Today In History

Today is Friday, Dec. 3, the 337th day of 2021. There are 28 days left in the year.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT

› 1967: A surgical team in Cape Town, South Africa, led by Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the first human heart transplant on Louis Washkansky, who lived 18 days with the donor organ, which came from Denise Darvall, a 25-yearold bank clerk who had died in a traffic accident.

ON THIS DATE

› 1818: Illinois was admitted as the 21st state.

› 1828: Andrew Jackson was elected president of the United States by the Electoral College.

› 1979: Eleven people were killed in a crush of fans at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Coliseum, where the British rock group The Who was performing.

› 2010: During a surprise holiday-season visit to Afghanistan, President Barack Obama told cheering U.S. troops at Bagram Air Field they were succeeding in their mission to fight terrorism; however, foul weather prevented Obama from meeting with President Hamid Karzai in Kabul to address frayed relations.

› 2015: Defense Secretary Ash Carter ordered the armed services to open all military jobs to women, removing the final barriers that had kept women from serving in combat, including the most dangerous and grueling commando posts.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS

Movie director JeanLuc Godard is 91. Singer Jaye P. Morgan is 90. Actor Nicolas Coster is 88. Actor Mary Alice is 80. Rock singer Ozzy Osbourne is 73. Rock singer Mickey Thomas is 72. Country musician Paul Gregg (Restless Heart) is 67. Actor Steven Culp is 66. Actor Daryl Hannah is 61. Actor Julianne Moore is 61. Olympic gold medal figure skater Katarina Witt is 56. Actor Brendan Fraser is

53. Singer Montell Jordan is 53. Actor Royale Watkins is 52. Actor Bruno Campos is 48. Actor Holly Marie Combs is 48. Actor Liza Lapira is 46. Pop-rock singer Daniel Bedingfield is 42. Actor/ comedian Tiffany Haddish is 42. Actor Anna Chlumsky is 41. Actor Brian Bonsall is 40. Actor Dascha Polanco is 39. Pop/rock singer-songwriter Andy Grammer is

38. Americana musician Michael Calabrese (Lake Street Dive) is 37. Actor Amanda Seyfried is 36. Actor Michael Angarano is 34. Actor Jake T. Austin is 27.