TODAY IN HISTORY
TODAY IS SATURDAY, JUNE 24, the 175th day of 2017. There are 190 days left in the year. TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN HISTORY: On this date in 1947, what’s regarded as the first modern UFO sighting took place when private pilot Kenneth Arnold, an Idaho businessman, reported seeing nine silvery objects flying in a “weaving formation” near Mount Rainier in Washington.
In 1497, the first recorded sighting of North America by a European took place as explorer John Cabot spotted land, probably in present-day Canada.
In 1509, Henry VIII was crowned king of England.
In 1807, a grand jury in Richmond, Va., indicted former Vice President Aaron Burr on charges of treason and high misdemeanor. He was later acquitted.
In 1939, the Southeast Asian country Siam changed its name to Thailand. It went back to being Siam in 1945, then became Thailand again in 1949.
In 1948, Communist forces cut off all land and water routes between West Germany and West Berlin, prompting the western allies to organize the Berlin Airlift.
In 1957, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Roth v. United States, ruled 6-3 that obscene materials were not protected by the First Amendment.
In 1967, Pope Paul VI issued an encyclical, Sacerdotalis caelibatus, reaffirming the Catholic Church’s position on priestly celibacy.
In 1987, comedian-actor Jackie Gleason died at his home in Lauderhill, Fla., at age 71.
In 1997, the U.S. Air Force released a report on the so-called “Roswell Incident,” suggesting the “alien bodies” that witnesses reported seeing in 1947 were actually life-sized dummies.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: Rock singer Arthur Brown and actress Michele Lee are 75. Rock musician Jeff Beck is 73. Rock singer Colin Blunstone (The Zombies) is 72. Musician Mick Fleetwood and actor Peter Weller are 70. Rock musician John Illsley (Dire Straits) is 68. Reggae singer Astro (UB40) is 60. Singer-musician Andy McCluskey (Orchestral Manoevres in the Dark) is 58. Actor Iain Glen and rock singer Curt Smith are 56. Actress Danielle Spencer is 52. Actress producer Mindy Kaling is 38. Actress Minka Kelly is 37. Actress Vanessa Ray is 36. Actor Justin Hires (“MacGyver” ‘’Rush Hour”) and actress Candice Patton are 32. Actor Max Ehrich is 36.