Today in History 8/11/20

Published 3:57 pm Tuesday, August 11, 2020

By The Associated Press

Today is Tuesday, Aug. 11, the 224th day of 2020. There are 142 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On August 11, 1997, President Bill Clinton made the first use of the historic line-item veto, rejecting three items in spending and tax bills. (However, the U.S. Supreme Court later struck down the veto as unconstitutional.)

On this date:

In 1934, the first federal prisoners arrived at Alcatraz Island (a former military prison) in San Francisco Bay.

In 1949, President Harry S. Truman nominated General Omar N. Bradley to become the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

In 1952, Hussein bin Talal was proclaimed King of Jordan, beginning a reign lasting nearly 47 years.

In 1960, the African country of Chad became independent of France.

In 1964, the Beatles movie “A Hard Day’s Night” had its U.S. premiere in New York.

In 1965, rioting and looting that claimed 34 lives broke out in the predominantly Black Watts section of Los Angeles.

In 1991, Shiite Muslim kidnappers in Lebanon released two Western captives: Edward Tracy, an American held nearly five years, and Jerome Leyraud, a Frenchman who’d been abducted by a rival group three days earlier.

In 1992, the Mall of America, the nation’s largest shopping-entertainment center, opened in Bloomington, Minn.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton named Army Gen. John Shalikashvil to be the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, succeeding the retiring Gen. Colin Powell.

In 2012, Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney announced his choice of Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin to be his running mate. Usain Bolt capped his perfect London Olympics by leading Jamaica to victory in a world-record 36.84 seconds in the 4×100 meters.

In 2017, a federal judge ordered Charlottesville, Va., to allow a weekend rally of white nationalists and other extremists to take place at its originally planned location downtown. (Violence erupted at the rally, and a woman was killed when a man plowed his car into a group of counterprotesters.)

In 2014, Academy Award-winning actor and comedian Robin Williams, 63, died in Tiburon, Calif, a suicide.

Ten years ago: In Baton Rouge, La., police and FBI agents captured Michael Francis Mara, suspected of being the so-called “Granddad Bandit” who’d held up two dozen banks in 13 states for about two years. (Mara later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.) Dan Rostenkowski, a former Illinois congressman who’d wielded enormous power on Capitol Hill for more than 30 years, died at his Wisconsin summer home at age 82.

Five years ago: Federal authorities charged that an international web of hackers and traders had made $100 million on Wall Street by stealing a look at corporate press releases before they went out and then trading on that information ahead of the pack. China rattled global financial markets by devaluing its currency in an effort in part to revive economic growth.

One year ago: A day care center in Erie, Pa., where children could stay overnight was ravaged by a fire that killed five children. Two Americans used their medal-winning moments at the Pan American Games in Peru to draw attention to social issues back home; fencer Race Imboden took a knee, and hammer thrower Gwen Berry raised her fist.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Arlene Dahl is 95. Songwriter-producer Kenny Gamble is 77. Rock musician Jim Kale (Guess Who) is 77. Magazine columnist Marilyn Vos Savant is 74. Country singer John Conlee is 74. Singer Eric Carmen is 71. Computer scientist and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is 70. Wrestler-actor Hulk Hogan is 67. Singer Joe Jackson is 66. Playwright David Henry Hwang is 63. Actor Miguel A. Nunez Jr. is 61. Actor Viola Davis is 55. Actor Embeth Davidtz is 55. Actor Duane Martin is 55. Actor-host Joe Rogan is 53. Rhythm-and-blues musician Chris Dave is 52. Actor Anna Gunn is 52. Actor Ashley Jensen is 52. Actor Sophie Okonedo is 52. Rock guitarist Charlie Sexton is 52. Hip-hop artist Ali Shaheed Muhammad is 50. Actor Nigel Harman is 47. Actor Will Friedle is 44. Actor Rob Kerkovich is 41. Actor Merritt Wever is 40. Actor Chris Hemsworth is 37. Rock musician Heath Fogg (Alabama Shakes) is 36. Singer J-Boog is 35. Rapper Asher Roth is 35. Actor Alyson Stoner is 27.