History of 1 February
- 1987 – Terry Williams won the largest slot machine payoff, at the time, when won $4.9 million after getting four lucky 7s on a machine in Reno, NV.
- 1991 – A USAir jetliner crashed atop a commuter plane at Los Angeles International Airport. 35 people were killed.
- 1994 – Jeff Gillooly pled guilty in Portland, OR, for his role in the attack on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan. Gillooly, Tonya Harding’s ex-husband, struck a plea bargain under which he confessed to racketeering charges in exchange for testimony implicating Harding.
- 1996 – Visa and Mastercard announced security measures that would make it safe to shop on the Internet.
- 1998 – Stuart Whitman received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- 1999 – Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky gave a deposition that was videotaped for senators weighing impeachment charges against U.S. President Clinton.
- 2001 – Three Scottish judges found Abdel Basset al-Megrahi guilty of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, which killed 270 people. The court said that Megrahi was a member of the Libyan intelligence service. Al-Amin Khalifa, who had been co-accused, was acquitted and freed.
- 2003 – NASA’s space shuttle Columbia exploded while re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere. All seven astronauts on board were killed.
- 2019 – U.S. President Trump confirmed that the U.S. would leave the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty of 1987 due to Russian non-compliance. Russia suspended its obligations to the treaty the next day.
Celebrating Birthday Today
- 1981 – Rob Austin, English race car driver
- 1981 – Hins Cheung, Hong Kong singer-songwriter
- 1981 – Christian Giménez, the Argentinian footballer
- 1981 – Graeme Smith, South African cricketer
- 1982 – Gavin Henson, Welsh rugby player
- 1982 – Shoaib Malik, Pakistani cricketer
- 1983 – Heather DeLoach, American actress
- 1983 – Kevin Martin, American basketball player
- 1983 – Jurgen Van den Broeck, Belgian cyclist
- 1983 – Andrew VanWyngarden, American singer-songwriter, and guitarist
- 1984 – Darren Fletcher, Scottish footballer
- 1985 – Dean Shiels, Irish footballer
- 1986 – Jorrit Bergsma, Dutch speed skater
- 1986 – Lauren Conrad, American fashion designer, and author
- 1987 – Sebastian Boenisch, Polish footballer
- 1987 – Moises Henriques, Portuguese-Australian cricketer
- 1987 – Austin Jackson, American baseball player
- 1987 – Ronda Rousey, American mixed martial artist, and actress
- 1987 – Giuseppe Rossi, Italian footballer
- 1988 – Brett Anderson, American baseball player
- 1989 – Ricky Pinheiro, Portuguese footballer
- 1991 – Kyle Palmieri, American hockey player
- 1993 – Diego Mella, Italian footballer
- 1994 – Joe Boyce, Australian rugby league player
- 1994 – Harry Styles, English singer-songwriter