ROSS SIMPSON
Actor Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is 63 years old today.
Denzel Washington won an Academy Award for Best Actor for
his role in the 2001 film Training Day. He has starred in several
films based on true events such as Remember the Titans (2000),
Cry Freedom (1987), American Gangster (2007), Flight (2012),
and Malcolm X (1992).
2004
2012
ROSS SIMPSON
Under the Indian Ocean, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake sent 500-mph
waves across the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal on this day in
2004. The tsunami killed more than 200,000 people in a dozen
countries, including Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Sumatra, Thailand and
India.
On this day in 1996, six-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey
was found beaten and strangled to death in the basement of her
family’s home in Boulder, CO. It was reported in September 2016
that the investigation into JonBenét’s death continues to be an
active homicide case, per Boulder Police Chief Greg Testa.
Patsy Ramsey and her husband John Ramsey, parents of JonBenet.
John Mark Karr, 41, was being charged by police for child porn in
California when out of nowhere, he confessed to killing JonBenet,
but his DNA didn’t match the DNA found on JonBenet Ramsey,
and he wasn’t charged with her death.
SANDY KOZEL
On this day in 1776, Gen. George Washington and his troops crossed
the Delaware River for a surprise attack against Hessian forces at
Trenton, NJ.
At The Battle of Trenton, after a brief struggle, nearly the entire
Hessian force was captured, with negligible losses to American
forces.
The above historical marker is near the very spot the Continental
Army soldiers under George Washington’s command would have disembarked from their boats to begin their march to Trenton.
"Silent Night" was performed for the first time, at the Church of St. Nikolaus (above) in Oberndorff, Austria on this day in 1818.
Shown above is the only surviving autograph of the song by Joseph Mohr (below).
Josephus Franciscus Mohr
(December 11, 1792 – December 4, 1848)
Josephus Mohr was an Austrian Roman Catholic
priest and lyricist. He wrote the lyrics of the
Christmas carol (English: ‘Silent Night’).
On this day in 1998, President Bill Clinton, America’s chief
executive, was impeached on two charges of perjury and
obstruction of justice by the U.S. House of Representatives,
becoming only the second president to be ordered to stand
trial in the Senate since Andrew Johnson in 1868.
President Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky pose for a photo in
the Oval Office.
President Bill Clinton speaks about the Monica Lewinsky scandal at
the White House on January 26, 1998 as First Lady Hillary Clinton
looks on.
On this day in 1972, Apollo 17 splashed down in the Pacific,
ending the Apollo program of manned lunar landings.
The three astronauts (from left to right – Eugene Cernan, Ronald
Evans and Harrison Schmitt) get the red-carpet welcome back.
SANDY KOZEL
George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)
Mount Vernon Estate seen from the Potomac River.
Statue of George Washington, State
Capitol, Richmond, Virginia.
Roger Eugene Maris (September 10, 1934 – December 14, 1985)
Roger Maris was an professional baseball player who played four seasons
in the minor leagues and twelve seasons in the major leagues. He played
right field on four Major League Baseball (MLB) teams, from 1957 through
1968 and set the MLB record for home runs during the 1961 season with
61, breaking Babe Ruth‘s single-season record of 60 home runs in 1927.
Roger Maris was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 1983 and
died at age 51 at M.D. Anderson Hospital in Houston, Texas.
Roger Maris plaque in Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park.
October 2, 1961 cover of Sports Illustrated magazine
featuring Roger Maris hitting one of his late-season,
record home runs.
Maris organized the annual Roger Maris
Celebrity Golf Tournament to raise money
for cancer research and treatment.
