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, Ohio.
1953 - Operation Big Switch began as remaining prisoners taken during the Korean War were exchanged at Panmunjom.
1957 - The teenage dance show “American Bandstand,” hosted by Dick Clark, made its network debut on ABC-TV.
1962 - Actress Marilyn Monroe was found dead in her Los Angeles home at age 36; her death was ruled a probable suicide from "acute barbiturate poisoning."
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 Soviet Union signed the limited Test Ban Treaty, which prohibited nuclear weapon tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and under water.
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 back 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 air traffic controllers who had gone out on strike.
2002 - The gun turret of the Civil War ironclad USS Monitor was raised from the ocean floor.
2003 - The Rev. Gene Robinson was approved as the first openly gay bishop by the U.S. Episcopal Church.
2010 - The Senate confirmed Elena Kagan, 63-37, as the Supreme Court’s 112th justice and the fourth woman in its history.
2010 - Thirty-three workers were trapped in a copper mine in northern Chile after a tunnel caved in (all were rescued after being entombed for 69 days).
2012 - The plutonium-powered rover Curiosity successfully lands on Mars. Larger than earlier rovers, Curiosity would spend the next several years examining the land, looking for evidence that conditions on Mars are fit for life.
2017 - The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions against North Korea for its escalating nuclear and missile programs.
2017 - Eight-time Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt finished third in the 100-meter dash at the world track championships in London, which marked his farewell from the sport; the winner was American Justin Gatlin.
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.
Birthdays
21 - Josie Totah (actress)
25 - Olivia Holt (actress/singer)
31 - Meegan Warner (actress)
36 - Brendon Ryan Barrett (actor)
40 - Lolo Jones (track and field athlete)
42 - Jesse Williams (actor)
51 - Stpehanie Szostak (actress)
54 - John Olerud (baseball player)
56 - Jonathan Silverman (actor)
56 - James Gunn (director)
59 - Mark Strong (actor)
60 - Patrick Ewing (basketball player/coach)
61 - Janet McTeer (actress)
66 - Maureen McCormick (actress)
71 - Samantha Sang (singer)
72 - Holly Palance (actress)
75 - Rick Derringer (singer)
76 - Erika Slezak (actress)
77 - Loni Anderson (actress)
82 - Roman Gabriel (football player)
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Today in Sports History - August 5
1921 - The first play-by-play broadcast of a baseball game was done by Harold Arlin. KDKA Radio in Pittsburgh described the action between the Pirates and Philadelphia.
1936 - Jesse Owens of the United States won the 200-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics, collecting the third of his four gold medals.
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 NFL-AFL 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 - Toronto’s Cliff Johnson set a major league baseball record by hitting the 19th pinch-hit home run in his career.
1986 - Pitcher Steve Carlton of the Philadelphia Phillies becomes the second to reach the 4,000 career strikeout mark.
1999 - Mark McGwire (St. Louis Cardinals) hit his 500th career homerun, the 16th to ever record the milestone. He also set a record for the fewest at-bats to hit the 500 homerun mark.
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 not home to an NBA franchise.
2006 - Warren Moon becomes the first black quarterback inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame; he is joined in the class by Troy Aikman, John Madden, Rayfield Wright, Harry Carson and Reggie White.
2007 - Atlanta Braves lefty Tom Glavine becomes just the 23rd pitcher in MLB history to reach the 300-win milestone.
2013 - It was announced that 13 players had accepted 50-game suspensions for violation of MLB drug policies.
2013 - MLB commissioner Bud Selig issued a 211-game suspension to Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees for possession of banned performance-enhancing drugs. (The number of games was later 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, Ohio.
1953 - Operation Big Switch began as remaining prisoners taken during the Korean War were exchanged at Panmunjom.
1957 - The teenage dance show “American Bandstand,” hosted by Dick Clark, made its network debut on ABC-TV.
1962 - Actress Marilyn Monroe was found dead in her Los Angeles home at age 36; her death was ruled a probable suicide from "acute barbiturate poisoning."
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 Soviet Union signed the limited Test Ban Treaty, which prohibited nuclear weapon tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and under water.
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 back 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 air traffic controllers who had gone out on strike.
2002 - The gun turret of the Civil War ironclad USS Monitor was raised from the ocean floor.
2003 - The Rev. Gene Robinson was approved as the first openly gay bishop by the U.S. Episcopal Church.
2010 - The Senate confirmed Elena Kagan, 63-37, as the Supreme Court’s 112th justice and the fourth woman in its history.
2010 - Thirty-three workers were trapped in a copper mine in northern Chile after a tunnel caved in (all were rescued after being entombed for 69 days).
2012 - The plutonium-powered rover Curiosity successfully lands on Mars. Larger than earlier rovers, Curiosity would spend the next several years examining the land, looking for evidence that conditions on Mars are fit for life.
2017 - The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions against North Korea for its escalating nuclear and missile programs.
2017 - Eight-time Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt finished third in the 100-meter dash at the world track championships in London, which marked his farewell from the sport; the winner was American Justin Gatlin.
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.
Birthdays
21 - Josie Totah (actress)
25 - Olivia Holt (actress/singer)
31 - Meegan Warner (actress)
36 - Brendon Ryan Barrett (actor)
40 - Lolo Jones (track and field athlete)
42 - Jesse Williams (actor)
51 - Stpehanie Szostak (actress)
54 - John Olerud (baseball player)
56 - Jonathan Silverman (actor)
56 - James Gunn (director)
59 - Mark Strong (actor)
60 - Patrick Ewing (basketball player/coach)
61 - Janet McTeer (actress)
66 - Maureen McCormick (actress)
71 - Samantha Sang (singer)
72 - Holly Palance (actress)
75 - Rick Derringer (singer)
76 - Erika Slezak (actress)
77 - Loni Anderson (actress)
82 - Roman Gabriel (football player)
================================
Today in Sports History - August 5
1921 - The first play-by-play broadcast of a baseball game was done by Harold Arlin. KDKA Radio in Pittsburgh described the action between the Pirates and Philadelphia.
1936 - Jesse Owens of the United States won the 200-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics, collecting the third of his four gold medals.
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 NFL-AFL 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 - Toronto’s Cliff Johnson set a major league baseball record by hitting the 19th pinch-hit home run in his career.
1986 - Pitcher Steve Carlton of the Philadelphia Phillies becomes the second to reach the 4,000 career strikeout mark.
1999 - Mark McGwire (St. Louis Cardinals) hit his 500th career homerun, the 16th to ever record the milestone. He also set a record for the fewest at-bats to hit the 500 homerun mark.
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 not home to an NBA franchise.
2006 - Warren Moon becomes the first black quarterback inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame; he is joined in the class by Troy Aikman, John Madden, Rayfield Wright, Harry Carson and Reggie White.
2007 - Atlanta Braves lefty Tom Glavine becomes just the 23rd pitcher in MLB history to reach the 300-win milestone.
2013 - It was announced that 13 players had accepted 50-game suspensions for violation of MLB drug policies.
2013 - MLB commissioner Bud Selig issued a 211-game suspension to Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees for possession of banned performance-enhancing drugs. (The number of games was later reduced to 162 by an arbitrator in January 2014.)
