On this date:
In 1776, during the Revolutionary War, George Washington's retreating army crossed the Delaware River from New Jersey into Pennsylvania.
In 1854, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the Catholic dogma of the Immaculate Conception, which holds that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was free of original sin from the moment of her own conception. [Stupid like a Mormon. — Ed.]
In 1863, President Lincoln announced his plan for the Reconstruction of the South.
In 1886, the American Federation of Labor was founded in Columbus, Ohio.
In 1907, Oscar II, the king of Sweden and former king of Norway, died in Stockholm at age 78.
In 1941, the United States entered World War II as Congress declared war against Japan, a day after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
In 1949, the Chinese Nationalist government moved from the Chinese mainland to Formosa as the Communists pressed their attacks.In 1980, rock star John Lennon was shot to death outside his New York City apartment building by an apparently deranged fan, Mark David Chapman. Lennon and wife Yoko Ono were returning home from a recording session. The former Beatle was 40.
In 1982, a man demanding an end to nuclear weapons held the Washington Monument hostage, threatening to blow it up with explosives he claimed were inside a van. After a 10-hour standoff, Norman D. Mayer was shot dead by police; it turned out there were no explosives.
In 1986, House Democrats selected majority leader Jim Wright to be the chamber's 48th speaker, succeeding Thomas P. "Tip" O'Neill.
In 1987, President Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev, signed a treaty at the White House calling for destruction of intermediate-range nuclear missiles. Also: Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territories began an intefadeh, or uprising.
In 1991, Russia, Belarus and Ukraine declared the Soviet national government dead, forging a new alliance, the Commonwealth of Independent States.
In 1992, Americans saw live TV coverage of U.S. troops landing on the beaches of Somalia as Operation Restore Hope began.
In 1993, President Bill Clinton signed into law the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Ten years ago: Federal hearings opened in Baltimore into the TWA Flight 800 disaster which had claimed 230 lives. In a 25 billion-dollar deal, Swiss Bank and Union Bank of Switzerland announced they would merge.
In 2000, the Florida Supreme Court ordered an immediate hand count of about 45,000 disputed presidential ballots.
Five years ago: Iraq's massive dossier detailing its chemical, biological and nuclear programs arrived in New York; the U.N. Security Council agreed to give full copies to the United States and the four other permanent council members: Britain, France, Russia and China.
In 2003, Rep. Bill Janklow, R-S.D., resigned after being convicted in the traffic death of a motorcyclist.
One year ago: A gunman went on a rampage inside a downtown Chicago law firm, killing three people before being shot dead himself by police. Laura Gainey, the daughter of hockey great Bob Gainey, was washed overboard in the North Atlantic during a storm while working on a sailing ship bound for the Caribbean; she remains lost at sea. [No shit. You're sure she's not dead? — Ed.] The House ethics committee concluded that Republican lawmakers and aides failed for a decade to protect male pages from sexual overtures by former Representative Mark Foley, but that they broke no rules and should not be punished.
This Date's Birthdays of the Living:
Actor-director Maximilian Schell is 77. Actor David Carradine is 71. Actor James MacArthur is 70. Flutist James Galway is 68. Singer Jerry Butler is 68. Pop musician Bobby Elliott (The Hollies) is 65. Actor John Rubinstein is 61. Rock singer-musician Gregg Allman is 60. Reggae singer Toots Hibbert (Toots and the Maytals) is 59. Actress Kim Basinger is 54. Rock musician Warren Cuccurullo is 51. Rock musician Phil Collen (Def Leppard) is 50. Actress Teri Hatcher is 43. Rapper Bushwick Bill (Geto Boys) is 41. Singer Sinead O'Connor [Fuck a bunch of Pope!! — Ed.] is 41. Baseball player Mike Mussina is 39.
And the Dead:
Mary, Queen of Scots, (1542)
Christina, Queen of Sweden (1626) [Lived in her Parisian pied-à-terre, @ 1, rue Christine, in '69 & '70. — Ed.]
Eli Whitney, American inventor (1765)
William C. Durant, founder of GM (1861)
Aristide Maillol, sculptor (1861)
Jean Sibelius, composer (1865)
Diego Rivera, painter (1886)
James Thurber, humorist (1894)
Lee J. Cobb, actor (1911)
Sammy Davis, Jr., singer, actor (1925)
Jim Morrison, rock musician (1943) [See Jimbo's first foray into show bidness. — Ed.]
Show Bidness History:
In 1956, eleven-year-old Brenda Lee released her first single, "I'm Gonna Lasso Santa Claus."
In 1961, the Beach Boys' first single, "Surfin'," was released.
In 1969, a supreme court in Toronto found guitarist Jimi Hendrix not guilty of possession of heroin and hashish. Hendrix had testified he had previously used drugs but had given them up. [Suuuure. — Ed.]
In 1976, The Eagles released their "Hotel California" album. [Yuck. — Ed.]
In 1982, country singer Marty Robbins died of heart disease in Nashville at the age of 57.
In 1983, character actor Slim Pickens died in Modesto, California, at age 64. In 1984, Motley Crue singer Vince Neil crashed a sports car on a California highway, killing his passenger, Hanoi Rocks drummer Razzle Dingley.
In 1991, actor Gregory Peck and country legend Roy Acuff were honored at the Kennedy Center Honors. Acuff was the first country artist to receive the award.
In 1992, Paul McCartney signed a long-term recording contract with Capitol and EMI Records. The terms were not disclosed. [Beatles all the time in history. — Ed.]
In 1995, surviving members of The Grateful Dead announced they were breaking up after 30 years of making music. The news came four months after the death of lead guitarist Jerry Garcia.
In 2003, Ozzy Osbourne was seriously injured while riding a quad bike around his English estate. He apparently hit something and the bike landed on top of him.
In 2004, guitarist Dimebag Darrell, formerly of Pantera, was shot and killed during a show with his new band, DamagePlan, in Columbus, Ohio. Three others also were killed before a police officer shot and killed the gunman, Nathan Gale. [That's show biz! — Ed.]
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