This day in history

[May 20, 2009]  (AP)  Today is Wednesday, May 20, the 140th day of 2009. There are 225 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On May 20, 1939, regular trans-Atlantic mail service began as a Pan American Airways plane, the Yankee Clipper, took off from Port Washington, N.Y., bound for Marseille, France.

On this date:

In 1506, explorer Christopher Columbus died in Spain.

In 1861, North Carolina voted to secede from the Union.

In 1902, the United States ended a three-year military presence in Cuba as the Republic of Cuba was established under its first elected president, Tomas Estrada Palma.

In 1908, actor James Stewart was born in Indiana, Pa.

In 1927, Charles Lindbergh took off from New York's Roosevelt Field in Long Island aboard the Spirit of St. Louis on his historic solo flight to France.

In 1932, Amelia Earhart took off from Newfoundland to become the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. (Because of weather and equipment problems, Earhart set down in Northern Ireland instead of her intended destination, France.)

In 1959, nearly 5,000 Japanese-Americans had their citizenship restored after renouncing it during World War II.

In 1961, a white mob attacked a busload of Freedom Riders in Montgomery, Ala., prompting the federal government to send in U.S. marshals to restore order.

In 1969, U.S. and South Vietnamese forces captured Ap Bia Mountain, referred to as "Hamburger Hill" by the Americans, following one of the bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War.

In 1989, comedian Gilda Radner died in Los Angeles at age 42.

Ten years ago: An armed 15-year-old boy opened fire at Heritage High School in Conyers, Ga., wounding six students. (T.J. Solomon was later sentenced to 40 years in prison, but a judge subsequently cut that sentence in half.) NATO warplanes hammered Belgrade and its suburbs, leaving a hospital in smoldering ruins, several patients dead and the nearby homes of three European ambassadors damaged.

Five years ago: President George W. Bush made a rare visit to Capitol Hill, where he sought to ease Republican lawmakers' concerns over the Iraq campaign. Iraqi police backed by American soldiers raided the home and offices of Ahmad Chalabi, a prominent Iraqi politician once groomed as a possible replacement for Saddam Hussein.

One year ago: Sen. Edward Kennedy was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor; some experts gave the Massachusetts Democrat less than a year to live. Hillary Rodham Clinton defeated Barack Obama in the Kentucky Democratic primary, while Obama won in Oregon. President Jimmy Carter's White House chief of staff, Hamilton Jordan, died in Atlanta at age 63. Olympic gold medal figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi and her professional dance partner, Mark Ballas, won ABC's "Dancing with the Stars."

Today's birthdays: Actor-author James McEachin is 79. Actor Anthony Zerbe is 73. Actor David Proval is 67. Singer Joe Cocker is 65. Singer-actress Cher is 63. Actor-comedian Dave Thomas is 60. Musician Warren Cann is 57. New York Gov. David Paterson is 55. Actor Dean Butler is 53. Ron Reagan is 51. Rock musician Jane Wiedlin (The Go-Go's) is 51. Actor Bronson Pinchot is 50. Singer Susan Cowsill is 50. Actor John Billingsley is 49. Actor Tony Goldwyn is 49. Singer Nick Heyward is 48. TV personality Ted Allen is 44. Actress Mindy Cohn is 43. Rock musician Tom Gorman (Belly) is 43. Actress Gina Ravera is 43. Actor Timothy Olyphant is 41. Rapper Busta Rhymes is 37. Rock musician Ryan Martinie is 34. Actor Matt Czuchry is 32. Actress Angela Goethals is 32. San Diego Chargers special teams ace Kassim Osgood is 29. Actress-singer Naturi Naughton is 25.

Thought for today: "Some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next. Delicious ambiguity." -- Gilda Radner, American comedian (1946-1989)

[Associated Press]

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