January 21
1793 - King Louis XVI was guillotined for treason during the French Revolution.
1861 - Five Southerners resigned from the U.S. Senate, including Jefferson Davis of Mississippi, the future president of the Confederacy.
1915 - The first Kiwanis Club was founded in Detroit.
1924 - Russian revolutionary Vladimir Ilyich Lenin died in Moscow of a stroke at age 53.
1942 - Pinball machines were banned in New York City after a court ruled they were gambling devices that relied on chance rather than skill (the ban was lifted in 1976).
1950 - George Orwell died in London.
1950 - A federal jury in New York City found former State Department official Alger Hiss guilty of perjury.
1954 - The USS Nautilus, the world's first nuclear-powered submarine, was launched at Groton, Connecticut.
1957 - President Dwight D. Eisenhower is sworn into his second term in office.
1976 - The supersonic Concorde jet was put into service by both Britain and France.
1977 - On his first full day in office, President Jimmy Carter pardoned most Vietnam War draft evaders.
1985 - President Ronald Reagan is sworn into his second term in office.
1994 - A jury in Manassas, Virginia acquitted Lorena Bobbitt by reason of temporary insanity of maliciously wounding her husband, John, whom she had accused of sexually assaulting her.
1997 - Speaker Newt Gingrich was reprimanded and fined as the House voted for the first time in history to discipline its leader for ethical misconduct.
2003 - The U.S. Census Bureau reported that Hispanics had surpassed Blacks as the largest minority group in America.
2004 - The recording industry sued 532 computer users it said were illegally distributing songs and copyrighted material over the Internet.
2010 - In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission that the government cannot restrict the spending of corporations for political campaigns, maintaining that it is their First Amendment right to support candidates as they choose. This decision upsets two previous precedents on the free-speech rights of corporations.
2010 - Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards finally admitted fathering a child during an affair before his second White House bid.
2011 - President Barack Obama visited Schenectady, New York, the birthplace of the General Electric Co., to declare that his job was “putting our economy into overdrive.”
2011 - Ed Mauser, the oldest living member of a 101st Airborne Division company that became known as the “Band of Brothers” during World War II, died in Omaha, Nebraska, at age 94.
2013 - President Barack Obama is sworn into his second term in office .
2015 - The Obama administration tightened restrictions on European and other travelers who had visited Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan in the previous five years.
2019 - First-term U.S. senator and former California attorney general Kamala Harris entered the Democratic presidential race. (Harris would withdraw from the race in December; she would be chosen the following August as the party's vice presidential nominee.)
2020 - A rancorous dispute over rules marked the first full day of President Donald Trump’s Senate impeachment trial; Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell added an extra day for opening arguments and agreed that evidence from the House impeachment proceedings would be included in the record.
2020 - The U.S. reported its first known case of the new virus circulating in China, saying a Washington state resident who had returned the previous week from the outbreak's epicenter was hospitalized near Seattle; U.S. officials stressed that they believed the overall risk of the virus to the American public remained low.
Birthdays
27 - Booboo Stewart (actor)
27 - Marny Kennedy (actress)
29 - Feliz Ramirez (actor)
37 - Luke Grimes (actor)
38 - Maryse Ouellet (professional wrestler/reality star)
40 - Izabella Miko (actrses)
42 - Nokio (singer)
43 - Phil Stacey (country singer)
44 - Jerry Trainor (actor)
45 - Emma Bunton (singer)
47 - Vincent Laresca (actor)
51 - Ken Leung (actor)
52 - Karina Lombard (actress)
52 - John Ducey (actor)
53 - Charlotte Ross (actress)
58 - Hakeem Olajuwon (basketball player)
65 - Geena Davis (actress)
65 - Robby Benson (actor)
71 - Billy Ocean (singer)
74 - Jill Eikenberry (actress)
80 - Placido Domingo (opera singer)
81 - Jack Nicklaus (golfer)
========================================
Today in Sports History - January 21
1979 - The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 35-13 to win Super Bowl XIII, becoming the first NFL team to win three Super Bowls; Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw was named MVP.
1986 - Former major-league player, Randy Bass, became the highest-paid baseball player in Japanese history. Bass signed a three-year contract for $3.25 million. He played for the Hanshin Tigers.
1990 - John McEnroe was disqualified and expelled for throwing a tantrum and using abusive language at an official while leading Mikael Pernfors in the Australian Open. He was the first person to be thrown out of a Grand Slam in 27 years. He was fined $6,500 and kicked out of the tournament.
1992 - Bill Cowher is named head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, becoming only the second head coach of the team since 1970 (Chuck Noll).
1994 - The Dallas Mavericks suffer their 19th straight home loss, extending their NBA record, with a 91-87 loss to the Seattle SuperSonics.
1995 - John Stockton of the Utah Jazz became the NBA's all-time career assists leader with 9,922.
1997 - Don Mattingly of the New York Yankees announced his retirement from baseball.
2007 - Lovie Smith became the first African American head coach to advance to the Super Bowl when his Chicago Bears won the NFC Championship Game, beating the New Orleans Saints 39-14; Tony Dungy became the second when his Indianapolis Colts took the AFC title over the New England Patriots, 38-34.
2010 - Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers became the 15th player in NBA history to reach 25,000 career points and the youngest to reach the milestone. He hit the mark 35 days faster than Wilt Chamberlain had.
2018 - The Philadelphia Eagles defeat the Minnesota Vikings 38-7 and the New England Patriots defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars 24-20 to advance to the Super Bowl.
2019 - Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors sets an NBA record by making his first 10 attempts from 3-point range as the Warriors defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 130-111; Thompson scored 44 points in the contest.
2020 - Derek Jeter came within one vote of being a unanimous pick for baseball's Hall of Fame, while Larry Walker was elected in his last chance on the ballot.
1793 - King Louis XVI was guillotined for treason during the French Revolution.
1861 - Five Southerners resigned from the U.S. Senate, including Jefferson Davis of Mississippi, the future president of the Confederacy.
1915 - The first Kiwanis Club was founded in Detroit.
1924 - Russian revolutionary Vladimir Ilyich Lenin died in Moscow of a stroke at age 53.
1942 - Pinball machines were banned in New York City after a court ruled they were gambling devices that relied on chance rather than skill (the ban was lifted in 1976).
1950 - George Orwell died in London.
1950 - A federal jury in New York City found former State Department official Alger Hiss guilty of perjury.
1954 - The USS Nautilus, the world's first nuclear-powered submarine, was launched at Groton, Connecticut.
1957 - President Dwight D. Eisenhower is sworn into his second term in office.
1976 - The supersonic Concorde jet was put into service by both Britain and France.
1977 - On his first full day in office, President Jimmy Carter pardoned most Vietnam War draft evaders.
1985 - President Ronald Reagan is sworn into his second term in office.
1994 - A jury in Manassas, Virginia acquitted Lorena Bobbitt by reason of temporary insanity of maliciously wounding her husband, John, whom she had accused of sexually assaulting her.
1997 - Speaker Newt Gingrich was reprimanded and fined as the House voted for the first time in history to discipline its leader for ethical misconduct.
2003 - The U.S. Census Bureau reported that Hispanics had surpassed Blacks as the largest minority group in America.
2004 - The recording industry sued 532 computer users it said were illegally distributing songs and copyrighted material over the Internet.
2010 - In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission that the government cannot restrict the spending of corporations for political campaigns, maintaining that it is their First Amendment right to support candidates as they choose. This decision upsets two previous precedents on the free-speech rights of corporations.
2010 - Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards finally admitted fathering a child during an affair before his second White House bid.
2011 - President Barack Obama visited Schenectady, New York, the birthplace of the General Electric Co., to declare that his job was “putting our economy into overdrive.”
2011 - Ed Mauser, the oldest living member of a 101st Airborne Division company that became known as the “Band of Brothers” during World War II, died in Omaha, Nebraska, at age 94.
2013 - President Barack Obama is sworn into his second term in office .
2015 - The Obama administration tightened restrictions on European and other travelers who had visited Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan in the previous five years.
2019 - First-term U.S. senator and former California attorney general Kamala Harris entered the Democratic presidential race. (Harris would withdraw from the race in December; she would be chosen the following August as the party's vice presidential nominee.)
2020 - A rancorous dispute over rules marked the first full day of President Donald Trump’s Senate impeachment trial; Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell added an extra day for opening arguments and agreed that evidence from the House impeachment proceedings would be included in the record.
2020 - The U.S. reported its first known case of the new virus circulating in China, saying a Washington state resident who had returned the previous week from the outbreak's epicenter was hospitalized near Seattle; U.S. officials stressed that they believed the overall risk of the virus to the American public remained low.
Birthdays
27 - Booboo Stewart (actor)
27 - Marny Kennedy (actress)
29 - Feliz Ramirez (actor)
37 - Luke Grimes (actor)
38 - Maryse Ouellet (professional wrestler/reality star)
40 - Izabella Miko (actrses)
42 - Nokio (singer)
43 - Phil Stacey (country singer)
44 - Jerry Trainor (actor)
45 - Emma Bunton (singer)
47 - Vincent Laresca (actor)
51 - Ken Leung (actor)
52 - Karina Lombard (actress)
52 - John Ducey (actor)
53 - Charlotte Ross (actress)
58 - Hakeem Olajuwon (basketball player)
65 - Geena Davis (actress)
65 - Robby Benson (actor)
71 - Billy Ocean (singer)
74 - Jill Eikenberry (actress)
80 - Placido Domingo (opera singer)
81 - Jack Nicklaus (golfer)
========================================
Today in Sports History - January 21
1979 - The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 35-13 to win Super Bowl XIII, becoming the first NFL team to win three Super Bowls; Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw was named MVP.
1986 - Former major-league player, Randy Bass, became the highest-paid baseball player in Japanese history. Bass signed a three-year contract for $3.25 million. He played for the Hanshin Tigers.
1990 - John McEnroe was disqualified and expelled for throwing a tantrum and using abusive language at an official while leading Mikael Pernfors in the Australian Open. He was the first person to be thrown out of a Grand Slam in 27 years. He was fined $6,500 and kicked out of the tournament.
1992 - Bill Cowher is named head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, becoming only the second head coach of the team since 1970 (Chuck Noll).
1994 - The Dallas Mavericks suffer their 19th straight home loss, extending their NBA record, with a 91-87 loss to the Seattle SuperSonics.
1995 - John Stockton of the Utah Jazz became the NBA's all-time career assists leader with 9,922.
1997 - Don Mattingly of the New York Yankees announced his retirement from baseball.
2007 - Lovie Smith became the first African American head coach to advance to the Super Bowl when his Chicago Bears won the NFC Championship Game, beating the New Orleans Saints 39-14; Tony Dungy became the second when his Indianapolis Colts took the AFC title over the New England Patriots, 38-34.
2010 - Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers became the 15th player in NBA history to reach 25,000 career points and the youngest to reach the milestone. He hit the mark 35 days faster than Wilt Chamberlain had.
2018 - The Philadelphia Eagles defeat the Minnesota Vikings 38-7 and the New England Patriots defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars 24-20 to advance to the Super Bowl.
2019 - Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors sets an NBA record by making his first 10 attempts from 3-point range as the Warriors defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 130-111; Thompson scored 44 points in the contest.
2020 - Derek Jeter came within one vote of being a unanimous pick for baseball's Hall of Fame, while Larry Walker was elected in his last chance on the ballot.