Today in History

Today is Saturday, June 2, the 153rd day of 2018. There are 212 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On June 2, 1953, the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II took place in London's Westminster Abbey, 16 months after the death of her father, King George VI.

On this date:

In 1863, during the Civil War, Union Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman wrote a letter to his wife, Ellen, in which he commented, "Vox populi, vox humbug" (The voice of the people is the voice of humbug).

In 1886, President Grover Cleveland, 49, married Frances Folsom, 21, in the Blue Room of the White House. (To date, Cleveland is the only president to marry in the executive mansion.)

In 1897, Mark Twain was quoted by the New York Journal as saying from London that "the report of my death was an exaggeration." (Twain was responding to a report in the New York Herald that he was "grievously ill" and "possibly dying.")

In 1924, Congress passed, and President Calvin Coolidge signed, a measure guaranteeing full American citizenship for all Native Americans born within U.S. territorial limits.

In 1941, baseball's "Iron Horse," Lou Gehrig, died in New York of a degenerative disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; he was 37.

In 1946, Italy held a referendum which resulted in the Italian monarchy being abolished in favor of a republic.

In 1966, U.S. space probe Surveyor 1 landed on the moon and began transmitting detailed photographs of the lunar surface.

In 1976, Arizona Republic investigative reporter Don Bolles was mortally wounded by a bomb planted underneath his car; he died 11 days later. (Prosecutors believed Bolles was targeted because he had written stories that upset a liquor wholesaler; three men were convicted of the killing.)

In 1983, half of the 46 people aboard an Air Canada DC-9 were killed after fire broke out on board, forcing the jetliner to make an emergency landing at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.

In 1986, for the first time, the public could watch the proceedings of the U.S. Senate on television as a six-week experiment began.

In 1997, Timothy McVeigh was convicted of murder and conspiracy in the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City that killed 168 people. (McVeigh was executed in June 2001.)

In 2002, a fire broke out at Buckingham Palace, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people and marring the four-day celebration of Queen Elizabeth II's 50 years on the throne.

Ten years ago: Massachusetts Sen. Edward M. Kennedy underwent 3 1/2 hours of risky and delicate surgery to cut out as much of his cancerous brain tumor as possible. The space shuttle Discovery linked up with the international space station, and the 10 space travelers immediately got ready to install the Japanese lab Kibo. Bo Diddley, 79, a founding father of rock 'n' roll, died in Archer, Florida, at age 79. Actor-director Mel Ferrer died in Santa Barbara, California, at age 90.

Five years ago: Egypt's highest court ruled that the nation's interim parliament was illegally elected, though it stopped short of dissolving the chamber immediately. Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert was fined $75,000 by the NBA for using a gay slur and profanity during his news conference after Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals; Hibbert apologized for the comments.

One year ago: Environmental campaigners protested President Donald Trump's decision to pull the United States out of the Paris climate accord, while nations around the world pledged to double down on their efforts to curb global warming. Three former Penn State administrators were handed jail and house-arrest sentences ranging up to nearly two years for burying child sexual abuse allegations against Jerry Sandusky. In a rambling press conference, embattled comedian Kathy Griffin said she was not afraid of Donald Trump and planned to keep making fun of him but maintained that she was sorry for a video that depicted her holding a likeness of the president's severed, bloody head.

Today's Birthdays: Actress-singer Sally Kellerman is 81. Actor Ron Ely is 80. Filmmaker and movie historian Kevin Brownlow is 80. Actor Stacy Keach is 77. Rock musician Charlie Watts is 77. Actor Charles Haid is 75. Rhythm and blues singer Chubby Tavares (Tavares) is 74. Movie director Lasse (LAH'-suh) Hallstrom is 72. Actor Jerry Mathers is 70. Actress Joanna Gleason is 68. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman is 66. Actor Dennis Haysbert is 64. Comedian Dana Carvey is 63. Actor Gary Grimes is 63. Pop musician Michael Steele is 63. Rock singer Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet) is 58. Actor Liam Cunningham is 57. Actor Navid Negahban is 54. Singer Merril Bainbridge is 50. TV personality-producer Andy Cohen ("The Real Housewives" TV franchise) is 50. Rapper B-Real (Cypress Hill) is 48. Actress Paula Cale is 48. Actor Anthony Montgomery is 47. Actor-comedian Wayne Brady is 46. Actor Wentworth Miller is 46. Rock musician Tim Rice-Oxley (Keane) is 42. Actor Zachary Quinto is 41. Actor Dominic Cooper is 40. Actress Nikki Cox is 40. Actor Justin Long is 40. Actor Deon Richmond is 40. Actress Morena Baccarin is 39. Rhythm and blues singer Irish Grinstead (702) is 38. Rock musician Fabrizio Moretti (The Strokes) is 38. Olympic gold medal soccer player Abby Wambach is 38. Country singer Dan Cahoon (Marshall Dyllon) is 35. Singer-songwriter ZZ Ward is 32. Actress Brittany Curran is 28. Actor Sterling Beaumon is 23.

Thought for Today: "Only the man who finds everything wrong and expects it to get worse is thought to have a clear brain." -- John Kenneth Galbraith, American economist (1908-2006).