Terrorists detonated bombs in two nightclubs in Kuta, Bali. The explosions claimed the lives of 202 people and wounded over 300.

In the port of Aden, Yemen, the missile destroyer ship, USS Cole, was heavily damaged when two suicide bombers detonated explosives on the side of the ship, killing 17 members of the crew.

American basketball player, Wilt Chamberlain, died of a heart attack at the age of 63. He is considered as one of the best basketball players of all time and one that revolutionized the game. Oddly enough he made far more money from his investments in real estate than he did when he was a basketball superstar.

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act was passed in the United States. In essence it criminalized production and dissemination of technology that can circumvent measures taken to protect copyright. The European Union passed a similar directive, the EU Copyright Directive, in May 22 2001.

A bomb placed by the IRA in the Brighton hotel intended to assassinate British prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, exploded in her bathroom just after she had left it.

Japan's former prime minister, Tanaka Kakuei, was convicted to four years in prison for taking a $2 million bribe from the Lockheed company.

American athlete, Marion Jones, was born in Los Angeles, California. She won five medals at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. She, however, failed to win any medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics.

Equatorial Guinea becomes independent from Spain. It is one of the smallest in continental Africa and the only country in Africa where Spanish is the official language.

Australian actor, Hugh Jackman, was born in Sydney, Australia. He gained worldwide fame when he was cast as a last-minute replacement for the role of wolverine, in the movie, X-Men.

The Soviet Union launched the Voskhod 1 into orbit. It was the first multi person spacecraft in history and the first space flight where the crew did not have to wear space suits.

The filming of the movie, The Wizard of Oz, began. It premiered on August 12, 1939.

Italian tenor, Luciano Pavarotti, was born in Modena, Italy. He is one of the most famous tenors of the 20th century. He retired in 2004.

United States president, Theodore Roosevelt, officially renamed the executive mansion to the White House.

Scottish chemist and inventor, Charles Macintosh, sold the first waterproof raincoat.

The children's nursery rhyme, "Three Blind Mice", was published in London by songwriter Thomas Ravenscroft.

Christopher Columbus landed on the Caribbean, he was under the impression that he had reached East Asia.