Today in History

Today in History

Today is Sunday, Jan. 29, the 29th day of 2017. There are 336 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Jan. 29, 1820, King George III, the British monarch whose 59-year reign included the loss of the American colonies, died at Windsor Castle at age 81; he was succeeded by his son, who became King George IV.

On this date:

In 1843, the 25th president of the United States, William McKinley, was born in Niles, Ohio.

In 1845, Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven" was first published in the New York Evening Mirror.

In 1861, Kansas became the 34th state of the Union.

In 1919, the ratification of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, which launched Prohibition, was certified by Acting Secretary of State Frank L. Polk.

In 1936, the first inductees of baseball's Hall of Fame, including Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth, were named in Cooperstown, New York.

In 1956, editor-essayist H.L. Mencken, the "Sage of Baltimore," died at age 75.

In 1958, actors Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward were married in Las Vegas.

In 1964, Stanley Kubrick's nuclear war satire "Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" premiered in New York, Toronto and London. The Winter Olympic Games opened in Innsbruck, Austria. Actor Alan Ladd, 50, died in Palm Springs, California.

In 1966, the musical comedy "Sweet Charity" starring Gwen Verdon opened on Broadway.

In 1975, a bomb exploded inside the U.S. State Department in Washington, causing considerable damage but injuring no one; the radical group Weather Underground claimed responsibility.

In 1990, former Exxon Valdez skipper Joseph Hazelwood went on trial in Anchorage, Alaska, on charges stemming from the 1989 oil spill. (Hazelwood was acquitted of the major charges, and convicted of a misdemeanor.)

In 1995, the San Francisco 49ers became the first team in NFL history to win five Super Bowl titles, beating the San Diego Chargers, 49-26, in Super Bowl XXIX.

In 1998, a bomb rocked an abortion clinic in Birmingham, Alabama, killing security guard Robert Sanderson and critically injuring nurse Emily Lyons. (The bomber, Eric Rudolph, was captured in May 2003 and is serving a life sentence.)

Ten years ago: President George W. Bush, deeply distrustful of Iran, told National Public Radio "we will respond firmly" if Tehran were to escalate its military actions in Iraq and threaten American forces or Iraqi citizens. A Palestinian suicide bomber killed three Israelis at a bakery in Eilat in the first such attack inside Israel in nine months. Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro was euthanized because of medical complications eight months after his gruesome breakdown at the Preakness. Miss Oklahoma Lauren Nelson was crowned Miss America 2007 at the pageant in Las Vegas.

Five years ago: Eleven people were killed when smoke and fog caused a series of fiery crashes on I-75 in Florida. Fourteen-year-old Lydia Ko of New Zealand won the Bing Lee/Samsung Women's NSW Open on the ALPG Tour. Novak Djokovic began defense of his Australian Open title with a 5-hour, 53-minute match against Rafael Nadal (Djokovic won 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 at 1:37 a.m. Melbourne time Jan. 30). Team Chara won a 12-9 victory over Team Alfredsson in the NHL All-Star game. The AFC beat the NFC 59-41 in the Pro Bowl. Jeremy Abbott won his third title at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in San Jose, California.

One year ago: The Obama administration confirmed for the first time that Hillary Clinton's home server contained closely guarded government secrets. An avalanche in the Canadian province of British Columbia left five people riding snowmobiles dead. Two American endurance athletes, Daniel Cartica of Chicago and Becca Pizzi of Belmont, Massachusetts, won the World Marathon Challenge by completing seven marathons in seven days on seven continents. French movie director Jacques Rivette, 87, died in Paris.

Today's Birthdays: Writer-composer-lyricist Leslie Bricusse is 86. Feminist author Germaine Greer is 78. Actress Katharine Ross is 77. Feminist author Robin Morgan is 76. Actor Tom Selleck is 72. Rhythm-and-blues singer Bettye LaVette is 71. Actor Marc Singer is 69. Actress Ann Jillian is 67. Rock musician Louie Perez (Los Lobos) is 64. Rhythm-and-blues/funk singer Charlie Wilson is 64. Talk show host Oprah Winfrey is 63. Actor Terry Kinney is 63. Country singer Irlene Mandrell is 61. Actress Diane Delano is 60. Actress Judy Norton Taylor (TV: "The Waltons") is 59. Rock musician Johnny Spampinato is 58. Olympic gold-medal diver Greg Louganis is 57. Rock musician David Baynton-Power (James) is 56. Rock musician Eddie Jackson (Queensryche) is 56. Actor Nicholas Turturro is 55. Rock singer-musician Roddy Frame (Aztec Camera) is 53. Actor-director Edward Burns is 49. Actor Sam Trammell (TV: "True Blood") is 48. Actress Heather Graham is 47. U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is 47. Actor Sharif Atkins is 42. Actress Sara Gilbert is 42. Actress Kelly Packard is 42. Actor Justin Hartley is 40. Actor Sam Jaeger is 40. Writer and TV personality Jedediah Bila (TV: "The View") is 38. Actor Andrew Keegan is 38. Actor Jason James Richter is 37. Blues musician Jonny Lang is 36. Pop-rock singer Adam Lambert (TV: "American Idol") is 35. Country singer Eric Paslay is 34.

Thought for Today: "And were an epitaph to be my story I'd have a short one ready for my own. I would have written of me on my stone: 'I had a lover's quarrel with the world."' -- Robert Frost, American poet (born 1874, died this date in 1963).