October 8: On This Day
Events, births, deaths, holidays and observances for October 8.
Events 43
- 316 – Constantine I defeats Licinius, who loses his European territories.
- 451 – The first session of the Council of Chalcedon begins.
- 876 – Frankish forces led by Louis the Younger prevent a West Frankish invasion and defeat emperor Charles II ("the Bald").
- 1075 – Dmitar Zvonimir is crowned King of Croatia.
- 1200 – Isabella of Angoulême is crowned Queen consort of England.
- 1322 – Mladen II Šubić of Bribir is deposed as the Croatian Ban after the Battle of Bliska.
- 1480 – The Great Stand on the Ugra River puts an end to Tatar rule over Moscow.
- 1573 – The Spanish siege of Alkmaar ends with the first Dutch victory in the Eighty Years' War.
- 1645 – Jeanne Mance opens the first lay hospital of North America in Montreal.
- 1813 – The Treaty of Ried is signed between Bavaria and Austria.
- 1821 – The Peruvian Navy is established during the War of Independence.
- 1829 – Stephenson's Rocket wins the Rainhill Trials.
- 1856 – The Second Opium War between several western powers and China begins with the Arrow Incident.
- 1862 – American Civil War: The Confederate invasion of Kentucky is halted at the Battle of Perryville.
- 1871 – Slash-and-burn land management, months of drought, and the passage of a strong cold front cause the Peshtigo Fire, the Great Chicago Fire and the Great Michigan Fires to break out.
- 1879 – War of the Pacific: The Chilean Navy defeats the Peruvian Navy in the Battle of Angamos.
- 1895 – Korean Empress Myeongseong is assassinated by Japanese infiltrators.
- 1912 – The First Balkan War begins when Montenegro declares war against the Ottoman Empire.
- 1918 – World War I: Corporal Alvin C. York kills 28 German soldiers and captures 132, for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
- 1921 – KDKA in Pittsburgh's Forbes Field conducts the first live broadcast of a football game.
- 1939 – World War II: Germany annexes western Poland.
- 1941 – World War II: During the preliminaries of the Battle of Rostov, German forces reach the Sea of Azov with the capture of Mariupol.
- 1943 – World War II: Around 30 civilians are executed by Friedrich Schubert's paramilitary group in Kallikratis, Crete.
- 1944 – World War II: Captain Bobbie E. Brown earns a Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Crucifix Hill, just outside Aachen.
- 1952 – The Harrow and Wealdstone rail crash in England kills 112 people.
- 1956 – The New York Yankees's Don Larsen pitches the only perfect game in a World Series.
- 1962 – Der Spiegel publishes an article disclosing the sorry state of the Bundeswehr, leading to accusations of treason.
- 1967 – Guerrilla leader Che Guevara and his men are captured in Bolivia. Guevara would be executed the next day.
- 1969 – The opening rally of the Days of Rage occurs, organized by the Weather Underground in Chicago.
- 1970 – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn wins the Nobel Prize in literature.
- 1973 – Yom Kippur War: Israel loses more than 150 tanks in a failed attack on Egyptian-occupied positions.
- 1973 – Spyros Markezinis begins his 48-day term as prime minister in an abortive attempt to lead Greece to parliamentary rule.
- 1974 – Franklin National Bank collapses due to fraud and mismanagement; at the time it is the largest bank failure in the history of the United States.
- 1978 – Australia's Ken Warby sets the current world water speed record of 275.97 knots at Blowering Dam, Australia.
- 1982 – Poland bans Solidarity and all other trade unions.
- 1986 – An explosion occurs at the Cipel-Marco fur factory in Kwai Chung, Hong Kong, killing 14 and injuring 10.
- 1990 – First Intifada: Israeli police kill 17 Palestinians and wound over 100 near the Dome of the Rock.
- 1991 – Upon the expiration of the Brioni Agreement, Croatia and Slovenia sever all official relations with Yugoslavia.
- 2001 – A twin engine Cessna and a Scandinavian Airlines System jetliner collide in heavy fog during takeoff from Milan, Italy, killing 118 people.
- 2001 – U.S. president George W. Bush announces the establishment of the Office of Homeland Security.
- 2005 – The 7.6 Mw Kashmir earthquake leaves 86,000–87,351 people dead, 69,000–75,266 injured, and 2.8 million homeless.
- 2019 – About 200 Extinction Rebellion activists block the gates of Leinster House (parliament) in the Republic of Ireland.
- 2020 – Second Nagorno-Karabakh War: Azerbaijan twice targets the Church of the Holy Savior Ghazanchetsots of Shusha.
Births 239
- 319 BC – Pyrrhus of Epirus (died 272 BC)
- 1150 – Narapatisithu, king of Burma (died 1211)
- 1515 – Margaret Douglas, daughter of Archibald Douglas (died 1578)
- 1551 – Giulio Caccini, Italian composer (died 1618)
- 1553 – Jacques Auguste de Thou, French historian (died 1617)
- 1585 – Heinrich Schütz, German organist and composer (died 1672)
- 1609 – John Clarke, English physician (died 1676)
- 1676 – Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro, Spanish monk and scholar (died 1764)
- 1713 – Yechezkel Landau, Polish rabbi and author (died 1793)
- 1715 – Michel Benoist, French scientist and missionary (died 1774)
- 1747 – Jean-François Rewbell, French lawyer and politician (died 1807)
- 1753 – Princess Sophia Albertina of Sweden (died 1829)
- 1765 – Harman Blennerhassett, English-Irish lawyer and politician (died 1831)
- 1789 – John Ruggles, American lawyer and politician (died 1874)
- 1789 – William Swainson, English-New Zealand ornithologist and entomologist (died 1855)
- 1807 – Harriet Taylor Mill, English philosopher and activist (died 1858)
- 1818 – John Henninger Reagan, American judge and politician, 3rd Confederate States Secretary of the Treasury (died 1905)
- 1834 – Walter Kittredge, American violinist and composer (died 1905)
- 1845 – Salomon Kalischer, German pianist, composer, and physicist (died 1924)
- 1847 – Rose Scott, Australian activist (died 1925)
- 1848 – Pierre De Geyter, Belgian composer (died 1932)
- 1850 – Henry Louis Le Châtelier, French chemist and academic (died 1936)
- 1860 – John D. Batten, British painter, printmaker and illustrator (died 1932)
- 1863 – Edythe Chapman, American actress (died 1948)
- 1864 – Ozias Leduc, Canadian painter and educator (died 1955)
- 1870 – Louis Vierne, French organist and composer (died 1937)
- 1872 – Mary Engle Pennington, American bacteriological chemist and refrigeration engineer (died 1952)
- 1873 – Ejnar Hertzsprung, Danish chemist and astronomer (died 1967)
- 1873 – Alexey Shchusev, Russian architect and academic, designed Lenin's Mausoleum (died 1949)
- 1875 – Laurence Doherty, English tennis player and golfer (died 1919)
- 1876 – Frederick Montague, 1st Baron Amwell, English lieutenant and politician (died 1966)
- 1877 – Hans Heysen, German-Australian painter (died 1968)
- 1879 – Huntley Gordon, Canadian-American actor (died 1956)
- 1882 – Harry McClintock, American singer-songwriter and poet (died 1957)
- 1883 – Dick Burnett, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1977)
- 1883 – Otto Heinrich Warburg, German physiologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1970)
- 1884 – Walther von Reichenau, German field marshal (died 1942)
- 1887 – Ping Bodie, American baseball player (died 1961)
- 1887 – Donie Bush, American baseball player, manager, and team owner (died 1972)
- 1888 – Ernst Kretschmer, German psychiatrist and author (died 1964)
- 1889 – R. Fraser Armstrong, Canadian engineer (died 1983)
- 1889 – Collett E. Woolman, American businessman, co-founded Delta Air Lines (died 1966)
- 1890 – Snuffy Browne, Barbadian cricketer (died 1964)
- 1890 – Eddie Rickenbacker, American soldier and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient (died 1973)
- 1890 – Philippe Thys, Belgian cyclist (died 1971)
- 1892 – Marina Tsvetaeva, Russian poet and author (died 1941)
- 1893 – Clarence Williams, American pianist and composer (died 1965)
- 1895 – Zog I of Albania (died 1961)
- 1895 – Juan Perón, Argentinian general and politician, 29th President of Argentina (died 1974)
- 1896 – Julien Duvivier, French director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1967)
- 1897 – Rouben Mamoulian, Georgian-American director and screenwriter (died 1987)
- 1897 – Marcel Herrand, French actor (died 1953)
- 1901 – Eivind Groven, Norwegian composer and theorist (died 1977)
- 1901 – Mark Oliphant, Australian physicist, humanitarian and politician, Governor of South Australia (died 2000)
- 1901 – Saumyendranath Tagore, Indian revolutionary and thinker, founder of the Revolutionary Communist Party of India (died 1974)
- 1903 – Georgy Geshev, Bulgarian chess player (died 1937)
- 1904 – Yves Giraud-Cabantous, French racing driver (died 1973)
- 1907 – Richard Sharpe Shaver, American author and illustrator (died 1975)
- 1908 – Ezekias Papaioannou, Greek-Cypriot politician (died 1988)
- 1910 – Kirk Alyn, American actor (died 1999)
- 1910 – Paulette Dubost, French actress (died 2011)
- 1910 – Gus Hall, American soldier and politician (died 2000)
- 1910 – Helmut Kallmeyer, German chemist and soldier (died 2006)
- 1910 – Ray Lewis, Canadian runner (died 2003)
- 1910 – Wally Moses, American baseball player (died 1990)
- 1913 – Robert R. Gilruth, American pilot and engineer (died 2000)
- 1913 – Marios Makrionitis, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Athens (died 1959)
- 1917 – Billy Conn, American boxer (died 1993)
- 1917 – Walter Lord, American historian and author (died 2002)
- 1917 – Rodney Robert Porter, English biochemist and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1985)
- 1918 – Halfdan Hegtun, Norwegian radio host and politician (died 2012)
- 1918 – Jens Christian Skou, Danish chemist and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2018)
- 1919 – Kiichi Miyazawa, Japanese politician, 78th Prime Minister of Japan (died 2007)
- 1920 – Frank Herbert, American journalist, photographer, and author (died 1986)
- 1921 – Abraham Sarmiento, Filipino lawyer and jurist (died 2010)
- 1922 – Nils Liedholm, Swedish footballer, coach, and manager (died 2007)
- 1924 – Alphons Egli, Swiss lawyer and politician, 77th President of the Swiss Confederation (died 2016)
- 1924 – Aloísio Lorscheider, Brazilian cardinal (died 2007)
- 1924 – Thirunalloor Karunakaran, Indian poet and scholar (died 2006)
- 1924 – John Nelder, English mathematician and statistician (died 2010)
- 1925 – Álvaro Magaña, Salvadoran economist and politician, President of El Salvador (died 2001)
- 1926 – Raaj Kumar, Indian police officer and actor (died 1996)
- 1927 – Jim Elliot, American missionary and translator (died 1956)
- 1927 – César Milstein, Argentinian-English biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2002)
- 1928 – Didi, Brazilian footballer and manager (died 2001)
- 1928 – M. Russell Ballard, American lieutenant and religious leader (died 2023)
- 1928 – Neil Harvey, Australian cricketer
- 1928 – Bill Maynard, English actor (died 2018)
- 1929 – Betty Boothroyd, English politician, British Speaker of the House of Commons (died 2023)
- 1930 – Pepper Adams, American saxophonist and composer (died 1986)
- 1930 – Alasdair Milne, Indian-English director and producer (died 2013)
- 1930 – Faith Ringgold, American painter and activist (died 2024)
- 1930 – Toru Takemitsu, Japanese composer and theorist (died 1996)
- 1931 – Bill Brown, Scottish footballer (died 2004)
- 1932 – Ray Reardon, Welsh snooker player and police officer (died 2024)
- 1934 – Kader Asmal, South African academic and politician (died 2011)
- 1934 – Gerry Hitchens, English footballer and manager (died 1983)
- 1934 – James Holshouser, American lawyer and politician, 68th Governor of North Carolina (died 2013)
- 1935 – Albert Roux, French-English chef (died 2021)
- 1936 – Rona Barrett, American journalist and businesswoman
- 1937 – Merle Park, British ballerina and educator
- 1937 – Paul Schell, American lawyer and politician, 50th Mayor of Seattle (died 2014)
- 1938 – William Corlett, English author and playwright (died 2005)
- 1938 – Walter Gretzky, Canadian ice hockey coach and author (died 2021)
- 1938 – Bronislovas Lubys, Lithuanian businessman and politician, Prime Minister of Lithuania (died 2011)
- 1938 – Fred Stolle, Australian-American tennis player and sportscaster (died 2025)
- 1939 – Paul Hogan, Australian actor, producer, and screenwriter
- 1939 – Elvīra Ozoliņa, Latvian javelin thrower
- 1939 – Harvey Pekar, American author and critic (died 2010)
- 1939 – Lynne Stewart, American lawyer and criminal (died 2017)
- 1940 – Fred Cash, American singer
- 1941 – George Bellamy, English singer, guitarist, and producer
- 1941 – Jesse Jackson, American minister and activist (died 2026)
- 1941 – Shane Stevens, American author (died 2007)
- 1942 – Stanley Bates, English actor and screenwriter
- 1943 – Chevy Chase, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter
- 1943 – R. L. Stine, American author, screenwriter, and producer
- 1944 – Ed Kirkpatrick, American baseball player (died 2010)
- 1944 – Susan Raye, American singer
- 1946 – Hanan Ashrawi, Palestinian scholar, activist, and politician
- 1946 – Jean-Jacques Beineix, French director and producer (died 2022)
- 1946 – Dennis Kucinich, American journalist and politician, 53rd Mayor of Cleveland
- 1946 – Bel Mooney, English journalist and author
- 1946 – Jon Ekerold, South African motorcycle racer
- 1947 – Richard Morris, English archaeologist, historian, and author
- 1947 – Emiel Puttemans, Belgian runner
- 1947 – Stephen Shore, American photographer and educator
- 1947 – Bill Zorn, folk musician
- 1947 – Hansa Yogendra, Indian yoga guru
- 1948 – Benjamin Cheever, American journalist and author
- 1948 – Claude Jade, French actress (died 2006)
- 1948 – Johnny Ramone, American guitarist and songwriter (died 2004)
- 1949 – Hamish Stuart, Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1949 – Sigourney Weaver, American actress and producer
- 1950 – Robert "Kool" Bell, American singer-songwriter and bass player
- 1950 – Blake Morrison, English poet, author, and academic
- 1951 – Jack O'Connell, American educator and politician
- 1951 – Timo Salonen, Finnish racing driver
- 1951 – Shannon C. Stimson, American philosopher, historian, and theorist
- 1951 – Adrian Palmer, 4th Baron Palmer, British aristocrat and landowner (died 2023)
- 1952 – Takis Koroneos, Greek basketball player and coach
- 1952 – Jan Marijnissen, Dutch journalist and politician
- 1952 – Edward Zwick, American director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1953 – Robert Saxton, English composer and educator
- 1954 – Michael Dudikoff, American actor
- 1954 – Huub Rothengatter, Dutch racing driver and manager
- 1955 – Bill Elliott, American race car driver
- 1955 – Alain Ferté, French racing driver
- 1955 – Darrell Hammond, American comedian and actor
- 1955 – Paul Lennon, Australian politician, 42nd Premier of Tasmania
- 1955 – Lonnie Pitchford, American singer and guitarist (died 1998)
- 1956 – Jeff Lahti, American baseball player
- 1956 – Janice E. Voss, American engineer and astronaut (died 2012)
- 1956 – Stephanie Zimbalist, American actress
- 1957 – Antonio Cabrini, Italian footballer and manager
- 1958 – Steve Coll, American journalist and author
- 1958 – Bret Lott, American journalist, author, and academic
- 1958 – Ruffin McNeill, American football player and coach
- 1958 – Ursula von der Leyen, Belgian-German physician and politician, Defense Minister of Germany, President of the European Commission
- 1959 – Gavin Friday, Irish singer-songwriter, actor, and producer
- 1959 – Erik Gundersen, Danish motorcycle racer
- 1959 – Peter Horrocks, English journalist and producer
- 1959 – Mike Morgan, American baseball player and coach
- 1959 – Carlos I. Noriega, Peruvian-American colonel and astronaut
- 1960 – Andrea Anastasi, Italian volleyball player and coach
- 1960 – Bryndís Hlöðversdóttir, Icelandic politician
- 1960 – Reed Hastings, American businessman, co-founded Netflix
- 1960 – Rano Karno, Indonesian actor and politician
- 1960 – Ralf Minge, German footballer and manager
- 1960 – François Pérusse, Canadian singer-songwriter and comedian
- 1960 – Mike Teague, English rugby player
- 1961 – Jon Stevens, New Zealand-Australian singer-songwriter
- 1961 – Simon Burke, Australian actor and producer
- 1961 – Kim Wayans, American actress and comedian
- 1962 – Bruno Thiry, Belgian racing driver
- 1962 – Chen Xiaoxia, Chinese diver
- 1964 – Jakob Arjouni, German author (died 2013)
- 1964 – CeCe Winans, American singer-songwriter
- 1965 – Matt Biondi, American swimmer and coach
- 1965 – Ardal O'Hanlon, Irish comedian, actor, and screenwriter
- 1965 – Harri Koskela, Finnish wrestler
- 1965 – C. J. Ramone, American singer-songwriter and bass player
- 1966 – Art Barr, American wrestler (died 1994)
- 1966 – Karyn Parsons, American actress and producer
- 1966 – Teddy Riley, American singer-songwriter and producer
- 1968 – Zvonimir Boban, Croatian footballer and sportscaster
- 1968 – Emily Procter, American actress
- 1970 – Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, Congolese colonel
- 1970 – Matt Damon, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
- 1970 – Anne-Marie Duff, English actress
- 1970 – Sadiq Khan, English lawyer and politician, Minister of State for Transport, Mayor of London
- 1970 – Tetsuya Nomura, Japanese video game designer and director
- 1971 – Marc Ellis, New Zealand rugby player and television host
- 1971 – David Gauke, English lawyer and politician
- 1971 – Pınar Selek, Turkish sociologist, author, and academic
- 1971 – Monty Williams, American basketball player and coach
- 1972 – Terry Balsamo, American guitarist and songwriter
- 1972 – Stanislav Varga, Slovak footballer and manager
- 1973 – Jim Fairchild, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1973 – Kari Korhonen, Finnish cartoonist
- 1974 – Kevyn Adams, American ice hockey player and coach
- 1974 – Fredrik Modin, Swedish ice hockey player
- 1974 – Koji Murofushi, Japanese hammer thrower
- 1976 – Karina Bacchi, Brazilian model and actress
- 1976 – Jinnih Beels, Belgian politician
- 1976 – Renate Groenewold, Dutch speed skater and cyclist
- 1977 – Anne-Caroline Chausson, French cyclist
- 1977 – Jamie Marchi, American voice actress, director, and screenwriter
- 1979 – Paul Burchill, English wrestler
- 1979 – Kristanna Loken, American actress
- 1980 – Nick Cannon, American actor, rapper, and producer
- 1980 – The Miz, American wrestler, actor, and television personality
- 1980 – J. R. Ramirez, Cuban-American actor
- 1981 – Raffi Torres, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1982 – Miloš Pavlović, Serbian racing driver
- 1982 – Annemiek van Vleuten, Dutch cyclist
- 1983 – Travis Pastrana, American motorcycle racer
- 1985 – Bruno Mars, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
- 1986 – Camilla Herrem, Norwegian handball player
- 1987 – Hassan Maatouk, Lebanese footballer
- 1990 – Rachel Klamer, Zimbabwean-Dutch triathlete
- 1991 – Jordan McLean, Australian rugby league player
- 1992 – Chelsea Gray, American basketball player
- 1993 – Angus T. Jones, American actor
- 1993 – Garbiñe Muguruza, Spanish tennis player
- 1993 – Molly Quinn, American actress and producer
- 1993 – Bubba Wallace, American race car driver
- 1995 – Grayson Allen, American basketball player
- 1995 – G Herbo, American rapper
- 1996 – Sara Sorribes Tormo, Spanish tennis player
- 1996 – Sara Takanashi, Japanese ski jumper
- 1996 – Timo Meier, Swiss ice hockey player
- 1997 – Bella Thorne, American actress
- 1997 – Josh Kerr, Scottish runner
- 1999 – Putthipong Assaratanakul, Thai actor and singer
- 1999 – Camila Rossi, Brazilian rhythmic gymnast
- 2002 – Brian Thomas Jr., American football player
- 2002 – Zheng Qinwen, Chinese tennis player
- 2003 – Ángela Aguilar, Mexican-American singer
Deaths 89
- 705 – Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, Umayyad caliph (born 646)
- 923 – Pilgrim I, archbishop of Salzburg
- 951 – Xiao Sagezhi, Chinese Khitan empress
- 976 – Helen of Zadar, queen consort of the Kingdom of Croatia
- 1281 – Princess Constance of Greater Poland (born c.1245)
- 1286 – John I, Duke of Brittany (born 1217)
- 1317 – Emperor Fushimi of Japan (born 1265)
- 1354 – Cola di Rienzo, Roman tribune (born c.1313)
- 1361 – John Beauchamp, 3rd Baron Beauchamp
- 1436 – Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut (born 1401)
- 1469 – Filippo Lippi, artist (born 1406)
- 1559 – Marina de Guevara, Spanish nun executed by the Spanish inquisition (born 1517),
- 1594 – Ishikawa Goemon, ninja and thief of Japan (born 1558)
- 1621 – Antoine de Montchrestien, French soldier, playwright, and economist (born 1575)
- 1647 – Christen Sørensen Longomontanus, Danish astronomer and mathematician (born 1562)
- 1652 – John Greaves, English mathematician and astronomer (born 1602)
- 1656 – John George I, Elector of Saxony (born 1585)
- 1659 – Jean de Quen, French missionary, priest, and historian (born 1603)
- 1735 – Yongzheng Emperor of China (born 1678)
- 1754 – Henry Fielding, English novelist and playwright (born 1707)
- 1772 – Jean-Joseph de Mondonville, French violinist and composer (born 1711)
- 1793 – John Hancock, American merchant and politician, 1st Governor of Massachusetts (born 1737)
- 1795 – Andrew Kippis, English minister and author (born 1725)
- 1802 – Emmanuele Vitale, Maltese general and politician (born 1758)
- 1804 – Thomas Cochran, Canadian lawyer and judge (born 1777)
- 1809 – James Elphinston, Scottish orthographer, phonologist, and linguist (born 1721)
- 1821 – Juan O'Donojú, last Spanish ruler of Mexico (born 1762)
- 1834 – François-Adrien Boieldieu, French composer (born 1775)
- 1869 – Franklin Pierce, American general, lawyer, and politician, 14th President of the United States (born 1804)
- 1879 – Miguel Grau Seminario, Peruvian admiral (born 1834)
- 1886 – Austin F. Pike, American lawyer and politician (born 1819)
- 1897 – Alexei Savrasov, Russian painter and academic (born 1830)
- 1928 – Larry Semon, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1889)
- 1931 – John Monash, Australian general and engineer (born 1865)
- 1936 – Premchand, Indian author and screenwriter (born 1880)
- 1936 – Ahmet Tevfik Pasha, Ottoman politician, 292nd Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (born 1845)
- 1942 – Sergey Chaplygin, Russian physicist, mathematician, and engineer (born 1869)
- 1944 – Wendell Willkie, American captain, lawyer, and politician (born 1892)
- 1945 – Felix Salten, Austrian author and critic (born 1869)
- 1952 – Joe Adams, American baseball player and manager (born 1877)
- 1953 – Nigel Bruce, British actor (born 1895)
- 1953 – Kathleen Ferrier, English soprano (born 1912)
- 1955 – Iry LeJeune, American accordion player (born 1928)
- 1958 – Ran Bosilek, Bulgarian author and translator (born 1886)
- 1963 – Remedios Varo, Spanish-Mexican painter (born 1908)
- 1967 – Clement Attlee, English soldier, lawyer, and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (born 1883)
- 1970 – Jean Giono, French author and poet (born 1895)
- 1973 – Gabriel Marcel, French philosopher, playwright, and critic (born 1889)
- 1977 – Giorgos Papasideris, Greek singer-songwriter (born 1902)
- 1978 – Bertha Parker Pallan, American archaeologist (born 1907)
- 1979 – Brian Edmund Baker, English air marshal (born 1896)
- 1979 – Jayaprakash Narayan, Indian politician (born 1902)
- 1982 – Fernando Lamas, Argentinian-American actor and director (born 1916)
- 1982 – Philip Noel-Baker, English runner and politician, Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1889)
- 1983 – Joan Hackett, American actress (born 1934)
- 1985 – Malcolm Ross, American captain, physicist, and balloonist (born 1919)
- 1985 – Gordon Welchman, English-American mathematician and scholar (born 1906)
- 1987 – Konstantinos Tsatsos, Greek scholar and politician, 2nd President of Greece (born 1899)
- 1992 – Willy Brandt, German lawyer and politician, 4th Chancellor of Germany, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1913)
- 1992 – Robert Berdella, American serial killer, torturer, and rapist (born 1949)
- 2000 – Charlotte Lamb, English author (born 1937)
- 2001 – Dmitry Polyansky, First Deputy Premier of the Soviet Union (born 1917)
- 2002 – Phyllis Calvert, English actress (born 1915)
- 2002 – Jacques Richard, Canadian ice hockey player (born 1952)
- 2006 – Mark Porter, New Zealand racing driver (born 1974)
- 2007 – Constantine Andreou, Greek painter and sculptor (born 1917)
- 2008 – Ângelo Carvalho, Portuguese footballer (born 1925)
- 2008 – Bob Friend, English journalist (born 1938)
- 2008 – Eileen Herlie, Scottish-American actress (born 1918)
- 2008 – George Emil Palade, Romanian-American biologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1912)
- 2010 – Frank Bourgholtzer, American journalist (born 1919)
- 2010 – Eileen Crofton, British physician and author (born 1919)
- 2011 – Al Davis, American football coach, general manager, and NFL team owner (born 1929)
- 2012 – Varsha Bhosle, Indian singer and journalist (born 1956)
- 2012 – Marilou Diaz-Abaya, Filipino director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1955)
- 2012 – Nawal Kishore Sharma, Indian politician, 20th Governor of Gujarat (born 1925)
- 2013 – Paul Desmarais, Canadian businessman and philanthropist (born 1927)
- 2013 – Rod Grams, American journalist and politician (born 1948)
- 2013 – Rodolphe Kasser, Swiss archaeologist and philologist (born 1927)
- 2013 – Akong Rinpoche, Tibetan-Chinese spiritual leader (born 1939)
- 2014 – Morris Lurie, Australian author and playwright (born 1938)
- 2014 – Zilpha Keatley Snyder, American author (born 1927)
- 2014 – Jeen van den Berg, Dutch speed skater (born 1928)
- 2015 – Jim Diamond, Scottish singer-songwriter (born 1951)
- 2020 – Whitey Ford, American professional baseball pitcher (born 1928)
- 2024 – Pat Fischer, American football player (born 1940)
- 2024 – Tim Johnson, American lawyer and politician (born 1946)
- 2024 – Luis Tiant, Cuban baseball player (born 1940)
- 2025 – Miguel Ángel Russo, Argentine footballer and manager (born 1956)
Holidays and observances 19
- Christian feast day: Evodus (or Yves) Blessed John Adams, John Lowe, and Robert Dibdale Palatias and Laurentia Pelagia (Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches) Reparata San Ernesto, Che Guevara as a folk saint. (Bolivian campesinos) Simeon (Gospel of Luke) Thaïs Ugo Canefri William Dwight Porter Bliss and Richard T. Ely (Episcopal Church) October 8 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Evodus (or Yves)
- Blessed John Adams, John Lowe, and Robert Dibdale
- Palatias and Laurentia
- Pelagia (Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches)
- Reparata
- San Ernesto, Che Guevara as a folk saint. (Bolivian campesinos)
- Simeon (Gospel of Luke)
- Thaïs
- Ugo Canefri
- William Dwight Porter Bliss and Richard T. Ely (Episcopal Church)
- October 8 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- World Space Week (October 4–10)
- Air Force Day (India)
- Children's Day (Iran)
- Navy Day (Peru)
- International Lesbian Day
- National Fluffernutter Day
- World Octopus Day