At A Glance

17 October 1942 at a glance

Day of the week
17 October 1942 was a Saturday.
Top Film of 1942
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1942 was Bambi.
Star sign
The star sign for 17 October is Libra.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 17 October 1942 fell in the Year of the Horse.
Birthstone
The birthstone for October is Opal.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 17 October 1942 was First Quarter.

On this day: 17 October

  • 1933 Albert Einstein flees Nazi Germany and moves to the United States.
  • 1941 World War II: The USS Kearny becomes the first U.S. Navy vessel to be torpedoed by a U-boat.
  • 1943 The Burma Railway (Burma–Thailand Railway) is completed.
  • 1943 Nazi Holocaust in Poland: Sobibór extermination camp is closed.
  • 1945 A large demonstration in Buenos Aires, Argentina, demands Juan Perón's release.

Famous people born on 17 October

  • Eminem, American rapper, producer, and actor (born 1972)
  • Norm Macdonald, Canadian actor, comedian, producer, and screenwriter (1959–2021)
  • Rita Hayworth, American actress, singer and dancer (1918–1987)
  • Matthew Macfadyen, English actor (born 1974)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Events of 1942 in the United Kingdom

A selection from Wikipedia's '1942 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.

  • 29 January – radio programme Desert Island Discs first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme, presented by Roy Plomley; Austrian-born revue performer Vic Oliver (the Prime Minister's son-in-law) is the first castaway. The programme will still be running 80 years later.
  • 15 February – World War II: General Arthur Percival's forces surrender to the Japanese in the event known as the Fall of Singapore.
  • 10 July – the patriotic Academy Award-winning drama film Mrs. Miniver, starring Greer Garson, is released in London.

Life in 1942

Prime Minister

Winston Churchill

Monarch

George VI

Pint of Beer

3p

Loaf of Bread

2p

Average House

£650

Weekly Wage

£4.10

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1940s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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