Today In History

Today is Thursday, Feb. 9, the 40th day of 2023. There are 331 days left in the year.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN HISTORY

On Feb. 9, 1971, a magnitude 6.6 earthquake in California’s San Fernando Valley claimed 65 lives. The crew of Apollo 14 returned to Earth after man’s third landing on the moon.

ON THIS DATE

› 1825: The House of Representatives elected John Quincy Adams president after no candidate received a majority of electoral votes.

› 1942: The U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff held its first formal meeting to coordinate military strategy during World War II.

› 1943: The World War II battle of Guadalcanal in the southwest Pacific ended with an Allied victory over Japanese forces.

› 1950: In a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia, Republican Sen. Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin charged that the State Department was riddled with Communists.

› 1962: An agreement was signed to make Jamaica an independent nation within the British Commonwealth later in the year.

› 1963: The Boeing 727 went on its first-ever flight as it took off from Renton, Washington.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS

Actor Janet Suzman is

84. Nobel Prize-winning author J.M. Coetzee is 83. Actor-politician Sheila James Kuehl (TV: “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis”) is 82. Singer-songwriter Carole King is

81. Actor Joe Pesci is 80. Singer Barbara Lewis is

80. Author Alice Walker is 79. Actor Mia Farrow is 78. Former Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., is 77. Singer Joe Ely is 76. Actor Judith Light is 74. Actor Charles Shaughnessy is 68. Jazz musician Steve Wilson is

62. Country singer Travis Tritt is 60. Actor Julie Warner is 58. Country singer Danni Leigh is 53. Actor Sharon Case is 52. Actor Jason George is

51. Actor Amber Valletta is 49. Actor-producer Charlie Day is 47. Rock singer Chad Wolf (Carolina Liar) is 47. Actor A.J. Buckley is 46. Rock musician Richard On (O.A.R.) is 44. Actor Ziyi Zhang is 44. Olympic silver and bronze medal figure skater Irina Slutskaya is 44. Actor Tom Hiddleston is 42. Actor David Gallagher is 38. Actor Michael B. Jordan is 36. Actor Rose Leslie is 36. Actor Camille Winbush is 33. Actor Jimmy Bennett is

27. Actor Evan Roe (TV: “Madam Secretary”) is 23.