January fifth

Today's Highlight in History:
On January fifth, 1925, Nellie T. Ross succeeded her late husband as governor of Wyoming, becoming the first female governor in US history.

On this date:
In 1589, Catherine de Medici of France died at age 69.

In 1895, French Captain Alfred Dreyfus, convicted of treason, was publicly stripped of his rank. (He was ultimately vindicated.)

In 1933, the 30th president of the United States, Calvin Coolidge, died in Northampton, Massachusetts, at age 60.

In 1943, educator and scientist George Washington Carver died in Tuskegee, Alabama, at age 81.

In 1949, in his State of the Union address, President Truman labeled his administration the "Fair Deal."

In 1970, Joseph A. Yablonski, an unsuccessful candidate for the presidency of the United Mine Workers, was found murdered with his wife and daughter at their Clarksville, Pennsylvania, home.

In 1972, President Nixon ordered development of the space shuttle.

In 1975, "The Wiz," a musical version of L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" featuring an all-black cast, opened on Broadway.

In 1994, Thomas P. "Tip" O'Neill, former speaker of the US House of Representatives, died in Boston at age 81.

In 1998, Sonny Bono, the 1960's pop star-turned-politician, died in a skiing accident in South Lake Tahoe, California; he was 62.

Ten years ago: President Bush told a news conference the United States had a "strong" case against deposed Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, and said he was convinced Noriega would receive a fair trial in the US on drug-trafficking charges.

Five years ago: President Clinton received Republican congressional leaders at the White House, declaring that "we can do a lot of business together" on reforming the way government works.

One year ago: Four US Air Force and Navy jets fired on -- and missed -- four Iraqi MiGs testing the "no-fly" zone over southern Iraq in the first such air confrontation in more than six years.

"The world is like a mirror; frown at it, and it frowns at you. Smile, and it smiles, too."

-- Herbert Samuel, English political leader (1870-1963).