Timeline October 1931

Events in October 1931 14

• 1847 – 1931 Thomas Edison (1847-1931) Died 18 October 1931, aged 84 American inventor and businessman who developed the phonograph, a practical incandescent light bulb and early motion picture equipment. His Menlo Park laboratory pioneered organised industrial research. He held more than a thousand US patents.
• 1848 – 1931 Thomas Lipton (1848-1931) Died 2 October 1931, aged 83 Scottish grocer and tea merchant who founded the Lipton tea brand. He challenged unsuccessfully for the America's Cup five times with his yachts named Shamrock. He died in London.
• 1862 – 1931 Arthur Schnitzler (1862-1931) Died 21 October 1931, aged 69 Austrian playwright and novelist, author of Reigen (La Ronde) and Dream Story. His works frankly explored sexuality and the psychology of fin-de-siècle Vienna. He died in Vienna.
• 1865 – 1931 Carl Nielsen (1865-1931) Died 3 October 1931, aged 66 Danish composer, conductor and violinist, known especially for his six symphonies. He is regarded as Denmark's greatest composer. He also wrote the comic opera Maskarade.
• 1922 – 1931 Christ the Redeemer Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — New Wonder An Art Deco statue of Jesus Christ standing 98 feet tall atop the 2,300-foot Corcovado mountain overlooking Rio de Janeiro. Designed by French sculptor Paul Landowski and built by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, it was completed in 1931 and has become the defining symbol of both Rio and Brazil. It is the largest Art Deco sculpture in the world.
• 1931 – 1934 King's College, Cambridge Mathematics, and room to be himself Turing reads mathematics at King's, graduating with first-class honours. King's in the 1930s is unusually tolerant, and it is the closest thing to a home he has. He runs long distances, works alone, and reads von Neumann on quantum mechanics.
• 1931 Dick Tracy debuts Chester Gould's detective comic strip first appears Dick Tracy first appeared in the Detroit Mirror and was then syndicated nationally by the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate. The strip reflected the gangland violence of the Prohibition era. It became one of the longest-running comic strips in America.
• 1931 – 2021 Desmond Tutu (1931-2021) Died 26 December 2021, aged 90 South African archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who led the moral campaign against apartheid and chaired the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
• 1931 Christ the Redeemer inaugurated Rio de Janeiro's statue of Christ is dedicated on Corcovado The Art Deco statue by the French sculptor Paul Landowski was inaugurated on top of Corcovado mountain after nine years of construction. It stands about 30 metres tall on its pedestal. It became the best-known symbol of Rio de Janeiro and of Brazil.
• 1931 Al Capone convicted of tax evasion Chicago's most notorious gangster is brought down by the tax code A federal jury in Chicago convicted Al Capone on several counts of income tax evasion. A week later he was sentenced to eleven years in prison. He served most of the sentence in Atlanta and at Alcatraz.
• 1931 – 1995 Mickey Mantle (1931-1995) Died 13 August 1995, aged 63 Mickey Mantle was a New York Yankees outfielder widely regarded as one of the greatest switch hitters and power hitters in baseball history. He won three American League MVP awards and helped the Yankees to seven World Series titles. His later years were marked by public advocacy for organ donation and alcoholism treatment after a liver transplant.
• 1931 – 2007 Ursula K. Le Guin American novelist Le Guin wrote science fiction and fantasy exploring society, gender, and anthropology.
• 1931 – 2024 Margaret Bryan Davis (1931-2024) Died 22 May 2024, aged 92 American palaeoecologist whose pioneering work in palynology showed how biological communities shift with climate.
• 1931 George Washington Bridge opens Suspension bridge links Manhattan and New Jersey across the Hudson The George Washington Bridge, designed by Othmar Ammann, was dedicated between Manhattan and Fort Lee, New Jersey. Its main span was nearly twice as long as any previous suspension bridge. It became one of the busiest motor vehicle bridges in the world.