This Day in History

By The Standard Staff - 04/04/2008

Today Friday, April 4, the 95th day of 2008. There are 271 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight: In 1968, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., 39, was shot to death as he stood in Memphis, Tenn., sparking riots across the U.S.

On this date: In 1841, President William Henry Harrison became the first U.S. chief executive to die in office.

In 1949, 12 nations, including the U.S., signed the North Atlantic Treaty.

In 1983, the space shuttle Challenger roared into orbit on its maiden voyage.

Birthdays Author-poet Maya Angelou is 80. Recording executive Clive Davis is 76. Bandleader Hugh Masekela is 69. Actor Craig T. Nelson is 64. Actress Christine Lahti is 58. Country singer Steve Gatlin (The Gatlin Broth-ers) is 57. Actor Robert Downey Jr. is 43. Magician David Blaine is 35.Actress Jamie Lynn Spears is 17.

Worth repeating ...

“If a man hasn’t discovered something that he will die for, he isn’t fit to live.” — Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968)