Today in History: October 16, Cuban missile crisis begins

Today in History

Today is Sunday, Oct. 16, the 289th day of 2022. There are 76 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On Oct. 16, 1962, the Cuban missile crisis began as President John F. Kennedy was informed that reconnaissance photographs had revealed the presence of missile bases in Cuba.

On this date:

In 1758, American lexicographer Noah Webster was born in Hartford, Connecticut.

In 1793, during the French Revolution, Marie Antoinette, the queen of France, was beheaded.

In 1859, radical abolitionist John Brown led a raid on the U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry in what was then a part of western Virginia. (Ten of Brown’s men were killed and five escaped. Brown and six followers were captured; all were executed.)

In 1934, Chinese Communists, under siege by the Nationalists, began their “long march” lasting a year from southeastern to northwestern China.

In 1964, China set off its first atomic bomb, codenamed “596,” on the Lop Nur Test Ground.

In 1968, American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos sparked controversy at the Mexico City Olympics by giving “Black power” salutes during a victory ceremony after they’d won gold and bronze medals in the 200-meter race.

In 1978, the College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church chose Cardinal Karol Wojtyla (voy-TEE’-wah) to be the new pope; he took the name John Paul II.

In 1984, Anglican Bishop Desmond Tutu was named winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for his decades of non-violent struggle for racial equality in South Africa.

In 1991, a deadly shooting rampage took place in Killeen, Texas, as a gunman opened fire at a Luby’s Cafeteria, killing 23 people before taking his own life.

In 1997, in the first known case in the United States, a Georgia woman gave birth after being implanted with previously frozen eggs.

In 2002, President George W. Bush signed a congressional resolution authorizing war against Iraq. The White House announced that North Korea had disclosed it had a nuclear weapons program.

In 2009, agricultural officials said pigs in Minnesota had tested positive for the H1N1 virus, or swine flu, the first such cases in the U.S.

Ten years ago: President Barack Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney met for their second debate; during the town-hall-style encounter in suburban Hempstead, New York, Obama accused Romney of favoring a “one-point plan” to help the rich at the expense of the middle class while Romney countered by saying “the middle class has been crushed over the last four years.”

Five years ago: Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who had been captured and held by the Taliban for five years after walking away from his post in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty to desertion and endangering his comrades. (A military judge later decided not to send him to prison.) A New Jersey man, Ahmad Khan Rahimi, was convicted of planting two pressure-cooker bombs on New York City streets, including one that injured 30 people; prosecutors said Rahimi considered himself “a soldier in a holy war against Americans.” (Rahimi was sentenced to life in prison.)

One year ago: Seventeen missionaries from a U.S.-based organization were kidnapped in Haiti; five children were among them. (Two of the hostages were released in November for medical reasons; the remaining 15 went free in December.) An 11th-hour deal was reached, averting a strike of film and television crews that would have frozen productions in Hollywood and across the U.S. Betty Lynn, the film and television actor who was best known for her role as Barney Fife’s sweetheart Thelma Lou on “The Andy Griffith Show,” died at the age of 95.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor-producer Tony Anthony is 85. Actor Barry Corbin is 82. Sportscaster Tim McCarver is 81. Rock musician C.F. Turner (Bachman-Turner Overdrive) is 79. Actor Suzanne Somers is 76. Rock singer-musician Bob Weir is 75. Producer-director David Zucker is 75. Record company executive Jim Ed Norman is 74. Actor Daniel Gerroll is 71. Actor Martha Smith is 70. Comedian-actor Andy Kindler is 66. Actor-director Tim Robbins is 64. Actor-musician Gary Kemp is 63. Singer-musician Bob Mould is 62. Actor Randy Vasquez is 61. Rock musician Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 60. Movie director Kenneth Lonergan is 60. Actor Christian Stolte is 60. Actor Todd Stashwick is 54. Actor Terri J. Vaughn is 53. Singer Wendy Wilson (Wilson Phillips) is 53. Rock singer Chad Gray (Mudvayne) is 51. Actor Paul Sparks is 51. Actor Kellie Martin is 47. Singer John Mayer is 45. Actor Jeremy Jackson is 42. Actor Caterina Scorsone is 42. Actor Brea Grant is 41. U.S. Olympic and retired WNBA basketball star Sue Bird is 41. Actor Kyler Pettis is 30. Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper is 30. Tennis star Naomi Osaka is 25.

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