August 5
1861 - For the first time, the U.S. government levied an income tax.
1884 - The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty was laid on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor.
1914 - The nation's first electric traffic lights were installed in Cleveland.
1930 - Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio.
1953 - Operation Big Switch began as remaining prisoners taken during the Korean War were exchanged at Panmunjom.
1957 - "American Bandstand", hosted by Dick Clark, made its television debut on ABC.
1962 - South African anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela was arrested on charges of leaving the country without a passport and inciting workers to strike; it was the beginning of 27 years of imprisonment.
1963 - The United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union signed the limited Test Ban Treaty, which prohibited nuclear weapon tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and underwater.
1964 - U.S. Navy pilot Everett Alvarez Jr. became the first American flier to be shot down and captured by North Vietnam; he was held prisoner until February 1973.
1969 - The U.S. space probe Mariner 7 transmitted pictures of Mars.
1974 - The White House released transcripts of subpoenaed tape recordings showing that President Richard Nixon and his chief of staff, H.R. Haldeman, had discussed a plan in June 1972 to use the CIA to thwart the FBI’s Watergate investigation; revelation of the tape sparked Nixon’s resignation.
1981 - The federal government began firing striking air traffic controllers.
1991 - Democratic congressional leaders formally launched an investigation into whether the 1980 Reagan-Bush campaign had secretly conspired with Iran to delay release of American hostages until after the presidential election, thereby preventing an “October surprise” that supposedly would have benefited President Jimmy Carter. (A task force later concluded there was “no credible evidence” of such a deal.)
2001 - Afghanistan's ruling Taliban jailed eight foreign aid workers, including two Americans, for allegedly preaching Christianity.
2002 - The gun turret of the Civil War ironclad USS Monitor was raised from the ocean floor nearly 140 years after the historic warship sank during a storm.
2003 - The Rev. Gene Robinson was approved as the first openly gay bishop by the U.S. Episcopal Church.
2009 - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was sworn in for a second term as Iran's president.
2010 - The Senate confirmed Elena Kagan as the Supreme Court's 112th justice and the fourth woman in its history. The vote was 63-37.
2010 - Thirty-three workers were trapped in a copper mine in northern Chile after a tunnel caved in. (They were rescued after being entombed for 69 days).
2011 - Standard & Poor's lowered the United States' AAA credit rating by one notch to AA-plus.
2012 - The plutonium-powered rover Curiosity successfully landed on Mars.
2019 - Toni Morrison, the first Black woman to receive the Nobel literature prize, died at 88 in New York; her novels included “Beloved,” and “The Bluest Eye.”
2020 - Authorities said protesters in Portland, Oregon, barricaded about 20 police officers inside a precinct and tried to set it on fire; police used tear gas on the crowd for the first time since U.S. agents sent by President Donald Trump left the city the previous week.
2020 - A city commission in Minneapolis blocked a November vote on a proposal to dismantle the city’s police department in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
Birthdays
24 - Olivia Holt (actress/singer)
30 - Meegan Warner (actress)
32 - Jessica Nigri (model)
35 - Brendon Ryan Barrett (actor)
39 - Lolo Jones (track & field athlete)
41 - Jesse Williams (actor)
50 - Stephanie Szostak (actress)
53 - John Olerud (baseball player)
53 - Terri Clark (country singer)
55 - Jonathan Silverman (actor)
55 - James Gunn (director)
58 - Mark Strong (actor)
59 - Patrick Ewing (basketball player/coach)
60 - Janet McTeer (actress)
65 - Maureen McCormick (actress)
70 - Samantha Sang (actress)
71 - Holly Palance (actress)
74 - Rick Derringer (singer)
75 - Erika Slezak (actress)
76 - Loni Anderson (actress)
81 - Roman Gabriel (football player)
========================================
Today in Sports History - August 5
1921 - A baseball game was broadcast for the first time as KDKA radio announcer Harold Arlin described the action between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Philadelphia Phillies from Forbes Field. (The Pirates won, 8-5.)
1936 - Jesse Owens of the United States won the 200-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics, collecting the third of his four gold medals.
1954 - Twenty-four boxers became the first inductees into the Boxing Hall of Fame, including Henry Armstrong, Gentleman Jim Corbett, Jack Dempsey, Jack Johnson, Joe Louis and John L. Sullivan.
1960 - For the first time two major league baseball clubs traded managers. Detroit traded Jimmy Dykes for Cleveland's Joe Gordon.
1967 - In the first exhibition game after the AFL and NFL merger, the Denver Broncos (AFL) upset the Detroit Lions (NFL) 13-7.
1979 - Willie Mays, Warren Giles and Hack Wilson are inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1984 - Joan Benoit won the first women's Olympic marathon.
1984 - Cliff Johnson of the Toronto Blue Jays set a major league record with his 19th career pinch-hit home run.
1986 - Steve Carlton becomes the second pitcher in major league history to achieve 4,000 career strikeouts.
1992 - Cuba defeats Chinese Taipei 11-1 to win the inaugural Olympic gold medal in baseball at the Barcelona Summer Games.
1999 - Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals becomes the 16th player in major league history to hit 500 career home runs.
2005 - St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols becomes the first player to connect for 30 home runs in each of his first 5 MLB seasons.
2005 - The NBA announces that Las Vegas will host the 2007 All-Star Game, the first time the event will be held in a city that does not have an NBA franchise.
2006 - Warren Moon become the first African American quarterback inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He is joined in the 2006 class by Troy Aikman, John Madden, Rayfield Wright, Harry Carson and Reggie White.
2007 - Tom Glavine of the Atlanta Braves becomes only the 23rd pitcher in MLB history to reach 300 career wins.
2010 - A group headed by Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan and Pittsburgh attorney Chuck Greenberg is confirmed as the winning bidder in a court-ordered auction of the Texas Rangers.
2013 - It was announced that 13 players had accepted 50-game suspensions for violation of MLB drug policies.
2013 - Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig issued a 211-game supsension to Alex Rodriguez (New York Yankees) for possession of banned performance-enhancing drugs. The number of games was reduced to 162 by an arbitrator in January 2014.
1861 - For the first time, the U.S. government levied an income tax.
1884 - The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty was laid on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor.
1914 - The nation's first electric traffic lights were installed in Cleveland.
1930 - Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio.
1953 - Operation Big Switch began as remaining prisoners taken during the Korean War were exchanged at Panmunjom.
1957 - "American Bandstand", hosted by Dick Clark, made its television debut on ABC.
1962 - South African anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela was arrested on charges of leaving the country without a passport and inciting workers to strike; it was the beginning of 27 years of imprisonment.
1963 - The United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union signed the limited Test Ban Treaty, which prohibited nuclear weapon tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and underwater.
1964 - U.S. Navy pilot Everett Alvarez Jr. became the first American flier to be shot down and captured by North Vietnam; he was held prisoner until February 1973.
1969 - The U.S. space probe Mariner 7 transmitted pictures of Mars.
1974 - The White House released transcripts of subpoenaed tape recordings showing that President Richard Nixon and his chief of staff, H.R. Haldeman, had discussed a plan in June 1972 to use the CIA to thwart the FBI’s Watergate investigation; revelation of the tape sparked Nixon’s resignation.
1981 - The federal government began firing striking air traffic controllers.
1991 - Democratic congressional leaders formally launched an investigation into whether the 1980 Reagan-Bush campaign had secretly conspired with Iran to delay release of American hostages until after the presidential election, thereby preventing an “October surprise” that supposedly would have benefited President Jimmy Carter. (A task force later concluded there was “no credible evidence” of such a deal.)
2001 - Afghanistan's ruling Taliban jailed eight foreign aid workers, including two Americans, for allegedly preaching Christianity.
2002 - The gun turret of the Civil War ironclad USS Monitor was raised from the ocean floor nearly 140 years after the historic warship sank during a storm.
2003 - The Rev. Gene Robinson was approved as the first openly gay bishop by the U.S. Episcopal Church.
2009 - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was sworn in for a second term as Iran's president.
2010 - The Senate confirmed Elena Kagan as the Supreme Court's 112th justice and the fourth woman in its history. The vote was 63-37.
2010 - Thirty-three workers were trapped in a copper mine in northern Chile after a tunnel caved in. (They were rescued after being entombed for 69 days).
2011 - Standard & Poor's lowered the United States' AAA credit rating by one notch to AA-plus.
2012 - The plutonium-powered rover Curiosity successfully landed on Mars.
2019 - Toni Morrison, the first Black woman to receive the Nobel literature prize, died at 88 in New York; her novels included “Beloved,” and “The Bluest Eye.”
2020 - Authorities said protesters in Portland, Oregon, barricaded about 20 police officers inside a precinct and tried to set it on fire; police used tear gas on the crowd for the first time since U.S. agents sent by President Donald Trump left the city the previous week.
2020 - A city commission in Minneapolis blocked a November vote on a proposal to dismantle the city’s police department in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
Birthdays
24 - Olivia Holt (actress/singer)
30 - Meegan Warner (actress)
32 - Jessica Nigri (model)
35 - Brendon Ryan Barrett (actor)
39 - Lolo Jones (track & field athlete)
41 - Jesse Williams (actor)
50 - Stephanie Szostak (actress)
53 - John Olerud (baseball player)
53 - Terri Clark (country singer)
55 - Jonathan Silverman (actor)
55 - James Gunn (director)
58 - Mark Strong (actor)
59 - Patrick Ewing (basketball player/coach)
60 - Janet McTeer (actress)
65 - Maureen McCormick (actress)
70 - Samantha Sang (actress)
71 - Holly Palance (actress)
74 - Rick Derringer (singer)
75 - Erika Slezak (actress)
76 - Loni Anderson (actress)
81 - Roman Gabriel (football player)
========================================
Today in Sports History - August 5
1921 - A baseball game was broadcast for the first time as KDKA radio announcer Harold Arlin described the action between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Philadelphia Phillies from Forbes Field. (The Pirates won, 8-5.)
1936 - Jesse Owens of the United States won the 200-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics, collecting the third of his four gold medals.
1954 - Twenty-four boxers became the first inductees into the Boxing Hall of Fame, including Henry Armstrong, Gentleman Jim Corbett, Jack Dempsey, Jack Johnson, Joe Louis and John L. Sullivan.
1960 - For the first time two major league baseball clubs traded managers. Detroit traded Jimmy Dykes for Cleveland's Joe Gordon.
1967 - In the first exhibition game after the AFL and NFL merger, the Denver Broncos (AFL) upset the Detroit Lions (NFL) 13-7.
1979 - Willie Mays, Warren Giles and Hack Wilson are inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1984 - Joan Benoit won the first women's Olympic marathon.
1984 - Cliff Johnson of the Toronto Blue Jays set a major league record with his 19th career pinch-hit home run.
1986 - Steve Carlton becomes the second pitcher in major league history to achieve 4,000 career strikeouts.
1992 - Cuba defeats Chinese Taipei 11-1 to win the inaugural Olympic gold medal in baseball at the Barcelona Summer Games.
1999 - Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals becomes the 16th player in major league history to hit 500 career home runs.
2005 - St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols becomes the first player to connect for 30 home runs in each of his first 5 MLB seasons.
2005 - The NBA announces that Las Vegas will host the 2007 All-Star Game, the first time the event will be held in a city that does not have an NBA franchise.
2006 - Warren Moon become the first African American quarterback inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He is joined in the 2006 class by Troy Aikman, John Madden, Rayfield Wright, Harry Carson and Reggie White.
2007 - Tom Glavine of the Atlanta Braves becomes only the 23rd pitcher in MLB history to reach 300 career wins.
2010 - A group headed by Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan and Pittsburgh attorney Chuck Greenberg is confirmed as the winning bidder in a court-ordered auction of the Texas Rangers.
2013 - It was announced that 13 players had accepted 50-game suspensions for violation of MLB drug policies.
2013 - Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig issued a 211-game supsension to Alex Rodriguez (New York Yankees) for possession of banned performance-enhancing drugs. The number of games was reduced to 162 by an arbitrator in January 2014.
