TODAY IN HISTORY

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT

May 24, 1994

Four Islamic fundamentalists convicted of bombing New York’s World Trade Center in 1993 were each sentenced to 240 years in prison. ALSO ON THIS DATE

1775

John Hancock was unanimously elected President of the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, succeeding Peyton Randolph.

1844

Samuel F.B. Morse transmitted the message “What hath God wrought” from Washington to Baltimore as he formally opened America’s first telegraph line.

1937

In a set of rulings, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Social Security Act of 1935.

1941

The German battleship Bismarck sank the British battle cruiser HMS Hood in the North Atlantic, killing all but three of the 1,418 men on board.

1962

Astronaut Scott Carpenter became the second American to orbit the Earth as he flew aboard Aurora 7.

1968

The Rolling Stones single “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” was released in the United Kingdom by Decca Records.

1974

American jazz composer and bandleader Duke Ellington, 75, died in New York.

1976

Britain and France opened trans-Atlantic Concorde supersonic transport service to Washington.

1991

The feminist film drama “Thelma & Louise,” starring Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis, was released by MGM.

2000

The state of Maryland dismissed its wiretapping case against Linda Tripp after a judge disallowed most of Monica Lewinsky’s testimony.

2001

23 people were killed when the floor of a Jerusalem wedding hall collapsed beneath dancing guests.