour l'exemple", †9.10.2009)
SATURDAY, MARCH 2
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the Austrian cabaret artist Werner Schneyder (*25.1.1937) died
- 20 years ago (2004) ... the UN Arms Control Commission announced its assessment that Iraq had not possessed functioning weapons of mass destruction since 1994. The USA and Great Britain had cited an alleged threat from such weapons as the reason for their war against Iraq in 2003.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... the US singer Dusty Springfield ("Son of a Preacher Man", *16.4.1939) died
... a "baby from two mothers" was born for the first time in Europe. The egg cell substance of a donor had previously been injected into the artificially fertilized egg cell of a woman.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... after 94 hours in the air, the Boeing B-50A Lucky Lady II and its crew led by pilot James G. Gallagher landed at Carswell Air Force Base in Fort Worth, Texas, after the first non-stop round-the-world flight. The aircraft was refueled several times during its flight.
... Italian confectioner Pietro Ferrero senior, the inventor of Nutella, died. (*2.9.1898)
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German actress Uschi Glas ("Zur Sache Schätzchen") was born.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the British archaeologist Howard Carter, who discovered the tomb of the pharaoh Tut Anchamun near Thebes in 1922, died. (*9.5.1874).
SUNDAY, MARCH 3
- One year ago (2023) ... the Federal Council allowed trials with electronic voting (e-voting) again after a four-year break. It gave the cantons of Basel-Stadt, St. Gallen and Thurgau the green light to use a new e-voting system from Swiss Post for the first time in the federal ballot on 18 June. In 2019, the Federal Council decided not to introduce electronic voting as a regular voting channel for the time being due to security concerns.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... the Zurich-based media group Tamedia and the French-speaking Swiss publishing house Edipresse announced their merger.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... Von Roll announced the closure of the Monteforno steelworks in Bodio TI and the forge in Gerlafingen SO.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the US comedian Lou Costello, one half of the duo Abbott and Costello, died. (*6.3.1906)
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the Swiss Federal Gymnastics and Sports School Magglingen, now the Federal Office of Sport (Baspo), was opened.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the French director and theater director Ariane Mnouchkine, founder of the theater collective "Théâtre du Soleil", was born.
MONDAY, MARCH 4
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the US actor Luke Perry ("Beverly Hills, 90210") died. He suffered a fatal stroke at the age of 52.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... the Criminal Court in The Hague issued an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Umar al-Bashir. It was the first arrest warrant against a sitting president.
... Charles Chaplin's second son Sydney Chaplin, also an actor ("Limelight", *30.3.1926), died
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the Canadian actor John Candy died. ("Cool Runnings", *31.10.1950)
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the Jewish light novelist Lola Stein (Lola Stern) died. From 1910 until the Second World War, she wrote bestsellers, which often first appeared as serialized novels in newspapers. After emigrating to Great Britain in 1939, she was no longer able to build on her earlier successes.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the US soul musician and songwriter Bobby Womack ("It`s All Over Now", "Fly Me to the Moon") was born. He died on June 27, 2014.
- 95 years ago (1929) ... the Dutch conductor Bernard Haitink was born. He left his mark on classical music for more than half a century and was one of the most influential orchestra conductors of the 20th century. He lived in Kastanienbaum LU on Lake Lucerne, among other places, and died in 2021 at the age of 92.
TUESDAY, 5 MARCH
- 35 years ago (1989) ... the US actor Jake Lloyd was born. He became famous at the age of seven when he played Arnold Schwarzenegger's son in "Jingle all the Way".
- 50 years ago (1974) ... the American actress Eva Mendes ("Hitch", "Ghost Rider") was born.
... the German TV presenter and singer Barbara Schöneberger ("NDR Talk Show") was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the French philosopher and author Elisabeth Badinter ("xy - the identity of man", "I am you", "Motherly love") was born.
- 95 years ago (1929) ... the US inventor David Dunbar Buick died in Detroit. Among other things, he invented the lawn sprinkler and a forerunner of the modern, top-controlled engine. The brand that bears his name still exists today and is owned by the General Motors Group. By the year 2000, around 35 million cars bore his name.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6
- One year ago (2023) ... SBB and train manufacturer Alstom reached an agreement on millions in compensation due to delivery delays and problems with the new Dosto double-decker long-distance trains. The equivalent value corresponds to six such compositions. The fleet comprises 62 trains.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... the US telescope "Kepler" embarked on a large-scale search for a "second Earth" outside our solar system. The mission ended at the end of October 2018 due to a lack of fuel.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the Greek actress, singer and politician Melina Mercouri died in New York (*18.10.1920).
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the US actor Tom Arnold ("True Lies") was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, New Zealand opera singer, soprano, specialized in Richard Strauss and Mozart, was born in Gisborne.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the US computer expert Adam Osborne, who is considered the inventor of the laptop, was born in Thailand (†18.3.2003).
- 95 years ago (1929) ... the Swiss writer, travel author, photographer and journalist Nicolas Bouvier was born. ("Le poisson-scorpion", †17.2.1998)
THURSDAY, MARCH 7
- 25 years ago (1999) ... the US director Stanley Kubrick ("Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Love the Bomb", "2001: A Space Odyssey", "Clockwork Orange", *26.7.1928) died
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the French cartoonist Maëster was born ("Athanagor Wurlitzer, obsédé sexuel", "Sœur Marie-Thérèse des Batignolles").
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German author Jürgen Theobaldy, who lives in Switzerland, was born (mainly poems).
... the British explorer and author Ranulph Fiennes, who was the first person to reach the North and South Poles by land, was born in Windsor.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the French pop singer and composer Danyel Gérard (one-hit wonder "Butterfly") was born.
- 180 years ago (1844) ... the German archaeologist and art historian Wilhelm Gurlitt, great-great-uncle of Cornelius Gurlitt (Schwabing art find) was born. (†13.2.1905)
FRIDAY 8 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... the publishing house Ringier ordered its then "Blick" editor-in-chief and deputy CEO Christian Dorer to take a six-month sabbatical. There were accusations of preferential treatment of a certain group of employees and a lack of clear differentiation between private and business life. Dorer did not return to the top and later became the new Head of Communications at Migros.
- 10 years ago (2014) ... a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200 ER (flight MH370) disappeared without a trace on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. There were 239 people from 15 nations on board.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... the US comic artist Mike Van Audenhove ("Zürich by Mike" in "Züritipp") died in Ticino. He had lived in Switzerland since the age of 9, with only a few interruptions. (*20.5.1957)
- 25 years ago (1999) ... the US baseball player Jo DiMaggio, the second husband of Marilyn Monroe, died. (*25.11.1914)
- 30 years ago (1994) ... a train with cistern wagons derailed in Zurich-Affoltern, five of which exploded and set fire to four residential buildings. There were no fatalities.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the Scottish drummer Brian McGee, founding member of Simple Minds, was born.
- 70 years ago (1954) ... the former Swiss ski racer Marie-Theres ("Maite") Nadig was born in Flums SG.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the Spanish guitarist Pepe Romero was born.
SATURDAY, 9 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... five bodies were discovered after a major fire in a detached house in Yverdon-les-Bains VD. According to police investigations, a father had shot his wife and three children, set the house on fire and then killed himself.
... a man shot and killed seven people and himself in a house in Hamburg after a Jehovah's Witness service. The 35-year-old perpetrator had shot more than 100 times with a semi-automatic pistol. The crime sparked a debate in Germany about changes to gun laws.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the American writer Charles Bukowski ("The Worst is Yet to Come or Almost a Youth") died. *16.8.1920.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the "Barbie" doll was presented to the public for the first time at a toy fair in New York.
- 130 years ago (1894) ... the Swiss author Frank Arnau was born. (†11.2.1976)
SUNDAY, MARCH 10
- 5 years ago (2019) ... an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed shortly after take-off in Addis Ababa. 157 people died. Five months earlier, an aircraft of the same type had crashed. After the second accident, several airlines banned aircraft of this type from taking off. Several countries closed their airspace to the 737 Max 8.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the German Bundestag passed the law on the relocation of parliament and government from Bonn to Berlin.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the Tibetan resistance against the occupation by the People's Republic of China culminated in an open popular uprising. This was put down by the Chinese rulers with military force until March 21.
- 70 years ago (1954) ... the Belgian director Luc Dardenne (realized with brother Jean-Pierre: "Rosetta", "The Child") was born.
MONDAY 11 MARCH
- 15 years ago (2009) ... a 17-year-old former pupil shot and killed 15 people at a secondary school in Winnenden near Stuttgart.
- 20 years ago (2004) ... Islamists carried out ten remotely detonated bomb attacks on several suburban trains in Madrid. 191 people died and over 2000 were injured.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... the German crime writer Hansjörg Martin, considered the founder of the new German crime novel, died. (*1.11.1920)
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the clown Pic (Richard Hirzel), known for his soap bubble acts, was born in Kreuzlingen.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German actor and voice actor Lutz Mackensy (various "Tatorte", voice of Pierce Brosnan, Rowan Atkinson, Christopher Lloyd and many others) was born.
TUESDAY, 12 MARCH
- 15 years ago (2009) ... Roche acquired the US biotech subsidiary Genentech for 46.8 billion dollars. At the time, it was the largest takeover in Swiss business history.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... the US-Swiss-British violinist, violist and conductor Yehudi Menuhin died. (*22.4.1916)
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the German writer Sandra Paretti ("Der Wunschbaum", "Der Winter, der ein Sommer war", "Der rote Vogel") passed away in Meilen ZH (*5.2.1935).
... the Anglican Church of England ordained women as priests for the first time. Several hundred conservative priests then converted to the Roman Catholic Church.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the US director Rob Cohen ("Dragonheart", "The Mummy") was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German pop singer Peter Orloff was born.
- 130 years ago (1894) ... Asa Griggs Candler's Coca-Cola Company sold Coca-Cola in bottles for the first time. Before that, the supposed "medicinal product" was available as a syrup diluted with soda water.
WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... a case of mad cow disease was discovered in Switzerland for the first time in years. However, it was an atypical case. The cow was cremated. None of the meat entered the food chain.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg and Monaco joined Liechtenstein and Andorra in declaring their willingness to relax banking secrecy. In doing so, they countered the risk of being branded as tax havens on a planned G20 list.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the US opera singer Julia Migenes was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German pop singer Chris Roberts ("Du kannst nicht immer siebzehn sein") was born. (†2.7.2017)
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the American singer and songwriter Neil Sedaka ("Oh Carol", "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen") was born.
THURSDAY, MARCH 14
- 30 years ago (1994) ... Apple sold the first PowerPC models. The new flagship of the American computer manufacturer was based on a so-called RISC processor.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the US actor Ansel Elgort ("Fate is a Lousy Traitor") was born.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the French film director, screenwriter and author Bertrand Blier ("My Man", "Too Beautiful for You", "The Fuddy-duddies") was born.
- 230 years ago (1794) ... Eli Whitney was granted a patent in the USA for the machine he invented to gin cotton. This made the large-scale cultivation of the plant lucrative in the southern states.
FRIDAY, 15 MARCH
- 5 years ago (2019) ... a right-wing extremist from Australia shot and killed 50 people in two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.
... at least 1.7 million pupils worldwide stayed away from school to demonstrate for better climate protection under the motto "Fridays for Future".
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the German cabaret artist and actor Jürgen von Manger ("Tegtmeiers Reisen") died *6.3.1923.
... the Swedish actress, director and writer Mai Zetterling ("War Games") died in London (*24.5.1925).
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the Nigerian author Ben Okri was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German author Elisabeth Plessen ("Mitteilung an den Adel") was born.
SAMSTAG, 16. MÄRZ
- One year ago (2023) ... the faltering major bank Credit Suisse announced that it would borrow up to 50 billion Swiss francs from the Swiss National Bank (SNB). The Group's shares had previously crashed on the stock market. CS, at the time one of the 30 banks worldwide classified as "too big to fail", was worth just under CHF 6.7 billion on the stock market.
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the US actor Richard Erdman (*1.6.1925) died. He appeared in films for 73 years, including Leopold Lindtberg's Swiss film comedy "Swiss Tour" ("A sailor is not a snowman") alongside Simone Signoret, Heinrich Gretler, Lieselotte Pulver and Zarli Carigiet.
- Ten years ago (2014) ... in a referendum on the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, according to official Russian figures, 95% of the predominantly Russian-born inhabitants voted in favor of the peninsula's annexation by Russia.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... Switzerland summoned the German ambassador to the FDFA to protest against statements made by Finance Minister Peer Steinbrück. In the tax dispute, he had compared Switzerland to Indians scared off by the cavalry.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... the European Commission resigned under pressure from serious allegations of mismanagement. This was triggered by an investigation report published the previous day in Brussels, which proved that the 20 Commissioners had lost control of finances and administration.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the US rapper Flavor Flav from the hip-hop group Public Enemy was born. His trademark is an oversized watch that he wears around his neck.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the Canadian actor Victor Garber was born, who became famous in the role of designer Thomas Andrews in "Titanic".
- 95 years ago (1929) ... the Austrian actress Nadja Tiller ("Das Mädchen Rosemarie", "Die Buddenbrooks") was born in Vienna.
SONNTAG, 17. MÄRZ
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the American figure skater Tonya Harding pleaded guilty in court to the attack on her competitor Nancy Kerrigan and was sentenced to a fine of 100,000 dollars.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the 14th Dalai Lama fled to India.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the US actor Patrick Duffy ("Dallas") was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the British model Pattie Boyd, ex-wife of George Harrison and Eric Clapton, was born. She introduced the Beatles to transcendental meditation.
MONDAY, MARCH 18
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the German cabaret artist Olaf Böhme (*23.9.1953) died. He was a mathematician by training and held mathematical cabaret lectures especially for students and, increasingly often, non-students as individual events in lecture halls at the Technical University, such as "When integrals learn to laugh", "Die Rechnung ohne den Wirt" and "Eine Aufgabe, zwei Fehler, drei Lösungen". He also published the book "4000", which contains nothing but 4000 fictitious book titles. He later turned one of them - "Die Wanderschaft der blinden Titten" - into a cabaret program.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... the Swiss musician, composer, arranger and conductor Toni Leutwiler alias Tom Wyler died. (*31.10.1923). Between 1945 and 1975, he composed and arranged around 2000 works, mainly for symphonic light music, also inspired by jazz.
... the EU Commission decided to finally phase out the classic light bulb. Incandescent light bulbs with high power consumption were to be phased out by September 2012.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... representatives of Muslims and Croats signed the "Constitution of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina" in Washington, which provided for the creation of a state based on the Swiss model.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the French director Luc Besson was born ("Nikita", Léon")
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the Austrian folk singer Michael Hartl from the duo Marianne and Michael was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... twelve partially damaged US bombers landed at Dübendorf Airport in Zurich.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the Austrian actor and pop singer Peter Kraus, rock'n'roll and pop star of the 1950s ("Sugar Baby", "Tiger", "Schwarze Rose Rosemarie", film roles in "Der Pauker", "Wenn die Conny mit dem Peter") was born.
- 95 years ago (1929) ... the German author Christa Wolf was born ("Reflecting on Christa T.", †1.12.2011)
TUESDAY, MARCH 19
- One year ago (2023) ... the Federal Council, managers and supervisory authorities announced that the big bank UBS was taking over its faltering competitor Credit Suisse. The Swiss National Bank supported the takeover with liquidity assistance of CHF 100 billion. The banks had been pressured into the merger by the authorities. Previously, CS had lost the confidence of the markets despite being well capitalized and was struggling with a massive outflow of client money.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... the Austrian author Gertrud Fussenegger died. ("Das verschüttete Antlitz", *8.5.1912)
WEDNESDAY, 20 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... the controversial pension reform pushed forward by President Emmanuel Macron was officially adopted in France after months of dispute. Opposition forces failed in the National Assembly with two attempts to overturn the plan and bring down the government with a vote of no confidence.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... the first round-the-world flight in a balloon: Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones from western Switzerland crossed the finish line over Mauritania after 42,810 kilometers. It took them 19 days, one hour and 49 minutes.
- 70 years ago (1954) ... the Austrian author Christoph Ransmayr ("Morbus Kithara") was born.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... several thousand paintings and prints deemed "degenerate art" were burned in the courtyard of Berlin's main fire station in Kreuzberg
... the Swiss molecular and developmental biologist Walter Jakob Gehring was born in Zurich. (†29.5.2014)
THURSDAY, MARCH 21
- One year ago (2023) ... a farmer from Hefenhofen TG, whose business made negative headlines due to poor animal husbandry, was sentenced to a conditional prison sentence of eight months by the District Court of Arbon. He was acquitted on several counts. The authorities had previously ordered the eviction of his farm and confiscated 90 horses, among other things.
... the Federal Council suspended the payment of bonuses to managers of Credit Suisse, the major bank acquired by UBS. This related to remuneration that had already been promised but deferred for the financial years up to 2022, for example in the form of share entitlements. In previous years, excessive bonuses paid to CS management at the same time as business losses had caused displeasure.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... a serious train accident occurred in Däniken in the canton of Solothurn: an SBB express train was struck and slashed by a swinging crane as it passed through the station. Nine people died and 19 were injured.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German actress Gila von Weitershausen ("Engelchen oder die Jungfrau von Bamberg", "Herzflimmern") was born in what is now Trzebnica/Poland.
FRIDAY, 22 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... the Inselspital Group in Bern announced the closure of its clinics in Tiefnau and Münsingen. 200 jobs were to be cut. In the previous year, the company had posted a loss of CHF 80 million.
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the US musician Scott Walker died, breakthrough 1965 with the Walker Brothers, later solo. (*9.1.1943)
- 20 years ago (2004) ... Sheikh Yasin, founder of Hamas, was shot at and killed by an Israeli helicopter.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... Michael Schumacher's son Mick Schumacher, also a racing driver, was born in Vufflens-le-Château VD.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... Steven Spielberg's Holocaust drama "Schindler's List" was awarded seven Oscars.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the French actress Fanny Ardant ("The Woman Next Door", "To Love and Death", "A Love of Swann") was born in Saumur.
- 95 years ago (1929) ... the Swiss manager and long-standing Chairman of the Roche Board of Directors Fritz Gerber was born in Huttwil BE.
- 105 years ago (1919) ... the first international air link was opened between Paris and Brussels.
SATURDAY, 23 MARCH
- 10 years ago (2014) ... the former Spanish Prime Minister Adolfo Suárez died. He became Prime Minister one year after Franco's death and is considered the father of Spanish democracy. (*25.9.1932)
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the Italian actress Giulietta Masina ("La Strada") died in Rome (*22.2.1921).
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the Swiss film director Eric Thomas Koerfer was born. He is one of the co-founders of the young Swiss-German feature film.
SUNDAY, 24 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... the federal government and the cantons of Bern and Jura reached an agreement on the issue of financial equalization. This means that Moutier can transfer from the canton of Bern to the Jura as planned on January 1, 2026.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... dozens of NATO fighter planes began bombing military targets in Serbia. This marked the beginning of the Kosovo war.
... fire broke out in a Belgian truck in the eleven-kilometer Mont Blanc Tunnel. 39 people died. The tunnel remained closed for more than three years.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the German sculptor and director Rebecca Horn (film "Buster's Bedroom", sculpture "Turtle Sigh Tree") was born.
MONDAY, 25 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in the former Soviet republic of Belarus.
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the German actor Michael Brennicke, the off-screen voice from "Aktenzeichen XY...ungelöst", died.
- 10 years ago (2014) ... the first cases of Ebola fever were officially reported in Guinea. By 2016, West Africa had experienced the largest Ebola fever epidemic to date. 30,00 people fell ill, 11,000 died.
- 25 years ago (1999) ... Chinese party leader Jiang Zemin was booed by exiled Tibetans on the Bundesplatz during a state visit to Bern. In her speech afterwards, Federal Councillor Ruth Dreifuss criticized China's treatment of minorities. In view of the protests on the Bundesplatz, Jiang Zemin said that the national government was not capable of governing the country. Switzerland risked losing a friend, China.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... former Federal Councillor and three-time President of the Confederation Max Petitpierre died. (*26.2.1899)
- 90 years ago (1934) ... Gloria Steinem, American journalist and feminist ("What does emancipated mean"), was born.
TUESDAY, 26 MARCH
- 25 years ago (1999) ... SRG Director General Armin Walpen introduced the label "SRG/SSR/idée suisse" for SRG. The term has since been abolished.
... the Swiss sculptor and painter Hans Geissberger died. (*24.6.1921). Many of his sculptures and reliefs adorn public and religious buildings in Basel.
- 30 years ago (1994) ... Zurich product manager André Weiss was elected the first "Mister Switzerland".
... the US crime writer Margaret Millar ("Beast in View", *5.2.1915) died
- 65 years ago (1959) ... the US author Raymond Chandler ("Philippe Marlowe" novels, *23.7.1888) died
- 70 years ago (1954) ... the German actress Jutta Speidel ("Um Himmels Willen", "Alle meine Töchter") was born.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the German author and screenwriter Patrick Süskind ("Perfume", "The Dove", "The Story of Mr. Sommer") was born.
- 80 years ago (1944) ... the American pop singer and actress Diana Ross ("Stop! In The Name Of Love") was born.
- 90 years ago (1934) ... the American actor Alan Arkin ("Little Miss Sunshine", "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter") was born.
WEDNESDAY, 27 MARCH
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the two-day parliamentary elections in Italy brought the right-wing alliance led by media entrepreneur Silvio Berlusconi an absolute majority
- 125 years ago (1899) ... the Italian physicist Guglielmo Marconi telegraphed a Morse code report wirelessly from France across the Channel to England for the first time.
THURSDAY, MARCH 28
- 20 years ago (2004) ... the Republic of Ireland was the first country in the EU to introduce a total ban on smoking in public places.
... the British actor, author and director Peter Ustinov ("Spartacus", "Topkapi", "Quo Vadis?" novel "The Old Man and Mr. Smith") died in Genolier VD (*16.4.1921).
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the French playwright Eugène Ionesco ("The Bald Singer", "The Chairs", "The Rhinos", "The King Dies") died in Paris (*26.11.1909).
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the US actress Josephine Chaplin was born. She appeared alongside her father Charlie Chaplin in "Limelight" at the age of three.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... Francisco Franco conquered Madrid with the help of the "fifth column" and thus ended the civil war in the country. Spain was then completely under the control of the Francoist regime.
FRIDAY 29 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... the major bank UBS appointed Sergio Ermotti as its new CEO. He replaced Ralph Hamers in the course of the emergency takeover of the faltering Credit Suisse by UBS. Ermotti was already CEO of UBS from 2011 to 2020. He successfully repositioned the bank after the global financial crisis.
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the French filmmaker Agnès Varda (*30.5.1928) died
- 15 years ago (2009) ... Maurice Jarre, French composer of film scores ("Lawrence of Arabia", "Doctor Zhivago", "Journey to India", "Ghost") died. *13.9.1924
... US photographer Helen Levitt, one of the most important representatives of New York street photography, died. (*31.8.1913)
- 30 years ago (1994) ... the French cartoonist Paul Grimault ("Le roi et l'oiseau", *23.3.1905) died.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the Swiss journalist Hugo Stamm was born. He is one of the leading experts on new religious movements, sects, esotericism, occultism and charlatanism.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the Italian actor and director Terence Hill (real name Mario Girotti) was born in Venice ("Four Fists for a Hallelujah", "My Name is Nobody", "The Supercop").
- 95 years ago (1929) ... Meta von Salis, Switzerland's first female historian, one of the best-known women's rights activists, campaigner for women's suffrage, philosopher and pen pal of Friedrich Nietzsche, died. (*1.3.1855)
SATURDAY, MARCH 30
- One year ago (2023) ... the Zurich District Court found four employees of Gazprombank Switzerland (GPBS) guilty of failing to exercise due diligence in financial transactions. They are alleged to have breached their duty of care when dealing with the accounts of a confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
... Turkey was the last member state to approve Finland's admission to NATO. The majority of Turkish parliamentarians voted for the country's admission to the defense alliance.
... a grand jury in New York voted to indict former US President Donald Trump in connection with hush money payments to a porn actress. Never before in US history has an ex-president been charged with a criminal offense.
- 75 years ago (1949) ... the Swiss publisher Michael Ringier was born in Zofingen AG.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... Richard Steiff, nephew of toy manufacturer Margarete Steiff and inventor of the Teddy bear, died. (*7.2.1877)
SUNDAY, 31 MARCH
- One year ago (2023) ... two regional trains derailed and overturned in the canton of Bern during a storm. A total of 15 people were injured in the incidents in Lüscherz and Büren zum Hof, one of them seriously.
- 5 years ago (2019) ... the little-known 45-year-old lawyer and environmental activist Zuzana Caputová was elected President of Slovakia. Her election was an expression of widespread weariness in the face of notoriously corrupt politics.
- 15 years ago (2009) ... the British armed forces began to withdraw from Iraq almost exactly six years after their invasion.
- 65 years ago (1959) ... Johann Heinrich Suhrkamp, founder of the Suhrkamp publishing house, died. (*28.3.1891)
... the Swiss author and translator Markus Hediger was born.
- 85 years ago (1939) ... the German film director Volker Schlöndorff ("The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum", "The Tin Drum") was born.
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