Today in History

Today in History

Today is Thursday, April 14, the 105th day of 2016. There are 261 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln was shot and mortally wounded by John Wilkes Booth during a performance of "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theater in Washington.

On this date:

In 1775, the first American society for the abolition of slavery was formed in Philadelphia.

In 1828, the first edition of Noah Webster's "American Dictionary of the English Language" was published.

In 1912, the British liner RMS Titanic collided with an iceberg in the North Atlantic at 11:40 p.m. ship's time and began sinking. (The ship went under two hours and 40 minutes later with the loss of 1,514 lives.)

In 1935, the "Black Sunday" dust storm descended upon the central Plains, turning a sunny afternoon into total darkness.

In 1939, the John Steinbeck novel "The Grapes of Wrath" was first published by Viking Press.

In 1949, the "Wilhelmstrasse Trial" in Nuremberg ended with 19 former Nazi Foreign Office officials sentenced by an American tribunal to prison terms ranging from four to 25 years.

In 1956, Ampex Corp. demonstrated the first practical videotape recorder at the National Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters Convention in Chicago.

In 1965, the state of Kansas hanged Richard Hickock and Perry Smith for the 1959 murders of Herbert Clutter, his wife, Bonnie, and two of their children, Nancy and Kenyon.

In 1975, Academy Award-winning actor Fredric March, 77, died in Los Angeles.

In 1981, the first test flight of America's first operational space shuttle, the Columbia, ended successfully with a landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

In 1986, Americans got word of a U.S. air raid on Libya (because of the time difference, it was the early morning of April 15 where the attack occurred.) French feminist author Simone de Beauvoir died in Paris at age 78.

In 1995, Oscar-winning actor-singer Burl Ives died in Anacortes, Washington, at age 85.

Ten years ago: President George W. Bush rebuffed recommendations from a growing number of retired generals that he replace Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, saying, "He has my full support." Kobe Bryant broke the Los Angeles Lakers' single-season scoring record, getting 50 points to eclipse Elgin Baylor's long-standing total of 2,719 points in a 110-99 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.

Five years ago: Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi rolled defiantly through the streets of Tripoli the same day NATO air strikes shook the city. North Korean confirmed it was holding an American who was detained in November 2010, reportedly for proselytizing. (Eddie Jun was freed in May 2011.) ABC canceled two of its longtime soap operas, "One Life to Live" and "All My Children."

One year ago: The White House announced that President Barack Obama would remove Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism, a key step in his bid to normalize relations between the two countries. Percy Sledge, 74, who soared from part-time singer and hospital orderly to lasting fame with his aching, forlorn performance on the classic "When a Man Loves a Woman," died in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Bradford Dillman is 86. Country singer Loretta Lynn is 84. Actress Julie Christie is 76. Retired MLB All-Star Pete Rose is 75. Rock musician Ritchie Blackmore is 71. Actor John Shea is 67. Actor-turned-race car driver Brian Forster is 56. Actor Brad Garrett is 56. Actor Robert Carlyle is 55. Rock singer-musician John Bell (Widespread Panic) is 54. Actor Robert Clendenin is 52. Actress Catherine Dent is 51. Actor Lloyd Owen is 50. Baseball Hall of Famer Greg Maddux is 50. Rock musician Barrett Martin is 49. Actor Anthony Michael Hall is 48. Actor Adrien Brody is 43. Classical singer David Miller is 43. Rapper DaBrat is 42. Actor Antwon Tanner is 41. Actress Sarah Michelle Gellar is 39. Actor-producer Rob McElhenney is 39. Roots singer JD McPherson is 39. Rock singer Win Butler (Arcade Fire) is 36. Actress Claire Coffee is 36. Actor Christian Alexander is 26. Actor Nick Krause is 24. Actress Vivien Cardone is 23. Actor Graham Phillips is 23. Actress Skyler Samuels (TV: "Scream Queens") is 22. Actress Abigail Breslin is 20.

Thought for Today: "I am a man of fixed and unbending principles, the first of which is to be flexible at all times." -- Everett Dirksen, American politician (1896-1969).