Today in History: Jan. 22

On Aug. 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain, on a voyage that took him to the present-day Americas. Pictured here is a painting of Columbus by Sebastiano del Piombo. (AP Photo)
In 1498, during his third voyage to the Western Hemisphere, Christopher Columbus arrived at the present-day Caribbean island of St. Vincent. (AP Photo)
QUEEN VICTORIA IN 1887: This portrait of queen Victoria was made for the occasion of her 1887 jubilee. (AP-Photo/hdw/- 1887 -)
In 1901, Britain’s Queen Victoria died at age 81 after a reign of 63 years; she was succeeded by her eldest son, Edward VII. This portrait of queen Victoria was made for the occasion of her 1887 jubilee. (AP-Photo/hdw/- 1887 -)
Playwrite Arthur Miller, right, poses for photographers as he arrives for the premiere of the "The Crucible," in Beverly Hills, Calif., Wednesday, Nov 20, 1996.  "The Crucible," which is based on one of Millers plays, is stars Daniel Day-Lewis and Winona Ryder, and produced by Millers son Robert A. Miller.(AP Photo/ Frank Wiese)
In 1953, the Arthur Miller drama “The Crucible,” set during the Salem witch trials, opened on Broadway. Playwrite Arthur Miller, right, poses for photographers as he arrives for the premiere of the “The Crucible,” in Beverly Hills, Calif., Wednesday, Nov 20, 1996. “The Crucible,” which is based on one of Millers plays, is stars Daniel Day-Lewis and Winona Ryder, and produced by Millers son Robert A. Miller. (AP Photo/ Frank Wiese)
An estimated 5,000 people, women and men, march around the Minnesota Capitol building protesting the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision, ruling against state laws that criminalize abortion, in St. Paul, Minn., Jan. 22, 1973.  The marchers formed a "ring of life" around the building.  (AP Photo)
On Jan. 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court, in its Roe v. Wade decision, legalized abortions using a trimester approach. Here, an estimated 5,000 people march around the Minnesota Capitol building protesting the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, ruling against state laws that criminalize abortion, in St. Paul, Minn., Jan. 22, 1973. (AP Photo)
Rev. Billy Graham delivers the eulogy at the funeral of former President Lyndon B. Johnson at the family cemetery on the LBJ ranch in Stonewall, Texas on Jan. 25, 1973. The family is seated at the left with Mrs. Lady Bird Johnson sitting in the center of the group. (AP Photo)
On Jan. 22, 1973, former President Lyndon B. Johnson died at his Texas ranch at age 64. Here, Rev. Billy Graham delivers the eulogy at Johnson’s funeral at the family cemetery on the LBJ ranch in Stonewall, Texas on Jan. 25, 1973. The family is seated at the left with Mrs. Lady Bird Johnson sitting in the center of the group. (AP Photo)
In 1997, the Senate unanimously confirmed Madeleine Albright as the nation’s first female secretary of state. Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright speaks during the second day of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia , Tuesday, July 26, 2016. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
FILE - In this April 4, 1996 file photo, Ted Kaczynski, better known as the Unabomber, is flanked by federal agents as he is led to a car from the federal courthouse in Helena, Mont. Twenty years after the arrest of Kaczynski, some Lincoln residents remember him as an odd recluse who ate rabbits and lived without electricity, while others say he had a funny, personable side. Kaczynski is serving a life sentence in a federal prison in Florence, Colorado, for a series of bombings, most through the mail, that killed three people and injured 23 others over 17 years. (AP Photo/John Youngbear, File)
In 1998, Theodore Kaczynski (kah-ZIHN’-skee) pleaded guilty in Sacramento, California, to being the Unabomber responsible for three deaths and 29 injuries in return for a sentence of life in prison without parole. In this April 4, 1996 file photo, Ted Kaczynski, better known as the Unabomber, is flanked by federal agents as he is led to a car from the federal courthouse in Helena, Mont. Twenty years after the arrest of Kaczynski, some Lincoln residents remember him as an odd recluse who ate rabbits and lived without electricity, while others say he had a funny, personable side. Kaczynski is serving a life sentence in a federal prison in Florence, Colorado, for a series of bombings, most through the mail, that killed three people and injured 23 others over 17 years. (AP Photo/John Youngbear, File)
** FILE ** Heath Ledger is pictured at the 12th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on in this Sunday, Jan. 29, 2006 file photo, in Los Angeles. Ledger was found dead Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008 at a downtown Manhattan residence, police said. He was 28. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
In 2008, actor Heath Ledger was found dead of an accidental prescription overdose in New York City; he was 28. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
In 2018, singer Neil Diamond announced that he would be retiring from touring because he’d recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. (Photo by Brad Barket/Invision/AP)
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On Aug. 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain, on a voyage that took him to the present-day Americas. Pictured here is a painting of Columbus by Sebastiano del Piombo. (AP Photo)
QUEEN VICTORIA IN 1887: This portrait of queen Victoria was made for the occasion of her 1887 jubilee. (AP-Photo/hdw/- 1887 -)
Playwrite Arthur Miller, right, poses for photographers as he arrives for the premiere of the "The Crucible," in Beverly Hills, Calif., Wednesday, Nov 20, 1996.  "The Crucible," which is based on one of Millers plays, is stars Daniel Day-Lewis and Winona Ryder, and produced by Millers son Robert A. Miller.(AP Photo/ Frank Wiese)
An estimated 5,000 people, women and men, march around the Minnesota Capitol building protesting the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision, ruling against state laws that criminalize abortion, in St. Paul, Minn., Jan. 22, 1973.  The marchers formed a "ring of life" around the building.  (AP Photo)
Rev. Billy Graham delivers the eulogy at the funeral of former President Lyndon B. Johnson at the family cemetery on the LBJ ranch in Stonewall, Texas on Jan. 25, 1973. The family is seated at the left with Mrs. Lady Bird Johnson sitting in the center of the group. (AP Photo)
FILE - In this April 4, 1996 file photo, Ted Kaczynski, better known as the Unabomber, is flanked by federal agents as he is led to a car from the federal courthouse in Helena, Mont. Twenty years after the arrest of Kaczynski, some Lincoln residents remember him as an odd recluse who ate rabbits and lived without electricity, while others say he had a funny, personable side. Kaczynski is serving a life sentence in a federal prison in Florence, Colorado, for a series of bombings, most through the mail, that killed three people and injured 23 others over 17 years. (AP Photo/John Youngbear, File)
** FILE ** Heath Ledger is pictured at the 12th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on in this Sunday, Jan. 29, 2006 file photo, in Los Angeles. Ledger was found dead Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008 at a downtown Manhattan residence, police said. He was 28. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Today is Tuesday, Jan. 22, the 22nd day of 2019. There are 343 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On Jan. 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court, in its Roe v. Wade decision, legalized abortions using a trimester approach. Former President Lyndon B. Johnson died at his Texas ranch at age 64.

On this date:

In 1498, during his third voyage to the Western Hemisphere, Christopher Columbus arrived at the present-day Caribbean island of St. Vincent.

In 1901, Britain’s Queen Victoria died at age 81 after a reign of 63 years; she was succeeded by her eldest son, Edward VII.

In 1907, the Richard Strauss opera “Salome” made its American debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York; its racy content sparked outrage and forced cancellation of additional performances.

In 1917, President Woodrow Wilson, in an address to Congress, pleaded for an end to the war in Europe, calling for “peace without victory.” (By April, however, America also was at war.)

In 1944, during World War II, Allied forces began landing at Anzio, Italy.

In 1953, the Arthur Miller drama “The Crucible,” set during the Salem witch trials, opened on Broadway.

In 1968, the fast-paced sketch comedy program “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In” premiered as a weekly series on NBC-TV.

In 1987, Pennsylvania treasurer R. Budd Dwyer, convicted of defrauding the state, proclaimed his innocence at a news conference before pulling out a gun, placing the barrel in his mouth and shooting himself to death in front of horrified onlookers.

In 1995, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy died at the Kennedy compound at Hyannis Port, Mass., at age 104.

In 1997, the Senate confirmed Madeleine Albright as the nation’s first female secretary of state.

In 1998, Theodore Kaczynski (kah-ZIHN’-skee) pleaded guilty in Sacramento, California, to being the Unabomber responsible for three deaths and 29 injuries in return for a sentence of life in prison without parole.

In 2008, actor Heath Ledger, 28, was found dead of an accidental prescription overdose in a New York City apartment. Jose Padilla (hoh-ZAY’ puh-DEE’-uh), once accused of plotting with al-Qaida to blow up a radioactive “dirty bomb,” was sentenced by a U.S. federal judge in Miami to 17 years and four months (later increased to 21 years) on other terrorism conspiracy charges.

In 2009: President Barack Obama signed an executive order to close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp within a year. (The facility remained in operation as lawmakers blocked efforts to transfer terror suspects to the United States; President Donald Trump later issued an order to keep the jail open and allow the Pentagon to bring new prisoners there.) The Senate Finance Committee cleared the nomination of Timothy Geithner as treasury secretary, 18-5, despite unhappiness over his mistakes in paying his taxes. A Chinese court sentenced two men to death and a dairy boss to life in prison for their roles in producing and selling infant formula tainted with melamine that was blamed for the deaths of at least six babies and sickening thousands more.

In 2014: The White House Council on Women and Girls released a report on rape at college campuses, saying 1 in 5 female students was assaulted while only 1 in 8 student victims reported it. Edgar Tamayo, a Mexican national, was put to death in Texas for killing Houston police officer Guy Gaddis despite pleas and diplomatic pressure from Mexico and the U.S. State Department to halt the execution. Israel said it had foiled an “advanced” al-Qaida plan to carry out a suicide bombing on the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv and bomb other targets.

In 2018: President Donald Trump signed a bill reopening the government after a 69-hour shutdown. Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court struck down the state’s widely criticized congressional map, a victory for Democrats who alleged the 18 districts were unconstitutionally gerrymandered to benefit Republicans. Former soccer star George Weah was sworn in as Liberia’s new president, taking over the impoverished West African nation from Africa’s first female leader, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Gov. Phil Scott signed legislation making Vermont the first state in the country to approve the recreational use of marijuana through the state legislature, rather than through a vote of residents. Singer Neil Diamond announced that he would be retiring from touring because he’d recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

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