October 18
1469 - Ferdinand II of Aragon married Isabella of Castile, uniting Spain and making it a dominant world power.
1685 - Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes.
1767 - The boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania, the Mason-Dixon Line, was agreed upon.
1867 - The United States took possession of Alaska from Russia.
1892 - The first long-distance telephone line between New York and Chicago was officially opened (it could only handle one call at a time).
1898 - The American flag was raised in Puerto Rico shortly before Spain formally relinquished control of the island to the U.S.
1912 - The first Balkan War broke out.
1931 - Inventor Thomas Alva Edison died in West Orange, New Jersey at age 84.
1962 - James D. Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins were honored with the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology for determining the double-helix molecular structure of DNA.
1969 - The federal government banned artificial sweeteners known as cyclamates because of evidence they caused cancer in laboratory rats.
1972 - Congress passed the Clean Water Act, overriding President Richard Nixon’s veto.
1977 - West German commandos stormed a hijacked Lufthansa jetliner on the ground in Mogadishu, Somalia, freeing all 86 hostages and killing three of the four hijackers.
1997 - A monument honoring American servicewomen, past and present, was dedicated at Arlington National Cemetery.
2001 - CBS News announced that an employee in anchorman Dan Rather’s office had tested positive for skin anthrax.
2001 - Four disciples of Osama bin Laden were sentenced in New York to life without parole for their roles in the deadly 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa.
2010 - Four men snared in an FBI sting were convicted of plotting to blow up New York City synagogues and shoot down military planes with the help of a paid informant who’d convinced them he was a terror operative. (James Cromitie, David Williams, Onta Williams and Laguerre Payen were each sentenced to 25 years in prison.)
2011 - Gilad Shalit, a 25-year-old Israeli soldier, is released after being held for more than five years by Hamas. He is exchanged for 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Shalit had been held in Gaza since Palestinian militants kidnapped him in 2006.
2011 - Fifty wild animals were released by the owner of a Zanesville, Ohio, farm, Terry Thompson, who then took his own life; authorities killed 48 of the creatures, while the remaining two were presumed eaten by other animals.
2020 - Twitter blocked a post from Scott Atlas, an adviser to President Donald Trump, who suggested that masks do not work to stop the spread of the coronavirus; Twitter said he violated a policy against sharing false or misleading information about COVID-19 that could lead to harm.
Birthdays
30 - Toby Regbo (actor)
30 - Tyler Posey (actor)
31 - Bristol Palin (reality star)
31 - Brittney Griner (basketball player)
32 - Joy Lauren (actress)
34 - Zac Efron (actor)
37 - Freida Pinto (actress/model)
37 - Lindsey Vonn (skier)
41 - Josh Gracin (country singer)
43 - Wesley Jonathan (actor)
47 - Joy Bryant (actress)
59 - Vincent Spano (actor)
60 - Wynton Marsalis (musician)
61 - Jean-Claude Van Damme (actor)
63 - Thomas Hearns (boxer)
64 - Jon Lindstrom (actor)
65 - Martina Navratilova (tennis player)
70 - Terry McMillan (author)
71 - Pam Dawber (actress)
74 - Joe Morton (actor)
82 - Mike Ditka (football player/coach)
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Today in Sports History - October 18
1873 - The first rules for intercollegiate football were drawn up by representatives from Rutgers, Yale, Columbia and Princeton Universities.
1924 - Red Grange (Illinois) scored four touchdowns in the first 12 minutes of a game against Michigan. He scored a fifth touchdown, intercepted a pass and threw a touchdown-pass in the second half.
1950 - Connie Mack announced that he was going to retire after 50 seasons as the manager of the Philadelphia Athletics.
1956 - NFL commissioner Bert Bell disallowed the use of radio-equipped helmets by NFL quarterbacks.
1967 - The American League granted permission for the A's to move to Oakland. Also, new franchises were awarded to Kansas City and Seattle.
1968 - American Bob Beamon set a new world record in the long jump at the Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City with a leap of 29' 2". (The record would stand until 1991 when Mike Powell jumped 29' 4".)
1968 - The U.S. Olympic Committee suspended black athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos for giving a "black power" salute during a medal ceremony at the Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City.
1974 - Nate Thurmond of the Chicago Bulls records the first quadruple-double in NBA history with 22 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists and 12 blocks.
1977 - The New York Yankees sweep the Los Angeles Dodgers to win the World Series.
1977 - Reggie Jackson tied Babe Ruth's record for hitting three homeruns in a single World Series game. Jackson was only the second player to achieve this.
1992 - Randall Cunningham of the Philadelphia Eagles sets an NFL record for most career rushing yards by a quarterback with 3,683 yards.
2009 - Tom Brady of the New England Patriots throws and NFL record five touchdown passes in one quarter in a game against the Tennessee Titans.
1469 - Ferdinand II of Aragon married Isabella of Castile, uniting Spain and making it a dominant world power.
1685 - Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes.
1767 - The boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania, the Mason-Dixon Line, was agreed upon.
1867 - The United States took possession of Alaska from Russia.
1892 - The first long-distance telephone line between New York and Chicago was officially opened (it could only handle one call at a time).
1898 - The American flag was raised in Puerto Rico shortly before Spain formally relinquished control of the island to the U.S.
1912 - The first Balkan War broke out.
1931 - Inventor Thomas Alva Edison died in West Orange, New Jersey at age 84.
1962 - James D. Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins were honored with the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology for determining the double-helix molecular structure of DNA.
1969 - The federal government banned artificial sweeteners known as cyclamates because of evidence they caused cancer in laboratory rats.
1972 - Congress passed the Clean Water Act, overriding President Richard Nixon’s veto.
1977 - West German commandos stormed a hijacked Lufthansa jetliner on the ground in Mogadishu, Somalia, freeing all 86 hostages and killing three of the four hijackers.
1997 - A monument honoring American servicewomen, past and present, was dedicated at Arlington National Cemetery.
2001 - CBS News announced that an employee in anchorman Dan Rather’s office had tested positive for skin anthrax.
2001 - Four disciples of Osama bin Laden were sentenced in New York to life without parole for their roles in the deadly 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa.
2010 - Four men snared in an FBI sting were convicted of plotting to blow up New York City synagogues and shoot down military planes with the help of a paid informant who’d convinced them he was a terror operative. (James Cromitie, David Williams, Onta Williams and Laguerre Payen were each sentenced to 25 years in prison.)
2011 - Gilad Shalit, a 25-year-old Israeli soldier, is released after being held for more than five years by Hamas. He is exchanged for 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Shalit had been held in Gaza since Palestinian militants kidnapped him in 2006.
2011 - Fifty wild animals were released by the owner of a Zanesville, Ohio, farm, Terry Thompson, who then took his own life; authorities killed 48 of the creatures, while the remaining two were presumed eaten by other animals.
2020 - Twitter blocked a post from Scott Atlas, an adviser to President Donald Trump, who suggested that masks do not work to stop the spread of the coronavirus; Twitter said he violated a policy against sharing false or misleading information about COVID-19 that could lead to harm.
Birthdays
30 - Toby Regbo (actor)
30 - Tyler Posey (actor)
31 - Bristol Palin (reality star)
31 - Brittney Griner (basketball player)
32 - Joy Lauren (actress)
34 - Zac Efron (actor)
37 - Freida Pinto (actress/model)
37 - Lindsey Vonn (skier)
41 - Josh Gracin (country singer)
43 - Wesley Jonathan (actor)
47 - Joy Bryant (actress)
59 - Vincent Spano (actor)
60 - Wynton Marsalis (musician)
61 - Jean-Claude Van Damme (actor)
63 - Thomas Hearns (boxer)
64 - Jon Lindstrom (actor)
65 - Martina Navratilova (tennis player)
70 - Terry McMillan (author)
71 - Pam Dawber (actress)
74 - Joe Morton (actor)
82 - Mike Ditka (football player/coach)
======================================
Today in Sports History - October 18
1873 - The first rules for intercollegiate football were drawn up by representatives from Rutgers, Yale, Columbia and Princeton Universities.
1924 - Red Grange (Illinois) scored four touchdowns in the first 12 minutes of a game against Michigan. He scored a fifth touchdown, intercepted a pass and threw a touchdown-pass in the second half.
1950 - Connie Mack announced that he was going to retire after 50 seasons as the manager of the Philadelphia Athletics.
1956 - NFL commissioner Bert Bell disallowed the use of radio-equipped helmets by NFL quarterbacks.
1967 - The American League granted permission for the A's to move to Oakland. Also, new franchises were awarded to Kansas City and Seattle.
1968 - American Bob Beamon set a new world record in the long jump at the Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City with a leap of 29' 2". (The record would stand until 1991 when Mike Powell jumped 29' 4".)
1968 - The U.S. Olympic Committee suspended black athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos for giving a "black power" salute during a medal ceremony at the Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City.
1974 - Nate Thurmond of the Chicago Bulls records the first quadruple-double in NBA history with 22 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists and 12 blocks.
1977 - The New York Yankees sweep the Los Angeles Dodgers to win the World Series.
1977 - Reggie Jackson tied Babe Ruth's record for hitting three homeruns in a single World Series game. Jackson was only the second player to achieve this.
1992 - Randall Cunningham of the Philadelphia Eagles sets an NFL record for most career rushing yards by a quarterback with 3,683 yards.
2009 - Tom Brady of the New England Patriots throws and NFL record five touchdown passes in one quarter in a game against the Tennessee Titans.
