Today In History
Today is Tuesday, March 26, the 86th day of 2024. There are 280 days left in the year.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT
On March 26, 1997, the bodies of 39 members of the Heaven’s Gate techno-religious cult who committed suicide were found inside a rented mansion in Rancho Santa Fe, California.
ON THIS DATE
› 1812: An earthquake devastated Caracas, Venezuela, causing an estimated 26,000 deaths, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
› 1827: Composer Ludwig van Beethoven died in Vienna at age 56.
› 1945: During World War II, Iwo Jima was fully secured by U.S. forces following a final, desperate attack by Japanese soldiers.
› 1973: The soap opera “The Young and the Restless” premiered on CBS-TV.
› 1979: A peace treaty was signed by Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and witnessed by President Jimmy Carter at the White House.
› 1988: Jesse Jackson stunned fellow Democrats by soundly defeating Michael S. Dukakis in Michigan’s Democratic presidential caucuses.
› 2010: The U.S. and Russia sealed the first major nuclear weapons treaty in nearly two decades, agreeing to slash the former Cold War rivals’ warhead arsenals by nearly one-third.
› 2013: Italy’s top criminal court overturned the acquittal of American Amanda Knox in the grisly murder of British roommate Meredith Kercher and ordered Knox to stand trial again.
› 2014: Osama bin Laden’s son-in-law, Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, was convicted in New York for his role as al-Qaida’s fiery chief spokesman after 9/11.
› 2023: Ukraine’s government called for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council to “counter the Kremlin’s nuclear blackmail” after Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed plans to station tactical atomic weapons in Belarus.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is 89. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is 84. Singer Diana Ross is 80. Rock singer Steven Tyler (Aerosmith) is 76. Comedian Martin Short is 74. Country singer Dean Dillon is 69. Country singer Charly McClain is 68. TV personality Leeza Gibbons is 67. Actor Jennifer Grey is 64. College and Pro Football Hall of Famer Marcus Allen is 64. Actor Michael Imperioli is 58. Rock musician James Iha is 56. Country singer Kenny Chesney is 56. Movie director Martin McDonagh is 53. Actor Leslie Mann is 52. Actor T.R. Knight is 51. Rapper Juvenile is 49. Actor Amy Smart is 48. Actor Bianca Kajlich is 47. Moderator Margaret Brennan (TV: “Face the Nation”) is 44. Actor Sterling Sulieman is 40. Actor Keira Knightley is 39. Rapper J-Kwon is 38. Actor Carly Chaikin is 34.