Today In History

Today is Wednesday, Sept. 27, the 270th day of 2017. There are 95 days left in the year.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT

› 1942: Glenn Miller and his Orchestra performed together for the last time, at the Central Theater in Passaic, New Jersey, prior to Miller’s entry into the Army.

ON THIS DATE

› 1540: Pope Paul III issued a papal bull establishing the Society of Jesus, or Jesuits, as a religious order.

› 1779: John Adams was named by Congress to negotiate the Revolutionary War’s peace terms with Britain.

› 1854: The first great disaster involving an Atlantic Ocean passenger vessel occurred when the steamship SS Arctic sank off Newfoundland; of the more than 400 people on board, only 86 survived.

› 1943: Bing Crosby, the Andrews Sisters and the Vic Schoen Orchestra recorded “Pistol Packin’ Mama” and “Jingle Bells” for Decca Records.

› 1954: “Tonight!” hosted by Steve Allen, made its network debut on NBC-TV.

› 1979: Congress gave its final approval to forming the U.S. Department of Education.

› 1991: President George H.W. Bush announced in a nationally broadcast address that he was eliminating all U.S. battlefield nuclear weapons, and called on the Soviet Union to match the gesture.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS

Actress Kathleen Nolan is 84. Actor Wilford Brimley is 83. Actor Claude Jarman Jr. is 83. Author Barbara Howar is 83. World Golf Hall of Famer Kathy Whitworth is 78. Singer-musician Randy Bachman (Bachman-Turner Overdrive) is

74. Rock singer Meat Loaf is 70. Actress Liz Torres is 70. Actor A Martinez is 69. Baseball Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt is

68. Actor Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa is 67. Singer Shaun Cassidy is 59. Comedian Marc Maron is

54. Rock singer Stephan Jenkins (Third Eye Blind) is 53. Former Democratic National Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz is

51. Actor Patrick Muldoon is 49. Singer Mark Calderon is 47. Actress Amanda Detmer is 46. Actress Gwyneth Paltrow is 45. Rock singer Brad Arnold (3 Doors Down) is 39. Christian rock musician Grant Brandell (Underoath) is 36. Actress Anna Camp is 35. Rapper Lil’ Wayne is 35. Singer Avril Lavigne is 33. Bluegrass singer/musician Sierra Hull is 26.