May 8

May 8 is the 128th day of the year (129th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 237 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 453 BC – The house of Zhao defeats the house of Zhi, ending the Battle of Jinyang, a military conflict between the elite families of the State of Jin during the Spring and Autumn period of China.
• 413 – Emperor Honorius signs an edict providing tax relief for the Italian provinces Tuscia, Campania, Picenum, Samnium, Apulia, Lucania and Calabria, who are plundered by the Visigoths.
• 589 – Reccared I summons the Third Council of Toledo.
• 1450 – Jack Cade's Rebellion: Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI.
• 1541 – Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River and names it Río de Espíritu Santo.
• 1788 – The French Parlement is suspended to be replaced by the creation of forty-seven new courts.
• 1794 – Branded a traitor during the Reign of Terror by revolutionists, French chemist Antoine Lavoisier, who was also a tax collector with the Ferme Générale, is tried, convicted, and guillotined all on the same day in Paris.
• 1821 – Greek War of Independence: The Greeks defeat the Turks at the Battle of Gravia Inn.
• 1842 – A train derails and catches fire in Paris, killing between 52 and 200 people.
• 1846 – Mexican–American War: The Battle of Palo Alto – Zachary Taylor defeats a Mexican force north of the Rio Grande in the first major battle of the war.
• 1861 – American Civil War: Richmond, Virginia is named the capital of the Confederate States of America.
• 1877 – At Gilmore's Gardens in New York City, the first Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show opens.
• 1886 – Pharmacist John Pemberton first sells a carbonated beverage named "Coca-Cola" as a patent medicine.
• 1898 – The first games of the Italian football league system are played.
• 1899 – The Irish Literary Theatre in Dublin produced its first play.
• 1901 – The Australian Labour Party is established.
• 1902 – In Martinique, Mount Pelée erupts, destroying the town of Saint-Pierre and killing over 30,000 people. Only a handful of residents survive the blast.
• 1912 – Paramount Pictures is founded.
• 1919 – Edward George Honey first proposes the idea of a moment of silence to commemorate The Armistice of World War I, which later results in the creation of Remembrance Day. In the United States it was called Armistice Day and is now Veterans Day.
• 1924 – The Klaipėda Convention is signed formally incorporating Klaipėda Region (Memel Territory) into Lithuania.
• 1927 – Attempting to make the first non-stop transatlantic flight from Paris to New York, French war heroes Charles Nungesser and François Coli disappear after taking off aboard The White Bird biplane.
• 1933 – Mohandas Gandhi begins a 21-day fast in protest against the British rule in India.
• 1941 – The German Luftwaffe launches a bombing raid on Nottingham and Derby
• 1942 – World War II: The Battle of the Coral Sea comes to an end with Japanese Imperial Navy aircraft carrier aircraft attacking and sinking the United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Lexington. The battle marks the first time in the naval history that two enemy fleets fight without visual contact between warring ships.
• 1942 – World War II: Gunners of the Ceylon Garrison Artillery on Horsburgh Island in the Cocos Islands rebel in the Cocos Islands Mutiny. Their mutiny is crushed and three of them are executed, the only British Commonwealth soldiers to be executed for mutiny during the Second World War.
• 1945 – Hundreds of Algerian civilians are killed by French Army soldiers in the Sétif massacre.
• 1945 – World War II: V-E Day, combat ends in Europe. German forces agree in Reims, France, to an unconditional surrender.
• 1945 – The Halifax Riot starts when thousands of civilians and servicemen rampage through Halifax.
• 1945 – End of the Prague uprising, celebrated now as a national holiday in the Czech Republic.
• 1945 – Dissolution and surrender of Nazi Germany and all its forces.
• 1946 – Estonian school girls Aili Jõgi and Ageeda Paavel blow up the Soviet memorial which stood in front of the Bronze Soldier in Tallinn.
• 1963 – South Vietnamese soldiers of Catholic President Ngo Dinh Diem open fire on Buddhists defying a ban on the flying of the Buddhist flag on Vesak, killing nine.
• 1966 – A plane crash at Connellsville, Pennsylvania kills the Pennsylvania Attorney General, his wife, and other state officials.
• 1967 – The Philippine province of Davao is split into three: Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, and Davao Oriental.
• 1970 – The Hard Hat Riot occurs in the Wall Street area of New York City as blue-collar construction workers clash with demonstrators protesting the Vietnam War.
• 1972 – Vietnam War – U.S. President Richard Nixon announces his order to place mines in major North Vietnamese ports in order to stem the flow of weapons and other goods to that nation.
• 1972 – Four Black September terrorists hijack Sabena Flight 571. Israeli Sayeret Matkal commandos recapture the plane the following day.
• 1973 – A 71-day standoff between federal authorities and the American Indian Movement members occupying the Pine Ridge Reservation at Wounded Knee, South Dakota ends with the surrender of the militants.
• 1976 – The rollercoaster Revolution, the first steel coaster with a vertical loop, opens at Six Flags Magic Mountain.
• 1978 – The first ascent of Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen, by Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler.
• 1980 – The eradication of smallpox is endorsed by the World Health Organization.
• 1984 – The Soviet Union announces that it will boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
• 1984 – Corporal Denis Lortie enters the Quebec National Assembly and opens fire, killing three and wounding 13. René Jalbert, sergeant-at-arms of the assembly, succeeds in calming him, for which he will later receive the Cross of Valour.
• 1984 – The Thames Barrier is officially opened.
• 1987 – The Loughgall Ambush: The SAS kills eight Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteers and a civilian during an ambush in Loughgall, Northern Ireland.
• 1988 – A fire at Illinois Bell's Hinsdale Central Office triggers an extended 1AESS network outage once considered the 'worst telecommunications disaster in US telephone industry history' and still the worst to occur on Mother's Day.
• 1997 – A China Southern Airlines Boeing 737 crashes on approach into Bao'an International Airport, killing 35 people.

Births

• 1326 – Joan I, Countess of Auvergne (d. 1360)
• 1460 – Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (d. 1536)
• 1521 – Peter Canisius, Dutch priest (d. 1597)
• 1587 – Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy (d. 1637)
• 1622 – Claes Rålamb, Swedish politician (d. 1698)
• 1628 – Angelo Italia, Sicilian Baroque architect (d. 1700)
• 1629 – Niels Juel, Norwegian-Danish admiral (d. 1697)
• 1632 – Heino Heinrich Graf von Flemming, German marshal (d. 1706)
• 1653 – Claude Louis Hector de Villars, French general and politician, Minister of Defence for France (d. 1734)
• 1670 – Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans, English soldier (d. 1726)
• 1720 – William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1764)
• 1735 – Nathaniel Dance-Holland, English painter (d. 1811)
• 1745 – Carl Stamitz, German composer (d. 1801)
• 1753 – Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Mexican priest (d. 1811)
• 1786 – John Vianney, French priest and saint (d. 1859)
• 1818 – Samuel Leonard Tilley, Canadian pharmacist and politician (d. 1896)
• 1821 – William Henry Vanderbilt, American businessman (d. 1885)
• 1825 – George Bruce Malleson, English-Indian colonel (d. 1898)
• 1828 – Henry Dunant, Swiss businessman and activist, co-founded the Red Cross, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1910)
• 1828 – Charbel Makhluf, Lebanese monk and saint (d. 1898)
• 1829 – Louis Moreau Gottschalk, American pianist and composer (d. 1869)
• 1835 – Bertalan Székely, Hungarian painter (d. 1910)
• 1839 – Adolphe-Basile Routhier, Canadian judge, author, and songwriter (d. 1920)
• 1842 – Emil Christian Hansen, Danish physiologist and mycologist (d. 1909)
• 1847 – Oscar Hammerstein I, American businessman and composer (d. 1919)
• 1850 – Ross Barnes, American baseball player (d. 1915)
• 1853 – Dan Brouthers, American baseball player (d. 1932)
• 1858 – Heinrich Berté, Slovak-Austrian composer (d. 1924)
• 1858 – J. Meade Falkner, English author and poet (d. 1932)
• 1859 – Johan Jensen, Danish mathematician and engineer (d. 1925)
• 1879 – Wesley Coe, American shot putter (d. 1926)
• 1884 – Harry S. Truman, American colonel and politician, 33rd President of the United States (d. 1972)
• 1885 – Thomas B. Costain, Canadian journalist and author (d. 1965)
• 1893 – Francis Ouimet, American golfer (d. 1967)
• 1893 – Edd Roush, American baseball player (d. 1988)
• 1893 – Teddy Wakelam, English rugby player and sportscaster (d. 1963)
• 1895 – James H. Kindelberger, American businessman (d. 1962)
• 1895 – Fulton J. Sheen, American archbishop (d. 1979)
• 1895 – Edmund Wilson, American author and critic (d. 1972)
• 1898 – Aloysius Stepinac, Croatian cardinal (d. 1960)
• 1899 – Arthur Q. Bryan, American voice actor (d. 1959)
• 1899 – Friedrich Hayek, Austrian-English economist and philosopher, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1992)
• 1901 – Turkey Stearnes, American baseball player (d. 1979)
• 1902 – André Michel Lwoff, French microbiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1994)
• 1903 – Fernandel, French actor and singer (d. 1971)
• 1904 – John Snagge, English journalist (d. 1996)
• 1905 – Red Nichols, American cornet player, composer, and bandleader (The California Ramblers) (d. 1965)
• 1906 – Esther Hoffe, Israeli mistress of Max Brod (d. 2007)
• 1906 – Roberto Rossellini, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 1977)
• 1910 – Andrew E. Svenson, American author and publisher (d. 1975)
• 1910 – Mary Lou Williams, American pianist and composer (d. 1981)
• 1911 – Robert Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1938)
• 1912 – George Woodcock, Canadian author and poet (d. 1995)
• 1913 – Bob Clampett, American animator, director, and producer (d. 1984)
• 1913 – Sid James, South African-English actor (d. 1976)
• 1914 – Geoffrey Gilbert, English flute player (d. 1989)
• 1915 – John Archer, American actor (d. 1999)
• 1915 – Milton Meltzer, American historian and author (d. 2009)
• 1916 – João Havelange, Brazilian businessman
• 1916 – Chinmayananda Saraswati, Indian spiritual leader and educator (d. 1993)
• 1919 – Lex Barker, American actor (d. 1973)
• 1920 – Saul Bass, American graphic designer and director (d. 1996)
• 1920 – Tom of Finland, Finnish illustrator (d. 1991)
• 1920 – Sloan Wilson, American author (d. 2003)
• 1920 – Gordon McClymont, Australian ecologist and educator (d. 2000)
• 1924 – S. Vithiananthan, Sri Lankan academic (d. 1989)
• 1925 – Ali Hassan Mwinyi, Tanzanian politician, 2nd President of Tanzania
• 1926 – David Attenborough, English television host
• 1926 – Don Rickles, American comedian and actor
• 1927 – Chumy Chúmez, Spanish director and author (d. 2003)
• 1928 – Robert Conley, American journalist (d. 2013)
• 1928 – Ted Sorensen, American lawyer, 8th White House Counsel (d. 2010)
• 1929 – Claude Castonguay, Canadian politician
• 1929 – Miyoshi Umeki, Japanese-American actress and singer (d. 2007)
• 1929 – Girija Devi, Indian singer
• 1930 – Heather Harper, Irish-English soprano
• 1930 – René Maltête, French photographer and poet (d. 2000)
• 1930 – Gary Snyder, American poet
• 1932 – Julieta Campos, Mexican author (d. 2007)
• 1932 – Phyllida Law, Scottish actress
• 1934 – Maurice Norman, English footballer
• 1935 – Jack Charlton, English footballer and manager
• 1935 – Princess Elisabeth of Denmark
• 1936 – Kazuo Koike, Japanese author
• 1936 – Haljand Udam, Estonian orientalist and translator (d. 2005)
• 1937 – Bernard Cleary, Canadian politician
• 1937 – Mike Cuellar, Cuban-American baseball player (d. 2010)
• 1937 – Carlos Gaviria Díaz, Colombian lawyer and politician
• 1937 – Thomas Pynchon, American author
• 1938 – Jean Giraud, French author and illustrator (d. 2012)
• 1938 – Javed Burki, Pakistani cricketer
• 1940 – Peter Benchley, American author and screenwriter (d. 2006)
• 1940 – Irwin Cotler, Canadian lawyer and politician, 47th Minister of Justice for Canada
• 1940 – Emilio Delgado, American actor and singer
• 1940 – Ricky Nelson, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 1985)
• 1940 – Toni Tennille, American singer-songwriter (Captain & Tennille)
• 1941 – Mahmoud Ahmed, Ethiopian singer
• 1941 – John Fred, American singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
• 1941 – Bill Lockyer, American politician, 30th Attorney General of California
• 1942 – Norman Lamont, Baron Lamont of Lerwick, Scottish politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer
• 1942 – Pierre Morency, Canadian poet and playwright
• 1942 – Terry Neill, Irish footballer and manager
• 1943 – Jon Mark, English-New Zealand singer-songwriter and guitarist (Sweet Thursday)
• 1943 – Paul Samwell-Smith, English bass player and producer (The Yardbirds and Box of Frogs)
• 1944 – Gary Glitter, English singer-songwriter
• 1944 – Bill Legend, English drummer (T. Rex)
• 1945 – Keith Jarrett, American pianist and composer
• 1946 – André Boulerice, Canadian politician
• 1946 – Jonathan Dancy, English philosopher, author, and educator
• 1947 – H. Robert Horvitz, American biologist, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1948 – Steve Braun, American baseball player
• 1948 – Felicity Lott, English soprano
• 1948 – Stephen Stohn, Canadian-American television producer and lawyer
• 1950 – Robert Mugge, American director and producer
• 1950 – Lepo Sumera, Estonian composer (d. 2000)
• 1951 – Philip Bailey, American singer-songwriter, drummer, and actor (Earth, Wind & Fire)
• 1951 – Mike D'Antoni, American basketball player and coach
• 1951 – Chris Frantz, American drummer and producer (Talking Heads and Tom Tom Club)
• 1951 – Deborah Harmon, American actress
• 1952 – Peter McNab, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
• 1953 – Billy Burnette, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (Fleetwood Mac)
• 1953 – Alex Van Halen, Dutch-American drummer (Van Halen)
• 1954 – Pam Arciero, American "Muppeteer" for Sesame Street and voice acttress
• 1954 – David Keith, American actor and director
• 1954 – John Michael Talbot, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Mason Proffit)
• 1955 – Stephen Furst, American actor and director
• 1955 – Mladen Markač, Croatian general
• 1955 – Meles Zenawi, Ethiopian politician, Prime Minister of Ethiopia (d. 2012)
• 1956 – Jeff Wincott, Canadian actor
• 1957 – Bill Cowher, American football player and coach
• 1957 – Gary Lunn, Canadian politician
• 1957 – Marie Myriam, French singer
• 1957 – Jeff Wincott, Canadian actor and athlete
• 1958 – Roddy Doyle, Irish author and screenwriter
• 1958 – Lovie Smith, American football player and coach
• 1959 – Ronnie Lott, American football player and sportscaster
• 1960 – Franco Baresi, Italian footballer and coach
• 1960 – Eric Brittingham, American bass player (Cinderella and Naked Beggars)
• 1961 – Vallo Reimaa, Estonian politician
• 1961 – Akira Taue, Japanese wrestler
• 1961 – David Winning, Canadian-American director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1963 – Terry Christian, English radio and television host
• 1963 – Sylvain Cossette, Canadian singer-songwriter (Paradox)
• 1963 – Anthony Field, Australian guitarist, songwriter, producer, and actor (The Cockroaches and The Wiggles)
• 1963 – Michel Gondry, French director and screenwriter
• 1963 – Robin Jarvis, English author
• 1963 – Izabela Kloc, Polish politician
• 1963 – Rick Zombo, American ice hockey player and coach
• 1964 – Melissa Gilbert, American actress and director
• 1964 – Bobby Labonte, American race car driver
• 1964 – Nathalie Roy, Canadian politician
• 1964 – Dave Rowntree, English drummer and animator (Blur and The Ailerons)
• 1966 – Marta Sánchez, Spanish singer
• 1966 – Cláudio Taffarel, Brazilian footballer and coach
• 1968 – Teet Kask, Estonian choreographer
• 1968 – Chris Lighty, American talent manager, co-founded Violator Entertainment (d. 2012)
• 1968 – Nathalie Normandeau, Canadian politician
• 1968 – Johan Pehrson, Swedish politician
• 1968 – Jamie Summers, American porn actress
• 1969 – Akebono Tarō, American-Japanese sumo wrestler, the 64th Yokozuna
• 1970 – Luis Enrique Martínez García, Spanish footballer and coach
• 1970 – Naomi Klein, Canadian author and activist
• 1970 – Michael Bevan, Australian cricketer
• 1972 – Darren Hayes, Australian singer-songwriter (Savage Garden)
• 1972 – Ray Whitney, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1973 – Hiromu Arakawa, Japanese illustrator
• 1973 – Jesús Arellano, Mexican footballer
• 1973 – Marcus Brigstocke, English comedian and actor
• 1974 – Marge Kõrkjas, Estonian Paralympic swimmer
• 1974 – Korey Stringer, American football player (d. 2001)
• 1974 – Jon Tickle, English television host
• 1975 – Enrique Iglesias, Spanish singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
• 1975 – Jussi Markkanen, Finnish ice hockey player
• 1975 – Gastón Mazzacane, Argentine race car driver
• 1975 – Dmitri Ustritski, Estonian footballer
• 1976 – Martha Wainwright, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1976 – Ian "H" Watkins, Welsh singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor (Steps and H & Claire)
• 1977 – Joe Bonamassa, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Bloodline and Black Country Communion)
• 1977 – Bad News Brown, Canadian rapper, harmonica player, and actor (d. 2011)
• 1977 – Theodoros Papaloukas, Greek basketball player
• 1977 – Jennifer Walcott, American model and actress
• 1978 – Lúcio, Brazilian footballer
• 1978 – Matthew Davis, American actor
• 1978 – Josie Maran, American model and actress
• 1978 – Jang Woo-hyuk, South Korean rapper and dancer (H.O.T. and jtL)
• 1980 – Keyon Dooling, American basketball player
• 1980 – Panagiotis Kafkis, Greek basketball player
• 1980 – Michelle McManus, Scottish singer-songwriter and actress
• 1980 – Kimberlee Peterson, American actress
• 1980 – Benny Yau, Hong Kong-Canadian actor and singer
• 1981 – Namosh, German singer
• 1981 – Stephen Amell, Canadian actor
• 1981 – Ayesha Antoine, English actress
• 1981 – Andrea Barzagli, Italian footballer
• 1981 – Tatyana Dektyareva, Russian hurdler
• 1981 – Björn Dixgård, Swedish singer-songwriter and guitarist (Mando Diao)
• 1981 – Manny Gamburyan, Armenian-American mixed martial artist
• 1981 – John Maine, American baseball player
• 1981 – Yasuko Tajima, Japanese swimmer
• 1981 – Elizabeth Whitmere, Canadian actress
• 1982 – Buakaw Banchamek, Thai kickboxer
• 1982 – Christina Cole, English actress
• 1982 – Adrian Gonzalez, American baseball player
• 1982 – Ninja Sarasalo, Finnish model and singer
• 1983 – Elyes Gabel, English actor
• 1983 – Juan Martin Goity, Argentinian-German rugby player
• 1983 – Lawrence Vickers, American football player
• 1983 – Roberto Vitiello, Italian footballer
• 1983 – Matt Willis, English singer-songwriter, musician, and actor (Busted)
• 1984 – Nadine Chandrawinata, German-Indonesian model, Puteri Indonesia 2005
• 1984 – Martin Compston, Scottish footballer and actor
• 1984 – Mascha Müller, German actress
• 1984 – Cynthia Deyanira Rodríguez Ruiz, Mexican singer
• 1984 – Yara Sofia, Puerto Rican drag queen performer
• 1984 – Julia Whelan, American actress
• 1984 – David King, English pair skater
• 1985 – Tommaso Ciampa, American wrestler
• 1985 – Devon Soltendieck, Canadian journalist
• 1985 – Silvia Stroescu, Romanian gymnast
• 1985 – Sarah Vaillancourt, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1985 – Usama Young, American football player
• 1986 – Pemra Özgen, Turkish tennis player
• 1986 – Marvell Wynne, American soccer player
• 1987 – Aneurin Barnard, Welsh actor
• 1987 – Felix Jones, American football player
• 1987 – Aarne Nirk, Estonian hurdler
• 1987 – Mark Noble, English footballer
• 1988 – Tanel Kurbas, Estonian basketball player
• 1989 – Liam Bridcutt, English footballer
• 1989 – Lars Eller, Danish ice hockey player
• 1990 – Kemba Walker, American basketball player
• 1991 – Ethan Gage, Canadian soccer player
• 1991 – Anamaria Tămârjan, Romanian gymnast
• 1992 – Ana Mulvoy Ten, English-American actress
• 1993 – Pat Cummins, Australian cricketer

Deaths

• 535 – Pope John II (b. 470)
• 685 – Pope Benedict II (b. 635)
• 1192 – Ottokar IV, Duke of Styria (b. 1163)
• 1278 – Emperor Duanzong of Song (b. 1268)
• 1319 – Haakon V of Norway (b. 1270)
• 1473 – John Stafford, 1st Earl of Wiltshire, English politician (b. 1420)
• 1538 – Edward Foxe, English bishop (b. 1496)
• 1668 – Catherine of St. Augustine, French-Canadian nun (b. 1632)
• 1672 – Comte de Troisville, French officer (b. 1598)
• 1766 – Samuel Chandler, English minister (b. 1693)
• 1773 – Ali Bey Al-Kabir, Egyptian sultan (b. 1728)
• 1781 – Richard Jago, English poet (b. 1715)
• 1785 – Étienne François, duc de Choiseul, French general and politician, Prime Minister of France (b. 1719)
• 1785 – Pietro Longhi, Venetian painter (b. 1701)
• 1788 – Giovanni Antonio Scopoli, Italian physician (b. 1723)
• 1794 – Antoine Lavoisier, French chemist (b. 1743)
• 1819 – Kamehameha I of Hawaii (b. 1758)
• 1822 – John Stark, American general (b. 1728)
• 1828 – Mauro Giuliani, Italian guitarist, cellist, and composer (b. 1781)
• 1837 – Alexander Balashov, Russian general and politician (b. 1770)
• 1842 – Jules Dumont d'Urville, French admiral and explorer (b. 1790)
• 1853 – Jan Roothaan, Dutch priest, 21st Superior General of the Society of Jesus (b. 1785)
• 1873 – John Stuart Mill, English economist and civil servant (b. 1806)
• 1880 – Gustave Flaubert, French author (b. 1821)
• 1891 – Helena Blavatsky, Russian author (b. 1831)
• 1903 – Paul Gauguin, French painter (b. 1848)
• 1907 – Edmund G. Ross, American politician, 13th Governor of New Mexico Territory (b. 1826)
• 1925 – John Beresford, Irish polo player (b. 1847)
• 1936 – Oswald Spengler, German historian and philosopher (b. 1880)
• 1941 – Natalie of Serbia (b. 1859)
• 1941 – Tore Svennberg, Swedish actor and director (b. 1858)
• 1942 – Nikolai Reek, Estonian military commander (b. 1890)
• 1943 – Mordechai Anielewicz, Polish commander (b. 1919)
• 1944 – Themistoklis Diakidis, Greek high jumper (b. 1882)
• 1945 – Wilhelm Rediess, German SS officer (b. 1900)
• 1945 – Bernhard Rust, German politician (b. 1883)
• 1945 – Josef Terboven, German politician (b. 1898)
• 1947 – Harry Gordon Selfridge, American-English businessman, founded Selfridges (b. 1858)
• 1948 – U Saw, Burmese politician (b. 1900)
• 1950 – Vital Brazil, Brazilian physician (b. 1865)
• 1952 – William Fox, Austrian businessman, founded Fox Theatres (b. 1879)
• 1959 – John Fraser, Canadian soccer player (b. 1881)
• 1960 – J. H. C. Whitehead, Indian-English mathematician (b. 1904)
• 1965 – Wally Hardinge, English crickter and footballer (b. 1886)
• 1967 – LaVerne Andrews, American singer (The Andrews Sisters) (b. 1911)
• 1969 – Remington Kellogg, American zoologist (b. 1892)
• 1975 – Avery Brundage,American businessman, 5th President of the International Olympic Committee (b. 1887)
• 1981 – Uri Zvi Grinberg, Israeli poet and journalist (b. 1896)
• 1982 – Neil Bogart, American record producer, co-founded Casablanca Records (b. 1943)
• 1982 – Gilles Villeneuve, Canadian race car driver (b. 1950)
• 1983 – John Fante, American author (b. 1909)
• 1984 – Lila Bell Wallace, American publisher, co-founded Reader's Digest (b. 1890)
• 1984 – Gino Bianco, Brazilian race car driver (b. 1916)
• 1985 – Karl Marx, German conductor and composer (b. 1897)
• 1985 – Theodore Sturgeon, American author and critic (b. 1918)
• 1985 – Dolph Sweet, American actor (b. 1920)
• 1986 – Ernle Bradford, English historian and author (b. 1922)
• 1987 – Doris Stokes, English psychic (b. 1920)
• 1988 – Robert A. Heinlein, American author (b. 1907)
• 1990 – Luigi Nono, Italian composer (b. 1924)
• 1991 – Jean Langlais, French pianist and composer (b. 1907)
• 1991 – Rudolf Serkin, Czech-Austrian pianist (b. 1903)
• 1992 – Joyce Ricketts, American baseball player (b. 1933)
• 1993 – Avram Davidson, American author (b. 1923)
• 1994 – George Peppard, American actor and producer (b. 1928)
• 1995 – Teresa Teng, Taiwanese singer (b. 1953)
• 1996 – Beryl Burton, English cyclist (b. 1937)
• 1996 – Luis Miguel Dominguín, Spanish bullfighter (b. 1926)
• 1996 – Garth Williams, American illustrator (b. 1912)
• 1996 – Larry Levis, American poet (b. 1946)
• 1998 – Johannes Kotkas, Estonian wrestler (b. 1915)
• 1998 – Charles Rebozo, American banker (b. 1912)
• 1999 – Dirk Bogarde, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1921)
• 1999 – Ed Gilbert, American actor (b. 1931)
• 1999 – Dana Plato, American actress (b. 1964)
• 2000 – Pita Amor, Mexican poet (b. 1918)
• 2000 – Alexander Chislenko, Russian-American theorist (b. 1959)
• 2000 – Dédé Fortin, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Les Colocs) (b. 1962)
• 2000 – Henry Nicols, American activist (b. 1973)
• 2001 – Yosef Ishran, Israeli murder victim (b. 1987)
• 2001 – Koby Mandell, Israeli-American murder victim (b. 1987)
• 2002 – Tim Horshington, Sri Lankan Tamil broadcaster
• 2005 – Jean Carrière, French author (b. 1928)
• 2005 – Nicolás Vuyovich, Argentinian race car driver (b. 1981)
• 2006 – Iain Macmillan, Scottish photographer (b. 1938)
• 2007 – Philip R. Craig, American author (b. 1933)
• 2007 – Carson Whitsett, American keyboardist, songwriter, and record producer (b. 1945)
• 2008 – Eddy Arnold, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (b. 1918)
• 2008 – François Sterchele, Belgian footballer (b. 1982)
• 2009 – Dom DiMaggio, American baseball player (b. 1917)
• 2009 – Bud Shrake, American journalist and author (b. 1931)
• 2011 – Lionel Rose, Australian boxer (b. 1948)
• 2012 – Lau Teng Chuan, Singaporean educator and coach (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Everett Lilly, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Lilly Brothers) (b. 1924)
• 2012 – Jerry McMorris, American businessman (b. 1941)
• 2012 – Stacy Robinson, American football player (b. 1962)
• 2012 – Maurice Sendak, American author and illustrator (b. 1928)
• 2012 – Ampon Tangnoppakul, Thai criminal (b. 1948)
• 2012 – Roman Totenberg, Polish-American violinist and educator (b. 1911)
• 2013 – Dan Adkins, American illustrator (b. 1937)
• 2013 – Jeanne Cooper, American actress (b. 1928)
• 2013 – Bryan Forbes, English actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1926)
• 2013 – Taylor Mead, American actor (b. 1924)
• 2013 – Juan José Muñoz, Argentinian businessman (b. 1950)
• 2013 – Asaph Schwapp, American football player (b. 1987)
• 2013 – Hugh J. Silverman, American philosopher and theorist (b. 1945)
• 2013 – Géza Vermes, Hungarian-English theologian and scholar (b. 1924)
• 2013 – Ken Whaley, Austrian-English bass player (Help Yourself, Ducks Deluxe, and Man) (b. 1946)
• 2013 – Dallas Willard, American philosopher (b. 1935)
• 2013 – Ernie Winchester, Scottish footballer (b. 1944)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day:
  • Agathius
  • Apparition of Saint Michael
  • Arsenius the Great (Eastern Orthodox Church)
  • Desideratus
  • Catherine de Saint-Augustin
  • Julian of Norwich (Anglican, Lutheran)
  • Peter of Tarentaise
  • May 8 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Earliest day on which Father's Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday of May. (Romania)
• Earliest day on which Mother's Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday of May. (United States and others)
• Earliest day on which State Flag and State Emblem Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday of May. (Belarus)
• Earliest day on which World Fair Trade Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday of May. (International)
• Miguel Hidalgo's birthday (Mexico)
• Parents' Day (South Korea)
• Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the Second World War, continues to May 9 (International)
• Truman Day (Missouri)
• Victory in Europe Day (Europe)
• White Lotus Day (Theosophy)
• World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day (International)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to May 8.

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada