Today is Wednesday, Nov. 4, the 309th day of 2020. There are 57 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On Nov. 4, 2008, Democrat Barack Obama was elected the first Black president of the United States, defeating Republican John McCain.

On this date:

In 1842, Abraham Lincoln married Mary Todd in Springfield, Illinois.

In 1916, CBS newsman Walter Cronkite was born in Saint Joseph, Missouri.

In 1922, the entrance to King Tutankhamen’s tomb was discovered in Egypt.

In 1979, the Iran hostage crisis began as militants stormed the United States Embassy in Tehran, seizing its occupants; for some of them, it was the start of 444 days of captivity.

In 1980, Republican Ronald Reagan won the White House as he defeated President Jimmy Carter by a strong margin.

In 1991, Ronald Reagan opened his presidential library in Simi Valley, California; attending were President George H.W. Bush and former Presidents Jimmy Carter, Gerald R. Ford and Richard Nixon — the first-ever gathering of five past and present U.S. chief executives.

In 1995, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a right-wing Israeli minutes after attending a festive peace rally.

In 2001, NBC’s “The West Wing” took eight honors at the twice-delayed Emmy Awards, including best dramatic series; HBO’s “Sex and the City” won best comedy series.

In 2008, California voters approved Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage, overturning a state Supreme Court decision that gave gay couples the right to wed just months earlier.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Loretta Swit is 83. Blues singer Delbert McClinton is 80. Former first lady Laura Bush is 74. Actor Markie Post is 70. Actor-comedian Kathy Griffin is 60. Actor Ralph Macchio is 59. “Survivor” host Jeff Probst is 59. Saxophonist Tim Burton is 57. Actor Matthew McConaughey is 51. Rapper-producer Sean “Puffy” Combs is 51. Talk show host Bethenny Frankel is 50. Celebrity chef Curtis Stone is 45.