Today is Sunday, Jan. 22, the 22nd day of 2007. There are 343 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On Jan. 22, 1917, President Wilson pleaded for an end to war in Europe, calling for “peace without victory.” (By April, however, America also was at war.)
On this date:
In 1901, Britain’s Queen Victoria died at age 82.
In 1905 (New Style calendar), thousands of demonstrating Russian workers were fired on by Imperial army troops in St. Petersburg on what became known as “Bloody Sunday.”
In 1907, 100 years ago, the Richard Strauss opera “Salome” made its American debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York; its racy content (including the Dance of the Seven Veils) sparked outrage.
In 1938, Thornton Wilder’s play “Our Town” was performed publicly for the first time, in Princeton, N.J.
In 1944, during World War II, Allied forces began landing at Anzio, Italy.
In 1957, suspected “Mad Bomber” George P. Metesky was arrested in Waterbury, Conn. (He was later found mentally ill and committed to a mental hospital until 1973.)
In 1973, the Supreme Court handed down its Roe v. Wade decision, which legalized abortion.
In 1973, former President Lyndon Johnson died at age 64.
In 1987, Pennsylvania treasurer R. Budd Dwyer, convicted of defrauding the state, proclaimed his innocence at a news conference before shooting himself to death in front of horrified spectators.
In 1995, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy died at the Kennedy compound at Hyannis Port, Mass., at age 104.
Ten years ago: The Senate confirmed Madeleine Albright as the nation’s first female secretary of state and former Republican Sen. William Cohen as defense secretary.
Five years ago: Kmart Corp., the discount chain that gave America the BlueLight Special, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Jack Shea, a gold medal-winning speedskater and patriarch of the nation’s first family with three generations of Olympians, died in Lake Placid, N.Y., of injuries suffered in a car accident; he was 91.
One year ago: Evo Morales, Bolivia’s first Indian president, took office with a promise to lift his nation’s struggling indigenous majority out of centuries of poverty and discrimination. Kobe Bryant scored 81 points, the second-highest in NBA history, in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 122-104 victory over the Toronto Raptors. The Pittsburgh Steelers won the AFC title game, dismantling the Denver Broncos 34-17. The Seattle Seahawks claimed the NFC title, routing the Carolina Panthers 34-14.
Today’s Birthdays: Former Sen. Birch Bayh, D-Ind., is 79. Actress Piper Laurie is 75. Actor Seymour Cassel is 72. Author Joseph Wambaugh is 70. Actor John Hurt is 67. Country singer-musician Teddy Gentry (Alabama) is 55. Movie director Jim Jarmusch is 54. Hockey Hall-of-Famer Mike Bossy is 50. Actress Linda Blair is 48. Actress Diane Lane is 42. Actor-rap DJ Jazzy Jeff is 42. Country singer Regina Nicks (Regina Regina) is 42. Rhythm-and-blues singer Marc Gay (Shai) is 38. Actor Gabriel Macht is 35. Actor Balthazar Getty is 32. Actor Christopher Kennedy Masterson is 27. Pop singer Willa Ford is 26. Rhythm-and-blues singer Kelton Kessee (IMX) is 26. Actress Beverley Mitchell is 26. Rock singer-musician Ben Moody is 26.
Thought for Today: “To be capable of respect is today almost as rare as to be worthy of it.” — Joseph Joubert, French moralist (1754-1824).