Saturday, February 21, 1998
Today's events
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The National Governors Association is scheduled to hold its winter meeting in Washington, D.C.
The Pope is scheduled to formally elevate new cardinals in the Vatican City.
The 50th annual Writers Guild Awards are scheduled to take place in Beverly Hills, California.
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On the horizon
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On Sunday, February 22, extradition hearings for Maryland
murder suspect Samuel Sheinbein are scheduled to start in
Tel Aviv.
On Monday, February 23, the Whitewater-related trial of
former Arkansas Gov. Jim Guy Tucker and attorney John Haley
is scheduled to start.
On Tuesday, February 24, the fourth annual "Spay Day USA," a
campaign by the Doris Day Animal League to reduce the pet
population, takes place.
On Wednesday, February 25, the 40th annual Grammy Awards will be presented in New York City.
Thursday, February 26, marks the five year anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing in New York City.
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On this day
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In 1437, King James I of Scotland was assassinated by
conspirators led by Walter of Atholl after his efforts to break the influence of the Scottish nobility.
In 1513, Pope Julius II died after a 10-year reign. History
knows him as a supreme patron of the arts for commissioning
Bramante to design the new St. Peter's basilica, Michelangelo to execute the Sistine Chapel frescoes and Raphael to decorate his private apartments.
In 1613, Michael Romanov was elected czar of Russia, beginning the Romanov imperial line.
In 1849, in the second British-Sikh war, the British defeated a force of 50,000 Sikhs under Shir Singh at the battle of Gujerat.
In 1885, the Washington Monument was dedicated.
In 1911, Japan and the United States signed a commercial
treaty limiting the flow of Japanese workers to the United
States.
In 1915, In World War I the Germans under Hindenberg heavily
defeated the Russians under Baron Siever at the Winter Battle of Masuria which ended on this day. More than 200,000 Russians were lost.
In 1916, the German army launched an attack on the French
fortress at Verdun. The epic battle was to last until December 18, with 434,000 German and 543,000 French casualties.
In 1918, the Australian cavalry captured the city of Jericho
in Jordan.
In 1944, Japanese Field Marshal Hajime Sugiyama was replaced
as Chief of the Imperial Army General Staff by General Hideki
Tojo, the prime minister.
In 1965, Black nationalist leader Malcolm X (Malcolm Little)
was murdered in New York as he was about to address a meeting of
his Afro-American Unity Organization.
In 1972, Richard Nixon became the first serving U.S. president to visit China.
In 1975, three aides of U.S. ex-president Richard Nixon,
former attorney general John Mitchell, former chief of staff
H.R. Haldeman and domestic adviser John Ehrlichman, were jailed for obstructing the course of justice in the Watergate affair.
In 1989, Czechoslovak dissident playwright Vaclav Havel was
jailed by Prague's Communist authorities for incitement and
obstruction.
In 1994, Pakistani commandos stormed the Afghan embassy in
Islamabad, killing three Afghan gunmen who had been holding
hostage five schoolboys and a teacher.
In 1994, the Togolese opposition claimed victory in elections
to the country's first multi-party parliament.
In 1997, Jeanne Calment, believed to be the world's oldest
person, celebrated her 122nd birthday in France.
In 1997, North Korean Vice Premier Hong Song Nam was named
acting premier in place of Kang Song San, one of the most
powerful figures in the secretive Stalinist state.
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Newslink
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On this day in 1975, three aides of U.S. ex-president Richard Nixon were jailed for obstructing the course of justice in the Watergate affair. To learn more about the scandal that eventually brought down the president, click here.
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Holidays and more
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Today is Martyrs Day in Bangladesh.
Actor Christopher Atkins is 37.
Actor William Baldwin is 35.
Musician Mary Chapin Carpenter is 40.
Actress Tyne Daly is 51.
Record company executive David Geffen is 54.
Actor Gary Lockwood is 61.
Actress Rue McClanahan is 64.
Baseball player Alan Trammell is 40.
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Sources: Associated Press,
Chase's Calendar of Events 1998, J.P. Morgan
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