June 26
1819 - The bicycle was patented by W.K. Clarkson.
1843 - Hong Kong was proclaimed a British crown colony.
1917 - The first troops of the American Expeditionary Force deployed to France during World War I and landed in St. Nazaire.
1925 - Charlie Chaplin's classic comedy "The Gold Rush" premiered at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.
1945 - The charter of the United Nations was signed by 50 countries in San Francisco.
1948 - The Berlin Airlift began in earnest after the Soviet Union cut off land and water routes to the isolated western sector of Berlin.
1959 - The St. Lawrence Seaway, connecting the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, was opened.
1963 - President John F. Kennedy gave his "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a Berliner) speech in West Berlin, Germany, expressing solidarity with the city's residents.
1976 - The CN Tower in Toronto opened, then the world's tallest free-standing structure.
1977 - Forty-two people were killed when a fire sent toxic smoke pouring through the Maury County Jail in Columbia, Tennessee.
1977 - Elvis Presley performed what would be his final concert at Market Square Arena in Indianapolis.
1990 - President George H.W. Bush went back on his "no-new-taxes" campaign pledge, conceding that tax increases would have to be included in any deficit-reduction package worked out with congressional negotiators.
1993 - President Bill Clinton announced the U.S. had launched missiles against Iraqi targets because of "compelling evidence" Iraq had plotted to assassinate former President George H.W. Bush.
1996 - The U.S. Supreme Court ordered the Virginia Military Institute to admit women or forgot state support.
1997 - The first Harry Potter novel, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" by J.K. Rowling, was published in the United Kingdom. (It was later released in the United States under the title "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.)
2000 - The first map of the human genome, which required decoding more than 3 billion biochemical "letters" of human DNA, was completed.
2003 - Former South Carolina senator Strom Thurmond died at age 100.
2008 - The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a handgun ban in the District of Columbia as it affirmed, 5-4, that an individual right to gun ownership existed.
2013 - In deciding its first cases on the issue, the U.S. Supreme Court gave the nation's legally married gay couples equal federal footing with all other married Americans and also cleared the way for same-sex marriages to resume in California.
2018 - A sharply-divided Supreme Court upheld President Donald Trump's ban on travel from several mostly Muslim countries; dissenting Justice Sonia Sotomayor said the court was making a historic mistake by refusing to recognize that the ban discriminates against Muslims.
2018 - Joe Crowley of New York, the fourth-ranking House Democrat, lost a primary election to 28-year-old liberal activist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
2018 - General Electric Co. was removed from the Dow Jones Industrial Average, where it had been an original component in 1896; it was replaced by drugstore chain Walgreens.
2020 - After protesters in Washington, D.C. attempted to pull down a statue of Andrew Jackson, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to protect monuments, memorials and statues.
Birthdays
24 - Harley Quinn Smith (actress)
30 - Ariana Grande (singer)
31 - Jennette McCurdy (actress/singer)
32 - Amanda Cerny (actress/model)
38 - Chiquis (singer)
39 - Aubrey Plaza (actress)
41 - Nicole Arbour (actress/comedian)
49 - Gretchen Wilson (singer)
49 - Derek Jeter (baseball player)
50 - Rebecca Budig (actress)
53 - Nick Offerman (actor)
53 - Chris O'Donnell (actor)
53 - Matt Letscher (actor)
53 - Sean Hayes (actor)
55 - Shannon Sharpe (football player)
62 - Greg LeMond (cyclist)
66 - Patty Smyth (singer)
67 - Chris Isaak (singer)
68 - Mick Jones (singer)
72 - Robert Davi (actor)
73 - Michael Paul Chan (actor)
77 - Brenda Holloway (singer)
77 - Clive Francis (actor)
80 - Georgie Fame (singer)
85 - Billy Davis Jr. (singer)
89 - Josef Sommer (actor)
==================================
Today in Sports History - June 26
1906 - The first Grand Prix motor race was held in Le Mans, France.
1910 - For the second consecutive year, Hazel Hotchkiss won the singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles at the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championships.
1916 - The Chicago White Sox and the Cleveland Indians appeared in a game with numbers on their sleeves. The event marked the first time that players were identified by numbers that corresponded to the scoreboard.
1944 - The New York Giants, Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees played against each other in a six inning contest in a war bonds fund-raiser. Over 50,000 people watched the game. The final score was Dodgers 5, Yankees 1 and the Giants 0.
1970 - Frank Robinson (Baltimore Orioles) hit two grand slams against the Washington Senators in a 12-2 win.
1979 - Muhammad Ali, at 37 years old, announced that he was retiring as world heavyweight boxing champion.
1985 - Wilbur Snapp was ejected after playing "Three Blind Mice" during a baseball game. The incident followed a call made by umpire Keith O'Connor.
1990 - Jennifer Capriati, at age 14, became the youngest winner of a match in Wimbledon history.
1991 - The Charlotte Hornets select UNLV power forward Larry Johnson with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
1996 - The Philadelphia 76ers select Georgetown guard Allen Iverson with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2001 - Ray Bourque (Colorado Avalanche) announced his retirement just 17 days after winning his first Stanley Cup. Bourque retired after 22 years and held the NHL record for highest-scoring defenseman and playing in 19 consecutive All-Star games.
2002 - The Houston Rockets select center Yao Ming of China's Shanghai Sharks with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2003 - The Cleveland Cavaliers select St. Vincent-St. Mary High School forward LeBron James with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2008 - The Chicago Bulls select Memphis point guard Derrick Rose with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2013 - New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was arrested in the shooting death of Odin Lloyd; Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder.
2013 - Seven-time champion Roger Federer was stunned by 116th-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky in the second round of Wimbledon; third-seeded Maria Sharapova was knocked out by the 131st-ranked qualifier, losing to Michelle Larcher de Brito of Portugal.
2014 - The Cleveland Cavaliers select Kansas forward Andrew Wiggins with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2022 - The Colorado Avalanche defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games to win their third Stanley Cup.
1819 - The bicycle was patented by W.K. Clarkson.
1843 - Hong Kong was proclaimed a British crown colony.
1917 - The first troops of the American Expeditionary Force deployed to France during World War I and landed in St. Nazaire.
1925 - Charlie Chaplin's classic comedy "The Gold Rush" premiered at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.
1945 - The charter of the United Nations was signed by 50 countries in San Francisco.
1948 - The Berlin Airlift began in earnest after the Soviet Union cut off land and water routes to the isolated western sector of Berlin.
1959 - The St. Lawrence Seaway, connecting the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, was opened.
1963 - President John F. Kennedy gave his "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a Berliner) speech in West Berlin, Germany, expressing solidarity with the city's residents.
1976 - The CN Tower in Toronto opened, then the world's tallest free-standing structure.
1977 - Forty-two people were killed when a fire sent toxic smoke pouring through the Maury County Jail in Columbia, Tennessee.
1977 - Elvis Presley performed what would be his final concert at Market Square Arena in Indianapolis.
1990 - President George H.W. Bush went back on his "no-new-taxes" campaign pledge, conceding that tax increases would have to be included in any deficit-reduction package worked out with congressional negotiators.
1993 - President Bill Clinton announced the U.S. had launched missiles against Iraqi targets because of "compelling evidence" Iraq had plotted to assassinate former President George H.W. Bush.
1996 - The U.S. Supreme Court ordered the Virginia Military Institute to admit women or forgot state support.
1997 - The first Harry Potter novel, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" by J.K. Rowling, was published in the United Kingdom. (It was later released in the United States under the title "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.)
2000 - The first map of the human genome, which required decoding more than 3 billion biochemical "letters" of human DNA, was completed.
2003 - Former South Carolina senator Strom Thurmond died at age 100.
2008 - The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a handgun ban in the District of Columbia as it affirmed, 5-4, that an individual right to gun ownership existed.
2013 - In deciding its first cases on the issue, the U.S. Supreme Court gave the nation's legally married gay couples equal federal footing with all other married Americans and also cleared the way for same-sex marriages to resume in California.
2018 - A sharply-divided Supreme Court upheld President Donald Trump's ban on travel from several mostly Muslim countries; dissenting Justice Sonia Sotomayor said the court was making a historic mistake by refusing to recognize that the ban discriminates against Muslims.
2018 - Joe Crowley of New York, the fourth-ranking House Democrat, lost a primary election to 28-year-old liberal activist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
2018 - General Electric Co. was removed from the Dow Jones Industrial Average, where it had been an original component in 1896; it was replaced by drugstore chain Walgreens.
2020 - After protesters in Washington, D.C. attempted to pull down a statue of Andrew Jackson, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to protect monuments, memorials and statues.
Birthdays
24 - Harley Quinn Smith (actress)
30 - Ariana Grande (singer)
31 - Jennette McCurdy (actress/singer)
32 - Amanda Cerny (actress/model)
38 - Chiquis (singer)
39 - Aubrey Plaza (actress)
41 - Nicole Arbour (actress/comedian)
49 - Gretchen Wilson (singer)
49 - Derek Jeter (baseball player)
50 - Rebecca Budig (actress)
53 - Nick Offerman (actor)
53 - Chris O'Donnell (actor)
53 - Matt Letscher (actor)
53 - Sean Hayes (actor)
55 - Shannon Sharpe (football player)
62 - Greg LeMond (cyclist)
66 - Patty Smyth (singer)
67 - Chris Isaak (singer)
68 - Mick Jones (singer)
72 - Robert Davi (actor)
73 - Michael Paul Chan (actor)
77 - Brenda Holloway (singer)
77 - Clive Francis (actor)
80 - Georgie Fame (singer)
85 - Billy Davis Jr. (singer)
89 - Josef Sommer (actor)
==================================
Today in Sports History - June 26
1906 - The first Grand Prix motor race was held in Le Mans, France.
1910 - For the second consecutive year, Hazel Hotchkiss won the singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles at the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championships.
1916 - The Chicago White Sox and the Cleveland Indians appeared in a game with numbers on their sleeves. The event marked the first time that players were identified by numbers that corresponded to the scoreboard.
1944 - The New York Giants, Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees played against each other in a six inning contest in a war bonds fund-raiser. Over 50,000 people watched the game. The final score was Dodgers 5, Yankees 1 and the Giants 0.
1970 - Frank Robinson (Baltimore Orioles) hit two grand slams against the Washington Senators in a 12-2 win.
1979 - Muhammad Ali, at 37 years old, announced that he was retiring as world heavyweight boxing champion.
1985 - Wilbur Snapp was ejected after playing "Three Blind Mice" during a baseball game. The incident followed a call made by umpire Keith O'Connor.
1990 - Jennifer Capriati, at age 14, became the youngest winner of a match in Wimbledon history.
1991 - The Charlotte Hornets select UNLV power forward Larry Johnson with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
1996 - The Philadelphia 76ers select Georgetown guard Allen Iverson with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2001 - Ray Bourque (Colorado Avalanche) announced his retirement just 17 days after winning his first Stanley Cup. Bourque retired after 22 years and held the NHL record for highest-scoring defenseman and playing in 19 consecutive All-Star games.
2002 - The Houston Rockets select center Yao Ming of China's Shanghai Sharks with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2003 - The Cleveland Cavaliers select St. Vincent-St. Mary High School forward LeBron James with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2008 - The Chicago Bulls select Memphis point guard Derrick Rose with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2013 - New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was arrested in the shooting death of Odin Lloyd; Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder.
2013 - Seven-time champion Roger Federer was stunned by 116th-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky in the second round of Wimbledon; third-seeded Maria Sharapova was knocked out by the 131st-ranked qualifier, losing to Michelle Larcher de Brito of Portugal.
2014 - The Cleveland Cavaliers select Kansas forward Andrew Wiggins with the first pick in the NBA Draft.
2022 - The Colorado Avalanche defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games to win their third Stanley Cup.
