TODAY IN HISTORY
Today is Monday, Nov. 28. There are 33 days left in the year.
Today’s highlight:
On Nov. 28, 1942, fire engulfed the Cocoanut Grove nightclub in Boston, killing 492 people in the deadliest nightclub blaze ever. (The cause of the rapidly spread- ing fire, which began in the basement, is in dispute; one theory is that a busboy accidentally ignited an artificial palm tree while using a lighted match to fix a light bulb.)
On this date:
In 1520, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan reached the Pacific Ocean after passing through the South American strait that now bears his name.
In 1919, American-born Lady Astor was elected the first female member of the British Parliament.
In 1961, Ernie Davis of Syracuse University became the first African-american to be named winner of the Heisman Trophy.
In 1964, the United States launched the space probe Mariner 4 on a course toward Mars, which it flew past in July 1965, sending back pic- tures of the red planet.
In 1979, an Air New Zealand DC-10 en route to the South Pole crashed into a mountain in Antarctica, killing all 257 people aboard.
In 1990, Margaret Thatcher resigned as British prime minister during an audience with Queen Elizabeth II, who then conferred the premiership on John Major.
In 1994, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was slain in a Wisconsin prison by a fellow inmate. Sixties war protester Jerry Rubin died in Los Angeles, two weeks after being hit by a car; he was 56.
In 2001, Enron Corp., once the world’s largest energy trader, collapsed after would-be rescuer Dynegy Inc. backed out of an $8.4 billion takeover deal. (Enron filed for bankruptcy protection four days later.)
In 2016, the first commercial flight from the United States to Havana in more than 50 years arrived in Cuba as the island began weeklong memorial services for Fidel Castro.
In 2018, Democrats overwhelmingly nominated Nancy Pelosi to become House speaker when Democrats took control of the House in January.
In 2020, Pennsylvania’s highest court threw out a lower court’s order preventing the state from certifying dozens of contests on its Nov. 3 election ballot; it was the latest lawsuit filed by Republicans attempting to undo President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the battleground state.
Five years ago: A Libyan militant was convicted in federal court in Washington of terrorism charges stemming from the 2012 Benghazi attacks that killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans, but the jury found Ahmed Abu Khattala not guilty of murder. (Khattala was sentenced the following June to 22 years in prison.)
One year ago: The Netherlands confirmed 13 cases of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus, while Australia and Canada each found two. Israel barred entry to all foreign nationals as countries around the world scrambled to slow the spread of the new variant.