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Today in History:
Today is Saturday, April 22, the 112th day of 2023. There are 253 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On April 22, 2000, in a dramatic pre-dawn raid, armed immigration agents seized Elian Gonzalez, the Cuban boy at the center of a custody dispute, from his relatives’ home in Miami; Elian was reunited with his father at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington.
Significant Events on this Day:
In 1889, the Oklahoma Land Rush began at noon as thousands of homesteaders staked claims.
In 1915, the first full-scale use of deadly chemicals in warfare took place as German forces unleashed chlorine gas against Allied troops at the start of the Second Battle of Ypres (EE’-preh) in Belgium during World War I; thousands of soldiers are believed to have died.
In 1937, thousands of college students in New York City staged a “peace strike” opposing American entry into another possible world conflict.
In 1944, during World War II, U.S. forces began invading Japanese-held New Guinea with amphibious landings at Hollandia and Aitape.
In 1954, the publicly televised sessions of the Senate Army-McCarthy hearings began.
In 1970, millions of Americans concerned about the environment observed the first “Earth Day.”
In 1993, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum was dedicated in Washington, D.C., to honor victims of Nazi extermination.
In 1994, Richard M. Nixon, the 37th president of the United States, died at a New York hospital four days after suffering a stroke; he was 81.
In 2004, Army Ranger Pat Tillman, who’d traded in a multi-million-dollar NFL contract to serve in Afghanistan, was killed by friendly fire; he was 27.
In 2005, Zacarias Moussaoui (zak-uh-REE’-uhs moo-SOW’-ee) pleaded guilty in a federal courtroom outside Washington, D.C., to conspiring with the Sept. 11 hijackers to kill Americans. (Moussaoui is serving a life prison sentence.)
In 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil platform, operated by BP, sank into the Gulf of Mexico two days after a massive explosion that killed 11 workers.
In 2016, leaders from 175 countries signed the Paris Agreement on climate change at the United Nations as the landmark deal took a key step toward entering into force years ahead of schedule.
Birthdays:
Actor Jack Nicholson is 86. Singer Mel Carter is 84. Author Janet Evanovich is 80. Country singer Cleve Francis is 78. Movie director John Waters is 77. Singer Peter Frampton is 73. Rock singer-musician Paul Carrack (Mike and the Mechanics; Squeeze) is 72. Actor Joseph Bottoms is 69. Actor Ryan Stiles is 64. Baseball manager Terry Francona is 64. Comedian and entertainment executive Byron Allen is 62. Actor Chris Makepeace is 59. Rock musician Fletcher Dragge (Pennywise) is 57. Actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan is 57. Actor Sheryl Lee is 56. Actor-talk show host Sherri Shepherd is 56. Country singer-musician Heath Wright (Ricochet) is 56. Country singer Kellie Coffey is 52. Actor Eric Mabius is 52. Actor Ingo Rademacher (RAH’-deh-mah-ker) is 52. Rock musician Shavo Odadjian (System of a Down) is 49. Rock singer-musician Daniel Johns (Silverchair) is 44. Actor Malcolm Barrett is 43. Actor Cassidy Freeman is 41. Actor Michelle Ryan is 39. Actor Zack Gottsagen is 38. Actor Amber Heard is 37. Singer-songwriter BC Jean (Alexander Jean) is 36. Drummer Tripp Howell (LANCO) is 34. Rapper/singer Machine Gun Kelly is 33.
Today in History offers a glimpse into significant past events that have shaped the world we live in today. Celebrate the accomplishments of those who have come before us, and let us not forget the tragedies that serve as necessary reminders of the work that still needs to be done.
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