References are numbered in [brackets], which are listed here. A number after the dot gives the page in the source.

Last updated: 2008 April 30.

1938 January 2 Book publisher Simon and Schuster founded. [1] January 3 Arthur Boon Flemish priest/philologist, dies at 54. [1] March of Dimes established to fight polio. [1] January 6 Bronze memorial statue of Henry Hudson erected in the Bronx. [1] January 10 Eduard van Beinum becomes world's first conductor at Concert Hall. [1] Jean Anouilh's "La Sauvage" premieres in Paris. [1] Paul Vincent Carroll's "White Seed" premieres in New York City, New York. [1] Willem de Vreese Flemish linguist, dies at 68. [1] January 11 Frances Moulton elected first woman president of a US national bank. [1] January 13 The Disney film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has its New York premiere, at Radio City Music Hall. [6] January 14 National Society for the Legalization of Euthanasia formed (New York). [1] January 16 Benny Goodman refuses to play Carnegie Hall when black members of his band were barred from performing. [1] William Pickering pioneer US stellar spectroscopist, dies. [1] January 17 Supreme Soviet elects Michail Kalinin as presidium chairman. [1] William H Pickering astronomer (predicted Pluto), dies at 79. [1] January 18 Bradman scores 104* for South Australia vs New South Wales at the SCG. [1] January 19 GM began mass production of diesel engines. [1] January 21 Dutch government starts obligatory unemployment insurance. [1] January 22 "Our Town", Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer-winner of small-town life in Grover's Corners New Hampshire, performed publicly for first time (New Jersey). [1] January 25 Ian Hay's "Bachelor Born" premieres in New York City, New York. [1] January 28 Bernd Rosemeyer German race car driver, dies at 28. [1] February 3 Armando Palacio Valdés Spanish writer (El Cuarto Poder), dies at 84. [1] Paul Osborn's "On Borrowed Time" premieres in New York City, New York. [1] February 4 "Our Town", by Thornton Wilder opens on Broadway. [1] Adolf Hitler announces a reorganization of the army, abolishing the post of war minister, appointing General Wilhelm Keitel as chief of the armed forces high command (OKW), and appointing Field Marshal Walther von Brauchitsch as Commander-in-Chief of the Army. [10] RKO Radio Pictures generally releases the film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to theatres in the USA. [6] February 6 Marianne V von Werefkin Russian/German/Swiss house painter, dies at 77. [1] February 9 Truby King pioneer of mothercraft, dies. [1] February 10 King Carol II of Romania drives out dictator Goga. [1] February 11 Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg meets with Adolf Hitler in Berchtesgaden, Bavaria. Adolf Hitler demands that Austria become a protectorate of Germany, governed by him. Schuschnigg signs in agreement. [10] February 12 German troops entered Austria. [1] February 16 Otto zur Linde German author (Lieder of the Leids), dies at 64. [1] US Federal Crop Insurance program authorized. [1] February 17 First public experimental demonstration of Baird color TV (London). [1] February 18 Alida J Tartaud-Little actress (Rotterdam Stage), dies at 64. [1] Edward Anseele Belgian minister of Rail, dies at 81. [1] Louis de la Vallée-Poussin (The Way to Nirvana), dies at 69. [1] February 19 Soviet arctic ice research station North Pole 1 evacuated, Denmark. [1] February 20 United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Eden resigns, says Prime Minister Chamberlain appeased Germany. [1] February 21 Albert Huybrechts composer, dies at 39. [1] George Ellery Hale astronomer, dies. [1] February 24 Du Pont begins commercial production of nylon toothbrush bristles. [1] February 25 British Lord Halifax becomes Foreign Minister. [1] February 26 First passenger ship equipped with radar. [1] February 27 Britain and France recognize Franco government in Spain. [1] March 1 Gabrielle d'Annunzio Italian poet/fascist (Il fuoco), dies at 74. [1] March 2 Landslides and floods cause over 200 deaths (Los Angeles California). [1] Trials of Soviet leaders begins in the Soviet Union. [1] March 3 Arthur Koestler writer, dies at 32. [1] March 9 Sydney Baynes composer, dies at 59. [1] March 11 Artur Seyss-Inquart replaces Kurt von Schuschnigg as Chancellor of Austria. [1] March 12 German troops march into Austria, annexing the country. [10] March 13 Clarence S Darrow Scopes Monkey Trial attorney, dies in Chicago at 80. [1] March 16 Egon Friedell writer, dies. [1] Noël Coward's musical "Operette" premieres in London. [1] Temple defeats Colorado to win first NIT. [1] March 18 Cyril Rootham composer, dies at 62. [1] New York first requires serological blood tests of pregnant women. [1] President Cardena of Mexico nationalizes US and British oil companies. [1] March 21 Oscar Apfel actor (Inspiration), dies at 60. [1] March 24 Russian Army Commander B.M. Shaposhnikov produces a war plan, proposing a Red Army offensive or counter-offensive either north or south of the Pripet marshes, with a strong defence in the other sector. [10] March 25 First US bred horse (Battleship) to win Grand National Steeplechase. [1] March 26 NBC radio performance of Howard Hanson's third Symphony. [1] March 27 Louis William Stern German/US philosopher/psychologist, dies at 66. [1] March 31 Willem J T Kloos Dutch poet/critic (New Guide), dies at 78. [1] April 2 Alice Berend writer, dies. [1] April 5 Anti-Jewish riots break out in Dabrowa Poland. [1] April 6 Teflon invented by Roy J Plunkett. [1] April 10 Second government of Blum replaced by Daladier government in France. [1] Austria becomes a state of Germany. [1] Nana Annor Adjaye Pan-Africanist, dies in West Nzima Ghana. [1] New York makes syphilis test mandatory in order to get a marriage license. [1] April 12 First US law requiring medical tests for marriage licenses (New York). [1] Feodor Chaliapine Russian author (Man and Mark), dies at 65. [1] Serafín Alvarez Quintéro Spanish playwright (Piropos), dies at 67. [1] April 13 Clifford Goldsmith' "What a Life", premieres in New York City. [1] April 15 César Vallejo Peru/French poet (Trilce, Russia and 1931), dies at 46. [1] Disney's Donald Duck film Donald's Nephews is released to theaters in the USA. Huey, Dewey, and Louie make their film debut. [6] April 16 Bertram Wagstaff Mills circus proprietor, dies. [1] Great-Britain recognizes Italian annexation of Abyssinia. [1] April 18 Headless Mad Butcher victim found in Cleveland. [1] Richard Runciman Terry musicologist, dies. [1] April 19 Henry John Newbolt poet/author (Studies Green and Gray), dies at 75. [1] Marie-Clémentine "Suzanne" Valadon French acrobat/model, dies at 72. [1] Phil Emmett Mueller and Dodger Ernie Koy both homer in their first at bat. [1] April 21 Muhammad Iqbal Brt E Indies lawyer/Pakistan national hero, dies at 65. [1] April 23 Sudeten Germans in Czechoslovakia demand self government. [1] April 25 First use of seeing eye dog. [1] April 26 Austrian Jews required to register property above 5,000 Reichsmarks. [1] Edmund Husserl German philosopher (study of phenomenon), dies at 79. [1] April 27 Edmond Rubbens Belgian minister to Colonies, dies at 44. [1] April 28 King Zog of Albania marries Countess Geraldine of Hungary. [1] April 30 Bradman scores 258 Australia vs Worcestershire, 293 minutes, 33 fours 1 five. [1] May 2 Ella Fitzgerald records "A-Tisket, A-Tasket". [1] Pulitzer prize awarded to Thornton Wilder (Our Town). [1] May 3 Concentration camp at Flossenbürg goes into use. [1] Vatican recognizes Franco-Spain. [1] May 4 Carl von Ossietzky German pacifist/writer (Nobel Prize 1935), dies at 48. [1] Douglas Hyde (a protestant) becomes first president of Eire. [1] May 6 Dutch writer Maurits Dekker sentenced to 50 days for "offending a friendly head of state" (Hitler). [1] May 7 Dutch Minister of Justice Goseling calls fugitives of Nazi-Germany "undesired strangers". [1] May 8 Stravinsky's "Dumbarton Oaks" premieres in Washington DC. [1] May 10 Banning speech on anti-fascism demonstration in Amsterdam. [1] May 11 Alfonsina Storni Argentine poet (El dulce daño/suicide), dies at 45. [1] Arnold Sauwen Flemish poet (Hours of Solitude), dies at 81. [1] May 12 Sandoz Labs manufactures LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide). [1] May 14 Jacobus C J "Jacques" Hermans actor (Ghetto), dies at 81. [1] May 15 Paul-Henri Spak forms red coalition of Belgium. [1] May 16 First animal breeding society forms (New Jersey). [1] 38 die in Terminal Hotel fire (Atlanta Georgia). [1] May 17 US Congress approves Vinson Naval Act, which funds a two-ocean navy. [1] Radio quiz show "Information Please!" debuts on NBC Blue Network. [1] May 20 Czech president Eduard Benes orders partial mobilization of the Czech army. [10] May 21 Bradman scores 143 Australia vs Surrey, 198 minutes, 11 fours. [1] May 23 Philip Kleintjes republic leader, dies at 70. [1] May 26 House Committee on Un-American Activities begins work. [1] May 27 Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Norway enact a declaration on neutrality. [7] May 28 Foundation for Tel Aviv harbor laid. [1] Hindemiths opera "Mathis der Maler" premieres in Zürich. [1] May 30 Raden Sutomo Indonesian freedom fighter, dies at 49. [1] June 1 Superman Comics launched. [1] June 7 First play telecast with original Broadway cast, "Susan and God". [1] Boeing 314 Clipper flying boat first flown (Eddie Allen). [1] June 11 Cincinatti Red Johnny Vander Meer no-hits Boston Braves, 3-0. [1] June 14 Chlorophyll patented by Benjamin Grushkin. [1] Dorothy Lathrop wins the first Caldecott Medal (kid books author). [1] June 19 "Olympian Flyer" express train crashes in Montana, killing 47. [1] June 22 The German government initiates civil defense measures. [10] June 23 Civil Aeronautics Authority (US) established. [1] Marineland opens in Florida-first aquarium. [1] June 25 Federal minimum wage law guarantees workers 40 cents per hour. [1] June 26 James Weldon Johnson dies of injuries received in car crash. [1] July 2 Helen Wills Moody (US) wins her 8th and final Wimbeldon singles. [1] July 3 The Mallard reaches 126 mph in England, setting the steam railway locomotive world speed record. [5] July 4 Suzanne Lenglen 6 time Wimbeldon champ, dies at 39 of anemia. [1] July 5 Herb Caen's first column in San Francisco Chronicle. [1] July 10 Howard Hughes sets a new record by completing a 91-hour airplane flight around the world. [5] July 17 Douglas (Wrong Way) Corrigan leaves New York for LA, wound up in Ireland. [1] July 18 Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan arrives in Ireland-left New York for California. [1] July 23 C Jackson discovers asteroid #1468 Zomba. [1] July 28 K Reinmuth discovers asteroid #1485 Isa. [1] July 29 Japanese forces attack Soviet border guards on the Manchurian side of Broad Drum Peak, in a disputed area near the Soviet Union. They push several kilometres into Siberia. [10] Olympic National Park established. [1] July 30 C Jackson discovers asteroid #1467 Mashona. [1] August 1 The Japanese-Soviet incident at Broad Drum Peak is resolved, with a return to the border of July 29. [10] August 7 Two die in a New York City subway accident. [1] August 10 119 degrees F (48 degrees C), Pendleton, Oregon (state record). [1] August 18 Franklin Roosevelt dedicates Thousand Islands Bridge connecting US and Canada. [1] August 27 German General Ludwig Beck resigns as Chief of General Staff, in opposition to a planned invasion of Czechoslovakia. [10] August 28 Northwestern U awards honorary degree to dummy Charlie McCarthy. [1] September 7 (evening) Theodor Kordt, a counselor in the German embassy in London meets secretly with British Foreign Secretary Lord Halifax at 10 Downing Street. He appeals desperately to British government to stand firm against Hitler's planned aggression into Czechoslovakia. He promises action by German army leaders opposed to Nazis. [10] September 12 German Chancellor Adolf Hitler says the Sudeten problem is an internal matter to the German minority in Bohemia and the Czechoslovak government. [10] September 14 Graf Zeppelin II, world's largest airship, makes maiden flight. [1] September 15 British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain meets with Adolf Hitler in the Berghof in Germany. Chamberlain agrees to Hitler's demand to annex the Sudetenland. [10] John Cobb sets world auto speed record at 350.2 MPH (lasts one day). [1] Only time brothers hit back-to-back home runs (Lloyd and Paul Waner, Pitts). [1] September 16 George E.T. Eyston sets world auto speed record at 357.5 MPH. [1] September 17 British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain meets with the Cabinet. He states that Adolf Hitler appears to be "a man who could be relied upon when he had given his word". [10] September 18 Chicago Bears beat Green Bay Packers 2-0. [1] September 20 The Czech government refuses to accept the proposal to give up the Sudetenland. [10] September 21 British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain replies to Czech President Eduard Benes saying the British-French proposal is the only way to avoid war, the Czech reply places full responsibility for war on the Czechs, and that Britain would not fight for Czechoslovakia. The Czech government decides to capitulate. [10] Winston Churchill warns of the futility of appeasing Adolf Hitler: "The belief that security can be obtained by throwing a small state to the wolves is a fatal delusion.". [10] Hurricane (winds 183 MPH) in New England kills 700. [1] September 23 Time capsule, to be opened in 6939, buried at World's Fair in New York City (capsule contained a woman's hat, man's pipe and 1,100' of microfilm). [1] September 26 The British Foreign Office issues a statement saying if Germany attacks Czechoslovakia, France would assist, and Great Britain and Russia would stand by France. [10] Adolf Hitler makes speech to the Nazi party in Berlin, saying that once the Czech/German problem is solved, there would be no more territorial problems for Germany. And once Czechs settle with minorities peacefully, he will have no more interest in the Czech state. Quote by Adolf Hitler, on the desire to annex part of Czechoslovakia: "It is the last territorial claim which I have to make in Europe, but it is the claim from which I will not recede.". [10] September 27 British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain makes a national radio broadcast, essentially saying that Britain would not go to war over Czechoslovakian independence. [10] Ocean liner Queen Elizabeth launched at Glasgow, Scotland. [1] September 29 In Germany, a two-day conference begins, held by Adolf Hitler, Italy's Premier Benito Mussolini, Britain's Neville Chamberlain, and France's Édouard Daladier, to discuss German demands on Czechoslovakian territory. Hitler renounces plans to destroy Czechoslovakia; Chamberlain and Daladier agree to allow the German annexation of the Sudetenland. [10] September 30 (shortly after 0100 hours) The Munich Agreement, allowing Germany to annex the Sudetenland portion of Czechoslovakia, is signed, by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, French Premier Édouard Daladier, Italian Premier Benito Mussolini, and German Chancellor Adolf Hitler. [10] In Munich, Germany, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and German Chancellor Adolf Hitler sign a document noting the desire of the two peoples to never go to war with another again, and resolve to consult each other on issues of concern, and to contribute to peace in Europe. [10] October 1 British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain returns to London, England, to a hero's welcome. Quote on the Munich Agreement: "This is the second time there has come back from Germany to Downing Street peace with honour. I believe it is peace for our time.". [10] October 7 Germany demands all Jewish passports stamped with the letter J. [1] October 10 Germany completed annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland. [1] October 21 Adolf Hitler instructs the German armed forces to prepare "the liquidation of Czechoslovakia". [10] October 22 First Xerox copy made. [1] October 27 DuPont announces its new synthetic fiber will be called "nylon". [1] October 30 Orson Welles broadcasts his radio play of H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, causing a nationwide (USA) panic. [1] [5] November 1 Seabiscuit beats War Admiral in a match race at Pimlico. [1] November 2 Babe Ruth applies for the job of Saint Louis Browns' manager. [1] November 5 Ottawa Roughriders score on 5-man, 4-lateral, 65-yard punt return. [1] Rutgers beats Princeton first time in 60 years as Rutgers Stad dedicated. [1] November 8 First black woman legislator, Crystal Bird Fauset of Philadelphia. [1] November 9 (evening) Nazis terrorize Jews in Germany and Austria. Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues are looted and burned. 91 Jews are killed, and 20,000 are taken to concentration camps. This becomes known as Reichskristallnacht, Crystal Night, or Night of Broken Glass. [10] Al Capp, cartoonist of Lil' Abner creates Sadie Hawkins Day. [1] November 10 Adolf Hitler makes a long speech to several hundred German newspaper editors and publishers in Berlin. He instructs the press to prepare the public for further moves of expansion. He tells them that Germany has the world's largest single group of any race: 80 million, that Germany was the greatest of Empires, became a small power, but now is in a period of regeneration. [10] Kemal Atarok first President of Turkey, dies. [1] November 12 Hermann Goering announces he wants Madagascar as a Jewish homeland. [1] November 15 First telecast of an unscheduled event (fire), W2XBT, New York. [1] November 17 Italy passes their own version of the anti-Jewish Nuremberg laws. [1] November 20 First documented anti-Semitic remarks over US radio (by Father Coughlin). [1] November 29 Flora Disney (Walt Disney's mother) dies of inhaling poison gas fumes from a defective water heater. [6] December 1 School bus and train collide in Salt Lake City UT. [1] December 3 AAU's decides to continue linear measuring system over metric. [1] December 4 Dina Appeldoorn Dutch pianist/composer, dies at 54. [1] December 5 Christina "Dina" Koudijs-van Appeldoorn pianist/composer, dies at 54. [1] December 6 117 Spanish knights under Captain Piet Laros return to Netherlands. [1] French/German non-attack treaty drawn (Ribbentrop-Bonnet Pact). [1] December 7 Philip Barry's "Here Come the Clowns" premieres in New York City, New York. [1] W9XZY broadcasts facsimile of the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch by radio. [1] December 8 Highest temperature for December in US recorded in La Mesa California. [1] LP Beria follows Nikolai Jezjov as head of Russian secret police. [1] December 10 Mario Pilati composer, dies at 35. [1] Ruth Fuller Sasaki, Zen teacher, Rinzai line, enters Zen priesthood. [1] December 13 Los Angeles freezes at 28 degrees F. [1] December 14 Marie Emmanuel French composer/musicologist (Salamine), dies at 76. [1] December 15 Groundbreaking begins for Jefferson Memorial in Washington DC. [1] December 16 Bradman scores 143 South Australia vs New South Wales, 11 fours 91 singles. [1] December 17 Utrecht Central Station destroyed by fire. [1] December 20 Vladimir K Zworykin (Pennsylvania) receives patent on the Iconoscope TV system. [1] December 23 Margaret Hamilton's Wicked Witch of the West costume catches fire in filming of "Wizard of Oz"; she is severely burned and off the film for over one month. [1] Robert Herrick US writer (Chimes), dies at 70. [1] December 25 George Cukor announces Vivien Leigh will play Scarlett O'Hara. [1] Karel Capek Czechoslovakian author/antifascist (Bílá Nemoc), dies at 48. [1] December 26 Bradman scores 225 South Australia vs Queensland before Christ gets him out. [1] December 27 Emile Vandervelde Belgian Secretary of State (BWP), dies at 72. [1] O Mandelstam writer, dies. [1] December 28 Florence Lawrence silent screen actress (Confidence), dies at 48. [1] December 29 Construction on Lake Washington Floating Bridge, Seattle Washington, begins. [1] December 30 Electronic television system patented by V K Zworykin. [1] December 31 Dr R N Harger's "drunkometer", first breath test, introduced in Indiana. [1] Dutch national debt hits 3,986,629,805.70 gulden. [1] Richard N Roland Holst Dutch artist/painter, dies at 70. [1]