1948: Babe Ruth, major league baseball player with the New York Yankees who was originally a Boston Red Sox but was traded to the Yankees in 1920, died after battling throat cancer. He was 53. He played in ten World Series. He was elected to the Baseball of Fame in 1936.

1939: Library of Congress: New York City's Hippodrome Theater closed its doors for the last time. Built in 1905 with a seating capacity of 5,200, for a time the Hippodrome was the largest and most successful theater in New York. The Hippodrome featured lavish spectacles complete with circus animals, diving horses, opulent sets, and 500-member choruses. The most popular vaudeville artists of the day, including illusionist Harry Houdini, performed at the Hippodrome during its heyday.