On this day in 1968, two black athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, were suspended by the U.S. Olympic Committee for giving a "black power" salute (above) during a ceremony in Mexico City.
The three scientists shared the Nobel Prize on this day in 1962 for DNA discoveries concerning the molecular structure of nucleic acids and its significance for information transfer in living material.”
On this day in 1914, World War I officially began when Austria- Hungary declared war on Serbia.
On this day in 1932, Federal troops forcibly dispersed the "Bonus Army" of World War I veterans who had gathered in Washington, DC. They were demanding money they were not scheduled to receive until 1945.
A U.S. Army bomber crashed into the 79th floor of New York City’s Empire State Building on this day in 1945. A total 14 people were killed and 26 were injured.
President John F. Kennedy and wife Jacqueline.
Aristotle Onassis with wife Jacqueline.
Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis (Bouvier) (July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994)
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 1875poem "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.
Irish nationalist launched the Easter Rebellion against British occupation forces on this day in 1916. They were overtaken several days later.
During World War I on this day in 1915, the Ottoman Turkish Empire began the mass deportation of Armenians.
A group of men excavates the remains of victims of the Armenian genocide.
Mark Rudd (center) a leader of the student protest at Columbia University in New York,
On this day in 1968, student militants occupied Hamilton Hall, the main classroom building, and took a dean hostage for 24 hours. They stormed into the office of the university’s president, ransacked files and smoked his cigars. Over the next few days, hundreds of students would seize a total of five campusbuildings.
The protests were part of a year of global tumult that included Vietnam’s Tet Offensive, the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy and mass demonstrations at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand is 50 years young today.
Singing icon Barbara Streisand has sold over 245 million records and won 10 Grammy Awards, including an Album of the Year Award for The Barbra Streisand Album in 1963. She has also had success as an actress, receiving an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the 1968 musical film Funny Girl.
Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910)
In Montgomery, AL, on this day in 1861, Jefferson Davis was inaugurated as the President of the Confederate States.
Jefferson Davis was sworn in as Provisional President of the Confederate States of America on the steps of the Alabama State Capitol (above/below).
On this day in 1970, The Chicago Seven defendants were found innocent of conspiring to incite riots at the 1968 Democratic national convention.
Police arrest protesters outside of the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
John Joseph Travolta is 64 years old today. Born in Englewood, NJ.
John Travolta starred in the 1970s hit films Saturday Night Fever and Grease. He later went on to play Vincent Vega in the critically acclaimed 1994 film Pulp Fiction.
On this day in 2001, NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, Sr., was killed in a crash during the final lap of the Daytona 500 race. He died instantly from blunt force trauma to the skull.
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