Monday, December 28th
The 362nd day of 2009.
There are 3 days left in the year.
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Today's Highlights in History
On Dec. 28, 1981, Elizabeth Jordan Carr, the first American test-tube baby, was born in Norfolk, Va. (Go to article.)
On Dec. 28, 1905, Earl "Fatha" Hines, the father of modern jazz piano, was born. Following his death on April 22, 1983, his obituary appeared in The Times. (Go to obit. | Other Birthdays)
Editorial Cartoon of the Day
On December 28, 1901, Harper's Weekly featured a cartoon about Joseph Pulitzer, the owner of the New York World newspaper. (See the cartoon and read an explanation.)
On this date in:
1694 Queen Mary II of England died after five years of joint rule with her husband, King William III.
1832 John C. Calhoun became the first vice president of the United States to resign, stepping down over differences with President Andrew Jackson.
1846 Iowa became the 29th state to be admitted to the Union.
1856 Thomas Woodrow Wilson, the 28th president of the United States, was born in Staunton, Va.
1897 "Cyrano de Bergerac," a play by Edmond Rostand, premiered in Paris.
1905 The forerunner of the NCAA, the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States, was founded in New York City.
1937 Composer Maurice Ravel died in Paris.
1945 Congress officially recognized the "Pledge of Allegiance."
1958 The Baltimore Colts won the NFL championship, defeating the New York Giants 23-17 in overtime at Yankee Stadium, in what has been dubbed the greatest football game ever played.
1973 Alexander Solzhenitsyn published "Gulag Archipelago," an expose of the Soviet prison system.
1982 Nevell Johnson Jr., a black man, was mortally wounded by a police officer in a Miami video arcade, setting off three days of race-related disturbances that left another man dead.
2004 Activist, author and intellectual Susan Sontag died at age 71.
2004 Actor Jerry Orbach ("Law and Order") died at age 69.
2005 Former top Enron Corp. accountant Richard Causey pleaded guilty to securities fraud and agreed to help pursue convictions against Enron founder Kenneth Lay and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling.
2008 The Detroit Lions completed an 0-16 season, the NFL's worst ever, with a 31-21 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
Current Birthdays
Charles Neville turns 71 years old today.
AP Photo/Dave Martin Rock singer-musician Charles Neville (The Neville Brothers) turns 71 years old today.
96 Lou Jacobi
Actor
87 Stan Lee
Comic book creator ("Spider-Man," "The Incredible Hulk")
78 Martin Milner
Actor ("Adam-12")
77 Nichelle Nichols
Actress ("Star Trek")
75 Maggie Smith
Actress
65 Johnny Isakson
U.S. senator, R-Ga.
63 Mike Beebe
Governor of Arkansas
63 Tim Johnson
U.S. senator, D-S.D.
63 Edgar Winter
Rock singer, musician
59 Alex Chilton
Rock singer, musician
55 Denzel Washington
Actor
51 Joe Diffie
Country singer
51 Mike McGuire
Country musician (Shenandoah)
49 Ray Borque
Hockey Hall of Famer
49 Chad McQueen
Actor
49 Marty Roe
Country singer, musician (Diamond Rio)
45 Malcolm Gets
Actor
40 Mauricio Mendoza
Actor
37 Patrick Rafter
Tennis Hall of Famer
37 Adam Vinatieri
Football player
36 Seth Meyers
Comedian ("Saturday Night Live")
31 John Legend
R&B singer
30 James Blake
Tennis player
28 Sienna Miller
Actress
22 Thomas Dekker
Actor
20 Mackenzie Rosman
Actress ("7th Heaven")
19 David Archuleta
Singer ("American Idol")
Historic Birthdays
Earl "Fatha" Hines
12/28/1905 - 4/22/1983
American jazz pianist, bandleader and composer
(Go to obit.)
57 Manuel Puig
12/28/1932 - 7/22/1990
Argentine novelist and screenwriter
88 Lew Ayres
12/28/1908 - 12/30/1996
American actor
58 Carl-Gustaf Rossby
12/28/1898 - 8/19/1957
Swedish meteorologist
61 Sir Arthur Eddington
12/28/1882 - 11/22/1944
English astrophysicist
77 William Draper Harkins
12/28/1873 - 3/7/1951
American chemist
89 Frederick Pethick-Lawrence
12/28/1871 - 9/10/1961
English women's suffrage movement leader
67 Woodrow Wilson
12/28/1856 - 2/3/1924
28th President of the United States (1913-21)
82 Edward Levy-Lawson Burnham
12/28/1833 - 1/9/1916
English creator of London Daily Telegraph newspaper
45 Thomas Henderson
12/28/1798 - 11/23/1844
Scottish astronomer
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SOURCE: The Associated Press
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