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John Levén

John Levén

John Levén, born as John Gunnar Levén on October 25th, 1963 in Stockholm, Sweden. He is the bassist in the Swedish hard rock band Europe. When he was 7 years old, he and his family moved to the suburb Upplands Väsby, where several members of Europe grew up. He joined the band in 1981, replacing Peter Olsson. In 1985 Levén was the one who suggested that vocalist Joey Tempest should write a song based on an old keyboard riff Tempest had composed years earlier. The result was the song "The Final Countdown". During the break from Europe, Levén recorded and toured with bands like Brazen Abbot, Clockwise, Last Autumn's Dream, Southpaw, Europe colleague John Norum and former Black Sabbath / Deep Purple vocalist Glenn Hughes. Levén is divorced and currently living in Stockholm. He has two sons, Alex and Daniel.

Discography


- Europe - Europe (1983)
- Europe - Wings of Tomorrow (1984)
- Europe - The Final Countdown (1986)
- Europe - Out of This World (1988)
- Europe - Prisoners in Paradise (1991)
- Glenn Hughes - From Now On... (1994)
- Glenn Hughes - Burning Japan Live (1994)
- Thin Lizzy Tribute - The Lizzy Songs (1995)
- Johansson Brothers - Sonic Winter (1996)
- Brazen Abbot - Eye of the Storm (1997)
- Clockwise - Nostalgia (1997)
- Brazen Abbot - Bad Religion (1998)
- Clockwise - Naïve (1998)
- Southpaw - Southpaw (1998)
- Thore Skogman - Än Är Det Drag (1998)
- Nikolo Kotzev's Nostradamus - Nostradamus (2001)
- Brazen Abbot - Guilty as Sin (2003)
- Last Autumn's Dream - Last Autumn's Dream ( 2003)
- Europe - Start from the Dark (2004) Category:Europe members Levén, John Levén, John

October 25th

October 25 is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 67 days remaining.

Events


- 1415 - The army of Henry V of England defeats the French at the Battle of Agincourt.
- 1616 - Dutch sea-captain Dirk Hartog makes second recorded landfall by a European on Australian soil, at the later-named Dirk Hartog Island off the Western Australian coast.
- 1747 - British fleet under Admiral Sir Edward Hawke defeats French at the second battle of Cape Finisterre.
- 1760 - George III becomes King of Great Britain
- 1813 - War of 1812: Canadians and Mohawks beat the Americans in the Battle of Chateauguay.
- 1828 - The St Katharine Docks opened in London.
- 1854 - The Battle of Balaklava during the Crimean War (Charge of the Light Brigade).
- 1861 - The Toronto Stock Exchange was created.
- 1900 - The United Kingdom annexes the Transvaal.
- 1917 - The Bolshevik Revolution Commences.
- 1922 - The Dail of the Irish Free State approves the constitution of the new state, formally bringing it into being.
- 1923 - The United States Senate begins investigating the Teapot Dome scandal
- 1924 - The forged Zinoviev Letter is published in the Daily Mail, wrecking the British Labour Party's hopes of re-election.
- 1936 - Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini create the Rome-Berlin Axis.
- 1938 - The Archbishop of Dubuque, Francis J. L. Beckman, denounces Swing music as "a degenerated musical system... turned loose to gnaw away at the moral fiber of young people", warning that it leads down a "primrose path to hell".
- 1944 - Japan launches first kamikaze attacks, during the Battle of Leyte Gulf
- 1944 - Heinrich Himmler orders a crackdown on the Edelweiss Pirates, a loosely organized youth culture in Nazi Germany that had assisted army deserters and others to hide from the Third Reich
- 1944 - The USS Tang (SS-306) under Richard O'Kane (the top submarine captain of World War II) is sunk by her own torpedo.
- 1945 - The Republic of China takes over administration of Taiwan following Japan's surrender to the Allies.
- 1962 - Cuban missile crisis: Adlai Stevenson shows photos at the UN proving Soviet missiles are installed in Cuba
- 1971 - The United Nations seated the People's Republic of China and expelled the Republic of China (see China and the United Nations)
- 1983 - Operation Urgent Fury: The United States and its Caribbean allies invade Grenada, six days after Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and several of his supporters were executed in a coup d'état.
- 1986 - The New York Mets defeat the Boston Red Sox due to Bill Buckner's famous error in Game 6 of the World Series and go on to win the championship two days later.
- 1987 - Logan Tenhet born
- 1991 - Rock band Steely Dan reunites.
- 1992 - Latvia establishes its first post-Soviet constitution.
- 1993 - Jean Chrétien becomes prime minister of Canada with a massive majority for his Liberal Party in a general election in which the governing Progressive Conservatives, led by Kim Campbell, lost 149 of 151 seats in the parliament.
- 1994 - Susan Smith of Union, South Carolina claims that a black carjacker had driven off with her two sons. She later confessed to drowning the children in John D. Long Lake, and was convicted of murder.
- 1994 - Kara Spears Hultgreen is killed when on final approach to the USS Abraham Lincoln in her F-14 Tomcat.
- 1995 - A commuter train slams into a school bus in Fox River Grove, Illinois, killing seven students.
- 1997 - After a brief civil war which has driven President Pascal Lissouba out of Brazzaville, Denis Sassou-Nguesso proclaims himself the President of the Republic of the Congo.
- 2001 - Microsoft releases Windows XP
- 2003 - The Cedar Fire is reported at 5:37 pm. It becomes the largest wildfire in California history.
- 2004 - Fidel Castro, Cuba's President, announces that transactions using the American Dollar will be banned by November 8th.
- 2004 - Official Guided by Voices Day in Bloomington, Indiana.

Births


- 1102 - William Clito, Count of Flanders (d. 1128)
- 1330 - Louis II of Flanders (d. 1384)
- 1683 - Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton, British politician (d. 1757)
- 1692 - Elizabeth Farnese, queen of Philip V of Spain (d. 1766)
- 1767 - Benjamin Constant, Swiss writer (d. 1830)
- 1806 - Max Stirner, German philosopher (d. 1856)
- 1811 - Évariste Galois, French mathematician (d. 1832)
- 1825 - Johann Strauss II, Austrian composer (d. 1899)
- 1838 - Georges Bizet, French composer (d. 1875)
- 1856 - Dragutin Gorjanovic-Kramberger, Croatian paleontologist (d. 1936)
- 1864 - Alexander Gretchaninov, Russian composer (d. 1956)
- 1867 - Józef Dowbór-Muśnicki, Polish general (d.1937)
- 1869 - John Heisman, American football coach (d. 1936)
- 1881 - Pablo Picasso, Spanish painter and sculptor (d. 1973)
- 1888 - Richard E. Byrd, American explorer (d. 1957)
- 1889 - Abel Gance, French film writer (d. 1981)
- 1892 - Leo G. Carroll, English actor (d. 1972)
- 1895 - Levi Eshkol, Prime Minister of Israel (d. 1969)
- 1902 - Eddie Lang, American jazz guitarist (d. 1933)
- 1903 - Katharine Byron, U.S. Congresswoman (d. 1976)
- 1908 - Edmond Pidoux, Swiss writer (d. 2004)
- 1910 - William Higinbotham, physicist (d. 1994)
- 1912 - Minnie Pearl, American comedienne and singer (d. 1996)
- 1913 - Klaus Barbie, Nazi war criminal (d. 1991)
- 1914 - John Berryman, American poet (d. 1972)
- 1915 - Ivan M. Niven, Canadian mathematician (d. 1999)
- 1921 - King Michael I of Romania
- 1924 - Billy Barty, American actor (d. 2000)
- 1926 - Galina Vishnevskaya, Russian soprano
- 1927 - Barbara Cook, American singer and actress
- 1928 - Marion Ross, American actress
- 1935 - Russell Schweickart, astronaut
- 1940 - Bobby Knight, American basketball coach
- 1941 - Anne Tyler, American novelist
- 1942 - Helen Reddy, Australian singer
- 1944 - Jon Anderson, English singer (Yes)
- 1944 - James Carville, American political operative
- 1948 - Dan Gable, American wrestler and coach
- 1948 - Glenn Tipton, English guitarist
- 1954 - Mike Eruzione, American hockey player
- 1955 - Robin Eubanks, American jazz trombonist
- 1959 - Nancy Cartwright, American voice actress
- 1961 - Grover Waldrop, American biochemist
- 1962 - Chad Smith, American drummer (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
- 1962 - Darlene Vogel, American actress
- 1964 - Nicole, German singer
- 1970 - Ed Robertson, Canadian guitarist and singer (Barenaked Ladies)
- 1971 - Pedro Martínez, Dominican Major League Baseball player
- 1971 - Midori, Japanese violinist
- 1976 - Joshua P. Warren, American author and paranormal investigator
- 1977 - Birgit Prinz, German footballer
- 1978 - Russell Anderson, Scottish footballer
- 1979 - Tony Torcato, baseball player
- 1981 - Shaun Wright-Phillips, English footballer
- 1984 - Sara Helena Lumholdt, Swedish musician (A-Teens)
- 1985 - Ciara Harris, American singer
- 1988 - Carolyn Hirtle, Canadian Chick
- 1995 - Conchita Campbell, Canadian actress

Deaths


- 304 - Pope Marcellinus (martyred)
- 625 - Pope Boniface V
- 1047 - King Magnus I of Norway (b. 1024)
- 1154 - King Stephen of England (b. 1096)
- 1230 - Gilbert de Clare, 5th Earl of Hertford, English soldier (b. 1180)
- 1400 - Geoffrey Chaucer, English poet
- 1415 - Killed in the Battle of Agincourt:
  - Charles d'Albret, Count of Dreux and Constable of France
  - John I of Alençon (b. 1385)
  - Antoine, Duke of Brabant (b. 1384)
  - Philip of Burgundy, Count of Nevers and Rethel (b. 1389)
  - Frederick of Lorraine (born 1371)
  - Philip II, Count of Nevers (b. 1389)
  - Michael de la Pole, 3rd Earl of Suffolk (born 1394)
  - Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York (born 1373)
- 1492 - Thaddeus McCarthy, Irish Catholic bishop
- 1495 - King John II of Portugal (b. 1455)
- 1514 - William Elphinstone, Scottish bishop and statesman (b. 1431)
- 1555 - Olympia Fulvia Morata, Italian classical scholar (b. 1526)
- 1557 - William Cavendish, English politician (b. 1505)
- 1633 - Jean Titelouze, French organist
- 1647 - Evangelista Torricelli, Italian physicist and mathematician (b. 1608)
- 1683 - William Scroggs, Lord Chief Justice of England
- 1733 - Giovanni Gerolamo Saccheri, Italian mathematician (b. 1667)
- 1757 - Antoine Augustine Calmet, French theologian (b. 1672)
- 1760 - George II of Great Britain (b. 1683)
- 1889 - Émile Augier, French dramatist (b. 1820)
- 1895 - Charles Hallé, German pianist and conductor (b. 1819)
- 1910 - Willie Anderson, Scottish-born golfer (b. 1878)
- 1920 - King Alexander I of Greece (bitten by a pet monkey) (b. 1893)
- 1921 - Bat Masterson, American journalist and lawman
- 1938 - Alfonsina Storni, Argentine poet (b. 1892)
- 1953 - Holger Pedersen, Danish linguist (b. 1867)
- 1957 - Albert Anastasia, Italian-born gangster (b. 1902)
- 1957 - Lord Dunsany, Irish writer (b. 1878)
- 1963 - Roger Désormière, French conductor (b. 1898)
- 1973 - Abebe Bikila, Ethiopian athlete (b. 1932)
- 1974 - Nick Drake, English musician and songwriter (b. 1948)
- 1980 - Virgil Fox, American organist (b. 1912)
- 1986 - Forrest Tucker, America actor (b. 1919)
- 1991 - Bill Graham, German-born concert promoter (b. 1931)
- 1992 - Roger Miller, American musician and composer (b. 1936)
- 1993 - Danny Chan, Hong Kong singer, actor, and songwriter (b. 1958)
- 1993 - Vincent Price, American actor (b. 1911)
- 1995 - Bobby Riggs, American tennis player (b. 1918)
- 1999 - Payne Stewart, American golfer (b. 1957)
- 2002 - Richard Harris, Irish actor (b. 1930)
- 2002 - Paul Wellstone, U.S. Senator from Minnesota (b. 1944)
- 2004 - John Peel, British disc jockey (b. 1939)
- 2005 - Wellington Mara, American football team owner (b. 1916)

Holidays and observances


- R.C. Saints - Feast day of Saints Crispin and Crispian; Six Welsh martyrs and companions; forty martyrs of England and Wales
- Also see October 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Kazakhstan - Republic Day
- Republic of China - Taiwan Retrocession Day (1945)
- Virgin Islands - Thanksgiving Day : end of the hurricane season
- Day of the Romanian Army

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/25 BBC: On This Day] ---- October 24 - October 26 - November 25 - September 25 - more historical anniversaries ko:10월 25일 ms:25 Oktober ja:10月25日 simple:October 25 th:25 ตุลาคม

1963

1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar).

Events

January-February


- January 1 - CSIRO scientist Dr Gilbert Bogle and Mrs Margaret Chandler are found dead, believed to have been poisoned, in bushland near the Lane Cove River, Sydney. Known as the Bogle-Chandler case.
- January 11 - The Whisky A Go-Go night club in Los Angeles, the first disco in the USA, is opened.
- January 14 - George Wallace becomes governor of Alabama.
- January 22 - Elysée treaty between France and Germany
- January 28 - Black student Harvey Gantt enters Clemson College in South Carolina, the last US state to hold out against racial integration
- January 29 - Charles De Gaulle vetos United Kingdom's entry into the EEC
- February 8 - Travel, financial and commercial transactions by United States citizens to Cuba are made illegal by the John F. Kennedy administration.
- February 11 - CIA Domestic Operations Division is created.
- February 21 - An earthquake in Libya destroys the village of Barce - 500 dead
- February 27 - Juan Bosch takes office as the 41st president of the Dominican Republic.
- February 27 - Female suffrage in Iran

March-April

Iran
- March 1 - Yoko Ono's marriage to American Christian fundamentalist filmmaker Tony Cox is annulled
- March 4 - In Paris six people are sentenced to death for conspiring to assassinate President Charles de Gaulle.
- March 16 - Mount Agung erupts on Bali - 11,000 dead
- March 18 - Court decides poor must have lawyers (Gideon vs. Wainwright Supreme Court trial)
- March 21 - Alcatraz, a federal penitentiary on an island in San Francisco Bay, closes; the last 27 prisoners are transferred elsewhere at the order of Attorney General Robert F Kennedy.
- March 27 - In Britain Dr Beeching issues report calling for huge cuts to the UK's rail network.
- April 7 - Yugoslavia is proclaimed to be a Socialist republic and Josip Broz Tito is named President for life
- April 10 - The US nuclear submarine Thresher sinks 220 miles east of Cape Cod with all hands - 129 dead
- April 15 - 70,000 marchers arrive in London from Aldermarston to demonstrate against nuclear weapons
- April 16 - Martin Luther King composes "Letter from Birmingham Jail"
- April 20 – In Quebec, Canada, members of the Quebec terrorist group, the Front de libération du Québec, bomb the Canadian Armed Forces recruitment center, killing night watchman, Wilfred V. O'Neill.
- April 22 - Lester B. Pearson becomes Canada's fourteenth prime minister.
- April 21 thru April 23 - First election of the Supreme Institution of the Bahá'í Faith, known as the Universal House of Justice whose Seat is at the Bahá'í World Centre on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel.

May-June


- May 1: The Coca-Cola Company debuts its first diet drink, TaB cola. Instead of sugar it is sweetened with saccharin and cyclamates. Later (after cyclamates were banned) TaB became a sugar-and-saccharin soft drink. Today it uses a blend of aspartame (NutraSweet) and saccharin.
- May 2 - Berthold Seliger launches near Cuxhaven a rocket with three stages with a maximum flight altitude of more than 100 kilometres. It is the only sounding rocket developed in Germany.
- May 15 - Mercury program: NASA launches the last mission of the program, Mercury 9 (on June 12 NASA Administrator James E. Webb told Congress the program was complete)
- May 23 - Fidel Castro visits the Soviet Union
- May 25 - The Organisation of African Unity is established in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- June 1 - Kenya gains autonomy.
- June 2 - Slavery declared illegal in Saudi Arabia
- June 5 - Profumo Affair - British Secretary of State for War John Profumo resigns in a sex scandal
- June 11 – Buddhist monk Thich Quang Duc publicly sets himself on fire in Saigon, Vietnam, to protest against Ngo Dinh Diem's policies
- June 11 - Prime Minister of Greece Constantine Karamanlis resigns in protest of king's visit to Britain
- June 12 - Byron de la Beckwith shoots civil rights leader Medgar Evers in front of his home in Jackson, Mississippi.
- June 16 - Vostok 6: Valentina Tereshkova (USSR) becomes the first woman in space.
- June 17 - The United States Supreme Court ruled 8 to 1 in Abington School District v. Schempp against allowing the reciting of Bible verses and the Lord's Prayer in public schools.
- June 21 - Pope Paul VI is elected by College of Cardinals.
- June 30 - Ciaculli Massacre - mafia car bomb explodes in Ciaculli, Sicily, killing 7 police officers

July-August


- July 1 - ZIP Codes introduced in the USA
- July 5 - Diplomatic relations between the Israeli and the Japanese governments are raised to embassies' level.
- July 5 - The Catholic Church accepts cremation as a funeral practice
- July 26 - Earthquake in Skopje, Yugoslavia - 1800 dead
- July 26 - Syncom, the world's first geostationary (synchronous) satellite is orbited by NASA
- July 27 – Indonesian president-for-life Sukarno declares that he will crush Malaysia – official start of Indonesian Confrontation
- July 30 - Soviet newspaper Izvestia reports that Kim Philby has been given asylum in Moscow
- August 5 - United States, United Kingdom, and Soviet Union sign a nuclear test ban treaty.
- August 8 - The Great Train Robbery takes place in Buckinghamshire, England
- August 18 - American civil rights movement: James Meredith becomes the first black person to graduate from the University of Mississippi
- August 28 - Martin Luther King jr. delivers his "I have a dream" speech on the steps at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.

September-October


- September 5 - Christine Keeler arrested for perjury. On December 6 she is sentenced to nine months in prison.
- September 6 - The Centre for International Industrial Property Studies (CEIPI) is founded.
- September 7 - The Pro Football Hall of Fame opens in Canton, Ohio with 17 charter members.
- September 10 - Mafia boss Bernardo Provenzano is indicted for murder. He goes on the run and, as of 2005, is still a fugitive.
- September 15 - American civil rights movement: The 16th Street Baptist Church bombing results in 4 deaths and 22 injuries.
- September 16 – Federation of Malaysia formed through the merging of the Federation of Malaya and the British crown colony of Singapore, North Borneo (renamed Sabah) and Sarawak.
- September 18 – Rioters burn down British embassy in Jakarta to protest formation of Malaysia
- September 23 - King Fahd University for Petroleum and Minerals was was established by a Saudi Royal Decree as the College of Petroleum and Minerals
- September 25 - Denning Report on Profumo affair
- September 29 - Opening of second period of Second Vatican Council in Rome.
- October 9 - Uganda becomes a republic.
- October 9 - In northeast Italy, over 2,000 people are killed when a large landslide behind the Vajont Dam causes a giant wave of water to overtop it.

November

Vajont Dam]]
- November 2 - South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem is assassinated following a military coup
- November 6 - Vietnam War: Coup leader General Duong Van Minh takes over leadership of South Vietnam
- November 7 - Wunder von Lengede: In Germany, 11 miners are rescued from a collapsed mine after 14 days
- November 9 - 1963 Miike coal-mine explosion: In Japan, a coal mine explosion kills 458 and sends 839 carbon monoxide poisoning victims to the hospital
- November 14 - A volcanic eruption under the sea near Iceland creates a new island, Surtsey
- November 16 - Newspaper strike begins in Toledo, Ohio
- November 18 - Dartford Tunnel opens
- November 22 - John F. Kennedy assassination: In Dallas, Texas, U.S. President John F. Kennedy is assassinated, Texas Governor John B. Connally is seriously wounded, and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn-in as the 36th President of the United States.
- November 23 - The first episode of the BBC television series Doctor Who is broadcast in the United Kingdom.
- November 24 - John F. Kennedy assassination: Alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald is mortally shot by Jack Ruby in Dallas, Texas on live national television.
- November 24 - Vietnam War: Newly sworn in U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson confirms that the United States intends to continue supporting South Vietnam militarily and economically
- November 25 - John F. Kennedy assassination: The late U.S. President Kennedy is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
- November 29 - John F. Kennedy assassination: U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson establishes the Warren Commission to investigate the assassination of President Kennedy.
- November 29 - Trans-Canada Airlines Flight 831, a Douglas DC-8 carrying 118, crashes into a wooded hillside after taking-off from Dorval International Airport near Montreal, killing all 118 on board (for many years this was the worst air disaster in Canada's history).

December


- December 4 - Closing of second period of Second Vatican Council
- End of the Mercury program of United States manned spaceflight
- December 5 - The Seliger Forschungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH demonstrates rockets for military use to representatives of the military of non-NATO-countries near Cuxhaven. Although these rockets landed via parachute at the end of their flight and no allied laws were violated, this action led to protests by the Soviet Union.
- December 12 – Kenya becomes independent with Jomo Kenyatta as a prime minister
- December 22 - Cruise ship Lakonia burns 180 miles north of Madeira with the loss of 128 lives
- December 24 - Cyprus Emergency - A brief civil war in Cyprus between Greek and Turkish Cypriots erupts
- December 31 - Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland formally dissolved

Unknown date


- David. H. Frisch and J. H. Smith prove radioactive decay of mesons is slowed by their motion. (See Einstein's special relativity and general relativity).
- Full deployment of SAGE, the semi-automated ground environment.
- TAT-3 cable goes into operation.
- Arecibo Observatory officially begins operation.
- Ostankino Tower in Moscow begins construction.
- The divorce case of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll causes scandal in the United Kingdom
- Harvey Ball invents the ubiquitous smiley
- One of the most spectacular years for vintage Port in the 20th Century.

Births

January-February


- January 1 - Laura Ingraham, American talk show host and author
- January 2 - David Cone, baseball player
- January 2 - Edgar Martinez, baseball player
- January 14 - Steven Soderbergh, American film director
- January 21 - Hakeem Olajuwon, Nigerian basketball player
- January 21 - Detlef Schrempf, German basketball player
- January 23 - Gail O'Grady, American actress
- January 24 - Arnold Vanderlyde, Dutch boxer
- January 26 - José Mourinho, Portuguese football manager
- January 26 - Andrew Ridgely, English musician
- January 30 - Thomas Brezina Austrian author
- February 8 - Vince Neil, American musician, Motley Crue
- February 9 - Travis Tritt, American singer
- February 11 - Diane Franklin, American actress
- February 11 - Todd Benzinger, baseball player
- February 17 - Michael Jordan, American basketball player
- February 19 - Seal, English singer
- February 20 - Charles Barkley, American basketball player
- February 21 - William Baldwin, American actor
- February 22 - Vijay Singh, Fiji golfer

March-April


- March 1 - Dan Michaels, American record producer and saxophonist (The Choir and The Swirling Eddies)
- March 4 - Jason Newsted, American bassist (Metallica)
- March 6 - D.L. Hughley, American actor and comedian
- March 10 - Neneh Cherry, Swedish musician
- March 12 - Joaquim Cruz, Brazilian runner
- March 14 - Bruce Reid, Australian cricketer
- March 17 - Michael Ivins, American bassist (The Flaming Lips)
- March 18 - Vanessa L. Williams, American beauty queen, actress, and singer
- March 20 - Paul Annacone, American tennis player and coach
- March 20 - Kathy Ireland, American model and actress
- March 21 - Ronald Koeman, Dutch football player and manager
- March 23 - Kyogoku Natsuhiko, Japanese writer
- March 27 - Quentin Tarantino, American actor, director, writer, and producer
- March 27 - Xuxa, Brazilian television personality
- April 4 - Jack Del Rio, American football player and coach
- April 4 - Graham Norton, Irish talk show host
- April 9 - Joe Scarborough, American newscaster
- April 11 - Chris Ferguson, American poker player
- April 13 - Garry Kasparov, Russian chess player
- April 17 - Joel Murray, American actor
- April 18 - Conan O'Brien, American television entertainer
- April 21 - Ken Caminiti, baseball player (d. 2004)
- April 21 - Roy Dupuis, Canadian actor
- April 26 - Jet Li, Chinese martial artist and actor
- April 27 - Cali Timmins, Canadian actress
- April 30 - Michael Waltrip, American race car driver

May-August


- May 9 - Barry Douglas Lamb, English musician, author, and preacher
- May 11 - Natasha Richardson, English-born actress
- May 12 - Vanessa A. Williams, American actress
- May 16 - Mercedes Echerer, Austrian actress and politician
- May 23 - Wally Dallenbach Jr., American race car driver and announcer
- May 24 - Joe Dumars, American basketball player
- May 25 - Mike Myers, Canadian actor and comedian
- June 6 - Jason Isaacs, English actor
- June 9 - Johnny Depp, American actor
- June 13 - Bettina Bunge, German tennis player
- June 17 - Greg Kinnear, American actor
- June 18 - Bruce Smith, American football player
- June 23 - Colin Montgomerie, Scottish golfer
- June 25 - George Michael, English singer
- June 27 - Meera Syal, English comedian, writer, singer, and actress
- July 4 - Christopher George Kennedy , son of Robert F.Kennedy and Ethel Skakel Kennedy
- July 16 - Phoebe Cates, American actress
- July 24 - Karl Malone, American basketball player
- July 30 - Lisa Kudrow, American actress
- August 3 - James Hetfield, American singer (Metallica)
- August 6 - Kevin Mitnick, computer hacker
- August 9 - Whitney Houston, American singer
- August 19 - Joey Tempest, Swedish singer (Europe)
- August 19 - John Stamos, American actor
- August 22 - Tori Amos, American singer
- August 23 - Hans-Henning Fastrich, German field hockey player
- August 23 - Kenny Wallace, American race car driver
- August 24 - Hideo Kojima, Japanese video game director
- August 30 - Paul Oakenfold, British disc jockey

September-December


- September 6 - Geert Wilders, Dutch politician
- September 9 - Lauren Allen, American Porn Star,Adult Model
- September 10 - Randy Johnson, baseball player
- September 18 - Rob Brettle, English historian
- September 21 - Cecil Fielder, baseball player
- September 23 - Jackie Pearcey, English politician
- September 29 - Dave Andreychuk, Canadian hockey player
- September 29 - Les Claypool, American bassist and singer (Primus)
- October 1 - Mark McGwire, baseball player
- October 3 - Tommy Lee, American musician, Motley Crue
- October 10 - Anita Mui, Hong Kong singer (d. 2003)
- October 10 - Daniel Pearl, American journalist (d. 2002)
- October 10 - Jolanda de Rover, Dutch swimmer
- October 22 - Brian Boitano, American figure skater
- October 26 - Natalie Merchant, American singer, songwriter, and musician
- October 30 - Kristina Wagner, American actress
- October 31 - Fred McGriff, baseball player
- November 1 - Rick Allen, British musician (Def Leppard)
- November 4 - Lena Zavaroni, Scottish entertainer (d. 1999)
- November 13 - Vinny Testaverde, American football player
- November 15 - Benny Elias, Australian rugby player
- November 18 - Dante Bichette, baseball player
- November 19 - Terry Farrell, American actress
- November 19 - Jon Potter, British field hockey player
- November 21 - Nicolette Sheridan, English actress
- November 23 - Troy Hurtubise, Canadian inventor
- December 3 - Terri Schiavo, American right-to-die cause célèbre (d. 2005)
- December 14 - Cynthia Gibb, American actress
- December 16 - Benjamin Bratt, American actor
- December 18 - Brad Pitt, American actor
- December 23 - Jim Harbaugh, American football player
- December 29 - Francisco Bustamante, Filipino billiard player
- December 29 - Dave McKean, English artist and filmmaker

Unknown date


- Andrew Weatherall, English disc jockey

Deaths


- January 2 - Dick Powell, American actor (b. 1904)
- January 3 - Jack Carson, Canadian actor (b. 1910)
- January 5 - Rogers Hornsby, baseball player (b. 1896)
- January 18 - Edward Charles Titchmarsh, British mathematician (b. 1899)
- January 29 - Robert Frost, American poet (b. 1874)
- January 30 - Francis Poulenc, French composer (b. 1899)
- February 11 - Sylvia Plath, American poet and novelist (suicide) (b. 1932)
- February 28 - Eppa Rixey, baseball player (b. 1891)
- March 4 - William Carlos Williams, American writer (b. 1883)
- March 5 - Patsy Cline, American singer (b. 1932)
- April 6 - Otto Struve, Russian-born astronomer (b. 1897)
- April 9 - Eddie Edwards, American jazz trombonist (b. 1891)
- May 11 - Herbert Spencer Gasser, American physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1888)
- May 12 - Bobby Kerr, Canadian runner (b. 1882)
- May 31 - Edith Hamilton, German-born author (b. 1867)
- June 3 - Pope John XXIII (b. 1881)
- June 11 - Thich Quang Duc, Vietnamese Bhuddist monk (suicide)(b. 1897)
- June 18 - Pedro Armendariz, Mexican actor (suicide)(b. 1912)
- August 5 - Theodore Roethke, American poet (b. 1908)
- August 23 - Glen Gray, American saxophonist and conductor (b. 1906)
- August 31 - Georges Braque, French painter (b. 1882)
- September 11 - Suzanne Duchamp, French painter (b. 1889)
- October 11 - Edith Piaf, French singer (b. 1915)
- October 11 - Jean Cocteau, French writer (b. 1889)
- November 2 - Ngo Dinh Diem, President of South Vietnam (b. 1901)
- November 15 - Fritz Reiner, Hungarian conductor (b. 1888)
- November 22 - Aldous Huxley, English novelist (b. 1894)
- November 22 - John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States (b. 1917)
- November 22 - C.S. Lewis, Irish writer (b. 1898)
- November 24 - Lee Harvey Oswald, American assassin of John F. Kennedy (shot) (b. 1939)
- November - Luis Cernuda, Spanish writer (b. 1902)
- December 2 - Thomas Hicks, American marathon runner (b. 1875)
- December 5 - Karl Amadeus Hartmann, German composer (b. 1905)
- December 5 - Sri Deep Narayan Mahaprabhuji, Hindu saint (b. 1828)
- December 28 - shaun gantz]], deemed coolest in america (b. 1895)

Prize in Physics|Physics]] - Eugene Paul Wigner, Maria Goeppert-Mayer, J. Hans D. Jensen
- Chemistry - Karl Ziegler, Giulio Natta
- Medicine - Sir John Carew Eccles, Alan Lloyd Hodgkin, Andrew Fielding Huxley
- Literature - Giorgos Seferis
- Peace - International Committee of the Red Cross, League of Red Cross Societies Category:1963 ko:1963년 ms:1963 ja:1963年 simple:1963 th:พ.ศ. 2506

Sweden

The Kingdom of Sweden (Swedish: ) is a Nordic country in Scandinavia, in Northern Europe. It is bordered by Norway on the west, Finland on the northeast, the Skagerrak Strait and the Kattegat Strait on the southwest, and the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia on the east. Sweden has a low population density except in its metropolitan areas, with most of the inland consisting of forests and mountainous wilderness. Following the decline of the Viking Age, Sweden spent a couple of centuries fighting with its neighbouring countries Denmark (from the 12th century 1710), and Norway (in the 16th and 17th century). In the 17th and 18th centuries Sweden extended its territory through warfare and became a Great Power, twice its current size. The extended territory was subsequently lost within a century. Since 1814, Sweden has been at peace, adopting a policy of keeping free of alliances. Sweden was one of the poorest countries in Europe in the 19th century, shaped by heavy alcohol consumption, until improved transportation and communication allowed it to utilize natural assets from different parts of the country, most notably timber and iron ore, which allowed the creation of a welfare state in the early 20th century. Today, the country is defined by liberal tendencies and a strong national quest for equality, and usually ranks among the top nations in the UN Human Development Index.

History

Pre-history

For details, see: Prehistoric Sweden Soon after the recession of the last ice age, Sweden became populated by hunters and gatherers, during the Stone Age (6000 BC – 4000 BC). The region developed rather slowly compared to southern Europe; while the Romans wrote poetry, Scandinavia had just entered the Iron Age. Sweden was first mentioned in the 1st century, by Roman historian Tacitus, who wrote that the Suiones tribe lived out in the sea and were powerful in both arms and ships. This referred to the inhabitants of eastern Sweden: Svealand, primarily around lake Mälaren; towns of Stockholm, Sigtuna, and Birka. From this tribe, Sweden derived its name. The southern parts, on the other hand, were inhabited by Geats (Götar) in the Götaland territory. Little is known for certain about that time, but chronicles based on Norse sagas and the Beowulf epos go back about 2,000 years. During the Viking Age of the 9th and 10th century, Swedish vikings travelled east setting its mark on the Baltic countries, Russia, the Black Sea, further through the rivers of Russia down south to Constantinople and southern Europe.

Middle Ages

For details, see: Early Swedish history and Foundation of Modern Sweden With Christianization in the 12th century, the country became consolidated, with its centre in the water-ways of the northern Baltic and the Gulf of Finland. In the 14th century Sweden, like the rest of Europe, was struck by the Black Death (the Plague), with all its effect. During the middle ages, the expansion of Sweden into the northern wilderness of Laplandia, the Scandinavian peninsula, and present-day Finland continued. Finland was a part of Sweden proper from 1362 until 1809. In 1389, Norway, Denmark and Sweden were united under a single monarch in a treaty known as the Kalmar Union. After several wars and disputes between these nations, King Gustav I of Sweden (House of Vasa) broke free in 1521 and established a nation state, considered the foundation of modern Sweden. Shortly afterwards he rejected Catholicism and led Sweden to the Protestant Reformation. Gustav I is considered to be Sweden's "Father of the Nation". He was the first monarch from the House of Vasa. The House of Vasa also ruled between 1587 and 1668 in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Between 1592 and 1599 Sweden and Poland were ruled in a personal union by Sigismund I Vasa.

A major power

Sigismund I Vasa (orange) overlayed by present day Sweden (red)]] For details, see: Rise of Sweden as a Great Power, Swedish Empire, Sweden and the Great Northern War, Absolute Monarchy in Sweden, Sweden-Finland and Union between Sweden and Norway The 17th century saw the rise of Sweden as one of the great powers in Europe, due to successful participation, initiated by King Gustav II Adolph, in the Thirty Years' War and by Charles X Gustav of Sweden in the The Deluge of Poland. Mighty as it was, it crumbled in the 18th century with Imperial Russia taking the reins of northern Europe in the Great Northern War, and finally in 1809 when the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland was created out of the eastern half of Sweden. After Denmark was defeated in the Napoleonic wars, Norway was ceded to Sweden in the Treaty of Kiel. This led to the Campaign against Norway, which was fought in 1814, and ended with the Convention of Moss, which forced Norway into a union with Sweden that was not dissolved until 1905. But the campaign also signified the last of the Swedish wars and its 200 years of peace are arguably unique in the world today.

Modern history

For details, see: Modernization of Sweden The 19th century saw a significant population increase, generally attributed to peace, vaccination, and potatoes, doubling the population from 1750 to 1850. Many people in the countryside, where most Swedes lived, found themselves unemployed. The result was poverty, alcoholism, and massive emigration; it is believed that between 1850 and 1910 more than one million Swedes moved to the United States alone. In the early 20th century, more Swedes lived in Chicago than in Sweden's second biggest city, Gothenburg. However, as the Industrial revolution progressed during the century, people gradually began moving into cities to work in factories, and became involved in Socialistic unions. A threatening Socialist revolution was avoided in 1917, following the re-introduction of Parliamentarism, and the country was democratized.

Recent history

For details, see: Industrialization of Sweden and Sweden during World War II
Sweden remained neutral during World War I and World War II, although its neutrality during World War II has been disputed. Sweden was part of the Marshall aid package but continued to stay non-aligned during the Cold War, and is still not a member of any military alliance. Following the second World War, Sweden made use of its natural resources and undemolished state, making it possible to expand its industry to supply the rebuilding of Europe, leading it to be one of the richest countries in the world by 1960. During most of the post-war era, the country was ruled by the Swedish Social Democratic Party that established a welfare state, striving for a "well being for all"-policy. As other economies were re-established, Sweden was surpassed in the 1970s, and had to adjust its politics in the 1990s, but still ranks among the top nations concerning well being of its inhabitants.

Politics

Sweden has been a monarchy for almost a millennium, with its taxation controlled by the Riksdag (parliament). It consisted of four chambers, made up by representatives from the 4 estates: clerics, nobility, townsmen and peasants, until 1866 when Sweden became a Constitutional monarchy with a bicameral parliament. Its First Chamber was indirectly elected by local governments, and the Second Chamber directly elected in national elections every four years. local government Legislative power was (symbolically) shared between king and parliament until 1975. In 1971 the Riksdag became unicameral. Constitutionally, the 349-member Riksdag holds supreme authority in Sweden, and its acts are not subject to judicial review. Acts of the parliament must be made inapplicable at every level if they are obviously against constitutional laws. Legislation may be initiated by the Cabinet or by members of Parliament. Members are elected on the basis of proportional representation for a four-year term. The Constitution of Sweden can be altered by the Riksdag, which requires a supermajority and confirmation after the following general elections. Sweden has three other constitutional laws: the Act of Royal Succession, the Freedom of Press Act and the Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression. Executive power was shared between the King and a noble Privy Council until 1680, followed by the King's autocratic rule initiated by the common estates of the Parliament. As a reaction to the failed Great Northern War, Parliamentarism was introduced in 1719, followed by three different flavours of Constitutional Monarchy in 1772, 1789 and 1809, the latter granting several civil liberties. The monarch remains as the formal, but merely symbolic head of state with ceremonial duties. Social Democracy has played a dominant political role since 1917, after Reformists had confirmed their strength and the revolutionaries left the party. After 1956, the Cabinets have been dominated by the Social Democrats. Only three general elections have given the centre-right bloc enough seats in Parliament to form a government. It is considered the reason for the Swedish post-war welfare state, with a government expenditure of slightly more than 50% of the gross domestic product. Some Swedish political figures that have received worldwide recognition include Joe Hill, Raoul Wallenberg, Dag Hammarskjöld, Olof Palme and Hans Blix.

Energy politics

For details, see Nuclear power phase-out After the 1973 oil crisis, the energy politics were determined to become less dependent on the import of petroleum. Since then, energy has been generated mostly from hydropower and nuclear power. Accidents at the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station (USA) prompted the Swedish parliament in 1980 after a referendum to decide that no further nuclear power plants should be built and that a nuclear power phase-out should be completed by 2010. As of 2005, the use of renewables amounted to 26 per cent of the energy supply in Sweden, most important being hydropower and biomass. In 1998, electricity from hydropower accounted for 76 TWh and 48 per cent of the country's production of electricity. At the same time, the use of biofuels, peat etc. produced 92TWh. [http://www.scientific-alliance.org/pdf/essential_programme_to_underpin_government_policy_on_nuclear_power.pdf] (PDF file) In March 2005, an opinion poll with 1027 persons asked, showed 83 per cent support for maintaining or increasing nuclear power [http://www.uic.com.au/nip39.htm]. Since then however, reports about radioactive leakages at a nuclear waste store in Forsmark, Sweden, have been published [http://www.forbes.com/finance/feeds/afx/2005/06/29/afx2116521.html]. This doesn't seem to have changed the public support of continued use of nuclear power.

Economy

PDF] The standard of living has become enviably high under this social democratic system. It features a modern distribution system, excellent internal and external communications, and a skilled labour force. Timber, hydropower, and iron ore constitute the resource base of an economy heavily oriented toward foreign trade. The engineering sector accounts for 50% of output and exports. The public and the trade unions controlled pension funds, non-profit organizations and the reserve funds of the trade-unions owns more than 50% of Sweden capital. 80% of the workforce is organized through the trade-unions. The public sector accounts for 53% of the GDP. Trade unions have the right to elect two representatives to the board in all Swedish companies with more than 25 employees. Agriculture accounts for only 2% of GDP and 2% of the jobs. The government's commitment to fiscal discipline resulted in a substantial budgetary surplus in 2001, which was cut by more than half in 2002, due to the global economic slowdown, revenue declines, and spending increases. The Swedish Riksbank is focusing on price stability with its inflation target of 2%. Growth is expected to reach 3.5% in 2004, assuming a continued moderate global recovery. However, open unemployment has steadily increased since 2001 and stood at 5.6% as of October 2005. Counting everyone who neither studies full-time or has employment, the percentage is around 14% (peaking at 20% in the summer months) . Sweden is known for having an uneven distribution of income, where the income in major towns are higher than in the countryside. Sweden's communication and transportation systems are important components of the infrastructure.

Welfare state

:For details, see Social welfare in Sweden What is known as [http://www.lysator.liu.se/nordic/scn/faq28.html The Scandinavian Model], is usually described as a mean way between socialism and capitalism and has been labelled the most developed form of capitalism. The government provides for childcare, maternity and paternity leave, a ceiling on health care costs, free education (all levels), retirement pensions, free dental care up to 20 years of age and sick leave (partly payed by the employer). Parents are entitled to a total of 480 days partly paid leave between birth and the child's eighth birthday, with 60 days reserved specifically for each parent, in effect providing the father with a so called "daddy-month". In addition, the ceiling on health care costs makes it easier, relative to other nations, for Swedish workers to take time off for medical reasons. The Swedish welfare system remains generous, but a recession in the 1990s forced an introduction of a number of reforms, such as education vouchers in 1992 and decentralisation of some types of healthcare services to municipal control. [http://fcpp.org/main/publication_detail.php?PubID=814] The welfare state requires high taxes, but the population is generally affirmative of this. Sweden has a two step progressive tax scale with a municipal income tax of about 30% and a high income state tax of about 50% that kicks in when you earn more than about 300 000 SEK. The employing company pays an additional 32% of so called Employers fee. In addition, a national VAT of 25% is added to many things bought by private citizens except food (12% VAT), transports and books (6% VAT) with the exception of petrol/diesel which is under heavy taxation.

Education

As part of its social welfare system, Sweden provides an extensive childcare system that guarantees a place for all young children from 1-5 years old in a public day-care facility. Between ages 6-16, children attend compulsory comprehensive school. After completing the ninth grade, 90% continue with a three year upper secondary school leading sometimes to an exam in a technical profession and always to the qualifications for further studies at a university college (högskola) or university.

Geography

university college (högskola) or university] university college (högskola) or university university college (högskola) or university in northern Norrland]] Norrland in northern Götaland]] Götaland]] Götaland Götaland]] Sweden enjoys a mostly temperate climate despite its northern latitude, mainly due to the Gulf Stream. In the south of Sweden leaf-bearing trees are prolific, in the north pines and hardy birches dominate the landscape. In the mountains of northern Sweden a sub-Arctic climate predominates. North of the Arctic Circle, the sun never sets for part of each summer, and in the winter, night is unending for a corresponding period. East of Sweden is the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, providing a long coastline, and mellowing the climate further yet. To the west is the Scandinavian mountain chain, a range that separates Sweden from Norway. The southern part of the country is chiefly agricultural, with forests covering a larger percentage of the land the further north one goes. Population density is also higher in southern Sweden, with centres being in the valley of lake Mälaren and the Öresund region. Gotland and Öland are the two largest Islands of Sweden.

Counties

For details, see: Counties of Sweden Sweden is divided into 21 counties or län. They are Stockholm County, Uppsala County, Södermanland County, Östergötland County, Jönköping County, Kronoberg County, Kalmar County, Gotland County, Blekinge County, Skåne County, Halland County, Västra Götaland County, Värmland County, Örebro County, Västmanland County, Dalarna County, Gävleborg County, Västernorrland County, Jämtland County, Västerbotten County and Norrbotten County. Each has a County Administrative Board or länsstyrelse which is appointed by the Government. In each county there is also a separate County Council or landsting, which is the municipal representation appointed by the county electorate. Each county further divides into a number of municipalities or kommuner, making a total of 290 municipalities, in 2004. There are also older historical divisions of Sweden, primarily into provinces and lands.

Largest cities

Denotes inhabitants in the municipality (kommun) area. Area is in km². The figures are as of 2005. Detailed list at List of municipalities of Sweden by population.

Demographics

For details, see: Demographics of Sweden Sweden has one of the world's highest life expectancies. As of approximately 12 August 2004, the total population of Sweden for the first time exceeded 9,000,000, according to Statistics Sweden. The country's population includes some