Today is Monday, Feb. 13, the 44th day of 2006. There are 321 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On Feb. 13, 1935, a jury in Flemington, N.J., found Bruno Richard Hauptmann guilty of first-degree murder in the kidnap-death of the son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh. (Hauptmann was later executed.)
On this date:
In 1542, the fifth wife of England’s King Henry VIII, Catherine Howard, was executed for adultery.
In 1795, the University of North Carolina became the first U.S. state university to admit students with the arrival of Hinton James, who was the only student on campus for two weeks.
In 1914, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, known as ASCAP, was founded in New York.
In 1920, the League of Nations recognized the perpetual neutrality of Switzerland.
In 1945, during World War II, the Soviets captured Budapest, Hungary, from the Germans.
In 1945, Allied planes began bombing the German city of Dresden.
In 1960, France exploded its first atomic bomb.
In 1980, opening ceremonies were held in Lake Placid, N.Y., for the 13th Winter Olympics.
In 1984, Konstantin Chernenko was chosen to be general secretary of the Soviet Communist Party’s Central Committee, succeeding the late Yuri Andropov.
In 1988, the 15th winter Olympics opened in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Ten years ago: In the continuing drama of man versus machine, world chess champion Garry Kasparov asked for a draw in his third game against the IBM supercomputer named “Deep Blue,” leaving the six-game match in Philadelphia tied at 1½ games each. The rock musical “Rent,” by Jonathan Larson, opened off-Broadway.
Five years ago: A 6.6-magnitude earthquake shook El Salvador, killing at least 402 people one month to the day after another quake killed more than 800 people. Ivan Lendl was elected to the tennis Hall of Fame along with Mervyn Rose, an Australian star from the 1950s.
One year ago: Final results showed clergy-backed Shiites and independence-minded Kurds had swept to victory in Iraq’s landmark elections. Ray Charles’ final album, “Genius Loves Company,” won eight Grammy awards. The AFC won the Pro Bowl, defeating the NFC 38-27.
Today’s Birthdays: Former test pilot Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager is 83. Actress Kim Novak is 73. Actor George Segal is 72. Actor Bo Svenson is 65. Actress Carol Lynley is 64. Singer-musician Peter Tork (The Monkees) is 64. Actress Stockard Channing is 62. Talk show host Jerry Springer is 62. Singer Peter Gabriel is 56. Actor David Naughton is 55. Rock musician Peter Hook is 50. Actor Matt Salinger is 46. Singer Henry Rollins is 45. Actor Neal McDonough is 40. Singer Freedom Williams is 40. Actress Kelly Hu is 38. Rock musician Todd Harrell (3 Doors Down) is 34. Singer Robbie Williams is 32. Rhythm-and-blues performer Natalie Stewart (Floetry) is 27. Actress Mena Suvari is 27.
Thought for Today: “To go against the dominant thinking of your friends, of most of the people you see every day, is perhaps the most difficult act of heroism you can have.” — Theodore H. White, American political writer (1915-1986).