Fifty years ago, on Nov. 15, 1959, Kansas farmer Herbert Clutter, his wife, Bonnie, and the couple's two youngest children, Nancy, 16, and Kenyon, 15, were found murdered in their home in Holcomb. (Two ex-convicts, Richard Hickock and Perry Smith, were later convicted of the killings and hanged; the case was detailed in the Truman Capote book "In Cold Blood.")
On this date:
In 1777, the Second Continental Congress approved the Articles of Confederation, a precursor to the Constitution of the United States.
In 1806, explorer Zebulon Pike sighted the mountaintop now known as "Pikes Peak" in present-day Colorado.
In 1864, Union Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman began his Civil War march from Atlanta to the sea.
In 1889, Brazil was proclaimed a republic as its emperor, Dom Pedro II, was overthrown.
In 1920, the first assembly of the League of Nations was called to order in Geneva, Switzerland.
Seventy years ago, in 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt laid the cornerstone of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.
In 1940, the first 75,000 men were called to armed forces duty under peacetime conscription.
In 1943, Heinrich Himmler ordered Gypsies be placed in Nazi concentration camps.
In 1948, William Lyon Mackenzie King retired as prime minister of Canada after 21 years; he was succeeded by Louis St. Laurent. [What the hell kind of "democracy" do you hosers have going up there? 21 yrs.? — Ed.]
In 1966, the flight of Gemini 12 ended successfully as astronauts James A. Lovell and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin Jr. splashed down safely in the Atlantic.
Forty years ago, in 1969, a quarter of a million protesters staged a peaceful demonstration in Washington against the Vietnam War.
In 1982, funeral services were held in Moscow for Soviet President Leonid Brezhnev.
In 1984, Stephanie Fae Beauclair, the infant publicly known as "Baby Fae" who had received a baboon's heart to replace her own congenitally deformed one, died at Loma Linda University Medical Center in California three weeks after the transplant.
In 1985, Britain and Ireland signed an accord giving Dublin an official consultative role in governing Northern Ireland.
In 1986, a government tribunal in Nicaragua convicted American Eugene Hasenfus of delivering arms to Contra rebels and sentenced him to 30 years in prison. He was pardoned a month later.
In 1987, 27 people were killed when a Continental Airlines DC-9 jet crashed in a snowstorm during takeoff from Denver.
In 1988, the Palestine National Council, the legislative body of the PLO, proclaimed the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. The Soviet Union launched its first space shuttle, Buran, on its only flight, which carried no crew.
In 1989, tornadoes struck six Southern states, killing 17 people and injuring 463, causing at least $100 million in damage in Huntsville, Ala.
In 1990, members of the so-called Keating Five -- Sens. Alan Cranston, D-Calif.; Dennis DeConcini, D-Ariz.; John Glenn, D-Ohio; John McCain, R-Ariz.; and Donald Riegle, D-Mich. -- were accused of influence peddling on behalf of savings and loan kingpin Charles Keating. [Why is slimy shit McCain still a senator &, at age 72 or whatever, running for yet another term? — Ed.]
In 1993, a judge in Mineola, N.Y., sentenced Joey Buttafuoco to six months in jail for the statutory rape of Amy Fisher, who shot and wounded Buttafuoco's wife, Mary Jo.
In 1999, the Clinton administration claimed victory in a seven-year struggle to persuade Congress to pay nearly $1 billion in back dues to the United Nations. Chinese and U.S. negotiators agreed to remove trade barriers, clearing the biggest hurdle to China's entry into the World Trade Organization.
In 2001, U.S. commandos were on the ground in southern Afghanistan in the search for al-Qaida leaders and more than 250 U.S. and British special forces troops landed north of Kabul. [And eight yrs. later we are ...? — Ed.]
In 2002, the White House and the FBI backed off from a warning that al-Qaida was plotting "spectacular" attacks against the United States after critics latched onto it to show progress in the war on terror was faltering. Hu Jintao replaced Jiang Zemin as China's Communist Party leader.
In 2004, the White House announced that Secretary of State Colin Powell was leaving President George W. Bush's Cabinet, along with Education Secretary Rod Paige, Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman and Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham. The U.N. Security Council imposed an arms embargo on Ivory Coast's hard-line government after its violent confrontation with France. Also in 2004, facing the possibility of U.N. sanctions, Iran announced it would suspend its uranium enrichment program.
In 2005, the official death toll from Hurricane Katrina stood at 972 with more bodies found as Louisiana residents returned home more than a month after the search for victims officially ended.
In 2006, a minor tsunami created by an 8.1 earthquake off northern Japan struck Crescent City on the northern California coast, damaging docks and boats. No injuries were reported. A small tsunami also hit Japan's northern and eastern coasts.
In 2007, Cyclone Sidr, with winds of more than 150 miles an hour, slammed into the southwestern Bangladesh coast, killing a reported more than 3,400 people. Authorities said tens of thousands were injured and 1 million people were homeless.
In 2005, baseball players and owners agreed on a tougher steroids-testing policy.
In 2006, One of four U.S. soldiers accused of raping a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and killing her and her family pleaded guilty at Fort Campbell, Ky. (Spec. James P. Barker, who agreed to testify against the others, was later sentenced to 90 years in prison.)
In 2007, baseball home run king Barry Bonds was indicted on charges related to grand jury testimony during which he denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. (Bonds has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.)
In 2008, world leaders battling an economic crisis agreed in Washington to flag risky investing and regulatory weak spots in hopes of avoiding future financial meltdowns. A wildfire destroyed nearly 500 mobile homes in Los Angeles. Gay rights supporters marched in cities coast to coast to protest the vote that banned gay marriage in California. Somali pirates hijacked the Sirius Star, a Saudi-owned oil supertanker, in the Indian Ocean. (The ship was released eight weeks later after the pirates were reportedly paid a ransom.)
Today's Birthdays: Judge Joseph Wapner is 90. Statesman Howard H. Baker Jr. is 84. Actor Ed Asner is 80. Actor John Kerr is 78. Singer Petula Clark is 77. Comedian Jack Burns is 76. Actress Joanna Barnes is 75. Actor Yaphet Kotto is 70. Actor Sam Waterston is 69. Classical conductor Daniel Barenboim is 67. Pop singer Frida (ABBA) is 64. Actor Bob Gunton is 64. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is 62. Director-actor James Widdoes is 56. Rock singer-producer Mitch Easter is 55. CNN anchor-reporter John Roberts is 53. "Jay Leno Show" bandleader Kevin Eubanks is 52. Comedian Judy Gold is 47. Actress Rachel True is 43. Rapper E-40 is 42. Country singer Jack Ingram is 39. Actor Jay Harrington is 38. Actor Jonny Lee Miller is 37. Actress Sydney Tamiia Poitier is 36. Christian rock musician David Carr (Third Day) is 35. Rock singer-musician Chad Kroeger is 35. Rock musician Jesse Sandoval is 35. Actress Virginie Ledoyen is 33. Actor Sean Murray (TV: "NCIS") is 32. Pop singer Ace Young (TV: "American Idol") is 29. Golfer Lorena Ochoa is 28.
Today In Entertainment History November 15
In 1926, the National Broadcasting Co. debuted with a radio network of 24 stations.
In 1960, Hollywood king Clark Gable, best remembered as Rhett Butler in "Gone With The Wind," died of a heart attack at the age of 59.
Forty years ago, in 1969, singer Janis Joplin was arrested in Tampa, Fla., for using vulgar and indecent language at her concert. Joplin was released on bond, and the charges eventually were dropped. Also in 1969, the Star Club in Hamburg, Germany, where The Beatles performed in their early days, closed its doors for good.
In 1980, David Bowie opened on Broadway in the title role of "The Elephant Man."
In 1990, Milli Vanilli producer Frank Farian admitted that Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan didn't sing a note on their "Girl You Know It's True" album.
In 1996, Michael Jackson married dermatologist aide Debbie Rowe in Sydney, Australia. She was six months pregnant with his child. They later divorced.
In 2000, Michael Abram was acquitted of stabbing George Harrison in his home. Abram was found innocent by reason of insanity.
In 2004, rapper Dr. Dre was punched at the Vibe Awards by Jimmy "James" Johnson, who was then stabbed by rapper Young Buck. Also in 2004, ABC ran a sketch during "Monday Night Football" showing Nicolette Sheridan in a towel trying to persuade Terrell Owens of the Philadelphia Eagles to spend the night with her. The sketch prompted an uproar that resulted in an apology from ABC.
Thought for Today: "In seeking wisdom thou art wise; in imagining that thou has attained it thou art a fool." — Simon Ben Azzai, 2nd century (C. E.) Jewish scholar.
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