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- 06-May-1952, At the age of 1382 : Farouk of Egypt has himself announced as a descendant of prophet Muhammad.
- 28-November-1951, At the age of 139 : ''Scrooge'', starring Alastair Sim, opens in the United States under the title of Charles Dickens's original novel, ''A Christmas Carol''.
- 15-November-1949, At the age of 80 : Nathuram Godse and Narayan Apte are executed for assassinating Mahatma Gandhi.
- 26-March-1949, At the age of 135 : The first half of Giuseppe Verdi's opera ''Aida'', conducted by legendary conductor Arturo Toscanini, and performed in concert (i.e. no scenery or costumes), is telecast by NBC, live from Studio 8H at Rockefeller Center. The second half is telecast a week later. This is only complete opera that Toscanini ever conducts on television.
- 19-January-1949, At the age of 140 : The Poe Toaster first appears at the grave of Edgar Allan Poe.
- 06-December-1947, At the age of 134 : Arturo Toscanini conducts a concert performance of the first half of Giuseppe Verdi's ''Otello'', based on Shakespeare's ''Othello'', on NBC Radio. The second half is broadcast a week later. Starring are Ramon Vinay, Giuseppe Valdengo, and Herva Nelli. The complete performance (both parts) is eventually released on LP and CD. Many believe this is one of the very finest opera performances led by Toscanini. It is for some the definitive ''Otello''.
- 22-May-1947, At the age of 135 : David Lean's film ''Great Expectations'', based on the novel by Charles Dickens, opens in the United States. Critics call it the finest film ever made from a Dickens novel.
- 26-December-1946, At the age of 134 : David Lean's ''Great Expectations'', based on the Charles Dickens novel, and featuring John Mills, Valerie Hobson, Martita Hunt, Alec Guinness, Francis L. Sullivan, Jean Simmons, and Finlay Currie, is released to great acclaim in England.
- 11-January-1946, At the age of 62 : Porfirio Barba-Jacob's ashes go back to Colombia.
- 21-June-1940, At the age of 88 : WWII: Vichy France and Germany sign an armistice at Compiegne, in the same wagonwagonlit railroad car used by Marshal Ferdinand Foch to accept the surrender of Germany in 1918.
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