20 July: Operation Valkyrie Fails; Americans Hit Moon

By The Associated Press | July 20, 2009 Today is Monday, July 20, the 201st day of 2009. There are 164 days left in the year. AP. A/V. UPI Almanac. Today's Highlight in History: On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became the first men to walk on the moon after landing their lunar module. As he set foot on the lunar surface, Armstrong spoke his famous line, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Aldrin, who followed, described the scene as "magnificent desolation."Neil Armstrong: "the Eagle has landed." Neil Armstrong: "one small step for man" The AP covers it, text-wise. [Fuck 'em if the link doesn't link. — Ed.] On this date: In 1810, Colombia declared independence from Spain.

One hundred and fifty years ago, in 1859, American baseball fans were charged an admission fee for the first time when 1,500 spectators each paid 50 cents to see Brooklyn play New York. In 1861, the Congress of the Confederate States began holding sessions in Richmond, Va. In 1871, British Columbia entered Confederation as a Canadian province. In 1881, Sioux Indian leader Sitting Bull surrendered to federal troops.In 1917, the draft lottery in World War I went into operation. In 1942, the first detachment of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps began basic training at Fort Des Moines, Iowa. In 1944, an attempt by a group of German officials to assassinate Adolf Hitler with a bomb failed as the explosion at Hitler's Rastenburg headquarters only wounded the Nazi leader. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was nominated for an unprecedented fourth term of office at the Democratic convention in Chicago.

In 1945, the U.S. flag was raised over Berlin as the first U.S. troops moved in to take part in the post-World War II occupation. In 1951, while entering a mosque in the Jordanian sector of east Jerusalem, King Abdullah of Jordan was assassinated by a Palestinian nationalist. In 1954, the Geneva Accords divided Vietnam into northern and southern entities. In 1976, America's Viking 1 robot spacecraft made a successful, first-ever landing on Mars. In 1977, a flash flood hit Johnstown, Pa., killing more than 80 people and causing $350 million worth of damage. In 1982, Irish Republican Army bombs exploded in two London parks, killing 11 soldiers, along with seven horses belonging to the Queen's Household Cavalry. In 1988, Massachusetts Gov. Michael S. Dukakis received the Democratic presidential nomination at the party's convention in Atlanta. In 1990, a federal appeals court set aside Oliver North's Iran-Contra convictions. In 1989, U.S. President George H.W. Bush called for the United States to organize a long-range space program to support an orbiting space station, a moon base and a manned mission to Mars. [Say, good idea. Which is why his no-account son proposed the same thing, w/o any funding attached either. Fucking jerks, both of them. This country would have been much better off if H. W. had died when his plane was shot down. — Ed.] Ten years ago: After 38 years at the bottom of the Atlantic, astronaut Gus Grissom's Liberty Bell 7 Mercury capsule was lifted to the surface. Five years ago: Former national security adviser Sandy Berger quit as an informal adviser to Democrat John Kerry's presidential campaign after disclosure of a criminal investigation into whether he had mishandled classified terrorism documents. Iraqi militants freed a Filipino truck driver after the Philippines government gave in to their demands to withdraw troops from Iraq. The head of slain American hostage Paul M. Johnson Jr. was found in a raid in Saudi Arabia. The U.N. General Assembly demanded that Israel tear down the barrier it was building to seal off the West Bank; Israel vowed to continue construction. One year ago: Pope Benedict XVI wrapped up a six-day World Youth Day Festival in Sydney by challenging young people to shed the greed and cynicism of their time to create a new age of hope for humankind. Padraig Harrington became the first European in more than a century to win the British Open two years in a row. Today's Birthdays: Actress-singer Sally Ann Howes is 79. Rockabilly singer Sleepy LaBeef is 74. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, D-Md., is 73. Actress Diana Rigg is 71. Rock musician John Lodge (The Moody Blues) is 66. Country singer T.G. Sheppard is 65. Singer Kim Carnes is 64. Rock musician Carlos Santana is 62. Rock musician Paul Cook (The Sex Pistols, Man Raze) is 53. Actress Donna Dixon is 52. Rock musician Mick McNeil (Simple Minds) is 51. Country singer Radney Foster is 50. Actor Frank Whaley is 46. Rock singer Chris Cornell is 45. Rock musician Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam) is 43. Actor Reed Diamond is 42. Actor Josh Holloway ("Lost") is 40. Singer Vitamin C is 40. Former baseball catcher Charles Johnson is 38. Actor Simon Rex is 35. San Francisco Giants catcher Bengie Molina is 35. Boston Celtics guard Ray Allen is 34. Actress Judy Greer is 34. Actor Charlie Korsmo is 31. Supermodel Gisele Bundchen is 29. Rock musician Mike Kennerty (The All-American Rejects) is 29. Actor Percy Daggs III is 27. Baltimore Ravens quarterback Troy Smith is 25. Today In Entertainment History -- On July 20th, 1954, Elvis Presley, Scotty Moore and Bill Black performed in public for the first time, billing themselves as the Blue Moon Boys. They performed at the opening of a new drugstore in Memphis. In 1965, Bob Dylan's single "Like A Rolling Stone" was released by Columbia Records. In 1968, Jane Asher announced on national TV in Britain that her engagement to Paul McCartney was off. McCartney reportedly was watching and was surprised by the news. Iron Butterfly's "In-a-Gadda-da-Vidda" debuted on the American pop chart. In 1975, "Miami" Steve Van Zandt performed for the first time in concert as part of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in Providence, Rhode Island. Thirty years ago, in 1979, the Electric Light Orchestra took out ads dedicating their newly-released song "Don't Bring Me Down" to Skylab. Twenty-five years ago, in 1984, reigning Miss America Vanessa Williams was asked by pageant officials to resign because of nude photos of her that appeared in "Penthouse" magazine. She gave up her title three days later. In 1986, "Sid And Nancy," a film biography of the Sex Pistols, premiered in London. Gary Oldman played Sid Vicious. In 1996, actor Robert Downey Jr. was arrested after authorities say he left a court-ordered drug rehab center. It was his third arrest in a month. In 1998, actress Jodie Foster gave birth to a boy in Los Angeles. She refused to say who the father was and how she got pregnant. In 2006, actor Haley Joel Osment, who was 18 at the time, was arrested for drunk driving and marijuana possession outside Los Angeles when his car hit a mailbox and flipped over. Thought for Today: "The regret on our side is, they used to say years ago, we are reading about you in science class. Now they say, we are reading about you in history class." -- Neil Armstrong, American astronaut (1930- ).