This day in history

[September 02, 2008]  (AP)  Today is Tuesday, Sept. 2, the 246th day of 2008. There are 120 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On Sept. 2, 1945, Japan formally surrendered in ceremonies aboard the USS Missouri, ending World War II.

On this date:

In 1666, the Great Fire of London broke out.

In 1789, the United States Treasury Department was established.

In 1807, British forces began bombarding Copenhagen for several days, until the Danes agreed to surrender their naval fleet.

In 1864, during the Civil War, Union Gen. William T. Sherman's forces occupied Atlanta.

In 1901, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt offered the advice, "Speak softly and carry a big stick" in a speech at the Minnesota State Fair.

In 1930, the first nonstop airplane flight from Europe to the U.S. was completed in 37 hours as Captain Dieudonne Costes and Maurice Bellonte of France arrived in Valley Stream, N.Y., aboard their Breguet 19 biplane, which bore a large question mark, instead of a name, on each side.

In 1935, a hurricane slammed into the Florida Keys, claiming more than 400 lives.

In 1945, Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam an independent republic.

In 1958, President Eisenhower signed the National Defense Education Act, which provided aid to public and private education to promote learning in such fields as math and science.

In 1969, North Vietnamese president Ho Chi Minh died.

Ten years ago: A Swissair MD-11 jetliner crashed off Nova Scotia, killing all 229 people aboard. Pilots for Air Canada began a two-week strike, the first in the carrier's history. President Clinton concluded his Moscow summit with Russian President Boris Yeltsin.

Five years ago: A court in Jakarta, Indonesia, sentenced Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir to four years in prison for sedition. (His conviction was later overturned after he'd spent more than two years behind bars.) A federal appeals court in San Francisco threw out more than 100 death sentences in Arizona, Montana and Idaho because the inmates had been sent to death row by judges instead of juries.

One year ago: Following two days of talks in Geneva, the chief U.S. envoy said North Korea had agreed to account for and disable its atomic programs by the end of the year; the head of the North Korean delegation said his country's willingness to cooperate was clear, but he did not cite any dates. Hurricane Felix strengthened into a dangerous Category 4 storm as it toppled trees and flooded homes on a cluster of Dutch islands before churning its way into the open waters of the Caribbean.

Today's birthdays: Actor Meinhardt Raabe (the Munchkin coroner in "The Wizard of Oz") is 93. Dancer-actress Marge Champion is 89. Jazz musician Horace Silver is 80. Former Sen. Alan K. Simpson, R-Wyo., is 77. U.S. Olympic Committee Chairman Peter Ueberroth is 71. Rhythm-and-blues singer Sam Gooden (The Impressions) is 69. Singer Jimmy Clanton is 68. Rhythm-and-blues singer Rosalind Ashford (Martha & the Vandellas) is 65. Singer Joe Simon is 65. Football Hall-of-Famer Terry Bradshaw is 60. Actor Mark Harmon is 57. Tennis Hall-of-Famer Jimmy Connors is 56. Actress Linda Purl is 53. Rock musician Jerry Augustyniak (10,000 Maniacs) is 50. Country musician Paul Deakin (The Mavericks) is 49. Actor Keanu Reeves is 44. Actress Salma Hayek is 42. Actress Kristen Cloke is 40. Actress Cynthia Watros is 40. Rhythm-and-blues singer K-Ci is 39. Actor-comedian Katt Williams is 35. Actor Michael Lombardi is 34. Rock musician Sam Rivers (Limp Bizkit) is 31. Rock musician Spencer Smith (Panic at the Disco) is 21.

Thought for today: "Integrity needs no rules." -- Albert Camus, French author and philosopher (1913-1960)

[Associated Press]

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