Today in History

Today is Tuesday, Dec. 2, the 336th day of 2014. There are 29 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Dec. 2, 1954, the U.S. Senate passed, 67-22, a resolution condemning Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy, R-Wis., saying he had "acted contrary to senatorial ethics and tended to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute."

On this date:

In 1804, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French.

In 1814, French author Donatien-Alphonse-Francois, Comte de Sade, better known as the Marquis de Sade, died in an insane asylum at age 74 after a lifetime of notoriety for his sexual perversities and writings.

In 1823, President James Monroe outlined his doctrine opposing European expansion in the Western Hemisphere.

In 1859, militant abolitionist John Brown was hanged for his raid on Harpers Ferry the previous October. Artist Georges-Pierre Seurat was born in Paris.

In 1927, Ford Motor Co. unveiled its Model A automobile that replaced its Model T.

In 1939, New York Municipal Airport-LaGuardia Field (later LaGuardia Airport) went into operation as an airliner from Chicago landed at one minute past midnight.

In 1942, an artificially created, self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction was demonstrated for the first time at the University of Chicago.

In 1961, Cuban leader Fidel Castro declared himself a Marxist-Leninist who would eventually lead Cuba to Communism.

In 1970, the newly created Environmental Protection Agency opened its doors; its first director was William D. Ruckelshaus.

In 1982, in the first operation of its kind, doctors at the University of Utah Medical Center implanted a permanent artificial heart in the chest of retired dentist Dr. Barney Clark, who lived 112 days with the device.

In 1989, President George H.W. Bush and Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev held the first talks of their wind-tossed Malta summit aboard the Soviet cruise ship Maxim Gorky.

In 1991, American hostage Joseph Cicippio, held captive in Lebanon for more than five years, was released.

Ten years ago: President George W. Bush chose former New York police commissioner Bernard Kerik to run the Department of Homeland Security. (However, Kerik withdrew his name days later, citing immigration problems with a former nanny; he later pleaded guilty to eight felonies, including lying to the White House.) President Bush announced that Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns was his choice as the next agriculture secretary, replacing Ann Veneman. U.N. ambassador John Danforth resigned after five months representing the U.S. at the world body. Dame Alicia Markova, one of the 20th century's greatest ballerinas, died in Bath, England, a day after turning 94. Pulitzer-winning poet Mona Van Duyn, the nation's first female poet laureate, died in University City, Missouri, at age 83.

Five years ago: A day after President Barack Obama announced plans to deploy 30,000 more troops in Afghanistan, leading congressional Democrats said they had serious misgivings but would not try to stop the deployments while Republicans said they supported the force increase even as they questioned Obama's July 2011 deadline to start bringing troops home. Tiger Woods issued a statement saying he'd let his family down with "transgressions" that he regretted "with all of my heart," and that he would deal with his personal life behind closed doors.

One year ago: On "Cyber Monday," perhaps the busiest online shopping day of the year, the Supreme Court refused to wade into a dispute over state sales taxes for purchases on websites like Amazon.com, paving the way for more states to attempt to collect taxes on Internet sales. Actor Christopher Evan Welch, 48, died in Santa Monica, California.

Today's Birthdays: Former Attorney General Edwin Meese III is 83. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is 75. Actress Cathy Lee Crosby is 70. Movie director Penelope Spheeris is 69. Actor Ron Raines is 65. Country singer John Wesley Ryles is 64. Actor Keith Szarabajka is 62. Actor Dan Butler is 60. Broadcast journalist Stone Phillips is 60. Actor Dennis Christopher is 59. Actor Steven Bauer is 58. Country singer Joe Henry is 54. Rock musician Rick Savage (Def Leppard) is 54. Rock musician Nate Mendel (Foo Fighters) is 46. Actress Suzy Nakamura is 46. Actress Rena Sofer is 46. Rock singer Jimi HaHa (Jimmie's Chicken Shack) is 46. Actress Lucy Liu is 46. Rapper Treach (Naughty By Nature) is 44. Actor Joe Lo Truglio (TV: "Brooklyn Nine-Nine") is 44. Tennis player Monica Seles is 41. Singer Nelly Furtado is 36. Pop singer judge Britney Spears is 33. Actress-singer Jana Kramer is 31. Actress Daniela Ruah is 31. Actor Alfred Enoch is 26. Actresses Daniella and Deanna Canterman are 22.

Thought for Today: "When we cannot find contentment in ourselves it is useless to seek it elsewhere." -- Francois, Duc de la Rochefoucauld, French author (1613-1680).

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