Today in History: October 23, Beirut bombing kills Marines

Today in History

Today is Sunday, Oct. 23, the 296th day of 2022. There are 69 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On Oct. 23, 1983, 241 U.S. service members, most of them Marines, were killed in a suicide truck-bombing at Beirut International Airport in Lebanon; a near-simultaneous attack on French forces killed 58 paratroopers.

On this date:

In 1707, the first Parliament of Great Britain, created by the Acts of Union between England and Scotland, held its first meeting.

In 1910, Blanche S. Scott became the first woman to make a public solo airplane flight, reaching an altitude of 12 feet at a park in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

In 1915, tens of thousands of women paraded up Fifth Avenue in New York City, demanding the right to vote.

In 1942, during World War II, Britain launched a major offensive against Axis forces at El Alamein (el ah-lah-MAYN’) in Egypt, resulting in an Allied victory.

In 1944, the World War II Battle of Leyte (LAY’-tee) Gulf began, resulting in a major Allied victory against Japanese forces.

In 1956, a student-sparked revolt against Hungary’s Communist rule began; as the revolution spread, Soviet forces started entering the country, and the uprising was put down within weeks.

In 1973, President Richard Nixon agreed to turn over White House tape recordings subpoenaed by the Watergate special prosecutor to Judge John J. Sirica.

In 1987, the U.S. Senate rejected, 58-42, the Supreme Court nomination of Robert H. Bork.

In 1989, 23 people were killed in an explosion at Phillips Petroleum Co.’s chemical complex in Pasadena, Texas.

In 1995, a jury in Houston convicted Yolanda Saldivar of murdering Tejano singing star Selena. (Saldivar is serving a life prison sentence.)

In 2009, President Barack Obama declared the swine flu outbreak a national emergency, giving his health chief the power to let hospitals move emergency rooms offsite to speed treatment and protect non-infected patients.

In 2014, officials announced that an emergency room doctor who’d recently returned to New York City after treating Ebola patients in West Africa tested positive for the virus, becoming the first case in the city and the fourth in the nation. (Dr. Craig Spencer later recovered.)

Ten years ago: During a debate with Democratic rival Joe Donnelly, Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock said that when a woman becomes pregnant during rape, “it is something that God intended to happen.” (Other Republican candidates moved to distance themselves from Mourdock, who went on to lose the November election to Donnelly.)

Five years ago: New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced a civil rights investigation into the Weinstein Co., amid sexual harassment and assault allegations against its founder, Harvey Weinstein. As Republicans searched for ways to finance tax cuts, President Donald Trump promised that the popular 401(k) retirement savings program would not be touched. Sen. John McCain said he didn’t consider Donald Trump to be a draft-dodger, but told ABC’s “The View” that the system that allowed Trump and other wealthy Americans to use medical deferments to avoid military service during the Vietnam War was wrong.

One year ago: A three-run homer by Eddie Rosario helped send the Atlanta Braves to the World Series for the first time since 1999 with a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 6 of the NLCS. A driver lost control during a Texas drag racing event on an airport runway and slammed into a crowd of spectators, killing two children and injuring eight other people.

Today’s Birthdays: Movie director Philip Kaufman is 86. Soccer great Pele (pay-lay) is 82. R&B singer Barbara Ann Hawkins (The Dixie Cups) is 79. Former ABC News investigative reporter Brian Ross is 74. Actor Michael Rupert is 71. Movie director Ang Lee is 68. Jazz singer Dianne Reeves is 66. Country singer Dwight Yoakam is 66. Community activist Martin Luther King III is 65. Movie director Sam Raimi is 63. Parodist “Weird Al” Yankovic is 63. Rock musician Robert Trujillo (Metallica) is 58. Christian/jazz singer David Thomas (Take 6) is 56. Rock musician Brian Nevin (Big Head Todd and the Monsters) is 56. Actor Jon Huertas is 53. Movie director Chris Weitz is 53. CNN medical reporter Dr. Sanjay Gupta is 53. Bluegrass musician Eric Gibson (The Gibson Brothers) is 52. Country singer Jimmy Wayne is 50. Actor Vivian Bang is 49. Rock musician Eric Bass (Shinedown) is 48. TV personality and host Cat Deeley is 46. Actor Ryan Reynolds is 46. Actor Saycon Sengbloh is 45. Rock singer Matthew Shultz (Cage the Elephant) is 39. TV personality Meghan McCain is 38. R&B singer Miguel is 37. Actor Masiela Lusha (MAH’-see-el-la loo-SHA’) is 37. Actor Emilia Clarke is 36. Actor Briana Evigan is 36. Actor Inbar Lavi is 36. Actor Jessica Stroup is 36. Neo-soul musician Allen Branstetter (St. Paul & the Broken Bones) is 32. Actor Taylor Spreitler is 29. Actor Margaret Qualley is 28. Actor Amandla Stenberg is 24.

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