Arthur Sullivan was born in London on May 13, 1842, the son of a poor Irish musician. Before he met W S. Gilbert, Arthur Sullivan was Victorian England's most famous composer of popular and sacred songs and oratorios. "Onward! Christian Soldiers" is his best-known hymn; "The Lost Chord" is one of his songs. Sullivan did not want to be remembered for his comic operas as one half of
Gilbert and Sullivan. "My sacred music is that on which I base my reputation as a composer."
British physician Sir Ronald Ross was born on May 13, 1857. Intrigued by the theory that mosquitoes transmitted
malaria, Ross undertook an investigation of the long-known disease. Using birds that were already sick with malaria, Ross located in 1897 the malaria parasite in the spotted winged Anopheles mosquito. He revealed that the ailment is carried in the mosquito's salivary glands and transferred to healthy birds through biting them.
Stevie Wonder was born Steveland Judkins in Saginaw, Michigan, on May 13, 1950. He was born six weeks premature and blinded soon after birth when too much oxygen was pumped into his incubator, Stevie Wonder mastered piano, bass, drums and harmonica before hitting his teenage years. In 1961 Wonder sang his own composition, "Lonely Boy" for Smokey Robinson of The Miracles. This earned him a contract with Motown.
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Wonder rehearsing for a performance on Dutch TV in 1967 |
In 1969, Motown gave Wonder complete control of his recordings. He was one of the first artists to write, produce, arrange, and perform his own songs.
For more May 13 anniversaries, including the longest marriage ever recorded, the first ever Formula One race and the first person to circumnavigate the Earth by amphibious vehicle, check out
OnThatDay