Today in History

Today in History

Today is Saturday, Aug. 27, the 240th day of 2016. There are 126 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Aug. 27, 1883, the island volcano Krakatoa erupted with a series of cataclysmic explosions; the resulting tidal waves in Indonesia's Sunda Strait claimed some 36,000 lives in Java and Sumatra.

On this date:

In 1776, the Battle of Long Island began during the Revolutionary War as British troops attacked American forces, who ended up being forced to retreat two days later.

In 1908, Lyndon Baines Johnson, the 36th president of the United States, was born near Stonewall, Texas.

In 1928, the Kellogg-Briand Pact was signed in Paris, outlawing war and providing for the peaceful settlement of disputes.

In 1939, the first turbojet-powered aircraft, the Heinkel He 178, went on its first full-fledged test flight over Germany.

In 1949, a violent white mob prevented an outdoor concert headlined by Paul Robeson from taking place near Peekskill, New York. (The concert was held eight days later.)

In 1957, the USS Swordfish, the second Skate Class nuclear submarine, was launched from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Maine.

In 1962, the United States launched the Mariner 2 space probe, which flew past Venus in December 1962.

In 1965, influential Swiss-born architect Le Corbusier, 77, died in Cap Martin, France.

In 1975, Haile Selassie, the last emperor of Ethiopia's 3,000-year-old monarchy, died in Addis Ababa at age 83 almost a year after being overthrown.

In 1979, British war hero Lord Louis Mountbatten and three other people, including his 14-year-old grandson Nicholas, were killed off the coast of Ireland in a boat explosion claimed by the Irish Republican Army.

In 1989, the first U.S. commercial satellite rocket was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida -- a Delta booster carrying a British communications satellite, the Marcopolo 1.

In 2008, Barack Obama was nominated for president by the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

Ten years ago: A Comair CRJ-100 crashed after trying to take off from the wrong runway in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49 people and leaving the co-pilot the sole survivor. Two Fox News journalists, Steve Centanni and cameraman Olaf Wiig, were freed by militants nearly two weeks after being kidnapped in Gaza City. The action series "24" won Emmys for best drama series and best actor for Kiefer Sutherland; "The Office" was honored as best comedy.

Five years ago: Hurricane Irene, after striking Puerto Rico and the Bahamas, pushed up the U.S east coast, prompting evacuations in New York City and leaving major flood damage in Vermont. Hundreds of soldiers and federal agents raided a casino in Monterrey in northern Mexico, two days after an arson attack on a gambling house killed 52 people.

One year ago: Visiting residents on tidy porch stoops and sampling the fried chicken at a corner restaurant, President Barack Obama held out the people of New Orleans as an extraordinary example of renewal and resilience 10 years after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Ex-NBA star Darryl Dawkins, 58, whose board-shattering dunks earned him the moniker "Chocolate Thunder" and helped pave the way for breakaway rims, died in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Today's Birthdays: Author Lady Antonia Fraser is 84. Actor Tommy Sands is 79. Bluegrass singer-musician J.D. Crowe is 79. Musician Daryl Dragon is 74. Actress Tuesday Weld is 73. Actor G.W. Bailey is 72. Rock singer-musician Tim Bogert is 72. Actress Marianne Sagebrecht is 71. Country musician Jeff Cook is 67. Actor Paul Reubens is 64. Rock musician Alex Lifeson (Rush) is 63. Actor Peter Stormare is 63. Actress Diana Scarwid is 61. Rock musician Glen Matlock (The Sex Pistols) is 60. Golfer Bernhard Langer is 59. Country singer Jeffrey Steele is 55. Gospel singer Yolanda Adams is 55. Country musician Matthew Basford (Yankee Grey) is 54. Writer-producer Dean Devlin is 54. Rock musician Mike Johnson is 51. Rap musician Bobo (Cypress Hill) is 48. Country singer Colt Ford is 47. Actress Chandra Wilson is 47. Rock musician Tony Kanal (No Doubt) is 46. Actress Sarah Chalke is 40. Actor RonReaco (correct) Lee is 40. Rapper Mase is 39. Actress-singer Demetria McKinney is 38. Actor Aaron Paul is 37. Rock musician Jon Siebels (Eve 6) is 37. Actor Shaun Weiss is 37. Contemporary Christian musician Megan Garrett (Casting Crowns) is 36. Actor Kyle Lowder is 36. Actor Patrick J. Adams is 35. Actress Karla Mosley is 35. Actress Amanda Fuller is 32. Singer Mario is 30. Actress Alexa PenaVega is 28. Actor Ellar Coltrane is 22. Actress Savannah Paige Rae is 13.

Thought for Today: "Doing what's right isn't the problem. It is knowing what's right." -- Lyndon Baines Johnson, 36th President of the United States (1908-1973).