Today in History

1795 – Artillery commanded by Napoleon Bonaparte, right, shoots down rebels marching against the National Convention in Paris, bringing the French Revolution to an end.

1866 – Three members of the ‘‘Burgess gang’’ – Richard Burgess, Philip Levy and Thomas Kelly – are hanged in a Nelson jail for murder. 1947 – In the first televised White House address, United States president Harry Truman asks Americans to refrain from eating meat on Tuesdays and poultry on Thursdays to help stockpile grain for starving people in Europe.

1962 – Dr No, the first James Bond film, starring Sean Connery and Ursula Andress, premieres in London. And the Beatles release their first single, Love Me Do.

1989 – The Dalai Lama, the exiled religious and political leader of Tibet, is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. 1998 – Bungy-jumping pioneer AJ Hackett leaps a world record 180 metres by jumping from Auckland’s Sky Tower.

1999 – Two packed commuter trains collide near London’s Paddington Station during the morning rush hour, killing 31 people and injuring 244.

2011 – The shipwrecked Rena spills oil into Bay of Plenty.

Birthdays

Jonathan Edwards; US theologian (1703-1758); Ray Kroc, US fast-food entrepreneur (1902-1984); Glynis Johns, British actress (1923-); Vaclav Havel, first Czech president (1936-2011); Brian Johnson, English rock singer (AC/DC) (1947-); Bob Geldof, Irish singer-songwriter (1951-); Imran Khan, Pakistani cricketer and 22nd prime minister (1952-); Neil de Grasse Tyson, US astrophysicist (1958-); David Kirk, New Zealand rugby player (1960-); Guy Pearce, Australian actor (1967-); Cal Wilson, NZ comedian (1970-); Kate Winslet, English actress (1975-); Nick Cummins, Australian rugby player (1987-).