Today in History

Today is Friday, March 6, the 65th day of 2015. There are 300 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On March 6, 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Dred Scott v. Sandford that Scott, a slave, was not an American citizen and could not sue for his freedom in federal court.

On this date:

In 1834, the city of York in Upper Canada was incorporated as Toronto.

In 1836, the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, fell to Mexican forces after a 13-day siege.

In 1853, Verdi's opera "La Traviata" premiered in Venice, Italy.

In 1933, a national bank holiday declared by President Franklin D. Roosevelt aimed at calming panicked depositors went into effect. Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak, wounded in an attempt on Roosevelt's life the previous month, died at a Miami hospital at age 59.

In 1935, retired Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., died in Washington two days before his 94th birthday.

In 1944, U.S. heavy bombers staged the first full-scale American raid on Berlin during World War II.

In 1953, Georgy Malenkov was named premier of the Soviet Union a day after the death of Josef Stalin.

In 1965, actress Margaret Dumont, perhaps best remembered for playing the foil in Marx Brothers comedies, died in Hollywood at age 82.

In 1967, the daughter of Josef Stalin, Svetlana Alliluyeva, appeared at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi and declared her intention to defect to the West.

In 1970, a bomb being built inside a Greenwich Village townhouse by the radical Weathermen accidentally went off, destroying the house and killing three group members.

In 1983, in a case that drew much notoriety, a woman was gang-raped atop a pool table in a tavern in New Bedford, Massachusetts, called Big Dan's; four men were later convicted of the attack.

In 1995, "The Jenny Jones Show" taped an episode on same-sex crushes during which Jonathan Schmitz learned his secret admirer was an acquaintance, Scott Amedure; three days later, Schmitz fatally shot Amedure. (Schmitz is serving a 25- to 50-year prison sentence for second-degree murder; the episode was never included in the "Jenny Jones" syndication package, but did air on Court TV.)

Ten years ago: Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena said American soldiers gave no warning before they opened fire on the car carrying her to the Baghdad airport, killing the Italian agent who'd just won her freedom after a month in captivity. The White House called the shooting a "horrific accident" and restated its promise to investigate fully. Actress Teresa Wright died in New Haven, Connecticut, at age 86. Hans Bethe, the winner of the 1967 Nobel Prize in physics who'd played a central role in the building of the atomic bomb, died in Ithaca, New York, at age 98.

Five years ago: Voters in Iceland resoundingly rejected a $5.3 billion plan to repay Britain and the Netherlands for debts spawned by the collapse of an Icelandic bank. The Louisville Cardinals gave Freedom Hall a memorable send-off by upsetting No. 1 Syracuse 78-68.

One year ago: Ukraine lurched toward breakup as lawmakers unanimously declared they wanted to join Russia and planned to put the decision to voters; President Barack Obama condemned the move and the West imposed the first real sanctions against Russia. Actress-singer Sheila MacRae, 92, died in Englewood, New Jersey.

Today's Birthdays: Former FBI and CIA director William Webster is 91. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan is 89. Former Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova is 78. Former Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., is 76. Actress-writer Joanna Miles is 75. Actor Ben Murphy is 73. Opera singer Dame Kiri Te Kanawa is 71. Singer Mary Wilson (The Supremes) is 71. Rock musician Hugh Grundy (The Zombies) is 70. Rock singer-musician David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) is 69. Actress Anna Maria Horsford is 68. Actor-director Rob Reiner is 68. Singer Kiki Dee is 68. Fox News reporter John Stossel is 68. Composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz is 67. Rock singer-musician Phil Alvin (The Blasters) is 62. Sports correspondent Armen Keteyian is 62. Actor Tom Arnold is 56. Former child actress Suzanne Crough (kroh) is 52. Actor D.L. Hughley is 51. Country songwriter Skip Ewing is 51. Actor Shuler Hensley is 48. Actress Connie Britton is 48. Actress Moira Kelly is 47. Actress Amy Pietz is 46. Rock musician Chris Broderick (Megadeth) is 45. Former NBA player and College Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal is 43. Country singer Trent Willmon is 42. Country musician Shan Farmer (Ricochet) is 41. Rapper Beanie Sigel is 41. Rapper Bubba Sparxxx is 38. Rock musician Chris Tomson (Vampire Weekend) is 31. Actor Eli Marienthal is 29. Actor Jimmy Galeota is 29. Rapper/producer Tyler, the Creator is 24. Actor Dillon Freasier (Film: "There Will Be Blood") is 19. Actress Savannah Stehlin is 19.

Thought for Today: "Le sens commun n'est pas si commun." (Common sense is not so common.) -- Voltaire, French author and philosopher (1694-1778).

Copyright 2015, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.