Today in History

Today is Tuesday, Dec. 12, the 346th day of 2023. There are 19 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Dec. 12, 2015, nearly 200 nations meeting in Paris adopted the first global pact to fight climate change, calling on the world to collectively cut and then eliminate greenhouse gas pollution but imposing no sanctions on countries that didn't do so.

On this date:

In 1787, Pennsylvania became the second state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

In 1870, Joseph H. Rainey of South Carolina became the first Black lawmaker sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives.

In 1913, authorities in Florence, Italy, announced that the "Mona Lisa," stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris in 1911, had been recovered.

In 1915, singer-actor Frank Sinatra was born Francis Albert Sinatra in Hoboken, New Jersey.

In 1917, during World War I, a train carrying some 1,000 French troops from the Italian front derailed while descending a steep hill in Modane; at least half of the soldiers were killed in France's greatest rail disaster.

In 1977, the dance movie "Saturday Night Fever," starring John Travolta, premiered in New York.

In 1985, 248 American soldiers and eight crew members were killed when an Arrow Air charter crashed after takeoff from Gander, Newfoundland.

In 1995, by three votes, the Senate killed a constitutional amendment giving Congress authority to outlaw flag burning and other forms of desecration against Old Glory.

In 2000, George W. Bush became president-elect as a divided U.S. Supreme Court reversed a state court decision for recounts in Florida's contested election.

In 2010, the inflatable roof of the Minneapolis Metrodome collapsed following a snowstorm that had dumped 17 inches on the city. (The NFL was forced to shift an already rescheduled game between the Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants to Detroit's Ford Field.)

In 2018, Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's one-time fixer, was sentenced to three years in prison for crimes that included arranging the payment of hush money to conceal Trump's alleged sexual affairs.

In 2019, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson led his Conservative Party to a landslide victory in a general election that was dominated by Brexit.

In 2020, thousands of supporters of President Donald Trump gathered in Washington for rallies to back his desperate efforts to subvert the election that he lost to Joe Biden.

Today's Birthdays: Basketball Hall of Famer Bob Pettit is 91. Singer Connie Francis is 86. Singer Dionne Warwick is 83. Rock singer-musician Dickey Betts is 80. Hall of Fame race car driver Emerson Fittipaldi is 77. Actor Wings Hauser is 76. Actor Bill Nighy is 74. Actor Duane Chase (Film: "The Sound of Music") is 73. Country singer LaCosta is 73. Gymnast-turned-actor Cathy Rigby is 71. Singer-musician Sheila E. is 66. Actor Sheree J. Wilson is 65. Pop singer Daniel O'Donnell is 62. International Tennis Hall of Famer Tracy Austin is 61. Rock musician Eric Schenkman (Spin Doctors) is 60. Author Sophie Kinsella is 54. News anchor Maggie Rodriguez is 54. Actor Jennifer Connelly is 53. Actor Madchen Amick is 53. Actor Regina Hall is 53. Country singer Hank Williams III is 51. Actor Mayim Bialik is 48. Model Bridget Hall is 46. Actor Lucas Hedges is 27. Actor Sky Katz is 19.