Today in History

Today is Sunday, Sept. 22, the 265th day of 2019. There are 100 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Sept. 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves in rebel states should be free as of January 1, 1863.

On this date:

In 1776, during the Revolutionary War, Capt. Nathan Hale, 21, was hanged as a spy by the British in New York.

In 1927, Gene Tunney successfully defended his heavyweight boxing title against Jack Dempsey in the famous "long-count" fight in Chicago.

In 1949, the Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb.

In 1950, Omar N. Bradley was promoted to the rank of five-star general, joining an elite group that included Dwight D. Eisenhower, Douglas MacArthur, George C. Marshall and Henry H. "Hap" Arnold.

In 1961, the Interstate Commerce Commission issued rules prohibiting racial discrimination on interstate buses.

In 1975, Sara Jane Moore attempted to shoot President Gerald R. Ford outside a San Francisco hotel, but missed.

In 1980, the Persian Gulf conflict between Iran and Iraq erupted into full-scale war.

In 1985, rock and country music artists participated in "FarmAid," a concert staged in Champaign, Illinois, to help the nation's farmers.

In 1989, the Irish Republican Army bombed the Royal Marines School of Music in Deal, Kent, England, killing 11 band members. Songwriter Irving Berlin died in New York City at age 101.

In 1993, 47 people were killed when an Amtrak passenger train fell off a bridge and crashed into Big Bayou Canot near Mobile, Alabama. (A tugboat pilot lost in fog pushed a barge into the railroad bridge, knocking the tracks 38 inches out of line just minutes before the train arrived.)

In 1994, the situation comedy "Friends" debuted on NBC-TV.

In 1995, an AWACS plane carrying U.S. and Canadian military personnel crashed on takeoff from Elmendorf Air Force Base near Anchorage, Alaska, killing all 24 people aboard.

Ten years ago: President Barack Obama, visiting New York, brought together Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for their first face-to-face meeting. Al-Qaida released a 106-minute-long video predicting President Obama's downfall at the hands of the Muslim world.

Five years ago: The United States and five Arab nations launched airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Syria, sending waves of planes and Tomahawk cruise missiles against an array of targets.

One year ago: Negotiations between the Senate Judiciary Committee and Christine Blasey Ford on the conditions for her possible testimony continued, with committee chairman Chuck Grassley saying the panel would go ahead and vote on the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh if no agreement could be worked out for Ford to testify about what she said was a sexual assault by Kavanaugh. Paul Simon ended what was billed as his final concert tour in a park in Queens, New York, telling the hometown crowd that their cheers "mean more than you can know."

Today's Birthdays: Baseball Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda is 92. Actress Anna Karina is 79. Former NBA Commissioner David Stern is 77. Dancer/choreographer/singer Toni Basil is 76. Actor Paul Le Mat is 74. Musician King Sunny Ade is 73 Capt. Mark Phillips is 71. Rock singer David Coverdale (Deep Purple, Whitesnake) is 68. Actress Shari Belafonte is 65. Singer Debby Boone is 63. Country singer June Forester (The Forester Sisters) is 63. Singer Nick Cave is 62. Rock singer Johnette Napolitano is 62. Actress Lynn Herring is 62. Classical crossover singer Andrea Bocelli is 61. Singer-musician Joan Jett is 61. Actor Scott Baio is 59. Actress Catherine Oxenberg is 58. Actress Bonnie Hunt is 58. Actor Rob Stone is 57. Actor Dan Bucatinsky (TV: "24: Legacy") is 54. Musician Matt Sharp is 50. Rock musician Dave Hernandez is 49. Rapper Mystikal is 49. Rhythm-and-blues singer Big Rube (Society of Soul) is 48. Actor James Hillier (TV: "The Crown") is 46. Actress Mireille Enos is 44. Actress Daniella Alonso is 41. Actor Michael Graziadei is 40. Actress Ashley Drane (Eckstein) is 38. Actress Katie Lowes is 37. Rock musician Will Farquarson (Bastille) is 36. Actress Tatiana Maslany is 34. Actor Ukweli Roach (TV: "Blindspot") is 33. Actor Tom Felton is 32. Actress Teyonah Parris is 32. Actress Juliette Goglia is 24. Actress Dalya Knapp is nine.

Thought for Today: "Life resembles a novel more often than novels resemble life." -- George Sand, French author (1804-1876).

Copyright 2019, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.