Today's Highlight in History:
On Sept. 22, 1776, Nathan Hale was hanged as a spy by the British during the Revolutionary War.
On this date
In 1792, the French Republic was proclaimed.
In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves in rebel states should be free as of Jan. 1, 1863.
In 1927, Gene Tunney successfully defended his heavyweight boxing title against Jack Dempsey in the famous "long-count" fight in Chicago.
In 1949, the Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb.
In 1950, Omar N. Bradley was promoted to the rank of five-star general, joining an elite group that included Dwight D. Eisenhower, Douglas MacArthur, George C. Marshall and Henry H. "Hap" Arnold.
In 1961, the Interstate Commerce Commission issued rules prohibiting racial discrimination on interstate buses.
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In 1964, the musical "Fiddler on the Roof" opened on Broadway, beginning a run of 3,242 performances.
In 1975, Sara Jane Moore attempted to shoot President Gerald R. Ford outside a San Francisco hotel, but missed. (Moore served 32 years in prison before being paroled on Dec. 31, 2007.)
In 1980, the Persian Gulf conflict between Iran and Iraq erupted into full-scale war.
In 1985, rock and country music artists participated in "FarmAid," a concert staged in Champaign, Ill., to help the nation's farmers.
In 1989, songwriter Irving Berlin died in New York City at age 101.
In 2001, President George W. Bush consulted at length with Russian President Vladimir Putin (POO'-tihn) as the United States mustered a military assault on terrorism in the wake of Sept. 11.
Ten years ago: A suicide car bombing outside U.N. offices in Baghdad killed an Iraqi policeman. NATO allies picked Dutch Foreign Minister Jaap de Hoop Scheffer (yahp dee hohp SKEHF'-ur) as the alliance's next secretary-general. Actor Gordon Jump died at age 71.
Five years ago: Jury selection began in Washington for the federal corruption trial of Sen. Ted Stevens,R-Alaska. (Jurors later found that Stevens had lied on Senate financial disclosure forms to conceal hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts and home renovations from a wealthy oil contractor, but the Justice Department later moved to dismiss the indictment because prosecutors had mishandled the case; Stevens lost his re-election bid.) Marjorie Knoller, whose dogs viciously attacked and killed her neighbor, Dianne Whipple, in their San Francisco apartment building in 2001, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after her second-degree murder conviction was reinstated. The U.S. Mint unveiled the first changes to the penny in 50 years, with Abraham Lincoln's portrait still on the obverse side, but new designs replacing the Lincoln Memorial on the reverse side.
One year ago: President Barack Obama campaigned before a crowd of 18,000 in Wisconsin, the home of GOP vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan. Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi urged the government of Syria to bring an end to that country's 18-month-old civil war. In the aftermath of the killing of the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans, residents of the Libyan city of Benghazi protested at the compounds of several militias, vowing to rid themselves of armed factions and Islamic extremists.
Today's Birthdays: Baseball Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda is 86. NBA Commissioner David Stern is 71. Musician King Sunny Ade (ah-DAY') is 67. Actor Paul Le Mat is 67. Capt. Mark Phillips is 65. Rock singer David Coverdale (Deep Purple, Whitesnake) is 62. Actress Shari Belafonte is 59. Singer Debby Boone is 57. Country singer June Forester (The Forester Sisters) is 57. Singer Nick Cave is 56. Rock singer Johnette Napolitano is 56. Actress Lynn Herring is 56. Classical crossover singer Andrea Bocelli (an-DRAY'-ah boh-CHEL'-ee) is 55. Singer-musician Joan Jett is 55. Actor Scott Baio is 53. Actress Catherine Oxenberg is 52. Actress Bonnie Hunt is 52. Actor Rob Stone ("Mr. Belvedere") is 51. Musician Matt Sharp is 44. Rock musician Dave Hernandez is 43. Rhythm-and-blues singer Big Rube (Society of Soul) is 42. Actress Mireille Enos is 38. Actress Daniella Alonso is 35. Actor Michael Graziadei (GRAHT'-zee-uh-day-ee) is 34. Actress Ashley Drane (Eckstein) is 32. Actor Tom Felton is 26. Actress Juliette Goglia is 18.
Thought for Today: "Autumn, the year's last, loveliest smile." — William Cullen Bryant, American poet (1794-1878).
