Today in History

Today is Friday, June 28, the 179th day of 2019. There are 186 days left in the year.

Today's Highlights in History:

On June 28, 1978, the Supreme Court ordered the University of California-Davis Medical School to admit Allan Bakke, a white man who argued he'd been a victim of reverse racial discrimination.

On this date:

In 1778, the Revolutionary War Battle of Monmouth took place in New Jersey; from this battle arose the legend of "Molly Pitcher," a woman who was said to have carried water to colonial soldiers, then took over firing her husband's cannon after he was disabled.

In 1838, Britain's Queen Victoria was crowned in Westminster Abbey.

In 1863, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Maj. Gen. George G. Meade the new commander of the Army of the Potomac, following the resignation of Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker.

In 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife, Sophie, were shot to death in Sarajevo by Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip -- an act which sparked World War I.

In 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed in France, ending the First World War. In Independence, Missouri, future president Harry S. Truman married Elizabeth Virginia Wallace.

In 1939, Pan American Airways began regular trans-Atlantic air service with a flight that departed New York for Marseilles, France.

In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Alien Registration Act, also known as the Smith Act, which required adult foreigners residing in the U.S. to be registered and fingerprinted.

In 1968, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Uniform Monday Holiday Bill, which moved commemorations for Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day and Veterans Day to Monday, creating three-day holiday weekends beginning in 1971.

In 1994, President Bill Clinton became the first chief executive in U.S. history to set up a personal legal defense fund and ask Americans to contribute to it.

In 1997, in a wild rematch, Evander Holyfield retained the WBA heavyweight boxing championship after his opponent, Mike Tyson, was disqualified for biting Holyfield's ear during the third round of their fight in Las Vegas.

In 2013, tens of thousands of supporters and opponents of President Mohammed Morsi rallied in Cairo, and both sides fought each other in Egypt's second-largest city of Alexandria, where two people -- including an American -- were killed and scores injured. The four plaintiffs in the U.S. Supreme Court case that overturned California's same-sex marriage ban tied the knot, just hours after a federal appeals court freed gay couples to obtain marriage licenses in the state for the first time in 4 1/2 years.

In 2017, ABC and a South Dakota meat producer announced a settlement in a $1.9 billion lawsuit against the network over its reports on a beef product that critics dubbed "pink slime."

Ten years ago: Soldiers ousted Manuel Zelaya, the democratically elected president of Honduras; congressional leader Roberto Micheletti was sworn in to serve until Zelaya's term ended in January 2010. Michael Jackson was honored at the BET Awards, which had been completely revamped to recognize the legacy of The King of Pop, who died three days earlier at age 50. Death claimed TV pitchman Billy Mays, 50, at his Florida home and Las Vegas impressionist Fred Travalena, 66.

Five years ago: Ahmed Abu Khattala, the Libyan militant accused of masterminding the deadly Benghazi attacks in 2012, pleaded not guilty to conspiracy in Washington nearly two weeks after being captured by U.S. special forces. A saucer-shaped NASA vehicle testing new technology for Mars landings rocketed high over the Pacific and deployed a novel inflatable braking system, but its massive parachute failed to fully unfurl as it descended to a splashdown. Actor Meshach Taylor 67, died at his home near Los Angeles.

One year ago: A man armed with a shotgun attacked a newspaper in Annapolis, Md., killing four journalists and a staffer before police stormed the building and arrested him; authorities said Jarrod Ramos had a long-running grudge against the newspaper for its reporting of a harassment case against him. (Lawyers for Ramos, who is charged with first-degree murder, have argued that he was not criminally responsible by reason of insanity; a November 2019 trial is scheduled.) President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin firmed up plans to meet in Helsinki on July 16th.

Today's Birthdays: Comedian-movie director Mel Brooks is 93. Former Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., is 85. Comedian-impressionist John Byner is 82. Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is 81. Rock musician Dave Knights (Procul Harum) is 74. Actor Bruce Davison is 73. Actress Kathy Bates is 71. Actress Alice Krige is 65. College and Pro Football Hall of Famer John Elway is 59. Record company chief executive Tony Mercedes is 57. Jazz singer Tierney Sutton is 56. Actress Jessica Hecht is 54. Rock musician Saul Davies (James) is 54. Actress Mary Stuart Masterson is 53. Actor John Cusack is 53. Actor Gil Bellows is 52. Actress-singer Danielle Brisebois is 50. Jazz musician Jimmy Sommers is 50. Actress Tichina Arnold is 50. Actor Steve Burton is 49. Entrepreneur Elon Musk is 48. Actor Alessandro Nivola is 47. Actress Camille Guaty is 43. Rock musician Tim Nordwind (OK Go) is 43. Rock musician Mark Stoermer (The Killers) is 42. Country singer Big Vinny Hickerson (Trailer Choir) is 36. Country singer Kellie Pickler is 33.

Thought for Today: "The glory of each generation is to make its own precedents." -- Belva Ann Bennett Lockwood, American social reformer (1830-1917).