MIKE GRACIA

On this day in 1789, the French Revolution began when Parisians
stormed the Bastille prison and released seven prisoners inside.

Outlaw “Billy The Kid” (William H. Bonney) was gunned
down by Sheriff Pat Garrett (below) on this day in 1881.

Richard Benjamin Speck (December 6, 1941 – December 5, 1991)

Richard Speck murdered student nurses in Chicago (below) on the night’s
of July 13–14, 1966.

Guarded by detectives, Corazon Amurao arrives at the courthouse in Peoria to testify as the state’s chief witness against mass murderer
Richard Speck on April 5, 1967.

The American space probe Mariner 4 flew by Mars, and sent back photographs of the planet (below) on this day in 1965.

Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967)

singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie was one of the most significant figures
in American folk music; his songs, including social justice songs, such
as "This Land Is Your Land", have inspired several generations both
politically and musically. He wrote hundreds of political, folk, and
children’s songs, along with ballads and improvised works.

Guthrie died of complications of Huntington’s disease on October 3,
1967. By the time of his death, his work had been discovered by a
new audience, introduced to them through Dylan, Pete Seeger,
Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, his ex-wife Marjorie and other new members
of the folk revival, and his son Arlo (below).

CAMILLE BOHANNON

Full diplomatic relations were established between the United States
and Vietnam on this day in 1995. President Clinton (above) made the
announcement of the normalization.

The United States’ first secretary of the treasury, Alexander Hamilton, was killed by Vice President Aaron Burr in a duel on this day in 1804.

On this day in 1979, the abandoned United States space station
Skylab returned to Earth. It burned up in the atmosphere and
showered debris over the Indian Ocean and Australia.

Babe Ruth debuted in the major leagues with the Boston Red Sox on
this day in 1914.

Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (May 22, 1907 – July 11, 1989)

Laurence Olivier was among actors who dominated the British stage of the
mid-20th century. For his work in films, Olivier received four Academy
Awards: an honorary award for Henry V (1947), a Best Actor award and
one as producer for Hamlet (1948), and a second honorary award in 1979
to recognize his lifetime of contribution to the art of film. He was nominated
for nine other acting Oscars and one each for production and direction. Late
in his career, he had considerable success in television roles.

1940

1948

SANDY KOZEL

On this day in 1940, the 114-day Battle of Britain began during World
War II.

The Telstar Communications satellite was launched on this day
in 1962. It relayed TV and telephone signals between Europe and
the U.S.

Millard Fillmore (January 7, 1800 – March 8, 1874)

Following Zachary Taylor’s death, Millard Fillmore (above)
became the 13th President of the United States on this day
in 1850. He was the last member of the Whig Party to hold
the office of president.

Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850)

The identity and source of Taylor’s illness are the subject
of historical speculation, although it is known that Taylor
and several of his cabinet members had come down with
similar intestinal ailments on July 4, 1850, while attending
holiday celebrations during a fund-raising event.

Shamil Salmanovich Basayev
(January 14, 1965 – July 10, 2006) 

Basayev was a Chechen militant Islamist and
a leader of the Chechen movement.

He was killed by an explosion on July 10,
2006.  Controversy still surrounds who was
responsible for his death.

Folk singer/songwriter Arlo Davy Guthrie is 71 years older today.

Like his father, Woody Guthrie, he is known for singing songs of protest
against social injustice, and storytelling around a song.

Voice actor/comedian Melvin Jerome Blanc
(May 30, 1908 – July 10, 1989)

Having earned the nickname The Man of a Thousand Voices, Blanc is
regarded as one of the most influential people in the voice acting
industry.

Mel Blanc died of advanced coronary artery disease on this day in
1989 at Cedars-Sinai, at the age of 81.

Mel Blanc at the KGW radio studio in Portland,
Oregon, circa 1948.

CAMILLE BOHANNON

Commodore Matthew Perry arrived in Tokyo Bay on this day in 1853.

Matthew Calbraith Perry
(April 10, 1794 – March 4, 1858)

Industrialist John Davison Rockefeller Sr.
(July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937)

Business Magnate John D. Rockefeller is widely considered
the wealthiest American of all time, and the richest person
in modern history.

What became known as the Roswell Incident was on this day in 1947.

Major Jesse Marcel from the Roswell Army Air Field with debris
found 75 miles north west of Roswell, NM.

Florenz Ziegfeld staged his first "Follies" on the roof of the New
York Theater in New York City on this day in 1907.

Florenz (Flo) Edward Ziegfeld Jr. (March 21, 1867 – July 22, 1932)

CAMILLE BOHANNON

On this day in 1934, Adolf Hitler purged the Nazi Party by destroying
the SA and bringing to power the SS in the "Night of the Long
Knives."

America’s food and drug safety took a big step forward with the
Pure Food and Drug Act on this day in 1906.

The Soviet spacecraft Soyuz 11 returned to Earth on this day in
1971. The three cosmonauts (left) were found dead inside.

Margaret Mitchell (above) with her book, "Gone with the Wind,"
that was published on this day 1936.

The 1939 epic historical romance film, adapted from the Margaret
Mitchell novel.

On this day in 1994, The U.S. Figure Skating Association stripped
Tonya Harding (left) of the 1994 national championship and banned
her from the organization for life for an attack on rival Nancy Kerrigan (right).

Nancy Kerrigan just after the attack.

Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010)

Twentieth-century African-American singer and actress Lena Horne
famously sang "Stormy Weather," won a Grammy Award for a 1981
album entitled Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music, and appeared
in film versions of The Wiz, Broadway Rhythm, and Ziegfeld Follies.

Horne continued recording and performing sporadically into the
1990s, disappearing from the public eye in 2000. Horne died of
congestive heart failure on May 9, 2010, at the age of 92.