Today in History

Today is Saturday, March 9, the 68th day of 2013. There are 297 days left in the year. A reminder: Daylight-saving time begins Sunday at 2 a.m. Clocks go forward one hour.

Today's Highlight in History:

On March 9, 1963, two Los Angeles police officers, Ian Campbell and Karl Hettinger, were disarmed and abducted by ex-convicts Gregory Powell and Jimmy Lee Smith during a traffic stop in Hollywood; the officers were taken to an onion field near Bakersfield, Calif., where Campbell was shot to death while Hettinger managed to escape. (Powell and Smith were sent to prison; the case was detailed in the book "The Onion Field" by Joseph Wambaugh.)

On this date:

In 1661, Cardinal Jules Mazarin, the chief minister of France, died, leaving King Louis XIV in full control.

In 1796, the future emperor of the French, Napoleon Bonaparte, married Josephine de Beauharnais. (The couple later divorced.)

In 1862, during the Civil War, the ironclads USS Monitor and CSS Virginia (formerly USS Merrimac) clashed for five hours to a draw at Hampton Roads, Va.

In 1916, Mexican raiders led by Pancho Villa attacked Columbus, N.M., killing 18 Americans.

In 1933, Congress, called into special session by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, began its "hundred days" of enacting New Deal legislation.

In 1945, during World War II, U.S. B-29 bombers launched incendiary bomb attacks against Japan, resulting in an estimated 100,000 deaths.

In 1954, CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow critically reviewed Wisconsin Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy's anti-communism campaign on "See It Now."

In 1962, the science fantasy novel "A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle was first published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

In 1977, about a dozen armed Hanafi Muslims invaded three buildings in Washington, D.C., killing one person and taking more than 130 hostages. (The siege ended two days later.)

In 1983, Margaret Heckler was sworn in as secretary of Health and Human Services, the same day Anne M. Burford resigned as head of the embattled Environmental Protection Agency.

In 1992, former Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin died in Tel Aviv at age 78.

In 1997, gangsta rapper The Notorious B.I.G., whose real name was Christopher Wallace, was killed in a still-unsolved drive-by shooting in Los Angeles; he was 24.

Ten years ago: Recep Tayyip Erdogan won a seat in the Turkish parliament, clearing way for him to become prime minister. The film musical "Chicago" tap-danced away with a haul of movie honors at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, including best ensemble cast and the lead-actress prize for star Renee Zellweger.

Five years ago: Spain's governing Socialists won a second term, but without a majority in parliament.

One year ago: A high-profile international mission to end the Syrian crisis stumbled before it began as the opposition rejected calls by U.N. envoy Kofi Annan for dialogue with President Bashar Assad as pointless and out of touch after a year of violence. Lindsey Vonn of the United States won the World Cup giant slalom race in Are, Sweden to clinch her fourth overall title.

Today's Birthdays: Former Sen. James L. Buckley, Conservative-N.Y., is 90. Singer-actress Keely Smith is 81. Singer Lloyd Price is 80. Actress Joyce Van Patten is 79. Actor-comedian Marty Ingels is 77. Country singer Mickey Gilley is 77. Actress Trish Van Devere is 72. Singer Mark Lindsay (Paul Revere and the Raiders) is 71. Former ABC anchorman Charles Gibson is 70. Rock musician Robin Trower is 68. Singer Jeffrey Osborne is 65. Country musician Jimmie Fadden (The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band) is 65. Actress Jaime Lyn Bauer is 64. Magazine editor Michael Kinsley is 62. TV newscaster Faith Daniels is 56. Actor Tom Amandes is 54. Actor-director Lonny Price is 54. Actress Linda Fiorentino is 53. Country musician Rusty Hendrix (Confederate Railroad) is 53. Actress Juliette Binoche is 49. Rock musician Robert Sledge (Ben Folds Five) is 45. Rapper C-Murder (AKA C-Miller) is 42. Actor Emmanuel Lewis is 42. Actress Jean Louisa Kelly is 41. Actor Kerr Smith is 41. Rapper Chingy is 33. Actor Matthew Gray Gubler is 33. Roots rock musician Ben Tanner (Alabama Shakes) is 30. Actress Brittany Snow is 27. Rapper Bow Wow is 26. Actor Luis Armand Garcia is 21.

Thought for Today: "Conscience is the perfect interpreter of life." -- Karl Barth, Swiss theologian (1886-1966).

Copyright 2013, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.