By The Associated Press

                      - Today is Friday, March 19, the 78st day of 1999. There are 287
                        days left in the year. This is the date the swallows traditionally
                        return to the San Juan Capistrano Mission in California.

                      - On March 19, 1979, the U.S. House of Representatives began
                        televising its day-to-day business.
                      - In 1859, the opera "Faust" by Charles Gounod premiered in Paris.
                      - In 1917, the Supreme Court upheld the eight-hour work day for
                        railroads.
                      - In 1918, Congress approved Daylight-Saving Time.
                      - In 1931, Nevada legalized gambling.
                      - In 1945, about 800 people were killed as kamikaze planes
                        attacked the U.S. carrier Franklin off Japan; the ship, however,
                        was saved.
                      - In 1945, Adolf Hitler issued his so-called "Nero Decree," ordering
                        the destruction of German facilities that could fall into Allied
                        hands.
                      - In 1953, the Academy Awards ceremony was televised for the first
                        time; "The Greatest Show on Earth" was named best picture of 1952.
                      - In 1976, Buckingham Palace announced the separation of Princess
                        Margaret and her husband, the Earl of Snowdon, after 16 years of
                        marriage.
                      - In 1985, in a legislative victory for President Reagan, the
                        Senate voted, 55-45, to authorize production of the MX missile.
                      - In 1987, televangelist Jim Bakker resigned as chairman of his
                        PTL ministry organization amid a sex and money scandal involving
                        Jessica Hahn, a former church secretary from Oklahoma.
                      - In 1993, Supreme Court Justice Byron R. White announced plans to
                        retire. White's departure paved the way for Ruth Bader Ginsburg to
                        become the court's second female justice.
                      - Ten years ago: Alfredo Cristiani of the right-wing ARENA party
                        was elected president of El Salvador, defeating Fidel Chavez Mena
                        of the Christian Democratic Party.
                      - Five years ago: Talks between North Korea and South Korea
                        collapsed, imperiling a U.S.-brokered deal to resolve the North
                        Korean nuclear dispute. In his weekly radio address, President
                        Clinton promised to tell people "all across America about our
                        health reform plan and what it really means."
                      - One year ago: Completing baseball's transformation from family
                        ownership to corporate control, Rupert Murdoch's Fox Group won
                        approval to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers for a record $350 million.

                      *** Today's Birthdays

                      - Former White House national security adviser Brent Scowcroft is 74.
                      - Actor-director Patrick McGoohan is 71.
                      - Theologian Hans Kung is 71.
                      - Author Philip Roth is 66.
                      - Actress-singer Phyllis Newman is 64.
                      - Actress Renee Taylor is 64.
                      - Actress Ursula Andress is 63.
                      - Singer Clarence "Frogman" Henry is 62.
                      - Singer Ruth Pointer (The Pointer Sisters) is 53.
                      - Actress Glenn Close is 52.
                      - Actor Bruce Willis is 44.