Today in History

Today is Friday, October 23, the 296th day of 2015. There are 69 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On October 23, 1915, tens of thousands of women paraded up Fifth Avenue in New York City, demanding the right to vote.

On this date:

In 1707, the first Parliament of Great Britain, created by the Acts of Union between England and Scotland, held its first meeting.

In 1864, forces led by Union Maj. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis repelled Confederate Maj. Gen. Sterling Price's army in the Civil War Battle of Westport in Missouri.

In 1925, talk show host Johnny Carson was born in Corning, Iowa.

In 1935, mobster Dutch Schultz, 34, was shot and mortally wounded with three other men during a gangland hit at the Palace Chophouse in Newark, New Jersey. (Schultz died the following day.)

In 1942, during World War II, Britain launched a major offensive against Axis forces at El Alamein in Egypt, resulting in an Allied victory.

In 1944, the World War II Battle of Leyte Gulf began, resulting in a major Allied victory against Japanese forces.

In 1956, a student-sparked revolt against Hungary's Communist rule began; as the revolution spread, Soviet forces started entering the country, and the uprising was put down within weeks.

In 1963, the Neil Simon comedy "Barefoot in the Park," starring Elizabeth Ashley and Robert Redford, opened on Broadway.

In 1972, the musical "Pippin" opened on Broadway.

In 1983, 241 U.S. service members, most of them Marines, were killed in a suicide truck-bombing at Beirut International Airport in Lebanon; a near-simultaneous attack on French forces killed 58 paratroopers. NBC News reporter and anchorwoman Jessica Savitch, 36, and New York Post executive Martin Fischbein, 34, died in a car accident in New Hope, Pennsylvania.

In 1989, 23 people were killed in an explosion at Phillips Petroleum Co.'s chemical complex in Pasadena, Texas. In a case that inflamed racial tensions in Boston, Charles Stuart claimed that he and his pregnant wife, Carol, had been shot in their car by a black robber. (Carol Stuart and her prematurely delivered baby died; Charles Stuart later died, an apparent suicide, after he himself was implicated.)

In 1995, a jury in Houston convicted Yolanda Saldivar of murdering Tejano singing star Selena. (Saldivar was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.)

Ten years ago: Warsaw's conservative mayor, Lech Kaczynski, won Poland's presidential runoff vote. The Chicago White Sox took a 2-games-to-none lead in the World Series as they beat the Houston Astros 7-6.

Five years ago: The world's leading advanced and emerging countries vowed during a meeting in Gyeongju, South Korea, to avoid potentially debilitating currency devaluations, aiming to quell trade tensions that could threaten the global recovery. San Francisco's Juan Uribe hit a tiebreaking homer off Ryan Madson with two outs in the eighth inning and the Giants held off Philadelphia 3-2 to win the NL pennant in six games.

One year ago: Officials announced that an emergency room doctor who'd recently returned to New York City after treating Ebola patients in West Africa tested positive for the virus, becoming the first case in the city and the fourth in the nation. (Dr. Craig Spencer later recovered.) John "Bull" Bramlett, a former professional football and baseball player who was nicknamed the "Meanest Man in Football," died in Memphis, Tennessee, at age 73.

Today's Birthdays: Baseball Hall of Famer and former U.S. Senator Jim Bunning, R-Ky., is 84. Movie director Philip Kaufman is 79. Soccer great Pele is 75. Rhythm-and-blues singer Barbara Ann Hawkins (The Dixie Cups) is 72. ABC News investigative reporter Brian Ross is 67. Actor Michael Rupert is 64. Movie director Ang Lee is 61. Jazz singer Dianne Reeves is 59. Country singer Dwight Yoakam is 59. Community activist Martin Luther King III is 58. Movie director Sam Raimi is 56. Parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic is 56. Rock musician Robert Trujillo (Metallica) is 51. Christian/jazz singer David Thomas (Take 6) is 49. Rock musician Brian Nevin (Big Head Todd and the Monsters) is 49. Country singer-musician Junior Bryant is 47. Actor Jon Huertas is 46. Movie director Chris Weitz is 46. CNN medical reporter Dr. Sanjay Gupta is 46. Country singer Jimmy Wayne is 43. Actress Vivian Bang is 42. Rock musician Eric Bass (Shinedown) is 41. TV personality and host Cat Deeley is 39. Actor Ryan Reynolds is 39. Rock singer Matthew Shultz (Cage the Elephant) is 32. Rhythm-and-blues singer Miguel is 30. Actress Masiela Lusha is 30. Actress Emilia Clarke is 29. Actress Briana Evigan is 29. Actress Jessica Stroup is 29. Neo-soul musician Allen Branstetter (St. Paul & the Broken Bones) is 25.

Thought for Today: "Just be yourself -- it's the only way it can work." -- Johnny Carson (1925-2005).

Copyright 2015, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.