TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is Wednesday, July 14, the 195th day of 2021. There are 170 days left in the year.

Today’s highlight

On July 14, 1798, Congress passed the Sedition Act, making it a federal crime to publish false, scandalous or malicious writing about the United States government.

On this date

In 1789, in an event symbolizing the start of the French Revolution, citizens of Paris stormed the Bastille prison and released the seven prisoners inside.

In 1865, the Matterhorn, straddling Italy and Switzerland, was summited as a seven-member rope party led by British climber Edward Whymper reached the peak. (Four members of the party fell to their deaths during their descent; Whymper and two guides survived.)

In 1881, outlaw William H. Bonney Jr., alias “Billy the Kid,” was shot and killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett in Fort Sumner in present-day New Mexico.

In 1914, scientist Robert H. Goddard received a U.S. patent for a liquid-fueled rocket apparatus.

In 1933, all German political parties, except the Nazi Party, were outlawed.

In 1945, Italy formally declared war on Japan.

In 1980, the Republican national convention opened in Detroit, where nominee-apparent Ronald Reagan told a welcoming rally he and his supporters were determined to “make America great again.”

In 2004, the Senate scuttled a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. (Fortyeight senators voted to advance the measure — 12 short of the 60 needed — and 50 voted to block it).

In 2009, disgraced financier Bernard Madoff arrived at the Butner Federal Correctional Complex in North Carolina to begin serving a 150-year sentence for his massive Ponzi scheme. (Madoff died in prison in April 2021.)

Today’s birthdays

Actor Nancy Olson is 93. Former football player and actor Rosey Grier is 89. Actor Vincent Pastore is 75. Music company executive Tommy Mottola is 73. Actor Jerry Houser is 69. Actor Stan Shaw is 69. Actor Jane Lynch is 61. Actor Matthew Fox is 55. Former child actor Missy Gold is 51.