Those born on this date are under the sign of Cancer. They include German novelist Hermann Hesse in 1877; King Olav V of Norway in 1903; tennis champion Rene Lacoste in 1904; former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in 1908; singer/actor Ken Curtis ("Gunsmoke's" Festus) in 1916; civil rights activist Medgar Evers in 1925; Imelda Marcos, wife of former Philippine President Fernando Marcos, in 1929 (age 85); Dave Thomas, Wendy's fast-food restaurant chain founder, in 1932; actor Polly Holliday and former race car driver Richard Petty, both in 1937 (age 77); actor/director Ron Silver in 1946; writer/actor Larry David in 1947 (age 67); actor Jimmy McNichol in 1961 (age 53); former baseball star Jose Canseco, first to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in the same major league season, in 1964 (age 50) and actor Lindsay Lohan in 1986 (age 28).
On this date in history:
In 1788, it was announced in the U.S. Congress that the new Constitution had been ratified by the required nine states, the ninth being New Hampshire.
In 1839, slaves being shipped to Cuba revolted and seized the ship Amistad, leading to an eventual end of the African slave market.
In 1881, U.S. President James Garfield was shot by Charles Guiteau, a mentally disturbed office-seeker. (Garfield died Sept. 19 and was succeeded by Vice President Chester Arthur.)
In 1900, the world's first rigid airship was demonstrated by Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin in Germany.
In 1934, 6-year-old Shirley Temple signed a contract with Fox Film Corp. (She went on to become one of the biggest movie stars of the era.)
In 1937, U.S. aviator Amelia Earhart and navigator Frederick Noonan were reported lost over the Pacific Ocean. (They were never found.)
In 1962, the first Walmart store opened in Rogers, Ark.
In 1964, the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law with the signature of President Lyndon B. Johnson.
In 1976, North and South Vietnam reunited, forming the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
In 1986, the U.S. Supreme Court endorsed numerical hiring goals for minorities, rejecting the Reagan administration view that affirmative action be limited to proven victims of race discrimination.
In 1990, a stampede in a pedestrian tunnel at the Muslim holy city of Mecca during the annual hajj killed 1,426 pilgrims.
In 1993, South African President F.W de Klerk and African National Congress leader Nelson Mandela announced that the country's first election open to all races would be April 27, 1994.
In 1994, a Colombian soccer player who inadvertently scored a goal for the United States, contributing to his team's loss in World Cup competition, was shot to death in Medellin, Colombia.
In 2000, Vicente Fox was elected president of Mexico.
In 2002, American Steve Fossett completed a round-the-world solo flight in a balloon, reaching Queensland in the Australian outback to finish a 13-day, 19,428-mile trip that began in Western Australia.
In 2004, medical reports said post-traumatic stress disorder was appearing in 1-in-6 U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq.
In 2009, India's ban on homosexuality, in effect since 1861, was overturned by New Delhi's highest court.
In 2013, in announcing an Affordable Care Act delay, U.S. officials said a mandate that larger employers provide health coverage for their workers, or pay penalties, would not be enforced until 2015.
A thought for the day: "Guns and bombs, rockets and warships are all symbols of human failure." -- Lyndon B. Johnson
