October 9 Birthday
On October 9, 1967, Che Guevara was executed in a schoolhouse in La Higuera, Bolivia. He had been captured the previous day by Bolivian soldiers and CIA operatives. He was shot nine times. His hands were amputated and sent to Buenos Aires for fingerprint identification. His body was buried in an unmarked grave and not found until 1997, when it was returned to Cuba. Guevara had become a revolutionary icon — his photograph by Alberto Korda is the most reproduced image of the 20th century. The image has appeared on T-shirts, posters, and flags worldwide, often stripped of its political meaning. John Lennon, born this day in 1940, was shot and killed on December 8, 1980, outside his apartment building in New York. He had just released Double Fantasy after five years of retirement. His killer, Mark David Chapman, had waited outside the Dakota all day and asked Lennon for an autograph that morning. Lennon signed it. Chapman shot him four times in the back. People born on October 9 fall under the zodiac sign of Libra. The birthstone is Opal and the birth flower is Marigold. Historical events on October 9 include 1967: Che Guevara executed by Bolivian army at age 39, 1888: Washington Monument officially opens to the public, 2006: North Korea tests its first nuclear weapon. Famous people born on October 9 include John Lennon (1940), Tony Shalhoub (1953), Sean Lennon (1975).