Today in History

Today is Wednesday, Nov. 22, the 326th day of 2017. There are 39 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Nov. 22, 1963, John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated while riding in a motorcade in Dallas; Texas Gov. John B. Connally, in the same car as Kennedy, was seriously wounded; a suspect, Lee Harvey Oswald, was arrested; Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as president.

On this date:

In 1718, English pirate Edward Teach -- better known as "Blackbeard" -- was killed during a battle off present-day North Carolina.

In 1890, French president Charles de Gaulle was born in Lille, France.

In 1914, the First Battle of Ypres during World War I ended with an Allied victory against Germany.

In 1928, "Bolero" by Maurice Ravel had its premiere at the Paris Opera.

In 1935, a flying boat, the China Clipper, took off from Alameda, California, carrying more than 100,000 pieces of mail on the first trans-Pacific airmail flight.

In 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek met in Cairo to discuss measures for defeating Japan. Lyricist Lorenz Hart died in New York at age 48.

In 1954, the Humane Society of the United States was incorporated as the National Humane Society.

In 1967, the U.N. Security Council approved Resolution 242, which called for Israel to withdraw from territories it had captured the previous June, and implicitly called on adversaries to recognize Israel's right to exist. The Mel Brooks film comedy "The Producers," starring Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder, had its world premiere in Pittsburgh.

In 1975, Juan Carlos was proclaimed King of Spain.

In 1977, regular passenger service between New York and Europe on the supersonic Concorde began on a trial basis.

In 1980, death claimed actress Mae West at her Hollywood residence at age 87 and former Democratic House Speaker John W. McCormack in Dedham, Massachusetts, at age 88.

In 1990, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, having failed to win re-election of the Conservative Party leadership on the first ballot, announced she would resign.

Ten years ago: Retailers lured shoppers to stores and online on Thanksgiving Day ahead of the traditional Black Friday kick-off. A man shot and killed his ex-wife, their three children, ages 12, 10 and 6, and himself in a park in Laytonsville, Maryland. French rail workers who'd staged a nine-day-old strike voted to return to the job.

Five years ago: Two people died and more than 80 people were hurt when at least 140 vehicles collided on a stretch of highway near Beaumont, Texas, in foggy conditions. In a series of constitutional amendments, Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi granted himself sweeping new powers and placed himself above judicial oversight.

One year ago: President Barack Obama awarded the nation's highest civilian honor to 21 groundbreaking actors, musicians, athletes and others; among those receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom were Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro, Robert Redford, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bruce Springsteen, Diana Ross, Bill and Melinda Gates, Ellen DeGeneres and broadcaster Vin Scully. A magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck northeastern Japan, the strongest since a devastating quake and tsunami five years earlier.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Michael Callan is 82. Actor Allen Garfield is 78. Animator and movie director Terry Gilliam is 77. Actor Tom Conti is 76. Singer Jesse Colin Young is 76. Astronaut Guion Bluford is 75. International Tennis Hall of Famer Billie Jean King is 74. Rock musician-actor Steve Van Zandt (a.k.a. Little Steven) is 67. Rock musician Tina Weymouth (The Heads; Talking Heads; The Tom Tom Club) is 67. Retired MLB All-Star Greg Luzinski is 67. Actress Lin Tucci is 66. Rock musician Lawrence Gowan is 61. Actor Richard Kind is 61. Actress Jamie Lee Curtis is 59. Alt-country singer Jason Ringenberg (Jason & the Scorchers) is 59. Actress Mariel Hemingway is 56. Actor Winsor Harmon is 54. Actor-turned-producer Brian Robbins is 54. Actor Stephen Geoffreys is 53. Rock musician Charlie Colin is 51. Actor Nicholas Rowe is 51. Actor Michael K. Williams is 51. Actor Mark Ruffalo is 50. International Tennis Hall of Famer Boris Becker is 50. Actress Sidse Babett Knudsen is 49. Country musician Chris Fryar (Zac Brown Band) is 47. Actor Josh Cooke is 38. Actor-singer Tyler Hilton is 34. Actress Scarlett Johansson is 33. Actor Jamie Campbell Bower is 29. Singer Candice Glover (TV: "American Idol") is 28. Actor Alden Ehrenreich is 28. Actress Mackenzie Lintz is 21.

Thought for Today: "If we are strong, our strength will speak for itself. If we are weak, words will be no help." -- From the address President Kennedy never got to deliver in Dallas on November 22, 1963.