This day in history

[May 18, 2009]  (AP)  Today is Monday, May 18, the 138th day of 2009. There are 227 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On May 18, 1896, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Plessy v. Ferguson, endorsed "separate but equal" racial segregation, a concept the court renounced 58 years later with Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.

On this date:

In 1642, Montreal was founded by French colonists.

In 1804, the French Senate proclaimed Napoleon Bonaparte emperor.

In 1920, Pope John Paul II was born Karol Wojtyla in Wadowice, Poland.

In 1926, evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson vanished while visiting a beach in Venice, Calif.; she reappeared more than a month later, claiming to have been kidnapped.

In 1927, a schoolhouse in Bath, Mich., was blown up with explosives planted by local farmer Andrew Kehoe, who then set off a dynamite-laden automobile; the attacks killed 38 children and six adults, including Kehoe, who'd earlier killed his wife.

In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a measure creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.

In 1944, during World War II, Allied forces finally occupied Monte Cassino in Italy after a four-month struggle that claimed some 20,000 lives.

In 1953, Jacqueline Cochran became the first woman to break the sound barrier as she piloted a Canadair F-86 Sabre jet over Rogers Dry Lake, Calif.

In 1969, astronauts Eugene A. Cernan, Thomas P. Stafford and John W. Young blasted off aboard Apollo 10 on a mission to orbit the moon.

In 1980, the Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state exploded, leaving 57 people dead or missing.

Ten years ago: Georgette Smith, a 42-year-old Florida woman left paralyzed from the neck down after being shot by her elderly mother, won the right to be taken off life support. (Smith died the next day, shortly after being removed from a ventilator; her mother, Shirley Egan, was later acquitted of attempted murder.) Two Serb soldiers held as prisoners of war by the U.S. military were turned over to Yugoslav authorities.

Five years ago: Former New York City fire commissioner Thomas Von Essen and former police chief Bernard Kerik came under harsh criticism for what some members of the Sept. 11 commission said was an initial lack of cooperation between their departments on 9/11. Stunning her supporters, Sonia Gandhi announced she would "humbly decline" to be the next prime minister of India. Randy Johnson, at age 40, became the oldest pitcher in major league history to throw a perfect game; the lefty retired all 27 batters to lead the Arizona Diamondbacks over the Atlanta Braves 2-0.

One year ago: President George W. Bush lectured the Arab world about everything from political repression to the denial of women's rights in a speech at the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheik. Kenny Chesney was named entertainer of the year by the Academy of Country Music for the fourth straight time. Russia won its first title at the world hockey championships since 1993 with a 5-4 win over Canada.

Today's birthdays: Actor Bill Macy is 87. Hall-of-Fame sportscaster Jack Whitaker is 85. Actor Pernell Roberts is 81. Actor Robert Morse is 78. Actor and television executive Dwayne Hickman is 75. Baseball Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson is 72. Bluegrass singer-musician Rodney Dillard (The Dillards) is 67. Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson is 63. Actress Candice Azzara is 62. Country singer Joe Bonsall (The Oak Ridge Boys) is 61. Rock musician Rick Wakeman (Yes) is 60. Actor James Stephens is 58. Country singer George Strait is 57. R&B singer Butch Tavares (Tavares) is 56. Actor Chow Yun-Fat is 54. Rock singer-musician Page Hamilton is 49. Contemporary Christian musician Barry Graul (MercyMe) is 48. Singer-actress Martika is 40. Comedian-writer Tina Fey is 39. Rapper Special Ed is 35. Dallas Cowboys offensive tackle Flozell Adams is 34. Rock singer Jack Johnson is 34. R&B singer Darryl Allen (Mista) is 29. Actor Matt Long is 29. Christian-rock musician Kevin Huguley (Rush of Fools) is 27. Actor Spencer Breslin is 17.

Thought for today: "Don't hurry, don't worry. You're only here for a short visit. So be sure to stop and smell the flowers." -- Walter C. Hagen, American golfer (1892-1969)

[Associated Press]

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