Today in History

Today is Wednesday, Oct. 2, the 275th day of 2019. There are 90 days left in the year.

Today’s highlight: On Oct. 2, 1967, Thurgood Marshall was sworn as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court as the court opened its new term.

On this date:

In 1919, President Woodrow Wilson suffered a serious stroke at the White House that left him paralyzed on his left side.

In 1941, during World War II, German armies launched an all-out drive against Moscow; Soviet forces succeeded in holding onto their capital.

In 1944, German troops crushed the two-month-old Warsaw Uprising, during which a quarter of a million people had been killed.

In 1950, the comic strip “Peanuts,” created by Charles M. Schulz, was syndicated to seven newspapers.

In 1970, one of two chartered twin-engine planes flying the Wichita State University football team to Utah crashed into a mountain near Silver Plume, Colorado, killing 31 of the 40 people on board.

In 1971, the music program “Soul Train” made its debut in national syndication.

In 1984, Richard W. Miller became the first FBI agent to be arrested and charged with espionage. (Miller was tried three times; he was sentenced to 20 years in prison, but was released after nine years.)

In 1985, actor Rock Hudson, 59, died at his home in Beverly Hills, California, after battling AIDS.

In 2002, the Washington, D.C.-area sniper attacks began, setting off a frantic manhunt lasting three weeks. (John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo were finally arrested for killing 10 people and wounding three others; Muhammad was executed in 2009; Malvo was sentenced to life in prison.)

In 2005, a tour boat, the Ethan Allen, capsized on New York’s Lake George, killing 20 elderly passengers. Playwright August Wilson died in Seattle at age 60. Actor-comedian Nipsey Russell died in New York at age 87.

In 2013, a jury in Los Angeles cleared a concert promoter of negligence, rejecting a lawsuit brought by Michael Jackson’s mother claiming AEG Live had been negligent in hiring Conrad Murray, the doctor who killed the pop star with an overdose of a hospital anesthetic.

In 2017, rock superstar Tom Petty died at a Los Angeles hospital at the age of 66, a day after suffering cardiac arrest at his home in Malibu, California.

Five years ago: President Barack Obama acknowledged his pivotal role in the midterm political campaign, arguing in a speech at Northwestern University that the November congressional elections were a referendum on his economic policies and blaming Republicans for blocking his efforts to boost wages and create more jobs. Hong Kong’s embattled leader, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, refused demands by pro-democracy protesters to step down.

One year ago: President Donald Trump ignited a crowd at a campaign rally in Mississippi by mocking Christine Blasey Ford over her claim that she had been sexually assaulted by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh decades ago; Trump also said it’s a “very scary time for young men in America” who could be considered guilty based on an accusation. The New York Times reported that Trump had received at least $413 million from his father over the decades, much of it through dubious tax dodges including outright fraud; a lawyer for Trump told the Times that there was no “fraud or tax evasion.” Amazon announced a minimum wage of $15 an hour for its U.S. employees. (Some longtime workers said the higher pay wouldn’t make up for benefits they were losing.)

Today’s birthdays: Retired MLB All-Star Maury Wills is 87. Movie critic Rex Reed is 81. Singer-songwriter Don McLean is 74. Cajun/country singer Jo-el Sonnier is 73. Actor Avery Brooks is 71. Fashion designer Donna Karan is 71. Photographer Annie Leibovitz is 70. Rock musician Mike Rutherford (Genesis, Mike & the Mechanics) is 69. Singer-actor Sting is 68. Actress Robin Riker is 67. Actress Lorraine Bracco is 65. Country musician Greg Jennings (Restless Heart) is 65. Rock singer Phil Oakey (The Human League) is 64. Rhythm-and-blues singer Freddie Jackson is 63. Singer-producer Robbie Nevil is 61. Retro-soul singer James Hunter is 57. Former NFL quarterback Mark Rypien is 57. Rock musician Bud Gaugh (Sublime, Eyes Adrift) is 52. Folk-country singer Gillian Welch is 52. Country singer Kelly Willis is 51. Actor Joey Slotnick is 51. Rhythm-and-blues singer Dion Allen (Az Yet) is 49. Actress-talk show host Kelly Ripa (TV: “Live with Kelly and Ryan”) is 49. Rock musician Jim Root (AKA #4 Slipknot) is 48. Singer Tiffany is 48. Rock singer Lene Nystrom is 46. Actor Efren Ramirez is 46. Rhythm-and-blues singer LaTocha Scott (Xscape) is 46. Gospel singer Mandisa (TV: “American Idol”) is 43. Actress Brianna Brown is 40. Rock musician Mike Rodden (Hinder) is 37. Tennis player Marion Bartoli is 35. Actor Christopher Larkin is 32. Rock singer Brittany Howard (Alabama Shakes) is 31. Actress Samantha Barks is 29. Actress Elizabeth McLaughlin is 26.

Thought for today: “There’s one way to find out if a man is honest — ask him. If he says ‘yes’ you know he is a crook.” — Groucho Marx (1890-1977).

— Associated Press