Today in History

Today in History

Today is Monday, July 10, the 191st day of 2017. There are 174 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On July 10, 1967, country singer-songwriter Bobbie Gentry recorded her hit single "Ode to Billie Joe" at Capitol Records in Hollywood.

On this date:

In A.D. 138, Roman Emperor Hadrian, responsible for the construction of opulent temples as well as the barrier in northern Britain known as Hadrian's Wall, died at age 62.

In 1509, theologian John Calvin, a key figure of the Protestant Reformation, was born in Noyon, Picardy, France.

In 1890, Wyoming became the 44th state.

In 1919, President Woodrow Wilson personally delivered the Treaty of Versailles to the Senate and urged its ratification. (However, the Senate rejected it.)

In 1925, jury selection took place in Dayton, Tennessee, in the trial of John T. Scopes, charged with violating the law by teaching Darwin's Theory of Evolution. (Scopes was convicted and fined, but the verdict was overturned on a technicality.)

In 1940, during World War II, the Battle of Britain began as the Luftwaffe started attacking southern England. (The Royal Air Force was ultimately victorious.)

In 1951, armistice talks aimed at ending the Korean War began at Kaesong.

In 1962, AT&T's Telstar 1 communications satellite, capable of relaying television signals and telephone calls, was launched by NASA from Cape Canaveral.

In 1973, the Bahamas became fully independent after three centuries of British colonial rule. John Paul Getty III, the teenage grandson of the oil tycoon, was abducted in Rome by kidnappers who cut off his ear when his family was slow to meet their ransom demands; Getty was released in December 1973 for nearly $3 million.

In 1985, the Greenpeace protest ship Rainbow Warrior was sunk with explosives in Auckland, New Zealand, by French intelligence agents; one activist was killed. Bowing to pressure from irate customers, the Coca-Cola Co. said it would resume selling old-formula Coke, while continuing to sell New Coke.

In 1991, Boris N. Yeltsin took the oath of office as the first elected president of the Russian republic. President George H.W. Bush lifted economic sanctions against South Africa.

In 1999, the United States women's soccer team won the World Cup, beating China 5-4 on penalty kicks after 120 minutes of scoreless play at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.

Ten years ago: China executed the former head of its food and drug agency (Zheng Xiaoyu) for approving untested medicine in exchange for cash. A judge in Los Angeles sentenced pizza deliveryman Chester Turner to death for murdering 10 women and a fetus during the 1980s and '90s (Turner remains on death row). The American League defeated the National League 5-4 in the All-Star game. Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Doug Marlette, 57, died in an auto accident near Holly Springs, Mississippi.

Five years ago: Clashing over the economy, President Barack Obama challenged Mitt Romney to join him in allowing tax hikes for rich Americans like them; Romney dismissed the idea and redirected charges that he, Romney, had sent jobs overseas when he worked in private equity, calling Obama the real "outsourcer-in-chief." An Israeli court cleared former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of the central charges in a multi-case corruption trial that forced him from power, but convicted him of a lesser charge of breach of trust, for which Olmert received a suspended one-year jail sentence. The National League romped to an 8-0 victory over the American League in the All-Star game.

One year ago: President Barack Obama, during an abbreviated visit to Spain, urged respect and restraint from Americans angered by the killing of black men by police, saying anything less did a "disservice to the cause" of ridding the criminal justice system of racial bias. Andy Murray won his second Wimbledon title by beating Milos Raonic 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2) on Centre Court.

Today's Birthdays: Former boxer Jake LaMotta is 96. Former New York City Mayor David N. Dinkins is 90. Actor William Smithers is 90. Broadway composer Jerry Herman is 86. Director Ivan Passer is 84. Actor Lawrence Pressman is 78. Singer Mavis Staples is 78. Actor Mills Watson is 77. Actor Robert Pine is 76. Rock musician Jerry Miller (Moby Grape) is 74. International Tennis Hall of Famer Virginia Wade is 72. Actress Sue Lyon is 71. Folk singer Arlo Guthrie is 70. Rock musician Dave Smalley is 68. Country-folk singer-songwriter Cheryl Wheeler is 66. Rock singer Neil Tennant (Pet Shop Boys) is 63. Banjo player Bela Fleck is 59. Country musician Shaw Wilson (BR549) is 57. Bluegrass singer-musician Tim Surrett (Balsam Range) is 54. Actor Alec Mapa is 52. Country singer-songwriter Ken Mellons is 52. Rock musician Peter DiStefano (Porno for Pyros) is 52. Actor Gale Harold is 48. Country singer Gary LeVox (Rascal Flatts) is 47. Actor Aaron D. Spears is 46. Actress Sofia Vergara is 45. Rockabilly singer Imelda May is 43. Actor Adrian Grenier is 41. Actor Chiwetel Ejiofor is 40. Actress Gwendoline Yeo is 40. Actor Thomas Ian Nicholas is 37. Singer-actress Jessica Simpson is 37. Rock musician John Spiker is 36. Actress Heather Hemmens is 33. Actress Emily Skeggs (TV: "When We Rise") is 27. Rapper/singer Angel Haze is 26. Pop singer Perrie Edwards (Little Mix) is 24.

Thought for Today: "When I feel the heat, I see the light." -- Everett Dirksen, American politician (1896-1969).