Today is Wednesday, May 18, the 138th day of 2022. There are 227 days left in the year.
Today in history
On May 18, 1980, the Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state exploded, leaving 57 people dead or missing.
Also on this date:
In 1652, Rhode Island became the first American colony to pass a law abolishing African slavery; however, the law was apparently never enforced.
In 1863, the Siege of Vicksburg began during the Civil War, ending July 4 with a Union victory.
In 1896, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Plessy v. Ferguson, endorsed “separate but equal” racial segregation, a concept renounced 58 years later by Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.
In 1910, Halley’s Comet passed by earth, brushing it with its tail.
In 1927, in America’s deadliest school attack, part of a schoolhouse in Bath Township, Mich., was blown up with explosives planted by local farmer Andrew Kehoe, who then set off a bomb in his truck; the attacks killed 38 children and six adults, including Kehoe, who’d earlier killed his wife. (Authorities said Kehoe, who suffered financial difficulties, was seeking revenge for losing a township clerk election.)
In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a measure creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.
Fun fact
Polar bears are the only bear species to be considered marine mammals.
That’s punny
Two antennas got married last Saturday. The reception was fantastic.
Trending words
“Hark back:” verb; (HAHRK-BAK). Definition: To turn back to an earlier topic or circumstance, or to go back to something as an origin or source.
— Merriam-Webster
Today’s birthdays
Actor Priscilla Pointer is 98. Baseball Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson is 84. Actor Candice Azzara is 81. Bluegrass singer-musician Rodney Dillard (The Dillards) is 80. Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson is 76. Former Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., is 74. Country singer Joe Bonsall (The Oak Ridge Boys) is 74. Rock musician Rick Wakeman (Yes) is 73. Rock singer Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo) is 72. Actor James Stephens is 71. Country singer George Strait is 70. Actor Chow Yun-Fat is 67. International Tennis Hall of Famer Yannick Noah is 62. Rock singer-musician Page Hamilton is 62. Contemporary Christian musician Barry Graul (MercyMe) is 61. Contemporary Christian singer Michael Tait is 56. Singer-actor Martika is 53. Comedian-writer Tina Fey is 52. Rock singer Jack Johnson is 47. Country singer David Nail is 43. Actor Matt Long is 42. Actor Allen Leech is 41. Christian singer Francesca Battistelli is 37. Actor Spencer Breslin is 30. Actor Violett Beane is 26. Actor Hala Finley is 13.
The Edge is compiled by Dallas Marshall. She can be contacted at dmarshall@lmtribune.com.
