On this day in 1964, President Johnson signed the "Civil Rights Act
of 1964" into law. It made it illegal in the U.S. to discriminate against others because of their race. The ceremony was nationally televised
from the White House.

 
    TIM MAGUIRE

On this day in 1957, 300 U.S. Army troops stood guard as nine black students were escorted to class at Central High School in Little Rock, AR. The children had been forced to withdraw 2 days earlier because
of unruly white mobs.

Michael Kirk Douglas is 74 today.

Michael Douglas won an Academy Award for
Best Actor for his role in the 1987 film Wall
Street. He reprised his role in the 2010 sequel
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. His other
notable film credits include The Game (1997),
Traffic (2000), Basic Instinct (1992) and Falling
Down (1993).  He is the son of legendary actor
Kirk Douglas.

SANDY KOZEL

On this day in 1776, Richard Henry Lee’s resolution to break away
from Britain was adopted by the Continental Congress.

On this day in 1964, U.S. President Johnson signed the "Civil Rights
Act of 1964" into law. The act made it illegal in the United states to discriminate against others because of their race.

On this day in 1937, American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart disappeared in the Central Pacific during an attempt to fly around
the world at the equator.

On this day in 1881, Charles J. Guiteau (below) fatally wounded U.S. 
President James A. Garfield in Washington, DC.

It was on this day in 1961.

James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997)

Stewart was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning
one in competition for The Philadelphia Story (1940), and
received an Academy Lifetime Achievement award in 1985.

In 1999, Stewart was named the third-greatest male screen
legend of the Golden Age of Hollywood by the American
Film Institute. The Institute has also named five of his
films to its list of the 100 best American films ever made. 

1946

1952

1957

Jimmy Stewart in Rear Window, 1954.

TIM MAGUIRE

Alabama Gov. George Wallace allowed two black
students to enroll at the University of Alabama
on this day in 1963.

Vivian Malone entering Foster Auditorium to register for classes at
the University of Alabama. Vivian Malone, one of the first African Americans to attend the university, walks through a crowd that
includes photographers, National Guard members, and Deputy
U.S. Attorney General Nicholas Katzenbach.

Protesting the persecution of Buddhist, a Vietnamese monk burned himself to death in a Saigon intersection on this day in 1963. He reportedly didn’t make a sound or even move during the incident.

The execution room at the U.S. Penitentiary in Terre Haute, IN.

The U.S. government executed Timothy McVeigh (above) by chemical injection 
on this day in 2001. He was accused of taking the lives of 168 people when he
blew up the Oklahoma City federal building in 1995. He died silently, with his
eyes open. Instead of making an oral statement, McVeigh, 33, issued a copy
of the 1875 poem "Invictus," which concludes with the lines: "I am the master
of my fate; I am the captain of my soul."

Oklahoma City fire Captain Chris Fields carries Baylee Almon from
the Alfred Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City
following the 1995 bombing. Little Baylee died a short time later.

Sir Barton became the first horse to capture the Triple Crown when
he won the Belmont Stakes in New York City on this day in 1919.

The 1919 Belmont Stakes Trophy Silver Tray Presented to the Owner of Sir
Barton.

Marion Mitchell Morrison (Marion Robert Morrison) Born in Winterset, Iowa. (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979)

Between 1926 and 1976, John Wayne (nicknamed Duke) appeared in
over 170 motion pictures, and became one of America’s biggest box office stars, only Clark Gable sold more tickets than Wayne.

TIM MAGUIRE

John William King

Jasper County Assistant District Attorney Pat Hardy displays the
chain allegedly used to drag James Byrd.

The Communists completed their takeover of Czechoslovakia on
this day in 1948.

Czechoslovakian Communist Party leader Klement Gottwald,
addressing the crowds in Wenceslas Square, Prague, on 25
February 1948.

Israeli F-16 fighter-bombers destroyed Iraq’s only nuclear reactor on
this day in 1981.

On this  day in 1972, the musical “Grease” opened
on Broadway. It had been playing off-Broadway for
about 4 months.

Prince Rogers Nelson (June 7, 1958 – April 21, 2016)

Prince released ten platinum-selling albums and won multiple Grammy
Awards for Purple Rain (1984), including Best Performance and Best
Soundtrack. He became known for releasing over thirty Top Forty single
hits.  He suffered from epilepsy as a child, and began writing music at
age seven. One of the first groups he worked with was 94 East.