This Day in History
1773: British explorer and navigator Capt. James Cook makes the first crossing of the Antarctic Circle.
1883: Congress passes the Pendleton Act, reforming civil service.
1919: The 18th Amendment , on Prohibition , is ratified.
1943: In World War II , Britain begins heavy bombing of Berlin.
1945: The Battle of the Bulge ends in Allied victory.
1979: The Shah of Iran , who has ruled for 37 years, goes into exile.
2001: Pres. Laurent Kabila of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is shot and killed in the presidential palace by a bodyguard.
Today's Birthdays
1749: Vittorio Alfieri, Italian dramatist and poet (Asti, Italy; died 1803)
1853: Andre Michelin, industrialist and cofounder of Michelin Tire Co. (Paris, France; died 1931)
1876: Robert W. Service, poet (Preston, England; died 1958)
1907: Paul Henry Nitze, public official who played a leading role in formulating Cold War policy toward the Soviet Union (Amherst, MA; died 2004)
1908: Ethel Merman, singer/actress (Queens, NY; died 1984)
1911: Dizzy Dean, baseball pitcher (Lucas, AR; died 1974)
1918: Stirling Silliphant, Academy Award-winning screenwriter (Detroit, MI; died 1996)
1928: William Kennedy, author (Albany, NY)
1929: Francesco Scavullo, fashion photographer (Staten Island, NY; died 2004)
1930: Norman Podhoretz, author/editor (New York, NY)
1934: Marilyn Horne, opera singer (Bradford, PA)
1935: A. J. Foyt, auto racer (Houston, TX)
1944: Ronnie Milsap, singer (Robinsville, NC)
1948: John Carpenter, director (Carthage, NY)
1950: Debbie Allen, dancer/choreographer and actress (Houston, TX)
1959: Sade, singer (Ibadan, Nigeria)
1974: Kate Moss, model (London, England)
1979: Aaliyah (Aaliyah Dana Haughton), singer melding hip-hop with rhythm & blues (New York, NY; died 2001)
1980: Albert Pujols, baseball player (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic)
