Today In History

In 1777: British forces under Gen. John Burgoyne surrendered to American troops in Saratoga, N.Y., in a turning point of the Revolutionary War.

In 1931: Mobster Al Capone was convicted of income tax evasion and sentenced to 11 years in prison. (He was released in 1939.)

In 1973: Arab oil-producing nations announced they would begin cutting back on oil exports to the West, resulting in an total embargo that lasted until March 1974.

In 1977: West German commandos stormed a hijacked jetliner that was on the ground in Mogadishu, Somalia, freeing all 86 hostages and killing three of the four hijackers.

In 1979: Mother Teresa of India was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her years of work on behalf of the destitute in Calcutta.