Today in History

Today is Monday, July 29, the 210th day of 2013. There are 155 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On July 29, 1981, Britain's Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer at St. Paul's Cathedral in London. (However, the couple divorced in 1996.)

On this date:

In 1030, the patron saint of Norway, King Olaf II, was killed in battle.

In 1588, the English attacked the Spanish Armada in the Battle of Gravelines, resulting in an English victory.

In 1890, artist Vincent van Gogh, 37, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Auvers-sur-Oise, France.

In 1900, Italian King Humbert I was assassinated by an anarchist; he was succeeded by his son, Victor Emmanuel III.

In 1921, Adolf Hitler became the leader ("fuehrer") of the National Socialist German Workers Party.

In 1948, Britain's King George VI opened the Olympic Games in London.

In 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency was established. Jack Paar made his debut as host of NBC's "Tonight Show."

In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, creating NASA.

In 1967, an accidental rocket launch aboard the supercarrier USS Forrestal in the Gulf of Tonkin resulted in a fire and explosions that killed 134 servicemen.

In 1975, President Gerald R. Ford became the first U.S. president to visit the site of the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz in Poland.

In 1980, a state funeral was held in Cairo, Egypt, for the deposed Shah of Iran, who had died two days earlier at age 60.

In 1993, the Israeli Supreme Court acquitted retired Ohio autoworker John Demjanjuk of being Nazi death camp guard "Ivan the Terrible" and threw out his death sentence; Demjanjuk was set free.

Ten years ago: President George W. Bush refused to release a congressional report on possible links between Saudi Arabian officials and the September 11 hijackers, saying disclosure "would help the enemy" by revealing intelligence sources and methods. Boston's Bill Mueller became the first player in major league history to hit grand slams from both sides of the plate in a game and connected for three homers in a 14-7 win at Texas.

Five years ago: Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens was indicted on seven felony counts of concealing more than a quarter of a million dollars in house renovations and gifts from a powerful oil contractor. (A jury later found the longtime Republican lawmaker guilty of lying on financial disclosure forms, but a judge subsequently dismissed the case, saying prosecutors had withheld evidence.) Disgraced ex-NBA official Tim Donaghy admitted that he'd brought shame on his profession as a federal judge sentenced him to 15 months behind bars for a gambling scandal. Army scientist Bruce E. Ivins, 62, named as a top suspect in anthrax mailing attacks in 2001, died at a hospital in Frederick, Md., after deliberately overdosing on Tylenol.

One year ago: Standing on Israeli soil, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney declared Jerusalem to be the capital of the Jewish state and said the United States had "a solemn duty and a moral imperative" to block Iran from achieving nuclear weapons capability. At the London Olympics, 123-pound North Korean weightlifter Om Yun Chol won a gold medal by lifting an Olympic-record 370 pounds in the clean and jerk. Dana Vollmer of the United States set a world record to win the 100-meter butterfly in 55.98 seconds. Yannick Agnel rallied the French to the gold medal in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay in 3 minutes, 9.93 seconds, pulling ahead of American star Ryan Lochte on the final lap. French film director Chris Marker died on his 91st birthday.

Today's Birthdays: Comedian "Professor" Irwin Corey is 99. Actor Robert Horton is 89. Former Sen. Nancy Kassebaum-Baker is 81. Actor Robert Fuller is 80. Former Sen. Elizabeth H. Dole is 77. Actor David Warner is 72. Rock musician Neal Doughty (REO Speedwagon) is 67. Marilyn Tucker Quayle, wife of former Vice President Dan Quayle, is 64. Actor Mike Starr is 63. Documentary maker Ken Burns is 60. Style guru Tim Gunn (TV: "Project Runway") is 60. Rock singer-musician Geddy Lee (Rush) is 60. Rock singer Patti Scialfa (Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band) is 60. Actor Kevin Chapman is 51. Actress Alexandra Paul is 50. Country singer Martina McBride is 47. Rock musician Chris Gorman is 46. Actor Rodney Allen Rippy is 45. Actor Tim Omundson is 44. Actor Wil Wheaton is 41. Rhythm-and-blues singer Wanya Morris (Boyz II Men) is 40. Country singer-songwriter James Otto is 40. Actor Stephen Dorff is 40. Actor Josh Radnor is 39. Hip-hop DJ/music producer Danger Mouse is 36. Actress Rachel Miner is 33. Actress Allison Mack is 31. Actor Matt Prokop is 23.

Thought for Today: "An idea is not responsible for the people who believe in it." -- Don Marquis, American journalist-author (born this date in 1878, died 1937).

Copyright 2013, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.