Flashback: What Happened on June 18, ....

•  1917 South Charleston was chartered as a city.

•  1923 The trial of Bill Blizzard as an accessory in the killing of George Munsy began in Lewisburg, Greenbrier County, after being relocated from Charles Town, Jefferson County. The trial ended in a hung jury.

•  1949 West Virginia adopted the sugar maple as the state tree and the cardinal as the state bird.

•  1992 Andrew “Hun” Pastoria of Morgantown, Monongalia County, was charged with allegedly attempting to extort money from a coal operator in order to influence a case before the State Supreme Court.

WayBackWhen™: June 18

Today is Tuesday, June 18, the 169th day of 2013. There are 196 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“Every great dream begins with a dreamer.“ — Harriet Tubman, American abolitionist (1820-1913).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 18, 1983, astronaut Sally K. Ride, 32, became America’s first woman in space as she and four colleagues (commander Robert L. Crippen, pilot Frederick H. Hauck and Ride’s fellow mission specialists John M. Fabian and Norman E. Thagard) blasted off aboard the space shuttle Challenger on a six-day mission.

On this date:

In 1778, American forces entered Philadelphia as the British withdrew during the Revolutionary War.

In 1812, the War of 1812 began as the United States Congress approved, and President James Madison signed, a declaration of war against Britain.

In 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte met his Waterloo as British and Prussian troops defeated the French in Belgium.

In 1873, suffragist Susan B. Anthony was found guilty by a judge in Canandaigua, NY, of breaking the law by casting a vote in the 1872 presidential election. (The judge fined Anthony $100, but she never paid the penalty.)

In 1908, William Howard Taft was nominated for president by the Republican National Convention in Chicago.

In 1912, the Republican National Convention, which would nominate President William Howard Taft for another term of office, opened in Chicago.

In 1940, during World War II, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill urged his countrymen to conduct themselves in a manner that would prompt future generations to say, “This was their finest hour.“

In 1945, William Joyce, known as “Lord Haw-Haw,“ was charged in London with high treason for his English-language wartime broadcasts on German radio. (He was hanged in January 1946.)

In 1953, a U.S. Air Force Douglas C-124 Globemaster II crashed near Tokyo, killing all 129 people on board. Egypt’s 148-year-old Muhammad Ali Dynasty came to an end with the overthrow of the monarchy and the proclamation of a republic.

In 1972, 118 people were killed in the crash of a Brussels-bound British European Airways Hawker Siddeley Trident 1C shortly after takeoff from London Heathrow Airport.

In 1979, President Jimmy Carter and Soviet President Leonid I. Brezhnev signed the SALT II strategic arms limitation treaty in Vienna.

In 1992, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Georgia v. McCollum, ruled that criminal defendants could not use race as a basis for excluding potential jurors from their trials. Entertainer Peter Allen died in San Diego County, CA, at age 48.

Ten years ago:

Convicted rapist Andrew Luster, heir to the Max Factor fortune, was arrested in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, after five months on the run. (Luster had been found guilty in absentia of drugging and raping three women and was sentenced to 124 years in prison; in 2013, a judge resentenced him to 50 years.)

Baseball Hall-of-Famer Larry Doby, who broke the American League’s color barrier in 1947, died in Montclair, NJ, at age 79.

Five years ago:

With gasoline topping $4 a gallon, President George W. Bush urged Congress to lift its long-standing ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, saying the United States needed to increase its energy production; Democrats quickly rejected the idea.

French filmmaker Jean Delannoy died in in Guainville, France, at age 100.

One year ago:

In a scene captured on cellphone video, Karen Klein, a school bus monitor from Rochester, NY, was verbally abused by seventh-graders, prompting outrage as well as donations to the 68-year-old grandmother.

Former baseball star Roger Clemens was acquitted in Washington, D.C., on all charges that he’d obstructed and lied to Congress when he denied using performance-enhancing drugs.

R.A. Dickey became the first major league pitcher in 24 years to throw consecutive one-hitters in the New York Mets’ 5-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. (The previous pitcher to throw consecutive one-hitters was Dave Stieb for Toronto in September 1988.)

Today’s Birthdays:

Rock singer-composer-musician Sir Paul McCartney is 71

Actress Constance McCashin is 66

Actress Linda Thorson is 66

Rock musician John Evans (The Box Tops) is 65

Actress Isabella Rossellini is 61

Actress Carol Kane is 61

Actor Brian Benben is 57

Actress Andrea Evans is 56

Rock singer Alison Moyet is 52

Rock musician Dizzy Reed (Guns N’ Roses) is 50

Country singer-musician Tim Hunt is 46

Rock singer-musician Sice (The Boo Radleys) is 44

Rhythm-and-blues singer Nathan Morris (Boyz II Men) is 42

Actress Mara Hobel is 42

Rapper Silkk the Shocker is 38

Actress Alana de la Garza is 37

Country singer Blake Shelton is 37

Rock musician Steven Chen (Airborne Toxic Event) is 35

Actor David Giuntoli is 33

Actress Renee Olstead is 24

Actress Willa Holland is 22

Flashback: What Happened on June 17, ....

•  1851 The first Upshur County circuit court met at the home of Andrew Poundstone.

•  1888 Fire destroyed the Webster County Court House building in Webster Springs.

•  1916 The West Virginia State High School Athletic Association was organized in Clarksburg, Harrison County.

WayBackWhen™: June 17

Today is Monday, June 17, the 168th day of 2013. There are 197 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“The truth is that there is nothing noble in being superior to somebody else. The only real nobility is in being superior to your former self.“ — Whitney Young, American civil rights leader (1921-1971).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 17, 1963, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Abington (PA) School District v. Schempp, struck down, 8-1, rules requiring the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer or reading of Biblical verses in public schools.

On this date:

In 1397, the Treaty of Kalmar was signed, creating a union between the kingdoms of Sweden, Denmark and Norway.

In 1775, the Revolutionary War Battle of Bunker Hill resulted in a costly victory for the British, who suffered heavy losses.

In 1885, the Statue of Liberty arrived in New York Harbor aboard the French ship Isere (ee-SEHR’).

In 1928, Amelia Earhart embarked on a trans-Atlantic flight from Newfoundland to Wales with pilots Wilmer Stultz and Louis Gordon, becoming the first woman to make the trip as a passenger.

In 1930, President Herbert Hoover signed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, which boosted U.S. tariffs to historically high levels, prompting foreign retaliation.

In 1933, the “Kansas City Massacre” took place outside Union Station in Kansas City, Mo., as a group of gunmen attacked law enforcement officers escorting federal prisoner Frank Nash; four of the officers were killed, along with Nash.

In 1940, France asked Germany for terms of surrender in World War II.

In 1953, residents of East Berlin rebelled against the communist East German government, which forcefully suppressed the uprising. U.S. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas stayed the execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, originally set for the next day, the couple’s 14th wedding anniversary. (They were put to death June 19.)

In 1961, Soviet ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev defected to the West while his troupe was in Paris.

In 1972, President Richard M. Nixon’s eventual downfall began with the arrest of five burglars inside Democratic national headquarters in Washington, D.C.‘s Watergate complex.

In 1987, Charles Glass, a journalist on leave from ABC News, was kidnapped in Lebanon. (Glass escaped his captors in August 1987.)

In 1992, President George H.W. Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin signed a breakthrough arms-reduction agreement.

Ten years ago:

A federal appeals court ruled the government properly withheld names and other details about hundreds of foreigners who were detained in the months after the September 11 attacks.

The Justice Department issued a directive banning routine racial and ethnic profiling at all 70 federal agencies with law enforcement powers.

English soccer star David Beckham was sold to Real Madrid by Manchester United for a $41 million transfer fee.

Five years ago:

Hundreds of same-sex couples got married across California on the first full day that gay marriage became legal by order of the state’s highest court. (However, California voters later approved Proposition 8, which restricted nuptials to a union between a man and a woman.)

A truck bombing in Baghdad killed 63 people.

Four British soldiers were killed by an explosive in Afghanistan’s Helmand province.

The Boston Celtics won their 17th NBA title with a stunning 131-92 blowout over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 6.

Igor Larionov and Glenn Anderson were elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame along with former linesman Ray Scapinello and junior hockey builder Ed Chynoweth. Actress-dancer Cyd Charisse died in Los Angeles at age 86.

One year ago:

Rodney King, 47, whose 1991 videotaped beating by Los Angeles police sparked widespread outrage and who struggled with addiction and repeated arrests, died in Rialto, CA, in an apparent drowning.

Fears of Greece’s imminent exit from Europe’s joint currency receded after the conservative New Democracy party came in first in a critical election and pro-bailout parties won enough seats to form a joint government.

Webb Simpson won the U.S. Open, outlasting former U.S. Open champions Jim Furyk and Graeme McDowell.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Peter Lupus is 81

Actor William Lucking is 72

Singer Barry Manilow is 70

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is 70

Comedian Joe Piscopo is 62

Actor Mark Linn-Baker is 59

Musician Philip Chevron (The Pogues) is 56

Actor Jon Gries (gryz) is 56

Movie producer-director-writer Bobby Farrelly is 55

Actor Thomas Haden Church is 52

Actor Greg Kinnear is 50

Actress Kami Cotler (TV: “The Waltons”) is 48

Olympic gold-medal speed skater Dan Jansen is 48

Actor Jason Patric is 47

Rhythm-and-blues singer Kevin Thornton is 44

Actor-comedian Will Forte is 43

Latin pop singer Paulina Rubio is 42

Tennis player Venus Williams is 33

Actor-rapper Herculeez (AKA Jamal Mixon) is 30

Actor Damani Roberts is 17

Flashback: What Happened on June 16, ....

•  1891 Benjamin F. Kelley, commander of Union troops at Battle of Philippi, died.

•  1933 President Franklin Roosevelt signed the National Recovery Act into law, stipulating an 8-hour day and minimum wage scales, and preserving the right for workers to bargain collectively.

•  1971 U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development George Romney and movie star Jimmy Stewart attended the “Salute to Governor Moore Dinner” in Charleston.

•  1992 Former Logan County Sheriff Oval Adams was sentenced to federal prison for six months for conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of coal.

WayBackWhen™: June 16

Today is Sunday, June 16, the 167th day of 2013. There are 198 days left in the year. This is Father’s Day.

Thought for Today:

“Not to know is bad. Not to want to know is worse. Not to hope is unthinkable. Not to care is unforgivable.“ — Nigerian saying.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 16, 1963, the world’s first female space traveler, Valentina Tereshkova (teh-ruhsh-KOH’-vuh), 26, was launched into orbit by the Soviet Union aboard Vostok 6; she spent 71 hours in flight, circling the Earth 48 times before returning safely.

On this date:

In 1567, Mary, Queen of Scots, was imprisoned in Lochleven Castle in Scotland. (She escaped almost a year later but ended up imprisoned again.)

In 1858, accepting the Illinois Republican Party’s nomination for the U.S. Senate, Abraham Lincoln said the slavery issue had to be resolved, declaring, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.“

In 1883, baseball’s first “Ladies’ Day” took place as the New York Gothams offered women free admission to a game against the Cleveland Spiders. (New York won, 5-2.)

In 1903, Ford Motor Co. was incorporated.

In 1911, IBM had its beginnings as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co. was incorporated in New York State.

In 1933, the National Industrial Recovery Act became law with President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s signature. (The Act was later struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.) The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was founded as President Roosevelt signed the Banking Act of 1933.

In 1943, comedian Charles Chaplin, 54, married his fourth wife, 18-year-old Oona O’Neill, daughter of playwright Eugene O’Neill, in Carpinteria, Calif.

In 1959, actor George Reeves, TV’s “Superman,“ was found dead of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound in the bedroom of his Beverly Hills, Calif., home; he was 45.

In 1962, The New Yorker published the first of a three-part serialization of “Silent Spring” by Rachel Carson.

In 1973, Soviet leader Leonid I. Brezhnev began an official visit to the United States.

In 1978, President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos (toh-REE’-ohs) exchanged the instruments of ratification for the Panama Canal treaties.

In 1987, a jury in New York acquitted Bernhard Goetz (bur-NAHRD’ gehts) of attempted murder in the subway shooting of four youths he said were going to rob him; however, Goetz was convicted of illegal weapons possession. (In 1996, a civil jury ordered Goetz to pay $43 million to one of the persons he’d shot.)

Ten years ago:

Twelve people sent to prison as the result of a Tulia, Texas, drug bust were released on bail by a judge who said they’d been railroaded by an undercover agent. (A total of 35 people were later pardoned by Texas Gov. Rick Perry; 45 of the 46 who were arrested shared a $6 million settlement in a civil rights lawsuit.)

A divided U.S. Supreme Court said, 6-3, the government can force medication on mentally ill criminal defendants only in the rarest of circumstances.

Five years ago:

Former Vice President Al Gore announced his endorsement of Barack Obama for president.

A California Supreme Court ruling that overturned the state’s bans on same-sex marriage became final at 5:01 PM Pacific time.

Tiger Woods, playing on a throbbing injured knee, won an epic U.S. Open after a 19-hole playoff with Rocco Mediate.

One year ago:

Egyptians began going to the polls for a two-day runoff to choose their first freely elected president; Islamist candidate Mohammed Morsi emerged the winner.

China launched its most ambitious space mission to date, carrying its first female astronaut, Liu Yang, and two male colleagues on a 13-day mission to an orbiting module that ended safely.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Bill Cobbs is 78

Author Joyce Carol Oates is 75

Country singer Billy “Crash” Craddock is 74

Songwriter Lamont Dozier is 72

Rhythm-and-blues singer Eddie Levert is 71

Actress Joan Van Ark is 70

Actor Geoff Pierson is 64

Rhythm-and-blues singer James Smith (The Stylistics) is 63

Boxing Hall of Famer Roberto Duran is 62

Pop singer Gino Vannelli is 61

Actress Laurie Metcalf is 58

Model-actress Jenny Shimizu is 46

Actor James Patrick Stuart is 45

Actor Clifton Collins Jr. is 43

Actor John Cho is 41

Actor Eddie Cibrian is 40

Actress China (chee-nah) Shavers is 36

Actress Sibel Kekilli (TV: “Game of Thrones”) is 33

Actress Missy Peregrym (PEH’-rih-grihm) is 31

Actress Olivia Hack is 30

Singer Diana DeGarmo (“American Idol”) is 26

Pop-rock musician Ian Keaggy (Hot Chelle (SHEL)) is 26

Flashback: What Happened on June 15, ....

•  1921 Federal government officials blocked the sale of surplus military items at the United States Harness Company in Ranson, Jefferson County, contrary to their agreement of September 1920.

•  1936 Governor Herman G. Kump called for a special session of the West Virginia Legislature to address the “care of indigent persons,“ reorganization of the public welfare system in order to conform to the Social Security Act, and establishment of an unemployment compensation system.

•  1985 WVHT - FM radio went on the air in Elkins, Randolph County, a sister station to WDNE - AM.

•  1992 Figures were released showing that the state of West Virginia recorded the eighth largest increase in bankruptcies in the country for the first three months of 1992.

WayBackWhen™: June 15

Today is Saturday, June 15, the 166th day of 2013. There are 199 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“Inject a few raisins of conversation into the tasteless dough of existence.“ — O. Henry (William Sydney Porter), American author (1862-1910).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 15, 1775, the Second Continental Congress voted unanimously to appoint George Washington head of the Continental Army.

On this date:

In 1215, England’s King John put his seal to Magna Carta (“the Great Charter”) at Runnymede.

In 1219, forces led by King Valdemar II of Denmark defeated the Estonians in the Battle of Lyndanisse.

In 1836, Arkansas became the 25th state.

In 1849, James Polk, the 11th president of the United States, died in Nashville, TN.

In 1864, Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton signed an order establishing a military burial ground, which became Arlington National Cemetery.

In 1902, the 20th Century Limited, an express passenger train between New York and Chicago, began service. (The Limited made its last run in Dec. 1967.)

In 1904, more than 1,000 people died when fire erupted aboard the steamboat General Slocum in New York’s East River.

In 1938, Johnny Vander Meer pitched his second consecutive no-hitter, leading the Cincinnati Reds to a 6-0 victory over the Brooklyn Dodgers in the first night game at Ebbets Field, four days after leaving the Boston Bees hitless by a score of 3-0.

In 1944, American forces began their successful invasion of Saipan (sy-PAN’) during World War II. B-29 Superfortresses carried out their first raids on Japan.

In 1962, Students for a Democratic Society, at the conclusion of a five-day convention in Michigan, issued the Port Huron Statement.

In 1978, King Hussein (hoo-SAYN’) of Jordan married 26-year-old American Lisa Halaby, who became Queen Noor.

In 1993, former Texas Governor John Connally, who was wounded in the gunfire that killed President John F. Kennedy, died in Houston at age 76.

Ten years ago:

With a deadline passed for Iraqis to hand in heavy weapons, U.S. forces fanned out across Iraq to seize arms and put down potential foes.

The San Antonio Spurs won the NBA championship, defeating the New Jersey Nets 88-77 in Game 6.

Golfer Jim Furyk won the U.S. Open. Actor Hume Cronyn died in Fairfield, CT, at age 91.

Five years ago:

President George W. Bush went for a bike ride and attended church in Paris, then he and his wife, Laura, traveled to London for meetings with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, as well as Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife, Sarah.

The NBC News program “Meet the Press” paid tribute to its host, Tim Russert, who had died two days earlier.

“In the Heights” was named best musical, “August: Osage County,“ best play, at the Tony Awards.

One year ago:

President Barack Obama eased enforcement of immigration laws, offering a chance for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants to stay in the country and work.

Republican Mitt Romney launched the next phase of his presidential campaign, kicking off a six-state, small-town bus tour and telling middle-class Americans that President Obama hadn’t given them “a fair shot.“

An armored car heist at the University of Alberta in Canada left three armed guards dead; suspect Travis Baumgartner faces trial on murder charges.

Daredevil Nik Wallenda became the first person to walk on a tightrope across Niagara Falls. (The feat was broadcast live by ABC-TV, which required Wallenda to wear a safety tether.)

Today’s Birthdays:

Former New York Governor Mario Cuomo (KWOH’-moh) is 81

Rock singer-actor Johnny Hallyday is 70

Actor Simon Callow is 64

Singer Russell Hitchcock (Air Supply) is 64

Rock singer Steve Walsh (Kansas) is 62

Comedian-actor Jim Belushi is 59

Country singer Terri Gibbs is 59

Actress Julie Hagerty is 58

Rock musician Brad Gillis (Night Ranger) is 56

Baseball Hall-of-Famer Wade Boggs is 55

Actress Eileen Davidson is 54

Bluegrass musician Terry Smith is 53

Actress Helen Hunt is 50

Rock musician Scott Rockenfield (Queensryche) is 50

Actress Courteney Cox is 49

Country musician Tony Ardoin is 49

Country musician Michael Britt (Lonestar) is 47

Contemporary Christian musician Rob Mitchell is 47

Rock musician Jimmy McD is 45

Actor-rapper Ice Cube is 44

Actress Leah Remini is 43

Actor Jake Busey is 42

Bluegrass singer-musician Jamie Johnson is 41

Rock musician T-Bone Willy (Save Ferris) is 41

Actor Neil Patrick Harris is 40

Actor Greg Vaughan is 40

Actress Elizabeth Reaser is 38

Rock singer Dryden Mitchell (Alien Ant Farm) is 37

Rock musician Billy Martin (Good Charlotte) is 32

Actor Denzel Whitaker is 23

Flashback: What Happened on June 14, ....

•  1861 Governor Letcher of Virginia published a proclamation at Huttonsville, Randolph County, offering to address complaints and inequities of western Virginians if they would stand with Virginia in the Confederacy.

•  1872 The Ritchie Lyceum at Toll Gate, Ritchie County, was incorporated in West Virginia by the following: William T. Harris, Joseph Flanagan, Cyrus R. Wickes, E. Griffin Taylor, J. Casper Johnson, Hiram S. Dotson, and Benjamin F. Kinsey, all of Ritchie County and Doddridge County.

•  1943 The United States Supreme Court declared West Virginia law requiring salute to flag in schools unconstitutional.

•  1954 Senator Harley Kilgore of West Virginia introduced a bill in the United States Senate limiting the use of foreign oil by the armed services, in an attempt to force greater use of coal.

WayBackWhen™: June 14

Today is Friday, June 14, the 165th day of 2013. There are 200 days left in the year. This is Flag Day.

Thought for Today:

“I am not the flag; not at all. I am but its shadow.“ — Franklin Knight Lane, U.S. Secretary of the Interior (1864-1921).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress in Philadelphia adopted the Stars and Stripes as the national flag.

On this date:

In 1775, the Continental Army, forerunner of the United States Army, was created.

In 1801, former American Revolutionary War General and notorious turncoat Benedict Arnold died in London.

In 1922, Warren G. Harding became the first president heard on radio, as Baltimore station WEAR broadcast his speech dedicating the Francis Scott Key memorial at Fort McHenry.

In 1940, German troops entered Paris during World War II; the same day, the Nazis began transporting prisoners to the Auschwitz (OWSH’-vitz) concentration camp in German-occupied Poland.

In 1943, the U.S. Supreme Court, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, ruled 6-3 that children in public schools could not be forced to salute the flag of the United States.

In 1952, President Harry S. Truman officiated at the keel-laying of the nuclear-powered submarine USS Nautilus at the Electric Boat Shipyard in Groton (GRAH’-tuhn), CT.

In 1954, the words “under God” were added to the Pledge of Allegiance.

In 1967, the space probe Mariner 5 was launched from Cape Kennedy on a flight that took it past Venus.

In 1972, the Environmental Protection Agency ordered a ban on continued domestic use of the pesticide DDT, to take effect at year’s end.

In 1982, Argentine forces surrendered to British troops on the disputed Falkland Islands.

In 1985, the 17-day hijack ordeal of TWA Flight 847 began as a pair of Lebanese Shiite (SHEE’-eyet) Muslim extremists seized the jetliner shortly after takeoff from Athens, Greece.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton chose Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ten years ago:

A wave estimated at about 20 feet tall capsized the charter fishing boat Taki-Tooo off the northern Oregon coast; nine people were killed, two others are missing and presumed dead; eight survived by swimming to shore.

A car driven by Phoenix Bishop Thomas O’Brien struck and killed pedestrian Jim Reed; O’Brien was later convicted of leaving the scene of an accident and sentenced to probation.

The Czech Republic voted to join the European Union.

Five years ago:

Iran rejected a six-nation offer of incentives to stop enriching uranium, prompting President George W. Bush and French President Nicolas Sarkozy to jointly warn Tehran anew during a news conference in Paris against proceeding toward a nuclear bomb.

One year ago:

In dueling speeches in the battleground state of Ohio, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, speaking in Cincinnati, described the Obama administration as the very “enemy” of people who create jobs; President Barack Obama, going second in Cleveland, asked the nation to buy into his vision for four more years or face a return to the recession-era “mistakes of the past.“

Today’s Birthdays:

Actress Marla Gibbs is 82

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-MD, is 74

Writer Peter Mayle is 74

Actor Jack Bannon is 73

Country-rock musician Spooner Oldham is 70

Rock singer Rod Argent (The Zombies; Argent) is 68

Real estate mogul and TV personality Donald Trump is 67

Singer Janet Lennon (The Lennon Sisters) is 67

Rock musician Barry Melton is 66

Rock musician Alan White (Yes) is 64

Actor Eddie Mekka is 61

Actor Will Patton is 59

Olympic gold-medal speed skater Eric Heiden (HY’-dun) is 55

Singer Boy George is 52

Rock musician Chris DeGarmo is 50

Actress Traylor Howard is 47

Actress Yasmine Bleeth is 45

Actor Faizon Love is 45

International Tennis Hall of Famer Steffi Graf is 44

Screenwriter Diablo Cody is 35

Actor J.R. Martinez is 30

Actor-singer Kevin McHale is 25

Actress Lucy Hale is 24

Actor Daryl Sabara is 21

Flashback: What Happened on June 13, ....

•  1878 The West Virginia News newspaper was renamed the Ravenswood News, Jackson County. It had begun publication in 1866.

•  1890 The Little Kanawha Steamboat Company was incorporated in West Virginia by the following: A. L. Ball, J. L. Fink, W. P. Fink of Burning Springs, Wirt County; C. H. Broughton and L. W. Broughton of Parkersburg. The company’s purpose was to construct steamboats and other water craft; transport freight and passengers; and buy and sell coal, lumber, groceries, supplies, etc., with its main office at Burning Springs, Wirt County.

•  1933 Fayette County Circuit Judge J. W. Eary dismissed the jury in the case of Cecil Jones, who had died from silicosis, contracted while working on the Hawks Nest Tunnel at Alloy, Fayette County, part of a project designed by the New- Kanawha Power Company, a subsidiary of the Union Carbide Corporation. Jones’ widow Cora Jones had brought the first lawsuit against contractors Rinehart and Dennis in the fall 1932. Two weeks after the jury was dismissed, Rinehart and Dennis and lawyers for the 157 plaintiffs announced they had reached an out-of-court settlement of $130,000, although the silicosis victims had sued for a total of $4 million. Approximately one-half of this total went to pay the lawyer’s fees and it was later revealed that Rinehart and Dennis Vice President E. J. Perkins had secretly paid the lawyers an additional $20,000 to drop legal charges. Judge Eary made the out-of-court settlement final. At least 476 workers, most migrant African-Americans (Cecil Jones was white), died from silicosis, caused from inhalation of silica rock particles under inadequate safety conditions. Fifty years later, some studies placed the death toll as high as 764, making it the worst industrial disaster in United States history.

•  1947 Employees of the United States Fish and Wildlife Station at Leetown, Jefferson County, announced that pollution had made the Shenandoah River dangerous for fishing or recreation from Front Royal, VA to Harpers Ferry, Jefferson County.

•  1985 WHLX - FM radio went on the air in Wheeling. It was owned by Bethlehem Radio, Inc.

WayBackWhen™: June 13

Today is Thursday, June 13, the 164th day of 2013. There are 201 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“The penalty of success is to be bored by people who used to snub you.“ — Viscountess (VY’-kown-tihs) Astor, American-born English politician (1879-1964).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 13, 1983, the U.S. space probe Pioneer 10, launched in 1972, became the first spacecraft to leave the solar system as it crossed the orbit of Neptune.

On this date:

In 1842, Queen Victoria became the first British monarch to ride on a train, traveling from Slough Railway Station to Paddington in 25 minutes.

In 1886, King Ludwig II of Bavaria drowned in Lake Starnberg.

In 1927, aviation hero Charles Lindbergh was honored with a ticker-tape parade in New York City.

In 1935, James Braddock claimed the title of world heavyweight boxing champion from Max Baer in a 15-round fight in Long Island City, NY.

In 1942, the first of two four-man Nazi sabotage teams arrived in the United States during World War II. (The eight were arrested after one of them went to U.S. authorities; six of the saboteurs were executed.)

In 1944, Germany began launching flying-bomb attacks against Britain during World War II.

In 1957, the Mayflower II, a replica of the ship that brought the Pilgrims to America in 1620, arrived at Plymouth, Mass., after a nearly two-month journey from England.

In 1966, the Supreme Court ruled in Miranda v. Arizona that criminal suspects had to be informed of their constitutional right to consult with an attorney and to remain silent.

In 1971, The New York Times began publishing excerpts of the Pentagon Papers, a secret study of America’s involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967 that had been leaked to the paper by military analyst Daniel Ellsberg.

In 1981, a scare occurred during a parade in London when a teenager fired six blank shots at Queen Elizabeth II.

In 1993, Canada’s Progressive Conservative Party chose Defense Minister Kim Campbell to succeed Brian Mulroney (muhl-ROO’-nee) as prime minister; she was the first woman to hold the post. Astronaut Donald K. “Deke” Slayton died in League City, Texas, at age 69.

In 1996, the 81-day-old Freemen standoff ended as 16 remaining members of the anti-government group surrendered to the FBI and left their Montana ranch.

Ten years ago:

U.S. forces killed 27 Iraqi fighters after the Iraqis attacked an American tank patrol north of Baghdad.

Israel broadened its campaign against Palestinian militants, saying it would strike political as well as military leaders who targeted Israel with terrorism.

Hundreds of pro-cleric militants and security forces in Tehran clashed with Iranians throughout the capital.

Five years ago:

Tim Russert, moderator of NBC’s “Meet the Press,“ died suddenly while preparing for his weekly broadcast; he was 58.

Rising water from the Cedar River forced the evacuation of a hospital in downtown Cedar Rapids, Iowa; in Des Moines, officials issued a voluntary evacuation order for much of downtown and other areas bordering the Des Moines River.

Pope Benedict XVI took President George W. Bush on a rare stroll through the lush grounds of the Vatican Gardens during the leaders’ third visit together.

R. Kelly was acquitted of all charges in his child pornography trial in Chicago, ending a six-year ordeal for the R&B superstar.

One year ago:

Federal prosecutors dropped all charges against former Democratic vice-presidential candidate John Edwards after his corruption trial ended the previous month in a deadlocked jury.

A Houston jury convicted a man of shooting to death his neighbor during a confrontation outside the neighbor’s home two years earlier, rejecting his claim that he was within his rights under Texas’ version of a stand-your-ground law. (Raul Rodriguez was later sentenced to 40 years in prison for killing Kelly Danaher.)

Matt Cain pitched the 22nd perfect game in major league history and the first for the Giants, striking out a career-high 14 batters and getting help from two running catches to beat the Houston Astros 10-0.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Bob McGrath is 81

Artist Christo is 78

Magician Siegfried (Siegfried & Roy) is 74

Singer Bobby Freeman is 73

Actor Malcolm McDowell is 70

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is 69

Singer Dennis Locorriere is 64

Actor Richard Thomas is 62

Actor Jonathan Hogan is 62

Actor Stellan Skarsgard is 62

Comedian Tim Allen is 60

Actress Ally Sheedy is 51

TV anchor Hannah Storm is 51

Rock musician Paul deLisle (deh-LYL’) (Smash Mouth) is 50

Actress Lisa Vidal is 48

Singer David Gray is 45

Rhythm-and-blues singer Deniece Pearson (Five Star) is 45

Rock musician Soren Rasted (Aqua) is 44

Actor Jamie Walters is 44

Singer-musician Rivers Cuomo (Weezer) is 43

Country singer Susan Haynes is 41

Actor Steve-O is 39

Country singer Jason Michael Carroll is 35

Actor Ethan Embry is 35

Actor Chris Evans is 32

Actress Sarah Schaub is 30

Singer Raz B is 28

Actress Kat Dennings is 27

Actress Mary-Kate Olsen is 27

Actress Ashley Olsen is 27

Flashback: What Happened on June 12, ....

•  1845 The Gilmer County seat moved from DeKalb to Glenville.

•  1861 Union troops under General Lew Wallace drove Confederate troops from Romney, Hampshire County. However, shortly thereafter, Confederate militia under Colonel McDonald recaptured the town. This was the first of many capture of Romney by Union troops during the war.

•  1976 The conference center for the West Virginia Baptist Convention was dedicated at Parchment Valley, Jackson County.

•  1992 Locked out employees at the Ravenswood Aluminum Plant in Ravenswood, Jackson County, approved the new contract negotiated by the United Steelworkers of America and the Ravenswood Aluminum Corporation. They returned to work on June 29, for the first since being locked out on 1 November 1990.

WayBackWhen™: June 12

Today is Wednesday, June 12, the 163rd day of 2013. There are 202 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument.“ — William Gibbs McAdoo, American government official (1863-1941).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 12, 1963, civil rights leader Medgar Evers, 37, was shot and killed outside his home in Jackson, Miss. (In 1994, Byron De La Beckwith was convicted of murdering Evers and sentenced to life in prison; he died in 2001.)

On this date:

In 1776, Virginia’s colonial legislature became the first to adopt a Bill of Rights.

In 1898, Philippine nationalists declared independence from Spain.

In 1920, the Republican national convention, meeting in Chicago, nominated Warren G. Harding for president on the tenth ballot; Calvin Coolidge was nominated for vice president.

In 1939, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum was dedicated in Cooperstown, NY.

In 1942, Anne Frank, a German-born Jewish girl living in Amsterdam, received a diary for her 13th birthday, less than a month before she and her family went into hiding from the Nazis.

In 1956, the Flag of the United States Army was officially adopted under an executive order signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

In 1963, one of Hollywood’s most notoriously expensive productions, “Cleopatra,“ starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Rex Harrison, opened in New York.

In 1967, the Supreme Court, in Loving v. Virginia, struck down state laws prohibiting interracial marriages.

In 1982, a crowd estimated at up to 1 million people gathered in New York’s Central Park to demand a superpower freeze on nuclear weapons.

In 1987, President Ronald Reagan, during a visit to the divided German city of Berlin, publicly challenged Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev to “tear down this wall.“

In 1991, Russians went to the polls to elect Boris N. Yeltsin president of their republic.

In 1994, Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were slashed to death outside her Los Angeles home. (O.J. Simpson was later acquitted of the killings in a criminal trial, but was eventually held liable in a civil action.)

Ten years ago:

U.S. fighter jets bombed a suspected terrorist camp and troops stormed through Sunni Muslim towns in Iraq, seeking Saddam Hussein loyalists in one of the biggest American military assaults since the war began.

Israel killed seven Palestinians in its third rocket attack in 24 hours.

Air France turned the oldest of its Concordes over to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington.

Academy Award-winning actor Gregory Peck died in Los Angeles at age 87.

Five years ago:

In a stinging rebuke to President George W. Bush’s anti-terror policies, a deeply divided Supreme Court ruled that foreign detainees held for years at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba had the right to appeal to U.S. civilian courts to challenge their indefinite imprisonment without charges.

Three heavily armed robbers stole two Pablo Picasso prints, “The Painter and the Model” and “Minotaur, Drinker and Women,“ plus two paintings by other artists from a museum in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (The works were later recovered.)

Taiwan and China agreed to set up permanent offices in each other’s territory for the first time in nearly six decades.

One year ago:

Attorney General Eric Holder fended off Republican demands that he appoint a special counsel outside of the Justice Department to look into national security leaks.

Democrat Ron Barber, who almost lost his life in the Arizona shooting rampage that wounded former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, won a special election to succeed her.

Elinor Ostrom, 78, an Indiana University political scientist who to date is the only woman to have been awarded a Nobel Prize in economics, died in Bloomington, Ind.

Today’s Birthdays:

Banker/philanthropist David Rockefeller is 98

Former President George H.W. Bush is 89

Singer Vic Damone is 85

Songwriter Richard Sherman is 85

Actor-singer Jim Nabors is 83

Jazz musician Chick Corea is 72

Sportscaster Marv Albert is 72

Singer Roy Harper is 72

Pop singer Len Barry is 71

Rock singer-musician John Wetton (Asia, King Crimson) is 64

Rock musician Bun E. Carlos (Cheap Trick) is 62

Country singer-musician Junior Brown is 61

Singer-songwriter Rocky Burnette is 60

Actor Timothy Busfield is 56

Singer Meredith Brooks is 55

Actress Jenilee Harrison is 55

Rock musician John Linnell (They Might Be Giants) is 54

Rapper Grandmaster Dee (Whodini) is 51

Actress Paula Marshall is 49

Actress Frances O’Connor is 46

Actor Rick Hoffman (TV: “Suits”) is 43

Actor Jason Mewes is 39

Actor Michael Muhney is 38

Blues musician Kenny Wayne Shepherd is 36

Actor Wil Horneff is 34

Singer Robyn is 34

Actor Dave Franco is 28

Country singer Chris Young is 28

Rap group MC Jay Are is 24

Actor Ryan Malgarini is 21

Flashback: What Happened on June 11, ....

•  1841 Thomas J. Jackson was appointed as a constable in Lewis County.

•  1884 The first West Virginia Historical Society held its last annual meeting.

•  1962 The body of late governor Clarence Meadows was removed from Clifton Forge, Virginia and reburied in Beckley.

•  1992 More than 200 residents of the town of Eleanor, Putnam County, attended a hearing with the United States Corps of Engineers to discuss the health risks of contaminated soil at the site of a proposed lock and dam.

WayBackWhen™: June 11

Today is Tuesday, June 11, the 162nd day of 2013. There are 203 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him.“ — David Brinkley (1920-2003).

Today’s Highlights in History:

On June 11, 1963, in one of the most shocking images of the Vietnam War era, a Buddhist monk, Thich Quang Duc (tihk kwang duk), set himself afire on a Saigon street to protest the government of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem (noh deen dyem). (The scene was captured in a Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph taken by Malcolm Browne of The Associated Press.)

On this date:

In 1509, England’s King Henry VIII married his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.

In 1770, Captain James Cook, commander of the British ship Endeavour, discovered the Great Barrier Reef off Australia by running onto it.

In 1776, the Continental Congress formed a committee to draft a Declaration of Independence calling for freedom from Britain.

In 1913, football coach Vince Lombardi and opera singer Rise Stevens were born in New York City.

In 1919, Sir Barton won the Belmont Stakes, becoming horse racing’s first Triple Crown winner.

In 1938, Johnny Vander Meer pitched the first of two consecutive no-hitters as he led the Cincinnati Reds to a 3-0 victory over the Boston Bees. (Four days later, Vander Meer refused to give up a hit to the Brooklyn Dodgers, who lost, 6-0.)

In 1942, the United States and the Soviet Union signed a lend-lease agreement to aid the Soviet war effort in World War II.

In 1962, three prisoners at Alcatraz in San Francisco Bay staged an escape, leaving the island on a makeshift raft; they were never found or heard from again.

In 1971, the year-and-a-half-long occupation of Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay by American Indian activists ended as federal officers evicted the remaining protesters.

In 1977, Seattle Slew won the Belmont Stakes, capturing the Triple Crown.

In 1987, Margaret Thatcher became the first British prime minister in 160 years to win a third consecutive term of office as her Conservatives held onto a reduced majority in Parliament.

In 1993, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that people who commit “hate crimes” motivated by bigotry may be sentenced to extra punishment; the court also ruled religious groups had a constitutional right to sacrifice animals in worship services.

Ten years ago:

A suicide bomber killed 16 victims in a Jerusalem bus blast; two Israeli rocket strikes against Hamas fugitives killed 11 Palestinians in Gaza City.

Houston’s Roy Oswalt, Pete Munro, Kirk Saarloos, Brad Lidge, Octavio Dotel and Billy Wagner combined for the first no-hitter against the New York Yankees in 45 years, winning 8-0.

Pioneering broadcast journalist David Brinkley died in Houston at age 82.

Five years ago:

President George W. Bush, during a visit to Germany, raised the possibility of a military strike to thwart Tehran’s presumed nuclear weapons ambitions; Chancellor Angela Merkel joined Bush in urging further sanctions against Iran if it failed to suspend its nuclear enrichment program.

For his part, Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (ah-muh-DEE’-neh-zhahd) called Bush a “wicked man.“

Four Boy Scouts were killed when a tornado hit the Little Sioux Scout Ranch near Blencoe, Iowa.

One year ago:

Testimony began in the trial of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, accusing of sexually abusing 10 boys over 15 years. (Sandusky was later convicted and sentenced to at least 30 years in prison.)

Rafael Nadal won his record seventh French Open title, defeating Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5.

The Los Angeles Kings won their first NHL championship, beating the New Jersey Devils 6-1 in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals.

Ann Rutherford, 94, the demure brunette actress who played Scarlett O’Hara’s youngest sister in “Gone With the Wind,“ died in Los Angeles.

Today’s Birthdays:

U.S. Rep. Charles Rangell, D-NY, is 83

Actor Gene Wilder is 80

Comedian Johnny Brown is 76

International Motorsports Hall of Famer Jackie Stewart is 74

Singer Joey Dee is 73

Actress Adrienne Barbeau is 68

Rock musician Frank Beard (ZZ Top) is 64

Animal rights activist Ingrid Newkirk is 64

Rock singer Donnie Van Zant is 61

Actor Peter Bergman is 60

Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Montana is 57

Actor Hugh Laurie is 54

TV personality Mehmet Oz, M.D. (“Dr. Oz”) is 53

Singer Gioia (JOY’-ah) Bruno (Expose) is 50

Rock musician Dan Lavery (Tonic) is 47

Country singer-songwriter Bruce Robison is 47

Actor Peter Dinklage is 44

Country musician Smilin’ Jay McDowell is 44

Rock musician Tai Anderson (Third Day) is 37

Actor Joshua Jackson is 35

Christian rock musician Ryan Shrout is 33

Actor Shia LaBeouf (SHY’-uh luh-BUF’) is 27

Flashback: What Happened on June 10, ....

•  1844 Commissioners acquired property on Big Mill Creek for establishment of the Jackson County poor farm.

•  1983 The Track and Field Hall of Fame in Charleston officially closed.

•  1989 After an impasse with the UMW was declared, Pittston Coal Company implemented its own agreement with replacement workers.

WayBackWhen™: June 10

Today is Monday, June 10, the 161st day of 2013. There are 204 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“I am firm. You are obstinate. He is a pig-headed fool.“ — Katharine Whitehorn, British newspaper columnist.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 10, 1963, President John F. Kennedy signed into law the Equal Pay Act of 1963, aimed at eliminating wage disparities based on gender. The same day, Kennedy delivered a commencement address at American University in Washington, D.C., in which he declared, “If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can make the world safe for diversity.“

On this date:

In 1692, the first official execution resulting from the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts took place as Bridget Bishop was hanged.

In 1861, during the Civil War, Confederate troops routed Union soldiers in the Battle of Big Bethel in Virginia.

In 1907, eleven men in five cars set out from the French embassy in Beijing on a race to Paris. (Prince Scipione Borghese of Italy was the first to arrive in the French capital two months later.)

In 1921, President Warren G. Harding signed into law the Budget and Accounting Act, which created the Bureau of the Budget and the General Accounting Office.

In 1922, singer-actress Judy Garland was born Frances Ethel Gumm in Grand Rapids, Minn.

In 1935, Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in Akron, Ohio by Dr. Robert Holbrook Smith and William Griffith Wilson.

In 1940, Italy declared war on France and Britain; Canada declared war on Italy.

In 1942, during World War II, German forces massacred 173 male residents of Lidice (LIH’-dyiht-zeh), Czechoslovakia, in retaliation for the killing of Nazi official Reinhard Heydrich.

In 1967, the Middle East War ended as Israel and Syria agreed to observe a United Nations-mediated cease-fire.

In 1971, President Richard M. Nixon lifted a two-decades-old trade embargo on China.

In 1985, socialite Claus von Bulow was acquitted by a jury in Providence, R.I., at his retrial on charges he’d tried to murder his heiress wife, Martha “Sunny” von Bulow.

In 1991, 11-year-old Jaycee Dugard of South Lake Tahoe, Calif. was abducted by Phillip and Nancy Garrido; Jaycee was held by the couple for 18 years before she was found by authorities.

Ten years ago:

Israeli helicopters fired missiles at a car carrying Abdel Aziz Rantisi (AHB’-duhl ah-ZEEZ’ rahn-TEE’-see), a senior Hamas leader, wounding him and killing two others. (Israel succeeded in killing Rantisi in April 2004.)

ImClone chief Sam Waksal was sentenced to more than seven years in prison in connection with a stock-trading scandal. (He was released in 2009.)

A rocket holding the first of two Mars rovers, Spirit, blasted off from Cape Canaveral, FL. (Spirit arrived on Mars in Jan. 2004.)

Former Treasury Secretary and White House chief of staff Donald T. Regan died in Williamsburg, VA, at age 84.

Five years ago:

A Sudanese jetliner skidded off a runway and crashed into airport lights after landing in Khartoum, killing 30 of the 214 people on board.

One year ago:

Parts of northern Colorado and southern New Mexico battled wildfires that were spreading rapidly through mountainous forest land, forcing hundreds of evacuations.

Shanshan Feng won the LPGA Championship to become the first Chinese player to win an LPGA Tour title and a major event, closing with a 5-under 67 for a two-stroke victory.

The bittersweet “Once” won eight Tony Awards, including best musical; “Clybourne Park” won best play.

Today’s Birthdays:

Britain’s Prince Philip is 92

Columnist Nat Hentoff is 88

Attorney F. Lee Bailey is 80

Actress Alexandra Stewart is 74

Singer Shirley Alston Reeves (The Shirelles) is 72

Actor Jurgen Prochnow is 72

Football Hall of Famer Dan Fouts is 62

Media commentator Jeff Greenfield is 70

Country singer-songwriter Thom Schuyler is 61

Former Sen. John Edwards, D-NC, is 60

Actor Andrew Stevens is 58

Singer Barrington Henderson is 57

Former New York Governor-turned-media commentator Eliot Spitzer is 54

Rock musician Kim Deal is 52

Singer Maxi Priest is 52

Actress Gina Gershon is 51

Actress Jeanne Tripplehorn is 50

Rock musician Jimmy Chamberlin is 49

Actress Kate Flannery is 49

Model-actress Elizabeth Hurley is 48

Rock musician Joey Santiago is 48

Actor Doug McKeon is 47

Rock musician Emma Anderson is 46

Country musician Brian Hofeldt (The Derailers) is 46

Rapper The D.O.C. is 45

Rock singer Mike Doughty is 43

Rhythm-and-blues singer JoJo is 42

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal is 42

Rhythm-and-blues singer Faith Evans is 40

Actor Hugh Dancy is 38

Rhythm-and-blues singer Lemisha Grinstead (702) is 35

Actor DJ Qualls is 35

Actor Shane West is 35

Country singer Lee Brice is 34

Singer Hoku is 32

Actress Leelee Sobieski is 31

Olympic gold medal figure skater Tara Lipinski is 31

Model-actress Kate Upton is 21

Presidential daughter Sasha Obama is 12

Flashback: What Happened on June 09, ....

•  1774 Lord Dunmore announced that the Shawnee had declared war against the western frontier.

•  1893 A post office was established at Advent, Jackson County.

•  1954 The state ordered that all nine state colleges must accept any qualified student, signifying a formal beginning of integrated public colleges.

•  1956 Former United States Representative from West Virginia and unsuccessful democratic candidate for governor J. Alfred Taylor, Sr., died.

WayBackWhen™: June 09

Today is Sunday, June 09, the 160th day of 2013. There are 205 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“Next to the slanderer, we detest the bearer of the slander to our ears.“ — Mary Catherwood, American novelist (1847-1901).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 09, 1973, Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes, becoming horse racing’s first Triple Crown winner in 25 years.

On this date:

In A.D. 68, the Roman Emperor Nero committed suicide, ending a 13-year reign.

In 1863, a two-day meeting began in New York City to found the United States Veterinary Medical Association (now the American Veterinary Medical Association).

In 1870, author Charles Dickens died in Gad’s Hill Place, England.

In 1911, Carrie (sometimes spelled “Carry”) A. Nation, the hatchet-wielding temperance crusader, died in Leavenworth, KS., at age 64.

In 1940, during World War II, Norway decided to surrender to the Nazis, effective at midnight.

In 1943, the federal government began withholding income tax from paychecks.

In 1953, 94 people died when a tornado struck Worcester (WU’-stur), Mass.

In 1954, during the Senate-Army Hearings, Army special counsel Joseph N. Welch berated Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy, R-Wis., for verbally attacking a member of Welch’s law firm, Fred Fisher, asking McCarthy: “Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?“

In 1969, the Senate confirmed Warren Burger to be the new chief justice of the United States, succeeding Earl Warren.

In 1978, leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints struck down a 148-year-old policy of excluding black men from the Mormon priesthood.

In 1983, Britain’s Conservatives, led by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, won a decisive election victory.

In 1993, as millions of Japanese watched on television, Crown Prince Naruhito (nah-ROOSH’-doh) wed commoner Masako Owada in an elaborate Shinto religious ceremony. The science-fiction film “Jurassic Park,“ directed by Steven Spielberg, had its world premiere in Washington, D.C.

Ten years ago:

As rebels bore down on the capital of Liberia, French helicopters rescued more than 500 Americans, Europeans and other foreigners.

The New Jersey Devils won the Stanley Cup, defeating the Anaheim Mighty Ducks 3-0 in Game 7.

Five years ago:

Tiffany Hall pleaded guilty in Belleville, Ill., to killing her pregnant friend, Jimella Tunstall, the victim’s unborn child and three children in a plea deal that allowed her to avoid the death penalty.

A growing number of supermarkets and restaurants yanked three varieties of tomatoes from their shelves and dishes amid concerns about a 17-state salmonella outbreak.

Ken Griffey Jr. became the sixth player in baseball history to reach 600 homers in the first inning of the Cincinnati Reds’ 9-4 victory over the Florida Marlins.

One year ago:

Spain became the fourth and largest country to ask Europe to rescue its failing banks (however, the bailout was averted).

Commerce Secretary John Bryson got into multiple car accidents while driving in the Los Angeles area after suffering a seizure (he ended up resigning his post).

Three people, including two former Auburn University football players, were shot to death at a pool party near the campus; suspect Desmonte Leonard faces capital murder charges.

Maria Sharapova won the French Open, defeating Sara Errani 6-3, 6-2 in the final to complete the career Grand Slam.

Union Rags nipped Paynter at the wire in a photo finish to win the Belmont Stakes.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actress Mona Freeman is 87

Comedian Jackie Mason is 85

Media analyst Marvin Kalb is 83

Actor Joe Santos is 82

Sports commentator Dick Vitale is 74

Author Letty Cottin Pogrebin is 74

Retired MLB All-Star Dave Parker is 62

Mystery author Patricia Cornwell is 57

Actor Michael J. Fox is 52

Writer-producer Aaron Sorkin is 52

Actor Johnny Depp is 50

Actress Gloria Reuben is 49

Rock musician Dean Felber (Hootie & the Blowfish) is 46

Rock musician Dean Dinning is 46

Musician Ed Simons is 43

Country musician Shade Deggs (Cole Deggs and the Lonesome) is 39

Bluegrass singer-musician Jamie Dailey (Dailey & Vincent) is 38

Actress Michaela Conlin is 35

Actress Natalie Portman is 32

Actress Mae Whitman is 25

Flashback: What Happened on June 08, ....

•  1923 Edgar Combs was jailed in Logan County for his alleged role in the murder of John Gore during the Battle of Blair Mountain.

•  1956 The West Virginia NAACP President T. G. Nutter filed suit in the United States District Court in Charleston to force the Cabell County Board of Education, headed by Superintendent Olin C. Nutter, to integrate its schools more quickly.

•  1992 Democrat State Senator Harry Truman Chafin of Mingo County announced he would run against Democrat State Senate President Keith Burdette of Wood County for the position of State Senate president.

•  1992 Loretta Young, the state’s first affirmative action officer, resigned due to a lack of support from the administration of Governor Caperton.

WayBackWhen™: June 08

Today is Saturday, June 08, the 159th day of 2013. There are 206 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“I do believe one ought to face facts. If you don’t they get behind you and may become terrors, nightmares, giants, horrors. As long as one faces them one is top dog.“ — Katherine Mansfield, New Zealander author (1888-1923).

Today’s Highlights in History:

On June 08, 1953, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that restaurants in the District of Columbia could not refuse to serve blacks. Eight tornadoes struck Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, killing 126 people, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; most of the deaths were caused by an extremely powerful twister in Flint.

On this date:

In A.D. 632, the prophet Muhammad died in Medina.

In 1845, Andrew Jackson, seventh president of the United States, died in Nashville, TN.

In 1861, voters in Tennessee approved an Ordinance of Secession passed the previous month by the state legislature.

In 1915, Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan resigned in a disagreement with President Woodrow Wilson over U.S. handling of the sinking of the Lusitania.

In 1942, Bing Crosby recorded “Adeste Fideles” and “Silent Night” in Los Angeles for Decca Records.

In 1967, 34 U.S. servicemen were killed when Israel attacked the USS Liberty, a Navy intelligence-gathering ship in the Mediterranean. (Israel later said the Liberty had been mistaken for an Egyptian vessel.)

In 1972, during the Vietnam War, an Associated Press photographer captured the image of 9-year-old Phan Thi Kim Phuc (fahn thee kihm ####) as she ran naked and severely burned from the scene of a South Vietnamese napalm attack.

In 1973, Gen. Francisco Franco relinquished his post as Spain’s prime minister while remaining as chief of state.

In 1978, a jury in Clark County, Nev., ruled the so-called “Mormon will,“ purportedly written by the late billionaire Howard Hughes, was a forgery.

In 1982, President Ronald Reagan became the first American chief executive to address a joint session of the British Parliament.

In 1987, Fawn Hall began testifying at the Iran-Contra hearings, describing how, as secretary to National Security aide Oliver L. North, she helped to shred some documents and spirit away others.

In 1998, the National Rifle Association elected actor Charlton Heston its president.

Ten years ago:

Frustrated and angry over delays, a coalition of the nation’s mayors meeting in Denver asked federal officials to bypass state governments and give them the money they needed to beef up homeland security.

Poland voted to join the European Union in 2004.

Annika Sorenstam won the LPGA Championship for her fifth major title. Spain’s Juan Carlos Ferrero won the French Open men’s final with a 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Martin Verkerk.

George Foreman was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

The Broadway show “Hairspray” won eight Tony Awards, including best musical; “Take Me Out,“ Richard Greenberg’s play about a gay baseball player, was chosen best play.

Five years ago:

Skyla Whitaker, 11, and Taylor Placker, 13, were shot to death along a country road near Weleetka, OK. (A suspect, Kevin Sweat, faces trial.)

A man went on a knifing rampage in Tokyo, killing seven people.

Rafael Nadal won his fourth consecutive French Open title in a rout, 6-1, 6-3, 6-0, again spoiling Roger Federer’s bid to complete a career Grand Slam.

Yani Tseng of Taiwan became the first rookie in 10 years to win a major, beating Maria Hjorth on the fourth hole of a playoff with a 5-foot birdie on the 18th hole to win the LPGA Championship in Maryland.

One year ago:

President Barack Obama declared “the private sector is doing fine,“ prompting Republican Mitt Romney to ask, “Is he really that out of touch?“ (Obama quickly clarified his remarks, saying it was “absolutely clear that the economy is not doing fine.“)

In Cairo, Egypt, a mob of hundreds of men assaulted women holding a march demanding an end to sexual harassment.

I’ll Have Another’s bid for the first Triple Crown in 34 years ended shockingly in the barn and not on the racetrack when the colt was scratched the day before the Belmont Stakes and retired from racing with a swollen tendon.

Kevin Millwood and five Seattle relievers combined on a no-hitter, the third in franchise history, and the Mariners beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 1-0.

Today’s Birthdays:

Former first lady Barbara Bush is 88

Actor-comedian Jerry Stiller is 86

Comedian Joan Rivers is 80

Actress Millicent Martin is 79

Actor James Darren is 77

Actor Bernie Casey is 74

Singer Nancy Sinatra is 73

Singer Chuck Negron (Three Dog Night) is 71

Musician Boz Scaggs is 69

Rock musician Mick Box (Uriah Heep) is 66

Author Sara Paretsky is 66

Actress Sonia Braga is 63

Actress Kathy Baker is 63

Country musician Tony Rice is 62

Rock singer Bonnie Tyler is 62

Actor Griffin Dunne is 58

“Dilbert” creator Scott Adams is 56

Actor-director Keenen Ivory Wayans is 55

Singer Mick Hucknall (Simply Red) is 53

Musician Nick Rhodes (Duran Duran) is 51

Rhythm-and-blues singer Doris Pearson (Five Star) is 47

Actress Julianna Margulies is 46

Actor Dan Futterman is 46

Actor David Sutcliffe is 44

Actor Kent Faulcon is 43

Rhythm-and-blues singer Nicci Gilbert is 43

Actress Kelli Williams is 43

Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., is 43

Actor Mark Feuerstein is 42

Contemporary Christian musician Mike Scheuchzer (MercyMe) is 38

Actor Eion Bailey is 37

Rapper Kanye (KAHN’-yay) West is 36

Blues-rock musician Derek Trucks (The Derek Trucks Band) is 34

Folk-bluegrass singer-musician Sara Watkins (Nickel Creek) is 32

Actress Torrey DeVitto is 29

Flashback: What Happened on June 07, ....

•  1929 Eleanor D. Caldwell founded the Wheeling Symphony Society.

•  1981 The Bituminous Coal Wage Agreement, negotiated by UMW president Sam Church, went into effect.

WayBackWhen™: June 07

Today is Friday, June 07, the 158th day of 2013. There are 207 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“The slight that can be conveyed in a glance, in a gracious smile, in a wave of the hand, is often the ne plus ultra of art. What insult is so keen or so keenly felt, as the polite insult which it is impossible to resent?“ — Julia Kavanagh, Irish novelist (1824-1877).

Today’s Highlights in History:

On June 07, 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed to the Continental Congress a resolution stating “That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown.“

On this date:

In 1654, King Louis XIV, age 15, was crowned in Rheims, 11 years after the start of his reign.

In 1769, frontiersman Daniel Boone first began to explore present-day Kentucky.

In 1862, William Bruce Mumford, a Confederate loyalist, was hanged at the order of Union military authorities for tearing down a U.S. flag that had been flying over the New Orleans mint shortly before the city was occupied by the North.

In 1863, French forces occupied Mexico City during the Franco-Mexican War.

In 1892, Homer Plessy, a “Creole of color,“ was fined for refusing to leave a whites-only car of the East Louisiana Railroad. (Ruling on his case, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld “separate but equal” racial segregation, which it overturned in 1954.)

In 1929, the sovereign state of Vatican City came into existence as copies of the Lateran Treaty were exchanged in Rome.

In 1942, the World War II Battle of Midway ended in a decisive victory for American forces over the Imperial Japanese.

In 1967, the Haight Ashbury Free Medical Clinic opened in San Francisco.

In 1972, the musical “Grease” opened on Broadway, having already been performed in lower Manhattan.

In 1981, Israeli military planes destroyed a nuclear power plant in Iraq, a facility the Israelis charged could have been used to make nuclear weapons.

In 1993, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that religious groups can sometimes meet on school property after hours.

In 1998, in a crime that shocked the nation, James Byrd Jr., a 49-year-old black man, was hooked by a chain to a pickup truck and dragged to his death in Jasper, Texas. (Two white men were later sentenced to death for the crime; a third received life with the possibility of parole.)

Ten years ago:

In a national first, New Hampshire Episcopalians elected the Rev. V. Gene Robinson, an openly gay man, their next bishop.

A suicide bomber in Afghanistan killed four German peacekeepers; the blast also killed a teenage Afghan bystander.

Justine Henin-Hardenne beat Kim Clijsters 6-0, 6-4 at the French Open, in the first all-Belgian Grand Slam final.

Empire Maker beat Kentucky Derby-Preakness winner Funny Cide in the Belmont Stakes.

Five years ago:

Hillary Rodham Clinton suspended her pioneering campaign for the presidency and endorsed fellow Democrat Barack Obama.

Longshot Da’ Tara spoiled Big Brown’s bid for a Triple Crown by winning the Belmont Stakes.

Ana Ivanovic won her first Grand Slam title by beating Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-3 in the French Open.

Veteran sportscaster Jim McKay died in Monkton, MD, at age 86.

One year ago:

Attorney General Eric Holder clashed with Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee seeking more information about a flawed gun-trafficking investigation in Arizona known as “Operation Fast and Furious.“

Bob Welch, a former member of Fleetwood Mac who went on to write songs and record several hits during a solo career, died in Nashville; he was 65.

Today’s Birthdays:

Movie director James Ivory is 85

Actress Virginia McKenna is 82

Singer Tom Jones is 73

Poet Nikki Giovanni is 70

Actor Ken Osmond (“Leave It to Beaver”) is 70

Former talk show host Jenny Jones is 67

Actress Anne Twomey is 62

Actor Liam Neeson is 61

Actress Colleen Camp is 60

Singer-songwriter Johnny Clegg is 60

Author Louise Erdrich (UR’-drihk) is 59

Actor William Forsythe is 58

Record producer L.A. Reid is 57

Latin pop singer Juan Luis Guerra is 56

Singer-songwriter Prince is 55

Rock singer-musician Gordon Gano (The Violent Femmes) is 50

Rapper Ecstasy (Whodini) is 49

Rock musician Eric Kretz (Stone Temple Pilots) is 47

Rock musician Dave Navarro is 46

Actress Helen Baxendale is 43

Actor Karl Urban is 41

TV personality Bear Grylls is 39

Rock musician Eric Johnson (The Shins) is 37

Actress Adrienne Frantz is 35

Actor-comedian Bill Hader is 35

Actress Anna Torv is 34

Actress Larisa Oleynik (oh-LAY’-nihk) is 32

Tennis player Anna Kournikova is 32

Actor Michael Cera is 25

Actress Shelley Buckner is 24

Flashback: What Happened on June 06, ....

•  1885 The West Virginia Oil Company was incorporated in West Virginia by the following: C. H. Shuttuck, John Adair, J. M. Jackson, Jr., W. H. D. Reed, and L. A. Cole, all of Parkersburg. The company’s main office was in Petroleum, Ritchie County.

•  1959 Charleston Mayor John Copenhaver established a Commission on Human Relations to work for an end to discrimination.

•  1968 Presidential candidate Senator Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in Los Angeles, CA.

•  1973 Ground was broken for the Comprehensive Mental Health Center near Institute, serving Kanawha County, Putnam County, Clay County, and Boone County.

•  1984 Governor Jay Rockefeller IV wins Democratic nomination for Senate and John Raese leads in Republican Senate primary.

WayBackWhen™: June 06

Today is Thursday, June 06, the 157th day of 2013. There are 208 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“To be successful, grow to the point where one completely forgets himself; that is, to lose himself in a great cause.“ — Booker T. Washington, American educator (1856-1915).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 06, 1944, Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy, France, on “D-Day,“ beginning the liberation of German-occupied western Europe during World War II.

On this date:

In 1513, troops of the Swiss Confederation defeated the French in the Battle of Novara.

In 1799, American politician and orator Patrick Henry died at Red Hill Plantation in Virginia.

In 1844, the Young Men’s Christian Association was founded in London.

In 1912, the greatest volcanic eruption of the 20th century took place as Novarupta in Alaska began a series of explosive episodes over a 60-hour period.

In 1925, Walter Percy Chrysler founded the Chrysler Corp.

In 1932, the Senate approved, and President Herbert Hoover signed, a Revenue Act containing the first federal gasoline tax, which was one cent per gallon.

In 1933, the first drive-in movie theater was opened by Richard Hollingshead in Camden County, NJ. (The movie shown was “Wives Beware,“ starring Adolphe Menjou.)

In 1966, black activist James Meredith was shot and wounded as he walked along a Mississippi highway to encourage black voter registration.

In 1968, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy died at Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles, a day after he was shot by Sirhan Bishara Sirhan.

In 1978, California voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 13, a primary ballot initiative calling for major cuts in property taxes.

In 1982, Israeli forces invaded Lebanon to drive Palestine Liberation Organization fighters out of the country. (The Israelis withdrew in June 1985.)

In 1985, authorities in Brazil exhumed a body later identified as the remains of Dr. Josef Mengele, the notorious “Angel of Death” of the Nazi Holocaust.

Ten years ago:

The government reported the U.S. unemployment rate had hit a nine-year high of 6.1% the previous month.

Already the holder of U.S. rights to the Olympics through 2008, NBC secured the contracts for the 2010 and 2012 games for $2.2 billion.

Five years ago:

The Dow industrial average dropped 394.64 points to 12,209.81, its worst loss in more than a year.

Crude futures made their biggest single-day jump ever, soaring nearly $11 for the day to $138.54 a barrel.

Actor Bob Anderson, who played young George Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life,“ died in Palm Springs, CA, at age 75.

One year ago:

Business social network LinkedIn reported that some of its users’ passwords had been stolen and leaked onto the Internet.

New Yorkers lined the West Side waterfront to welcome the space shuttle Enterprise as it sailed up the Hudson River to its new home aboard the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actress Billie Whitelaw is 81

Civil rights activist Roy Innis is 79

Singer-songwriter Gary “U.S.“ Bonds is 74

Country singer Joe Stampley is 70

Actor Robert Englund is 66

Folk singer Holly Near is 64

Singer Dwight Twilley is 62

Playwright-actor Harvey Fierstein (FY’-ur-steen) is 61

Comedian Sandra Bernhard is 58

International Tennis Hall of Famer Bjorn Borg is 57

Actress Amanda Pays is 54

Comedian Colin Quinn is 54

Record producer Jimmy Jam is 54

Rock musician Steve Vai is 53

Rock singer-musician Tom Araya (Slayer) is 52

Actor Jason Isaacs is 50

Rock musician Sean Yseult (White Zombie) is 47

Actor Max Casella is 46

Actor Paul Giamatti is 46

Rhythm-and-blues singer Damion Hall (Guy) is 45

Rock musician Bardi Martin is 44

Rock musician James “Munky” Shaffer (Korn) is 43

TV correspondent Natalie Morales is 41

Country singer Lisa Brokop is 40

Rapper-rocker Uncle Kracker is 39

Actress Sonya Walger is 39

Actress Staci Keanan is 38

Actress Amber Borycki is 30

Actress Aubrey Anderson-Emmons (TV: “Modern Family”) is 6

Flashback: What Happened on June 05, ....

•  1859 A frost killed large areas of vegetation in the northern and central portions of present-day West Virginia.

•  1958 Eugene Linger was executed by electrocution at the West Virginia Penitentiary in Moundsville (Marshall County) for a murder committed in Upshur County.

•  1984 In West Virginia primary elections, Arch Moore was elected as the Republican and Clyde See the Democratic gubernatorial candidate. Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale carried the state in the presidential primary.

•  1992 It was announced that federal census records indicated that Smithfield, Wetzel County was the state’s poorest town, while North Hills, Wood County, was the richest.

•  1992 Key Centurion Bancshares, Inc., announced it would merge with Banc One Corporation of Columbus, OH, the largest banking deal in West Virginia history.

WayBackWhen™: June 05

Today is Wednesday, June 05, the 156th day of 2013. There are 209 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“A lie has no leg, but a scandal has wings.“ — Thomas Fuller, English clergyman (1608-1661).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 05, 1963, Britain’s Secretary of State for War, John Profumo, resigned after acknowledging an affair with a call girl, Christine Keeler (who was also involved with a Soviet spy), and lying to Parliament about it; while there was no finding of a security breach, the scandal helped bring down the Conservative government of Prime Minister Harold Macmillan.

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 1916, the Arab Revolt against Turkish Ottoman rule began during World War I.

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 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 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.

In 1976, 14 people were killed when the Teton Dam in Idaho burst.

In 1993, country star Conway Twitty died in Springfield, MO, at age 59.

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:

Speaking to American soldiers in Qatar, President George W. Bush argued the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq was justified and pledged that “we’ll reveal the truth” on Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction.

The United States agreed to pull its ground troops away from the Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Korea.

The New York Times’ top two editors resigned in the wake of the Jayson Blair scandal.

Five years ago:

Defense Secretary Robert Gates ousted Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley and Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne, holding them to account in a historic Pentagon shake-up after embarrassing nuclear mix-ups.

Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton met privately at the Washington home of Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the first such get-together since Obama clinched the Democratic presidential nomination.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the reputed mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, told a military judge at his arraignment he welcomed the death penalty as a way to martyrdom and ridiculed the proceedings as an “inquisition.“

Astronauts opened up Japan’s new billion-dollar space station lab, Kibo, aboard the international space station.

One year ago:

Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker beat back a recall challenge, winning both the right to finish his term and a voter endorsement of his strategy to curb state spending.

Jury selection began in Bellefonte, PA, in the trial of Jerry Sandusky, the former Penn State assistant football coach charged with child sexual abuse. (Sandusky was later convicted of 45 counts and sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison.)

Science-fiction author Ray Bradbury, 91, died in Los Angeles.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor-singer Bill Hayes is 88

Broadcast journalist Bill Moyers is 79

Former Canadian Prime Minister Joe Clark is 74

Author Margaret Drabble is 74

Country singer Don Reid (The Statler Brothers) is 68

Rock musician Fred Stone (AKA Fred Stewart) (Sly and the Family Stone) is 67

Rock singer Laurie Anderson is 66

Country singer Gail Davies is 65

Author Ken Follett is 64

Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, is 62

Financial guru Suze Orman is 62

Rock musician Nicko McBrain (Iron Maiden) is 61

Jazz musician Kenny G is 57

Rock singer Richard Butler (Psychedelic Furs) is 57

Actor Jeff Garlin is 51

Actress Karen Sillas is 50

Actor Ron Livingston is 46

Singer Brian McKnight is 44

Rock musician Claus Norreen (Aqua) is 43

Actor Mark Wahlberg is 42

Actor Chad Allen is 39

Rock musician P-Nut (311) is 39

Actress Navi Rawat (RO’-waht) is 36

Actress Liza Weil is 36

Rock musician Pete Wentz (Fall Out Boy) is 34

Rock musician Seb Lefebvre (Simple Plan) is 32

Actress Amanda Crew is 27

Flashback: What Happened on June 04, ....

•  1926 Three buildings were dedicated on the new 62-acre campus of Davis and Elkins College in Elkins, Randolph. Among these was Halliehurst, the former home of Senator Stephen B. Elkins, donated by his widow Hallie Elkins to be used as a women’s dormitory.

1973 Work began on the $13.5 million Mine Health & Safety Academy.

1984 Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale campaigned in Charleston.

1992 Federal Judge Robert Staker refused to dismiss a $2 million lawsuit filed by the state’s attorney general’s office against former Governor Moore in an attempt to recover money he allegedly cost the state through illegal activities.

WayBackWhen™: June 04

Today is Tuesday, June 04, the 155th day of 2013. There are 210 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“Reputation is a bubble which a man bursts when he tries to blow it for himself.“ — Emma Carleton, American journalist (1850-1925).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 04, 1913, British suffragist Emily Davison was struck and mortally injured after moving into the path of a horse during the running of the Epsom Derby; her exact motives remain unclear. (The horse that ran into Davison was Anmer, owned by King George V. Jockey Herbert Jones was thrown off and injured; Anmer recovered and completed the race on its own; Davison died at a hospital four days later.)

On this date:

In 1783, the Montgolfier brothers first publicly demonstrated their hot-air balloon, which did not carry any passengers, over Annonay, France.

In 1812, the Louisiana Territory was renamed the Missouri Territory. The U.S. House of Representatives approved a declaration of war against Britain.

In 1892, the Sierra Club was incorporated in San Francisco.

In 1919, Congress approved the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, guaranteeing citizens the right to vote regardless of their gender, and sent it to the states for ratification.

In 1939, the German ocean liner St. Louis, carrying more than 900 Jewish refugees from Germany, was turned away from the Florida coast by U.S. officials.

In 1940, during World War II, the Allied military evacuation of more than 338,000 troops from Dunkirk, France, ended.

In 1942, the World War II Battle of Midway began, resulting in a decisive American victory against Japan and marking the turning point of the war in the Pacific.

In 1943, the president of Argentina, Ramon Castillo, was overthrown in a military coup.

In 1954, French Premier Joseph Laniel and Vietnamese Premier Buu Loc signed treaties in Paris according “complete independence” to Vietnam.

In 1972, a jury in San Jose, Calif., acquitted radical activist Angela Davis of murder and kidnapping for her alleged connection to a deadly courthouse shootout in Marin County in 1970.

In 1986, Jonathan Jay Pollard, a former Navy intelligence analyst, pleaded guilty in Washington to conspiring to deliver information related to the national defense to a foreign government, specifically Israel. (He is serving a life prison term.)

In 1998, a federal judge sentenced Terry Nichols to life in prison for his role in the Oklahoma City bombing.

Ten years ago:

President George W. Bush held landmark meetings with the Israeli and Palestinian prime ministers, hoping to advance a Middle East peace plan after winning new support from top Arab leaders.

Martha Stewart stepped down as head of her media empire, hours after federal prosecutors in New York charged her with obstruction of justice, conspiracy, securities fraud and lying to investigators. (Stewart was later convicted of lying about why she’d sold her shares of ImClone Systems stock in 2001, just before the stock price plunged.)

Five years ago:

Barack Obama, having clinched the Democratic presidential nomination, picked Caroline Kennedy to help him choose a running mate.

Police in Hartford, CT, released a surveillance video showing a 78-year-old man being struck by a hit-and-run driver on a busy city street and being ignored by most passersby. (The victim, Angel Acre Torres, was removed from life support in May 2009.)

Travis Alexander was stabbed to death at his suburban Phoenix home by his girlfriend, Jodi Arias, who later claimed self-defense but was convicted of first-degree murder.

The Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cup for the fourth time in 11 seasons with a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 of the finals.

One year ago:

With President Barack Obama standing by his side, former President Bill Clinton warned during a speech in New York that a Mitt Romney presidency would be “calamitous” for the nation and the world.

Al-Qaida’s second-in-command, Abu Yahya al-Libi (ah-BOO’ yah-HEE’-ah ahl LIH’-bee), was killed in a U.S. drone strike in North Waziristan, Pakistan.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Bruce Dern is 77

Musician Roger Ball is 69

Actress-singer Michelle Phillips is 69

Jazz musician Anthony Braxton is 68

Rock musician Danny Brown (The Fixx) is 62

Actor Parker Stevenson is 61

Actor Keith David is 57

Actress Julie Gholson is 55

Actor Eddie Velez is 55

Singer-musician El DeBarge is 52

Actress Julie White is 52

Actress Lindsay Frost is 51

Tennis player Andrea Jaeger is 48

Rhythm-and-blues singer Al B. Sure! is 45

Actor Scott Wolf is 45

Actor-comedian Rob Huebel is 44

Comedian Horatio Sanz is 44

Actor Noah Wyle is 42

Rock musician Stefan Lessard (The Dave Matthews Band) is 39

Actor-comedian Russell Brand is 38

Actress Angelina Jolie is 38

Actor Theo Rossi is 38

Alt-country singer Kasey Chambers is 37

Rock musician JoJo Garza (Los Lonely Boys) is 33

Country musician Dean Berner (Edens Edge) is 32

Model Bar Refaeli (reh-FEHL’-ee) is 28

Rock musician Zac Farro is 23

Flashback: What Happened on June 03, ....

•  1852 The Virginia General Assembly passed an act authorizing Thomas Skidmore to construct a grist and saw mill dam at Baker’s Shoals on Elk River in Braxton County.

•  1882 The Ohio River Pipe Line Company was incorporated in West Virginia by the following: Herman Loomis, Andrew J. Schleiman of Adrian, MI; F. Messner, Stanley Stewart, and Charles H. Marr of Cleveland, OH. The company’s purpose was to construct a pipe line to transport oil from Petroleum Station in Ritchie County on the Parkersburg Branch Railroad through the oil belt district in Ritchie County and Wood County to Marietta, OH; and from Wood County and Ritchie County into the oil district of Pleasants County at or near Horse Neck to the Ohio River at or near the mouth of Bull Creek in Wood County. The company’s main office was in Cleveland.

•  1909 The Kanawha County Public Library was established in the YMCA building in Charleston.

•  1992 An Alabama pulp and paper company announced it would construct a mill in Mason County which would meet the state’s pollution standards. It was estimated the mill would produce 1,000 new jobs.

WayBackWhen™: June 03

Today is Monday, June 03, the 154th day of 2013. There are 211 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“Nothing is done. Everything in the world remains to be done or done over.“ — Lincoln Steffens, American investigative reporter (1866-1936).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 03, 1963, Pope John XXIII died at age 81, ending a relatively brief but highly influential 4½-year papacy; he was succeeded by Pope Paul VI.

On this date:

In 1621, the Dutch West India Co. received its charter for a trade monopoly in parts of the Americas and Africa.

In 1808, Confederate President Jefferson Davis was born in Christian County, KY.

In 1888, the poem “Casey at the Bat,“ by Ernest Lawrence Thayer, was first published in the San Francisco Daily Examiner.

In 1937, Edward, The Duke of Windsor, who had abdicated the British throne, married Wallis Warfield Simpson in a private ceremony in Monts, France.

In 1943, Los Angeles saw the beginning of its “Zoot Suit Riots” as white servicemen clashed with young Latinos wearing distinctive-looking zoot suits; the violence finally ended when military officials declared the city off limits to enlisted personnel.

In 1948, the 200-inch reflecting Hale Telescope at the Palomar Mountain Observatory in California was dedicated.

In 1962, Air France Flight 007, a U.S.-bound Boeing 707, crashed while attempting to take off from Orly Airport near Paris; all but two of the 132 people aboard were killed.

In 1963, a Northwest Orient Airlines DC-7 military charter en route from McChord Air Force Base in Washington state to Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska crashed off Annette Island with the loss of all 101 people aboard.

In 1965, astronaut Edward White became the first American to “walk” in space during the flight of Gemini 4.

In 1972, Sally J. Priesand was ordained as America’s first female rabbi at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, Ohio.

In 1983, Gordon Kahl, a militant tax protester wanted in the slayings of two U.S. marshals in North Dakota, was killed in a gun battle with law-enforcement officials near Smithville, Ark.

In 1989, Iran’s spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, died. Chinese army troops began their sweep of Beijing to crush student-led pro-democracy demonstrations. SkyDome (now called Rogers Centre) opened in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Ten years ago:

World leaders closed out a summit in Evian, France, by pledging to rebuild Iraq and combat the threat of nuclear weapons in Iran and North Korea.

Arab leaders pledged to renounce terror and help end violence against Israel, standing in solidarity with President George W. Bush at a summit in Egypt.

Sammy Sosa was ejected in the first inning of Chicago’s 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays after umpires found cork in his shattered bat.

Five years ago:

Barack Obama claimed the Democratic presidential nomination in a long-time-coming victory speech, speaking in the same St. Paul, Minn., arena that would be hosting the Republican national convention in September 2008.

Astronauts installed a 37-foot-long Japanese lab at the international space station.

One year ago:

A Dana Air MD-83 jetliner carrying 153 people crashed on the outskirts of Lagos, Nigeria, killing everyone on board and at least 10 people on the ground.

George Zimmerman, the former neighborhood watch volunteer charged with killing Trayvon Martin, surrendered to police and was booked into a central Florida jail two days after his bond was revoked.

The River Thames became a royal highway as Queen Elizabeth II led a motley but majestic flotilla of more than 1,000 vessels to mark her Diamond Jubilee.

Tiger Woods birdied three of his last four holes to win the Memorial, closing with a 5-under 67.

Olivia Culpo, a 20-year-old cellist from Rhode Island, won the Miss USA crown in Las Vegas.

Today’s Birthdays:

Movie director Alain Resnais is 91

TV producer Chuck Barris is 84

The president of Cuba, Raul Castro, is 82

Actress Irma P. Hall is 78

Author Larry McMurtry is 77

Rock singer Ian Hunter (Mott The Hoople) is 74

Singer Eddie Holman is 67

Actor Tristan Rogers is 67

Musician Too Slim (Riders in the Sky) is 65

Rock musician Richard Moore is 64

Singer Suzi Quatro is 63

Singer Deneice Williams is 62

Singer Dan Hill is 59

Actress Suzie Plakson is 55

Actor Scott Valentine is 55

Rock musician Kerry King (Slayer) is 49

Rock singer-musician Mike Gordon is 48

TV host Anderson Cooper is 46

Country singer Jamie O’Neal is 45

Singers Ariel and Gabriel Hernandez (No Mercy) are 42

Actor Vik Sahay is 42

Rhythm-and-blues singer Lyfe Jennings is 40

Actress Nikki M. James is 32

Tennis player Rafael Nadal is 27

Actress-singer Lalaine is 26

Actor Sean Berdy (TV: “Switched at Birth”) is 20

Flashback: What Happened on June 02, ....

•  1879 The Charleston Female College was incorporated in West Virginia by the following: James M. Follansbee, F. W. Abney, Joseph L. Fry, Frank Follansbee, and J. F. Wilcox, all of Charleston.

•  1881 The West Virginia Pharmaceutical Association was organized in Wheeling, Ohio County.

•  1903 Fifty-six coal miners in Harrison County went on strike for 1 day after two Italian miners were fired.

•  1974 Kanawha County School Board member Alice Moore publicly denounced the supplemental textbooks.

•  1992 A federal jury indicted Ralph Ramey and James Payne, both of Logan County, for allegedly setting fire to the mobile home of a racially mixed couple.

WayBackWhen™: June 02

Today is Sunday, June 02, the 153rd day of 2013. There are 212 days left in the year.

Thought for Today:

“Whatever it is that makes a person charming, it needs to remain a mystery.“ — Rex Harrison, English actor (born 1908, died this date in 1990).

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 02, 1953, the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II took place in London’s Westminster Abbey, 16 months after the death of her father, King George VI; it was the first such ceremony to be broadcast on television.

On this date:

In 1863, during the Civil War, Union Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman wrote a letter to his wife, Ellen, in which he commented, “Vox populi, vox humbug” (The voice of the people is the voice of humbug).

In 1886, President Grover Cleveland, 49, married Frances Folsom, 21, in the Blue Room of the White House. (To date, Cleveland is the only president to marry in the executive mansion.)

In 1897, Mark Twain, 61, was quoted by the New York Journal as saying from London that “the report of my death was an exaggeration.“

In 1924, Congress passed a measure that was then signed by President Calvin Coolidge guaranteeing full American citizenship for all Native Americans born within U.S. territorial limits.

In 1941, baseball’s “Iron Horse,“ Lou Gehrig, died in New York of a degenerative disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; he was 37.

In 1962, Soviet forces opened fire on striking workers in the Russian city of Novocherkassk; a retired general in 1989 put the death toll at 22 to 24.

In 1966, the U.S. space probe Surveyor 1 landed on the moon and began transmitting detailed photographs of the lunar surface.

In 1979, Pope John Paul II arrived in his native Poland on the first visit by a pope to a communist country.

In 1983, half of the 46 people aboard an Air Canada DC-9 were killed after fire broke out on board, forcing the jetliner to make an emergency landing at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.

In 1986, for the first time, the public could watch the proceedings of the U.S. Senate on television as a six-week experiment began.

In 1987, President Ronald Reagan announced he was nominating economist Alan Greenspan to succeed Paul Volcker as chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.

In 1997, Timothy McVeigh was convicted of murder and conspiracy in the Oklahoma City bombing. (He was executed in June 2001.)

Ten years ago:

President George W. Bush, visiting the Middle East, pledged to work unstintingly for the goal of Israel and a Palestinian state living side by side without bloodshed.

The Federal Communications Commission eased decades-old limits on media ownership.

Five years ago:

Massachusetts Sen. Edward M. Kennedy underwent 3½ hours of risky and delicate surgery to cut out as much of his cancerous brain tumor as possible.

Polygamist sect children began to be reunited with their parents two months after the state of Texas removed the children from the sect’s ranch.

The space shuttle Discovery linked up with the international space station, and the 10 space travelers immediately got ready to install the Japanese lab Kibo.

Bo Diddley, 79, a founding father of rock ‘n’ roll, died in Archer, FL, at age 79.

Actor-director Mel Ferrer died in Santa Barbara, CA, at age 90.

One year ago:

Ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison after a court convicted him on charges of complicity in the killing of protesters during the 2011 uprising that forced him from power; Mubarak and his two sons, Gamal and Alaa, were acquitted of corruption charges.

Character actress Kathryn Joosten, best known as the crotchety, nosey Karen McCluskey on “Desperate Housewives,“ died in Los Angeles at age 72.

Richard Dawson, 79, a British-born entertainer who made his mark in the 1960s television sitcom “Hogan’s Heroes” and who later became a popular TV game show host, died in Los Angeles.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actress-singer Sally Kellerman is 76

Actor Ron Ely is 75

Actor Stacy Keach is 72

Rock musician Charlie Watts is 72

Singer William Guest (Gladys Knight & The Pips) is 72

Actor Charles Haid is 70

Movie director Lasse (LAH’-suh) Hallstrom is 67

Actor Jerry Mathers is 65

Actress Joanna Gleason is 63

Actor Dennis Haysbert is 59

Comedian Dana Carvey is 58

Actor Gary Grimes is 58

Pop musician Michael Steele is 58

Rock singer Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet) is 53

Actor Navid Negahban is 49

Singer Merril Bainbridge is 45

Rapper B-Real (Cypress Hill) is 43

Actress Paula Cale is 43

Actor Anthony Montgomery is 42

Actor-comedian Wayne Brady is 41

Actor Wentworth Miller is 41

Rock musician Tim Rice-Oxley (Keane) is 37

Actor Zachary Quinto is 36

Actor Dominic Cooper is 35

Actress Nikki Cox is 35

Actor Justin Long is 35

Actor Deon Richmond is 35

Actress Morena Baccarin is 34

Rhythm-and-blues singer Irish Grinstead (702) is 33

Rock musician Fabrizio Moretti (The Strokes) is 33

Country singer Dan Cahoon (Marshall Dyllon) is 30

Actress Brittany Curran is 23

Actor Sterling Beaumon is 18

“Giant Bear” at Coopers Rock State Forest Makes Earth Day Debut - 06.01.13

A very big Eco-Bear stands on a rock surveying Coopers Rock State Forest. He was sighted on the forest on Earth Day, April 22, 2013, and will remain in place until nature reduces him to his components of woven twigs, grass, mud, hemlock branches, and natural materials. Last year a “Sleeping Giant” slumbered for nine months before he returned to the earth near the same location.

The Giant Bear - 2013 Earth Day Sculpture

“The Bear is an eco-sculpture,” said Forest Superintendent Adam McKeown. “‘The Bear’ is an art concept of West Virginia University art sculpture major Ben Gazsi.”  The sculpture, unveiled to the public on Earth Day, is located next to the main overlook parking lot of Coopers Rock State Forest in the picnic area. The bear is about 15 feet tall and three to four times the size of a mature black bear, West Virginia’s state animal, according to McKeown.

“The use of hemlock branches is impressive,” McKeown said. “The storms of 2012 left massive amounts of debris in the forest, more than Gazsi could use, but it was useful in the creation of this very cool art.”

Gazsi, who assists the Coopers Rock Foundation in trail maintenance work, contacted the forest superintendent again this year for permission to create the eco-sculpture. The sculpture, just like last year’s sleeping giant, will remain in place until nature returns the bear to the forest floor. Gazsi’s Facebook page, BenGazsiArt, shows images of the initial stages of the bear’s conception and developmental stages.

Coopers Rock State Forest is 13 miles east of Morgantown and eight miles west of Bruceton Mills. Its 12,713 acres are bisected by Interstate 68. Coopers Rock offers hiking and biking trails, rock climbing, camping and picnicking areas for outdoor recreation. For more information about the forest and activities, visit www.coopersrockstateforest.com.

 

 

The Sleeping Giant - 2012 Earth Day Sculpture