- May 1 Miami Heat beaten, 112-91 to Chicago Bulls to be swept 3-0 in round 1 of NBA Eastern Division playoffs; first time in his 14 years as head coach Pat Riley ousted in the opening round
Theater Premiere
May 1 Revival of Oscar Wilde's stage play "An Ideal Husband" opens at Ethel Barrymore Theatre, NYC; runs for 308 performances
- May 3 Martin Moxon and Michael Vaughan make 362 for the 1st wicket, Yorkshire v Glamorgan
- May 4 122nd Kentucky Derby: Jerry Bailey wins aboard Grindstone, his second Derby victory (1993 Sea Hero)
- May 4 Greg Pavlik one-hits Tigers making the Rangers 1st AL team to pitch back-to-back one-hitters since the Washington Senators in 1917
- May 5 "Jack-Night on Town with J Barrymore" closes at Belasco after 12 performances
- May 5 Renette Cruz, Vancouver, wins Miss Canadian Universe
- May 6 Guatemala's leftist guerrillas sign key accord with government of President Alvaro Arzu aimed at ending 35 years of civil war
- May 6 Howard Stern Radio Show premieres in Hartford, Connecticut on WCCC 106.9 FM
- May 6 The body of former CIA director William Colby is found washed up on a riverbank in southern Maryland, eight days after he disappeared.
- May 7 Comedian Martin Lawrence suffers a nervous breakdown
Sports History
May 8 NY Yankee Dwight Gooden wins his 1st AL game beating Tigers 10-3
- May 8 Paris Saint-Germain of France win 36th European Cup Winner's Cup against Rapid Wien of Austria 1-0 in Brussels
- May 8 South Africa's Constitutional Assembly adopts permanent post-apartheid constitution
Film & TV History
May 10 "Twister" disaster film written by Michael Crichton starring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton premieres
- May 10 2 US Marine helicopters collided during joint US & British war games
- May 10 Excel Communications, Inc. becomes the youngest company ever to join the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), trading under the symbol (ECI)
- May 11 Florida Marlin Al Leiter no hits Colorado Rockies, 11-0
- May 11 Valujet DC-9 crashes in Miami, 109 die
- May 12 "Inherit the Wind" closes at Royale Theater NYC after 45 performances
- May 12 "Night of the Iguana" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 68 performances
LPGA Championship
May 12 LPGA Championship Women's Golf, DuPont CC: England's Laura Davies wins by 1 stroke ahead of runner-up Julie Piers
- May 12 Yankees losing 8-0 to Chicago White Sox, come back to win 9-8
TV Show Appearance
May 13 O.J. Simpson appears on British TV discussing his not guilty verdict
- May 13 Severe thunderstorms and a tornado in Bangladesh kill 600 people.
- May 14 New York Yankees' controversial pitcher Dwight Gooden no-hits Seattle Mariners, 2-0 at Yankee Stadium
Baseball Record
May 16 Sammy Sosa is 1st Chicago Cub to hit 2 HRs in 1 inning
- May 17 Habib & Whitaker make 320 for 5th Cricket wkt, Leics v Worcs
- May 17 Venezuelan Alicia Machado, aged 18, crowned 45th Miss Universe
Preakness Stakes
May 18 121st Preakness: Pat Day aboard Louis Quatorze wins in 1:53.2
- May 18 41st Eurovision Song Contest: Eimear Quinn for Ireland wins singing "The Voice" in Oslo
- May 18 WIBC Bowling Queens won by Lisa Wagner
- May 19 STS 77 (Endeavour 11), launches into orbit
- May 20 49th Cannes Film Festival: "Secrets & Lies" directed by Mike Leigh wins the Palme d'Or
- May 20 UN and Iraq agree to Resolution 986, which provides Iraq with the opportunity to sell $1 billion of oil for 90 days for a 180-day trial period; proceeds from the sale would be used for humanitarian purposes
You're Makin' Me High
May 21 "You're Makin' Me High" single released by Toni Braxton (Grammy Award - Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, 1997)
- May 21 Blackout in many areas of Queens, NY
Baseball Record
May 21 Ken Griffey Jr, 26, is 8th youngest to hits 200 home runs
- May 21 The Trappist Martyrs of Atlas are executed.
- May 22 "Tartuffe: Born Again" opens at Circle in the Square Theater, NYC; runs for 29 performances
- May 22 4th UEFA Champions League Final: Juventus beats Ajax (1-1, 4-2 on penalties) at Rome
Daytime Emmy Awards
May 22 Emmy 23rd Daytime Award presentation - Susan Lucci loses for 16th time
- May 23 Fred Norris of the Howard Stern show changes his name legally to Eric
- May 24 "Spy Hard" starring Leslie Nielsen is released
- May 25 1st Super Rugby Final, Eden Park, Auckland: Blues win inaugural title with a 45-21 victory over the Natal Sharks; fullback Adrian Cashmore lands 3 penalties & 3 conversions for the home team
- May 25 Jennifer Maria Holsten, 18, crowned Miss Filipino-American
- May 26 Indianapolis 500: first Indy 500 contested by Indy Racing League; many top CART teams boycott; Buddy Lazier wins marking Firestone's first Indy victory since 1971
- May 26 Parliamentary elections in Albania results are disputed, with irregularities and intimidation causing opposition parties to withdraw; pro-Western Democratic party wins over 50% of the vote
- May 26 Revival of William Shakespeare's comedy "A Midsummer Night's Dream" closes at Lunt-Fontanne, NYC after 65 performances
Election of Interest
May 28 Pavlo Lazarenko becomes Prime Minister of Ukraine
Whitewater Scandal
May 28 U.S. President Bill Clinton's former business partners in the Whitewater land deal, James McDougal and Susan McDougal, and Arkansas Governor Jim Guy Tucker, are convicted of fraud.
- May 29 NHL Western Conference Final: Colorado Avalanche beat Detroit Red Wings, 4 games to 2
Event of Interest
May 29 Space Shuttle STS 77 Endeavour 11), lands
- May 30 69th National Spelling Bee: Wendy Guey wins spelling vivisepulture
- May 30 Albert Belle uses a forearm to break up a double play & nearly breaks Brewer 2nd baseman Fernando Vina's nose, Belle gets 2 game suspension
- May 30 John Tesh's final day as host of "Entertainment Tonight"
- May 31 Mark Van Thillo and Abigail Alling, former biospherian win $100,000 lawsuit against Biospheric Development for Space Biospheres Ventures
Authors
Dictators
Explorers
Outlaws
Queens
Spies