Today in History

Today in History

Today is Tuesday, Dec. 1, the 335th day of 2015. There are 30 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Dec. 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, a black seamstress, was arrested after refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Alabama, city bus; the incident sparked a year-long boycott of the buses by blacks.

On this date:

In 1824, the presidential election was turned over to the U.S. House of Representatives when a deadlock developed between John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, William H. Crawford and Henry Clay. (Adams ended up the winner.)

In 1860, the Charles Dickens novel "Great Expectations" was first published in weekly serial form.

In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln sent his Second Annual Message to Congress, in which he called for the abolition of slavery, and went on to say, "Fellow citizens, we cannot escape history. We of this Congress and this administration will be remembered in spite of ourselves."

In 1921, the Navy flew the first non-rigid dirigible to use helium; the C-7 traveled from Hampton Roads, Virginia, to Washington, D.C.

In 1934, Soviet communist official Sergei M. Kirov, an associate of Josef Stalin, was assassinated in Leningrad, resulting in a massive purge.

In 1941, Japan's Emperor Hirohito approved waging war against the United States, Britain and the Netherlands after his government rejected U.S. demands contained in the Hull Note.

In 1942, nationwide gasoline rationing went into effect in the United States.

In 1965, an airlift of refugees from Cuba to the United States began in which thousands of Cubans were allowed to leave their homeland.

In 1969, the U.S. government held its first draft lottery since World War II.

In 1973, David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, died in Tel Aviv at age 87.

In 1989, Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev met with Pope John Paul II at the Vatican.

In 1990, British and French workers digging the Channel Tunnel between their countries finally met after knocking out a passage in a service tunnel.

Ten years ago: A roadside bomb killed 10 U.S. Marines near Fallujah, Iraq. South Africa's highest court ruled in favor of gay marriage. A jury in Sarasota, Florida, recommended the death sentence for Joseph Smith, the killer of 11-year-old Carlie Brucia. A dog and its owner found the bodies of Sarah and Philip Gehring, two children who'd been fatally shot by their father and buried in rural Ohio. (Manuel Gehring had confessed to the slayings but strangled himself in prison before he could be tried.)

Five years ago: President Barack Obama's bipartisan deficit commission unveiled its recommendations including lower income taxes, fewer tax breaks and higher age for retirement benefits (however, the panel failed to advance the package to Congress two days later by a vote of 11 in favor, 7 against, falling short of the 14 votes needed). LPGA players meeting in Orlando, Florida, voted to allow transgender players to compete on tour.

One year ago: President Barack Obama, after meeting with mayors, civil rights leaders and law enforcement officials at the White House, asked federal agencies for concrete recommendations to ensure the U.S. wasn't building a "militarized culture" within police departments.

Today's Birthdays: Former CIA director Stansfield Turner is 92. Singer Billy Paul is 80. Actor-director Woody Allen is 80. World Golf Hall of Famer Lee Trevino is 76. Singer Dianne Lennon (The Lennon Sisters) is 76. Country musician Casey Van Beek (The Tractors) is 73. Television producer David Salzman is 72. Rock singer-musician Eric Bloom (Blue Oyster Cult) is 71. Rock musician John Densmore (The Doors) is 71. Actress-singer Bette Midler is 70. Singer Gilbert O'Sullivan is 69. Former child actor Keith Thibodeaux (TV: "I Love Lucy") is 65. Actor Treat Williams is 64. Country singer Kim Richey is 59. Actress Charlene Tilton is 57. Actress-model Carol Alt is 55. Actor Jeremy Northam is 54. Actress Katherine LaNasa is 49. Producer-director Andrew Adamson is 49. Actor Nestor Carbonell is 48. Actress Golden Brooks is 45. Actress-comedian Sarah Silverman is 45. Actor Ron Melendez is 43. Contemporary Christian singer Bart Millard is 43. Actor-writer-producer David Hornsby is 40. Singer Sarah Masen is 40. Rock musician Brad Delson (Linkin Park) is 38. Actor Nate Torrence is 38. Rock/Christian music singer-songwriter Mat Kearney is 37. Rock musician Mika Fineo (Filter) is 34. Actor Charles Michael Davis is 31. R&B singer Janelle Monae is 30. Actress Ashley Monique Clark is 27. Actress Zoe Kravitz is 27. Pop singer Nico Sereba (Nico & Vinz) is 25. Actor Jackson Nicoll is 12.

Thought for Today: "I got a simple rule about everybody. If you don't treat me right, shame on you." -- Louis Armstrong, American jazz musician (1900-1971).