TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is Friday, May 18, the 138th day of 2018. There are 227 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History: On May 18, 1953, Jacqueline Cochran, 47, became the first woman to break the sound barrier as she piloted a Canadair F-86 Sabre jet over Rogers Dry Lake, Calif.

On this date:

In 1652, Rhode Island became the first American colony to pass a law abolishing African slavery; however, the law was apparently never enforced.

In 1896, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Plessy v. Ferguson, endorsed “separate but equal” racial segregation, a concept renounced 58 years later by Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.

In 1973, Harvard law professor Archibald Cox was appointed Watergate special prosecutor by U.S. Attorney General Elliot Richardson.

In 1980, the Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state exploded, leaving 57 people dead or missing.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Bill Macy is 96. Actor Robert Morse is 87. Actor Dwayne Hickman is 84. Baseball Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson is 81. Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson is 72. Sen. Tom Udall, DN.M., is 70. Country singer Joe Bonsall (The Oak Ridge Boys) is 70. Rock musician Rick Wakeman (Yes) is 69. Rock singer Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo) is 68. Comedian-writer Tina Fey is 48. Rapper Special Ed is 44. Rock singer Jack Johnson is 43. Country singer David Nail is 39. Rhythm-and-blues singer Darryl Allen (Mista) is 38. Actor Matt Long is 38. Actor Allen Leech is 37. Christian-rock musician Kevin Huguley (Rush of Fools) is 36. Christian singer Francesca Battistelli is 33. Actor Spencer Breslin is 26. Actress Hala Finley is nine.

Thought for Today: “People find life entirely too time-consuming.” — Stanislaw J. Lec, Polish writer (1909-1966).