Today in History
Today is Wednesday, Feb. 15, the 46th day of 2017. There are 319 days
left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Feb. 15, 1867, "On
the Beautiful Blue Danube," a waltz by Johann Strauss (the Younger),
was publicly performed for the first time by the Vienna Men's Choral
Society, garnering a polite, if decidedly less than enthusiastic,
audience response. (A revised orchestral version proved much more
successful.) On this date: In 1764, the site of present-day St. Louis
was established by Pierre Laclede and Auguste Chouteau. In 1898, the
U.S. battleship Maine mysteriously blew up in Havana Harbor, killing
more than 260 crew members and bringing the United States closer to war
with Spain. In 1933, President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt escaped an
assassination attempt in Miami that mortally wounded Chicago Mayor
Anton J. Cermak; gunman Giuseppe Zangara was executed more than four
weeks later. In 1942, the British colony Singapore surrendered to
Japanese forces during World War II. In 1952, a funeral was held at
Windsor Castle for Britain's King George VI, who had died nine days
earlier. In 1961, 73 people, including an 18-member U.S. figure skating
team en route to the World Championships in Czechoslovakia, were killed
in the crash of a Sabena Airlines Boeing 707 in Belgium. In 1967, the
rock band Chicago was founded by Walter Parazaider, Terry Kath, Danny
Seraphine, Lee Loughnane (LOK'-nayn), James Pankow and Robert Lamm; the
group originally called itself The Big Thing. In 1971, Britain and
Ireland "decimalised" their currencies, making one pound equal to 100
new pence instead of 240 pence. In 1982, 84 men were killed when a huge
oil-drilling rig, the Ocean Ranger, sank off the coast of Newfoundland
during a fierce storm. In 1989, the Soviet Union announced that the
last of its troops had left Afghanistan, after more than nine years of
military intervention. In 1992, a Milwaukee jury found that Jeffrey
Dahmer was sane when he killed and mutilated 15 men and boys. (The
decision meant that Dahmer, who had already pleaded guilty to the
murders, would receive a mandatory life sentence for each count; Dahmer
was beaten to death in prison in 1994.) In 2002, a private funeral was
held at Windsor Castle for Britain's Princess Margaret, who had died
six days earlier at age 71. Ten years ago: National Guardsmen in
Humvees ferried food, fuel and baby supplies to hundreds of motorists
stranded for nearly a day on a 50-mile stretch of Interstate 78 in
eastern Pennsylvania because of a monster storm. The U.S. Mint unveiled
the new presidential $1 coin. Oscar-winning songwriter Ray Evans died
in Los Angeles at age 92. Five years ago: Congressional negotiators
sealed an agreement on legislation to renew a payroll tax cut for 160
million workers and jobless benefits for millions more. In defiant
swipes at its foes, Iran said it was dramatically closer to mastering
the production of nuclear fuel even as the U.S. weighed tougher
pressure on the Tehran government. One year ago: President Barack Obama
opened a meeting in Rancho Mirage, California, of leaders from the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations, calling the landmark gathering
on U.S. soil a reflection of his personal commitment to an enduring
partnership with the diverse group of countries. Taylor Swift's "1989"
brought the singer her second Grammy Award win for album of the year;
Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars earned top record for "Uptown Funk," while
Ed Sheeran won song of the year for "Thinking Out Loud. Vanity, a
Prince protege who renounced her sexy stage persona to become a
Christian minister, died in Fremont, California at age 57. Her real
name was Denise Matthews. Today's Birthdays: Former Illinois
Congressman John Anderson is 95. Actress Claire Bloom is 86. Author
Susan Brownmiller is 82. Songwriter Brian Holland is 76. Rock musician
Mick Avory (The Kinks) is 73. Jazz musician Henry Threadgill is 73.
Actress-model Marisa Berenson is 70. Actress Jane Seymour is 66. Singer
Melissa Manchester is 66. Actress Lynn Whitfield is 64. "Simpsons"
creator Matt Groening (GREE'-ning) is 63. Model Janice Dickinson is 62.
Actor Christopher McDonald is 62. Reggae singer Ali Campbell is 58.
Actor Joseph R. Gannascoli is 58. Musician Mikey Craig (Culture Club)
is 57. College and Pro Football Hall of Famer Darrell Green is 57.
Actor/comedian Steven Michael Quezada (TV: "Breaking Bad") is 54.
Country singer Michael Reynolds (Pinmonkey) is 53. Actor Michael Easton
is 50. Rock musician Stevie Benton (Drowning Pool) is 46. Actress Renee
O'Connor is 46. Actress Sarah Wynter is 44. Olympic gold medal swimmer
Amy Van Dyken-Rouen is 44. Actress-director Miranda July is 43. Rock
singer Brandon Boyd (Incubus) is 41. Rock musician Ronnie Vannucci (The
Killers) is 41. Singer-songwriter-musician Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes)
is 37. Actress Ashley Lyn Cafagna is 34. Blues-rock musician Gary Clark
Jr. is 33. Actress Natalie Morales is 32. Actress Amber Riley is 31.
Thought for Today: "Nothing is mine, I have only nothing but it is
enough, it is beautiful and it is all mine. Katherine Anne Porter,
American author (1894-1980).
