Today is Saturday, June 2, the 153rd day of 2007. There are 212 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On June 2, 1953, Queen Elizabeth II of England was crowned in Westminster Abbey, 16 months after the death of her father, King George VI.
On this date:
In 1857, 150 years ago, English composer Edward Elgar was born in Worcester, England.
In 1886, President Cleveland married Frances Folsom in a White House ceremony.
In 1897, Mark Twain, 61, was quoted by the New York Journal as saying from London that “the report of my death was an exaggeration.”
In 1924, Congress granted American citizenship to all U.S.-born American Indians.
In 1941, baseball’s “Iron Horse,” Lou Gehrig, died in New York of a degenerative disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; he was 37.
In 1946, the Italian monarchy was abolished in favor of a republic.
In 1966, the U.S. space probe Surveyor 1 landed on the moon and began transmitting detailed photographs of the lunar surface.
In 1979, Pope John Paul II arrived in his native Poland on the first visit by a pope to a Communist country.
In 1987, President Reagan announced he was nominating economist Alan Greenspan to succeed Paul Volcker as chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.
In 1995, a U.S. Air Force F-16C was shot down by a Bosnian Serb surface-to-air missile while on a NATO air patrol in northern Bosnia; the pilot, Capt. Scott F. O’Grady, was rescued six days later.
Ten years ago: Timothy McVeigh was convicted of murder and conspiracy in the Oklahoma City bombing. (McVeigh was executed in June 2001.) Conservative President Jacques Chirac of France, forced to share power with Socialists who had routed his party in national elections, handed the premiership to former opposition leader Lionel Jospin.
Five years ago: Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat offered Cabinet posts to militant groups as part of a government reshuffle. A fire broke out at Buckingham Palace, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people and marring the four-day celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s 50 years on the throne. “Thoroughly Modern Millie” won six Tony Awards, including best musical. American journalist and columnist Flora Lewis died in Paris at age 79.
One year ago: The United Nations General Assembly concluded a conference on AIDS by promising to set “ambitious national targets,” but falling short of setting exact financial goals for the fight against the disease. Canadian authorities announced they had foiled a homegrown terrorist attack by arresting 17 suspects. Vince Welnick, the Grateful Dead’s last keyboard player, died in Sonoma County, Calif., at age 55.
Today’s Birthdays: Actor Milo O’Shea is 82. Actress-singer Sally Kellerman is 70. Actor Stacy Keach is 66. Rock musician Charlie Watts is 66. Singer William Guest (Gladys Knight and The Pips) is
66. Actor Charles Haid is 64. Composer Marvin Hamlisch is 63. Movie director Lasse Hallstrom is 61. Actor Jerry Mathers is 59. Actress Joanna Gleason is 57. Actor Dennis Haysbert is 53. Comedian Dana Carvey is 52. Actor Gary Grimes is 52. Rock singer Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet) is 47. Singer Merril Bainbridge is 39. Rapper B-Real (Cypress Hill) is 37. Actress Paula Cale is 37. Actor-comedian Wayne Brady is 35. Actor Wentworth Miller is 35. Rock musician Tim Rice-Oxley (Keane) is 31. Actress Nikki Cox is
29. Actor Justin Long is 29. Actor Deon Richmond is 29. Rhythm-and-blues singer Irish Grinstead (702) is 27. Rock musician Fabrizio Moretti (The Strokes) is 27. Country singer Dan Cahoon (Marshall Dyllon) is 24.
Thought for Today: “No good deed goes unpunished.” — Attributed to Clare Boothe Luce, author, diplomat, member of Congress (1903-1987).