August is the eighth month of the year (between July and September) in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and one of seven months with a length of 31 days. In the Southern Hemisphere, August is the seasonal equivalent of February in the Northern Hemisphere.
August symbols: The birthstones of August are the peridot and sardonyx. Its birth flower is the gladiolus or poppy, meaning beauty, strength of character, love, marriage and family. The zodiac signs for the month of August are Leo (until August 22) and Virgo (from August 23 onwards).
Historical Events for August, 1942
Day of Week 6th » Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands becomes the first reigning queen to address a joint session of the United States Congress.
Day of Week 7th » World War II: The Guadalcanal Campaign Battle of Guadalcanal begins as the United States Marine Corps United States Marines initiate the first American offensive of the war with landings on Guadalcanal and Battle of Tulagi and Gavutu–Tanambogo Tulagi in t
Day of Week 9th » Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi is arrested in Bombay by British forces, launching the Quit India Movement.
9th » World War II: Battle of Savo Island Allies of World War II known as Allied naval forces protecting their amphibious forces during the initial stages of the Battle of Guadalcanal are surprised and defeated by an Imperial Japanese Navy cruiser force.
Day of Week 11th » Actress Hedy Lamarr and composer George Antheil receive a patent for a Frequency-hopping spread spectrum communication system that later became the basis for modern technologies in wireless telephones and Wi-Fi.
Day of Week 13th » Major General Eugene Reybold of the United States Army Corps of Engineers named U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authorizes the construction of facilities that would house the "Development of Substitute Materials" project, better known as the Manhattan Projec
Day of Week 16th » World War II: The two-person crew of the U.S. naval blimp L-8 disappears without a trace on a routine anti-submarine patrol over the Pacific Ocean. The blimp drifts without her crew and crash-lands in Daly City, California.
Day of Week 17th » World War II: United States Marine Corps U.S. Marines Makin Island raid raid the Empire of Japan Japanese-held Pacific island of Makin (Butaritari).
Day of Week 19th » World War II: Dieppe Raid Operation Jubilee: The 2nd Canadian Infantry Division leads an amphibious warfare amphibious assault by Allies of World War II allied forces on Dieppe, Seine-Maritime, France and fails, many Canadians are killed or captured. The
Day of Week 21st » World War II: The flag of Nazi Germany is installed atop the Mount Elbrus, the highest peak of the Caucasus Mountains e.g Caucasus mountain range.
21st » World War II: The Guadalcanal Campaign: American forces defeat an attack by Imperial Japanese Army soldiers in the Battle of the Tenaru.
Day of Week 22nd » World War II: Brazil Vargas Era named declares war on Germany and Italy.
Day of Week 23rd » World War II: Beginning of the Battle of Stalingrad.
Day of Week 24th » World War II: The Battle of the Eastern Solomons. Japanese aircraft carrier 'Japanese aircraft carrier Ryūjō Ryūjō' is sunk and US carrier USS Enterprise CV-6 6 heavily damaged.
Day of Week 25th » World War II: Battle of Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea.
25th » World War II: second day of the Battle of the Eastern Solomons. A Empire of Japan called Japanese naval transport convoy headed towards Guadalcanal is turned-back by an Allies of World War II known as Allied air attack, losing one destroyer and one transp
Day of Week 26th » Holocaust in Chortkiav, western Ukraine: At 2.30 am the German Schutzpolizei (Nazi Germany) or Schutzpolizei starts driving Jews out of their houses, divides them into groups of 120, packs them in freight cars and deports 2000 to Belzec extermination camp
Day of Week 30th » World War II: The Battle of Alam el Halfa begins.
Famous Birthdays on August in 1942
1st » Jerry Garcia, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Grateful Dead, Legion of Mary (band) named Legion of Mary, Reconstruction (band) known as Reconstruction, Old and in the Way, and New Riders of the Purple Sage) (d. 1995)
1st » Giancarlo Giannini, Italian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
2nd » Isabel Allende, Peruvian-American journalist and author
2nd » Juan Formell, Cuban singer-songwriter and bass player (Los Van Van) (d. 2014)
4th » Don S. Davis, American actor and painter (d. 2008)
4th » Cleon Jones, American baseball player
4th » David Lange, New Zealand lawyer and politician, 32nd Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 2005)
5th » Joe Boyd, American record producer, founded Hannibal Records
7th » Garrison Keillor, American author and radio host
7th » Carlos Monzón, Argentinian boxer (d. 1995)
7th » Richard Sykes (biochemist) named Richard Sykes, English biochemist and academic
7th » B. J. Thomas, American singer and actor
7th » Caetano Veloso, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist
8th » Dennis Canavan, Scottish educator and politician
8th » John Gustafson (musician) John Gustafson, English singer-songwriter and bass player (Roxy Music, Ian Gillan Band, The Big Three (band) The Big Three, Quatermass (band) Quatermass, and Episode Six) (d. 2014)
8th » Vardo Rumessen, Estonian pianist and musicologist
9th » Tommie Agee, American baseball player (d. 2001)
9th » Jack DeJohnette, American drummer, pianist, and composer
9th » David Steinberg, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
10th » Michael Pepper, English physicist and engineer
11th » Mike Hugg, English drummer and keyboard player (Manfred Mann and The Manfreds)
12th » Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt, German physician and author
13th » Sheila Armstrong (singer) called Sheila Armstrong, English soprano
14th » Willie Dunn, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2013)
14th » Lionel Morton, English singer, guitarist, and television host (The Four Pennies)
14th » Jackie Oliver, English race car driver
16th » Barbara George, American singer-songwriter (d. 2006)
17th » Muslim Magomayev (musician) known as Muslim Magomayev, Azerbaijani singer
18th » Judith Keppel, English game show contestant, first winner on 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (UK game show) called Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'
19th » Fred Thompson, American actor, lawyer, and politician
20th » Isaac Hayes, American singer-songwriter, pianist, producer, and actor (d. 2008)
20th » Petr Kment, Czech wrestler (d. 2013)
20th » Fred Norman, American baseball player
22nd » Uğur Mumcu, Turkish journalist and author (d. 1993)