Today’s highlight in history
On March 11, 1942, as Japanese forces continued to advance in the Pacific during World War II, U.S. Army Gen. Douglas MacArthur left the Philippines for Australia, where he vowed on March 20, “I shall return” — a promise he kept more than 2½ years later.
On this date
In 1888, the Blizzard of ’88, also known as the “Great White Hurricane,” began inundating the northeastern United States, resulting in some 400 deaths.
In 1957, Charles Van Doren’s 14-week run on the rigged NBC game show “Twenty-One” ended as he was “defeated” by attorney Vivienne Nearing; Van Doren’s take was $129,000.
In 1965, the Rev. James J. Reeb, a white minister from Boston, died two days after being beaten by whites during civil rights disturbances in Selma, Ala.
In 1977, more than 130 hostages held in Washington, D.C. by Hanafi Muslims were freed after ambassadors from three Islamic nations joined the negotiations.
In 1997, rock star Paul McCartney was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.
In 2004, 10 bombs exploded in quick succession across the commuter rail network in Madrid, Spain, killing 191 people in an attack linked to al-Qaida-inspired militants.
In 2011, a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and resulting tsunami struck Japan’s northeastern coast, killing nearly 20,000 people and severely damaging the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power station.
Ten years ago: President George W. Bush, continuing his tour of Latin America, met with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. Five years ago: Sixteen Afghan villagers — mostly women and children — were shot dead as they slept by U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, who later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
One year ago: Keith Emerson, founder and keyboardist of the progressive-rock band Emerson, Lake and Palmer, killed himself in Santa Monica, Calif.; he was 71.