Today In History

Today is Wednesday, Nov. 17, the 321st day of 2021. There are 44 days left in the year.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT

› 1997: Sixty-two people, most of them foreign tourists, were killed when militants opened fire at the Temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor, Egypt; the attackers, who also hacked their victims, were killed by police.

ON THIS DATE

› 1558: Elizabeth I acceded to the English throne upon the death of her half-sister, Queen Mary, beginning a 44-year reign.

› 1800: Congress held its first session in the partially completed U.S. Capitol building.

› 1869: The Suez Canal opened in Egypt.

› 1889: The Union Pacific Railroad Co. began direct, daily railroad service between Chicago and Portland, Oregon, as well as Chicago and San Francisco.

› 1970: The Soviet Union landed an unmanned, remote-controlled vehicle on the moon, the Lunokhod 1.

› 1989: The Walt Disney animated feature “The Little Mermaid” opened in wide release.

› 2003: Arnold Schwarzenegger was sworn in as the 38th governor of California.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS

Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., is 87. Singer Gordon Lightfoot is 83. Singer-songwriter Bob Gaudio is 80. Movie director Martin Scorsese is 79. Actor Lauren Hutton is 78. Actor-director Danny DeVito is 77. “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels is 77. Movie director Roland Joffe is 76. Former House Speaker John Boehner is 72. Actor Stephen Root is 70. Rock musician Jim Babjak (The Smithereens) is 64. Actor Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is 63. Actor William Moses is 62. Entertainer RuPaul is 61. Actor Dylan Walsh is 58. Former National Security Adviser Susan Rice is 57. Actor Sophie Marceau is 55. Actor-model Daisy Fuentes is 55. Blues singer/musician Tab Benoit is 54. R&B singer Ronnie DeVoe (New Edition; Bell Biv DeVoe) is 54. Actor Leonard Roberts is 49. Actor Leslie Bibb is 48. Actor Brandon Call is 45. Country singer Aaron Lines is 44. Actor Rachel McAdams is 43. Rock musician Isaac Hanson (Hanson) is 41. Former MLB outfielder Ryan Braun is 38. Actor Justin Cooper is 33. Musician Reid Perry (The Band Perry) is 33. Actor Raquel Castro is 27.