Wednesday, March 25, 2009

All The World's A Shitpile, & All The Men & Women Merely Morons

By The Associated Press 1 hr 36 mins ago Today is Wednesday, March 25, the 84th day of 2009. There are 281 days left in the year. AP hist pg. A/V. UPI Almanac. Today's Highlight in History: On March 25, 1965, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led 25,000 marchers to the state capitol in Montgomery, Ala., to protest the denial of voting rights to blacks. [Excuse me, AP, but could we use the phrase "black people?" Or "African-Americans?" Or something that grants "blacks" a bit of humanity? — Ed.] On this date: In 1634, English colonists sent by Lord Baltimore arrived in present-day Maryland. In 1865, during the Civil War, Confederate forces attacked Fort Stedman in Virginia but were forced to withdraw by counterattacking Union troops. In 1894, Jacob S. Coxey began leading an "army" of unemployed from Massillon, Ohio, to Washington to demand help from the federal government. In 1918, French composer Claude Debussy died in Paris. In 1911, 146 people, mostly female immigrants, were killed when fire broke out at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York. In 1947, a coal mine explosion in Centralia, Ill., claimed 111 lives. In 1957, the Treaty of Rome established the European Economic Community. In 1975, King Faisal of Saudi Arabia was shot to death by a nephew with a history of mental illness. (The nephew was beheaded in June 1975.) In 1988, in New York City's so-called "Preppie Killer" case, Robert Chambers Jr. pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in the death of 18-year-old Jennifer Levin. (Chambers received a sentence of 5 to 15 years in prison; he was released in 2003.) In 1990, 87 people, most of them Honduran and Dominican immigrants, were killed when fire raced through an illegal social club in New York City. Ten years ago: NATO aircraft and missiles blasted targets in Yugoslavia for a second night, directing much of their fire on Kosovo, where fighting raged between Serbs and ethnic Albanians. Alexei Yagudin won the men's title for the second time at the World Figure Skating Championships held in Helsinki. Five years ago: Congress passed the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, making it a separate offense to harm a fetus during violent federal crime. The United States vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Israel's assassination of Hamas leader Ahmed Yassin. Russian Evgeni Plushenko won his third world figure skating title, defeating French rival Brian Joubert. One year ago: The Defense Department said it had mistakenly shipped electrical fuses for an intercontinental ballistic missile to Taiwan. (Once the error was discovered, the military quickly recovered the four fuses.) Herb Peterson, the inventor of McDonald's Egg McMuffin, died in Santa Barbara, Calif., at age 89. Today's Birthdays: Modeling agency founder Eileen Ford is 87. Former astronaut James Lovell is 81. Feminist activist and author Gloria Steinem is 75. Singer Anita Bryant is 69. Singer Aretha Franklin is 67. Actor Paul Michael Glaser is 66. Singer Elton John is 62. Actress Bonnie Bedelia is 61. Actress-comedian Mary Gross is 56. Actor James McDaniel is 51. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., is 51. Rock musician Steve Norman (Spandau Ballet) is 49. Actress Brenda Strong is 49. Actor Fred Goss is 48. Actor-writer-director John Stockwell is 48. Actress Marcia Cross is 47. Author Kate DiCamillo (Book: "Because of Winn-Dixie") is 45. Actress Lisa Gay Hamilton is 45. Actress Sarah Jessica Parker is 44. Atlanta Braves pitcher Tom Glavine is 43. Olympic bronze medal figure skater Debi Thomas is 42. Singer Melanie Blatt (All Saints) is 34. Actor Lee Pace is 30.  Today in Entertainment History Associated Press - March 25, 2009 3:13 AM ET On March 25th, 1954, "From Here To Eternity" won the best picture award at the Oscars. In 1960, Ray Charles recorded "Georgia On My Mind" in New York. In 1961, Elvis Presley performed what would be his last live concert for eight years, at a show in Hawaii. He instead concentrated on his movie career. In 1967, The Who made its U.S. concert debut in New York as part of a rock extravaganza promoted by DJ Murray "The K" Kaufman. In 1985, the Academy Award for best picture went to "Amadeus." F. Murray Abraham was chosen over "Amadeus" co-star Tom Hulce for the best actor award. Also, Prince won the original song score award for "Purple Rain." In 1990, drummer Tommy Lee of Motley Crue was arrested for allegedly mooning an audience at a concert in Augusta, Georgia. In 1991, "Dances With Wolves" won seven Academy Awards, including a best director Oscar for Kevin Costner. In 1995, singer Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam was rescued after a riptide carried him 250 feet offshore in New Zealand. In 2001, "Gladiator" won five Oscars, including best picture. In 2002, Halle Berry won the best actress Oscar and Denzel Washington won the best actor Oscar. Before that night, Sidney Poitier was the only African-American actor to have won an Oscar in a lead role. Randy Newman won an Oscar for best original song for "If I Didn't Have You" from "Monsters, Inc." He had been nominated for an Oscar 16 times and had never won up to that point. [What, they just kept nominating him, 'cause his uncles were film composers or something? — Ed.] In 2003, Celine Dion launched her Las Vegas show "A New Day." Thought for Today: "In every person, even in such as appear most reckless, there is an inherent desire to attain balance." — Jakob Wassermann, German author (1873-1934). Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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