May 20

© 1997, 1998 by Paul A. Schons

May 20, 1860

Birth of the biochemist Eduard Buchner in Munich. He was given the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1907 for demonstrating that the fermentation of carbohydrates results from the action of enzymes in yeast.

May 20, 1851

Birth of Emil Berliner in Hannover, Germany. Berliner made significant inventions in telephone technology and invented the phonograph record disc.

May 20, 1896

Death of Clara Schumann in Frankfurt a/M. Schumann was a composer and the outstanding pianist of her century. Born Clara Wieck, she married the composer, Robert Schumann in 1840 and took his name. The couple had 8 children. Clara and Robert were close friends with Johannes Brahms.

May 20, 1909

Canonization of St. Clement Mary Hofbauer (born John Hofbauer) in Tasswitz, Moravia (now in the Czech Republic). Hofbauer studied at the University of Vienna. He was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 1785. He was canonized in 1909. He is the Roman Catholic patron Saint of Vienna.

May 20, 1918

Death of Ferdinand Hodler in Geneva, Switzerland. Hodler was one of the outstanding Swiss painters of the turn of the century. He is known for his landscapes and portraits as well as for his nudes which are remarkable for the transcendent symbolism of their ritualized gestures.

May 20, 1921

Birth of Wolfgang Borchert in Hamburg, Germany.