Today in History

Today is Sunday, July 7, the 188th day of 2019. There are 177 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On July 7, 1981, President Ronald Reagan announced he was nominating Arizona Judge Sandra Day O'Connor to become the first female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.

On this date:

In 1846, U.S. annexation of California was proclaimed at Monterey after the surrender of a Mexican garrison.

In 1865, four people were hanged in Washington, D.C. for conspiring with John Wilkes Booth to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln: Lewis Powell (aka Lewis Payne), David Herold, George Atzerodt and Mary Surratt, the first woman to be executed by the federal government.

In 1898, the United States annexed Hawaii.

In 1937, the Second Sino-Japanese War erupted into full-scale conflict as Imperial Japanese forces attacked the Marco Polo Bridge in Beijing.

In 1948, six female U.S. Navy reservists became the first women to be sworn in to the regular Navy.

In 1954, Elvis Presley made his radio debut as Memphis, Tennessee, station WHBQ played his first recording for Sun Records, "That's All Right."

In 1963, a Navy jet fighter from Willow Grove Naval Air Station in Pennsylvania crashed into a picnic area, killing seven people; the pilot, who ejected, survived.

In 1969, Canada's House of Commons gave final approval to the Official Languages Act, making French equal to English throughout the national government.

In 1975, the daytime drama "Ryan's Hope" premiered on ABC-TV.

In 1976, President Gerald R. Ford and the first lady hosted a White House dinner for Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. The United States Military Academy at West Point included female cadets for the first time as 119 women joined the Class of 1980.

In 1990, the first "Three Tenors" concert took place as opera stars Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras performed amid the brick ruins of Rome's Baths of Caracalla on the eve of the World Cup championship.

In 2004, former Enron chairman Kenneth Lay was indicted on criminal charges related to the energy company's collapse. (Lay was later convicted of fraud and conspiracy, but died in July 2006 before he could be sentenced.)

Ten years ago: Some 20,000 people gathered inside Staples Center in Los Angeles for a memorial service honoring the late Michael Jackson, who was tearfully described by his 11-year-old daughter, Paris-Michael, as "the best father you could ever imagine." Britain unveiled a Hyde Park memorial to mark the fourth anniversary of the London transit system bombings that claimed 52 victims. Pope Benedict XVI called for a new world financial order guided by ethics, dignity and the search for the common good in the third encyclical of his pontificate.

Five years ago: Washington state issued its first retail marijuana licenses. Pope Francis begged forgiveness in his first meeting with Catholics sexually abused by members of the clergy and vowed to hold bishops responsible for their handling of pedophile priests. Eduard Shevardnadze, 86, the Soviet Union's foreign minister who helped end the Cold War but then as Georgia's president was forced into retirement by parliament, died in Tbilisi.

One year ago: After two days of talks in North Korea's capital, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he had commitments for new discussions on denuclearization, but North Korea said Pompeo's visit had been "regrettable" and that the United States was making "gangster-like" demands.

Today's Birthdays: Musician-conductor Doc Severinsen is 92. Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough is 86. Rock star Ringo Starr is 79. Comedian Bill Oddie is 78. Singer-musician Warren Entner (The Grass Roots) is 76. Actor Joe Spano is 73. Pop singer David Hodo (The Village People) is 72. Country singer Linda Williams is 72. Actress Shelley Duvall is 70. Actress Roz Ryan is 68. Actor Billy Campbell is 60. Actor Robert Taylor is 59. Rock musician Mark White (Spin Doctors) is 57. Singer-songwriter Vonda Shepard is 56. Actor-comedian Jim Gaffigan is 53. Rhythm-and-blues musician Ricky Kinchen (Mint Condition) is 53. Actress Amy Carlson is 51. Actress Jorja Fox is 51. Actress Cree Summer is 50. Actress Robin Weigert is 50. Actress Kirsten Vangsness is 47. Actor Troy Garity is 46. Actress Berenice Bejo is 43. Actor Hamish Linklater is 43. Olympic silver and bronze medal figure skater Michelle Kwan is 39. Rapper Cassidy is 37. Country singer Gabbie Nolen is 37. Actor Ross Malinger is 35. Actor-comedian Luke Null (TV: "Saturday Night Live") is 29. Pop singer Ally Hernandez (Fifth Harmony) (TV: "The X Factor") is 26. Pop musician Ashton Irwin (5 Seconds to Summer) is 25. Country singer Maddie Marlow (Maddie and Tae) is 24.

Thought for Today: "Memory depends very much on the perspicuity, regularity, and order of our thoughts. Many complain of the want of memory, when the defect is in their judgment; and others, by grasping at all, retain nothing." -- Margaret Fuller, American critic and social reformer (1810-1850).