Today in History
Today is Friday, June 16, the 167th day of 2023. There are 198 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On June 16, 1858, accepting the Illinois Republican Party’s nomination for the U.S. Senate, Abraham Lincoln said the slavery issue had to be resolved, declaring, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
On this date:
In 1903, Ford Motor Co. was incorporated.
In 1933, the National Industrial Recovery Act became law with President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s signature. (The Act was later struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.) The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was founded as President Roosevelt signed the Banking Act of 1933.
In 1941, National Airport (now Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport) opened for business with a ceremony attended by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
In 1963, the world’s first female space traveler, Valentina Tereshkova (teh-ruhsh-KOH’-vuh), 26, was launched into orbit by the Soviet Union aboard Vostok 6; Tereshkova spent 71 hours in flight, circling the Earth 48 times before returning safely.
In 1970, Kenneth A. Gibson of Newark, New Jersey, became the first Black politician elected mayor of a major Northeast city. Chicago Bears running back Brian Piccolo, 26, died at a New York hospital after battling cancer.
In 1977, Soviet Communist Party General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev was named president, becoming the first person to hold both posts simultaneously.
In 1978, President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos (toh-REE’-ohs) signed the instruments of ratification for the Panama Canal treaties during a ceremony in Panama City.
In 1980, Musical comedy film “The Blues Brothers”, starring Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi, and directed by John Landis, premieres in Chicago, Illinois.
In 1999, Thabo Mbeki (TAH’-boh um-BEH’-kee) took the oath as president of South Africa, succeeding Nelson Mandela.
In 2011, U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., announced his resignation from Congress, bowing to the furor caused by his sexually charged online dalliances with a former porn performer and other women. Osama bin Laden’s longtime second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahri (AY’-muhn ahl-ZWAH’-ree), took control of al-Qaida.
In 2015, real estate mogul Donald Trump launched his successful campaign to become president of the United States with a speech at Trump Tower in Manhattan.
In 2016, President Barack Obama traveled to Orlando, Florida, the scene of a deadly nightclub shooting that claimed 49 victims; the president embraced grieving families and cheered on Democrats’ push for new gun control measures. Walt Disney Co. opened Shanghai Disneyland, its first theme park in mainland China.
In 2020, federal authorities announced murder and attempted murder charges against an Air Force sergeant, Steven Carrillo, in the fatal shooting of a federal security officer outside a U.S. courthouse in Oakland, California. (Carrillo, who had ties to the far-right, anti-government “boogaloo” movement, pleaded guilty to a federal murder charge after prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty.)
Ten years ago: Riot police firing tear gas and water cannons repelled thousands of anti-government protesters attempting to converge on Istanbul’s central Taksim Square while Prime Minister Recep Tayipp Erdogan (REH’-jehp TY’-ihp UR’-doh-wahn) defended the crackdown at a rally of his supporters. Justin Rose captured his first major championship and became the first Englishman in 43 years to win the U.S. Open, shooting a closing 70 at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, for a 1-over 281 total. Connecticut accountant Erin Brady won the Miss USA pageant in Las Vegas.
Five years ago: China announced 25 percent tariffs on $34 billion in U.S. imports, including soybeans and beef, in response to President Donald Trump’s tariff hike on a similar amount of Chinese goods; China also scrapped agreements to narrow its trade surplus with the United States. Officials in Hawaii said the lower Puna eruption had destroyed 467 homes. A 23-foot-long python swallowed a 54-year-old woman in central Indonesia, an extremely rare occurrence.
One year ago: Witnesses testified to the Jan. 6 committee that Donald Trump’s closest advisers viewed his last-ditch efforts to pressure Vice President Mike Pence to reject the tally of state electors and overturn the 2020 election as “nuts,” “crazy” and even likely to incite riots. Industry officials said thousands of cattle in feedlots in southwestern Kansas died of heat stress due to soaring temperatures, high humidity and little wind. Severe weather forced Abbott Nutrition to pause production at a Michigan baby formula factory that had just restarted amid a national shortage.
Today’s Birthdays: Actor Eileen Atkins is 89. Actor Bill Cobbs is 89. Author Joyce Carol Oates is 85.
Country singer Billy “Crash” Craddock is 85. R&B singer Eddie Levert is 81. Actor Joan Van Ark is 80. Actor Geoff Pierson is 74. Boxing Hall of Famer Roberto Duran is 72. Pop singer Gino Vannelli is 71. Actor Laurie Metcalf is 68. Actor Arnold Vosloo is 61. Actor Danny Burstein is 59. Model-actor Jenny Shimizu is 56. Actor James Patrick Stuart is 55. Rapper MC Ren is 54. Actor Clifton Collins Jr. is 53. Golfer Phil Mickelson is 53. Actor John Cho is 51. Actor Eddie Cibrian is 50. Actor Fred Koehler is 48. Actor China (chee-nah) Shavers is 46. Actor Daniel Bruhl is 45. Bluegrass musician Caleb Smith (Balsam Range) is 45. Actor Sibel Kekilli is 43. Actor Missy Peregrym (PEH’-rih-grihm) is 41. Actor Olivia Hack is 40. Singer Diana DeGarmo (TV: “American Idol”) is 36. Actor Ali Stroker is 36. Tennis player Bianca Andreescu is 23.
