October 17
1777 - British Gen. Burgoyne surrendered in Saratoga, New York during the American Revolution.
1814 - The London Beer Flood inundated the St. Giles district of the British capital as vats of beer ruptured, sending more than 320,000 gallons of liquid into the streets; up to nine people were reported killed.
1919 - The Radio Corporation of America was created.
1931 - Mobster Al Capone was convicted of income tax evasion for which he was sentenced to 11 years in prison. (He was released in 1939.)
1933 - Albert Einstein arrived in the United States as a refugee from Nazi Germany.
1945 - Col. Juan Peron staged a coup, becoming absolute ruler of Argentina.
1967 - Puyi, the last emperor of China, died in Beijing at age 61.
1973 - Arab oil-producing nations announced they would cut back oil exports to Western nations and Japan; the result was a total embargo that lasted until March 1974.
1979 - Mother Theresa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her work with the poor in Calcutta, India.
1987 - First lady Nancy Reagan underwent a modified radical mastectomy.
1989 - A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the San Francisco area, killing 67 and injuring more than 3,000.
2007 - President George W. Bush, raising Beijing's ire, presented the Dalai Lama with the Congressional Gold Medal and urged Chinese leaders to welcome the monk to Beijing.
2010 - Pope Benedict XVI gave Australia its first saint, canonizing Mary MacKillop, a 19th century nun who was briefly excommunicated in part because her religious order had exposed a pedophile priest.
2011 - Occupy Wall Street, an organized protest in New York's financial district, expands to other cities across the U.S., including Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Occupy Wall Street defines itself as a group of activists who stand against corporate greed, social inequality, and the disproportion between the rich and poor.
2014 - The World Health Organization acknowledged it had botched attempts to stop the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, blaming factors including incompetent staff, lack of information and budget cuts.
2015 - The final US Airways flight landed in Philadelphia, completing the last leg of its roundtrip journey. (The US Airways brand disappeared as the result of a merger with American Airlines.)
2018 - Residents of the Florida Panhandle community of Mexico Beach who had fled Hurricane Michael a week earlier returned home to find homes, businesses and campers ripped to shreds; the storm had killed at least 59 people and caused more than $25 billion in damage in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia.
2019 - Maryland Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings died at the age of 68; the sharecropper’s son had risen to become a civil rights champion and the chairman of one of the House panels leading an impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump.
Birthdays
32 - Dee Jay Daniels (actor)
36 - Chris Lowell (actor)
33 - Bea Alonzo (actress)
37 - Felicity Jones (actress)
39 - Holly Holm (MMA fighter)
40 - Angel Parker (actress)
46 - Matthew Macfadyen (actor)
48 - Sharon Leal (actress)
48 - Eminem (rapper)
49 - Chris Kirkpatrick (singer)
51 - Ernie Els (golfer)
51 - Wyclef Jean (singer)
51 - Wood Harris (actor)
57 - Norm Macdonald (actor/comedian)
60 - Grant Shaud (actor)
62 - Alan Jackson (country singer)
71 - Bill Hudson (actor/singer)
72 - George Wendt (actor)
73 - Michael McKean (actor)
78 - Gary Puckett (singer)
78 - Jim Seals (singer)
103 - Marsha Hunt (actress)
=====================================
Today in Sports History - October 17
1896 - Nebraska opens the season with a 20-0 win over Doane.
1903 - Nebraska defeats Haskell 16-0.
1908 - Nebraska and Minnesota play to a 0-0 tie.
1914 - Nebraska defeats Kansas State 31-0.
1920 - The Chicago Bears (then known as the Decatur Staleys) play their first NFL game.
1925 - Nebraska and Washington play to a 6-6 tie.
1936 - Nebraska defeats Indiana 13-9.
1942 - #14 Minnesota defeats Nebraska 15-2.
1943 - The Detroit Lions set a rushing record when they achieved a negative fifty-three yards against the Chicago Cardinals.
1953 - Nebraska defeats Miami (FL) 20-16.
1959 - Indiana defeats Nebraska 23-7.
1964 - #6 Nebraska defeats Kansas State 47-0.
1968 - American Bob Beamon set a new world record in the long jump at 29 feet 2 1/2 inches at the Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City.
1970 - #5 Nebraska defeats Kansas 41-20.
1971 - The Pittsburgh Pirates defeat the Baltimore Orioles in seven games to win the World Series.
1974 - The Oakland Athletics defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games to become the only franchise other than the New York Yankees to win three consecutive World Series titles.
1978 - The New York Yankees defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games to win the World Series.
1979 - The Pittsburgh Pirates defeat the Baltimore Orioles in seven games to win the World Series.
1981 - #19 Nebraska defeats Kansas State 49-3.
1987 - #2 Nebraska defeats #12 Oklahoma State 35-0.
1992 - Jari Kurri (Los Angeles Kings) scored his 500th goal in an 8-6 win over the Boston Bruins. Kuri was the 18th player to reach the mark.
1992 - The World Series opened with the first non-American team as the Toronto Blue Jays took on the Atlanta Braves.
1998 - #8 Nebraska defeats Kansas 41-0.
2000 - Patrick Roy (Colorado Avalanche) achieved his 448th victory as a goalie in the NHL. Roy passed Terry Sawchuck to become the record holder for career victories.
2009 - Texas Tech upsets #10 Nebraska 31-10.
2015 - Nebraska defeats Minnesota 48-25.
1777 - British Gen. Burgoyne surrendered in Saratoga, New York during the American Revolution.
1814 - The London Beer Flood inundated the St. Giles district of the British capital as vats of beer ruptured, sending more than 320,000 gallons of liquid into the streets; up to nine people were reported killed.
1919 - The Radio Corporation of America was created.
1931 - Mobster Al Capone was convicted of income tax evasion for which he was sentenced to 11 years in prison. (He was released in 1939.)
1933 - Albert Einstein arrived in the United States as a refugee from Nazi Germany.
1945 - Col. Juan Peron staged a coup, becoming absolute ruler of Argentina.
1967 - Puyi, the last emperor of China, died in Beijing at age 61.
1973 - Arab oil-producing nations announced they would cut back oil exports to Western nations and Japan; the result was a total embargo that lasted until March 1974.
1979 - Mother Theresa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her work with the poor in Calcutta, India.
1987 - First lady Nancy Reagan underwent a modified radical mastectomy.
1989 - A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the San Francisco area, killing 67 and injuring more than 3,000.
2007 - President George W. Bush, raising Beijing's ire, presented the Dalai Lama with the Congressional Gold Medal and urged Chinese leaders to welcome the monk to Beijing.
2010 - Pope Benedict XVI gave Australia its first saint, canonizing Mary MacKillop, a 19th century nun who was briefly excommunicated in part because her religious order had exposed a pedophile priest.
2011 - Occupy Wall Street, an organized protest in New York's financial district, expands to other cities across the U.S., including Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Occupy Wall Street defines itself as a group of activists who stand against corporate greed, social inequality, and the disproportion between the rich and poor.
2014 - The World Health Organization acknowledged it had botched attempts to stop the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, blaming factors including incompetent staff, lack of information and budget cuts.
2015 - The final US Airways flight landed in Philadelphia, completing the last leg of its roundtrip journey. (The US Airways brand disappeared as the result of a merger with American Airlines.)
2018 - Residents of the Florida Panhandle community of Mexico Beach who had fled Hurricane Michael a week earlier returned home to find homes, businesses and campers ripped to shreds; the storm had killed at least 59 people and caused more than $25 billion in damage in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia.
2019 - Maryland Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings died at the age of 68; the sharecropper’s son had risen to become a civil rights champion and the chairman of one of the House panels leading an impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump.
Birthdays
32 - Dee Jay Daniels (actor)
36 - Chris Lowell (actor)
33 - Bea Alonzo (actress)
37 - Felicity Jones (actress)
39 - Holly Holm (MMA fighter)
40 - Angel Parker (actress)
46 - Matthew Macfadyen (actor)
48 - Sharon Leal (actress)
48 - Eminem (rapper)
49 - Chris Kirkpatrick (singer)
51 - Ernie Els (golfer)
51 - Wyclef Jean (singer)
51 - Wood Harris (actor)
57 - Norm Macdonald (actor/comedian)
60 - Grant Shaud (actor)
62 - Alan Jackson (country singer)
71 - Bill Hudson (actor/singer)
72 - George Wendt (actor)
73 - Michael McKean (actor)
78 - Gary Puckett (singer)
78 - Jim Seals (singer)
103 - Marsha Hunt (actress)
=====================================
Today in Sports History - October 17
1896 - Nebraska opens the season with a 20-0 win over Doane.
1903 - Nebraska defeats Haskell 16-0.
1908 - Nebraska and Minnesota play to a 0-0 tie.
1914 - Nebraska defeats Kansas State 31-0.
1920 - The Chicago Bears (then known as the Decatur Staleys) play their first NFL game.
1925 - Nebraska and Washington play to a 6-6 tie.
1936 - Nebraska defeats Indiana 13-9.
1942 - #14 Minnesota defeats Nebraska 15-2.
1943 - The Detroit Lions set a rushing record when they achieved a negative fifty-three yards against the Chicago Cardinals.
1953 - Nebraska defeats Miami (FL) 20-16.
1959 - Indiana defeats Nebraska 23-7.
1964 - #6 Nebraska defeats Kansas State 47-0.
1968 - American Bob Beamon set a new world record in the long jump at 29 feet 2 1/2 inches at the Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City.
1970 - #5 Nebraska defeats Kansas 41-20.
1971 - The Pittsburgh Pirates defeat the Baltimore Orioles in seven games to win the World Series.
1974 - The Oakland Athletics defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games to become the only franchise other than the New York Yankees to win three consecutive World Series titles.
1978 - The New York Yankees defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games to win the World Series.
1979 - The Pittsburgh Pirates defeat the Baltimore Orioles in seven games to win the World Series.
1981 - #19 Nebraska defeats Kansas State 49-3.
1987 - #2 Nebraska defeats #12 Oklahoma State 35-0.
1992 - Jari Kurri (Los Angeles Kings) scored his 500th goal in an 8-6 win over the Boston Bruins. Kuri was the 18th player to reach the mark.
1992 - The World Series opened with the first non-American team as the Toronto Blue Jays took on the Atlanta Braves.
1998 - #8 Nebraska defeats Kansas 41-0.
2000 - Patrick Roy (Colorado Avalanche) achieved his 448th victory as a goalie in the NHL. Roy passed Terry Sawchuck to become the record holder for career victories.
2009 - Texas Tech upsets #10 Nebraska 31-10.
2015 - Nebraska defeats Minnesota 48-25.