TODAY IN HISTORY
Today is Tuesday, March 30, the 89th day of 2021.
Today’s highlight in history
On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and seriously injured outside a Washington, D.C., hotel by John W. Hinckley Jr.; also wounded were White House press secretary James Brady, Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy and District of Columbia police Officer Thomas Delahanty.
On this date
In 1842, Dr. Crawford W. Long of Jefferson, Ga., first used ether as an anesthetic during an operation to remove a patient’s neck tumor.
In 1867, U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward reached agreement with Russia to purchase the territory of Alaska for $7.2 million, a deal ridiculed by critics as “Seward’s Folly.”
In 1870, the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibited denying citizens the right to vote and hold office on the basis of race, was declared in effect by Secretary of State Hamilton Fish.
In 1987, at the 59th Academy Awards, “Platoon” was named best picture; Marlee Matlin received best actress for “Children of a Lesser God,” and Paul Newman was honored as best actor for “The Color of Money.” In 1999, Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic insisted that NATO attacks stop before he moved toward peace, declaring his forces ready to fight “to the very end.” NATO answered with new resolve to wreck his military with a relentless air assault.
In 2010, President Barack Obama signed a single measure sealing his health care overhaul and making the government the primary lender to students by cutting banks out of the process.
Today’s birthdays
Game show host Peter Marshall is 95. Actor John Astin is 91. Actor-director Warren Beatty is 84. Musician Graeme Edge (The Moody Blues) is 80. Singer-musician Eric Clapton is 76. Actor Paul Reiser is 65. Rapper MC Hammer is 59. Singer Tracy Chapman is 57. Actor Ian Ziering is 57. TV personality Piers Morgan is 56. Actor Donna D’Errico is 53. Singer Celine Dion is 53. TV personality-producer Richard Rawlings is 52. Actor Mark Consuelos is 50. Singer Norah Jones is 42. Actor Katy Mixon is 40. Actor Jason Dohring is 39. Actor Tessa Ferrer is 35. Singer Thomas Rhett is 31.