Today in History – Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016

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Today is Saturday, Nov. 5, the 310th day of 2016. There are 56 days left in the year. Daylight Saving Time ends Sunday at 2 a.m. locally; clocks go back an hour.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On Nov. 5, 1916, the “Everett Massacre” took place in Washington state when a dockside confrontation between members of the Industrial Workers of the World and citizen-deputies erupted into gunfire that left at least five “Wobblies” and two deputies dead.

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On this date:

In 1605, the “Gunpowder Plot” failed as Guy Fawkes was seized before he could blow up the English Parliament.

In 1872, suffragist Susan B. Anthony defied the law by attempting to cast a vote for President Ulysses S. Grant. (Anthony was convicted by a judge and fined $100, but she never paid the penalty.)

In 1912, Democrat Woodrow Wilson was elected president, defeating Progressive Party candidate Theodore Roosevelt, incumbent Republican William Howard Taft and Socialist Eugene V. Debs.

In 1935, Parker Brothers began marketing the board game “Monopoly.”

In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt won an unprecedented third term in office as he defeated Republican challenger Wendell L. Willkie.

In 1946, Republicans captured control of both the Senate and the House in midterm elections.

In 1956, Britain and France started landing forces in Egypt during fighting between Egyptian and Israeli forces around the Suez Canal. (A cease-fire was declared two days later.)

In 1968, Republican Richard M. Nixon won the presidency, defeating Democratic Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and American Independent candidate George C. Wallace.

In 1974, Democrat Ella T. Grasso was elected governor of Connecticut, becoming the first woman to win a gubernatorial office without succeeding her husband.

In 1985, Spencer W. Kimball, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, died at age 90; he was succeeded by Ezra Taft Benson.

In 1994, former President Ronald Reagan disclosed he had Alzheimer’s disease.

In 2009, a shooting rampage at the Fort Hood Army post in Texas left 13 people dead; Maj. Nidal Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, was later convicted of murder and sentenced to death.

Ten years ago: Saddam Hussein was convicted and sentenced by the Iraqi High Tribunal to hang for crimes against humanity. Saying that he was a “deceiver and liar” who had given in to his dark side, the Rev. Ted Haggard confessed to sexual immorality in a letter read from the pulpit of the New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Rockwall County, Texas, prosecutor Louis “Bill” Conradt Jr. killed himself as police tried to serve him with an arrest warrant alleging he’d solicited sex with a minor online. Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil became the first South American to win the New York City Marathon, finishing in 2:09:58; defending champion Jelena Prokopcuka of Latvia won the women’s race in 2:25:05. Former Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit (EH’-chee-vit) died in Ankara at age 81.

Five years ago: Former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, accused of molesting eight boys, was arrested and released on $100,000 bail after being arraigned on 40 criminal counts. (Sandusky was later convicted and sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison for the sexual abuse of 10 boys over a 15-year period.)

One year ago: A woman who kept mentally disabled adults captive in the basement of a Philadelphia home and in other states for their disability checks was sentenced by a federal judge to life in prison; Linda Weston, 55, apologized during the hearing, saying: “I believe in God and God knows what happened.” Lisa Mearkle, a small-town police officer who fatally shot an unarmed motorist in the back as he was lying facedown on the ground, was acquitted at her murder trial in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Chris Robinson is 78. Actress Elke Sommer is 76. Singer Art Garfunkel is 75. Actor-playwright Sam Shepard is 73. Singer Peter Noone is 69. TV personality Kris Jenner is 61. Actor Nestor Serrano is 61. Actress-comedian Mo Gaffney is 58. Actor Robert Patrick is 58. Singer Bryan Adams is 57. Actress Tilda Swinton is 56. Actor Michael Gaston is 54. Actress Tatum O’Neal is 53. Actress Andrea McArdle is 53. Rock singer Angelo Moore (Fishbone) is 51. Actress Judy Reyes is 49. Actor Seth Gilliam is 48. Rock musician Mark Hunter (James) is 48. Actor Sam Rockwell is 48. Country singers Jennifer and Heather Kinley (The Kinleys) are 46. Actor Corin Nemec is 45. Rock musician Jonny (cq) Greenwood (Radiohead) is 45. Country singer-musician Ryan Adams is 42. Actor Sam Page is 40. Actor Luke Hemsworth (TV: “Westworld”) is 36. Actor Jeremy Lelliott is 34. Actress Annet Mahendru (MAH’-hehn-droo) is 31. Rock musician Kevin Jonas (The Jonas Brothers) is 29. Actor Landon Gimenez is 13.

Thought for Today: “Examine what is said, not him who speaks.” — Arab proverb.

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