MIKE  GRACIA

On this day in 20001, the U.S. and Great Britain began airstrikes in Afghanistan
in response to that state’s support of terrorism and Osama bin Laden. The act
was the first military action taken in response to the terrorist attacks on the
U.S. on September 11, 2001. 

On this day in 1985.

On this day in 1991.

Clarence Thomas turned 69 on June  23.

It was on this day in 1998.

The musical "Cats" opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on this day
in 1982. In 1997 the show became the longest running show in
Broadway history.

John J Mellencamp  (John Cougar Mellencamp) is 66 today.

Singer-songwriter John Mellencamp is best known for his #1 hit song,
"Jack & Diane." He has been nominated for more than ten Grammy
Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008.

SANDY KOZEL

On this day in 1998, President Bill Clinton’s Grand Jury testimony in the
Monica Lewinsky scandal is aired on national television.

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again is a children’s fantasy
novel by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published on
this day in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for
the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the New York
Herald Tribune for best juvenile fiction.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (January 3, 1892 – September 2,1973)

On this day in 1970,  "NFL Monday Night Football" made its debut on
ABC-TV. The game was between the Cleveland Browns and the New
York Jets. The Browns won 31-21.

The booth team: Howard Cosell, Keith Jackson and Don Meredith.

Sandra Day O’Connor was confirmed as the first woman to serve as a
Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court on this day in 1981. President Ronald
(above) made the appointment.

Sandra Day O’Connor turned 87 in March.

Stephen Edwin King is 70 years old today.

Author Stephen King‘s bestselling horror, science fiction, and suspense
novels include Carrie, The Shining, Misery, and The Dark Tower series. His numerous literary honors include a Bram Stoker Award, an O. Henry Award,
and a National Book Foundation Medal.

William (Bill) James Murray is 67 years old today.

Comedian and actor Bill Murray was nominated for an Academy
Award for Best Actor for his starring role in the 2003 film Lost
in Translation. Murray’s best known films include Caddyshack,
Ghostbusters, and Groundhog Day. Prior to his film career, he
was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1977 to 1980. In
his youth, he worked as a golf caddy to fund his high school
education. Bill began taking pre-med courses at Regis University
in Denver, Colorado, but dropped out.

From Caddyshack, 1980.

Bill Murry in the 1993 comedy Groundhog Day.

From Goastbusters, 1984.

SANDY KOZEL

The Mount Vesuvius eruption killed approximately 20,000 people
and much of the area was buried in volcanic ash. 

It happened on this day in 1814.

On this day in 2006.

The planet Pluto was reclassified as a "dwarf planet" by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Pluto’s status was changed due to the IAU’s
new rules for an object qualifying as a planet. Pluto met two of the three
rules because it orbits the sun and is large enough to assume a nearly
round shape. However, since Pluto has an oblong orbit and overlaps the
orbit of Neptune it disqualified Pluto as a planet.
 

On this day in 1932, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly
across the U.S. non-stop. The trip from Los Angeles, CA to Newark,
NJ, took about 19 hours in her Lockheed Vega (above).

Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Model 5B Vega, NR7952, on display at
the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum.

On this day in 1989, Pete Rose, the manager of the Cincinnati Reds,
was banned from baseball for life after being accused of gambling
on baseball.

Former Cincinnati Reds manager Pete Rose at the start of a
news conference at Riverfront Stadium after being given his 
lifetime suspension from baseball.

On this day in 1998, President Clinton admitted to having an
improper relationship with Monica Lewinsky, a White House
intern.

The Klondike gold rush was set off by George Carmack (below) who
discovered gold on Rabbit Creek in Alaska.

George Washington Carmack,
from California.

Robert Fulton’s "North River Steam Boat" (known as the "Clermont") began heading up New York’s Hudson River on its successful round-
trip to Albany on this day in 1807.

Robert Fulton 
(11-14-1765 – 2-24-1815

It happened on this day in 1987.

Rudolf Walter Richard Hess 
(April 26, 1894 – August 17, 1987) 

Robert Anthony De Niro is 74 years old today.

Legendary actor Robert De Niro won an Academy Award for Best Actor for
his role as Jake LaMotta in the 1980 boxing film Raging Bull and an Academy
Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Vito Corleone in the 1974
classic The Godfather Part II.

2001

CAMILLE BOHANNON

On this day in 1945 the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki. The bombing came just three days after the bombing of Hiroshima. About 74,000 people were killed. Japan surrendered
August 14.

U.S. President Richard Nixon formally resigned on this day in 1974,
Gerald R. Ford took his place, and became the 38th president of
the United States.

It w as on this day in 1969.

Murder victims from left: Voityck Frykowski, Sharon Tate, Stephen Parent, Jay Sebring, and Abigail Folger.

The book "Walden" was published by Henry David
Thoreau on this day in 1854.  

Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862)

Whitney Elizabeth Houston
(August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012)

R&B and pop performer Whitney Houston became the most
awarded female singer in history for hits such as "Hold Me"
from her record-breaking album, Whitney Houston. She grew
up in a musical family with cousin Dionne Warwick and her
godmother Aretha Franklin. She created the soundtrack for
and starred in the 1992 film The Bodyguard alongside Kevin
Costner.

singer-songwriter and guitarist Jerry Garcia is best known for his work
as the lead guitarist and as a vocalist with the band the Grateful Dead.