This day in history

[November 19, 2009]  (AP)  Today is Thursday, Nov. 19, the 323rd day of 2009. There are 42 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On Nov. 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address as he dedicated a national cemetery at the site of the Civil War battlefield in Pennsylvania.

On this date:

In 1600, King Charles I of England was born in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland.

In 1794, the United States and Britain signed Jay's Treaty, which resolved some issues left over from the Revolutionary War.

In 1831, the 20th president of the United States, James Garfield, was born in Orange Township, Ohio.

In 1919, the Senate rejected the Treaty of Versailles by a vote of 55 in favor, 39 against, short of the two-thirds majority needed for ratification.

In 1942, during World War II, Russian forces launched their winter offensive against the Germans along the Don front.

In 1959, Ford Motor Co. announced it was halting production of the unpopular Edsel.

In 1969, Apollo XII astronauts Charles Conrad and Alan Bean made the second manned landing on the moon.

In 1977, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat became the first Arab leader to visit Israel.

In 1984, some 500 people died in a firestorm set off by a series of explosions at a petroleum storage plant on the edge of Mexico City.

In 1985, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev met for the first time as they began their summit in Geneva.

Ten years ago: Hundreds of anti-American protesters battled riot police and set stores and banks ablaze as President Bill Clinton rode through Athens in a tight security cocoon and proclaimed a "profound and enduring friendship" with Greece. World leaders at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in Turkey signed a treaty cutting the number of non-nuclear weapons systems across Europe.

Five years ago: In one of the worst brawls in U.S. sports history, Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson of the Indiana Pacers charged into the stands and fought with Detroit Pistons fans, forcing officials to end the Pacers' 97-82 win with 45.9 seconds left.

One year ago: Al-Qaida's No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahri, slurred Barack Obama as a black American who does the bidding of whites in a new Web message intended to dent the president-elect's popularity among Arabs and Muslims. The Dow industrial average closed under 8,000 at 7,997.28 -- the lowest close since March 2003. Drama and dance critic Clive Barnes died in New York at age 81.

Today's birthdays: Actor Alan Young is 90. Talk show host Larry King is 76. Former General Electric CEO Jack Welch is 74. Talk show host Dick Cavett is 73. Broadcasting and sports mogul Ted Turner is 71. Singer Pete Moore (Smokey Robinson and the Miracles) is 70. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, is 70. TV journalist Garrick Utley is 70. Actor Dan Haggerty is 68. Former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson is 68. Fashion designer Calvin Klein is 67. Sportscaster Ahmad Rashad is 60. Actor Robert Beltran is 56. Actress Kathleen Quinlan is 55. Actress Glynnis O'Connor is 54. Newscaster Ann Curry is 53. Former NASA astronaut Eileen Collins is 53. Actress Allison Janney is 50. Rock musician Matt Sorum (Guns N' Roses, Velvet Revolver) is 49. Actress Meg Ryan is 48. Actress-director Jodie Foster is 47. Actress Terry Farrell is 46. TV chef Rocco DiSpirito is 43. Actor Jason Scott Lee is 43. Olympic gold medal runner Gail Devers is 43. Actress Erika Alexander is 40. Rock musician Travis McNabb is 40. Singer Tony Rich is 38. Country singer Jason Albert (Heartland) is 36. Country singer Billy Currington is 36. Dancer-choreographer Savion Glover is 36. Country musician Chad Jeffers is 34. Rhythm-and-blues singer Tamika Scott (Xscape) is 34. Rhythm-and-blues singer Lil' Mo is 32. Olympic gold medal gymnast Kerri Strug is 32. Actor Reid Scott is 32.

Thought for today: "You simply cannot hang a millionaire in America." -- Bourke Cockran, American politician and orator (1854-1923)

[Associated Press]

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