August 21

August 21 is the 233rd day of the year (234th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 132 days remaining.

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Events:

• 1959: Hawaii becomes the 50th state of the United States of America.
• 1998: The United States destroys a pharmaceutical plant (erroneously believed to be a chemical weapons plant) in Sudan with cruise missiles in response to the August 7 embassy bombings, and tries to kill Osama bin Laden in a cruise missile attack on his camp in Afghanistan, during a meeting of "terrorist leaders". But the participants had dispersed by the time the missiles struck, and bin Laden was unharmed.
• 2001: The NATO decides to send a peace-keeping force to Macedonia.
• 2001: A sixth-century temple is discovered in central Mexico.
• 2001: The Red Cross announces that a famine? is striking Tajikistan, and calls for international financial aid for Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

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Births:

• 1904: [Count Basie]? (bandleader)
• 1928: [Art Farmer]? (trumpet player)
• 1932: [Melvin Van Peebles]? (actor, screenwriter)
• 1936: [Wilt Chamberlain]? (Basketball Hall of Famer)
• 1938: [Kenny Rogers]? (singer, actor)
• 1944: [Peter Weir]? (director)

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August 20 - August 22 - July 21 - September 21 - more historical anniversaries

See Also: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December