 Today's highlight in history:
On June 8, 1972, during the Vietnam War, a South Vietnamese Air
Force jet dropped napalm onto the village of Trang Bang. Associated
Press photographer Nick Ut (oot) captured the image of a screaming
9-year-old girl, Phan Thi Kim Phuc (fahn thee kihm fook), as she ran
naked and severely burned from the scene of the fiery explosions
along with other victims.
On this date:
In A.D. 632, the prophet Muhammad died in Medina.
In 1845, Andrew Jackson, seventh president of the United States,
died in Nashville, Tenn.
In 1861, voters in Tennessee approved an Ordinance of Secession
passed the previous month by the state legislature.
In 1912, the ballet "Daphnis et Chloe," with music by Maurice Ravel,
choreography by Michel Fokine and Vaslav Nijinsky and Tamara
Karsavina in the title roles, was premiered by the Ballets Russes in
Paris.
In 1915, Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan resigned in a
disagreement with President Woodrow Wilson over U.S. handling of the
sinking of the Lusitania.
In 1942, Bing Crosby recorded "Adeste Fideles" and "Silent Night" in
Los Angeles for Decca Records.
In 1953, the Supreme Court ruled that restaurants in the District of
Columbia could not refuse to serve blacks.
In 1962, 20th Century Fox fired actress Marilyn Monroe from its
production "Something's Got to Give," saying she was unreliable.
(Fox later changed its mind, but Monroe died before filming could
resume, and the movie was abandoned.)
In 1967, 34 U.S. servicemen were killed when Israel attacked the USS
Liberty, a Navy intelligence-gathering ship in the Mediterranean.
(Israel later said the Liberty had been mistaken for an Egyptian
vessel.)
In 1978, a jury in Clark County, Nev., ruled the so-called "Mormon
will," purportedly written by the late billionaire Howard Hughes,
was a forgery.
In 1982, President Ronald Reagan became the first American chief
executive to address a joint session of the British Parliament.
In 1987, Fawn Hall began testifying at the Iran-Contra hearings,
describing how, as secretary to National Security aide Oliver L.
North, she helped to shred some documents and spirit away others.
Ten years ago: President George W. Bush ended talks at Camp
David with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak; Bush sidestepped Arab
pleas to impose a deadline for Palestinian statehood while Mubarak
defended Yasser Arafat and urged, "Give this man a chance." Serena
Williams won the French Open, defeating her older sister, Venus,
7-5, 6-3. Sarava, a 70-1 shot, captured the Belmont Stakes; Kentucky
Derby and Preakness winner War Emblem finished eighth. Lennox Lewis
kept his heavyweight titles by stopping Mike Tyson in the eighth
round of their fight in Memphis, Tenn.
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Five years ago: Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced the
Bush administration was replacing Gen. Peter Pace as chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff and recommending Adm. Mike Mullen for the job.
Mary Winkler, who'd killed her preacher husband with a shotgun blast
to the back as he lay in bed, was sentenced in Selmer, Tenn., to
three years in prison (she ended up serving 67 days in custody, 12
in jail and the rest in a mental health facility). Paris Hilton was
sent screaming and crying back to jail after a judge in Los Angeles
ruled she had to serve out her sentence for a probation violation
behind bars rather than under house arrest. The space shuttle
Atlantis blasted off on a mission to the international space
station.
One year ago: Rep. Allyson Schwartz of Pennsylvania became
the first Democratic House colleague to call for Rep. Anthony Weiner
of New York to resign after he admitted sending a lewd photo of
himself to a woman via Twitter and lying about it. OPEC unexpectedly
left its production levels unchanged, causing oil prices to jump as
senior officials reported their meeting in Vienna had ended in
disarray. Meredith Vieira ended her five-year run as co-anchor of
NBC's "Today" show, telling viewers her decision to go was "right,
but it's hard."
Today's birthdays: Former first lady Barbara Bush is 87.
Actor-comedian Jerry Stiller is 85. Comedian Joan Rivers is 79.
Actress Millicent Martin is 78. Actor James Darren is 76. Actor
Bernie Casey is 73. Singer Nancy Sinatra is 72. Singer Chuck Negron
(Three Dog Night) is 70. Musician Boz Scaggs is 68. Actor Don Grady
is 68. Rock musician Mick Box (Uriah Heep) is 65. Author Sara
Paretsky is 65. Actress Sonia Braga is 62. Actress Kathy Baker is
62. Country musician Tony Rice is 61. Actor Griffin Dunne is 57.
"Dilbert" creator Scott Adams is 55. Actor-director Keenen Ivory
Wayans is 54. Singer Mick Hucknall (Simply Red) is 52. Musician Nick
Rhodes (Duran Duran) is 50. Rhythm-and-blues singer Doris Pearson
(Five Star) is 46. Actress Julianna Margulies is 45. Actor Dan
Futterman is 45. Actor David Sutcliffe is 43. Actor Kent Faulcon is
42. Rhythm-and-blues singer Nicci Gilbert is 42. Actress Kelli
Williams is 42. Actor Mark Feuerstein is 41. Contemporary Christian
musician Mike Scheuchzer (MercyMe) is 37. Actor Eion Bailey is 36.
Rapper Kanye (KAHN'-yay) West is 35. Blues-rock musician Derek
Trucks (The Derek Trucks Band) is 33. Folk-bluegrass singer-musician
Sara Watkins (Nickel Creek) is 31. Actress Torrey DeVitto is 28.
Thought for today: "Love hath no physic for a grief too
deep." -- Robert Nathan, American author and poet (1894-1985)
[Associated Press]
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