Today in History: Space Shuttle Challenger explodes

Today is Saturday, Jan. 28, the 28th day of 2023. There are 337 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On Jan. 28, 1973, a cease-fire officially went into effect in the Vietnam War, a day after the signing of the Paris Peace Accords by the United States, North Vietnam and South Vietnam.

On this date:

In 1547, England’s King Henry VIII died; he was succeeded by his 9-year-old son, Edward VI.

In 1813, the novel “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen was first published anonymously in London.

In 1915, the United States Coast Guard was created as President Woodrow Wilson signed a bill merging the Life-Saving Service and Revenue Cutter Service.

In 1916, Louis D. Brandeis was nominated by President Woodrow Wilson to the Supreme Court; Brandeis became the court’s first Jewish member.

In 1922, 98 people were killed when the roof of the Knickerbocker Theatre in Washington, D.C., collapsed under the weight of nearly two feet of snow.

In 1945, during World War II, Allied supplies began reaching China over the newly reopened Burma Road.

In 1956, Elvis Presley made his first national TV appearance on “Stage Show,” a CBS program hosted by Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey.

In 1980, six U.S. diplomats who had avoided being taken hostage at their embassy in Tehran flew out of Iran with the help of Canadian diplomats.

In 1982, Italian anti-terrorism forces rescued U.S. Brig. Gen. James L. Dozier, 42 days after he had been kidnapped by the Red Brigades.

In 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff from Cape Canaveral, killing all seven crew members, including schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe.

In 2011, chaos engulfed Egypt as protesters seized the streets of Cairo, battling police, burning down the ruling party’s headquarters and defying a military curfew.

In 2013, Lynyrd Skynyrd keyboard player Billy Powell, who survived the 1977 plane crash that killed three band members, died in Orange Park, Fla., at age 56.

Ten years ago: Side by side, leading Democratic and Republican senators pledged to propel far-reaching immigration legislation through the Senate by summer, providing a possible path to citizenship for an estimated 11 million people in the U.S. illegally. (Although the Senate did pass such a measure, it has encountered opposition from House Republicans who insisted on a more limited approach.) Backed by French helicopters and paratroopers, Malian soldiers entered the fabled city of Timbuktu after al-Qaida-linked militants who’d ruled the outpost by fear for nearly 10 months fled into the desert.

Five years ago: Bruno Mars won all six Grammy awards for which he was nominated, including album of the year for “24K Magic;” the leading nominee, Jay-Z, walked away empty-handed. Roger Federer won his 20th Grand Slam singles title, defeating Marin Cilic in the Australian Open final. Protesters gathered across Russia to support the call from opposition leader Alexei Navalny to boycott the March presidential election; Navalny himself was arrested while walking to the Moscow demonstration.

One year ago: A 50-year-old bridge collapsed in Pittsburgh, requiring rescuers to rappel down a ravine and form a human chain to reach some occupants of a municipal bus that plummeted along with the span; there were no fatalities, but at least four people were taken to hospitals. President Joe Biden, on a previously-planned trip to Pittsburgh to tout a $1 trillion infrastructure law he had signed, visited the site of the bridge collapse hours later and vowed to fix the nation’s aging bridges. Police in the Canadian capital called in reinforcements as trucks and cars began rolling into downtown Ottawa, part of a protest by a group demanding an end to vaccine mandates and COVID-19 restrictions.

Today’s birthdays: Actor Nicholas Pryor is 88. Actor Alan Alda is 87. Actor Susan Howard is 81. Actor Marthe (cq) Keller is 78. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., is 76. Actor-singer Barbi Benton is 73. Evangelical pastor Rick Warren is 69. Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy (sahr-koh-ZEE’) is 68. Actor Harley Jane Kozak is 66. Movie director Frank Darabont is 64. Rock musician Dave Sharp is 64. Rock singer Sam Phillips is 61. Rock musician Dan Spitz is 60. Gospel singer Marvin Sapp is 56. Singer Sarah McLachlan is 55. Rapper Rakim is 55. DJ Muggs (Cypress Hill) is 55. Actor Kathryn Morris is 54. Humorist Mo Rocca is 54. Rock/soul musician Jeremy Ruzumna (Fitz and the Tantrums) is 53. R&B singer Anthony Hamilton is 52. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett is 51. Singer Monifah is 51. Actor Gillian Vigman is 51. Retired MLB All-Star Jermaine Dye is 49. Actor Terri Conn is 48. Singer Joey Fatone Jr. (’N Sync) is 46. Rapper Rick Ross is 46. Actor Rosamund Pike is 44. Actor Angelique Cabral is 44. Singer Nick Carter (Backstreet Boys) is 43. Actor Vinny Chhibber is 43. Actor Elijah Wood is 42. Rapper J. Cole is 38. Actor Alexandra Krosney is 35. Actor Yuri Sardarov is 35. Actor Ariel Winter is 25.

Source: WFLA