- 55BC: Rome under Julius Caesar invaded Britain.
                - 580AD: The Chinese invented toilet paper.
                - 1791: John Fitch patented the steamboat.
                - 1843: Charles Thurber patented a typewriter.
                - 1873: The first kindergarten public school opened in St. Louis.
                - 1883: A massive volcano erupted on the island of Krakatoa between
                  Java and Sumatra. The two-day eruption and tidal waves killed an
                  estimated 36,000 people and destroyed two-thirds of the island.
                - 1907: Magician Harry Houdini escaped from a 75-pound ball-and-chain
                  in 57 seconds while underwater in San Francisco's Aquatic Park.
                - 1914: In World War I, the Russians under Renenkampf and Samsonov
                  were heavily out-maneuvered by the Germans under Hindenburg and
                  Ludendorff at the battle of Tannenberg. Over 30,000 Russians were
                  killed.
                - 1920: The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote.
                - 1929: The first U.S. roller coaster was built.
                - 1944: In World War II, Bulgaria announced it had withdrawn and
                  German troops were to be disarmed.
                - 1945: Japanese diplomats boarded the Missouri to receive
                  instructions on Japan's surrender at the end of World War II.
                - 1946: George Orwell published "Animal Farm."
                - 1978: Cardinal Albino Luciani of Venice was elected as Pope John
                  Paul I. He served only 33 days before dying of a heart attack.

                *Happy Birthday*
                ----------------
                - Ben Bradlee, 77, editor/journalist
                - Christopher Burke, 33, actor/author, "Life Goes On"
                - Macaulay Culkin, 18, actor, "Home Alone," "Richie Rich"
                - Geraldine Ferraro, 63, politician/TV analyst, first woman
                  nominated as vice presidential candidate of a major party
                - Branford Marsalis, 38, jazz saxophonist