TODAY IN HISTORY

TODAY IS SATURDAY, AUG. 5, the 217th day of 2017. There are 148 days left in the year.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS IN HISTORY:

On this date in 1957, the teenage dance show “American Bandstand,” hosted by Dick Clark, made its network debut.

In 1864,

during the Civil War, Union Adm. David G. Farragut led his fleet to victory in the Battle of Mobile Bay, Ala.

In 1884,

the cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty’s pedestal was laid on Bedloe’s Island in New York Harbor.

In 1924,

the comic strip “Little Orphan Annie” by Harold Gray made its debut.

In 1936,

Jesse Owens of the United States won the 200-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics, collecting the third of his four gold medals.

In 1962,

South African anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela was arrested; it was the beginning of 27 years of imprisonment.

In 1974,

the White House released transcripts of subpoenaed tape recordings showing that President Richard Nixon and his chief of staff, H.R. Haldeman, had discussed a plan in June 1972 to use the CIA to thwart the FBI’s Watergate investigation; revelation of the tape sparked Nixon’s resignation.

In 1991,

Democratic congressional leaders formally launched an investigation into whether the 1980 Reagan-Bush campaign had secretly conspired with Iran to delay release of American hostages until after the presidential election.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS:

Actor John Saxon is 81. Actress Loni Anderson is 72. Rock singer Rick Derringer is 70. Actress-singer Maureen McCormick is 61. Rock musician Pat Smear is 58. Author David Baldacci is 57. Basketball Hall-of-Famer Patrick Ewing is 55. Actor Mark Strong is 54. Director-screenwriter James Gunn and actor Jonathan Silverman are 51. Country singer Terri Clark and retired MLB All-Star John Olerud are 49. Actor Albert Tsai is 13.