Today is Saturday, March 14, the 74th day of 2020. There are 292 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On March 14, 1794, Eli Whitney received a patent for his cotton gin, an invention that revolutionized America’s cotton industry.
On this date:
In 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt signed an executive order designed to prevent Japanese laborers from immigrating to the United States as part of a “gentlemen’s agreement” with Japan.
In 1962, Democrat Edward M. Kennedy officially launched in Boston his successful candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat from Massachusetts once held by his brother, President John F. Kennedy. (Edward Kennedy served in the Senate for nearly 47 years.)
In 1964, a jury in Dallas found Jack Ruby guilty of murdering Lee Harvey Oswald, the accused assassin of President John F. Kennedy, and sentenced him to death. (Both the conviction and death sentence were overturned, but Ruby died before he could be retried.)
In 1967, the body of President John F. Kennedy was moved from a temporary grave to a permanent memorial site at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
In 2002, the government charged the Arthur Andersen accounting firm with obstruction of justice, securing its first indictment in the collapse of Enron. (Although Arthur Andersen was later found guilty, its conviction was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court; however, the damage to the firm’s reputation was enough to put it out of business.)
Today’s Birthdays: Singer Phil Phillips (Song: “Sea of Love”) is 94. Former astronaut Frank Borman is 92. Actor Michael Caine is 87. Composer-conductor Quincy Jones is 87. Actor Raymond J. Barry is 81. Movie director Wolfgang Petersen is 79. Country singer Michael Martin Murphey is 75. Rock musician Walt Parazaider (formerly with Chicago) is 75. Actor Steve Kanaly is 74. Comedian Billy Crystal is 72. Former Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., is 72. Actor-writer-comedian-radio personality Rick Dees is 69. Country singer Jann Browne is 66. Actor Adrian Zmed is 66. Prince Albert II, the ruler of Monaco, is 62. Actress Laila Robins is 61. Actress Tamara Tunie is 61. Actress Penny Johnson Jerald is 60. Producer-director-writer Kevin Williamson is 55. Actress Elise Neal is 54. Actor Gary Anthony Williams is 54. Actress Megan Follows is 52. Rock musician Michael Bland is 51. Country singer Kristian Bush is 50. Rock musician Derrick is 48. Actress Betsy Brandt is 47. Actress Grace Park is 46. NBA star Stephen Curry is 32. Actor Ansel Elgort is 26. Olympic gold medal gymnast Simone Biles is 23.
Thought for Today: “Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” — Albert Einstein, German-born American physicist (born this date in 1879, died 1955).
