Today in History
Today is Saturday, Feb. 11, the 42nd day of 2017. There are 323 days
left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Feb. 11, 1929, the
Lateran Treaty was signed, with Italy recognizing the independence and
sovereignty of Vatican City. On this date: In 660 B.C., tradition holds
that Japan was founded as Jimmu ascended the throne as the country's
first emperor. In 1812, Massachusetts Gov. Elbridge Gerry signed a
redistricting law favoring his Democratic-Republican Party giving rise
to the term "gerrymandering. In 1858, a French girl, Bernadette
Soubirous (soo-bee-ROO'), reported the first of 18 visions of a lady
dressed in white in a grotto near Lourdes. (The Catholic Church later
accepted that the visions were of the Virgin Mary.) In 1862, the Civil
War Battle of Fort Donelson began in Tennessee. (Union forces led by
Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant captured the fort five days later.) In
1937, a six-week-old sit-down strike against General Motors ended, with
the company agreeing to recognize the United Automobile Workers Union.
In 1945, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin signed the Yalta
Agreement, in which Stalin agreed to declare war against Imperial Japan
following Nazi Germany's capitulation. In 1963, American author and
poet Sylvia Plath was found dead in her London flat, a suicide; she was
30. In 1972, McGraw-Hill Publishing Co. and Life magazine canceled
plans to publish what turned out to be a fake autobiography of
reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes. In 1986, Soviet dissident Natan
Sharansky was released by the Soviet Union after nine years of
captivity as part of an East-West prisoner exchange. In 1990, South
African black activist Nelson Mandela was freed after 27 years in
captivity. In 2011, Egypt exploded with joy after pro-democracy
protesters brought down President Hosni Mubarak (HOHS'-nee
moo-BAH'-rahk), whose resignation ended three decades of authoritarian
rule. In 2013, Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation during a
routine morning meeting of Vatican cardinals. (The 85-year-old pontiff
was succeeded by Pope Francis.) Ten years ago: Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (ah-muh-DEE'-neh-zhahd), marking the 28th
anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, vowed his country would not give
up uranium enrichment. The Dixie Chicks won five Grammys, including
Album of the Year for "Taking the Long Way" and Record and Song of the
Year for "Not Ready to Make Nice," in a defiant comeback after being
shunned over their anti-President George W. Bush comments about the
Iraq war. Harvard University named historian Drew Gilpin Faust its
first female president. Five years ago: Whitney Houston, 48, who ruled
as pop music's queen until her majestic voice was ravaged by drug use
and her regal image was tarnished by erratic behavior and a tumultuous
marriage to singer Bobby Brown, was found dead in a hotel room in
Beverly Hills, California. Mitt Romney eked out a narrow win in Maine's
Republican caucuses. One year ago: Surrounded by FBI agents in armored
vehicles, the last four oc'cup'iers of a national nature preserve in
Oregon surrendered, ending a 41-day standoff that left one man dead.
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders battled for the crucial backing of
black and Hispanic voters during a Democratic debate in Milwaukee. The
White House announced that President Barack Obama would nominate Dr.
John B. King Jr. to lead the Education Department. Today's Birthdays:
Actor Conrad Janis is 89. Fashion designer Mary Quant is 83. Actor Burt
Reynolds is 81. Actress Tina Louise is 79. Actor Sonny Landham is 76.
Bandleader Sergio Mendes is 76. Actor Philip Anglim is 65. Former
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is 64. Actress Catherine Hickland is 61. Rock
musician David Uosikkinen (aw-SIK'-ken-ihn) (The Hooters) is 61.
Actress Carey Lowell is 56. Singer Sheryl Crow is 55. Former Alaska
Gov. Sarah Palin is 53. Actress Jennifer Aniston is 48. Actor Damian
Lewis is 46. Actress Marisa Petroro is 45. Singer D'Angelo is 43. Actor
Brice Beckham is 41. Rock M-C/vocalist Mike Shinoda (Linkin Park) is
40. Singer-actress Brandy is 38. Country musician Jon Jones (The Eli
Young Band) is 37. Actor Matthew Lawrence is 37. Rhythm-and-blues
singer Kelly Rowland is 36. Actress Natalie Dormer is 35. Singer Aubrey
O'Day is 33. Actress Q'orianka (kohr-ee-AHN'-kuh) Kilcher is 27. Actor
Taylor Lautner is 25. Thought for Today: "Perhaps when we find
ourselves wanting everything, it is because we are dangerously close to
wanting nothing. Sylvia Plath (1932-1963).
