Today in History
May 20, 2021, 9:00 AM | Updated: 9:26 pm
Today in History
Today is Friday, May 21, the 141st day of 2021. There are 224 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On May 21, 1932, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean as she landed in Northern Ireland, about 15 hours after leaving Newfoundland.
On this date:
In 1471, King Henry VI of England died in the Tower of London at age 49.
In 1542, Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto died while searching for gold along the Mississippi River.
In 1868, Ulysses S. Grant was nominated for president by the Republican national convention in Chicago.
In 1881, Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross.
In 1910, a year-old Jewish settlement near the port city of Jaffa adopted the name Tel Aviv (Hebrew for “Hill of Spring”).
In 1927, Charles A. Lindbergh landed his Spirit of St. Louis monoplane near Paris, completing the first solo airplane flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 33 1/2 hours.
In 1941, a German U-boat sank the American merchant steamship SS Robin Moor in the South Atlantic after the ship’s passengers and crew were allowed to board lifeboats.
In 1955, Chuck Berry recorded his first single, “Maybellene,” for Chess Records in Chicago.
In 1972, Michelangelo’s Pieta, on display at the Vatican, was damaged by a hammer-wielding man who shouted he was Jesus Christ.
In 1979, former San Francisco City Supervisor Dan White was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the slayings of Mayor George Moscone (mahs-KOH’-nee) and openly gay Supervisor Harvey Milk; outrage over the verdict sparked rioting. (White was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison; he ended up serving five years and took his own life in 1985.)
In 1982, during the Falklands War, British amphibious forces landed on the beach at San Carlos Bay.
In 1991, former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated during national elections by a suicide bomber.
Ten years ago: Shackleford won the Preakness, holding off a late charge from Kentucky Derby-winner Animal Kingdom to win as a 12-1 underdog.
Five years ago: President Barack Obama departed on a weeklong, 16,000-mile trip to Asia, part of his effort to pay more attention to the region and boost economic and security cooperation. The U.S. conducted a drone strike in Afghanistan that killed Taliban leader Mullah Mansour.
One year ago: President Donald Trump visited a Ford Motor Co. plant outside Detroit that had been repurposed to manufacture ventilators; he did not publicly wear a face mask but said he had worn one while out of public view. A Michigan judge sided with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in a challenge by Republican lawmakers to her authority to order sweeping restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak. The government said nearly 39 million Americans had been thrown out of a job since the coronavirus crisis began. A sharply divided Senate confirmed John Ratcliffe as director of national intelligence. President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, was released from federal prison to serve the rest of his sentence at home because of the pandemic. (Cohen would briefly return to prison in July, but was set free by a judge who said his return to prison was retaliation for his plan to release a book critical of Trump.)
Today’s Birthdays: R&B singer Ron Isley (The Isley Brothers) is 80. Musician Bill Champlin is 74. Singer Leo Sayer is 73. Actor Carol Potter is 73. Former Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., is 70. Actor Mr. T is 69. Music producer Stan Lynch is 66. Actor Judge Reinhold is 64. Actor-director Nick Cassavetes is 62. Actor Lisa Edelstein is 55. Actor Fairuza Balk is 47. Rock singer-musician Mikel Jollett (Airborne Toxic Event) is 47. Rapper Havoc (Mobb Deep) is 47. Rock musician Tony LoGerfo (Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real) is 38. Actor Sunkrish Bala is 37. Actor David Ajala is 35. Actor Ashlie Brillault is 34. Country singer Cody Johnson is 34. Actor Scott Leavenworth is 31. Actor Sarah Ramos is 30.
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