1973 in the United States explained
Events from the year 1973 in the United States. The year saw a number of important historical events in the country, including the death of former President Lyndon B. Johnson, the U.S. Supreme Court's decision on Roe v. Wade, the signing of the Paris Peace Accords and end of the United States participation in the Vietnam War, the end of the post-World War II boom and the beginning of the first of a series of recessions that continued over the next decade, and the first oil crisis.[1] [2]
Incumbents
Federal government
Spiro Agnew (R-Maryland) (until October 10)
vacant (October 10 – December 6)
Gerald Ford (R-Michigan) (starting December 6)
Events
January
- January 1 - CBS sells the New York Yankees baseball team for $10 million to a 12-person syndicate led by George Steinbrenner ($3.2 million more than CBS paid for the Yankees).
- January 7 - Mark Essex kills four civilians and three police officers during a siege at the Downtown Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge in New Orleans. Ten hours after the siege began, Essex is killed by a volley of gunfire from police officers stationed inside a Marine helicopter.
- January 14
- Elvis Presley's concert in Hawaii is the first worldwide telecast by an entertainer watched by more people than the Apollo Moon landings. However, it is not shown in Eastern Bloc countries because of communist censorship (with the sole exception of East Germany, where it is shown on Der schwarze Kanal). In the United States and Brazil, it does not air until April of this year.
- Super Bowl VII
The Miami Dolphins defeat the Washington Redskins 14–7 to complete the National Football League's first (and only, thus far) perfect season.
- January 15 - Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, President Richard Nixon announces the suspension of offensive action in North Vietnam.
- January 20 - President Nixon and Vice President Agnew are sworn in for their second term.
- January 22
The U.S. Supreme Court overturns state bans on abortion.[3]
-
- January 23 - President Nixon announces that a peace accord has been reached in Vietnam.
- January 27 - U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War ends with the signing of the Paris Peace Accords. The U.S. military draft is also abolished on this same day, as the Nixon administration announces on this day that there will be no draft calls in 1973, and that it will not request an extension of the U.S. government's draft authority, which goes on to expire on June 30 of this year.
- January 30 - G. Gordon Liddy is found guilty of Watergate charges.
- January 31 – Pan American and Trans World Airlines cancel their options to buy 13 Concorde airliners.
February
- February 11 - Vietnam War: The first American prisoners of war are released from Vietnam.
- February 12 - Ohio becomes the first U.S. state to post road distance signs in metric (see Metric system in the United States).
- February 13 - The United States Dollar is devalued by 10%.
- February 21 - The 5.8 Point Mugu earthquake affected the south coast of California with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong). Several people were injured and damage totaled $1 million.
- February 27 - The American Indian Movement occupies Wounded Knee, South Dakota.[4]
- February 28 - The landmark postmodern novel Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon is published.
March
- March 1 - Charlotte's Web, the animated film based on the children's book of the same name, is released.
- March 12 - Last episode of original Laugh-In airs on NBC. The show will continue with re-runs until May 14, 1973.
- March 17 - Many of the few remaining United States soldiers begin to leave Vietnam. One reunion of a former POW with his family is immortalized in the Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph Burst of Joy.
- March 23 - Watergate scandal (United States): In a letter to Judge John Sirica, Watergate burglar James W. McCord Jr. admits that he and other defendants have been pressured to remain silent about the case. He names former Attorney General John Mitchell as 'overall boss' of the operation.
- March 26
- UCLA captures its seventh consecutive college basketball national championship and eighth in ten seasons under John Wooden, defeating Memphis State 87–66 in the finals of the NCAA tournament at St. Louis. UCLA center Bill Walton sets championship game records by connecting on 21 of 22 field goal attempts and scoring 44 points.
- TV soap opera The Young and the Restless and game show The $10,000 Pyramid debuts on CBS.
- March 27 - The 45th Academy Awards ceremony, hosted by Carol Burnett, Michael Caine, Charlton Heston and Rock Hudson, is held at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather wins Best Picture, also tied with Bob Fosse's adaptation of Cabaret in receiving ten nominations. The latter film wins eight awards, including Best Director for Fosse. The ceremony draws a television audience of 85 million viewers.
- March 29 - The last United States soldier leaves Vietnam.
April
- April 3 - The first handheld cellular phone call is made by Martin Cooper in New York City.[5]
- April 4 - The World Trade Center officially opens in New York City with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
- April 6
- April 17
- April 26 - The first day of trading on the Chicago Board Options Exchange.
- April 28 - The last section of the IRT Third Avenue Line from 149th Street to Gun Hill Road in The Bronx is closed.
- April 30 - Watergate scandal: President Richard Nixon announces that White House Counsel John Dean has been fired and that Attorney General Richard Kleindienst has resigned along with staffers H. R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman.
May
- May 1 - Following President Richard Nixon's visit to mainland China, the United States establishes a liaison office in Beijing.
- May 3 - The Sears Tower in Chicago is finished, becoming the world's tallest building (record held until 1998).
- May 5
- May 8 - A 71-day standoff between federal authorities and American Indian Movement activists who were occupying the Pine Ridge Reservation at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, ends with the surrender of the militants.
- May 10 - The New York Knicks defeat the Los Angeles Lakers, 102–93 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals to win the NBA title.
- May 13 - Bobby Riggs challenges and defeats Margaret Court, the world's #1 women's player, in a nationally televised tennis match set in Ramona, CA northeast of San Diego. Riggs wins 6–2, 6-1 which leads to the huge Battle of the Sexes match against Billie Jean King later in the year on September 20.
- May 14 - Skylab, the United States' first space station, is launched.
- May 17 - Watergate scandal: Televised hearings begin in the United States Senate.
- May 19 - Secretariat wins the Preakness Stakes by lengths over the amazingly quick second placed Sham. A malfunction in the track's timing equipment prevented a confirmed new track record.
- May 25 - Skylab 2 (Pete Conrad, Paul Weitz, Joseph Kerwin) is launched on a mission to repair damage to the recently launched Skylab space station.
- May 30 - Gordon Johncock wins the Indianapolis 500 in the Patrick Racing Special Eagle-Offenhauser, after only 133 laps, (The race was begun on May 28 but called off because of accidents and rain, and could not be restarted May 29.)[6] [7]
June
July
- July 1 - The United States Drug Enforcement Administration is founded.
- July 2 - The United States Congress passes the Education of the Handicapped Act (EHA), mandating Special Education federally.
- July 5 - A catastrophic BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion) in Kingman, Arizona kills 11 firefighters. The explosion occurred after a fire broke out as propane was being transferred from a railroad car to a storage tank. This explosion has become a classic incident, studied in fire department training programs worldwide.
- July 12 - 1973 National Archives Fire: A major fire destroys the entire 6th floor of the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
- July 15 - Nolan Ryan of the California Angels pitches his second no-hitter of the season against the Detroit Tigers. He previous no-hit the Kansas City Royals exactly two months prior.
- July 16 - Watergate Scandal: Former White House aide Alexander Butterfield informs the United States Senate Watergate Committee that President Richard Nixon had secretly recorded potentially incriminating conversations.
- July 28
- July 31 - A Delta Air Lines Flight 173 DC9-31 aircraft lands short of Boston's Logan Airport runway in poor visibility, striking a sea wall about 165 feet (50 m) to the right of the runway centerline and about 3,000 feet (914 m) short. All 6 crew members and 83 passengers are killed, one of the passengers dying several months after the accident.
August
- August 8 - Serial killer, rapist, kidnapper and torturer Dean Corll is shot to death by one of his teenage accomplices, Elmer Wayne Henley, at Corll's home in Pasadena, Texas. Henley turns himself in and confesses, uncovering the Houston mass murders, a series of murders in which 28 young boys had been abducted, tortured and murdered by Corll and his accomplices Henley and David Brooks (who is also arrested).
- August 11
- DJ Kool Herc originates the hip hop music genre in New York City.[8]
- The second film directed by George Lucas, American Graffiti is released.
- August 15 - The U.S. bombing of Cambodia ends, officially halting 12 years of combat activity in Southeast Asia.
September
- September 9 – Portuguese-American socialite, Joana Santos, is born. She would single-handedly see to the revitalization of Down Neck (Newark, NJ) and on the eve of her 50th birthday (late summer of 2023) the CTT Correios de Portugal issued a commemorative postal stamp in honor of her countless contributions for both Portugal and the United States.
- September 11 - American singer Art Garfunkel finally releases his solo debut album Angel Clare, 17 years after starting his career.
- September 20
- The Battle of the Sexes: Billie Jean King defeats Bobby Riggs in a televised tennis match, 6–4, 6–4, 6–3, at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. With an attendance of 30,492, this remains the largest live audience ever to see a tennis match in US history. The global audience that views on television in 36 countries is estimated at 90 million.
- Singer-songwriter Jim Croce dies following a gig at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana, having boarded a small chartered plane that crashes on takeoff; all six people aboard are killed.
- Baseball legend Willie Mays announces his retirement.
- September 22 - Henry Kissinger, United States National Security Advisor, starts his term as United States Secretary of State.
- September 23 - In American football, the Oakland Raiders defeat the Miami Dolphins 12–7, ending the Dolphins' unbeaten streak at 18. It is the Miami Dolphins' first loss since January 16, 1972 in Super Bowl VI.
- September 28 - ITT is bombed in New York City by the Weather Underground, protesting its involvement in the 1973 Chilean coup d'état.
- September 30 – Yankee Stadium, known as "The House That Ruth Built," closes for a two-year renovation at a cost of $160 million. The New York Yankees play all of their home games at Shea Stadium in 1974 and 1975.
October
- October 1 - The Ideal Toy Company debuts the Evel Knievel stunt-cycle, which would go on to become one of the best-selling toys of Christmas 1973.
- October 6 - American Country Countdown, a country music-oriented spin off of the nationally syndicated radio program American Top 40, debuts with host Don Bowman. The countdown, featuring the top 40 country hits of the week according to the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles chart, becomes a major success.
- October 10
- Spiro T. Agnew resigns as Vice President of the United States. In federal court in Baltimore, Maryland, he pleads no contest to charges of income tax evasion on $29,500 he received in 1967, while he was governor of Maryland. He is fined $10,000 and put on 3 years' probation.
- The New York Mets win the National League pennant.
- October 20 - The Saturday Night Massacre: President Richard Nixon orders Attorney General Elliot Richardson to dismiss Watergate Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox. Richardson refuses and resigns, along with Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus. Solicitor General Robert Bork, third in line at the Department of Justice, then fires Cox. The event raises calls for Nixon's impeachment.
- October 21 - The Oakland A's repeat as champions of Major League Baseball, defeating the New York Mets 5–2 in game 7 of the World Series.
- October 27 - The Canon City meteorite, a 1.4 kilogram chondrite type meteorite, strikes Earth in Fremont County, Colorado.
November
NASA launches Mariner 10 toward Mercury (on March 29, 1974, it becomes the first space probe to reach that planet).
December
- December 3 - Pioneer program: Pioneer 10 sends back the first close-up images of Jupiter.
- December 6 - The United States House of Representatives votes 387–35 to confirm Gerald Ford as Vice President of the United States; he is sworn in the same day.
- December 15
- December 16 - O. J. Simpson of the Buffalo Bills becomes the first running back to rush for 2,000 yards in a pro football season.
- December 26 - The Exorcist, the film adaptation of William Peter Blatty's 1971 bestselling novel, is released in 30 theaters nationwide. Long lines form as it becomes a huge success, helped by accounts of audiences fainting and vomiting.
- December 28 - The Endangered Species Act is passed in the United States.
Ongoing
Births
January
- January 1 - Justin Armour, football player
- January 2
- January 3
- January 4
- January 5 - Derek Cecil, actor
- January 6 - Alex Berenson, writer
- January 9 - Angela Bettis, actress, producer, and director
- January 10
- Ajit Pai, politician and telecommunications director, Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission
- Glenn Robinson, basketball player
- January 11 - Michelle Belanger, author
- January 12
- Prashant Bhargava, filmmaker and designer (d. 2015)
- Steve Blay, poker player, author, and founder of AdvancedPokerTraining.com
- Brian Culbertson, contemporary jazz/R&B/funk musician, instrumentalist, producer and performer
- January 14 - Troy Brohawn, baseball player
- January 15 - Alexa Avilés, politician, community activist, and non-profit manager
- January 16
- January 18
- January 19
- January 21
- January 23
- Karen Abbott, author
- Mark Boal, journalist, screenwriter, and film producer
- January 25
- January 26
- January 28
- January 29 - Jason Schmidt, baseball player
- January 30 - Jalen Rose, basketball player
- January 31 - Portia de Rossi, Australian-born actress who is married to Ellen DeGeneres
February
- February 1
- February 2
- February 3 - Brandon Bennett, football player
- February 4
- February 5 - David Meunier, actor
- February 6 - David Barrett, blues musician
- February 7
- February 8
- February 9
- February 12
- February 13
- February 14 - Steve McNair, football player (d. 2009)
- February 15
- February 16
- February 17
- February 18 - Chris Beard, basketball coach
- February 19
- February 20
- February 21
- Jacob M. Appel, author, poet, bioethicist, physician, lawyer, and social critic
- Justin Sane, singer, guitarist, and frontman for Anti-Flag
- Tyrus, wrestler and television personality
- February 22
- February 23 - Jason Boyd, baseball player
- February 24 - Chris Fehn, drummer
- February 25
- February 26
- February 28
March
- March 1
- March 2 - Graham Boettcher, art curator
- March 3
- March 4 - Brian Barber, baseball player
- March 5 - Ryan Franklin, baseball player
- March 6
- March 7
- March 8 - Jahana Hayes, politician
- March 9 - Aaron Boone, baseball player
- March 10
- March 11 - Ernest Allen, football player
- March 12 - Antonio Banks, football player
- March 14 - Betsy Brandt, actress
- March 15 - Janine Bowman, Olympic sport shooter
- March 17 - Patricia Rushton, creator and founder of PITA organization
- March 18 - Luci Christian, voice actress
- March 19
- March 20
- March 21
- March 22 - Alex Padilla, politician
- March 23
- March 24 - Jim Parsons, actor and producer
- March 25 - Jeff Beacher, producer, entrepreneur, and comedian
- March 26
- March 27
- March 28 - Umaga, wrestler (d. 2009)
- March 29
- March 30
- Brian Behlendorf, technologist, executive, and computer programmer
- Bitch, musician, actress, composer, and performance artist
- Robin Coleman, actress, bodybuilder, and strongwoman
- DJ AM, musician and DJ (d. 2009)
- March 31 - Reese Andy, mixed martial artist
April
- April 1
- April 2 - Roselyn Sánchez, Puerto Rican-born actress
- April 3
- Ashot Ariyan, Armenian-born Canadian-American composer and pianist
- John Butler, football coach
- Adam Scott, actor, comedian, and producer
- April 4
- Chris Banks, football player (d. 2014)
- David Blaine, magician
- April 5
- April 6
- April 7 - Amy Anzel, entrepreneur, actress, producer, and television presenter
- April 8 - Emma Caulfield, actress
- April 11
- April 12
- April 13 - Bokeem Woodbine, actor
- April 14
- April 16 - Akon, rapper, singer/songwriter, and record producer
- April 18
- April 19
- April 20
- April 21
- April 22
- April 23
- April 24
- April 25
- April 26 - Geoff Blum, baseball player
- April 27
- April 28
- April 29
May
- May 1
- May 2 - Justin Burnett, composer
- May 5 - Nicholas Bloom, British-born university professor
- May 6 - Mike Borkowski, race car driver
- May 7 - John Atwell, racing driver
- May 9
- May 10
- May 11 - James Haven, actor
- May 12
- May 13 - Warren Ballentine, motivational speaker, attorney, political activist, and radio talk show host
- May 14 - Shanice, singer
- May 15
- May 16
- May 17
- May 18 - The Blue Meanie, wrestler
- May 20
- May 23 - Jason Nash, dancer
- May 24 - Elisa Bridges, actress and model (d. 2002)
- May 25
- May 26 - Christine Clayburg, meteorologist
- May 27
- May 29 - Michael Balderrama, choreographer, dancer, and producer
- May 30
June
- June 1
- Heidi Klum, German-born model
- Derek Lowe, baseball player
- June 2 - Kevin Feige, filmmaker and president of Marvel Studios
- June 3 - Zak Baney, record producer, songwriter, screenwriter, filmmaker, and photographer
- June 4
- June 5 - Lamon Brewster, boxer
- June 8 - James Baron, football player
- June 9
- June 10 - Faith Evans, singer
- June 11
- June 13
- June 14
- Jimmy Button, motocross racer
- Joel Souza, filmmaker
- June 15
- Neil Patrick Harris, actor, producer, singer, comedian, magician, and television host
- Greg Vaughan, actor
- June 19
- June 20
- June 21
- June 22
- June 23
- June 26
- June 27 - Jennifer Brundage, softball player
- June 28
- June 29
- June 30 - Robert Bales, United States Army staff-sergeant and suspect in the Kandahar massacre
July
- July 1
- July 2 - Teodross Avery, jazz saxophonist
- July 3
- July 5 - Joe, singer/songwriter and record producer
- July 6
- July 7
- July 9
- July 10 - Annie Mumolo, actress, screenwriter, comedian and producer
- July 11
- July 12
- July 14 - Alley Baggett, model and makeup artist
- July 15 - Brian Austin Green, actor
- July 16
- July 17
- July 18 - Brian Sidney Bembridge, scenic and lighting designer
- July 19
- July 20
- July 21
- July 22 - Rufus Wainwright, American-born Canadian singer/songwriter and composer
- July 23
- July 24
- July 25
- July 27 - Kenji Bunch, composer and violist
- July 28 - Scott Bloom, actor and filmmaker
- July 29
- July 30
- July 31 - Jason Archer, artist
August
- August 1
- August 2
- August 3
- August 5
- August 6
- August 7
- August 8
- August 9
- August 11
- August 12
- August 13 - Molly Henneberg, news reporter
- August 14 - Jacob Brent, actor
- August 15 - Kris Mangum, football player
- August 16
- August 17
- August 19 - Ahmed Best, actor, comedian, and musician
- August 20 - Todd Helton, baseball player
- August 21 - Sergey Brin, Russian-born computer scientist, Internet entrepreneur, co-founder of Google, and CEO of Alphabet, Inc. (2015–2019)
- August 22
- August 23
- August 24
- August 25 - Count Bass D, rapper
- August 26 - Mark Budzinski, baseball player and coach
- August 28
- August 29 - Jason Spisak, actor, voice actor, and producer
- August 30
- August 31
September
- September 1
- September 2
- September 3 - Alexandra Kerry, actress, filmmaker, director, and producer
- September 4 - Jason David Frank, actor (d. 2022)
- September 5
- September 7
- September 8 - Troy Sanders, singer and bassist for Mastodon and Killer Be Killed
- September 9
- September 10 - Chris Bortz, politician
- September 11
- September 12
- September 13 - Aaron Benward, singer/songwriter, actor, and producer
- September 14
- September 15
- September 17 - Keirsten Alley, tennis player
- September 18
- September 19 - Amil, rapper
- September 20
- September 21
- September 22 - Bob Sapp, wrestler, actor, football player, kickboxer, and mixed martial artist
- September 24
- September 25
- September 29 - Joe Hulbig, ice hockey player
- September 30
October
- October 1
- October 2
- October 3
- October 4
- October 5 - Tom Brislin, keyboardist, singer/songwriter, producer, author, and member of Kansas
- October 7 - Mark Ronchetti, meteorologist and political candidate
- October 8
- October 9
- Jennifer Aspen, actress
- Steve Burns, actor, voice actor, director, producer, television host, guitarist, musician, and singer
- Charles Burton, wrestler
- October 10
- October 13 - Matt Hughes, mixed martial artist
- October 14
- October 15
- October 18
- October 20 - William Birdthistle, Irish-born university professor
- October 21
- October 23 - Vivian Bang, South Korean-born actress
- October 24
- October 25
- October 26
- Rorke Denver, Navy SEAL and actor
- Seth MacFarlane, actor, screenwriter, producer, director, and singer
- October 27
- October 28 - Montel Vontavious Porter, wrestler
- October 30 - Dave Asprey, entrepreneur and author
- October 31
November
- November 1
- November 2
- November 3
- November 4 - Eric Bennett, Paralympic archer
- November 5
- November 6 - Taje Allen, football player
- November 7
- November 8 - David Muir, journalist and news anchor
- November 9
- November 11 - Stephanie Bice, politician
- November 12
- November 13
- November 14
- November 16 - Marcus Lemonis, Lebanese-born businessman, investor, and television personality
- November 17
- November 19
- November 20 - Sav Rocca, Australian-born football player
- November 21 - Luke Aikins, skydiver, BASE jumper, pilot, and aerial photographer
- November 22 - Jamie Belsito, politician
- November 23
- John Eric Armstrong, convicted serial killer
- Autumn Burke, politician
- November 24
- November 25 - Eddie Steeples, actor
- November 26 - Peter Facinelli, actor
- November 27
- November 28
- November 30 - Nimród Antal, Hungarian-born director, screenwriter, and actor
December
- December 1 - Lombardo Boyar, comedian, actor, and voice artist
- December 3
- December 4 - Tyra Banks, supermodel, actress, and talk show host
- December 5 - Rod Barry, pornographic actor
- December 7
- December 8 - Corey Taylor, singer and frontman for Slipknot and Stone Sour
- December 9
- December 10
- December 11 - Mos Def, rapper and actor
- December 12
- December 13
- December 14 - Thuy Trang, Vietnamese-born actress (d. 2001)
- December 15
- December 16 - Scott Storch, hip-hop producer
- December 17 - Brian Fitzpatrick, politician
- December 18
- December 20 - Jenny Boucek, basketball player and coach
- December 21
- December 22 - Octaviano Juarez-Corro, Mexican-born convicted murderer (d. 2023)
- December 24
- December 25
- December 26
- December 27
- December 28 - Seth Meyers, comedian, writer, producer, actor, and television host
- December 29
- December 30 - Jason Behr, actor
- December 31 - Shandon Anderson, basketball player
Full date unknown
- John M. Ackerman, American-born Mexican political activist, TV host, and academic
- Nick Adams, writer and author
- Titilayo Adedokun, singer and beauty queen
- Jeremy Adelman, composer
- Brad Adkins, artist and curator
- Luis Gabriel Aguilera, American-born Mexican author, writer, musician, language teacher, and social justice activist
- Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, playwright, screenwriter, and comic book writer
- Gema Alava, Spanish-born artist
- Saleem Ali, American-born Australian scientist
- Jessica Andersen, writer
- Eric Chase Anderson, author, illustrator, and actor
- Miya Ando, artist
- Saman Arbabi, Iranian-born journalist
- Mark Archer, producer, director, and writer
- Ana Claudia Arias, Brazilian-born physicist
- Vernice Armour, Marine Captain and naval aviator
- Mohit Aron, Indian-born computer scientist
- Kristen Ashburn, photojournalist
- Maximilian Auffhammer, environmental economist
- Pejman Azarmina, Iranian-born scholar, entrepreneur, musician, and thinkocrat
- Stephen Babcock, lawyer
- Vadim Backman, biomedical engineer
- John Badalamenti, lawyer and judge
- Khaldoun Baghdadi, Jordanian-born politician
- Eric Baker, businessman and founder of Viagogo
- Cheryl E. Ball, academic and scholar
- Todd Ballard, Christian musician and worship leader
- Hayley Barker, painter
- Kelly Barnhill, author
- John Barros, businessman and politician
- Batting Stance Guy, YouTuber
- Éric Baudelaire, artist and filmmaker
- Avantika Bawa, Indian-born artist, curator, and professor
- Ross Beach, musician, songwriter, and record producer
- Dan Beachy-Quick, poet, writer, and critic
- Prakash Belkale, Indian-born mathematician
- Brian Belott, artist and performer
- Fadil Berisha, Albanian-born photographer
- Mischa Berlinski, author
- Laura Berman, Spanish-born artist and printmaker
- Laura Bialis, American-born Israeli filmmaker
- Sandra Biedron, physicist
- Shannon Bilbray-Axelrod, politician
- Alan Bjerga, author and journalist
- Brian Blanchfield, poet and essayist
- Adam Block, astrophotographer
- Brett Ellen Block, novelist
- Rob Bochnik, musician, audio engineer, and singer/songwriter
- Kirsten Bomblies, biological researcher
- J Boogie, DJ, music producer, radio host, music director and curator
- Scott Boothby, hammer thrower
- Dražen Bošnjak, Bosnian-born composer and sound designer
- Chad Boudreau, basketball coach
- Anne Boyer, poet and essayist
- Alan Braverman, businessman, co-founder of Xoom Corporation and Eventbrite
- Jesse Bravo, psychic and banker
- Mat Brinkman, artist and electronic musician
- David Bronner, corporate executive and activist
- Sharon Brous, rabbi
- Andrea Brown, opera soprano
- Cindy Lynn Brown, Danish-born poet
- Eleanor Brown, novelist, anthologist, editor, teacher, and speaker
- Nadia Brown, poet, writer, and author
- Pieta Brown, artist, musician, producer, multi-instrumentalist, and singer/songwriter
- Tyrone Brown, convicted felon
- Simone Browne, author and educator
- Sharon R. Browning, geneticist
- Nathan Bryan, biologist and researcher
- Stefan G. Bucher, German-born writer, graphic designer, and illustrator
- Judy Budnitz, writer
- Jason Buhrmester, journalist and author
- Jim Burke, illustrator
- Mike Burns, filmmaker
- Tim Burns, politician
- Bisa Butler, fiber artist
- Mitch Colvin, politician, mayor of Fayetteville, North Carolina (2017–present)
- Indo G, rapper
Deaths
- January 11 - Isabel Randolph, actress (born 1889)[10]
- January 22 - Lyndon B. Johnson, 36th president of the United States from 1963 until 1969, 37th vice president of the United States from 1961 until 1963 (born 1908)
- January 23 - Kid Ory, musician (born 1886)[11]
- January 24 - J. Carrol Naish, actor (born 1896)
- January 26 – Edward G. Robinson, actor (born 1893)
- January 28 – John Banner, Austrian-born American actor (born 1910)
- January 30 - Elizabeth Baker, economist and academic (born 1885)
- February 9 – Max Yasgur, farmer (born 1919)
- February 15
- February 17 - Harold Saxton Burr, scientist (born 1889)
- February 18 - Frank Costello, Italian-born American Mafia gangster and crime boss (born 1891)
- February 23 - Dickinson W. Richards, physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (born 1895)
- February 24 - Alice Hollister, silent film actress (born 1886)[12]
- February 28 – Cecil Kellaway, South African actor (born 1890)
- March 6 - Pearl S. Buck, writer, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1892)[13]
- March 8 - Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, rock musician (born 1945)
- March 12 - Frankie Frisch, baseball player (St. Louis Cardinals) and a member of the MLB Hall of Fame (born 1898)
- March 14
- March 16 - Carl Benton Reid, actor (born 1893)
- March 18 - William Benton, U.S. Senator from Connecticut from 1949 until 1953 (born 1900)
- March 21 - Ray Williamson, California politician (b. 1895)[14]
- March 23 - Ken Maynard, actor (born 1895)[15]
- March 26 - George Sisler, baseball player (St. Louis Browns) and a member of the MLB Hall of Fame (born 1893)
- April 12 - Arthur Freed, film producer (b. 1894)
- April 20 - Robert Armstrong, actor (born 1890)
- April 21 - Merian C. Cooper, aviator, director and producer (b. 1893)
- April 25 - Frank Jack Fletcher, admiral (b. 1885)
- April 26 - Irene Ryan, actress (b. 1902)
- May 6 - Myrna Fahey, actress (born 1933)
- May 8 - Alexander Vandegrift, general (born 1887)
- May 10 – Jack E. Leonard, comedian and actor (born 1910)
- May 18 - Jeannette Rankin, first United States congresswoman (born 1880)
- May 21 – Vaughn Monroe, singer (born 1911)
- June 1 - Mary Kornman, actress (born 1915)
- June 3 – Dory Funk, professional wrestler (born 1919)
- June 21 - Frank Leahy, football player and coach (born 1908)
- June 23 - Fay Holden, actress (born 1893)
- June 24 - Mary Carr, actress (born 1874)
- June 26 - Ernest Truex, actor (born 1889)
- July 1 - Laurens Hammond, inventor (born 1895)
- July 2
- July 6 - Joe E. Brown, actor and comedian (born 1891)
- July 7 - Veronica Lake, actress (born 1922)
- July 8 – Gene L. Coon, screenwriter, producer, and novelist (born 1924)
- July 11 - Robert Ryan, actor (born 1909)
- July 12 - Lon Chaney Jr., actor (born 1906)
- July 15 – Clarence White, bluegrass and country guitarist and singer (born 1944)
- July 18 - Richard Remer, athlete (born 1883)
- July 20
- July 23 - Eddie Rickenbacker, World War I flying ace and race car driver (born 1890)
- July 25 - Edgar Stehli, French-born American actor (born 1884)
- August 4 - Eddie Condon, jazz musician (born 1905)
- August 8 - Dean Corll, serial killer, rapist, kidnapper and torturer (born 1939)
- August 16 – Veda Ann Borg, actress (born 1915)
- August 17 – Paul Williams, singer (The Temptations) (born 1939)
- August 30 - Michael Dunn, a.k.a. Gary Neil Miller, dwarf actor and singer (born 1934)
- August 31 – John Ford, film director and producer (born 1894)
- September 12 – Marjorie Merriweather Post, businesswoman (born 1887)
- September 13 – Betty Field, actress (born 1913)
- September 15 – Robert B. McClure, general (born 1896)
- September 19 – Gram Parsons, singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist (born 1946)
- September 20
- September 28
- October 2 - Paul Hartman, dancer and actor (born 1904)
- October 6
- October 7 - Bonner Fellers, United States Army general (born 1896)
- October 9 - Sister Rosetta Tharpe, gospel singer (born 1915)
- October 14 - Edmund A. Chester, broadcaster and journalist (b. 1897)[18]
- October 16 – Gene Krupa, jazz drummer, bandleader, and composer (born 1909)
- October 18
- October 19 - Margaret C. Anderson, magazine publisher (born 1886)
- October 27 - Allan Lane, actor (born 1909)
- October 28 - Cleo Moore, actress (born 1928)
- November 10
- November 13 - Lila Lee, actress (born 1905)[20]
- November 20 - Allan Sherman, comedy writer, television producer, and song parodist (born 1924)
- November 23 - Constance Talmadge, actress (born 1898)
- November 25 - Albert DeSalvo, criminal, suspect in the Boston Strangler case (born 1931)
- November 27 - Frank Christian, jazz musician (born 1887)
- December 3 - Emile Christian, musician (born 1895)
- December 4 - Michael O'Shea, actor (born 1906)
- December 17 - Charles Greeley Abbot, astrophysicist (born 1872)[21]
- December 20 - Bobby Darin, singer-songwriter, musician, actor, dancer, impressionist and TV presenter (born 1936)
- December 26
See also
References
eclipse (4,5);
Notes and References
- News: Woodruff . Judy . January 23, 2015 . When four historic events happened over three days in 1973 . PBS Newshour . Washington, D.C. .
- News: Levinson . Mark . How economic boom times in the West came to an end . . Melbourne . June 15, 2023.
- Book: James Stuart Olson . James Stuart Olson . Historical Dictionary of the 1970s . 1999 . Greenwood Publishing Group . 978-0-313-30543-6 . Chronology . https://books.google.com/books?id=YKkF8vQRcp0C&pg=PA369 . registration .
- Book: Mitchell K. Hall. Historical Dictionary of the Nixon-Ford Era. 2008. . 978-0-8108-6410-8 . Chronology . https://books.google.com/books?id=af6xAAAAQBAJ&pg=PR13 .
- Web site: Mobile phone inventor made first call 50 years ago . BBC News . 3 April 2023 . 3 April 2023.
- Indy's somber trial by fire and rain . Sports Illustrated . Jones . Robert F. . Robert F. Jones. June 11, 1973 . 30.
- News: Johncock claims the 'Indy 332½' . Eugene Register-Guard . Associated Press . May 31, 1973 . 1C.
- Web site: Birthplace of Hip Hop. History Detectives. PBS. 2017-08-11.
- News: . Attorney General, Prosecutor Picked . The Argus-Press . Associated Press . November 1, 1973.
- Web site: Isabel Randolph : Classic Movie Hub (CMH). classicmoviehub.com.
- Book: The Guinness Who's Who of Jazz. Colin Larkin. Guinness Publishing. 1992. First. 0-85112-580-8. 309/310.
- https://silenthollywood.com/alicehollister.html ~Alice Hollister~
- Book: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Containing the Public Messages, Speeches, and Statements of the President. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1973. 163.
- Web site: Raymond Williams. joincalifornia.com.
- Book: The Guinness Who's Who of Country Music. Colin Larkin. Guinness Publishing. 1993. First. 0-85112-726-6. 264.
- News: Robert Smithson, 35, A Sculptor, Is Dead . The New York Times . New York City . July 24, 1973 . limited.
- https://mavericktrails.com/roosevelt,-buddy.html Roosevelt, Buddy
- https://www.nytimes.com/1973/10/16/archives/edmund-chester-75-exdirectoratcbs.html EDMUND CHESTER, 75, EX-DIRECTORAT C.B.S.
- https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/research-guides/modern-biographical-files-ndl/modern-bios-d/deyo-morton-lyndholm.html Morton Lyndholm Deyo 1 July 1887-10 November 1973
- News: Lila Lee, 68, Dies; Silent Film Star. The New York Times . November 14, 1973. February 11, 2020.
- Web site: Charles Greeley Abbot American astrophysicist. January 30, 2024.