This Day in History

By The Associated Press - 10/26/2007

Today Friday, Oct. 26, is the 299th day of 2007. There are 66 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight: On Oct. 26, 1881, the ‘‘Gunfight at the O.K. Corral’’ took place in Tombstone, Ariz., as Wyatt Earp, his two brothers and ‘‘Doc’’ Holliday confronted Ike Clanton’s gang. Three members of Clanton’s group were killed; Earp’s brothers and Holliday were wounded.

On this date: In 1774, the First Continental Congress adjourned in Philadelphia.

In 1825, the Erie Canal opened in upstate New York, connecting Lake Erie and the Hudson River.

In 1972, national security adviser Henry Kissinger declared, ‘‘Peace is at hand’’ in Vietnam.

In 2001, President Bush signed the USA Patriot Act, giving authorities unprecedented ability to search, seize, detain or eavesdrop in their pursuit of possible terrorists.

Birthdays Actress Shelley Morrison (‘‘Will and Grace’’) is 71. Actor Bob Hoskins is 65. Actress Jaclyn Smith is 62. TV host Pat Sajak is 61. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., is 60. Singer Maggie Roche (The Roches) is 56. Musician Bootsy Collins is 56. Actor James Pickens Jr. (‘‘Grey’s Anatomy’’) is 55. Rock musician Keith Strickland (The B-52’s) is 54. Actress Rita Wilson is 51. Actor Dylan McDermott is 46. Actor Cary Elwes is 45. Singer Natalie Merchant is 44. Country singer Keith Urban is 40. Actor Tom Cavanagh is 39. Actor Jon Heder is 30.

Worth repeating ...

‘‘I like trees because they seem more resigned to the way they have to live than other things do.’’

— Willa Cather, American author (1873-1947)