AP News, December 9th, 2007
Today is Sunday, Dec. 9, the 343rd day of 2007. There are 22 days left in the year.
Today's Highlight in History:
On Dec. 9, 1854, Alfred Lord Tennyson's famous poem, "The Charge of the Light Brigade," was published in England.
On this date:
In 1892, "Widowers' Houses," Bernard Shaw's first play, opened at the Royalty Theater in London.
In 1940, British troops opened their first major offensive in North Africa during World War II.
In 1941, China declared war on Japan, Germany and Italy.
In 1942, the Aram Khachaturian ballet "Gayane," featuring the surging "Saber Dance," was first performed by the Kirov Ballet.
In 1958, the anti-communist John Birch Society was formed in Indianapolis.
In 1965, Nikolai V. Podgorny replaced Anastas I. Mikoyan as president of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet.
In 1982, special Watergate prosecutor Leon Jaworski died at his Wimberly, Texas, ranch at age 77.
In 1987, the first Palestinian intefadeh, or uprising, began as riots broke out in Gaza and spread to the West Bank, triggering a strong Israeli counter-response.
In 1990, Solidarity founder Lech Walesa won Poland's presidential runoff by a landslide.
In 1992, Britain's Prince Charles and Princess Diana announced their separation. (The couple's divorce became final Aug. 28, 1996.)
Ten years ago: Confronting her critics, Attorney General Janet Reno traded testy remarks with Republicans on a House investigating committee as she defended her decision not to seek an independent counsel for fundraising calls made by President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore.
Five years ago: President Bush tapped railroad executive John W. Snow to be his new Treasury Secretary, three days after firing Paul O'Neill. Senate Republican leader Trent Lott apologized for remarks he'd made praising the 1948 presidential run of then-segregationist Strom Thurmond, saying, "A poor choice of words conveyed to some the impression that I embraced the discarded policies of the past."
One year ago: Discovery lighted up the sky in the first nighttime space shuttle launch in four years. A fire broke out at a Moscow drug treatment hospital, killing 45 women trapped by barred windows and a locked gate. Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith won the Heisman Trophy. Singer Georgia Gibbs, who had reached the top of the charts in the 1950s, died in New York City at age 87.
Today's Birthdays: Actor Kirk Douglas is 91. Actress Dina Merrill is 82. Actor Dick Van Patten is 79. Actor-writer Buck Henry is 77. Actress Dame Judi Dench is 73. Actor Beau Bridges is 66. Jazz singer-musician Dan Hicks is 66. Football Hall-of-Famer Dick Butkus is 65. Actor Michael Nouri is 62. Former Sen. Thomas Daschle, D-S.D., is 60. Singer Joan Armatrading is 57. Actor Michael Dorn is 55. Actor John Malkovich is 54. Country singer Sylvia is 51. Singer/game show host Donny Osmond is 50. Rock musician Nick Seymour (Crowded House) is 49. Comedian Mario Cantone is 48. Actor Joe Lando is 46. Actress Felicity Huffman is 45. Country musician Jerry Hughes (Yankee Grey) is 42. Rock singer-musician Thomas Flowers (Oleander) is 40. Rock musician Brian Bell (Weezer) is 39. Rock singer-musician Jakob Dylan (Wallflowers) is 38. Country musician Brian Hayes (Cole Deggs and the Lonesome) is 38. Actress Allison Smith is 38. Country singer David Kersh is 37. Rock musician Tre Cool (Green Day) is 35. Rapper Canibus is 33. Rock musician Eric Zamora (Save Ferris) is 31. Rock singer Imogen Heap is 30. Actor Jesse Metcalfe is 29. Actor Simon Helberg is 27.
Thought for Today: "Hatred comes from the heart; contempt from the head; and neither feeling is quite within our control." — Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher (1788-1860).
