1873 – “Around the World in 80 Days” by Jules Verne is published in France by Pierre-Jules Hetzel.
1902 – Britain and Japan sign a treaty after months of negotiating which commits each country to supporting an independent China and Korea, although it acknowledges Japan’s ‘special interest’ in Korea.
1911 – First rescue of an air passenger by a ship near Havana, Cuba.
1924 – Gillis Grafstrom of Sweden wins men’s figure skating gold medal at the Chamonix Winter Olympics. He’s the first to successfully defend his Summer Olympic title (1920) at the Winter Games.
1928 – First radio telephone connection between Netherlands and the United States.
1933 – “The Lone Ranger” begins a 21-year run on ABC radio.
1944 – World War II: United States troops land on Majuro, Marshall Islands.
1945 – American Rangers and Filipino resistance fighters liberate over 500 Allied POWs from Japanese at Cabanatuan.
1952 – Korean War truce talks deadlock.
1958 – Major League Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick announces that players and coaches, rather than fans, will vote on selections for the All-Star Game. Vote was returned to the fans in 1970.
1961 – President John F. Kennedy asks for an Alliance for Progress & Peace Corps, a $20 billion US Aid program for Latin America.
1968 – Bobby Goldsboro records his biggest hit “Honey”
1973 – Jury finds Watergate defendants G. Gordon Liddy and James McCord guilty on all counts of conspiracy, burglary, and illegal wiretapping.
1981 – 8th American Music Awards: Barbra Streisand and Kenny Rogers win.
1992 – Inventor Ray Kurzweil publishes his first book, “The Age of Intelligent Machines” on artificial intelligence, predicting the popularity of the internet.
2000 – Super Bowl XXXIV, Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Ga: St.Louis Rams beat Tennessee Titans 23-16. St. Louis quarterback Kurt Warner named Most Valuable Player.
2003 – Richard Reid sentenced to life in prison for attempting to bomb an American Airlines flight with 197 on board.
2011 – 58th NHL All-Star Game, RBC Center, Raleigh, NC: Team Lidstrom beats Team Staal 11-10. Chicago Blackhawks left wing Patrick Sharp named Most Valuable Player.
2020 – The World Health Organization declares COVID-19 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern at a meeting in Geneva.
2023 – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claims that Russia has begun its “big revenge” with assaults around Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine after a couple of months of stalemate.