TODAY IN HISTORY
TODAY IS FRIDAY, MAY 22, the 143rd day of 2020. There are 223 days left in the year.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN HISTORY:
On this date in 1968, the nuclearpowered submarine USS Scorpion, with 99 men aboard, sank in the Atlantic Ocean. (The remains of the sub were later found on the ocean floor 400 miles southwest of the Azores.)
In 1761, the first American life insurance policy was issued in Philadelphia to a Rev. Francis Allison, whose premium was six pounds per year.
In 1813, composer Richard Wagner was born in Leipzig, Germany.
In 1960, an earthquake of magnitude 9.5, the strongest ever measured, struck southern Chile, claiming some 1,655 lives.
In 1962, Continental Airlines Flight 11, en route from Chicago to Kansas City, Missouri, crashed after a bomb apparently brought on board by a passenger exploded, killing all 45 occupants of the Boeing 707.
In 1992, after a reign lasting nearly 30 years, Johnny Carson hosted NBC’s “Tonight Show” for the final time (Jay Leno took over as host three days later).
In 2011, a tornado devastated Joplin, Missouri, with winds up to 250 mph, claiming at least 159 lives and destroying about 8,000 homes and businesses.
Thailand’s military seized power in a bloodless coup.
a suicide bomber set off an improvised explosive device that killed 22 people at the end of an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: Actor Michael Constantine is 93. Conductor Peter Nero is 86. Actor-director Richard Benjamin and actor Frank Converse are 82. Retired MLB All-Star pitcher Tommy John is 77. Songwriter Bernie Taupin is 70. Actor-producer Al Corley is 65. Singer Morrissey is 61. Rock musician Jesse Valenzuela is 58. Actor Mark Christopher Lawrence is 56. Rhythm-and-blues singer Johnny Gill (New Edition) is 54. Rock musician Dan Roberts (Crash Test Dummies) and actress Brooke Smith are 53. Actor Michael Kelly is 51. Model Naomi Campbell is 50. Singer Donell Jones is 47. Actor Sean Gunn and actress A.J. Langer are 46. Actress Ginnifer Goodwin is 42. Olympic gold medal speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno is 38. Actress Molly Ephraim (TV: “Last Man Standing”) is 34. Tennis player Novak Djokovic is 33.