Highlights in history
• In 1864, during the Civil War, Union Gen. William T. Sherman’s forces occupied Atlanta.
• In 1901, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt offered the advice, “Speak softly and carry a big stick” in a speech at the Minnesota State Fair.
• In 1944, during World War II, Navy pilot Lt. (jg) George Herbert Walker Bush was shot down by Japanese forces as he completed a bombing run over the Bonin Islands. (Bush was rescued by the crew of the submarine USS Finback; his two crew members, however, died.)
• In 1960, Wilma Rudolph of the
United States won the first of her three gold medals at the Rome Summer Olympics as she finished the 100-meter dash in 11 seconds.
• In 1963, Alabama Gov. George C. Wallace prevented the integration of Tuskegee High School by encircling the building with state troopers.
• In 1963, “The CBS Evening News” with Walter Cronkite was lengthened from 15 to 30 minutes, becoming network television’s first half-hour nightly newscast.
• In 1969, in what some regard as the birth of the Internet, two connected computers at the University of California, Los Angeles, passed test data through a 15-foot cable.
• In 1969, the first ATM to utilize magnetic-striped cards was opened to the public at Chemical Bank in New York.
• In 1993, the United States and Russia formally ended decades of competition in space by agreeing to a joint venture to build a space station.
• In 2005, scorched by criticism about sluggish federal help after Hurricane Katrina, President George W. Bush toured the Gulf Coast and met with state and local officials; Bush praised FEMA Director Michael Brown, telling him, “Brownie, you’re doing a heck of a job.”
Birthdays
• Dancer/actor Marge Champion is 101
• Former U.S. Olympic Committee Chairman and MLB Commissioner Peter Ueberroth is 83
• Football Hall of Famer and Fox broadcaster Terry Bradshaw is 72
• Basketball Hall of Famer Nate “Tiny” Archibald is 72
• Actor Mark Harmon is 69
• Tennis Hall of Famer Jimmy Connors is 68
• Football Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson is 60
• Actor Keanu Reeves is 56
• Boxing Hall of Famer Lennox Lewis is 55
• Actor Salma Hayek is 54
• Actor Cynthia Watros is 52 • Actor/comedian Katt Williams is 47 • Actor Tiffany Hines is 43
• Actor Allison Miller is 35
Source: Associated Press