25 June: WAR!! And, Custer Gets His.

Today is Thursday, June 25, the 176th day of 2009. There are 189 days left in the year. AP. A/V. UPI Almanac. Today's Highlight in History: On June 25, 1950, war broke out in Korea as forces from the communist North invaded the South. On this date: In 1788, Virginia ratified the U.S. Constitution. In 1868, Congress passed an Omnibus Act allowing for the readmission of Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina to the Union. In 1876, Lt. Col. George A. Custer and his 7th Cavalry were wiped out by Sioux and Cheyenne Indians in the Battle of the Little Bighorn in Montana. [The first AP correspondent to die in the line of duty — at the Little Bighorn — filed his last dispatch on 21 June 1876. — Ed.] In 1906, architect Stanford White was shot to death atop New York's Madison Square Garden, which he had designed, by millionaire Harry K. Thaw, the jealous husband of Evelyn Nesbit. (Thaw was acquitted of murder by reason of insanity.) In 1938, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 was enacted. In 1942, some 1,000 British Royal Air Force bombers raided Bremen, Germany, during World War II, as U.S. Army Gen. Dwight Eisenhower took command of the U.S. World War II forces in Europe. Fifty years ago, in 1959, spree killer Charles Starkweather, 20, was put to death in Nebraska's electric chair. Eamon de Valera was inaugurated as president of Ireland. In 1962, the Supreme Court, in Engel v. Vitale, ruled that recital of a state-sponsored prayer in New York State public schools was unconstitutional. In 1973, former White House Counsel John W. Dean began testifying before the Senate Watergate Committee. John Dean squeals.

In 1995, Warren E. Burger, the 15th chief justice of the United States, died at age 87. In 1996, a truck bomb killed 19 Americans and injured hundreds at a U.S. military housing complex in Saudi Arabia. In 1997, an unmanned cargo ship crashed into Russia's Mir space station, knocking out half of the station's power and rupturing a pressurized laboratory.This had nothing to do w/ the death of Jacques Cousteau the same day. Ten years ago: During a news conference, President Bill Clinton said the people of Serbia had to "get out of denial" about the atrocities blamed on Slobodan Milosevic and decide if he was fit to remain president of Yugoslavia. The San Antonio Spurs won their first title as they defeated the New York Knicks 78-77 in Game 5 of the NBA finals. Five years ago: Republican Jack Ryan withdrew from the U.S. Senate race in Illinois after allegations of sex-club visits with his then-wife, actress Jeri Ryan. President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, opened a European trip as they arrived in Ireland. Taliban fighters killed up to 16 men after learning they had registered for Afghanistan's U.S.-backed national elections. In 2005, hardline Tehran Mayor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner of Iran's presidential runoff election. One year ago: A divided Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana law that allowed capital punishment for people convicted of raping children under 12; the ruling also invalidated laws in five other states that allowed executions for child rape that did not result in the death of the victim. A jury in Woburn, Mass., convicted Neil Entwistle of first-degree murder in the deaths of his wife, Rachel, 27, and their 9-month-old baby, Lillian Rose. (Entwistle was sentenced the next day to two life prison terms without possibility of parole.) Wesley N. Higdon, 25, shot and killed five workers and himself at a western Kentucky plastics plant; a sixth victim survived. Today's Birthdays: Movie director Sidney Lumet is 85. Actress June Lockhart is 84.R&B singer Eddie Floyd is 72. [Seen here in 1967, live in Limeyland. — Ed.]Actress Barbara Montgomery is 70. Basketball Hall of Famer Willis Reed is 67. Writer-producer-director Gary David Goldberg is 65. Singer Carly Simon is 64. Rock musician Allen Lanier (Blue Öyster Cult) is 63.Rock musician Ian McDonald (Foreigner; King Crimson) is 63. Actor-comedian Jimmie Walker is 62. Actor-director Michael Lembeck is 61. [Touched by Greatness: Mr. Lembeck, son of Harvey, lived in the same neo-tenement we did at 1430 N. Martel Ave., way back in the mists of time. — Ed.] TV personality Phyllis George is 60. Rock singer Tim Finn is 57. Rock musician David Paich (Toto) is 55. Actor Michael Sabatino is 54. Actor-writer-director Ricky Gervais is 48. Actor John Benjamin Hickey is 46. Rock singer George Michael is 46. Actress Erica Gimpel is 45. Recently retired Houston Rockets center Dikembe Mutombo is 43. Rapper-producer Richie Rich is 42. Rapper Candyman is 41. Contemporary Christian musician Sean Kelly (Sixpence None the Richer) is 38. Actress Angela Kinsey ("The Office") is 38. Rock musician Mike Kroeger (Nickelback) is 37. Rock musician Mario Calire is 35. Actress Linda Cardellini is 34. Actress Busy Philipps is 30.

Today In Entertainment History -- On June 25th, 1951, the first commercial color telecast took place as CBS transmitted a one-hour special from New York to four other cities. In 1967, With Mick Jagger, Keith Richard and others singing backup, The Beatles recorded "All You Need Is Love" live on the "Our World" program, which was seen worldwide. In 1969, Mick Taylor made his first concert appearance with the Rolling Stones. He replaced Brian Jones, who was found dead at his home about a week later. In 1984, Prince released his "Purple Rain" album, the same day & year that Patti Scialfa joined Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band as a backup singer, four days before the "Born in the USA" tour began. In 1988, Debbie Gibson became the youngest artist to ever write, produce and perform a number-one hit, when "Foolish Beat" hit the top of the charts. She graduated from high school the next day. In 1992, Billy Joel received his high school diploma. Twenty-five years earlier, he had overslept and missed his English and gym finals. In 1995, Pearl Jam canceled their tour because of an ongoing battle with Ticketmaster. They objected that the business had a monopoly and charged fans too big a surcharge on concert tickets. In 1997, actor Jim Carrey and actress Lauren Holly split up. They had been married for ten months. In 2006, Nicole Kidman married Keith Urban in Sydney, Australia. Thought for Today: "The press, like fire, is an excellent servant, but a terrible master." — James Fenimore Cooper, American author (1789-1851).