Today in History

Today in History

Today is Thursday, Nov. 10, the 315th day of 2016. There are 51 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Nov. 10, 1766, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, had its beginnings as William Franklin, the Royal Governor of New Jersey, signed a charter establishing Queen's College in New Brunswick.

On this date:

In 1775, the U.S. Marines were organized under authority of the Continental Congress.

In 1871, journalist-explorer Henry M. Stanley found Scottish missionary David Livingstone, who had not been heard from for years, near Lake Tanganyika in central Africa.

In 1919, the American Legion opened its first national convention in Minneapolis.

In 1938, Kate Smith first sang Irving Berlin's "God Bless America" on her CBS radio program. Turkish statesman Mustafa Kemal Ataturk died in Istanbul at age 57.

In 1942, Winston Churchill delivered a speech in London in which he said, "I have not become the King's First Minister to preside over the liquidation of the British Empire."

In 1951, customer-dialed long-distance telephone service began as Mayor M. Leslie Denning of Englewood, New Jersey, called Alameda, California, Mayor Frank Osborne without operator assistance.

In 1954, the U.S. Marine Corps Memorial, depicting the raising of the American flag on Iwo Jima in 1945, was dedicated by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in Arlington, Virginia.

In 1969, the children's educational program "Sesame Street" made its debut on National Educational Television (later PBS).

In 1975, the U.N. General Assembly approved a resolution equating Zionism with racism (the world body repealed the resolution in Dec. 1991). The ore-hauling ship SS Edmund Fitzgerald mysteriously sank during a storm in Lake Superior with the loss of all 29 crew members.

In 1982, the newly finished Vietnam Veterans Memorial was opened to its first visitors in Washington, D.C., three days before its dedication. Soviet leader Leonid I. Brezhnev died at age 75.

In 1995, defying international appeals for clemency, Nigeria's military rulers hanged playwright Ken Saro-Wiwa along with eight other anti-government activists.

In 2004, word reached the United States of the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat at age 75 (because of the time difference, it was the early hours of Nov. 11 in Paris, where Arafat died).

Ten years ago: A new recording attributed to the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq (Abu Hamza al-Muhajir) mocked President George W. Bush as a coward whose conduct of the war had been rejected in U.S. midterm elections, and challenged him to keep U.S. troops in Iraq to face more bloodshed. President Bush dedicated the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, Virginia. Actor Jack Palance died in Montecito, California, at age 87.

Five years ago: The National Archives released a transcript of former President Richard Nixon's June 1975 grand jury testimony after a judge ordered the government to do so; in it, a feisty and cagey Nixon defended his legacy and Watergate-era actions. Calle 13, the Puerto Rican hip-hop duo, swept the Latin Grammy Awards in Las Vegas.

One year ago: Jeb Bush and Ben Carson sought to steady their presidential campaigns during a GOP debate held in Milwaukee, with Bush taking advantage of a policy-focused contest to detail positions on the economy and immigration while Carson swatted away mounting questions about the veracity of his celebrated biography. Nine people were killed when a small jet crashed into an apartment house in Akron, Ohio; seven of the dead worked for a Florida real estate development company. Former West German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, 96, died in Hamburg. Legendary New Orleans musician and composer Allen Toussaint, 77, died in Madrid.

Today's Birthdays: Film composer Ennio Morricone (EHN'-yoh mohr-ee-KOHN'-eh) is 88. Blues singer Bobby Rush is 82. Actor Albert Hall is 79. Country singer Donna Fargo is 75. Former Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., is 73. Lyricist Tim Rice is 72. Rock singer-musician Greg Lake (Emerson, Lake and Palmer) is 69. Actress-dancer Ann Reinking is 67. Actor Jack Scalia is 66. Movie director Roland Emmerich is 61. Actor Matt Craven is 60. Actor-comedian Sinbad is 60. Actress Mackenzie Phillips is 57 Author Neil Gaiman (GAY'-mihn) is 56. Actress Vanessa Angel is 53. Actor Hugh Bonneville is 53. Actor-comedian Tommy Davidson is 53. Actor Michael Jai (jy) White is 52. Country singer Chris Cagle is 48. Actor-comedian Tracy Morgan is 48. Actress Ellen Pompeo (pahm-PAY'-oh) is 47. Actor-comedian Orny Adams is 46. Rapper-producer Warren G is 46. Actor Walton Goggins is 45. Comedian-actor Chris Lilley is 42. Contemporary Chrisian singer Matt Maher is 42. Rock singer-musician Jim Adkins (Jimmy Eat World) is 41. Rapper Eve is 38. Rock musician Chris Joannou (joh-AN'-yoo)(Silverchair) is 37. Actor Bryan Neal is 36. Actress Heather Matarazzo is 34. Country singer Miranda Lambert is 33. Actor Josh Peck is 30. Pop singer Vinz Dery (Nico & Vinz) is 26. Actress Zoey Deutch (DOYCH) is 22. Actress Kiernan Shipka is 17. Actress Mackenzie Foy is 16.

Thought for Today: "Arrivée de toujours, qui t'en iras partout." (Arriving from always, you will go everywhere.) - Arthur Rimbaud (RAM'-boh), French poet (born 1854, died this date in 1891).