It’s Monday, Oct. 1, the 275th day of 2012. There are 91 days left in the year.
Happenings
• Congress goes on break until Nov. 12.
• The U.S. Supreme Court begins its 2012-13 term, with major decisions expected on affirmative action and other possible cases involving gay marriage and voting rights.
• An appeal hearing is scheduled in a Russian court for three punk-rock musicians who were sentenced to two years in prison for performing a song critical of President Vladimir Putin.
In History
Highlights: In 1908, Henry Ford introduced his Model T automobile to the market. In 1910, the offices of the Los Angeles Times were destroyed by a bomb explosion and fire; 21 Times employees were killed. In 1932, Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees made his supposed called shot, hitting a home run against Chicago’s Charlie Root in the fifth inning of Game 3 of the World Series, won by the New York Yankees 7-5 at Wrigley Field. In 1940, the first section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, 160 miles in length, was opened to the public. In 1949, Mao Zedong proclaimed the People’s Republic of China during a ceremony in Beijing. A 42-day strike by the United Steelworkers of America began over the issue of retirement benefits. In 1961, Roger Maris of the New York Yankees hit his 61st home run during a 162-game season, compared to Babe Ruth’s 60 home runs during a 154-game season. (Tracy Stallard of the Boston Red Sox gave up the round-tripper; the Yankees won 1-0.) In 1962, Johnny Carson debuted as host of NBC’s “Tonight Show," beginning a nearly 30-year run; after being introduced to the audience by Groucho Marx, Carson received his first guests, actor-singer Rudy Vallee, actress Joan Crawford, singer Tony Bennett and comedian Mel Brooks. In 1972, the book “The Joy of Sex" by Alex Comfort was first published by Mitchell Beazley of London. In 1982, Sony began selling the first commercial compact disc player, the CDP-101, in Japan In 1987, eight people were killed when an earthquake measuring magnitude 5.9 struck the Los Angeles area.
Ten years ago: Iraq agreed to a plan for the return of U.N. weapons inspectors for the first time in nearly four years, but ignored U.S. demands for access to Saddam Hussein’s palaces and other contested sites.
Five years ago: Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a surprise announcement, opened the door to becoming the country’s prime minister.
One year ago: More than 700 Occupy Wall Street protesters were arrested after they swarmed the Brooklyn Bridge and shut down a lane of traffic for several hours in a tense confrontation with police. Campaigning began in Tunisia for the first elections born of the revolts that swept the Middle East.
Birthdays
Former President Jimmy Carter is 88. Actress-singer Julie Andrews is 77. Actress Stella Stevens is 74. Rock musician Jerry Martini (Sly and the Family Stone) is 69. Baseball Hall-of-Famer Rod Carew is 67. Jazz musician Dave Holland is 66. Actor Stephen Collins is 65. Actress Yvette Freeman is 62. Actor Randy Quaid is 62. Singer Youssou N’Dour is 53. Actor Esai Morales is 50. Retired MLB All-Star Mark McGwire is 49. Actor Christopher Titus is 48. Actress-model Cindy Margolis is 47. Actor Zach Galifianakis is 43. Singer Keith Duffy is 38. Actress Jurnee Smollett is 26. Actress Brie Larson is 23.
— From wire reports
