Today in History: June 8

A view of the towers of the Prophet Mohammad's Mosque as the sunsets in Medina  in Saudi Arabia Wednesday Jan. 3, 2007. After taking part in the Hajj, Muslim pilgrims head to Medina to pray at the Prophet's mosque, Islam's second holiest place of worship, before returning home.(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
In A.D. 632, the prophet Muhammad died in Medina. A view of the towers of the Prophet Mohammad’s Mosque as the sunsets in Medina in Saudi Arabia Wednesday Jan. 3, 2007. After taking part in the Hajj, Muslim pilgrims head to Medina to pray at the Prophet’s mosque, Islam’s second holiest place of worship, before returning home. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
President Andrew Jackson, the 7th president on the U.S. is shown in an undated portarait.  (AP Photo)

In 1845, Andrew Jackson, seventh president of the United States, died in Nashville, Tennessee.  (AP Photo)

This is a general view during the opening of the Republican National Convention in the Coliseum in Chicago, Ill., June 8, 1920.  (AP Photo)
In 1920, the Republican National Convention opened in Chicago; its delegates ended up nominating Warren G. Harding for president. This is a general view during the opening of the Republican National Convention in the Coliseum in Chicago, Ill., June 8, 1920. (AP Photo)
Throng of Boy Scouts cheered the King and Queen of England when the foreign royalty reviewed the scouts at the White House in Washington, D.C., on June 8, 1939. The king and queen are in back of car driving by the waving youths. (AP Photo)
In 1939, Britain’s King George VI and his consort, Queen Elizabeth, arrived in Washington, D.C., where they were received at the White House by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Throng of Boy Scouts cheered the King and Queen of England when the foreign royalty reviewed the scouts at the White House in Washington, D.C., on June 8, 1939. The king and queen are in back of car driving by the waving youths. (AP Photo)
Newspapers, paper bag and an air travel guide which were found in the bed room of the Pax Hotel, where a man identifying himself as Ramon George Sneyd, are lying near a dust bin outside the hotel in Pimlico, London, on June 10, 1968. The proprietor of the hotel, Mrs. Anna Thomas said that Ramon George Sneyd lived in her hotel from June 5 to June 8. Ramon George Sneyd was arrested at London’s airport on June 8 for carrying a false passport and a loaded gun. United States Assistant Attorney General is seeking a speedy extradition for the man believed to be James Earl Ray, accused assassin of Dr. Martin Luther King. James Earl Ray had a preliminary hearing in court and was remanded in custody without bail until June 18. (AP Photo/F. Tewkesbury)
On June 8, 1968, authorities announced the capture in London of James Earl Ray, the suspected assassin of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Newspapers, paper bag and an air travel guide which were found in the bed room of the Pax Hotel, where a man identifying himself as Ramon George Sneyd, are lying near a dust bin outside the hotel in Pimlico, London, on June 10, 1968. The proprietor of the hotel, Mrs. Anna Thomas said that Ramon George Sneyd lived in her hotel from June 5 to June 8. Ramon George Sneyd was arrested at London’s airport on June 8 for carrying a false passport and a loaded gun. United States Assistant Attorney General sought a speedy extradition for the man believed to be James Earl Ray, accused assassin of Dr. Martin Luther King. James Earl Ray had a preliminary hearing in court and was remanded in custody without bail until June 18. (AP Photo/F. Tewkesbury)
Howard Hughes speaks before the U.S. Senate war investigations sub-committee in Washington, D.C., Aug. 7, 1947.  (AP Photo)

In 1978, a jury in Clark County, Nevada, ruled the so-called “Mormon will,” purportedly written by the late billionaire Howard Hughes, was a forgery. In this 1947 photo, Hughes speaks before the U.S. Senate war investigations sub-committee in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo)

National Rifle Association (NRA) President Charlton Heston holds up a rifle during his address at the 131st NRA convention at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center in Reno, Nevada, April 27, 2002. Heston announced that he would remain president of the NRA for an unprecedented fifth term. (Photo by Candice Towell/Getty Images)
In 1998, the National Rifle Association elected actor Charlton Heston to be its president. National Rifle Association (NRA) President Charlton Heston holds up a rifle during his address at the 131st NRA convention at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center in Reno, Nevada, April 27, 2002. Heston announced that he would remain president of the NRA for an unprecedented fifth term. (Photo by Candice Towell/Getty Images)
In this photo taken Thursday, April 2, 2009, South Korean protesters hold  pictures of two American journalists Euna Lee, left, Laura Ling, center, and North leader Kim Jong Il, right, during a rally against North Korea in Seoul, South Korea. On Friday, April 24, 2009, North Korea's state news agency said the country has concluded an investigation of two detained American journalists and formally decided to indict them. (AP Photo/ Lee Jin-man)

Ten years ago: North Korea’s highest court sentenced American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee to 12 years’ hard labor for trespassing and “hostile acts.” (The women were pardoned in early August 2009 after a trip to Pyongyang by former President Bill Clinton.) In this photo taken Thursday, April 2, 2009, South Korean protesters hold pictures of two American journalists Euna Lee, left, Laura Ling, center, and North leader Kim Jong Il, right, during a rally against North Korea in Seoul, South Korea. On Friday, April 24, 2009, North Korea’s state news agency said the country has concluded an investigation of two detained American journalists and formally decided to indict them. (AP Photo/ Lee Jin-man)

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A view of the towers of the Prophet Mohammad's Mosque as the sunsets in Medina  in Saudi Arabia Wednesday Jan. 3, 2007. After taking part in the Hajj, Muslim pilgrims head to Medina to pray at the Prophet's mosque, Islam's second holiest place of worship, before returning home.(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
President Andrew Jackson, the 7th president on the U.S. is shown in an undated portarait.  (AP Photo)
This is a general view during the opening of the Republican National Convention in the Coliseum in Chicago, Ill., June 8, 1920.  (AP Photo)
Throng of Boy Scouts cheered the King and Queen of England when the foreign royalty reviewed the scouts at the White House in Washington, D.C., on June 8, 1939. The king and queen are in back of car driving by the waving youths. (AP Photo)
Newspapers, paper bag and an air travel guide which were found in the bed room of the Pax Hotel, where a man identifying himself as Ramon George Sneyd, are lying near a dust bin outside the hotel in Pimlico, London, on June 10, 1968. The proprietor of the hotel, Mrs. Anna Thomas said that Ramon George Sneyd lived in her hotel from June 5 to June 8. Ramon George Sneyd was arrested at London’s airport on June 8 for carrying a false passport and a loaded gun. United States Assistant Attorney General is seeking a speedy extradition for the man believed to be James Earl Ray, accused assassin of Dr. Martin Luther King. James Earl Ray had a preliminary hearing in court and was remanded in custody without bail until June 18. (AP Photo/F. Tewkesbury)
Howard Hughes speaks before the U.S. Senate war investigations sub-committee in Washington, D.C., Aug. 7, 1947.  (AP Photo)
National Rifle Association (NRA) President Charlton Heston holds up a rifle during his address at the 131st NRA convention at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center in Reno, Nevada, April 27, 2002. Heston announced that he would remain president of the NRA for an unprecedented fifth term. (Photo by Candice Towell/Getty Images)
In this photo taken Thursday, April 2, 2009, South Korean protesters hold  pictures of two American journalists Euna Lee, left, Laura Ling, center, and North leader Kim Jong Il, right, during a rally against North Korea in Seoul, South Korea. On Friday, April 24, 2009, North Korea's state news agency said the country has concluded an investigation of two detained American journalists and formally decided to indict them. (AP Photo/ Lee Jin-man)

Today is Saturday, June 8, the 159th day of 2019. There are 206 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 8, 1968, authorities announced the capture in London of James Earl Ray, the suspected assassin of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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, Tennessee.

In 1920, the Republican National Convention opened in Chicago; its delegates ended up nominating Warren G. Harding for president.

In 1939, Britain’s King George VI and his consort, Queen Elizabeth, arrived in Washington, D.C., where they were received at the White House by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In 1948, the “Texaco Star Theater” made its debut on NBC-TV with Milton Berle guest-hosting the first program. (Berle was later named the show’s permanent host.)

In 1966, a merger was announced between the National and American Football Leagues, to take effect in 1970.

In 1967, during the six-day Middle East war, 34 American servicemen were killed when Israel attacked the USS Liberty, a Navy intelligence-gathering ship in the Mediterranean Sea. (Israel later said the Liberty had been mistaken for an Egyptian vessel.)

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

In 1995, U.S. Marines rescued Capt. Scott O’Grady, whose F-16C fighter jet had been shot down by Bosnian Serbs on June 2. Mickey Mantle received a liver transplant at a Dallas hospital; however, the baseball great died two months later.

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

In 2003, 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.

Ten years ago: North Korea’s highest court sentenced American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee to 12 years’ hard labor for trespassing and “hostile acts.” (The women were pardoned in early August 2009 after a trip to Pyongyang by former President Bill Clinton.) Omar Bongo, 73, the world’s longest-serving president who’d ruled Gabon for 42 years, died at a Spanish hospital.

Five years ago: Gunmen stormed an airport terminal in Karachi, Pakistan, in an attack that left at least 29 people dead, including the assailants (the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility). A married couple shot and killed two Las Vegas police officers and an armed bystander who attempted to intervene; the couple then took their own lives. Pope Francis welcomed the Israeli and Palestinian presidents to the Vatican for a remarkable evening of peace prayers. Rafael Nadal won the French Open title for the ninth time, and the fifth time in a row, by beating Novak Djokovic 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-4.

In 2017, former FBI Director James Comey, testifying before Congress, asserted that President Donald Trump fired him to interfere with his investigation of Russia’s ties to the Trump campaign.

One year ago: President Donald Trump joined longtime U.S. allies at the Group of Seven summit in Canada after insisting that the other countries “have been taking advantage of the United States on trade;” Trump also said Russia should be brought back into the group. Special counsel Robert Mueller brought new obstruction charges against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and a longtime associate, Konstantin Kilimnik, who prosecutors said had ties to Russian intelligence. Celebrity chef, author and CNN host Anthony Bourdain was found dead in his hotel room in eastern France in what authorities determined was a suicide. Two months after they were criticized for arresting two black men waiting for a colleague at a Starbucks, Philadelphia police announced a new policy on how to confront people accused of trespassing on private property. The Golden State Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 108-85, in Game 4 of the NBA finals to complete a sweep; it was their second straight title and third in four years.

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