This day in history

[November 01, 2010]  (AP)  Today is Monday, Nov. 1, the 305th day of 2010. There are 60 days left in the year. This is All Saints Day.

Today's highlight in history:

On Nov. 1, 1950, two Puerto Rican nationalists tried to force their way into Blair House in Washington, D.C., to assassinate President Harry S. Truman. The attempt failed, and one of the pair was killed, along with a White House police officer.

On this date:

In 1512, Michelangelo finished painting the ceiling of the Vatican's Sistine Chapel.

In 1765, the Stamp Act went into effect, prompting stiff resistance from American colonists.

In 1870, the United States Weather Bureau made its first meteorological observations.

In 1936, in a speech in Milan, Italy, Benito Mussolini described the alliance between his country and Nazi Germany as an "axis" running between Rome and Berlin.

In 1949, an Eastern Airlines DC-4 collided in midair with a Lockheed P-38 fighter plane near Washington National Airport, killing all 55 people aboard the DC-4 and seriously injuring the pilot of the P-38.

In 1952, the United States exploded the first hydrogen bomb, code-named "Ivy Mike," at Enewetak (en-ih-WEE'-tahk) Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

In 1954, Algerian nationalists began their successful rebellion against French rule.

In 1968, the Motion Picture Association of America unveiled its new voluntary film rating system: G for general, M for mature (later changed to GP, then PG), R for restricted and X (later changed to NC-17) for adults only.

In 1979, former first lady Mamie Eisenhower died in Washington, D.C. at age 82.

In 1989, East Germany reopened its border with Czechoslovakia, prompting tens of thousands of refugees to flee to the West.

Ten years ago: Yugoslavia's new democratic government joined the United Nations after eight years of U.N. ostracism under former strongman Slobodan Milosevic (sloh-BOH'-dahn mee-LOH'-shuh-vich).

Five years ago: Democrats forced the Republican-controlled Senate into an unusual closed session, questioning the intelligence utilized by the White House in the run-up to the war in Iraq; Republicans derided the move as a political stunt. The Federal Reserve increased a key interest rate by a quarter-point to 4 percent, the highest level in more than four years. Musical conductor Skitch Henderson died in New Milford, Conn. at age 87.

One year ago: Afghan President Hamid Karzai's challenger, former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, withdrew from an upcoming runoff election, effectively handing Karzai a victory. Lender CIT Group filed one of the biggest Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings in U.S. corporate history. (CIT Group emerged from bankruptcy protection the following month.) Three North Dakota college softball players believed to be on a stargazing trip drove their SUV into a pond and drowned. The New York Yankees took a 3-1 lead in the World Series as they defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 7-4. Meb Keflezighi became the first U.S. man in 27 years to win the New York City Marathon, in a time of 2:09:15. Ethiopian runner Derartu Tulu won the women's title in 2:28:52.

Today's birthdays: Actress Betsy Palmer is 84. Golfer Gary Player is 75. Country singer Bill Anderson is 73. Actress Barbara Bosson is 71. Actor Robert Foxworth is 69. Actress Marcia Wallace is 68. Magazine publisher Larry Flynt is 68. Country singer-humorist Kinky Friedman is 66. Actress Jeannie Berlin is 61. Music producer David Foster is 61. Pop singer-musician Dan Peek is 60. Rhythm-and-blues musician Ronald Khalis Bell (Kool and the Gang) is 59. Country singer-songwriter-producer Keith Stegall is 56. Country singer Lyle Lovett is 53. Actress Rachel Ticotin is 52. Rock musician Eddie MacDonald (The Alarm) is 51. Rock singer Anthony Kiedis (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 48. Pop singer-musician Mags Furuholmen (a-ha) is 48. Rock musician Rick Allen (Def Leppard) is 47. Country singer "Big Kenny" Alphin (Big and Rich) is 47. Singer Sophie B. Hawkins is 46. Rapper Willie D (Geto Boys) is 44. Country musician Dale Wallace (Emerson Drive) is 41. Actress Toni Collette is 38. Actress Jenny McCarthy is 38. Rock musician Andrew Gonzales is 38. Actor David Berman is 37. Actress Aishwarya Rai (ash-WAHR'-ee-ah rye) is 37. Rock singer Bo Bice ("American Idol") is 35. Actor Penn Badgley is 24. Actor Max Burkholder is 13. Actor-musician Alex Wolff is 13.

Thought for today: "It is easier to admire hard work if you don't do it." -- Anonymous.

[Associated Press]

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