Updated February 16, 2012, 1:28 pm
On Feb. 17, 1972, President Nixon departed on his historic trip to China.
On Feb. 17, 1874, Thomas J. Watson, Sr., the American industrialist who built I.B.M., was born. Following his death on June 19, 1956, his obituary appeared in The Times.
Go to obituary » | Other birthdays »
On This Date
By The Associated Press
1865 Columbia, S.C., burned as the Confederates evacuated and Union forces moved in. 1904 Giacomo Puccini’s opera “Madama Butterfly” had its world premiere at La Scala in Milan, Italy. 1933 Newsweek magazine was first published. 1947 The Voice of America began broadcasting to the Soviet Union. 1972 President Richard M. Nixon departed on a historic trip to China. 1976 The Eagles’ album “Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975)” was released. 1992 Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was sentenced in Milwaukee to life in prison. 1995 Colin Ferguson was convicted of six counts of murder in the December 1993 Long Island Rail Road shootings that also wounded 19 people. 1996 World chess champion Garry Kasparov beat IBM supercomputer “Deep Blue,” winning a six-game match in Philadelphia. 2002 The new Transportation Security Administration took over supervision of aviation security from the airline industry and the Federal Aviation Administration. 2005 President George W. Bush named John Negroponte to be the first national intelligence director. 2008 Kosovo declared itself a nation in defiance of Serbia and Russia. 2009 President Barack Obama signed a $757 billion economic stimulus package into law.. Current Birthdays
By The Associated Press
Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt turns 31 years old today.
AP Photo/Kristian Dowling
Actor Chord Overstreet (“Glee”) turns 23 years old today.
AP Photo/Dan Steinberg
1925 Hal Holbrook, Actor, turns 87 1934 Dame Edna, Comedian, turns 78 1935 Johnny Bush, Country singer, turns 77 1936 Jim Brown, Football Hall of Famer, turns 76 1939 Mary Ann Mobley, Actress, turns 73 1954 Rene Russo, Actress, turns 58 1962 Lou Diamond Phillips, Actor, turns 50 1963 Michael Jordan, Basketball Hall of Famer, turns 49 1963 Larry the Cable Guy, Actor, comedian (“Blue Collar TV”), turns 49 1964 Michael Bay, Director, turns 48 1971 Denise Richards, Actress, turns 41 1972 Billie Joe Armstrong, Rock musician (Green Day), turns 40 1974 Jerry O’Connell, Actor, turns 38 1981 Paris Hilton, Heiress, turns 31
Historic Birthdays
Thomas J. Watson, Sr. 2/17/1874 – 6/19/1956 American industrialist who built IBM.Go to obituary »
59 Arcangelo Corelli 2/17/1653 – 1/8/1713
Italian violinist and composer34 Gustavo Adolfo Becquer 2/17/1836 – 12/22/1870
Spanish poet and author70 A. Montgomery Ward 2/17/1843 – 12/7/1913
American mail-order merchant76 Andrew B. Paterson 2/17/1864 – 2/5/1941
Australian poet, journalist and songwriter54 Andre Maginot 2/17/1877 – 1/7/1932
French statesman for whom Maginot Line was named85 H. L. Hunt 2/17/1889 – 11/29/1974
American oil tycoon76 Hans J. Morgenthau 2/17/1904 – 7/19/1980
German-bn. American political scientist and historian84 Red Barber 2/17/1908 – 10/22/1992
American baseball broadcaster75 Arthur Kennedy 2/17/1914 – 1/5/1990
American character actor47 Huey P. Newton 2/17/1942 – 8/22/1989
American activist who co-founded the Black Panthers
