This Day in History
1836: Texas declares its independence from Mexico.
1877: A special Electoral Commission declares Rutherford B. Hayes the winner of the disputed presidential election of 1876.
1890: The federal government establishes the territory of Oklahoma .
1949: Air Force pilots flying in the B-50 Superfortress Lucky Lady II complete the first nonstop round-the-world flight .
1962: Basketball player Wilt Chamberlain sets an all-time NBA record by scoring 100 points in a game.
1972: The unmanned space probe Pioneer 10 is launched on a mission to Jupiter.
1985: U.S. approves first commercial blood test for AIDS .
1991: UN approves resolution for first Persian Gulf War cease-fire.
2004: Former WorldCom CEO Bernard Ebbers is charged with securities fraud, conspiracy, and false regulatory filings.
Today's Birthdays
1793: Sam Houston, soldier/politician/hero of Texas independence (Rockbridge County, VA; died 1863)
1876: Pope Pius XII, pope during WWII (Rome, Italy; died 1958)
1900: Kurt Weill, composer (Germany; died 1950)
1904: Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss), children's author (Springfield, MA; died 1991)
1909: Mel Ott, baseball player (Gretna, LA; died 1958)
1917: Desi Arnaz, actor/musician (Santiago, Cuba; died 1986)
1919: Jennifer Jones, actress (Tulsa, OK)
1923: Doc Watson, country singer/musician (Deep Gap, NC)
1931: Mikhail Gorbachev, former Soviet leader (Privolnoc, Russia). Tom Wolfe, novelist (Richmond, VA):
1942: John Irving, novelist (Exeter, NH)
1943: Lou Reed, singer/songwriter (Long Island, NY)
1952: Laraine Newman, actress/comedian (Los Angeles, CA)
1962: Russell Feingold, senator (Janesville, WI). Jon Bon Jovi, singer/songwriter (Sayreville, NJ):
1985: Robert Iler, actor (New York, NY)
