DAY IN HISTORY

Thursday, July 23, 2020

Today is the 205th day of 2020 and the 34th day of summer.

TODAY’S HISTORY: In 1962, the Telstar 1 satellite transmitted the first live, trans-atlantic TV broadcast, featuring CBS news anchor Walter Cronkite.

In 1967, the 12th Street Riots began in Detroit, ending five days later and resulting in 43 people dead, hundreds injured and more than 1,400 buildings burned to the ground.

In 1999, with the launch of Columbia, Eileen Collins became the first woman to command a U.S. space shuttle flight.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAY:

Emil Jannings (18841950), actor; Raymond Chandler (1888-1959), author; Anthony M. Kennedy (1936- ), Supreme Court justice; Woody Harrelson (1961- ), actor; Eriq La Salle (1962- ); actor/ director; Slash (1965- ), guitarist; Philip Seymour Hoffman (1967-2014), actor; Alison Krauss (1971- ), singer-songwriter; Marlon Wayans (1972- ), actor; Michelle Williams (1979- ), singer/actress; Daniel Radcliffe (1989- ), actor.

TODAY’S FACT: Comet Hale-bopp, discovered on this day in 1995, was visible to the naked eye for a record 18 months, from May 1996 to December 1997. The previous record holder, the Great Comet of 1811, was visible for about nine months.

TODAY’S SPORTS:

In 1996, injured American gymnast Kerri Strug scored a 9.7 on the vault as the U.S. won its firstever Olympic gold medal in the women’s team gymnastics competition.

TODAY’S QUOTE: “I don’t see me doing $100 million films, because $100 million films, the very nature of them, you need to offend as few people as possible just to make your money back.” — Eriq La Salle

TODAY’S NUMBER: 1,400 — the distance from Earth (in light years) of Kepler-452b, a potentially Earthlike exoplanet orbiting within the habitable zone of a star in the constellation Cygnus. NASA announced its discovery on this day in 2015.

TODAY’S MOON: Between new moon (July 20) and first quarter moon (July 27).