This day in history

[November 16, 2010]  (AP)  Today is Tuesday, Nov. 16, the 320th day of 2010. There are 45 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On Nov. 16, 1960, Academy Award-winning actor Clark Gable died in Los Angeles at age 59 shortly after he completed filming "The Misfits" with co-star Marilyn Monroe.

On this date:

In 1776, British troops captured Fort Washington in New York during the American Revolution.

In 1885, Canadian rebel leader Louis Riel was executed for high treason.

In 1907, Oklahoma became the 46th state of the union.

In 1917, Georges Clemenceau again became prime minister of France.

In 1933, the United States and the Soviet Union established diplomatic relations.

In 1959, the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical "The Sound of Music" opened on Broadway.

In 1966, Dr. Samuel H. Sheppard was acquitted in his second trial of murdering his pregnant wife, Marilyn, in 1954.

In 1970, the Lockheed L-1011 Tristar jetliner went on its first test flight from Palmdale, Calif.

In 1973, Skylab 4, carrying a crew of three astronauts, was launched from Cape Canaveral on an 84-day mission.

In 1982, an agreement was announced in the 57th day of a strike by National Football League players.

Ten years ago: Al Gore won a legal fight to expand manual recounts as he struggled to trim George W. Bush's 300-vote lead in Florida's presidential race. President Bill Clinton arrived in Vietnam for the first visit by a U.S. chief executive since the fall of Saigon and the communist takeover in 1975. Civil rights activist Hosea Williams died in Atlanta at age 74.

Five years ago: Hoping to reverse the deterioration of pension plans, the Senate voted 97-2 to force companies to make up underfunding and live up to promises made to employees. (The bill, however, never became law.) Vice President Dick Cheney joined the chorus of Republican criticism of Democrats who contended the Bush administration had manipulated intelligence on Iraq, an accusation Cheney called "one of the most dishonest and reprehensible charges ever aired in this city." "This Is Your Life" host Ralph Edwards died in West Hollywood at age 92.

One year ago: President Barack Obama, on his first trip to China, gave his hosts a pointed, unexpected nudge to stop censoring Internet access. A U.S. government health task force suggested most women wait until age 50 to get mammograms, conflicting with the American Cancer Society's advice to start at 40. Searchers in North Carolina found the body of missing 5-year-old Shaniya Davis. (A suspect, Mario Andrette McNeill, is charged with kidnapping, rape and murder.) Space shuttle Atlantis blasted off with six astronauts and a full load of spare parts for the International Space Station. British actor Edward Woodward, 79, died in Cornwall, England.

Today's birthdays: Actor Clu Gulager is 82. Blues musician Hubert Sumlin is 79. Journalist Elizabeth Drew is 75. Blues musician W.C. Clark is 71. Actress Joanna Pettet is 68. Actor Steve Railsback is 65. Actor David Leisure is 60. Actor Miguel Sandoval is 59. Actress Marg Helgenberger is 52. Rock musician Mani is 48. Country singer-musician Keith Burns (Trick Pony) is 47. Tennis player Zina Garrison is 47. MLB All-Star pitcher Dwight Gooden is 46. Jazz singer Diana Krall is 46. Actor Harry Lennix is 46. Rock musician Dave Kushner (Velvet Revolver) is 44. Actress Lisa Bonet (boh-NAY') is 43. Actress Tammy Lauren is 42. Rhythm-and-blues singer Bryan Abrams (Color Me Badd) is 41. Actress Martha Plimpton is 40. Actor Michael Irby is 38. Actress Missi Pyle is 38. Olympic gold medal figure skater Oksana Baiul (ahk-SAH'-nah by-OOL') is 33. Actress Maggie Gyllenhaal (JIHL'-ehn-hahl) is 33. Pop singer Trevor Penick is 31. NBA player Amare Stoudemire is 28. Actress Kimberly J. Brown is 26. Actor Noah Gray-Cabey ("Heroes") is 15.

Thought for today: "History is a gallery of pictures in which there are few originals and many copies." -- Alexis de Tocqueville, French historian (1805-1859)

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.