TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is Monday, April 26, the 116th day of 2021.

Today’s highlight in history

On April 26, 1986, an explosion and fire at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine caused radioactive fallout to begin spewing into the atmosphere. (Dozens of people were killed in the immediate aftermath of the disaster while the long-term death toll from

radiation poisoning is believed to number in the thousands.)

On this date

In 1607, English colonists went ashore at present-day Cape Henry, Va., on an expedition to establish the first permanent English settlement in the Western Hemisphere.

In 1865, John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Abraham Lincoln, was surrounded by federal troops near Port Royal, Va., and killed.

In 1989, actor-comedian Lucille Ball died at CedarsSinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at age 77.

In 1994, voting began in South Africa’s first all-race elections, resulting in victory for the African National Congress and the inauguration of Nelson Mandela as president.

Today’s birthdays

Actor-comedian Carol Burnett is 88. Singer Maurice Williams is 83. Songwriter-musician Duane Eddy is 83. Singer Bobby Rydell is 79. Musician Gary Wright is 78. Actor Nancy Lenehan is 68. Actor Giancarlo Esposito is 63. Musician Roger Taylor (Duran Duran) is 61.

Actor Joan Chen is 60. Musician Chris Mars is 60. Actorsinger Michael Damian is 59. Actor Jet Li is 58. Actor-comedian Kevin James is 56. Musician Jay DeMarcus (Rascal Flatts) is 50. Musician Jose Pasillas (Incubus) is 45. Actor Jason Earles is 44. Actor Leonard Earl Howze is 44. Actor Amin Joseph is 44. Actor Tom Welling is 44. Actor Pablo Schreiber is 43. Actor Nyambi Nyambi is 42. Actor Jordana Brewster is 41. Actor Channing Tatum is 41. Singer-songwriter Lilly Hiatt is 37.