April 22: Fun Facts about Today in History

(April 22, 1904)
J. Robert Oppenheimer, an American theoretical physicist and scientific administrator who directed the Los Alamos laboratory in New Mexico during the development of the atomic bomb, was born.

(April 22, 1915)
During the Second Battle of Ypres in World War I, German forces pioneered the systematic use of chemical warfare by releasing chlorine gas along a 4-mile (6-kilometer) front.

(April 22, 1937)
Jack Nicholson, one of the most well-known actors of his generation, is born. He is well known for his diverse depictions of eccentric, alienated outsiders.

(April 22, 1970)
Earth Day, which was started by American politician and conservationist Gaylord Anton Nelson and first observed on this day in 1970 in the United States, helped to spark the environmental movement and swiftly expanded into an international celebration.

(April 22, 1994)
Former US President Richard M. Nixon passed away. He was the first American president to resign.

(April 22, 2016)
The Paris Agreement on Climate Change, a major deal aimed at controlling and reducing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere, was signed by more than 170 countries and went into force in November 2016.

(Died on April 22, 2021)
Adrian Garrett, American professional baseball player (b. 1943).