So you want to have a drink but you aren't sure why? Here are some GREAT reasons to call your friends over and have a party.

February 23rd


- Christian Feast Day
- Mashramani-Republic Day (Guyana)
- National Day (Brunei)
- Red Army Day or Day of Soviet Army and Navy in the former Soviet Union, also held in various former Soviet republics:
Defender of the Fatherland Day (Russia)
- Terminalia held in honor of Terminus (Ancient Rome)

February 23rd


- 2010 - Unknown criminals pour more than 2.5 million liters of diesel oil and other hydrocarbons into the river Lambro, in Northern Italy, causing an environmental disaster.
- 2008 - A United States Air Force B-2 Spirit crashes on Guam. It is the first operational loss of a B-2.
- 2007 - A train derails on an evening express service near Grayrigg, Cumbria, England, killing one person and injuring 22. This results in hundreds of points being checked over the UK after a few similar accidents.
- 2006 - 2005 – The controversial French law on colonialism is passed, requiring teachers to teach the "positive values of colonialism". After public outcry, it is repealed at the beginning of .
- 2006 - Dubai Ports World agrees to postpone its plans to take over management of six U.S. ports after the proposal ignited harsh bipartisan criticism.
- 2005 - In Slovakia, a two-day meeting dubbed "Slovakia Summit 2005" takes place between U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin. This occasion marks the first visit of a sitting American President to the Slovak Republic since its establishment in 1993.
- 1999 - Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Öcalan is charged with treason in Ankara, Turkey.
- 1999 - An avalanche destroys the Austrian village of Galtür, killing 31.
- 1998 - In the United States, tornadoes in central Florida destroy or damage 2,600 structures and kill 42.
- 1998 - Osama bin Laden publishes a fatwa declaring jihad against all Jews and "Crusaders"; the latter term is commonly interpreted to refer to the people of Europe and the United States.
- 1997 - A small fire occurs in the Russian Space station, Mir.
- 1992 - The Socialist Labour Party is founded in the nation of Georgia.
- 1991 - Gulf War: Ground troops cross the Saudi Arabian border and enter Iraq, thus beginning the ground phase of the war.
- 1991 - In Thailand, General Sunthorn Kongsompong leads a bloodless coup d'état, deposing Prime Minister Chatichai Choonhavan.
- 1987 - Supernova 1987a is seen in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
- 1983 - The Spanish Socialist government of Felipe González and Miguel Boyer nationalizes Rumasa, a holding company founded by entrepreneur José María Ruiz Mateos.
- 1983 - The United States Environmental Protection Agency announces its intent to buy out and evacuate the dioxin-contaminated community of Times Beach, Missouri.
- 1981 - In Spain, Antonio Tejero attempts a coup d'état by capturing the Spanish Congress of Deputies.
- 1980 - Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini states that Iran's parliament will decide the fate of the American embassy hostages.
- 1975 - 1945 – World War II: The Verona Philharmonic Theatre is bombed by Allied forces. It would later be re-opened in .
- 1974 - The Symbionese Liberation Army demands $4 million more to release kidnap victim Patty Hearst.
- 1966 - In Syria, Baath party member Salah Jadid leads an intra-party military coup that replaces the previous government of General Amin Hafiz, also a Baathist.
- 1958 - Cuban rebels kidnap 5-time world driving champion Juan Manuel Fangio.
- 1957 - The founding congress of the Senegalese Popular Bloc is opened in Dakar.
- 1955 - First meeting of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO).
- 1954 - The first mass inoculation of children against polio with the Salk vaccine begins in Pittsburgh.
- 1947 - The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is founded.
- 1945 - World War II: During the Battle of Iwo Jima, a group of United States Marines and a commonly forgotten U.S. Navy Corpsman, reach the top of Mount Suribachi on the island and are photographed raising the American flag. The photo would later win a Pulitzer Prize and become the model for the national USMC War Memorial.
- 1945 - World War II: The 11th Airborne Division, with Filipino guerrillas, free the captives of the Los Baños internment camp.
- 1945 - World War II: The capital of the Philippines, Manila, is liberated by American forces.
- 1945 - World War II: Capitulation of German garrison in Pozna?. The city is liberated by Soviet and Polish forces.
- 1945 - World War II: The German town of Pforzheim is completely destroyed in a raid by 379 British bombers.
- 1944 - The Soviet Union begins the forced deportation of the Chechen and Ingush people from the North Caucasus to Central Asia.
- 1943 - A fire breaks out at St. Joseph's Orphanage, Co Cavan, Ireland, killing 36 people (35 of whom are children).
- 1941 - Plutonium is first produced and isolated by Dr. Glenn T. Seaborg.
- 1934 - Leopold III becomes King of Belgium.
- 1927 - The Federal Radio Commission (later renamed the Federal Communications Commission) begins to regulate the use of radio frequencies in the United States.
- 1918 - First victory of Red Army over the Kaiser's German troops near Narva and Pskov. In honor of this victory, the date is celebrated from 1923 onward as "Red Army Day"; it is renamed Defender of the Fatherland Day after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, and is colloquially known as "Men's Day".
- 1917 - First demonstrations in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The beginning of the February Revolution.
- 1909 - The AEA Silver Dart makes the first powered flight in Canada and the British Empire.
- 1905 - Chicago attorney Paul Harris and three other businessmen meet for lunch to form the Rotary Club, the world's first service club.
- 1903 - Cuba leases Guantánamo Bay to the United States "in perpetuity".
- 1900 - In South Africa, Boers and British troops fight in the Battle of Hart's Hill.
- 1898 - Émile Zola is imprisoned in France after writing "J'accuse", a letter accusing the French government of anti-Semitism and wrongfully imprisoning Captain Alfred Dreyfus.
- 1887 - The French Riviera is hit by a large earthquake, killing around 2,000.
- 1886 - Charles Martin Hall produced the first samples of man-made aluminum, after several years of intensive work. He was assisted in this project by his older sister Julia Brainerd Hall.
- 1883 - Alabama becomes the first U.S. state to enact an antitrust law.
- 1870 - In the United States, post-Civil War military control of Mississippi ends and it is readmitted to the Union.
- 1861 - President-elect Abraham Lincoln arrives secretly in Washington, D.C., after the thwarting of an alleged assassination plot in Baltimore, Maryland.
- 1854 - The official independence of the Orange Free State is declared.
- 1847 - Mexican-American War: Battle of Buena Vista – In Mexico, American troops under General Zachary Taylor defeat Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.
- 1836 - The Battle of the Alamo begins in San Antonio, Texas.
- 1820 - Cato Street Conspiracy: A plot to murder all the British cabinet ministers is exposed.
- 1778 - American Revolution: Baron von Steuben arrives at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania to help to train the Continental Army.
- 1739 - Richard Palmer is identified at York Castle, by his former schoolteacher, as the outlaw Dick Turpin.
- 1660 - Charles XI becomes King of Sweden.
- 1455 - Traditional date for the publication of the Gutenberg Bible, the first Western book printed with movable type.
- 632 - The Last Sermon (Khutbah, Khutbatul Wada') of prophet Muhammad.

February 23rd


- 1994 - Dakota Fanning, American actress
- 1992 - Kyriakos Papadopoulos, Greek footballer
- 1989 - Evan Bates, American ice dancer
- 1986 - Ola Svensson, Swedish pop singer
- 1986 - Holly Brook, American musician
- 1986 - Kazuya Kamenashi, Japanese idol (KAT-TUN)
- 1986 - Jerod Mayo, American football player
- 1983 - Mirco Bergamasco, Italian rugby player
- 1983 - Mido, Egyptian footballer
- 1983 - Emily Blunt, British actress
- 1983 - Aziz Ansari, Indian-American comedian
- 1982 - Adam Hann-Byrd, American actor
- 1982 - Karan Singh, Indian actor
- 1982 - Malia Metella, French swimmer
- 1981 - Gareth Barry, English footballer
- 1981 - Charles Tillman, American football player
- 1979 - S.E. Cupp, American author and political commentator
- 1978 - René Pérez, Puerto Rican musician (Calle 13)
- 1978 - Dan Snyder, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2003)
- 1978 - Jo Joyner, English actress
- 1977 - Kristina Šmigun-Vähi, Estonian cross-country skier
- 1976 - Kelly Macdonald, British actress
- 1976 - Scott Elarton, American baseball player
- 1975 - Michael Cornacchia, American actor
- 1975 - Robert Lopez, American composer
- 1975 - Natalia Verbeke, Argentine actress
- 1974 - Leko, American DJ
- 1974 - Herschelle Gibbs, South African cricketer
- 1973 - Jack Case, American artist
- 1973 - Lars-Olof Johansson, Swedish musician (The Cardigans)
- 1972 - Steve Holy, American country singer
- 1972 - Alessandro Sturba, Italian footballer
- 1972 - Rondell White, American baseball player
- 1971 - Jeong Chan, South Korean actor
- 1971 - Don Maxwell, Canadian cricketer
- 1971 - Melinda Messenger, English television presenter
- 1971 - Joe-Max Moore, American soccer player
- 1970 - Marie-Josée Croze, French-Canadian actress
- 1970 - Niecy Nash, American actress
- 1969 - Marc Wauters, Belgian cyclist
- 1969 - Michael Campbell, New Zealand golfer
- 1968 - Justin Bell, British racing driver
- 1967 - Tamsin Greig, English actress
- 1967 - Chris Vrenna, American musician, producer and sound engineer Nine Inch Nails, Tweaker
- 1966 - Neal McDonough, American actor
- 1965 - Kristin Davis, American actress
- 1965 - David E. Clemmer, American ion mobility-mass spectrometrist, 2006 recipient of Biemann Medal
- 1965 - Michael Dell, American computer manufacturer
- 1965 - Helena Suková, Czech former tennis player
- 1964 - John Norum, Norwegian guitarist (Europe)
- 1963 - Bobby Bonilla, former baseball player
- 1963 - Rados?aw Sikorski, Polish politician
- 1962 - Michael Wilton, American musician (Queensrÿche)
- 1961 - Kelly Hansen, American drummer (Summer Lights)
- 1960 - Alan Griffin, Australian politician
- 1960 - Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan
- 1959 - Richard Dodds, British field hockey player
- 1958 - Tony Barrell, English writer and journalist
- 1958 - David Sylvian, English musician (Japan, Nine Horses)
- 1957 - Ria Brieffies, Dutch singer (d. 2009)
- 1955 - Tom Bodett, American voice actor, radio personality, and writer
- 1955 - Howard Jones, British pop singer
- 1955 - Flip Saunders, American basketball coach
- 1954 - Viktor Yushchenko, President of Ukraine
- 1953 - Satoru Nakajima, Japanese racing driver
- 1952 - Brad Whitford, American musician (Aerosmith)
- 1951 - Ed Jones, American football player
- 1951 - Patricia Richardson, American actress
- 1950 - Maxi, Irish singer and radio personality
- 1949 - Marc Garneau, French-Canadian astronaut
- 1948 - Doug Moench, American comic book writer
- 1947 - John McWethy, American journalist (d. 2008)
- 1947 - Pia Kjærsgaard, Danish politician
- 1946 - Rusty Young, American country-rock guitarist (Poco)
- 1945 - Allan Boesak, South African activist
- 1944 - Bernard Cornwell, English historical novelist
- 1944 - John Sandford, American novelist
- 1944 - Johnny Winter, American musician
- 1943 - Fred Biletnikoff, American football player and coach
- 1941 - Ron Hunt, baseball player
- 1940 - Peter Fonda, American actor
- 1938 - Diane Varsi, American actress (d. 1992)
- 1937 - Tom Osborne, American football coach and politician
- 1932 - Majel Barrett Roddenberry, American actress (d. 2008)
- 1931 - Tom Wesselmann, American collage artist (d. 2004)
- 1929 - Elston Howard, American baseball player (d. 1980)
- 1928 - Hans Herrmann, German race car driver
- 1928 - Vasili Lazarev, cosmonaut (d. 1990)
- 1927 - Régine Crespin, French operatic soprano (d. 2007)
- 1924 - Allan McLeod Cormack, South-African born physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1998)
- 1924 - Claude Sautet, French film director (d. 2000)
- 1923 - Rafael Addiego Bruno, Uruguayan politician
- 1920 - Paul Gérin-Lajoie, French-Canadian politician
- 1918 - Richard G. Butler, founder of Aryan Nations (d. 2004)
- 1915 - Jon Hall, American actor (d. 1979)
- 1915 - Paul Tibbets, US Air Force retired Brigadier General and pilot of B-29 "Enola Gay" over Hiroshima (d. 2007)
- 1914 - Theofiel Middelkamp, Dutch cyclist (d. 2005)
- 1908 - William McMahon, twentieth Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1988)
- 1904 - Terence Fisher, English film director (d. 1980)
- 1904 - William L. Shirer, American historian (d. 1993)
- 1904 - Leopold Trepper, Soviet spy (d. 1982)
- 1901 - Edgar Ende, German painter (d. 1965)
- 1899 - Erich Kästner, German writer (d. 1974)
- 1899 - Norman Taurog, American film director (d. 1981)
- 1891 - Harold Horder, Australian rugby league player (d. 1978)
- 1889 - Victor Fleming, American director (d. 1949)
- 1889 - Musidora, French actress and director (d. 1957)
- 1889 - John Gilbert Winant, American politician (d. 1947)
- 1883 - Karl Jaspers, German philosopher (d. 1969)
- 1878 - Kazimir Malevich, Ukrainian painter and art theorist (d. 1935)
- 1874 - Konstantin Päts, Estonian president (d. 1956)
- 1873 - Liang Qichao, Chinese scholar (d. 1929)
- 1868 - W. E. B. Du Bois, American civil rights leader (d. 1963)
- 1850 - César Ritz, Swiss hotelier (d. 1918)
- 1842 - Karl Robert Eduard von Hartmann, German philosopher (d. 1906)
- 1840 - Frederick Wicks, English author and inventor (d. 1910)
- 1809 - William Sprague, American minister and politician from Michigan (d. 1868)
- 1744 - Mayer Amschel Rothschild, German-born banker (d. 1812)
- 1729 - Josiah Hornblower, American statesman (d. 1809)
- 1723 - Richard Price, Welsh philosopher (d. 1791)
- 1685 - Georg Friedrich Handel, German/British Baroque composer (d. 1759)
- 1680 - Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, French colonizer and Governor of Louisiana (d. 1767)
- 1648 - Arabella Churchill, English mistress of James II of England (d. 1730)
- 1646 - Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, Japanese shogun (d. 1709)
- 1633 - Samuel Pepys, English naval administrator and man of letters, posthumously famous as a diarist (d. 1703)
- 1583 - Jean-Baptiste Morin, French scientist (d. 1656)
- 1443 - Matthias Corvinus of Hungary, King of Hungary and Croatia (d. 1490)
- 1417 - Pope Paul II (d. 1471)