Today in History

NASA is created

On July 29, 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, creating NASA.

Composer Robert Schumann dies

In 1856, German composer Robert Schumann died in Endenich at age 46.

Vincent van Gogh dies

In 1890, artist Vincent van Gogh, 37, died of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound in Auvers-sur-Oise, France.

Transcontinental telephone service begins

In 1914, transcontinental telephone service in the U.S. became operational with the first test conversation between New York and San Francisco.

‘Help!’

In 1965, The Beatles’ second feature film, “Help!,” had its world premiere in London.

Gulf of Tonkin explosion

In 1967, an accidental rocket launch on the deck of the supercarrier USS Forrestal in the Gulf of Tonkin resulted in a fire and explosions that killed 134 servicemen. (Among the survivors was future Arizona senator John McCain, a U.S. Navy lieutenant commander who narrowly escaped with his life.)

Mamma Cass dies

In 1974, singer Cass Elliot died in a London hotel room at age 32.

Ford visits Auschwitz

In 1975, President Gerald R. Ford became the first U.S. president to visit the site of the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz in Poland.

Prince Charles and Lady Diana marry

In 1981, Britain’s Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer in a glittering ceremony at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. (The couple divorced in 1996.)

Drew Peterson sentenced to 40 more years

In 2016, former suburban Chicago police officer Drew Peterson was given an additional 40 years in prison for trying to hire someone to kill the prosecutor who put him behind bars for killing his third wife.