TODAY IN HISTORY
Today is Wednesday, Aug. 11, the 223rd day of 2021. There are 142 days left in the year.
Today's Highlight in
History: On August 11, 1992, the Mall of America, the nation's largest shopping-entertainment center, opened in Bloomington, Minnesota.
On this date:
In 1949, President Harry S. Truman nominated General Omar N. Bradley to become the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
In 1952, Hussein bin Talal was proclaimed King of Jordan, beginning a reign lasting nearly 47 years.
In 1964, the Beatles movie "A Hard Day's Night" had its U.S. premiere in New York.
In 1965, rioting and looting that claimed 34 lives broke out in the predominantly Black Watts section of Los Angeles.
In 1984, at the Los Angeles Olympics, American runner Mary Decker fell after colliding with South African-born British competitor Zola Budd in the 3,000-meter final; Budd finished seventh.
In 1993, President Bill Clinton named Army Gen. John Shalikashvili to be the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, succeeding the retiring Gen. Colin Powell.
In 1997, President Bill Clinton made the first use of the historic lineitem veto, rejecting three items in spending and tax bills. (However, the U.S. Supreme Court later struck down the veto as unconstitutional.)
In 2006, TV talk show host Mike Douglas died in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on his 81st birthday.
In 2009, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of President John F. Kennedy and founder of the Special Olympics, died in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, at age 88.
In 2012, Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney announced his choice of Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin to be his running mate. Usain Bolt capped his perfect London Olympics by leading Jamaica to victory in a world-record 36.84 seconds in the 4x100 meters.
In 2017, a federal judge ordered Charlottesville, Virginia, to allow a weekend rally of white nationalists and other extremists to take place at its originally planned location downtown. (Violence erupted at the rally, and a woman was killed when a man plowed his car into a group of counterprotesters.)
In 2014, Academy Award-winning actor and comedian Robin Williams, 63, died in Tiburon, California, a suicide.