Dec. 2, 2008 - Today In History

Today is Tuesday, Dec. 2, the 337th day of 2008. There are 29 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Dec. 2, 1942, an artificially created, self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction was demonstrated for the first time, at the University of Chicago.

On this date:

In 1804, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French.

In 1823, President James Monroe outlined his doctrine opposing European expansion in the Western Hemisphere.

In 1859, militant abolitionist John Brown was hanged for his raid on Harpers Ferry, Va., the previous October.

In 1927, Ford Motor Co. formally unveiled its Model A automobile, the successor to its Model T.

In 1954, the Senate voted to condemn Wisconsin Republican Joseph R. McCarthy for conduct that "tends to bring the Senate into disrepute."

In 1957, the Shippingport Atomic Power Station in Pennsylvania, the first full-scale commercial nuclear facility in the U.S., began operations. (The reactor ceased operating in 1982.)

In 1970, the Environmental Protection Agency began operating under director William Ruckelshaus.

In 1980, four American churchwomen were raped and murdered outside San Salvador, El Salvador. (Five national guardsmen were convicted in the killings.)

In 1982, in the first operation of its kind, doctors at the University of Utah Medical Center implanted a permanent artificial heart in the chest of retired dentist Dr. Barney Clark, who lived 112 days with the device.

In 1988, Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as prime minister of Pakistan.

Ten years ago:

Former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy was acquitted of all counts in a corruption case involving sports tickets and travel that he'd accepted from companies that did business with his department.

Five years ago:

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that after knocking, police don't have to wait longer than 20 seconds before breaking into the home of a drug suspect.

Authorities in Ohio announced that they had linked 12 shootings along a five-mile stretch of interstate around Columbus, including one that killed a woman and another that broke a window at an elementary school. (A suspect, Charles A. McCoy Jr., later pleaded guilty to manslaughter and 10 other charges, and was sentenced to 27 years in prison.)

One year ago:

Venezuela President Hugo Chavez suffered a humbling defeat as voters rejected sweeping constitutional reforms by 51 to 49 percent.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's party swept 70 percent of the seats for a new parliament in a vote whose fairness was called into question by European election monitors.

Brian Wilson, Martin Scorsese, Steve Martin, Diana Ross and pianist Leon Fleisher were the latest U.S. artists to receive Kennedy Center honors for their career achievements.

Today's Birthdays:

Character actor Bill Erwin is 94.

Former Secretary of State Alexander M. Haig is 84.

Actress Julie Harris is 83.

Former Attorney General Edwin Meese III is 77.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is 69.

Actress Cathy Lee Crosby is 64.

Movie director Penelope Spheeris is 63.

Actor Ron Raines is 59.

Country singer John Wesley Ryles is 58.

Actor Keith Szarabajka is 56.

Actor Dan Butler is 54.

Broadcast journalist Stone Phillips is 54.

Actor Dennis Christopher is 53.

Actor Steven Bauer is 52.

Country singer Joe Henry is 48.

Rock musician Rick Savage (Def Leppard) is 48.

Tennis Hall-of-Famer Tracy Austin is 46.

Rock musician Nate Mendel (Foo Fighters) is 40.

Actress Rena Sofer is 40.

Rock singer Jimi HaHa (Jimmie's Chicken Shack) is 40.

Actress Lucy Liu is 40.

Rapper Treach (Naughty By Nature) is 38.

Tennis player Monica Seles is 35.

Singer Nelly Furtado is 30.

Pop singer Britney Spears is 27.

Actresses Deanna and Daniella Canterman are 16.

Thought for Today:

"Great minds have purposes;

little minds have wishes.

Little minds are subdued by misfortunes;

great minds rise above them." —

Washington Irving,
American author
(1783-1859).