This day in history

[February 09, 2011]  (AP)  Today is Wednesday, Feb. 9, the 40th day of 2011. There are 325 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On Feb. 9, 1861, Jefferson Davis was elected provisional president of the Confederate States of America at a congress held in Montgomery, Ala. (He was inaugurated on Feb. 18.)

On this date:

In 1773, the ninth president of the United States, William Henry Harrison, was born in Charles City County, Va.

In 1825, the House of Representatives elected John Quincy Adams president after no candidate received a majority of electoral votes.

In 1870, the U.S. Weather Bureau was established.

In 1943, the World War II battle of Guadalcanal in the southwest Pacific ended with an Allied victory over Japanese forces.

In 1950, in a speech in Wheeling, W.Va., Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-Wis.) charged the State Department was riddled with Communists.

In 1961, The Beatles (with Stu Sutcliffe and Pete Best) first performed at the Cavern Club in Liverpool, England.

In 1964, The Beatles made their first live American television appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show," broadcast from New York on CBS.

In 1971, a magnitude 6.6 earthquake in California's San Fernando Valley claimed 65 lives. The crew of Apollo 14 returned to Earth after man's third landing on the moon.

In 1984, Soviet leader Yuri V. Andropov died at age 69, less than 15 months after succeeding Leonid Brezhnev; he was succeeded by Konstantin U. Chernenko (chehr-NYEN'-koh).

In 2002, Britain's Princess Margaret, sister of Queen Elizabeth II, died in London at age 71.

Ten years ago: A U.S. Navy submarine, the USS Greeneville, collided with a Japanese fishing boat, the Ehime Maru (eh-hee-mee mah-roo), while surfacing off the Hawaiian coast, killing nine men and boys aboard the boat.

Five years ago: President George W. Bush defended U.S. surveillance efforts, saying spy work helped thwart terrorists plotting to use shoe bombs to hijack an airliner and crash it into the tallest skyscraper on the West Coast. Kidnapped American journalist Jill Carroll appeared in a video aired on a private Kuwaiti TV station, appealing for her supporters to do whatever it took to win her release "as quickly as possible." (She was freed on March 30, 2006.) British entrepreneur Sir Freddie Laker died in Hollywood, Fla., at age 83.

One year ago: Appealing for bipartisanship, President Barack Obama sat down with Democrats and Republicans to spur cooperation on job creation, deficit reduction and health care overhaul. First lady Michelle Obama launched her "Let's Move" campaign against childhood obesity. Iran began enriching uranium to a higher level over the vociferous objections of the U.S. and its allies. Walter Fredrick Morrison, credited with inventing the Frisbee, died in Monroe, Utah, at age 90.

Today's birthdays: Television journalist Roger Mudd is 83. Actress Janet Suzman is 72. Actress-politician Sheila James Kuehl (kyool) ("The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis") is 70. Singer-songwriter Carole King is 69. Actor Joe Pesci is 68. Singer Barbara Lewis is 68. Author Alice Walker is 67. Actress Mia Farrow is 66. Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) is 65. Singer Joe Ely is 64. Actress Judith Light is 62. Rhythm-and-blues musician Dennis "DT" Thomas (Kool & the Gang) is 60. Actor Charles Shaughnessy is 56. Former Democratic National Chairman Terry McAuliffe is 54. Jazz musician Steve Wilson is 50. Country singer Travis Tritt is 48. Actress Julie Warner is 46. Country singer Danni Leigh is 41. Actor Jason George is 39. Actor-producer Charlie Day is 35. Rock singer Chad Wolf (Carolina Liar) is 35. Actor A.J. Buckley (TV: "CSI: NY") is 34. Rock musician Richard On (O.A.R.) is 32. Actress Ziyi Zhang is 32. Actor David Gallagher is 26. Actress Marina Malota is 23. Actress Camille Winbush ("The Bernie Mac Show") is 21. Actor Jimmy Bennett is 15.

Thought for today: "The man who has eaten enough will never believe a hungry one." -- Albanian proverb

[Associated Press]

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