On Nov. 17, 1973, President Nixon told an Associated Press managing editors meeting in Orlando, Fla., that “people have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I’m not a crook.”
On Nov. 17, 1901, Lee Strasberg, the director who pioneered the technique of “method acting”, was born. Following his death on Feb. 17, 1982, his obituary appeared in The Times.
| 1800 |
Congress held its first session in Washington, D.C., in the partially completed Capitol building. |
| 1869 |
The Suez Canal opened in Egypt, linking the Mediterranean and the Red seas. |
| 1934 |
Lyndon B. Johnson married Claudia Alta Taylor, better known as “Lady Bird.” |
| 1962 |
Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., was dedicated. |
| 1968 |
NBC outraged football fans by cutting away from the final minutes of a game to air a TV special, “Heidi,” on schedule. |
| 1970 |
The Soviet Union landed an unmanned, remote-controlled vehicle on the moon. |
| 1973 |
President Richard M. Nixon told an Associated Press managing editors meeting in Orlando, Fla., “I’m not a crook.” |
| 1997 |
Six militants opened fire at the Temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor, Egypt, killing 62 people, most of them foreign tourists. The attackers were killed by police. |
| 2003 |
John Allen Muhammad was convicted of two counts of capital murder in the Washington-area sniper shootings. (He was later sentenced to death and executed.) |
| 2003 |
Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger was sworn in as governor of California. |
| 2008 |
The vampire romance movie “Twilight” premiered in Los Angeles. |
| 2010 |
A hand-count of votes affirmed the re-election of U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, the first Senate candidate in over 50 years to win a write-in campaign. |
| 2010 |
The first Guantanamo detainee to face civilian trial, Ahmed Ghailani, was convicted by federal jury in New York on one charge of conspiracy related to 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Ghailani’s native Tanzania. |
| 1934 |
James Inhofe, U.S. senator, R-Okla., turns 78 |
| 1938 |
Gordon Lightfoot, Singer, turns 74 |
| 1942 |
Martin Scorsese, Director, turns 70 |
| 1943 |
Lauren Hutton, Actress, turns 69 |
| 1944 |
Jim Boeheim, College basketball coach, turns 68 |
| 1944 |
Lorne Michaels, TV producer (“Saturday Night Live”), turns 68 |
| 1944 |
Tom Seaver, Baseball Hall of Famer, turns 68 |
| 1945 |
Elvin Hayes, Basketball Hall of Famer, turns 67 |
| 1948 |
Howard Dean, Former governor of Vermont, turns 64 |
| 1951 |
Stephen Root, Actor (“NewsRadio,” “Office Space”), turns 61 |
| 1958 |
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Actress, turns 54 |
| 1960 |
RuPaul, Entertainer, turns 52 |
| 1961 |
Patrick Toomey, U.S. senator, R-Pa., turns 51 |
| 1966 |
Daisy Fuentes, Actress, model, turns 46 |
| 1978 |
Rachel McAdams, Actress (“The Notebook,” “Mean Girls”), turns 34 |
| 1978 |
Reggie Wayne, Football player, turns 34 |
| 1980 |
Isaac Hanson, Rock musician (Hanson), turns 32 |
| 1983 |
Ryan Braun, Baseball player, turns 29 |
| 69 |
Angelo Bronzino 11/17/1503 – 11/23/1572
Italian painter |
| 91 |
Joost van den Vondel 11/17/1587 – 2/5/1679
Dutch poet |
| 64 |
Pierre Gaultier La Verendrye 11/17/1685 – 12/5/1749
French-Canadian soldier, fur trader and explorer |
| 68 |
Louis XVIII 11/17/1755 – 9/16/1824
French king (1814-24) |
| 71 |
Gregorio Lopez y Fuentes 11/17/1895 – 12/10/1966
Mexican novelist |
| 84 |
Isamu Noguchi 11/17/1904 – 12/30/1988
American sculptor |
| 61 |
Mischa Auer 11/17/1905 – 3/5/1967
American actor |
| 59 |
Rock Hudson 11/17/1925 – 10/2/1985
American actor |
Lee Strasberg 11/17/1901 – 2/17/1982 
