TODAY IN HISTORY

Wednesday, January  18, 2012 AP Highlight in History:  On Jan. 18, 1919, the World War I peace conference opened in Versailles, France.   AP Photo
On this date in: 1778 English navigator Captain James Cook became the first European to reach the Hawaiian Islands. 1782 Lawyer and statesman Daniel Webster was born in Salisbury, N.H. 1788 The first English settlers arrived in Australia's Botany Bay to establish a penal colony. 1862 John Tyler, the 10th president of the United States, died in Richmond, Va., at age 71. AP Photo/Library of Congress 1871 William I of Prussia was proclaimed German emperor in Versailles, France. 1892 Oliver Hardy of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy was born Norvell Hardy in Harlem, Ga. 1904 Actor Cary Grant was born Archibald Leach in Bristol, England. 1911 The first landing of an aircraft on a ship took place as pilot Eugene B. Ely flew onto the deck of the USS Pennsylvania in San Francisco harbor. 1943 The Soviets announced that they had broken the long Nazi siege of Leningrad. 1990 Washington, D.C., Mayor Marion Barry was arrested for drug possession in an FBI sting. 1991 Financially strapped Eastern Airlines shut down after more than six decades in business. 1993 The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday was observed in all 50 states for the first time. 2005 The world's largest commercial jet, an Airbus A380 that can carry 800 passengers, was unveiled in Toulouse, France. 2011 The first director of the Peace Corps, R. Sargent Shriver, died at age 95.		Video Highlights of This Day in History Today's Birthdays: Actor Jason Segel ("How I Met Your Mother") turns 32 years old today. AP Photo/Peter Kramer Name Profession Age Bobby Goldsboro Singer, songwriter 71 Mark Messier Hockey Hall of Famer 51 Martin O'Malley Governor of Maryland 49 Dave Attell Comedian 47 Jesse L. Martin Actor ("Law & Order") 43 Actor Kevin Costner turns 57 years old today. AP Photo/Phil Klein