On this day in 1950, Sicilian peasant, a member of the Sicilian Independence Movement, the Sicilian Robin Hood, according to some sources a bandit who was mythologised during his life and after his death, Turiddu, Turi, Salvatore Giuliano died from a gunshot wound in Castelvetrano, Sicily at the age of 27. Born on 16 November 1922 in Montelepre, Sicily.
The Final Footprint – Giuliano is interred in Comune di Montelepre Cimitero Comunale Sicilia, Italy.
A film of his life, Salvatore Giuliano, was directed by Francesco Rosi in 1961. Novelist Mario Puzo published The Sicilian, a dramatized version of Giuliano’s life, in 1984. The book was made into a film in 1987, directed by Michael Cimino and starring Christopher Lambert as Giuliano.
An opera, Salvatore Giuliano, was composed in 1985 by Italian composer Lorenzo Ferrero and premiered on January 25, 1986 at Teatro dell’Opera di Roma. The libretto outlines in short, graphic scenes the network of intrigue between Sicilian independence activists, Mafia and State that surrounds, and eventually destroys, the bandit hero.
#RIP #OTD in 2002, actress (Broken Lance, High Noon, Arrowhead, One-Eyed Jacks) Katy Jurado died of kidney failure and pulmonary disease at the age of 78 at her home in Cuernavaca, Mexico. Panteón de la Paz, Cuernavaca, Mexico
On this day in 2002, United States Navy and Marine Corp 
veteran, Hall of Fame baseball player, 19x All-Star, 2x AL MVP, “The Kid”, “The Splendid Splinter”, “Teddy Ballgame”, “The Thumper”, “Mr Red Sox”, “Toothpick Ted”, “The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived”, Ted Williams died of cardiac arrest at the age of 83 in Citrus Hills, Florida. Born Teddy Samuel Williams on 30 August 1918 in San Diego, California. His paternal ancestors were a mix of Welsh and Irish and his maternal ancestors were of Mexican and French descent. Williams was the last player in Major League Baseball to bat over .400 in a single season (.406 in 1941). Williams holds the highest career batting average (.344) of anyone with 500 or more home runs. His .551 on base percentage set a record that stood for 61 years. Throughout his career, Williams stated that he wished to be known as “The greatest hitter who ever lived”. He stated his goal was to have people point to him and remark, “There goes Ted Williams, the greatest hitter who ever lived.” He played his entire career with the Red Sox. Williams ended his career dramatically, hitting a home run in his very last at-bat on 28 September 1960. The Red Sox retired Williams’s number 9 in 1984. Williams was married three times; Doris Soule (1944-1954 divorce), Lee Howard (1961-1967 divorce), and Dolores Wettach (1968-1972 divorce). Williams lived with Louise Kaufman for twenty years until her death in 1993.
Statue of Ted Williams outside Fenway Park
The Final Footprint – Though his will stated his desire to be cremated and his ashes scattered in the Florida Keys, Williams was placed in low-temperature preservation at the Alcor Life Extension Foundation in Scottsdale, Arizona.
#RIP #OTD in 2007, dramatic soprano, spinto soprano, mezzo-soprano Régine Crespin died from liver cancer in Paris, aged 80. Cimetière du Père Lachaise
#RIP #OTD in 2021 filmmaker (The Omen, Superman, The Goonies, Scrooged, Lethal Weapon) Richard Donner died from heart failure at his West Hollywood, California home, at the age of 91. Cremation
#RIP #OTD in 2021 body builder, poet, actor (Rich Man, Poor Man; Any Which Way You Can; Conan the Barbarian; Rumble Fish; Red Dawn), Big Bill, William Smith died at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Los Angeles. Cremation
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