This day in history

[August 25, 2012]  (AP)  Today is Saturday, Aug. 25, the 238th day of 2012. There are 128 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On Aug. 25, 1537, King Henry VIII granted a royal charter incorporating the Honourable Artillery Company, the oldest regiment in the British Army.

On this date:

In 1718, hundreds of French colonists arrived in Louisiana, with some settling in present-day New Orleans.

In 1825, Uruguay declared independence from Brazil.

In 1916, the National Park Service was established within the Department of the Interior.

In 1921, the United States signed a peace treaty with Germany.

In 1943, U.S. forces liberated New Georgia in the Solomon Islands from the Japanese during World War II.

In 1944, Paris was liberated by Allied forces after four years of Nazi occupation.

In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a measure providing pensions for former U.S. presidents and their widows.

In 1960, opening ceremonies were held for the Summer Olympics in Rome.

In 1981, the U.S. spacecraft Voyager 2 came within 63,000 miles of Saturn's cloud cover, sending back pictures of and data about the ringed planet.

In 1982, Archbishop Joseph L. Bernardin was installed as head of Chicago's Roman Catholic archdiocese.

In 1985, Samantha Smith, 13, the schoolgirl whose letter to Yuri V. Andropov resulted in her famous peace tour of the Soviet Union, died with her father in an airliner crash in Auburn, Maine.

In 2009, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy died at age 77 in Hyannis Port, Mass.

Ten years ago: China set Nov. 8, 2002, as the date for its long-awaited Communist Party national congress. Louisville, Ky., beat Sendai, Japan, 1-0 to win the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pa. Former Swedish diplomat Per Anger, who'd worked with Raoul Wallenberg in shielding thousands of Hungarian Jews from Nazi death camps, died in Stockholm, Sweden, at age 88. Acclaimed bass-baritone William Warfield, best known for his rendition of "Ol' Man River" in the musical "Show Boat," died in Chicago at age 82.

Five years ago: The government of Greece declared a nationwide state of emergency as the death toll from wildfires rose to at least 49. Bombs blamed on Islamic extremists killed at least 43 people at a park and a street-side food stall in Hyderabad, India.

One year ago: Fifty-two people were killed in a fire at a casino in the northern Mexican city of Monterrey that was allegedly targeted by a drug cartel. The New York Yankees became the first team in major league history to hit three grand slams in a game, with Robinson Cano, Russell Martin and Curtis Granderson connecting in a 22-9 romp over the Oakland Athletics.

Today's birthdays: Game show host Monty Hall is 91. Actor Sean Connery is 82. Actor Page Johnson is 82. TV personality Regis Philbin is 81. Actor Tom Skerritt is 79. Jazz musician Wayne Shorter is 79. Movie director Hugh Hudson is 76. Author Frederick Forsyth is 74. Actor David Canary is 74. Movie director John Badham is 73. Filmmaker Marshall Brickman is 71. Rhythm-and-blues singer Walter Williams (The O'Jays) is 70. Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal is 70. Actor Anthony Heald is 68. Rock musician Danny Smythe is 64. Rock singer-actor Gene Simmons is 63. Actor John Savage is 63. Country singer-musician Henry Paul (Outlaws; Blackhawk) is 63. Rock singer Rob Halford is 61. Rock musician Geoff Downes (Asia) is 60. Rock singer Elvis Costello is 58. Movie director Tim Burton is 54. Actor Christian LeBlanc is 54. Actress Ashley Crow is 52. Actress Ally Walker is 51. Country singer Billy Ray Cyrus is 51. Actress Joanne Whalley is 51. Rock musician Vivian Campbell (Def Leppard) is 50. Actor Blair Underwood is 48. Actor Robert Maschio is 46. Rap DJ Terminator X (Public Enemy) is 46. Alternative country singer Jeff Tweedy (Wilco) is 45. Actor David Alan Basche (BAYSH) is 44. Television chef Rachael Ray is 44. Actor Cameron Mathison is 43. Country singer Jo Dee Messina is 42. Model Claudia Schiffer is 42. Country singer Brice Long is 41. Actor Eric Millegan is 38. Actor Jonathan Togo is 35. Actor Kel Mitchell is 34. Actress Rachel Bilson is 31. Actress Blake Lively is 25. Actor Josh Flitter is 18.

Thought for today: "History is the sum total of the things that could have been avoided." -- Konrad Adenauer, German statesman (1876-1967)

[Associated Press]

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