So you want to have a drink but you aren't sure why? Here are some GREAT reasons to call your friends over and have a party.
March 8th - holidays
- Earliest day on which Canberra Day can fall, while March 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Monday in March. (Australian Capital Territory)
- Earliest day on which Commonwealth Day can fall, while March 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Monday in March. (Commonwealth of Nations)
- Earliest day on which Passion Sunday can fall, while April 11 is the latest; observed on the fifth Sunday of Lent. (Christianity)
- Christian Feast Day:
- International Women's Day or Mother's Day (primarily Eastern Europe, Russia, and the former Soviet bloc)
- Revolution Day (Syria)
March 8th - events
- 2004 - A new constitution is signed by Iraq's Governing Council.
- 1999 - The Supreme Court of the United States upholds the murder convictions of Timothy McVeigh for the Oklahoma City bombing.
- 1985 - A failed assassination attempt on Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah in Beirut, Lebanon, kills at least 45 and injures 175 others.
- 1983 - President Ronald Reagan calls the Soviet Union an "evil empire".
- 1979 - Philips demonstrates the Compact Disc publicly for the first time.
- 1978 - The first radio episode of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, is transmitted on BBC Radio 4.
- 1974 - Charles de Gaulle Airport opens in Paris, France.
- 1966 - A bomb planted by young Irish protesters destroys Nelson's Pillar in Dublin.
- 1963 - The Ba'ath Party comes to power in Syria in a Coup d'état by a clique of quasi-leftist Syrian Army officers calling themselves the National Council of the Revolutionary Command.
- 1957 - Egypt re-opens the Suez Canal after the Suez Crisis.
- 1957 - The 1957 Georgia Memorial to Congress, which petitions the U.S. Congress to declare the ratification of the 14th & 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution null and void, is adopted by the state of Georgia.
- 1957 - Ghana joins the United Nations.
- 1949 - Mildred Gillars ("Axis Sally") is condemned to prison on count of treason
- 1942 - World War II: The Dutch surrender to Japanese forces on Java.
- 1936 - Daytona Beach Road Course holds their first oval stock car race.
- 1924 - The Castle Gate mine disaster kills 172 coal miners near Castle Gate, Utah.
- 1921 - Spanish Premier Eduardo Dato Iradier is assassinated while exiting the parliament building in Madrid.
- 1917 - The U.S. Senate votes to limit filibusters by adopting the cloture rule.
- 1917 - International Women’s Day protests in St. Petersburg contributed to the February Revolution and ultimately led to the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, ending the Romanov dynasty in Russia.
- 1911 - International Women's Day is launched in Copenhagen, Denmark, by Clara Zetkin, leader of the Women's Office for the Social Democratic Party in Germany.
- 1862 - American Civil War: The iron-clad CSS Virginia (formerly USS Merrimack) is launched at Hampton Roads, Virginia.
- 1844 - King Oscar I ascends to the thrones of Sweden and Norway.
- 1817 - The New York Stock Exchange is founded.
- 1782 - Gnadenhütten massacre: Ninety-six Native Americans in Gnadenhutten, Ohio, who had converted to Christianity are killed by Pennsylvania militiamen in retaliation for raids carried out by other Indians.
- 1777 - Regiments from Ansbach and Bayreuth, sent to support Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War, mutiny in the town of Ochsenfurt.
- 1775 - Thomas Paine's "African Slavery in America," the first article in the American colonies calling for the emancipation of slaves and the abolition of slavery, is published.
- 1722 - The Safavid Empire of Iran is defeated by an army from Afghanistan at The Battle of Gulnabad, pushing Iran into anarchy.
- 1702 - Anne Stuart, sister of Mary II, becomes Queen regnant of England, Scotland, and Ireland.
- 1655 - John Casor becomes the first legally-recognized slave in Britain's North American colonies.
- 1126 - Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of Castile and León, after the death of his mother Urraca.
- 1010 - Ferdowsi completes his Sh?hn?meh.
March 8th - births
- 2001 - Sandra Cantu, American homicide victim
- 1992 - Charlie Ray, American actress
- 1991 - Devon Werkheiser, American actor
- 1990 - Ben Tozer, English footballer
- 1990 - Kristinia DeBarge, American R&B singer
- 1989 - Robbie Hummel, American basketball player
- 1988 - Armanti Edwards, American college football player
- 1988 - Elly Jackson, English singer (La Roux)
- 1986 - Princess Tsuguko, Japanese princess
- 1985 - Ewa Sonnet, Polish model and pop singer
- 1984 - Dave Moffatt, Canadian musician
- 1984 - Ross Taylor, New Zealand cricketer
- 1984 - Sasha Vujacic, Slovenian basketball player
- 1983 - Mark Worrell, American baseball player
- 1982 - Leonidas Kabantais, Greek footballer
- 1982 - Craig Stansberry, American baseball player
- 1982 - Nicolas Armindo, French race car driver
- 1982 - Kat Von D, Mexican-born tattoo artist
- 1981 - Michael Beauchamp, Australian footballer
- 1981 - Timothy Jordan II, American musician (The All American Rejects, Jonezetta) (d. 2005)
- 1980 - Charli Delaney, Australian singer (Hi-5)
- 1980 - Stephen Milne, Australian rules footballer
- 1979 - Tom Chaplin, English singer (Keane)
- 1979 - Andy Ross, American guitarist (OK Go)
- 1978 - Mohammed Bouyeri, Dutch-Moroccan assassin
- 1978 - Nick Zano, American actor
- 1977 - James Van Der Beek, American actor
- 1977 - Johann Vogel, Swiss footballer
- 1976 - Gaz Coombes, English singer (Supergrass)
- 1976 - Juan Encarnacion, American baseball player
- 1976 - Ryan Freel, American baseball player
- 1976 - Freddie Prinze Jr., American actor
- 1976 - Hines Ward, American football player
- 1975 - Mauro Briano, Italian footballer
- 1975 - Fardeen Khan, Indian actor
- 1975 - Peggy Zina, Greek singer
- 1974 - Mike Moriarty, American baseball player
- 1973 - Anneke van Giersbergen, Dutch singer (The Gathering)
- 1973 - Boris Kodjoe, Austrian model
- 1973 - Mark Lukasiewicz, American baseball player
- 1973 - Kurt Mollekens, Belgian racing car driver
- 1973 - Justin Thompson, American baseball player
- 1972 - Georgios Georgiadis, Greek footballer
- 1972 - Angie Hart, Australian pop singer
- 1972 - Fergal O'Brien, Irish snooker player
- 1971 - Kit Symons, Welsh footballer
- 1970 - Andrea Parker, American actress, ballet dancer
- 1970 - Jason Elam, American football player
- 1968 - Michael Bartels, German race car driver
- 1968 - Jim Dougherty, American baseball player
- 1968 - Ellen Forney, American cartoonist
- 1968 - Shawn Mullins, American musician
- 1967 - Joel Johnston, American baseball player
- 1965 - Fátima Lopes, Portuguese fashion designer
- 1965 - Kenny Smith, American basketball player
- 1964 - Kate Betts, American fashion editor
- 1964 - Thomas Bezucha, American screenwriter and director
- 1964 - Lance McCullers, American baseball player
- 1963 - Mike Lalor, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1962 - Kim Ung-Yong, Korean child prodigy.
- 1961 - Camryn Manheim, American actress
- 1961 - Larry Murphy, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1961 - Mark Salas, American baseball player
- 1960 - Max Metzker, Australian swimmer
- 1960 - Buck Williams, American basketball player
- 1959 - Aidan Quinn, American actor
- 1959 - Lester Holt, American television journalist
- 1958 - Nick Capra, American baseball player
- 1958 - Gary Numan, British singer
- 1957 - Clive Burr, British musician (Iron Maiden)
- 1957 - John Butcher, American baseball player
- 1957 - Billy Childs, composer/pianist
- 1957 - Cynthia Rothrock, American actress
- 1957 - Bob Stoddard, American baseball player
- 1956 - Laurie Cunningham, English footballer (d. 1989)
- 1956 - John Kapelos, Canadian actor
- 1955 - Don Ashby, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1981)
- 1954 - Cheryl Baker, British singer (Bucks Fizz)
- 1954 - David Wilkie, Scottish swimmer
- 1953 - Don Werner, American baseball player
- 1953 - Bob Brozman, American musician
- 1953 - Jim Rice, American baseball player
- 1952 - George Felix Allen, American politician, 67th Governor of Virginia
- 1950 - Richard Ouzounian, Canadian/American theatre director and critic
- 1949 - Karel Lismont, Belgian athlete
- 1949 - Antonello Venditti, Italian singer-songwriter
- 1948 - Peggy March, American pop singer
- 1948 - Jonathan Sacks, Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth
- 1947 - Mike Allsup, American musician (Three Dog Night)
- 1947 - Florentino Pérez, Spanish football executive
- 1947 - Carole Bayer Sager, American composer
- 1946 - Randy Meisner, American musician (The Eagles)
- 1945 - Bruce Broughton, American composer
- 1945 - Jim Chapman, American politician
- 1945 - Micky Dolenz, American musician (The Monkees)
- 1945 - Anselm Kiefer, German painter
- 1944 - Buzz Hargrove, Canadian labour leader
- 1944 - Sergey Nikitin, Russian composer
- 1944 - Palito Ortega, Argentine singer and actor
- 1944 - Pepe Romero, Spanish guitarist
- 1943 - Lynn Redgrave, English actress (d. 2010)
- 1942 - Dick Allen, American baseball player
- 1942 - Ann Packer, British athlete
- 1941 - Andrei Mironov, Soviet actor (d. 1987)
- 1940 - Susan Clark, Canadian actress
- 1939 - Jim Bouton, American baseball player and author
- 1939 - Lidia Skoblikova, Russian skater
- 1939 - Robert Tear, Welsh tenor
- 1938 - Pete Dawkins, American football player
- 1937 - Juvénal Habyarimana, President of Rwanda (d. 1994)
- 1936 - Gábor Szabó, Hungarian guitarist (d. 1982)
- 1934 - Marv Breeding, American baseball player (d. 2006)
- 1933 - Evelyn Margaret Ay, American beauty pageant winner (d. 2008)
- 1933 - Luca Ronconi, Italian theater and opera director
- 1931 - Neil Adcock, South African Cricket player
- 1931 - John McPhee, American writer and professor
- 1931 - Neil Postman, American cultural critic (d. 2003)
- 1930 - Bob Grim, American baseball player (d. 1996)
- 1929 - Hebe Camargo, Brazilian television presenter, actress and singer
- 1927 - Dick Hyman, American pianist and composer
- 1926 - Francisco Rabal, Spanish actor (d. 2001)
- 1925 - Warren Bennis, American educator and author
- 1922 - Ralph H. Baer, German-born American inventor
- 1922 - Cyd Charisse, American actress and dancer (d. 2008)
- 1922 - Carl Furillo, American baseball player (d. 1989)
- 1922 - Shigeru Mizuki, Japanese soldier and Mangaka
- 1922 - Evgeniy Matveyev, Russian actor and film director (d. 2003)
- 1921 - Alan Hale, Jr., American actor (d. 1990)
- 1921 - Fritz Luchsinger, Swiss mountaineer (d. 1983)
- 1920 - Douglass Wallop, American novelist and playwright (d. 1985)
- 1916 - John W. Seybold, American businessman, father of computer typesetting (d. 2004)
- 1915 - Tapio Rautavaara, Finnish athlete, actor, and singer (d. 1979)
- 1914 - Yakov Borisovich Zel'dovich, Russian physicist (d. 1987)
- 1912 - Preston Smith, America politician, 40th Governor of Texas (d. 2003)
- 1911 - Alan Hovhaness, American composer (d. 2000)
- 1910 - Bernard Benjamin, British statistician (d. 2002)
- 1910 - Claire Trevor, American actress (d. 2000)
- 1907 - Constantine Karamanlis, Greek politician (d. 1998)
- 1902 - Louise Beavers, American actress (d. 1962)
- 1902 - Jennings Randolph, America politician, United States Senator from West Virginia (d. 1998)
- 1899 - Elmer Keith, American firearms developer (d. 1984)
- 1897 - Damerla Rama Rao, Indian artist, (d. 1925)
- 1896 - Charlotte Whitton, Canadian politician (d. 1975)
- 1892 - Mississippi John Hurt, American blues singer and guitarist (d. 1966)
- 1892 - Juana de Ibarbourou, Uruguayan poet (d. 1979)
- 1891 - Sam Jaffe, American actor (d. 1984)
- 1886 - Edward Calvin Kendall, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1972)
- 1879 - Otto Hahn, German chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1968)
- 1872 - Anna Held, Polish actress and singer (d. 1918)
- 1865 - Frederic Goudy, American type designer (d. 1947)
- 1859 - Kenneth Grahame, English author (d. 1932)
- 1856 - Bramwell Booth, the 2nd General of The Salvation Army (d. 1929)
- 1856 - Colin Campbell Cooper, American Impressionist painter (d. 1937)
- 1856 - Tom Roberts, Australian artist (d. 1931)
- 1847 - John Lister, English politician (d. 1933)
- 1841 - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1935)
- 1830 - João de Deus, Portuguese poet (d. 1896)
- 1827 - Wilhelm Bleek, German linguist (d. 1875)
- 1822 - Ignacy Lukasiewicz, Polish inventor (d. 1882)
- 1814 - Ede Szigligeti, Hungarian dramatist (d. 1878)
- 1804 - Alvan Clark, American telescope maker and astronomer (d. 1887)
- 1799 - Simon Cameron, 26th U.S. Secretary of War (d. 1889)
- 1783 - Hannah Van Buren, wife of Martin Van Buren (d. 1819)
- 1748 - William V of Orange, Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic (d. 1806)
- 1746 - André Michaux, French botanist (d. 1802)
- 1726 - Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, Royal Navy admiral of the fleet (d. 1799)
- 1714 - Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer (d. 1788)
- 1712 - John Fothergill, English physician (d. 1780)
- 1702 - Anne Bonny, Irish-American pirate (d. 1782)
- 1659 - Isaac de Beausobre, French Protestant pastor (d. 1738)
- 1566 - Don Carlo Gesualdo, Italian composer (d. 1613)
- 1514 - Amago Haruhisa, Japanese samurai and warlord (d. 1562)
- 1495 - John of God, Portuguese-born friar and saint (d. 1550)
- 1293 - Beatrice of Castile, queen of Portugal (d. 1359)
- 1286 - John III, Duke of Brittany (d. 1341)