Today is Saturday, May 10th, the 131st day of 2008. There are 235 days left in the year.
Today's Highlight in History:
One hundred years ago, on May 10th, 1908, the first Mother's Day observance in the United States, inspired by Anna Jarvis, took place during church services in Grafton, West Virginia, and Philadelphia.
On this date:
In 1774, Louis the 16th acceded to the throne of France.
In 1775, Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys captured the British-held fortress at Ticonderoga, New York.
In 1865, Union forces captured Confederate President Jefferson Davis in Irwinville, Georgia.
In 1869, a golden spike was driven at Promontory, Utah, marking the completion of the first transcontinental railroad in the United States.
In 1908, Carl Albert, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives for six years, was born in North McAlester, Oklahoma.
In 1924, J. Edgar Hoover was given the job of FBI director.
In 1933, the Nazis staged massive public book burnings in Germany.
In 1940, during World War II, German forces began invading the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium and France. That same day, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain resigned, and Winston Churchill formed a new government.
In 1968, preliminary Vietnam peace talks began in Paris.
In 1978, Britain's Princess Margaret and the Earl of Snowdon announced they were divorcing after 18 years of marriage.
Ten years ago: The FAA grounded older models of the Boeing 737 after mandatory inspections of some aircraft found extensive wear in power lines running through their wing fuel tanks. Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams won full backing for the Northern Ireland peace accord in a fundamental reversal of decades-old policy.
Five years ago: The leader of Iraq's largest Shiite Muslim group, Ayatollah Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim , returned triumphantly to his U.S.-occupied homeland after two decades in Iranian exile. The New York Times announced on its Web site that one of its reporters, Jayson Blair, had "committed frequent acts of journalistic fraud," according to an investigation conducted by the paper.
One year ago: British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced he would step down June 27th. The Democratic-controlled House, by a vote of 255-171, defeated legislation to require the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq within nine months. A federal jury in Santa Ana, California, convicted Chinese-born engineer Chi Mak of conspiring to export U.S. defense technology to China.
Today's Birthdays: Sportscaster Pat Summerall is 78. Author Barbara Taylor Bradford is 75. Rhythm-and-blues singer Henry Fambrough is 70. TV-radio personality Gary Owens is 69. Actor David Clennon is 65. Writer-producer-director Jim Abrahams is 64. Singer Donovan is 62. Singer Dave Mason is 62. Rhythm-and-blues singer Ron Banks is 57. Senator Rick Santorum is 50. Actress Victoria Rowell is 49. Rock singer Bono is 48. Playwright Suzan-Lori Parks is 45. Model Linda Evangelista is 43. Rapper Young MC is 41. Actor Erik Palladino is 40. Country musician David Wallace is 36. Race car driver Helio Castroneves is 33. Rock musician Jesse Vest is 31. Actor Kenan Thompson is 30. Rhythm-and-blues singer Jason Dalyrimple is 28. Rock musician Joey Zehr is 25. Singer Ashley Poole is 23.
Thought for Today: "Nothing recedes like success." -- Walter Winchell, American columnist and broadcaster .
