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Today is Friday, October 4, the 278th day of 2024. There are 88 days left in the year.
Today in history:
On October 4, 1970, rock singer Janis Joplin was found dead in her Hollywood hotel room at the age of 27.
Also on this date:
In 1777, General George Washington’s forces launched an attack on the British at Germantown, Pennsylvania, causing heavy American losses.
In 1927, sculptor Gutzon Borglum began building what is now Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
In 1957, the Space Age began when the Soviet Union placed Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, into orbit.
In 1965, Pope Paul VI became the first Pope to visit the Western Hemisphere when he addressed the UN General Assembly.
In 2001, a Russian plane flying from Israel to Siberia was accidentally shot down by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile over the Black Sea, killing all 78 people on board.
In 2002, “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh was given a 20-year prison sentence after a sobbing plea for forgiveness before a federal judge in Alexandria, Virginia. (He was released from prison in May 2019.)
In 2004, the SpaceShipOne rocket plane broke through Earth’s atmosphere to the edge of space for the second time in five days, winning the $10 million Ansari to open.
Today’s Birthdays:
- Baseball Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa is 80.
- Actor Susan Sarandon is 78.
- Actor Armand Assante is 75.
- Actor Christoph Waltz is 68.
- Singer Jon Secada is 63.
- Actor Liev Schreiber is 57.
- Actor Abraham Benrubi is 55.
- Actor Alicia Silverstone is 48.
- Actor Caitríona Balfe is 45.
- Actor Rachael Leigh Cook is 45.
- Actor Melissa Benoist is 36.
- NBA All-Star Derrick Rose is 36.
- Actor Dakota Johnson is 35.