On This Day for February 28 - Olof Palme assassinated, Frank O. Gehry is featured, and more

This message contains graphics. If you do not see the graphics, click here to view. February 28 FEATURED BIOGRAPHY Frank O. Gehry READ MORE   FEATURED EVENT 1986 Olof Palme assassinated READ MORE   Advertisement Advertisement   MORE EVENTS ON THIS DAY 2013: Benedict XVI became the first pope to resign since Gregory XII in 1415. [Test your knowledge of popes.] 1983: The final episode of the immensely popular TV series M*A*S*H aired and was watched by an estimated 106 million viewers. [Sort fact from fiction in our pop culture quiz.] 1931: American basketball coach Dean Smith, who was one of the most successful men's basketball coaches in collegiate history, was born. [Take our basketball player nicknames quiz.] 1901: American chemist Linus Pauling, who received two Nobel Prizes, one for Chemistry in 1954 and another for Peace in 1962 (for efforts to control the spread of nuclear weaponry), was born. [How much do you know about the Nobel Prize?] 1827: The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad became the first steam-operated railway in the United States to be chartered as a common carrier of freight and passengers. [Watch an overview of the history of the railroad in the United States.] 1942: During World War II, Japanese troops landed on the island of Java, which they occupied until 1945. [Sort fact from fiction in our World War II quiz.] SEE ALL EVENTS ON THIS DAY ALSO BORN ON THIS DAY 1906 Bugsy Siegel American gangster 1901 Linus Pauling American scientist 1929 Frank Gehry Canadian American architect 1953 Paul Krugman American economist 1926 Svetlana Alliluyeva Russian writer 1923 Charles Durning American actor and boxer SEE ALL BIOS ON THIS DAY   Advertisement   FOLLOW: To unsubscribe from Britannica e-mails, click here. Encyclopædia Britannica 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 Chicago, Illinois 60654 United States © 2021 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. Privacy Policy • Help