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Births on September 14

Wim Polak
1924Sep, 14

Wim Polak

Wim Polak, Dutch journalist and politician, Mayor of Amsterdam (d. 1999)
Willem "Wim" Polak (14 September 1924 – 1 October 1999) was a Dutch politician of the Labour Party (PvdA) and economist.Polak was born to a Jewish merchant family in Amsterdam on 14 September 1924. His parents were murdered by the Nazis during the German Occupation of the Netherlands. After the Second World War, he worked as a journalist for Het Vrije Volk. Polak was appointed Secretary of State for local finances in Joop den Uyl's government. He worked towards improving the financial position of the larger Dutch cities. Subsequently, he became mayor of Amsterdam for a six-year period, where his challenges included numerous squatting cases as well as riots related to Queen Beatrix's coronation.

He died in 1999 at his home in Ilpendam.

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Events on 1924

  • 12Feb

    Rhapsody in Blue

    George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue received its premiere in a concert titled "An Experiment in Modern Music", in Aeolian Hall, New York, by Paul Whiteman and his band, with Gershwin playing the piano.
  • 25Mar

    Second Hellenic Republic

    On the anniversary of Greek Independence, Alexandros Papanastasiou proclaims the Second Hellenic Republic.
  • 8Apr

    Atatürk's Reforms

    Sharia courts are abolished in Turkey, as part of Atatürk's Reforms.
  • 4Aug

    Soviet Union

    Diplomatic relations between Mexico and the Soviet Union are established.
  • 23Nov

    Andromeda Galaxy

    Edwin Hubble's discovery, that the Andromeda "nebula" is actually another island galaxy far outside of our own Milky Way, is first published in The New York Times.