Today in history

On Sept. 7, 1940, Nazi Germany began its eightmonth blitz of Britain during World War II with the first air attack on London.

In 1927, American television pioneer Philo T. Farnsworth, 21, succeeded in transmitting the image of a line through purely electronic means with a device called an “image dissector” at his San Francisco laboratory.

In 1936, rock-and-roll legend Buddy Holly was born Charles Hardin Holley in Lubbock, Texas.

In 1963, the National Professional Football Hall of Fame was dedicated in Canton, Ohio.

In 1977, convicted Watergate conspirator G. Gordon Liddy was released from prison after more than four years.

In 1979, the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) made its cable TV debut.

In 1987, the syndicated TV talk show “Geraldo,” hosted by Geraldo Rivera, began an 11-season run.

In 1996, rapper Tupac Shakur was shot and mortally wounded on the Las Vegas Strip; he died six days later.

In 2001, Venus Williams and Serena Williams reached the finals of the U.S. Open, defeating Jennifer Capriati and Martina Hingis respectively, becoming the first sisters to play for a Grand Slam championship in more than 100 years.

In 2002, President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair, meeting at Camp David, said the world had to act against Saddam Hussein, arguing that the Iraqi leader had defied the United Nations and reneged on promises to destroy weapons of mass destruction.

Ten years ago: Troubled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were placed in government conservatorship.

Five years ago: Tokyo was awarded the 2020 Summer Olympics, defeating Istanbul in the final round of secret voting by the International Olympic Committee.

One year ago: More than a half million people were ordered to leave South Florida as Hurricane Irma approached; Georgia’s governor ordered nearly 540,000 coastal residents to move inland.