April 21
1649 - The Maryland Toleration Act, which provided for freedom of worship for all Christians, was passed by the Maryland Assembly.
1789 - John Adams was sworn in as the first vice president of the United States.
1836 - The Texan army under the command of Sam Houston, defeated the Mexicans at the Battle of San Jacinto, assuring Texas' independence.
1910 - Samuel Clemens, better known by his pen name "Mark Twain" and author of the novel Huckleberry Finn, died at age 74 in Redding, Connecticut.
1918 - Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the notorious World War I German flying ace known as the "Red Baron" who was believed to have downed 80 enemy aircraft during World War I, was himself shot down and killed while in action over France.
1926 - Britain's Queen Elizabeth II was born in Mayfair, London, England; she was the first child of The Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and the Queen Mother.
1930 - Fire broke out inside the overcrowded Ohio Penitentiary in Columbus, killing 332 inmates.
1960 - Brazil inaugurated its new capital, Brasilia, transferring the seat of national government from Rio de Janeiro.
1975 - South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu resigned and fled the country.
1976 - Clinical trials of the swine flu vaccine began in Washington, D.C.
1977 - The musical play "Annie," based on the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie," opened on Broadway, beginning a run of 2,377 performances.
1992 - Robert Alton Harris became the first person executed by the state of California in 25 years as he was put to death in the gas chamber for the 1978 murder of two teenage boys.
1995 - Timothy McVeigh was arrested in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing.
1997 - The ashes of Timothy Leary, Gene Roddenberry and 22 others blasted off into space for the first space funerals.
2004 - Five suicide attackers detonated car bombs against police buildings in Basra, Iraq, killing at least 74 people.
2011 - Sen. John Ensign (R-Nevada) announced he would step down amid a developing ethics probe over how he had handled an admitted extramarital affair with a former staffer and whether he tried to illegally cover it up. (The Ethics Committee referred the case to the Justice Department, which decided not to prosecute Ensign.)
2011 - President Barack Obama announced the Justice Department was assembling a team to “root out any cases of fraud or manipulation” in oil markets that might be contributing to $4 a gallon-plus gasoline prices.
2015 - An Egyptian criminal court sentenced ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi to 20 years in prison over the killing of protesters in 2012.
2016 - Prince, one of the most inventive and influential musicians of modern times, was found dead at his home in suburban Minneapolis; he was 57.
2020 - The coroner’s office in California’s Santa Clara County received autopsy results showing that a woman who died there on Feb. 6 and a man who died on Feb. 17 had the coronavirus. (It wasn’t until Feb. 29 that the first known U.S. death from the virus was reported in Kirkland, Washington; officials later attributed two Feb. 26 deaths to the virus.)
Birthdays
24 - Sydney Sierota (singer)
26 - Jordan Knox (reality star)
26 - Thomas Doherty (actor)
30 - Frank Dillane (actor)
32 - Nikki Cross (professional wrestler)
33 - Robbie Amell (actor)
33 - Christoph Sanders (actor)
39 - Terrence J (actor)
41 - Tony Romo (football player/sportscaster)
42 - James McAvoy (actor)
48 - Brian White (actor/football player)
49 - Severina Vuckovic (singer)
51 - Nicole Sullivan (comedian)
51 - Rob Riggle (actor/comedian)
52 - Toby Stephens (actor)
53 - Leslie Silva (actress)
58 - John Cameron Mitchell (actor)
62 - Robert Smith (siner)
63 - Andie MacDowell (actress)
67 - James Morrison (actor)
70 - Tony Danza (actor)
72 - Patti LuPone (actress)
74 - Iggy Pop (singer)
86 - Charles Grodin (actor)
89 - Elaine May (actress/comedian)
95 - Queen Elizabeth II (British royalty)
=========================================
Today in Sports History - April 21
1948 - The Baltimore Bullets defeat the Philadelphia Warriors in six games to win the Basketball Association of America championship.
1951 - The Rochester Royals defeat the New York Knicks in seven games to win the NBA championship.
1951 - The Toronto Maple Leafs defeat the Montreal Canadiens to win the Stanley Cup.
1980 - Rosie Ruiz was the first woman to cross the finish line at the Boston Marathon; she was later disqualified for cheating when officials determined she had jumped into the race about a mile from the finish.
1982 - The Atlanta Braves win a record 13th straight game to open the season.
1984 - David Palmer (Montreal Expos) pitched the fourth shortened, perfect game in major league baseball history. The game was called due to rain after five innings. Palmer had made 57 pitches.
1987 - The Milwaukee Brewers lose their first game of the season, snapping their American League record of 13 straight wins to open the year.
1991 - The Dallas Cowboys select Miami defensive tackle Russell Maryland with the first pick in the NFL Draft.
1991 - The following Huskers were selected in the 1991 NFL Draft: CB - Bruce Pickens (1st round, 3rd pick, Atlanta Falcons); LB - Mike Croel (1st round, 4th pick, Atlanta Falcons); DE - Kenny Walker (8th round, Denver Broncos); LB - Pat Tyrance (8th round, Los Angeles Rams); DB - Tahaun Lewis (9th round, Los Angeles Raiders); and DT - Joe Sims (11th round, Atlanta Falcons).
1994 - Eddie Murray hits switch-hit home runs in a game for the 11th time in his career, a new major league record.
2001 - The Atlanta Falcons select Virginia Tech quarterback Michael Vick with the first pick in the NFL Draft.
2001 - The following Huskers were selected in the 2001 NFL Draft: DE - Kyle Vanden Bosch (2nd round, Arizona Cardinals); C - Dominic Raiola (2nd round, Detroit Lions); LB - Carlos Polk (4th round, San Diego Chargers); RB - Correll Buckhalter (4th round, Philadelphia Eagles); OG - Russ Hochstein (5th round, Tampa Bay Buccaneers); WR - Bobby Newcombe (6th round, Arizona Cardinals); and RB - Dan Alexander (6th round, Tennessee Titans).
2012 - Philip Humber of the Chicago White Sox throws the 21st perfect game in major league history in a win over the Seattle Mariners.
2016 - Jake Arrieta of the Chicago Cubs pitched his second no-hitter in a span of 11 regular-season starts, shutting down the Cincinnati Reds in a 16-0 rout.
1649 - The Maryland Toleration Act, which provided for freedom of worship for all Christians, was passed by the Maryland Assembly.
1789 - John Adams was sworn in as the first vice president of the United States.
1836 - The Texan army under the command of Sam Houston, defeated the Mexicans at the Battle of San Jacinto, assuring Texas' independence.
1910 - Samuel Clemens, better known by his pen name "Mark Twain" and author of the novel Huckleberry Finn, died at age 74 in Redding, Connecticut.
1918 - Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the notorious World War I German flying ace known as the "Red Baron" who was believed to have downed 80 enemy aircraft during World War I, was himself shot down and killed while in action over France.
1926 - Britain's Queen Elizabeth II was born in Mayfair, London, England; she was the first child of The Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and the Queen Mother.
1930 - Fire broke out inside the overcrowded Ohio Penitentiary in Columbus, killing 332 inmates.
1960 - Brazil inaugurated its new capital, Brasilia, transferring the seat of national government from Rio de Janeiro.
1975 - South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu resigned and fled the country.
1976 - Clinical trials of the swine flu vaccine began in Washington, D.C.
1977 - The musical play "Annie," based on the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie," opened on Broadway, beginning a run of 2,377 performances.
1992 - Robert Alton Harris became the first person executed by the state of California in 25 years as he was put to death in the gas chamber for the 1978 murder of two teenage boys.
1995 - Timothy McVeigh was arrested in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing.
1997 - The ashes of Timothy Leary, Gene Roddenberry and 22 others blasted off into space for the first space funerals.
2004 - Five suicide attackers detonated car bombs against police buildings in Basra, Iraq, killing at least 74 people.
2011 - Sen. John Ensign (R-Nevada) announced he would step down amid a developing ethics probe over how he had handled an admitted extramarital affair with a former staffer and whether he tried to illegally cover it up. (The Ethics Committee referred the case to the Justice Department, which decided not to prosecute Ensign.)
2011 - President Barack Obama announced the Justice Department was assembling a team to “root out any cases of fraud or manipulation” in oil markets that might be contributing to $4 a gallon-plus gasoline prices.
2015 - An Egyptian criminal court sentenced ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi to 20 years in prison over the killing of protesters in 2012.
2016 - Prince, one of the most inventive and influential musicians of modern times, was found dead at his home in suburban Minneapolis; he was 57.
2020 - The coroner’s office in California’s Santa Clara County received autopsy results showing that a woman who died there on Feb. 6 and a man who died on Feb. 17 had the coronavirus. (It wasn’t until Feb. 29 that the first known U.S. death from the virus was reported in Kirkland, Washington; officials later attributed two Feb. 26 deaths to the virus.)
Birthdays
24 - Sydney Sierota (singer)
26 - Jordan Knox (reality star)
26 - Thomas Doherty (actor)
30 - Frank Dillane (actor)
32 - Nikki Cross (professional wrestler)
33 - Robbie Amell (actor)
33 - Christoph Sanders (actor)
39 - Terrence J (actor)
41 - Tony Romo (football player/sportscaster)
42 - James McAvoy (actor)
48 - Brian White (actor/football player)
49 - Severina Vuckovic (singer)
51 - Nicole Sullivan (comedian)
51 - Rob Riggle (actor/comedian)
52 - Toby Stephens (actor)
53 - Leslie Silva (actress)
58 - John Cameron Mitchell (actor)
62 - Robert Smith (siner)
63 - Andie MacDowell (actress)
67 - James Morrison (actor)
70 - Tony Danza (actor)
72 - Patti LuPone (actress)
74 - Iggy Pop (singer)
86 - Charles Grodin (actor)
89 - Elaine May (actress/comedian)
95 - Queen Elizabeth II (British royalty)
=========================================
Today in Sports History - April 21
1948 - The Baltimore Bullets defeat the Philadelphia Warriors in six games to win the Basketball Association of America championship.
1951 - The Rochester Royals defeat the New York Knicks in seven games to win the NBA championship.
1951 - The Toronto Maple Leafs defeat the Montreal Canadiens to win the Stanley Cup.
1980 - Rosie Ruiz was the first woman to cross the finish line at the Boston Marathon; she was later disqualified for cheating when officials determined she had jumped into the race about a mile from the finish.
1982 - The Atlanta Braves win a record 13th straight game to open the season.
1984 - David Palmer (Montreal Expos) pitched the fourth shortened, perfect game in major league baseball history. The game was called due to rain after five innings. Palmer had made 57 pitches.
1987 - The Milwaukee Brewers lose their first game of the season, snapping their American League record of 13 straight wins to open the year.
1991 - The Dallas Cowboys select Miami defensive tackle Russell Maryland with the first pick in the NFL Draft.
1991 - The following Huskers were selected in the 1991 NFL Draft: CB - Bruce Pickens (1st round, 3rd pick, Atlanta Falcons); LB - Mike Croel (1st round, 4th pick, Atlanta Falcons); DE - Kenny Walker (8th round, Denver Broncos); LB - Pat Tyrance (8th round, Los Angeles Rams); DB - Tahaun Lewis (9th round, Los Angeles Raiders); and DT - Joe Sims (11th round, Atlanta Falcons).
1994 - Eddie Murray hits switch-hit home runs in a game for the 11th time in his career, a new major league record.
2001 - The Atlanta Falcons select Virginia Tech quarterback Michael Vick with the first pick in the NFL Draft.
2001 - The following Huskers were selected in the 2001 NFL Draft: DE - Kyle Vanden Bosch (2nd round, Arizona Cardinals); C - Dominic Raiola (2nd round, Detroit Lions); LB - Carlos Polk (4th round, San Diego Chargers); RB - Correll Buckhalter (4th round, Philadelphia Eagles); OG - Russ Hochstein (5th round, Tampa Bay Buccaneers); WR - Bobby Newcombe (6th round, Arizona Cardinals); and RB - Dan Alexander (6th round, Tennessee Titans).
2012 - Philip Humber of the Chicago White Sox throws the 21st perfect game in major league history in a win over the Seattle Mariners.
2016 - Jake Arrieta of the Chicago Cubs pitched his second no-hitter in a span of 11 regular-season starts, shutting down the Cincinnati Reds in a 16-0 rout.
