Today is Saturday, Jan. 27, the 27th day of 2007. There are 338 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On Jan. 27, 1967, astronauts Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom, Edward H. White and Roger B. Chaffee died in a flash fire during a test aboard their Apollo spacecraft at Cape Kennedy, Fla.
On this date:
In 1756, composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria.
In 1880, Thomas Edison received a patent for his electric incandescent lamp.
In 1901, opera composer Giuseppe Verdi died in Milan, Italy, at age 87.
In 1943, some 50 bombers struck Wilhelmshaven in the first all-American air raid against Germany during World War II.
In 1944, the Soviet Union announced the complete end of the deadly German siege of Leningrad, which had lasted for more than two years.
In 1945, Soviet troops liberated the Nazi concentration camps Auschwitz and Birkenau in Poland.
In 1951, an era of atomic testing in the Nevada desert began as an Air Force plane dropped a one-kiloton bomb on Frenchman Flats.
In 1967, more than 60 nations signed a treaty banning the orbiting of nuclear weapons.
In 1973, the Vietnam peace accords were signed in Paris.
In 2001, two Dartmouth College professors, Half and Susanne Zantop, were murdered at their home by two teenagers. (Robert Tulloch is serving life in prison without parole; James Parker is serving 25 years to life.)
Ten years ago: Switzerland’s ambassador to the United States, Carlo Jagmetti, resigned after outraging Jewish groups and their supporters by likening his country’s Nazi gold crisis to a war that had to be won.
Five years ago: Wafa Idris, a Palestinian paramedic, became the first female suicide bomber against Israel; her victim was an 81-year-old man. A munitions depot in Nigeria exploded; more than 1,000 people died, most of them drowning in a nearby canal during the resulting stampede. The Super Bowl matchup was decided as the New England Patriots upset the Pittsburgh Steelers 24-17 to win the AFC championship and the St. Louis Rams defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 29-24 to win the NFC championship. Thomas Johansson defeated Marat Safin 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (4) to win the Australian Open final.
One year ago: Western Union delivered its last telegram. In the wake of Hamas’ triumph in Palestinian parliamentary elections, thousands of outraged Fatah supporters burned cars and fired in the air across the Gaza Strip. The first inhalable version of insulin, “Exubera,” won federal approval.
Today’s Birthdays: Singer Bobby “Blue” Bland is 77. Actor James Cromwell is 67. Actor John Witherspoon is 65. Rock musician Nick Mason (Pink Floyd) is 62. Rhythm-and-blues singer Nedra Talley (The Ronettes) is 61. Ballet star Mikhail Baryshnikov is 59. John Roberts, chief justice of the United States, is 52. Country singer Cheryl White is 52. Country singer-musician Richard Young (The Kentucky Headhunters) is 52. Actress Mimi Rogers is 51. Rock musician Janick Gers (Iron Maiden) is 50. Rock singer Margo Timmins (Cowboy Junkies) is 46. Rock musician Gillian Gilbert is 46. Actress Bridget Fonda is 43. Actor Alan Cumming is 42. Country singer Tracy Lawrence is 39. Rock singer Mike Patton is 39. Rapper Tricky is 39. Rock musician Michael Kulas (James) is 38. Actor Josh Randall is 35. Country singer Kevin Denney is 31.
Thought for Today: “If we die, we want people to accept it ... We are in a risky business and we hope that if anything happens to us, it will not delay the program. The conquest of space is worth the risk of life.” — Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom (1926-1967).