TODAY HISTORY IN
Today is Sunday, March 14, the 73rd day of 2021. There are 292 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History:
On March 14, 1964, a jury in Dallas found Jack Ruby guilty of murdering Lee Harvey Oswald,
the accused assassin of President John F. Kennedy, and sentenced him to death. (Both the conviction and death sentence were overturned, but Ruby died before he could be retried.)
On this date:
• In 1794, Eli Whitney received a patent for his cotton gin, an invention that revolutionized America’s cotton industry.
• In 1883, German political philosopher Karl Marx died in London at age 64.
• In 1900, Congress ratified the Gold Standard Act.
• In 1951, during the Korean War, United Nations forces recaptured Seoul.
• In 1962, Democrat Edward M. Kennedy officially launched in Boston his successful candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat from Massachusetts once held by his brother, President John F. Kennedy. (Edward Kennedy served in the Senate for nearly 47 years.)
• In 1965, Israel’s cabinet formally approved establishment of diplomatic relations with West Germany.
• In 1967, the body of President John F. Kennedy was moved from a temporary grave to a permanent memorial site at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
• In 1980, a LOT (laht) Polish Airlines jet crashed while attempting to land in Warsaw, killing all 87 people aboard, including 22 members of a U.S. amateur boxing team.
• In 1990, the Soviet Congress of People’s Deputies held a secret ballot that elected Mikhail S. Gorbachev to a new, powerful presidency.
• In 2001, inspectors tightened U.S. defenses against foot-and-mouth disease a day after a case was confirmed in France.
One year ago: The number of U.S. deaths from the coronavirus climbed past
50. President Donald Trump expanded a ban on travel from European countries, adding Britain and Ireland to the list. Trump said he had been tested for the virus after interactions with people who’d been infected; the White House later said the test was negative.
Today’s Birthdays: Former astronaut Frank Borman is 93. Actor Michael Caine is 88. Composer-conductor Quincy Jones is 88. Actor Raymond J. Barry is 82. Movie director Wolfgang Petersen is 80. Country singer Michael Martin Murphey is 76. Rock musician Walt Parazaider (payr-ah-ZAY’-dur) (formerly with Chicago) is
76. Actor Steve Kanaly is 75. Comedian Billy Crystal is 73. Actor-writer-comedian-radio personality Rick Dees is 70. Country singer Jann Browne is 67. Actor Adrian Zmed is
67. Prince Albert II, the ruler of Monaco, is 63. Actor Laila Robins is 62. Actor Tamara Tunie (tuh-MAH’-ruh TOO’-nee) is 62. Actor Penny Johnson Jerald is 61. Producer-director-writer Kevin Williamson is 56. Actor Elise Neal is 55. Actor Gary Anthony Williams is 55. Actor Megan Follows is 53. Rock musician Michael Bland is 52. Country singer Kristian Bush is
51. Rock musician Derrick is 49. Actor Betsy Brandt is
48. Actor Grace Park is 47. Actor Daniel Gillies is 45. Actor Corey Stoll is 45. Actor Jake Fogelnest is 42. Actor Chris Klein is 42. Actor Ryan Cartwright (TV: “Kevin Can Wait”) is 40. ARep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, is 37. Actor Jamie Bell is 35. Rock musician Este Haim (HY’-uhm) (Haim) is 35. NBA star Stephen Curry is 33. Actor Ansel Elgort is
27. Olympic gold medal gymnast Simone Biles is 24. Actor James Freedson-Jackson (Film: “The Strange Ones”) is 19.