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Today in history: December 10

Celebrity birthdays, highlights in history, plus more facts about this day
/ Source: The Associated Press

Today is Saturday, Dec. 10, the 344th day of 2005. There are 21 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:
On Dec. 10, 1964, Martin Luther King Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize during ceremonies in Oslo, Norway.

On this date:
In 1817, Mississippi was admitted as the 20th state.

In 1869, women were granted the right to vote in the Wyoming Territory.

In 1898, a treaty was signed in Paris officially ending the Spanish-American War.

In 1931, Jane Addams became a co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, the first American woman so honored.

In 1948, the U.N. General Assembly adopted its Universal Declaration on Human Rights.

In 1950, Ralph J. Bunche was presented the Nobel Peace Prize, the first black American to receive the award.

In 1958, the first domestic passenger jet flight took place in the U.S. as a National Airlines Boeing 707 flew 111 passengers from New York to Miami in about 2 1/2 hours.

In 1967, singer Otis Redding died in the crash of his private plane in Wisconsin.

In 1984, South African Bishop Desmond Tutu received the Nobel Peace Prize.

In 1994, Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin received the Nobel Peace Prize, pledging to pursue their mission of healing the anguished Middle East.

Ten years ago: The first group of U.S. Marines arrived in the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo to join NATO soldiers sent to enforce peace in former Yugoslavia.

Five years ago: In Washington, lawyers for Al Gore and George W. Bush filed briefs outlining their cases to be argued the next day before the U.S. Supreme Court. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak of Israel submitted his resignation, starting the countdown toward a special election.

One year ago: President Bush picked Samuel Bodman to be the new energy secretary. Bernard Kerik withdrew his name from consideration to be President Bush's homeland security secretary. An Italian court cleared Premier Silvio Berlusconi of corruption charges in his long-running trial. Sprinter Michelle Collins was suspended for eight years for a doping violation linked to the BALCO scandal. (The suspension was later reduced to four years.)

Today's Birthdays: Actor Harold Gould is 82. Actress Jean Byron is 80. Former Agriculture Secretary Clayton Yeutter is 75. Actor Mako is 72. Actor Tommy Kirk is 64. Actress Fionnula Flanagan is 64. Pop singer Chad Stuart (Chad and Jeremy) is 64. Actress-singer Gloria Loring is 59. Pop-funk musician Walter "Clyde" Orange (The Commodores) is 59. Rhythm-and-blues singer Ralph Tavares is 57. Rhythm-and-blues singer Jessica Cleaves (Friends of Distinction) is 57. Country singer Johnny Rodriguez is 54. Actress Susan Dey is 53. Jazz musician Paul Hardcastle is 48. Actor-director Kenneth Branagh is 45. Actress Nia Peeples is 44. Rock singer-musician J Mascis is 40. Country singer Kevin Sharp is 35. Rock musician Scot Alexander (Dishwalla) is 34. Rapper Kuniva (D12) is 27. Violinist Sarah Chang is 25. Actress Raven is 20.

Thought for Today: "Originality and a feeling of one's own dignity are achieved only through work and struggle." — Feodor Dostoyevsky, Russian author (1821-1881).