By The Associated Press

                - Today is Monday, May 10, the 130th day of 1999. There are 235
                  days left in the year.

                - One hundred years ago, on May 10, 1899, movie musical star Fred
                  Astaire was born in Omaha, Neb.
                - On this date in 1774, Louis the 16th ascended the throne of France.
                - In 1775, Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys captured the
                  British-held fortress at Ticonderoga, N.Y.
                - In 1818, American patriot Paul Revere died in Boston.
                - In 1865, Union forces captured Confederate President Jefferson
                  Davis in Irwinville, Ga.
                - In 1869, a golden spike was driven at Promontory, Utah, marking
                  the completion of the first transcontinental railroad in the United
                  States.
                - In 1924, J. Edgar Hoover was given the job of FBI director.
                - In 1933, the Nazis staged massive public book burnings in
                  Germany.
                - In 1941, Adolf Hitler's deputy, Rudolf Hess, parachuted into
                  Scotland on what he claimed was a peace mission. (Hess ended up
                  serving a life sentence at Spandau prison until 1987, when he
                  apparently committed suicide.)
                - In 1968, preliminary Vietnam peace talks began in Paris.
                - In 1978, Britain's Princess Margaret and the Earl of Snowdon
                  announced they were divorcing after 18 years of marriage.
                - Ten years ago: In Panama, the government of Gen. Manuel Antonio
                  Noriega announced it had nullified the country's elections, which
                  independent observers said the opposition had won by a 3-1 margin.
                - Five years ago: The state of Illinois executed convicted serial
                  killer John Wayne Gacy for the murders of 33 young men and boys.
                  Nelson Mandela took the oath of office to become South Africa's
                  first black president. An annular, or "ring" eclipse, cast a
                  moving shadow across the United States.
                - One year ago: The FAA grounded older models of the Boeing 737
                  after mandatory inspections of some aircraft found extensive wear
                  in power lines through wing fuel tanks. Sinn Fein leader Gerry
                  Adams won full backing for the Northern Ireland peace accord in a
                  fundamental reversal of decades-old policy.

                *** Today's Birthdays

                - Former House Speaker Carl Albert is 91.
                - Sportscaster Pat Summerall is 69.
                - TV and radio personality Gary Owens is 63.
                - Rhythm-and-blues singer Henry Fambrough (The Spinners) is 61.
                - Writer-producer-director Jim Abrahams is 55.
                - Singer Donovan Leitch is 53.
                - Singer Dave Mason is 53.
                - Rhythm-and-blues singer Ron Banks (The Dramatics) is 48.
                - Rock singer Bono (U2) is 39.
                - Rock musician Krist Novoselic (Nirvana) is 34.
                - Rapper Young MC is 32.
                - Rhythm-and-blues singer Jason Dalyrimple (Soul For Real) is 19.