April 21st

Today's Highlight in History:
On April 21st, 1910, author Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, died in Redding, Connecticut.

On this date:
In 1649, the Maryland Toleration Act, which provided for freedom of worship for all Christians, was passed by the Maryland assembly.

In 1789, John Adams was sworn in as the first vice president of the United States.

In 1836, an army of Texans led by Sam Houston defeated the Mexicans at San Jacinto, assuring Texas independence.

In 1918, Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the German ace known as the "Red Baron," was killed in action during World War One.

In 1940, the quiz show that asked the "$64 question," "Take It or Leave It," premiered on CBS Radio.

In 1955, the Jerome Lawrence-Robert Lee play "Inherit the Wind," loosely based on the Scopes trial of 1925, opened at the National Theatre in New York.

In 1960, Brazil inaugurated its new capital, Brasilia, transferring the seat of national government from Rio de Janeiro.

In 1972, Apollo 16 astronauts John Young and Charles Duke explored the surface of the moon.

In 1975, South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu resigned after ten years in office.

In 1980, at the Boston Marathon, Rosie Ruiz was the first woman to cross the finish line; however, she was later exposed as a fraud.

Ten years ago: Pope John Paul the Second was greeted by hundreds of thousands of people as he visited Czechoslovakia to help celebrate the nation's peaceful overthrow of Communism.

Five years ago: The FBI arrested former soldier Timothy McVeigh at an Oklahoma jail where he'd spent two days on minor traffic and weapons charges; he was charged in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing two days earlier.

One year ago: A day after the mass killing at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, investigators continued their work, while memorial services were held across the city and dozens of counselors offered support to grieving students, parents, friends and family. Actor and bandleader Charles "Buddy" Rogers died in Rancho Mirage, California, at age 94.

"Don't go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first."

-- Mark Twain
(1835-1910).