September 17th
- Today in 1787,the US Constitutionwas signed by delegates at the Constitutional Conventionin Philadelphia.
- Today in 1789,English astronomer Sir William Herscheldiscovered Mimas, satellite of Saturn.
- Today in 1835,Charles Darwinslanded on Chatham in Galapagos archipelago.
- Today in 1849,Harriet Tubmanescaped slavery in Maryland with two of her brothers.
- Today in 1908,Orville Wrightmade his first, one-hour airplane flight in a demonstrationat Fort Myer, Virginia.
- Today in 1911,the first transcontinental airplane flight, from New York City to Pasadena, California,began on this day. It only took weeks.
- Today in 1931,RCA Recordsintroduced the 33-1/3 rpm LP.
- Today in 1943,the movie, "Revenge of the Zombies,"was released in theaters nationwide.
- Today in 1952, "I am an American Day" and "Constitution Day" were renamed "Citizenship Day." Thisday is now referredto as both Constitution Day AND Citizenship Day.
- Today in 1953,doctors performedthe first successful operationto separate “Siamese” – now referred to as conjoined twins. Carolyn and Catherine Mouton were born in Lafayette, Louisiana…and went on to live full lives.
- Today in 1955,James Dean filmed a TV commercial for the National Highway Safety Committee urging viewers to "drive safely." Ironically, hedied weeks later in a car accident.
- Today in 1957,Italian bombshell actress, Sophia Loren, and director, Carlo Ponti,were first married. The couple’s union was annulled in 1962 due to charges by the Italian government that Ponti's divorce from previous wife was not valid and that he was a bigamist. Sophia and Carlolegally married in April 1966. They remained together until his death in 2007. When asked in a November 2009 interview if she were ever likely to marry again, Loren replied "No, never again. It would be impossible to love anyone else.”
- Today in 1961,the TV show, "Car 54 Where Are You?" starring Fred Gwynne,debuted on NBC-TV. It ran till 1963.
- Today in 1962,US space officials announced the selection of nine new astronauts, including Neil Armstrong, who later became the first man on the moon.
- Today in 1963,David Janssenbegan his four-year runas Dr. Richard Kimble on ABC-TV's "The Fugitive." When he finally caught up with the “One-Armed Man” on the series' final episode in 1967, it was the most-watched TV program ever.
- Today in 1964,"Bewitched," starring Elizabeth Montgomery,debuted on ABC-TV.
- Today in 1965,"Hogan's Heroes," starring Bob Crane,debuted on CBS-TV. On the same day, "The Wild, Wild, West," starring Robert Conrad,also bowed on the same network.
- Today in 1966,"Mission: Impossible," starring Peter Graves,debuted on CBS-TV.
- Today in 1968,"Julia,"debuted on NBC-TV. It starred Diahann Carroll as a widowed nurse trying to raise a young son. The show was a first as it featured an African-American actress in the title role.
- Today in 1971,the series, "McMillan and Wife," starring Rock Hudson and Susan Saint James,premiered on NBC.
- Today in 1972,the comedy-drama series, "M*A*S*H," starring Alan Alda, debuted on CBS-TV,beginning an 11-season run. The TV version of what began as a hit movie, starring Elliot Gould and Donald Sutherland, became one of CBS-TV’s longest-running comedies.
- Today in 1978,theCamp David peace treaty was signedby Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat at the White House.
- Today in 1983,Vanessa Williams, aka "Miss New York," became the first African-American to be crowned "Miss America."She resigned on July 23rd, 1984, over a controversy surrounding the publication of explicit photos in “Penthouse” magazine that she had never approved of.The organization apologized officially in 2015.
- Today in 1983,slugger Carl “Yaz” Yastrzemski, of the Boston Red Sox, broke Hank Aaron's major-league record for gamesplayed with his 3,299th game.
- Today in 1984,oil heir Gordon P. Getty,with a fortune of $4.1-billion dollars, was named the richest person in the US. There were a dozen billionaires in the country at that time. Just recently, Amazon honcho Jeff Bezos became not just the richest person in the country…or even the world. As of January 2018,he is the richest person IN HISTORY.There are now 1,542 billionaires in the world – with 560 of them the US — the most of any country.
- Today in 1986,William H. Rehnquistwas confirmed as the nation's 16th Chief Justice by a 65-33 vote.
- Today in 1988,the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympicstook place in Seoul, South Korea. The bummer footnote? When a bunch of doves were released…a number of them flew toward the Olympic cauldron…and were promptly fried to a crisp.
- Today in 1991,"Home Improvement," starring Tim Allen,debuted on ABC-TV.
- Today in 1996,"Spin City," starring Michael J. Fox,debuted on ABC-TV.
- Today in 1997,comedian Red Skelton died in Rancho Mirage, California,at the age of 84.
- Today in 1997,"Wiseguy" starKen Wahl married “Playboy” model Shane Barbi(of the famed Barbi Twins) in Las Vegas.
- Today in 1997,President Clintonrejected a ban on land mines, the cause that the late Princess Diana had campaigned for, even though the ban was endorsed by 89 countries.
- Today in 1998,the United States governmentoffered a reward for the capture of Haroun Fazilfor his role in the US embassy bombing in Kenya on August 7th, 1998. The same day, the U.S. announced a plan that would compensate victims of that bombing as well as a U.S. Embassy bombing in Tanzania.
- Today in 2001,Louis Cardinals announcer Jack Buckstirred emotions by reading a patriotic-themed poem during the pregame ceremonieson baseball's first night back after the September 11thterrorist attacks. His moment was made even more inspiring by the fact that he was currently fighting lung cancer and Parkinson's disease.
- Today in 2001,major trading markets in the United States, including the New York Stock Exchange and the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX),reopened for the first time since September 11th.
- Today in 2004,Barry Bondshit his 700thcareer home runoff of San Diego Padre Jake Peavy in the third inning of the Giants’ 4-1 win.
- Today in 2008,the IAU (International Astronomical Union)named another dwarf planet, Haumea.
- Today in 2010,the 54-year run ofthe soap opera “As the World Turns” came to an end as its final episode aired.
- Today in 2012Swedish forensic scientistsfound no conclusive evidence of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange's DNAin a torn condom.
- Today in 2016,a pressure cooker bombexploded in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City, injuring 29. A second device was found nearby – and was diffused before it could go off. Fast forward 49 hours later…and Ahmad Rahami was arrest for that,as well as another explosion that had taken placethat morning in Seaside Heights, New Jersey. Rahami has since been convictedand sentenced to life in prison.
- Today in 2017,at the 69thEmmy Awards,the big winners were: "The Handmaid's Tale," Elisabeth Moss, Sterling K Brown, Julia Louis Dreyfus and Donald Glover.
- Today in 2018,a border control agentconfessed to the murder of four women and assault of another in Laredo, Texas.