Feast Day of the Triumph of the Cross Commemorating the finding, in the year 326, of the cross on which Christ was crucified.

1981 Entertainment Tonight debuts.

1975 First American canonized Mother Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (1774-1821) is canonized by Pope Paul VI. She founded the U.S. branch of the Sisters of Charity (1809).

1959 First manmade object to strike the Moon Soviet Lunik 2, launched two days earlier, strikes the Moon.

1901 Youngest U.S. President 42-year-old Theodore Roosevelt is sworn in. (Kennedy, at age 43, was the youngest elected president.)

1901 First Bodybuilding Contest It was organized by Eugene Sandow and held in the Royal Albert Hall, London. The judges included Sandow and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (creator of Sherlock Holmes). The winner was William L. Murray of England.

1814 The Star-Spangled Banner Francis Scott Key, after seeing the American flag flying following the British bombarding of Ft. McHenry during the War of 1812, writes what will become the national anthem.

1752 Gregorian calendar is adopted by Great Britain This included the American colonies. The previous day had been September 2. Also, New Year's Day was moved from March 25th to January 1st.

1963 Cathy, Jimmie, Maggie, Margie, and Mary Ann Fischer American quintuplets.

1959 Mary Crosby American actress, Bing's daughter. TV: Dallas (Kristin).

1956 Joe Penny English actor. TV: Jake and the Fatman (Jake).

1954 Barry Cowsill American singer, guitarist, member of the singing family The Cowsills (They were the basis for TV's The Partridge Family). Music: The Rain The Park And Other Things (1967, #2).

1951 Mary Fleener American underground cartoonist, creator of Hoodoo.

1947 Jon "Bowser" Bauman singer with Sha Na Na.

1921 Constance Baker Motley American judge, the first black woman judge of a federal district court (1966, New York).

1915 John Dobson American astronomer, "The Pied Piper of Astronomy." He co-founded the Sidewalk Astronomers and invented the Dobsonian telescope, an inexpensive, easy-to-build telescope. see: How and Why to Make a User-Friendly Sidewalk Telescope

1914 Clayton Moore American actor, circus performer. TV: The Lone Ranger (kemo sabe).

1899 Norman Chandler d. 1973 American newspaper publisher. As publisher of the Los Angeles Times (1945-60), he built it into the nation's second largest daily newspaper.

1883 Margaret Sanger d. 1966 American birth-control advocate. She coined the term "birth control" (1914) and opened the first birth-control clinic in the U.S. (for which she was promptly arrested).

1867 Charles Dana Gibson d. 1944 American illustrator, creator of the "Gibson Girl," which idealized the true American girl.

1742 James Wilson d. 1798 Scottish-born American patriot, signer of the Declaration of Independence, member of the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention of 1787, and associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

2009 Patrick Swayze b. 1952 American actor, dancer.  He first danced professionally in Disneyland parades (1950).  Film: Red Dawn (1984), Dirty Dancing (1987), and Ghost (1990).

2002 LaWanda Page b. 1920 (Alberta Peal), American actress, known for her portrayal of Bible-thumping Aunt Esther in Sanford and Son.  She used the stage name "The Brown Goddess of Fire" while working as a stripper in St. Louis, Missouri.  Film Shakes the Clown (1991, foul-mouthed clown).

1982 Grace Patricia Kelly b. 1929 American Oscar-winning actress. She became the Princess of Monaco after marrying Prince Rainier III, making her the only princess to have received an Oscar.

1929 Jesse Lynch Williams b. 1871 American playwright. His Why Marry? (1917) was the first play to win a Pulitzer Prize for drama.

1927 Isadora Duncan b. 1877 (Dora Angela Duncan), American dancer, pioneer of interpretative dance. Her emphasis on "free dance" made her a precursor of modern dance. She died when her scarf got caught in the spokes of the automobile she was riding in and broke her neck.

1901 William McKinley b. 1843 25th U.S. President (1897-1901). He was assassinated by Leon Czolgosz. His portrait graces the U.S. $500 bill.

1898 William Seward Burroughs b. 1855 American inventor. He invented the recording adding machine (1892).

1852 Duke of Wellington b. 1769 (Arthur Wellesley), British general, prime minister (1828-30). He defeated Napoleon at Waterloo (1815).

1851 James Fenimore Cooper b. 1789 first major American novelist, The Last of the Mohicans (1826).

1836 Aaron Burr b. 1756 3rd U.S. Vice-President (1801-05). Killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel during his vice-presidency (1804). He was tried and acquitted for treason against the U.S. in 1807.

1788 John Penn b. 1740 American lawyer, signer of the Declaration of Independence.

1638 John Harvard b. 1607 English scholar. As he was dying he bequeathed his library and half his estate to a new college being formed. It was named Harvard in his honor.

1523 Adrian VI b. 1459 Dutch-born religious leader, 218th Pope (1522-23), the only Dutch pope.

1321 Dante Alighieri b. 1265 Italian poet. Writings: The Divine Comedy (1307-21).

891 Stephen V b. ???? Italian religious leader, 110th Pope (885-891).

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