×

Today in history

SATURDAY

Associated Press

March 6 is the 65th day of 2021. There are 300 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On March 6, 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Dred Scott v. Sandford, ruled 7-2 that Scott, a slave, was not an American citizen and therefore could not sue for his freedom in federal court.

On this date:

In 1475, Italian artist and poet Michelangelo was born in Caprese in the Republic of Florence.

In 1836, the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, fell as Mexican forces led by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna stormed the fortress after a 13-day siege; the battle claimed the lives of all the Texan defenders, nearly 200 strong, including William Travis, James Bowie and Davy Crockett.

In 1853, Verdi’s opera “La Traviata” premiered in Venice, Italy.

In 1944, U.S. heavy bombers staged the first full-scale American raid on Berlin during World War II.

In 1962, what became known as the Ash Wednesday Storm began pounding the mid-Atlantic coast; during a three-day period, the storm resulted in 40 deaths and caused more than $200 million in property damage.

In 1964, heavyweight boxing champion Cassius Clay officially changed his name to Muhammad Ali.

In 1970, a bomb being built inside a Greenwich Village townhouse by the radical Weathermen accidentally went off, destroying the house and killing three group members.

In 1973, Nobel Prize-winning author Pearl S. Buck, 80, died in Danby, Vt.

In 1981, Walter Cronkite signed off for the last time as principal anchorman of “The CBS Evening News.”

In 1987, the first “Lethal Weapon” movie, starring Mel Gibson and Danny Glover, was released by Warner Bros.

In 2002, Independent Counsel Robert Ray issued his final report in which he wrote that former President Bill Clinton could have been indicted and probably would have been convicted in the scandal involving former White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

In 2015, during a town hall at South Carolina’s Benedict College, President Barack Obama said racial discrimination by police in Ferguson, Mo., was “oppressive and abusive” as he called for criminal justice reform as part of the modern struggle for civil rights.

Ten years ago: The space shuttle and space station crews hugged goodbye after more than a week together, but saved their most heartfelt farewell for Discovery, which was on its final voyage after nearly three decades.

Five years ago: Former first lady Nancy Reagan died in Los Angeles at age 94. Former President Jimmy Carter announced he no longer needed treatment for cancer, less than seven months after revealing he’d been diagnosed with melanoma that spread to his brain. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders tangled aggressively in a Democratic presidential debate in Flint, Mich., over trade, Wall Street influence and more.

One year ago: The number of people infected by the coronavirus worldwide reached 100,000, with more than 3,400 dead. President Donald Trump signed a $8.3 billion measure to help tackle the coronavirus outbreak; it included money for vaccines, tests and potential treatments. Vice President Mike Pence said 21 people on a cruise ship being held off San Francisco had tested positive for the coronavirus. The president announced a major staff overhaul, replacing acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney with Republican Rep. Mark Meadows. The family of jazz pianist McCoy Tyner announced that Tyner, the last surviving member of the John Coltrane Quartet, had died at the age of 81. Former hockey star Henri Richard, who won a record 11 Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens, died at 84.

Today’s Birthdays: Former FBI and CIA director William Webster is 97. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan is 95. Dancer-actor Carmen de Lavallade is 90. Former Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova is 84. Former Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond, R-Mo., is 82. Actor-writer Joanna Miles is 81. Actor Ben Murphy is 79. Opera singer Dame Kiri Te Kanawa is 77. Rock musician Hugh Grundy (The Zombies) is 76. Rock singer-musician David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) is 75. Actor Anna Maria Horsford is 74. Actor-director Rob Reiner is 74. Singer Kiki Dee is 74. TV consumer reporter John Stossel is 74. Composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz is 73. Rock singer-musician Phil Alvin (The Blasters) is 68. Sports correspondent Armen Keteyian is 68. Actor Tom Arnold is 62. Actor D.L. Hughley is 58. Country songwriter Skip Ewing is 57. Actor Shuler Hensley is 54. Actor Connie Britton is 54. Actor Moira Kelly is 53. Actor Amy Pietz is 52. Rock musician Chris Broderick (Megadeth) is 51. Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal is 49. Country singer Trent Willmon is 48. Rapper Beanie Sigel is 47. Rapper Bubba Sparxxx is 44. Actor Shaun Evans is 41. Rock musician Chris Tomson (Vampire Weekend) is 37. MLB pitcher Jake Arrieta is 35. Actor Eli Marienthal is 35. Actor Jimmy Galeota is 35. Rapper/producer Tyler, the Creator is 30. Actor Dillon Freasier is 25. Actor Savannah Stehlin is 25. Actor Millicent Simmonds (Film: “Wonderstruck”) is 18.

SUNDAY

Associated Press

March 7 is the 66th day of 2021 There are 299 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On March 7, 1965, a march by civil rights demonstrators was violently broken up at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., by state troopers and a sheriff’s posse in what came to be known as “Bloody Sunday.”

On this date:

In 1875, composer Maurice Ravel was born in Ciboure, France.

In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell received a U.S. patent for his telephone.

In 1911, President William Howard Taft ordered 20,000 troops to patrol the U.S.-Mexico border in response to the Mexican Revolution.

In 1912, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen arrived in Hobart, Australia, where he dispatched telegrams announcing his success in leading the first expedition to the South Pole the previous December.

In 1926, the first successful trans-Atlantic radio-telephone conversations took place between New York and London.

In 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered his troops to march into the Rhineland, thereby breaking the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact.

In 1945, during World War II, U.S. forces crossed the Rhine at Remagen, Germany, using the damaged but still usable Ludendorff Bridge.

In 1963, the Pan Am Building (today the MetLife Building) first opened in midtown Manhattan.

In 1975, the U.S. Senate revised its filibuster rule, allowing 60 senators to limit debate in most cases, instead of the previously required two-thirds of senators present.

In 1994, the U.S. Navy issued its first permanent orders assigning women to regular duty on a combat ship — in this case, the USS Eisenhower.

In 2001, Ariel Sharon was sworn in as Israel’s prime minister, serving until he suffered a stroke in 2006.

In 2010, the Iraq war thriller “The Hurt Locker” received six Academy Awards including best picture, with Kathryn Bigelow accepting the first directing Oscar awarded to a woman.

Ten years ago: Reversing course, President Barack Obama approved the resumption of military trials at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, ending a two-year ban. Charlie Sheen was fired from the sitcom “Two and a Half Men” by Warner Bros. Television following repeated misbehavior and weeks of the actor’s angry, often-manic media campaign against his studio bosses.

Five years ago: Peyton Manning announced his retirement after 18 seasons in the National Football League. A jury in Nashville, Tenn., awarded sports reporter Erin Andrews $55 million in her lawsuit against a stalker who rented a hotel room next to hers and secretly recorded her, finding that the hotel companies and the stalker shared in the blame. Stephen Curry scored 41 points and became the first player in NBA history to make 300 3-pointers in a season as the Golden State Warriors held off the Orlando Magic 119-113 for their 45th straight home victory.

One year ago: Health officials in Florida said two people who had tested positive for the new coronavirus had died; the deaths were the first on the East Coast attributed to the outbreak. Italy saw its biggest daily increase in coronavirus cases since the outbreak began in the northern part of the country. A hotel in southeastern China that was being used to quarantine suspected coronavirus patients collapsed, killing 29 people. In an interim report, Ethiopian investigators put most of the blame on Boeing for the 2019 crash of a 737 Max jet shortly after takeoff, saying there were design failures and inadequate training for pilots; the crash killed all 157 people on board.

Today’s Birthdays: TV personality Willard Scott is 87. International Motorsports Hall of Famer Janet Guthrie is 83. Actor Daniel J. Travanti is 81. Entertainment executive Michael Eisner is 79. Rock musician Chris White (The Zombies) is 78. Rock singer Peter Wolf is 75. Rock musician Matthew Fisher (Procol Harum) is 75. Pro Football Hall of Famer Franco Harris is 71. Pro and College Football Hall of Famer Lynn Swann is 69. R&B singer-musician Ernie Isley (The Isley Brothers) is 69. Rock musician Kenny Aronoff (BoDeans, John Mellencamp) is 68. Actor Bryan Cranston is 65. Actor Donna Murphy is 62. Actor Nick Searcy is 62. Golfer Tom Lehman is 62. International Tennis Hall of Famer Ivan Lendl is 61. Actor Mary Beth Evans is 60. Singer-actor Taylor Dayne is 59. Actor Bill Brochtrup is 58. Author E.L. James is 58. Author Bret Easton Ellis is 57. Opera singer Denyce Graves is 57. Comedian Wanda Sykes is 57. Actor Jonathan Del Arco is 55. Rock musician Randy Guss (Toad the Wet Sprocket) is 54. Actor Rachel Weisz (wys) is 51. Actor Peter Sarsgaard is 50. Actor Jay Duplass is 48. Classical singer Sebastien Izambard (Il Divo) is 48. Rock singer Hugo Ferreira (Tantric) is 47. Actor Jenna Fischer is 47. Actor Tobias Menzies is 47. Actor Sarayu Blue is 46. Actor Audrey Marie Anderson is 46. Actor TJ Thyne is 46. Bluegrass singer-musician Frank Solivan is 44. Actor Laura Prepon is 41. Actor Bel Powley is 29. Actor Giselle Eisenberg (TV: “Life in Pieces”) is 14.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

COMMENTS

[vivafbcomment]

Starting at $4.73/week.

Subscribe Today