Today is Wednesday, Feb. 14, the 45th day of 2007. There are 320 days left in the year. This is Valentine’s Day.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On Feb. 14, 1929, the “St. Valentine’s Day Massacre” took place in a Chicago garage as seven rivals of Al Capone’s gang were gunned down.
On this date:
In 1778, the American ship Ranger carried the recently adopted Star and Stripes to a foreign port for the first time as it arrived in France.
In 1859, Oregon was admitted to the Union as the 33rd state.
In 1894, comedian Jack Benny was born Benjamin Kubelsky in Waukegan, Ill.
In 1895, Oscar Wilde’s final play, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” opened at the St. James’ Theatre in London.
In 1903, the Department of Commerce and Labor was established. (It was divided into separate departments of Commerce and Labor in 1913.)
In 1912, Arizona became the 48th state of the Union.
In 1920, the League of Women Voters was founded in Chicago; its first president was Maud Wood Park.
In 1962, first lady Jacqueline Kennedy conducted a televised tour of the White House.
In 1979, Adolph Dubs, the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, was kidnapped in Kabul by Muslim extremists and killed in a shootout between his abductors and police.
In 1989, Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini called on Muslims to kill Salman Rushdie, author of “The Satanic Verses,” a novel condemned as blasphemous.
Ten years ago: American Airlines and its pilots union continued contract talks as the clock ticked down to a midnight strike deadline. (The pilots did strike, but President Clinton immediately intervened, ordering a 60-day “cooling off” period.)
Five years ago: Launching his defense against war crimes charges, former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic justified his actions as a “struggle against terrorism” and said he was a victim of twisted facts and “terrible fabrication.” Enron executive Sherron Watkins told a House subcommittee it was common knowledge at the company that partnerships were used improperly to hide debt and inflate profits. The House voted to ban unregulated contributions to national political parties.
One year ago: Attorney Harry Whittington, the man accidentally shot by Vice President Dick Cheney, suffered a mild heart attack when a shotgun pellet traveled to his heart, but he later recovered. Iran said it had resumed uranium enrichment; Russia and France immediately called on Iran to halt its work. At Turin, American Ted Ligety won Olympic gold in men’s combined skiing, while Bode Miller was disqualified for straddling a gate.
Today’s Birthdays: TV personality Hugh Downs is 86. Actress-singer Florence Henderson is 73. Country singer Razzy Bailey is 68. Jazz musician Maceo Parker is 64. Movie director Alan Parker is 63. Journalist Carl Bernstein is 63. Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., is 60. TV personality Pat O’Brien is 59. Magician Teller (Penn and Teller) is 59. Cajun singer-musician Michael Doucet (Beausoleil) is 56. Actor Ken Wahl is 50. Opera singer Renee Fleming is 48. Actress Meg Tilly is 47. Singer-producer Dwayne Wiggins is 46. Actor Enrico Colantoni is 44. Actor Zach Galligan is 43. Rock musician Ricky Wolking (The Nixons) is 41. Tennis player Manuela Maleeva is 40. Rock musician Kevin Baldes (Lit) is 35. Rock singer Rob Thomas (Matchbox Twenty) is 35. Actor Freddie Highmore is 15.
Thought for Today: “A lady of 47 who has been married 27 years and has six children knows what love really is and once described it for me like this: ‘Love is what you’ve been through with somebody.”’ — James Thurber, American humorist (1894-1961).
