Today is Friday, June 5, the 156th day of 2015. There are 209 days left in the year.
Today’s highlight:
On June 5, 1968, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in Los Angeles’ Ambassador Hotel after claiming victory in California’s Democratic presidential primary. Gunman Sirhan Bishara Sirhan was immediately arrested.
On this date:
In 1794, Congress passed the Neutrality Act, which prohibited Americans from taking part in any military action against a country that was at peace with the United States.
In 1884, Civil War hero Gen. William T. Sherman refused the Republican presidential nomination, saying, “I will not accept if nominated and will not serve if elected.”
In 1933, the United States went off the gold standard.
In 1940, during the World War II Battle of France, Germany attacked French forces along the Somme line.
In 1947, Secretary of State George C. Marshall gave a speech at Harvard University in which he outlined an aid program for Europe that came to be known as The Marshall Plan.
In 1950, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Henderson v. United States, struck down racially segregated railroad dining cars.
In 1963, Britain’s Secretary of State for War, John Profumo, resigned after acknowledging an affair with call girl Christine Keeler, who was also involved with a Soviet spy, and lying to Parliament about it.
In 1967, war erupted in the Mideast as Israel raided military aircraft parked on the ground in Egypt; Syria, Jordan and Iraq entered the conflict.
In 1975, Egypt reopened the Suez Canal to international shipping, eight years after it was closed because of the 1967 war with Israel.
In 1981, the Centers for Disease Control reported that five gay men in Los Angeles had come down with a rare kind of pneumonia; they were the first recognized cases of what later became known as AIDS.
In 1999, jazz and pop singer Mel Torme died in Los Angeles at age 73. The Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, the first devoted to any women’s sport, opened in Knoxville, Tennessee.
In 2004, Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, died in Los Angeles at age 93 after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease.
Ten years ago: “Monty Python’s Spamalot” won three Tony Awards, including best musical; the musical play “The Light in the Piazza” won six prizes, while “Doubt” was named best drama. Spanish teenager Rafael Nadal beat unseeded Mariano Puerta of Argentina 6-7 (6), 6-3, 6-1, 7-5 to win the French Open men’s singles title.
Five years ago: Israeli forces seized a Gaza-bound aid vessel, the Rachel Corrie, without meeting resistance days after a similar effort turned bloody. Finance ministers and central bankers from the world’s leading economies meeting in Busan, South Korea, agreed on the need to cooperate in fending off financial market turmoil and keeping the world economic recovery on track. Francesca Schiavone beat Samantha Stosur of Australia, 6-4, 7-6 (2), to win the French Open, giving Italy its first female champion at a Grand Slam tournament. Drosselmeyer pulled off an upset in the Belmont Stakes.
One year ago: President Barack Obama said he “absolutely makes no apologies” for seeking the release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl in a prisoner swap with the Taliban, vigorously defending an exchange that caused controversy. A gunman opened fire at Seattle Pacific University, killing one student and wounding two others. (Suspect Aaron Ybarra has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.)
Today’s birthdays: Actor-singer Bill Hayes is 90. Broadcast journalist Bill Moyers is 81. Former Canadian Prime Minister Joe Clark is 76. Author Margaret Drabble is 76. Country singer Don Reid (The Statler Brothers) is 70. Rock musician Fred Stone (AKA Fred Stewart) (Sly and the Family Stone) is 68. Rock singer Laurie Anderson is 68. Country singer Gail Davies is 67. Author Ken Follett is 66. Financial guru Suze Orman is 64. Rock musician Nicko McBrain (Iron Maiden) is 63. Jazz musician Kenny G is 59. Rock singer Richard Butler (Psychedelic Furs) is 59. Actor Jeff Garlin is 53. Actress Karen Sillas is 52. Actor Ron Livingston is 48. Singer Brian McKnight is 46. Rock musician Claus Norreen (Aqua) is 45. Actor Mark Wahlberg is 44. Actor Chad Allen is 41. Rock musician P-Nut (311) is 41. Actress Navi Rawat is 38. Actress Liza Weil is 38. Rock musician Pete Wentz (Fall Out Boy) is 36. Rock musician Seb Lefebvre (Simple Plan) is 34. Actress Amanda Crew is 29. Actress Sophie Lowe is 25.
Thought for today: “Dare to be naive.” — R. Buckminster Fuller, American inventor and philosopher (1895-1983).
Associated Press
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