22nd February: Today In History

Today is Monday, Feb. 22, the 53rd day of 2016. There are 313 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

Events;
1732: (New Style date), the first president of the United States, George Washington, was born in Westmoreland County in the Virginia Colony.

1784: a U.S. merchant ship, the Empress of China, left New York for the Far East to trade goods with China.

1862: Jefferson Davis, already the provisional president of the Confederacy, was inaugurated for a six-year term following his election in Nov. 1861.

1865: Tennessee amended its constitution to abolish slavery.

1909: The Great White Fleet, a naval task force sent on a round-the-world voyage by President Theodore Roosevelt, returned after more than a year at sea.

1924: President Calvin Coolidge delivered the first radio broadcast from the White Houseas he addressed the country over 42 stations.

1935: It became illegal for airplanes to fly over the White House.

1940: The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, was enthroned at age four in Lhasa, Tibet.

1959: The inaugural Daytona 500 race was held; although Johnny Beauchamp was initially declared the winner, the victory was later awarded to Lee Petty.

1967: More than 25,000 U.S. and South Vietnamese troops launched Operation Junction City, aimed at smashing a Vietcong stronghold near the Cambodian border. (Although the communists were driven out, they later returned.)

1974: Pakistan officially recognized Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan).

1980: The "Miracle on Ice" took place in Lake Placid, New York, as the United States Olympic hockey team upset the Soviets, 4-3. (The U.S. team went on to win the gold medal.)

1996: The space shuttle Columbia blasted into orbit on a mission to unreel a satellite on the end of a 12.8-mile tether. (The cord broke just before being extended to its full length.

Birthdays;

Actor Paul Dooley is 88.
Actor James Hong is 87
Hollywood "ghost singer" Marni Nixon is 86
Movie director Jonathan Demme (DEH'-mee) is 72
Actor John Ashton is 68
Actress Miou-Miou is 66
Actress Julie Walters is 66
Basketball Hall of Famer Julius Erving is 66
Actress Ellen Greene is 65
Former Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., is 64
Former White House adviser David Axelrod is 61
Actor Kyle MacLachlan is 57
World Golf Hall of Famer Vijay Singh is 53
Actress-comedian Rachel Dratch is 50
Actor Paul Lieberstein is 49
Actress Jeri Ryan is 48. Actor Thomas Jane is 47.
TV host Clinton Kelly is 47.
Actress Tamara Mello is 46.
Actress-singer Lea Salonga (LAY'-uh suh-LAHN'-guh) is 45
Actor Jose Solano is 45.
International Tennis Hall-of-Famer Michael Chang is 44.
Rock musician Scott Phillips is 43.
Singer James Blunt is 42
Actress Drew Barrymore is 41
Actress Liza Huber is 41
Rock singer Tom Higgenson (Plain White T's) is 37. Actor Zach Roerig is 31.
Actor Daniel E. Smith is 26.