April 8
1513 - Ponce de Leon claimed Florida for Spain.
1864 - The U.S. Senate passed, 38-6, the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which abolished slavery. (The House of Representatives passed it in January 1865; the amendment was ratified and adopted in December 1865.)
1911 - An explosion at the Banner Coal Mine in Littleton, Alabama claimed the lives of 128 men, most of them convicts loaned out from prisons.
1913 - The 17th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, requiring the direct election of U.S. senators by popular vote rather than by state legislators.
1913 - President Woodrow Wilson became the first chief executive since John Adams to address Congress in person as he asked lawmakers to enact tariff reform.
1935 - The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was approved by Congress to help alleviate joblessness during the Great Depression.
1943 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered a freeze on wages and prices to combat inflation.
1948 - The League of Nations assembled for the final time.
1952 - President Harry S. Truman seized the American steel industry to avert a nationwide strike. (The Supreme Court later ruled that Truman had overstepped his authority, opening the way for a seven-week strike by steelworkers.)
1973 - Artist Pablo Picasso died in Mougins, France at age 91.
1986 - Actor Clint Eastwood was elected mayor of Carmel, California.
1990 - Ryan White, the teenage AIDS patient whose battle for acceptance had gained national attention, died in Indianapolis at age 18.
1993 - Singer Marian Anderson died in Portland, Oregon, at age 96.
2010 - President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed the New START treaty in Prague.
2013 - Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, 87, died in London.
2020 - A 76-day lockdown was lifted in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the global pandemic began; residents would have to use a smartphone app showing that they had not been in recent contact with anyone confirmed to have the virus.
2022 - The motion picture academy has banned Will Smith from attending the Oscars or any other academy event for 10 years following his slap of Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.
Birthdays
21 - Skai Jackson (actress)
26 - Sadie Calvano (actress)
39 - Kirsten Storms (actress)
39 - Taran Noah Smith (actor)
42 - Taylor Kitsch (actor)
43 - Katee Sackhoff (actress)
50 - Emma Caulfield (actress)
53 - JR Bourne (actor)
55 - Patricia Arquette (actress)
57 - Robin Wright (actor)
60 - Dean Norris (actor)
60 - Julian Lennon (singer)
63 - John Schneider (actor)
76 - Steve Howe (musician)
77 - Stuart Pankin (actor)
82 - Peggy Lennon (singer)
97 - Shecky Greene (comedian)
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Today in Sports History - April 8
1943 - The Detroit Red Wings sweep the Boston Bruins to win the Stanley Cup.
1969 - The Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos, San Diego Padres and Seattle Pilots all win their inaugural MLB games.
1974 - Henry "Hank" Aaron hit his 715th career home run, breaking Babe Ruth's major league record.
1975 - Frank Robinson debuts as the first African American manager in MLB with the Cleveland Indians.
1992 - Tennis star Arthur Ashe announced he had tested positive for AIDS.
2001 - Tiger Woods wins his second Masters tournament.
2003 - Connecticut defeats Tennessee 73-68 to win the NCAA Women's Tournament.
2008 - Tennessee defeats Stanford 64-48 to win the NCAA Women's Tournament.
2012 - Bubba Watson wins the Masters.
2013 - Louisville defeats Michigan 82-76 to win the NCAA Tournament.
2013 - Rick Pitino, who coached Louisville in the NCAA championship game, was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame along with former NBA stars Bernard King and Gary Payton, former UNLV coach Jerry Tarkanian, North Carolina women’s coach Sylvia Hatchell, former University of Houston coach Guy Lewis and former University of Virginia star Dawn Staley.
2014 - Connecticut defeats Notre Dame 79-58 to win the NCAA Women's Tournament.
2018 - Patrick Reed won the Masters golf tournament for his first victory in a major, turning back late challenges from Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth.
2019 - Virginia defeats Texas Tech 85-77 in overtime to win the NCAA Tournament.
1513 - Ponce de Leon claimed Florida for Spain.
1864 - The U.S. Senate passed, 38-6, the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which abolished slavery. (The House of Representatives passed it in January 1865; the amendment was ratified and adopted in December 1865.)
1911 - An explosion at the Banner Coal Mine in Littleton, Alabama claimed the lives of 128 men, most of them convicts loaned out from prisons.
1913 - The 17th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, requiring the direct election of U.S. senators by popular vote rather than by state legislators.
1913 - President Woodrow Wilson became the first chief executive since John Adams to address Congress in person as he asked lawmakers to enact tariff reform.
1935 - The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was approved by Congress to help alleviate joblessness during the Great Depression.
1943 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered a freeze on wages and prices to combat inflation.
1948 - The League of Nations assembled for the final time.
1952 - President Harry S. Truman seized the American steel industry to avert a nationwide strike. (The Supreme Court later ruled that Truman had overstepped his authority, opening the way for a seven-week strike by steelworkers.)
1973 - Artist Pablo Picasso died in Mougins, France at age 91.
1986 - Actor Clint Eastwood was elected mayor of Carmel, California.
1990 - Ryan White, the teenage AIDS patient whose battle for acceptance had gained national attention, died in Indianapolis at age 18.
1993 - Singer Marian Anderson died in Portland, Oregon, at age 96.
2010 - President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed the New START treaty in Prague.
2013 - Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, 87, died in London.
2020 - A 76-day lockdown was lifted in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the global pandemic began; residents would have to use a smartphone app showing that they had not been in recent contact with anyone confirmed to have the virus.
2022 - The motion picture academy has banned Will Smith from attending the Oscars or any other academy event for 10 years following his slap of Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.
Birthdays
21 - Skai Jackson (actress)
26 - Sadie Calvano (actress)
39 - Kirsten Storms (actress)
39 - Taran Noah Smith (actor)
42 - Taylor Kitsch (actor)
43 - Katee Sackhoff (actress)
50 - Emma Caulfield (actress)
53 - JR Bourne (actor)
55 - Patricia Arquette (actress)
57 - Robin Wright (actor)
60 - Dean Norris (actor)
60 - Julian Lennon (singer)
63 - John Schneider (actor)
76 - Steve Howe (musician)
77 - Stuart Pankin (actor)
82 - Peggy Lennon (singer)
97 - Shecky Greene (comedian)
======================
Today in Sports History - April 8
1943 - The Detroit Red Wings sweep the Boston Bruins to win the Stanley Cup.
1969 - The Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos, San Diego Padres and Seattle Pilots all win their inaugural MLB games.
1974 - Henry "Hank" Aaron hit his 715th career home run, breaking Babe Ruth's major league record.
1975 - Frank Robinson debuts as the first African American manager in MLB with the Cleveland Indians.
1992 - Tennis star Arthur Ashe announced he had tested positive for AIDS.
2001 - Tiger Woods wins his second Masters tournament.
2003 - Connecticut defeats Tennessee 73-68 to win the NCAA Women's Tournament.
2008 - Tennessee defeats Stanford 64-48 to win the NCAA Women's Tournament.
2012 - Bubba Watson wins the Masters.
2013 - Louisville defeats Michigan 82-76 to win the NCAA Tournament.
2013 - Rick Pitino, who coached Louisville in the NCAA championship game, was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame along with former NBA stars Bernard King and Gary Payton, former UNLV coach Jerry Tarkanian, North Carolina women’s coach Sylvia Hatchell, former University of Houston coach Guy Lewis and former University of Virginia star Dawn Staley.
2014 - Connecticut defeats Notre Dame 79-58 to win the NCAA Women's Tournament.
2018 - Patrick Reed won the Masters golf tournament for his first victory in a major, turning back late challenges from Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth.
2019 - Virginia defeats Texas Tech 85-77 in overtime to win the NCAA Tournament.
