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On This Day: Musician Ray Charles dies at 73

On June 10, 2004, Ray Charles, a 12-time Grammy-winning singer-pianist who pioneered the blending of country and R&B, died at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif. He was 73.

By UPI Staff
Singer Ray Charles performs a tribute to Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Nat King Cole during ceremonies in New York on May 6, 2000. Charles died on this day in 2004. File Photo by Ezio Petersen/UPI
1 of 4 | Singer Ray Charles performs a tribute to Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Nat King Cole during ceremonies in New York on May 6, 2000. Charles died on this day in 2004. File Photo by Ezio Petersen/UPI | License Photo

On this date in history:

In 1692, Bridget Bishop was found guilty of the practice of witchcraft and hanged in Salem Village in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. She was the first colonist executed during the Salem witch trials.

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In 1898, U.S. Marines invaded Cuba in the Spanish-American War.

In 1916, whatever momentum former President Theodore Roosevelt had built up as he campaigned for the Republican nomination for president was extinguished when the progressive convention voted for reconciliation with the GOP.

In 1935, Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in Akron, Ohio.

In 1942, the German Gestapo burned the tiny Czech village of Lidice after shooting 173 men and shipping the women and children to concentration camps.

In 1943, Hungarian Laszlo Biro secured a patent for his invention -- the first successful and widely used ballpoint pen.

In 2000, Syrian President Hafez Assad died from a heart attack at age 69. He had ruled the country since 1970.

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In 2003, a three-member Ontario Court of Appeal in Canada ordered that full marriage rights be extended to same-sex couples.

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In 2004, Ray Charles, a 12-time Grammy-winning singer-pianist who pioneered the blending of country and R&B, died at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif. He was 73.

In 2006, three detainees at the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, hanged themselves.

File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI

In 2009, Chrysler, one of America's "Big 3" automakers, climbed out of bankruptcy with a reconstruction plan that included a partnership deal with Italian carmaker Fiat.

In 2014, Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., the U.S. House Republican leader, was defeated by Tea Party challenger David Brat, a college economics professor, in one of the most stunning primary election upsets in congressional history.

In 2018, Rafael Nadal won his 17th career Grand Slam, beating Dominic Thiem in the French Open. It was his 11th French Open title, the most ever for a men or women's player.

File Photo by David Silpa/UPI

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