February 21
1437 - James I, King of Scots, was assassinated; his 6-year-old son succeeded him as James II.
1613 - Michael Romanov was elected czar of Russia, beginning the Romanov imperial line.
1878 - The first telephone book in the United States was issued in New Haven, Connecticut.
1885 - The Washington Monument was dedicated.
1916 - The Battle of Verdun, the longest and one of the bloodiest engagements of World War I, began.
1964 - The first shipment of U.S. wheat purchased by the Soviet Union arrived in the port of Odessa.
1965 - Minister and civil rights activist Malcolm X, 39, was shot to death inside Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom in New York. (Three men identified as members of the Nation of Islam were convicted of murder and imprisoned; all were eventually paroled. The convictions of two of the men were dismissed in November 2021; prosecutors said new evidence had undermined the case against them.)
1972 - President Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit China.
1973 - Israeli fighter planes shot down Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 114 over the Sinai Desert, killing all but five of the 113 people on board.
1975 - Former Attorney General John N. Mitchell and former White House aides H.R. Haldeman and John D. Ehrlichman were sentenced to 2 1/2 to 8 years in prison for their roles in the Watergate cover-up (each ended up serving 1 1/2 years).
1995 - Steve Fossett became the first person to cross the Pacific Ocean solo in a balloon.
2002 - It was confirmed that Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was dead, murdered by Islamic militants.
2012 - Eurozone finance ministers reached an agreement on a second, $130 billion bailout for Greece to help with that country's debt crisis.
2013 - Drew Peterson, the Chicago-area police officer who gained notoriety after his much-younger fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, vanished in 2007, was sentenced to 38 years in prison for murdering his third wife, Kathleen Savio.
2018 - The Rev. Billy Graham, a confidant of presidents and the most widely heard Christian evangelist in history, died at his North Carolina home at age 99.
2020 - A temporary truce between the United States and the Taliban in Afghanistan took effect, setting the stage for the two sides to sign a peace deal the following week.
2022 - Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered forces to “maintain peace” in separatist regions of eastern Ukraine, hours after the Kremlin recognized the area’s independence. The announcement raised fears that an invasion was imminent. (It would come three days later.)
Birthdays
27 - Sophie Turner (actress)
29 - Hayley Orrantia (actress)
34 - Corbin Bleu (actor)
36 - Elliot Page (actor)
36 - Ashley Greene (actress)
37 - Charlotte Church (singer)
43 - Brendan Sexton III (actor)
44 - Jordan Peele (actor/comedian)
44 - Jennifer Love Hewitt (actress)
53 - Eric Wilson (musician)
60 - William Baldwin (actor)
62 - Christopher Atkins (actor)
65 - Jack Coleman (actor)
65 - Kim Coates (actress)
65 - Mary Chapin Carpenter (singer)
68 - Kelsey Grammer (actor)
70 - William Petersen (actor)
70 - Christine Ebersole (actress)
77 - Anthony Daniels (actor)
77 - Tyne Daly (actress)
83 - Peter McEnery (actor)
84 - Richard Beymer (actor)
86 - Gary Lockwood (actor)
===================================
Today in Sports History - February 21
1968 - An agreement between baseball players and club owners increased the minimum salary for major league players to $10,000 a year.
1970 - Bobby Hull (Chicago Blackhawks) scored his 500th career point.
1985 - A NBA attendance record was set when 44,970 people watched a game between Atlanta and Detroit.
1986 - Rollie Fingers refused to shave off his mustache to comply with the policy of the Cincinnati Reds.
1986 - Jimmy Connors was fined $20,000 and was suspended from tennis for ten weeks after he threw a fit while playing against Ivan Lendl.
1996 - The Philadelphia 76ers had their worst offensive performance in over 40 years. They only managed to score 57 points against Miami.
2018 - The NBA fined Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $600,000 for saying he had recently told some of his players that “losing is our best option.” (The Mavericks had one of the league’s worst records, putting them in position to land a high draft pick.)
1437 - James I, King of Scots, was assassinated; his 6-year-old son succeeded him as James II.
1613 - Michael Romanov was elected czar of Russia, beginning the Romanov imperial line.
1878 - The first telephone book in the United States was issued in New Haven, Connecticut.
1885 - The Washington Monument was dedicated.
1916 - The Battle of Verdun, the longest and one of the bloodiest engagements of World War I, began.
1964 - The first shipment of U.S. wheat purchased by the Soviet Union arrived in the port of Odessa.
1965 - Minister and civil rights activist Malcolm X, 39, was shot to death inside Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom in New York. (Three men identified as members of the Nation of Islam were convicted of murder and imprisoned; all were eventually paroled. The convictions of two of the men were dismissed in November 2021; prosecutors said new evidence had undermined the case against them.)
1972 - President Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit China.
1973 - Israeli fighter planes shot down Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 114 over the Sinai Desert, killing all but five of the 113 people on board.
1975 - Former Attorney General John N. Mitchell and former White House aides H.R. Haldeman and John D. Ehrlichman were sentenced to 2 1/2 to 8 years in prison for their roles in the Watergate cover-up (each ended up serving 1 1/2 years).
1995 - Steve Fossett became the first person to cross the Pacific Ocean solo in a balloon.
2002 - It was confirmed that Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was dead, murdered by Islamic militants.
2012 - Eurozone finance ministers reached an agreement on a second, $130 billion bailout for Greece to help with that country's debt crisis.
2013 - Drew Peterson, the Chicago-area police officer who gained notoriety after his much-younger fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, vanished in 2007, was sentenced to 38 years in prison for murdering his third wife, Kathleen Savio.
2018 - The Rev. Billy Graham, a confidant of presidents and the most widely heard Christian evangelist in history, died at his North Carolina home at age 99.
2020 - A temporary truce between the United States and the Taliban in Afghanistan took effect, setting the stage for the two sides to sign a peace deal the following week.
2022 - Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered forces to “maintain peace” in separatist regions of eastern Ukraine, hours after the Kremlin recognized the area’s independence. The announcement raised fears that an invasion was imminent. (It would come three days later.)
Birthdays
27 - Sophie Turner (actress)
29 - Hayley Orrantia (actress)
34 - Corbin Bleu (actor)
36 - Elliot Page (actor)
36 - Ashley Greene (actress)
37 - Charlotte Church (singer)
43 - Brendan Sexton III (actor)
44 - Jordan Peele (actor/comedian)
44 - Jennifer Love Hewitt (actress)
53 - Eric Wilson (musician)
60 - William Baldwin (actor)
62 - Christopher Atkins (actor)
65 - Jack Coleman (actor)
65 - Kim Coates (actress)
65 - Mary Chapin Carpenter (singer)
68 - Kelsey Grammer (actor)
70 - William Petersen (actor)
70 - Christine Ebersole (actress)
77 - Anthony Daniels (actor)
77 - Tyne Daly (actress)
83 - Peter McEnery (actor)
84 - Richard Beymer (actor)
86 - Gary Lockwood (actor)
===================================
Today in Sports History - February 21
1968 - An agreement between baseball players and club owners increased the minimum salary for major league players to $10,000 a year.
1970 - Bobby Hull (Chicago Blackhawks) scored his 500th career point.
1985 - A NBA attendance record was set when 44,970 people watched a game between Atlanta and Detroit.
1986 - Rollie Fingers refused to shave off his mustache to comply with the policy of the Cincinnati Reds.
1986 - Jimmy Connors was fined $20,000 and was suspended from tennis for ten weeks after he threw a fit while playing against Ivan Lendl.
1996 - The Philadelphia 76ers had their worst offensive performance in over 40 years. They only managed to score 57 points against Miami.
2018 - The NBA fined Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $600,000 for saying he had recently told some of his players that “losing is our best option.” (The Mavericks had one of the league’s worst records, putting them in position to land a high draft pick.)
