Today in History

Today is Tuesday, September 16, the 259th day of 2014. There are 106 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On September 16, 1974, President Gerald R. Ford announced a conditional amnesty program for Vietnam war deserters and draft-evaders.

On this date:

In 1498, Tomas de Torquemada, notorious for his role in the Spanish Inquisition, died in Avila, Spain.

In 1810, Mexicans were inspired to begin their successful revolt against Spanish rule by Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and his "Grito de Dolores (Cry of Dolores)."

In 1893, more than 100,000 settlers swarmed onto a section of land in Oklahoma known as the "Cherokee Strip."

In 1908, General Motors was founded in Flint, Michigan, by William C. Durant.

In 1914, "Candid Camera" creator Allen Funt was born in New York.

In 1919, the American Legion received a national charter from Congress.

In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Selective Training and Service Act. Samuel T. Rayburn of Texas was elected Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

In 1953, "The Robe," the first movie presented in the widescreen process CinemaScope, had its world premiere at the Roxy Theater in New York.

In 1964, the rock-and-roll show "Shindig!" premiered on ABC-TV.

In 1982, the massacre of between 1,200 and 1,400 Palestinian men, women and children at the hands of Israeli-allied Christian Phalange militiamen began in west Beirut's Sabra and Shatila refugee camps.

In 1994, a federal jury in Anchorage, Alaska, ordered Exxon Corp. to pay $5 billion in punitive damages for the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill (the U.S. Supreme Court later reduced that amount to $507.5 million). Two astronauts from the space shuttle Discovery went on the first untethered spacewalk in ten years.

In 2007, O.J. Simpson was arrested in the alleged armed robbery of sports memorabilia collectors in Las Vegas. (Simpson was later convicted of kidnapping and armed robbery and sentenced to nine to 33 years in prison.)

Ten years ago: Hurricane Ivan plowed into the Gulf Coast with 130-mile-per-hour wind and a major storm surge; Ivan was blamed for 92 deaths, 25 of them in the U.S. The number of foreigners kidnapped during the Iraq insurgency reached at least 100. The National Hockey League lockout went into effect.

Five years ago: Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mt., chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, unveiled sweeping legislation to remake the nation's costly health care system. Mary Travers, 72, one part of the folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary, died in Danbury, Connecticut. NCAA President Myles Brand, 67, died in Indianapolis.

One year ago: Aaron Alexis, a former U.S. Navy reservist, went on a shooting rampage inside the Washington Navy Yard, killing 12 victims before being shot dead by police.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Janis Paige is 92. Blues singer B.B. King is 89. Clergyman-author Rev. Robert H. Schuller is 88. Actor George Chakiris is 82. Bluesman Billy Boy Arnold is 79. Movie director Jim McBride is 73. Actress Linda Miller is 72. Rhythm-and-blues singer Betty Kelly (Martha & the Vandellas) is 70. Musician Kenney Jones (Small Faces; Faces; The Who) is 66. Actress Susan Ruttan is 66. Rock musician Ron Blair (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers; Mudcrutch) is 66. Actor Ed Begley Jr. is 65. Country singer David Bellamy (The Bellamy Brothers) is 64. Country singer-songwriter Phil Lee is 63. Actor-comedian Lenny Clarke is 61. Actor Kurt Fuller is 61. Jazz musician Earl Klugh is 61. Actor Christopher Rich is 61. Singer Frank Reed (The Chi-Lites) is 60. TV personality Mark McEwen is 60. Baseball Hall of Famer Robin Yount is 59. Actor Mickey Rourke is 58. Magician David Copperfield is 58. Country singer-songwriter Terry McBride is 56. Actress Jennifer Tilly is 56. Retired MLB All-Star pitcher Orel Hershiser is 56. Retired MLB All-Star Tim Raines is 55. Actress Jayne Brook is 54. Singer Richard Marx is 51. Comedian Molly Shannon is 50. Singer Marc Anthony is 46. Comedian-actress Amy Poehler is 43. Country singer Matt Stillwell is 39. Singer Musiq is 37. Actor Michael Mosley is 36. Rapper Flo Rida is 35. Actress Alexis Bledel is 33. Actress Sabrina Bryan is 30. Actress Madeline Zima is 29. Actor Ian Harding (TV: "Pretty Little Liars") is 28. Actress Kyla Pratt is 28. Actor Daren Kagasoff is 27. Rock singer Teddy Geiger is 26. Actress-dancer Bailey Buntain is 25. Rock singer-musician Nick Jonas (The Jonas Brothers) is 22.

Thought for Today: "You can love a person deeply and sincerely whom you do not like. You can like a person passionately whom you do not love." -- Robert Hugh Benson, English author and clergyman (1871-1914).

Copyright 2014, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.