History of 29 February
- 1904 – In Washington, DC, a seven-man commission was created to hasten the construction of the Panama Canal.
- 1940 – Hattie McDaniel became the first black person to win an Oscar. She won Best Supporting Actress award for her role as Mammy in “Gone with the Wind.”
- 1944 – The invasion of the Admiralty Islands began with “Operation Brewer.” U.S. General Douglas MacArthur led his forces onto Los Negros.
- 1944 – Dorothy McElroy Vredenburgh of Alabama became the first woman to be appointed secretary of a national political party. She was appointed to the Democratic National Committee.
- 1944 – The Office of Defense Transportation, for the second year in a row, restricted attendance at the Kentucky Derby to residents of the Louisville area. This was an effort to prevent a railroad traffic burden during wartime.
- 1964 – Dawn Fraser got her 36th world record. The Australian swimmer was timed at 58.9 seconds in the 100-meter freestyle in Sydney, Australia.
- 1972 – Jack Anderson revealed a memo written by ITT’s Washington lobbyist, Dita Beard, that connected ITT’s funding of part of the Republican National Convention.
- 1988 – “Day by Day” premiered on NBC-TV.
- 2010 – In Japan, the Tokyo Skytree tower was completed as the tallest tower in the world.
- 2012 – Tokyo Skytree construction completed. It is, as of January 2020, the tallest tower in the world, 634 meters high, and the second tallest artificial structure on Earth, next to Burj Khalifa.
Celebrating Birthday Today
- 1980 -Çağdaş Atan, Turkish footballer and coach
- 1980 -Chris Conley, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1980 -Patrick Côté, Canadian mixed martial artist
- 1980 – Simon Gagné, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1980 – Rubén Plaza, Spanish cyclist
- 1980 -Peter Scanavino, American actor
- 1980 – Clinton Toopi, New Zealand rugby league player
- 1980 – Taylor Twellman, American soccer player, and sportscaster
- 1984 – Mark Foster, American singer, songwriter, and musician
- 1984 – Rica Imai, Japanese model and actress Allen Jones, American swimmer
- 1984 -Nuria Martínez, Spanish basketball player
- 1984 -Adam Sinclair, Indian field hockey player
- 1984 -akhee Thakrar, English actress
- 1984 -Dennis Walger, German rugby player
- 1984 -Cam Ward, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1988 – Lena Gercke, German model and television host
- 1988 – Benedikt Höwedes, German footballer
- 1988 -Brent Macaffer, Australian Rules footballer
- 1988 -Bobby Sanguinetti, American ice hockey player
- 1992 – Sean Abbott, Australian cricketer
- 1992 -Ben Hampton, Australian rugby league player
- 1992 – Caitlin EJ Meyer, American actress
- 1996 – Nelson Asofa-Solomona, New Zealand rugby league player
- 1996 – Claudia Williams, New Zealand tennis player
- 2000 – Ferran Torres, Spanish footballer