Today in History
Today is Monday, Aug. 29, the 241st day of 2022. There are 124 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast near Buras, Louisiana, bringing floods that devastated New Orleans. More than 1,800 people in the region died.
On this date:
In 1632, English philosopher John Locke was born in Somerset.
In 1814, during the War of 1812, Alexandria, Virginia, formally surrendered to British military forces, which occupied the city until September 3.
In 1862, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing began operations at the United States Treasury.
In 1944, 15,000 American troops of the 28th Infantry Division marched down the Champs Elysees (shahms ay-lee-ZAY’) in Paris as the French capital continued to celebrate its liberation from the Nazis.
In 1957, the Senate gave final congressional approval to a Civil Rights Act after South Carolina Sen. Strom Thurmond (then a Democrat) ended a filibuster that had lasted 24 hours.
In 1958, pop superstar Michael Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana.
In 1966, the Beatles concluded their fourth American tour with their last public concert, held at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.
In 2008, Republican presidential nominee John McCain picked Sarah Palin, a maverick conservative who had been governor of Alaska for less than two years, to be his running mate.
In 2009, funeral services were held in Boston for Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, who was eulogized by President Barack Obama; hours later, Kennedy’s remains were buried at Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington.
In 2013, in a sweeping new policy statement, the Justice Department said it would not stand in the way of states that wanted to legalize, tax and regulate marijuana as long as there were effective controls to keep marijuana away from kids, the black market and federal property.
In 2018, Sen. John McCain was remembered as a “true American hero” at a crowded service at the North Phoenix Baptist Church after a motorcade carried McCain’s body from the state Capitol. Kanye West apologized on a Chicago radio station (WGCI) for calling slavery a “choice.”
In 2019, President Donald Trump said the United States planned to withdraw more than 5,000 troops from Afghanistan, and would then determine future drawdowns.
Ten years ago: Seizing the Republican National Convention spotlight in Tampa, Florida, vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan promised Mitt Romney would “not duck the tough issues” if he were to win the White House and that their party would move forcefully to solve the nation’s economic woes. Hurricane Isaac sidestepped New Orleans, sending the worst of its howling wind and heavy rain into a cluster of rural fishing villages.
Five years ago: North Korea flew a ballistic missile designed to carry a nuclear payload over Japan, likely the country’s longest-ever launch; President Donald Trump said “all options” were on the table for a U.S. response. Federal and local agencies said they had lifted more than 13,000 people out of the floodwaters from Hurricane Harvey in the Houston area and surrounding cities and counties. Comedian Kathy Griffin retracted her apology for posing with what appeared to be the severed head of President Donald Trump, saying the anger against her was overblown.
One year ago: Hurricane Ida blasted ashore in Louisiana as one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the U.S., knocking out power to all of New Orleans, blowing roofs off buildings and reversing the flow of the Mississippi River; more than 1 million homes and businesses in Louisiana and Mississippi, including all of New Orleans, were left without power. The U.S. military carried out a drone strike in the Afghan capital that the Pentagon initially said had killed an Islamic State fighter; an investigation found that 10 Afghan civilians, including seven children, were killed, and that the vehicle was not a valid threat. President Joe Biden stood witness with grieving families at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware as the remains of 13 U.S. troops killed in a suicide bombing in Afghanistan returned home. Ed Asner, the burly and prolific character actor best known as newsman Lou Grant on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and then in a spinoff drama, died at 91.
Today’s Birthdays: Movie director William Friedkin is 87. Actor Elliott Gould is 84. Actor Deborah Van Valkenburgh is 70. Former Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew is 67. Dancer-choreographer Mark Morris is 66. Country musician Dan Truman (Diamond Rio) is 66. Actor Rebecca DeMornay is 63. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch (GOR’-suhch) is 55. Singer Me’Shell NdegeOcello (n-DAY’-gay-OH’-chehl-oh) is 54. Actor Carla Gugino is 51. Rock musician Kyle Cook (Matchbox Twenty) is 47. Actor John Hensley is 45. Actor Kate Simses is 43. Rapper A+ is 40. Actor Jennifer Landon is 39. Actor Jeffrey Licon is 37. Actor-singer Lea Michele is 36. Actor Charlotte Ritchie is 33. Actor Nicole Gale Anderson is 32. MLB pitcher Noah Syndergaard (SIHN’-dur-gahrd) is 30. Rock singer Liam Payne (One Direction) is 29.