DAY IN HISTORY
Monday, February 17, 2020
Today is the 48th day of 2020 and the 59th day of winter.
TODAY’S HISTORY:
In 1801, the U.S. House of Representatives resolved an electoral tie by electing Thomas Jefferson president and his opponent, Aaron Burr, vice president.
In 1933, the Blaine Act initiated the repeal of Prohibition in the United States.
In 1974, a disgruntled U.S. Army private stole an Army helicopter at Fort Meade in Maryland and landed it on the White House lawn.
In 1996, world chess champion Garry Kasparov defeated the IBM supercomputer Deep Blue in the last game of a six-game match, winning the series by a final score of 4-2.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS:
Hans Morgenthau (1904-1980), political scientist; Red Barber (1908-1992), sportscaster; Hal Holbrook (1925- ), actor; Jim Brown (1936- ), football player; Rene Russo (1954- ), actress; Larry the Cable Guy (1963- ), comedian; Michael Jordan (1963), basketball player; Michael Bay (1965- ), filmmaker; Denise Richards (1971- ), actress; Billie Joe Armstrong (1972- ), musician; Joseph Gordon-levitt (1981- ), actor; Paris Hilton (1981- ), socialite; Ed Sheeran (1991- ), singer-songwriter.
TODAY’S FACT:
The House of Representatives conducted 36 votes (one tie, 35 indecisive) before Thomas Jefferson was chosen as president over Aaron Burr.
TODAY’S SPORTS:
In 1943, Joe Dimaggio of the New York Yankees enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force. He was released on medical discharge in September 1945 due to chronic stomach ulcers.
TODAY’S QUOTE:
“Politics is an art and not a science, and what is required for its mastery is not the rationality of the engineer but the wisdom and the moral strength of the statesman.” — Hans Morgenthau, “Scientific Man vs. Power Politics”
TODAY’S NUMBER:
29 million — certified U.S. album sales for “Eagles: Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975” (released on this date in 1976), the first album certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.
TODAY’S MOON:
Between last quarter moon (Feb. 15) and new moon (Feb. 23).