Today in History

Today is Thursday, Nov. 25, the 329th day of 2021. There are 36 days left in the year. Today is Thanksgiving.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Nov. 25, 1986, the Iran-Contra affair erupted as President Ronald Reagan and Attorney General Edwin Meese revealed that profits from secret arms sales to Iran had been diverted to Nicaraguan rebels.

On this date:

In 1783, the British evacuated New York during the Revolutionary War.

In 1835, American industrialist Andrew Carnegie was born in Dunfermline, Scotland.

In 1947, movie studio executives meeting in New York agreed to blacklist the "Hollywood Ten" who'd been cited for contempt of Congress the day before.

In 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower suffered a slight stroke.

In 1961, the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise, was commissioned.

In 1963, the body of President John F. Kennedy was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery; his widow, Jacqueline, lighted an "eternal flame" at the gravesite.

In 1987, Harold Washington, the first black mayor of Chicago, died in office at age 65.

In 1999, Elian Gonzalez, a 5-year-old Cuban boy, was rescued by a pair of sport fishermen off the coast of Florida, setting off an international custody battle.

In 2001, as the war in Afghanistan entered its eighth week, CIA officer Johnny "Mike" Spann was killed during a prison uprising in Mazar-e-Sharif, becoming America's first combat casualty of the conflict.

In 2002, President George W. Bush signed legislation creating the Department of Homeland Security, and appointed Tom Ridge to be its head.

In 2009, Toyota said it would replace the gas pedals on 4 million vehicles in the United States because the pedals could get stuck in the floor mats and cause sudden acceleration.

In 2014, President Barack Obama sharply rebuked protesters for racially charged violence in Ferguson, Missouri, saying there was no excuse for burning buildings, torching cars and destroying other property in response to the police shooting death of Michael Brown.

Ten years ago: The U.S. increased pressure on Egypt's military rulers to hand over power to civilian leaders, and the generals turned to Kamal el-Ganzouri, a Mubarak-era politician to head a new government in a move that failed to satisfy more than 100,000 protesters jamming Tahrir Square.

Five years ago: Fidel Castro, who led his rebels to victorious revolution in 1959, embraced Soviet-style communism and defied the power of 10 U.S. presidents during his half-century of rule in Cuba, died at age 90.

One year ago: Phoning in to an event held by Pennsylvania Republicans to investigate unproven allegations of voter fraud, President Donald Trump again made baseless claims that he had won the election against Joe Biden; Trump said, "This election has to be turned around." Trump pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who had twice pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his Russia contacts. Millions of Americans took to the skies and the highways ahead of Thanksgiving, disregarding increasingly dire warnings to stay home and limit holiday gatherings to members of their own household. Former Argentine soccer star Diego Maradona died of a heart attack at the age of 60, two weeks after being released from an Argentine hospital following brain surgery.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Kathryn Crosby is 88. Actor Christopher Riordan is 84. Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs is 81. Singer Bob Lind is 79. Author, actor and economist Ben Stein is 77. Actor John Larroquette is 74. Actor Tracey Walter is 74. Movie director Jonathan Kaplan is 74. Author Charlaine Harris is 70. Retired MLB All-Star Bucky Dent is 70. Dance judge Bruno Tonioli (TV: "Dancing with the Stars") is 66. Singer Amy Grant is 61. Former NFL quarterback Bernie Kosar is 58. Rock musician Eric Grossman (K's Choice) is 57. Rock musician Scott Mercado is 57. Rock singer Mark Lanegan is 57. Rock singer-musician Tim Armstrong is 56. Actor Steve Harris is 56. Actor Billy Burke is 55. Singer Stacy Lattisaw is 55. Rock musician Rodney Sheppard (Sugar Ray) is 55. Rapper-producer Erick Sermon is 53. Actor Jill Hennessy is 52. Actor Christina Applegate is 50. Actor Eddie Steeples is 48. Actor Kristian Nairn is 46. Former NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb is 45. Actor Jill Flint is 44. Actor Jerry Ferrara is 42. Actor Joel Kinnaman is 42. Actor Valerie Azlynn is 41. Former first daughter Barbara Pierce Bush is 40. Former first daughter Jenna Bush Hager is 40. Actor Katie Cassidy is 35. Actor Stephanie Hsu is 31. Contemporary Christian singer Jamie Grace is 30.