TODAY IN HISTORY

Wednesday, September  25, 2013 AP Highlight in History:  On Sept. 25, 1957, Nine black children who had been forced to withdraw from Central High School in Little Rock, Ark., because of unruly white crowds were escorted to class by members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division.   AP Photo
On this date in: 1493 Christopher Columbus set sail from Cadiz, Spain, with a flotilla of 17 ships on his second voyage to the Western Hemisphere. 1513 Spanish explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama to reach the Pacific Ocean. 1775 American Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen was captured by the British as he led an attack on Montreal. 1789 The first United States Congress adopted 12 amendments to the Constitution and sent them to the states for ratification. (Ten of the amendments became the Bill of Rights.) 1890 Mormon president Wilford Woodruff issued a manifesto formally renouncing the practice of polygamy. 1897 Author William Faulkner was born in New Albany, Miss. AP Photo 1919 President Woodrow Wilson collapsed after a speech in Pueblo, Colo., during a tour in support of the Treaty of Versailles. 1956 The first trans-Atlantic telephone cable went into service. 1980 Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, 32, choked to death on his own vomit after a drinking binge. 1981 Sandra Day O'Connor was sworn in as the first female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. AP Photo/Michael Evans 2001 Saudi Arabia cut its relations with Afghanistan's ruling Taliban. 2011 Two American hikers held for more than two years in an Iranian prison, returned to the United States.		Video HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS DAY IN HISTORY Today's Birthdays: Actor Michael Douglas turns 69 years old today. AP Photo/Evan Agostini Name Profession Age Robert Gates Former secretary of defense 70 Robert Walden Actor ("Lou Grant") 70 Cheryl Tiegs Model 66 Mimi Kennedy Actress 64 Anson Williams Actor ("Happy Days") 64 Mark Hamill Actor ("Star Wars") 62 Bob McAdoo Basketball Hall of Famer 62 Jimmy Sturr Polka bandleader 62 Michael Madsen Actor 55 Heather Locklear Actress ("Melrose Place," "Spin City") 52 Aida Turturro Actress ("The Sopranos") 51 Tate Donovan Actor ("Damages") 50 Scottie Pippen Basketball Hall of Famer 48 Will Smith Actor 45 Catherine Zeta-Jones Actress 44 Bridgette Wilson-Sampras Actress 40 Clea DuVall Actress 36 T.I. Rapper 33 TV personality Barbara Walters ("The View") turns 84 years old today. AP Photo/Evan Agostini