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.

July 22nd


- Birthday of former King Sobhuza II (Swaziland)
- Christian Feast Day
- Pi Approximation Day, see March 14
- Ratcatcher's Day

July 22nd


- 2005 - Jean Charles de Menezes is killed by police as the hunt begins for the London Bombers responsible for the 7 July 2005 London bombings and the 21 July 2005 London bombings.
- 2003 - Members of 101st Airborne of the United States, aided by Special Forces, attack a compound in Iraq, killing Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Qusay, along with Mustapha Hussein, Qusay's 14-year old son, and a bodyguard.
- 2002 - Israel kills Salah Shahade, the Commander-in-Chief of Hamas's military arm, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades.
- 1997 - The second Blue Water Bridge opens between Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario.
- 1993 - Great Flood of 1993: levees near Kaskaskia, Illinois rupture, forcing the entire town to evacuate by barges operated by the Army Corps of Engineers.
- 1992 - Near Medellín, Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar escapes from his luxury prison fearing extradition to the United States.
- 1983 - Martial law in Poland is officially revoked.
- 1977 - Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping is restored to power.
- 1976 - Japan completes its last reparation to the Philippines for war crimes committed during the imperial Japan's conquest of the country in the Second World War
- 1962 - Mariner program: Mariner 1 spacecraft flies erratically several minutes after launch and has to be destroyed.
- 1951 - Dezik (?????) and Tsygan (?????, "Gypsy") are the first dogs to make a sub-orbital flight.
- 1946 - King David Hotel bombing: a Zionist underground organisation, the Irgun, bombs the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, site of the civil administration and military headquarters for Mandate Palestine, resulting in 91 deaths.
- 1944 - The Polish Committee of National Liberation publishes its manifesto, starting the period of Communist rule in Poland
- 1943 - World War II: Allied forces capture the Italian city of Palermo.
- 1942 - The United States government begins compulsory civilian gasoline rationing due to the wartime demands.
- 1942 - Holocaust: the systematic deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto begins.
- 1937 - New Deal: the United States Senate votes down President Franklin D. Roosevelt's proposal to add more justices to the Supreme Court of the United States.
- 1934 - Outside Chicago's Biograph Theater, "Public Enemy No. 1" John Dillinger is mortally wounded by FBI agents.
- 1933 - Wiley Post becomes the first person to fly solo around the world traveling 15,596 miles (25,099 km) in 7 days, 18 hours and 45 minutes.
- 1916 - In San Francisco, California, a bomb explodes on Market Street during a Preparedness Day parade killing 10 and injuring 40.
- 1894 - The first ever motorized racing event is held in France between the cities of Paris and Rouen. The race is won by Comte Jules-Albert de Dion.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Atlanta – outside Atlanta, Georgia, Confederate General John Bell Hood leads an unsuccessful attack on Union troops under General William T. Sherman on Bald Hill.
- 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: Peninsular War – Battle of Salamanca – British forces led by Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) defeat French troops near Salamanca, Spain.
- 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: War of the Third Coalition – Battle of Cape Finisterre – an inconclusive naval action is fought between a combined French and Spanish fleet under Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve of Spain and a British fleet under Admiral Robert Calder.
- 1797 - Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife: Battle between Spanish and British naval forces during the French Revolutionary Wars. During the Battle, Rear-Admiral Nelson was wounded in the arm and the arm had to be partially amputated.
- 1796 - Surveyors of the Connecticut Land Company name an area in Ohio "Cleveland" after Gen. Moses Cleaveland, the superintendent of the surveying party.
- 1793 - Alexander Mackenzie reaches the Pacific Ocean becoming the first Euro-American to complete a transcontinental crossing of Canada.
- 1686 - Albany, New York is formally chartered as a municipality by Governor Thomas Dongan.
- 1587 - Colony of Roanoke: a second group of English settlers arrives on Roanoke Island off North Carolina to re-establish the deserted colony.
- 1499 - Battle of Dornach – The Swiss decisively defeat the Imperial army of Emperor Maximilian I.
- 1484 - Battle of Lochmaben Fair – A 500-man raiding party led by Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany and James Douglas, 9th Earl of Douglas are defeated by Scots forces loyal to Albany's brother James III of Scotland; Douglas is captured.
- 1456 - Ottoman Wars in Europe: Siege of Belgrade – John Hunyadi, Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary, defeats Mehmet II of the Ottoman Empire
- 1298 - Wars of Scottish Independence: Battle of Falkirk – King Edward I of England and his longbowmen defeat William Wallace and his Scottish schiltrons outside the town of Falkirk.
- 1099 - First Crusade: Godfrey of Bouillon is elected the first Defender of the Holy Sepulchre of The Kingdom of Jerusalem.
- 838 - Battle of Anzen: the Byzantine emperor Theophilos suffers a heavy defeat by the Abbasids.

July 22nd


- 2002 - Prince Felix of Denmark, Danish royalty
- 1998 - Madison Pettis, American actress
- 1997 - Field Cate, American actor
- 1996 - Skyler Gisondo, American actor
- 1993 - Amber Beattie, English actress
- 1992 - Selena Gomez, American actress and pop singer
- 1991 - Matthew James, English footballer
- 1988 - Paul Coutts, Scottish footballer
- 1985 - Takudzwa Ngwenya, Zimbabwean-born American rugby player
- 1985 - Akira Tozawa, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1984 - Stewart Downing, English footballer
- 1983 - Steven Jackson, American football player
- 1983 - Arsenie Todira?, Moldovan singer (O-Zone)
- 1983 - Sharni Vinson, Australian actress and model
- 1983 - Clemens von Grumbkow, German rugby player
- 1983 - Dries Devenyns, Belgian cyclist
- 1982 - Nuwan Kulasekara, Sri Lankan cricketer
- 1980 - Scott Dixon, New Zealand racing driver
- 1980 - Dirk Kuyt, Dutch footballer
- 1980 - Kate Ryan, Belgian singer
- 1980 - Tablo, Korean hip-hop musician (Epik High)
- 1979 - Lucas Luhr, German racing driver
- 1979 - Yadel Martí, Cuban baseball player
- 1979 - James Mason, British professional wrestler
- 1978 - A. J. Cook, Canadian actress
- 1978 - Martyn Lee, English radio presenter
- 1978 - Runako Morton, West Indian cricketer
- 1978 - Dennis Rommedahl, Danish footballer
- 1977 - Ezio Galon, Italian rugby player
- 1977 - Gustavo Nery, Brazilian footballer
- 1976 - Kokia, Japanese singer-songwriter
- 1975 - Sam Jacobson, American basketball player
- 1974 - Franka Potente, German actress
- 1974 - Sonija Kwok, Hong Kong actress
- 1973 - Ronald Ray Howard, American murderer (d. 2005)
- 1973 - Daniel Jones, English-born Australian guitarist and keyboardist (Savage Garden)
- 1973 - Mike Sweeney, American baseball player
- 1973 - Rufus Wainwright, Canadian singer
- 1972 - Colin Ferguson, Canadian actor
- 1972 - Seth Fisher, American comic book artist and penciller (d. 2006)
- 1972 - Keyshawn Johnson, American football player
- 1971 - Kristine Lilly, American soccer player
- 1970 - Jason Becker, American musician
- 1970 - Craig Baird, New Zealander racing driver
- 1970 - Sergei Zubov, Russian ice hockey player
- 1969 - Despina Vandi, Greek singer
- 1968 - Rhys Ifans, Welsh actor
- 1967 - Irene Bedard, American actress
- 1967 - Lauren Booth, British journalist
- 1966 - Shaun Cohen, South African professional wrestler
- 1966 - Tim Brown, American football player
- 1965 - Patrick Labyorteaux, American actor
- 1965 - Shawn Michaels, American professional wrestler
- 1964 - Adam Godley, British actor
- 1964 - John Leguizamo, Colombian actor
- 1964 - Don Van Natta, Jr., American journalist
- 1964 - David Spade, American actor and comedian
- 1963 - Rob Estes, American actor
- 1963 - Emily Saliers, American singer (Indigo Girls)
- 1963 - Emilio Butragueño, Spanish footballer
- 1962 - Alvin Robertson, American basketball player
- 1962 - Martine St. Clair, Canadian singer
- 1961 - Calvin Fish, English racing driver
- 1961 - Keith Sweat, American singer
- 1960 - Jon Oliva, American vocalist and keyboardist (Savatage)
- 1958 - David Von Erich, American professional wrestler (d. 1984)
- 1958 - Tatsunori Hara, Japanese professional baseball player and coach
- 1957 - Dave Stieb, American baseball player
- 1955 - Willem Dafoe, American actor
- 1954 - Pierre Lebeau, Canadian actor
- 1954 - Lonette McKee, American actress
- 1954 - Al Di Meola, American guitarist
- 1954 - Steve LaTourette, American politician
- 1953 - Jimmy Bruno, American jazz guitarist
- 1953 - Sylvia Chang, Taiwanese actress
- 1953 - Paul Quarrington, Canadian novelist, playwright, screenwriter, filmmaker, musician and educator (d. 2010)
- 1951 - J. V. Cain, American football player (d. 1979)
- 1949 - Alan Menken, American composer
- 1949 - Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates
- 1949 - Lasse Virén, Finnish long distance runner
- 1948 - S. E. Hinton, American novelist
- 1948 - Otto Waalkes, German comedian
- 1947 - Albert Brooks, American comedian
- 1947 - Gilles Duceppe, Canadian politician
- 1947 - Don Henley, American singer-songwriter and drummer (Eagles)
- 1946 - Danny Glover, American actor
- 1946 - Mireille Mathieu, French singer
- 1946 - Paul Schrader, American film director and screenwriter
- 1946 - Stephen M. Wolownik, American authority in the U.S. Russian and Eastern European music community (d. 2000)
- 1946 - Johnson Toribiong, President of Palau
- 1944 - Anand Satyanand, Governor-General of New Zealand
- 1944 - Estelle Bennett, American singer (Ronettes) (d. 2009)
- 1944 - Rick Davies, British keyboardist (Supertramp)
- 1944 - Dennis Firestone, Australian racing driver
- 1944 - Sparky Lyle, American baseball player
- 1943 - Kay Bailey Hutchison, U.S. Senator from Texas
- 1943 - Bobby Sherman, American singer and actor
- 1942 - Peter Habeler, Austrian mountaineer
- 1941 - George Clinton, American singer, songwriter and bandleader (Parliament, Funkadelic)
- 1941 - Ron Turcotte, Canadian jockey
- 1940 - Judith Walzer Leavitt, American college professor
- 1940 - Alex Trebek, Canadian game show host
- 1939 - Terence Stamp, English actor
- 1939 - Gila Almagor, Israeli actress
- 1937 - Yasuhiro Kojima, Japanese professional wrestler (d. 1999)
- 1937 - John Price, English cricketer
- 1937 - Vasant Ranjane, Indian cricketer
- 1936 - Tom Robbins, American novelist
- 1935 - Tom Cartwright, English cricketer (d. 2007)
- 1934 - Louise Fletcher, American actress
- 1932 - Oscar De la Renta, Dominican/American fashion designer
- 1929 - John Barber, British racing driver
- 1928 - Orson Bean, American film actor
- 1924 - Margaret Whiting, American singer
- 1923 - Bob Dole, American politician
- 1923 - The Fabulous Moolah, American professional wrestler (d. 2007)
- 1923 - Mukesh, Indian singer (d. 1976)
- 1921 - William Roth, U.S. Senator (d. 2003)
- 1916 - Gino Bianco, Brazilian racing driver (d. 1984)
- 1916 - Marcel Cerdan, French boxer (d. 1949)
- 1915 - Shaista Suhrawardy Ikramullah, Pakistani politician, diplomat and author (d. 2000)
- 1913 - Licia Albanese, American opera singer
- 1913 - Gorni Kramer, Italian bandleader (d. 1995)
- 1909 - Dorino Serafini, Italian racing driver (d. 2000)
- 1908 - Amy Vanderbilt, American etiquette authority (d. 1974)
- 1905 - Doc Cramer, American baseball player (d. 1990)
- 1898 - Stephen Vincent Benét, American poet, short story writer and novelist (d. 1943)
- 1898 - Alexander Calder, American sculptor and inventor of the mobile sculpture (d. 1976)
- 1895 - León de Greiff, Colombian poet (d. 1976)
- 1893 - Jesse Haines, American baseball player (d. 1978)
- 1893 - Karl Menninger, American psychiatrist (d. 1990)
- 1892 - Jack MacBryan, English cricketer and field hockey player (d. 1983)
- 1890 - Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, American Kennedy family matriarch (d. 1995)
- 1889 - James Whale, English film director (d. 1957)
- 1888 - Kirk Bryan, American geologist (d. 1950)
- 1888 - Selman Waksman, Ukrainian/American biochemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)
- 1887 - Gustav Ludwig Hertz, German physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1975)
- 1882 - Edward Hopper, American painter (d. 1967)
- 1878 - Janusz Korczak, Polish-Jewish children's author, pediatrician and child pedagogue (d. 1942)
- 1863 - Alec Hearne, English cricketer (d. 1952)
- 1849 - Emma Lazarus, American poet (d. 1887)
- 1848 - Adolf Friedrich V, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (d. 1914)
- 1844 - William Archibald Spooner, English priest and scholar (d. 1930)
- 1784 - Friedrich Bessel, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1846)
- 1755 - Gaspard de Prony, French mathematician (d. 1839)
- 1733 - Mikhail Shcherbatov, Russian philosopher and writer (d. 1790)
- 1713 - Jacques-Germain Soufflot, French architect (d. 1780)
- 1711 - Georg Wilhelm Richmann, Russian physicist (d. 1753)
- 1621 - Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, English politician (d. 1683)
- 1559 - Lawrence of Brindisi, Italian monk (d. 1619)
- 1535 - Katarina Stenbock, Queen consort of Sweden, wife of Gustav I of Sweden (d. 1621)
- 1510 - Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence (d. 1537)
- 1478 - King Philip I of Castile (d. 1506)
- 1210 - Joan of England, Queen consort of Scotland, wife of Alexander II of Scotland (d. 1238)