History Today: 1797 - French balloonist Andre-Jacques Garnerin made the first parachute jump. It was made from a hot air balloon 2,300 feet above Paris. 1918 - The Great Influenza Epidemic began; it was a worldwide epidemic that would eventually claim 18 million lives. 1938 - Chester Carlson invented the photocopier. 1954 - West Germany joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). 1962 - During the Cuban Missile Crisis, President John F. Kennedy announced an air and naval blockade of Cuba, following the discovery of Soviet Union missile bases on the island. Over the next six days, the crisis escalated to the brink of nuclear war. 1979 - The U.S. government allowed the deposed Shah of Iran to travel to New York for medical treatment -- a decision that precipitated the Iran hostage crisis. 1981 - The Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization was decertified by the U.S. federal government for its strike the previous August. 2004 - Kidnapped aid worker Margaret Hassan begged Britain to help save her by withdrawing its troops from Iraq, saying these might be my last hours.
Posted on: Wed, 22 Oct 2014 08:14:57 +0000
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