Tuesday, January 24, 2012

TODAY IN HISTORY


Tuesday, January  24, 2012
AP Highlight in History: 
On Jan. 24, 1848, James W. Marshall discovered a gold nugget at Sutter's Mill in northern California, sparking the gold rush of '49.
On this date in:
1908The first Boy Scout troop was organized in England by Robert Baden-Powell.
1924The Russian city of St. Petersburg was renamed Leningrad in honor of late revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin.
1943President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill concluded a wartime conference in Casablanca, Morocco.
AP Photo
1965Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill died in London at age 90.
1972The Supreme Court struck down laws that denied welfare benefits to people who had resided in a state for less than a year.
1986The Voyager 2 space probe swept past Uranus, coming within 50,679 miles of the seventh planet from the sun.
1987Gunmen in Lebanon kidnapped educators Alann Steen, Jesse Turner, Robert Polhill and Mitheleshwar Singh. (All were later released.)
1989Confessed serial killer Ted Bundy was executed in Florida's electric chair.
1993Retired Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall died at age 84.
1995The prosecution gave its opening statement in the O.J. Simpson murder trial.
2003The new federal Department of Homeland Security officially opened as Tom Ridge was sworn in as secretary.
2004NASA's Opportunity rover landed on Mars three weeks after its identical twin, Spirit.
2008French bank Societe Generale announced it had uncovered a $7.14 billion fraud by a single futures trader.
2011Jared Lee Loughner pleaded not guilty in Phoenix to federal charges he'd tried to kill U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and two of her aides in a Tucson shooting rampage that had claimed six lives.
 
Video
Highlights of This Day in History
Today's Birthdays:
Actor Ernest Borgnine turns 95 years old today.
AP Photo/Vince Bucci
NameProfessionAge
Ray StevensCountry singer73
Aaron NevilleSinger71
Yakov SmirnoffComedian61
Jools HollandRock musician (Squeeze)54
Nastassja KinskiActress53
Shaun DonovanSecretary of housing and urban development46
Mary Lou RettonOlympic gold-medal gymnast44
Matthew LillardActor42
Ed HelmsActor ("The Office," "The Daily Show")38
Tatyana AliActress, singer33
Mischa BartonActress ("The O.C.")26
Singer-songwriter Neil Diamond turns 71 years old today.
AP Photo/Dan Steinberg

No comments: