December 16th
Today in 1773,the Boston Tea Party took place, as American colonists boarded a British ship and dumped more than 300 chests of tea overboard to protest tea taxes.
Today in 1777,Articles of Confederation (our first Constitution)were ratified by the first state: Virginia.
Today in 1905,"Variety" – a magazine covering all phases of show business –was first published.
Today in 1907,President Theodore Roosevelt sent the US Battle Fleet on a round-the-world cruise, visiting ports internationally, as a gesture of the United States’ new presence as a world power.
Today in 1924,Hiram Bingham was elected to serve in the U.S. Senate forcing him to resign as Governor of Connecticut after serving only one day in office- the shortest term of any Connecticut Governor.
Today in 1950,President Harry Truman proclaimed a state of emergency against "Communist imperialism."
Today in 1951,the NBC premiere of "Dragnet"hit the airwaves.
Today in 1961,Martin Luther King Jr. and 700 demonstrators were arrested in Albany, Georgia.
Today in 1970, the film, "Love Story," starring Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal,opened across the country. The movie gave us the famous phrase, "Love means never having to say you're sorry."
Today in 1975, "One Day At A Time,” starring Valerie Bertinelli, Bonnie Franklin and MacKenzie Phillips,debuted on CBS. The show was considered ahead of its time as tackled a variety of hot button issues: single moms, feminism…and later, teen drug use.
Today in 1975,Sara Jane Moore pleaded guilty to a charge of trying to kill President Ford in San Francisco the previous September.
Today in 1977, "Saturday Night Fever"opened in theaters nationwide, and kicked off the disco craze.
Today in 1988, the film "Rain Man," starring Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise,opened in theaters nationwide. Dustin Hoffman won an Oscar for his role as Raymond, the "idiot savant."
Today in 1995, the film, "Dumb and Dumber," starring Jim Carrey,opened in theaters nationwide.
Today in 1996, Patrick Stewart got a star on the Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame.
Today in 1997, President Clinton announced that he had named his new Labrador retriever puppy, "Buddy."
Today in 1999,Sigourney Weaver received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Today in 2001,in Tora Bora, Afghanistan,tribal fighters announced that they had taken the last al-Qaeda positions. More than 200 fighters were killed and 25 captured. They also announced that they had found no sign of Osama bin Laden.
Today in 2003,the Food and Drug Administration voted to allow the over-the-counter sale of the contraceptive "morning-after pill."
Today in 2004,the iTunes Music Store reached 200-million songs sold.
Today in 2009,astronomers discovered GJ1214b. It was the first known exoplanet on which water could exist.
Today in 2012, the gang rape of a young woman on a bus in Delhi, India that resulted in her death led to national and international outrage.
Today in 2014, in Army Public School in Peshawar Pakistan was attacked by Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan militants.In all, 149 people were killed – including 132 schoolchildren, ranging between eight and eighteen years of age. One of the members of staff was reportedly burned alive in front of the children. It is the world's fourth deadliest school massacre.
Today in 2016,a five-day pollution red alert was declared in Beijing and 21 other Chinese cities –classified by officials as a “meteorological disaster.”
Today in 2016,the State Department increased reward for information on Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi to $25-million.