TODAY IN HISTORY
TODAY IS WEDNESDAY, FEB. 7,
the 38th day of 2018. There are 327 days left in the year.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN HISTORY:
On this date in 1943, the government abruptly announced that wartime rationing of shoes made of leather would go into effect in two days, limiting consumers to buying three pairs per person per year. (Rationing was lifted in October 1945.)
In 1497,
“The Bonfire of the Vanities” took place in Florence, Italy, as followers of Dominican friar Girolama Savonarola burned a huge pile of items considered to be sinful distractions, such as books, artwork, fine clothing and cosmetics.
In 1795,
the 11th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, dealing with states’ sovereign immunity, was ratified.
In 1817,
America’s first public gas street lamp was lighted in Baltimore at the corner of Market and Lemon streets (now East Baltimore and Holliday streets).
In 1857,
a French court acquitted author Gustave Flaubert of obscenity for his serialized novel “Madame Bovary.”
In 1948,
Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower resigned as U.S. Army chief of staff; he was succeeded by Gen. Omar Bradley.
In 1962,
President John F. Kennedy imposed a full trade embargo on Cuba.
In 1971,
women in Switzerland gained the right to vote through a national referendum, 12 years after a previous attempt failed.
In 1984,
space shuttle Challenger astronauts Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart went on the first untethered spacewalk, which lasted nearly six hours.
In 1986,
the Philippines held a presidential election marred by charges of fraud against the incumbent, Ferdinand E. Marcos. Haitian President-for-Life Jean-Claude Duvalier fled his country, ending 28 years of his family’s rule.
In 1998,
the Winter Olympic Games were opened in Nagano, Japan, by Emperor Akihito.
In 1999,
Jordan’s King Hussein died of cancer at age 63; he was succeeded by his eldest son, Abdullah.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS:
Author Gay Talese is 86. Former Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., is 83. Reggae musician Brian Travers (UB40) is 59. Comedy writer Robert Smigel and actor James Spader are 58. Country singer Garth Brooks, rock musician David Bryan (Bon Jovi) and actor-comedian Eddie Izzard are 56. Actor-comedian Chris Rock is 53. Actor Jason Gedrick is 51. Actress Essence Atkins is 46. Rock singer-musician Wes Borland is 43. Rock musician Tom Blankenship (My Morning Jacket) and actor Ashton Kutcher are 40. Actresses Tina Majorino and Deborah Ann Woll are 33. NBA player Isaiah Thomas is 29.