August 22nd

Today's Highlight in History:
On August 22nd, 1950, Althea Gibson became the first black tennis player to be accepted in competition for the national championship.

On this date:
In 1485, England's King Richard the Third was killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field, ending the War of the Roses.

In 1762, Ann Franklin became the first female editor of an American newspaper, the Newport, Rhode Island "Mercury."

In 1775, England's King George the Third proclaimed the American colonies in a state of open rebellion.

In 1787, inventor John Fitch demonstrated his steamboat on the Delaware River to delegates of the Continental Congress.

In 1846, the United States annexed New Mexico.

In 1851, the schooner "America" outraced the "Aurora" off the English coast to win a trophy that became known as the America's Cup.

In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt became the first US chief executive to ride in an automobile, in Hartford, Connecticut.

In 1956, President Eisenhower and Vice President Nixon were nominated for second terms in office by the Republican national convention in San Francisco.

In 1968, Pope Paul the Sixth arrived in Bogota, Colombia, for the start of the first papal visit to Latin America.

In 1989, Black Panther co-founder Huey P. Newton was shot to death in Oakland, California. (Gunman Tyrone Robinson was later sentenced to 32 years to life in prison.)

Ten years ago: President Bush signed an order calling up reservists to bolster the US military buildup in the Persian Gulf.

Five years ago: Congressman Mel Reynolds (Democrat, Illinois) was convicted in Chicago of sexual misconduct involving an underage campaign volunteer. (Reynolds was sentenced to five years in prison; he was later convicted of lying to obtain loans and of illegally siphoning campaign money for personal use, and sentenced to six and a-half years in federal prison.)

One year ago: Hurricane "Bret" rumbled ashore on the Texas Gulf Coast with winds over 100 miles-an-hour. A China Airlines jet burst into flames at Hong Kong's new airport, killing three people and injuring more than 200. Art dealer Leo Castelli died in New York at age 91.

"If you want to be thought a liar, always tell the truth."

-- Logan Pearsall Smith, Anglo-American essayist (1865-1946).