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Thursday, April 17, 1997

  • Today's Events
  • On Horizon
  • On This Day
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  • "I am Miss Stay-at-Home and I don't want to become famous."

    -- potential juror in the Timothy McVeigh trial





    Today's Events


  • A march by Brazil's landless movement is due to arrive in Brasilia after a two-month walk across the country. The walk commemorates the first anniversary of massacre of 19 landless peasants by military police.

  • Russian President Boris Yeltsin is scheduled to visit Germany for talks with German Chancellor Helmut Kohl.

  • The British Royal Yacht Brittania is scheduled to visit Singapore.

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    On the horizon


  • On Friday, April 18, NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana visits Sarajevo.

  • On Saturday, April 19, the "Voices of Chichen-Itza" concert to benefit Maya culture will be held in Chichen-Itza, Mexico.

  • On Sunday, April 20, Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic visits Cairo, Egypt.

  • On Monday, April 21, Britain's Queen Elizabeth celebrates her 71st birthday.

  • On Tuesday, April 22, King Hussein of Jordan is scheduled to visit Denmark.

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    On this day


  • In 1194, the second coronation of King Richard I of England took place upon his return from the third crusade.

  • In 1421, the sea broke through the dikes at Dort, in the Netherlands, drowning more than 100,000 people.

  • In 1492, Christopher Columbus received a commission from the Spanish monarchy to explore the western ocean.

  • In 1521, Martin Luther was excommunicated by the Diet of Worms.

  • In 1895, the Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed, whereby China and Japan recognized the independence of Korea, and Formosa was ceded to Japan by China.

  • In 1941, the Yugoslav government surrendered to the Germans in Belgrade.

  • In 1944, in Italy, Marshal Pietro Badoglio's entire cabinet resigned and he was invited to form a new government.

  • In 1946, the last French troops left Syria.

  • In 1957, Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus arrived back in Athens after his 13-month exile in the Seychelles.

  • In 1960, U.S. rock star Eddie Cochran died in a car crash while on tour with Gene Vincent in Britain.

  • In 1961, an attempt to invade Cuba by U.S.-backed Cuban exiles failed at the Bay of Pigs.

  • In 1969, Alexander Dubcek resigned as Czechoslovak Communist party leader and was replaced by Gustav Husak.

  • In 1969, Sirhan B. Sirhan was found guilty of the first degree murder of Robert F. Kennedy who was shot while campaigning in California in June 1968.

  • In 1970, the U.S. spacecraft Apollo 13 splashed down after its near disastrous trip to the moon.

  • In 1975, Khmer Rouge guerrillas seized Phnom Penh and began a reign of terror in which more than one million people died.

  • In 1977, women voted in Liechtenstein for the first time.

  • In 1981, Polish farmers won the legal right to form a trade union.

  • In 1984, British policewoman Yvonne Fletcher was shot dead when a gunman opened fire from inside the Libyan embassy in London.

  • In 1984, U.S. Army General Mark Clark died. He led the Allied forces during the successful Italian campaign against the Axis powers in World War II.

  • In 1985, Lebanese Prime Minister Rashid Karami resigned in protest over Druze militia attacks in West Beirut. He stayed on in a caretaker capacity.

  • In 1986, British journalist John McCarthy was kidnapped in Beirut.

  • In 1989, the Polish trade union Solidarity was legalized after a seven-year ban.

  • In 1993, Turgut Ozal, president of Turkey from 1989, died of a heart attack.

  • In 1996, police gunned down 19 landless peasants in one of Brazil's bloodiest massacres.

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    Newslink


    You've seen the Masters, now watch the Seniors. The 58th PGA Seniors' Championship, the oldest major championship in senior golf, begins today. Check out all the action, by clicking here.


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    Holidays and more


  • Today is Shabdrung Kuchoey in Bhutan.

  • It's Courban Bairam is Egypt.

  • Today is Liberation Day in Iraq.

  • It's Ram Nawami in Nepal.

  • Today is Evacuation Day in Syria.

  • It's New Year Day in the Union of Myanmar.

  • Director Lindsay Anderson is 74.

  • Actor Sean Bean is 39.

  • Dancer Anna Marie Holmes is 54.

  • Actress Olivia Hussey is 46.

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    Sources: Associated Press,
    Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan



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