23 April: Dropping Like Flies Throughout History

By The Associated Press 2 hrs 47 mins ago Today is Thursday, April 23, the 113th day of 2009. There are 252 days left in the year. Ass. Press. Ass. Press A/V. UPI Almanac. Today's Highlight in History: April 23, 1564, is believed to be the birthday of English poet and dramatist William Shakespeare; he died 52 years later, also on April 23. [Rather convenient & coincidental, innit? — Ed.] On this date: In 1616, the Spanish poet Cervantes died in Madrid. In 1789, President-elect George Washington moved into the first executive mansion, the Franklin House, in New York. In 1791, the 15th president of the United States, James Buchanan, was born in Franklin County, Pa. [Some say he was almost as bad a president as Bush 43. — Ed.] In 1896, the Vitascope system for projecting movies onto a screen was publicly demonstrated in New York City. In 1940, about 200 people died in the Rhythm Night Club Fire in Natchez, Miss. In 1954, Hank Aaron of the Milwaukee Braves hit the first of his eventual 755 home runs, in a game against the St. Louis Cardinals. (The Braves won, 7-5.) Aaron's career total is second only to Barry Bonds.In 1968, student protesters began occupying buildings on the campus of Columbia University in New York; police put down the protests a week later. In 1969, Sirhan Sirhan was sentenced to death for assassinating New York Senator Robert F. Kennedy. (The sentence was later reduced to life in prison.) In 1985, the Coca-Cola Co. announced it was changing the secret flavor formula for Coke. (Negative public reaction forced the company to resume selling the original version). Former U.S. Sen. Sam Ervin died at age 88. The North Carolina Democrat directed the Senate Watergate investigation that led to U.S. President Richard Nixon's resignation. In 1988, a federal ban on smoking during domestic airline flights of two hours or less went into effect. In 1993, labor leader Cesar Chavez died at age 66. In 1995, sportscaster Howard Cosell died at age 77. In 1998, James Earl Ray, who'd confessed to assassinating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and then insisted he'd been framed, died at a Nashville, Tenn., hospital at age 70. Ten years ago: On the first day of a 50th anniversary NATO summit in Washington, Western leaders pledged to intensify military strikes against Yugoslavia and vowed "no compromise" on demands that Slobodan Milosevic withdraw his troops from Kosovo. Five years ago: President George W. Bush eased Reagan-era sanctions against Libya in return for Moammar Gadhafi's giving up weapons of mass destruction. South African President Thabo Mbeki was elected unopposed for a second term.

In 2007, Boris Yeltsin, the first freely elected Russian president, died at age 76. Journalist and author David Halberstam died in a car crash at age 73.

One year ago: President Bush, pushing for a Mideast peace agreement, met at the White House with Jordan's King Abdullah II. Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced that Army Gen. David Petraeus would be nominated by Bush to be the next commander of U.S. Central Command. The Supreme Court unanimously affirmed that police have the power to conduct searches and seize evidence, even when done during an arrest that turns out to have violated state law. The Chicago Cubs won their 10,000th game, joining only the Giants franchise in reaching that mark with a 7-6 victory in 10 innings at Colorado. Today's Birthdays: Actress-turned-diplomat Shirley Temple Black is 81. Actor Alan Oppenheimer is 79. Actor David Birney is 70. Actor Lee Majors is 70. Irish nationalist Bernadette Devlin McAliskey is 62. Actress Blair Brown is 61. Writer-director Paul Brickman is 60. Actress Joyce DeWitt is 60. Actor James Russo is 56. Filmmaker-author Michael Moore is 55. Actress Judy Davis is 54. Actress Jan Hooks is 52. Actress Valerie Bertinelli is 49. Actor Craig Sheffer is 49. Actor George Lopez is 48. Rock musician Gen is 45. U.S. Olympic gold medal skier Donna Weinbrecht is 44. Actress Melina Kanakaredes is 42. Rock musician Stan Frazier (Sugar Ray) is 41. Actor Scott Bairstow is 39. Actor Barry Watson is 35. Actor Kal Penn is 32.   Today In Entertainment History -- On April 23rd, 1956, Elvis Presley made his Las Vegas debut, opening for comedian Shecky Greene. Presley's engagement was canceled after a week because of poor ticket sales, and he didn't return to Vegas for 13 years. Forty years ago, in 1969, the Los Angeles club the Ash Grove was destroyed by fire. Many artists, like Canned Heat and the Chambers Brothers, got their starts there. [That address on Melrose is now The Improv. Show biz never dies, it just smells worse. — Ed.] In 1971, the Rolling Stones album "Sticky Fingers" was released. In 1975, Peter Ham of Badfinger hanged himself. He was reported to be depressed about the band's financial problems. He was 27. In 1987, singer Carole King sued record company owner Lou Adler for breach of contract. She claimed she was owed more than $400,000 in royalties and demanded the rights to her old recordings. [But did she kill herself? No. — Ed.] In 1991, guitarist Johnny Thunders of The New York Dolls died of a drug overdose in New Orleans. He was 40.In 1996, actress Margot Kidder was found dazed and disheveled, hiding in bushes in a stranger's yard in Los Angeles after disappearing for three days.In 2002, Jerry Lee Lewis announced he and his sixth wife, Kerrie, were divorcing after 17 years of marriage. Thought for Today: "Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them." — From "Twelfth Night," by William Shakespeare (1564-1616). 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. Copyright © 2009 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.