Today in History - History - May 31st

1940Premier Winston Churchill flies to Paris to meet with Marshal August Pétain who announces he is willing to make a seperate peace with Germany

1223Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River - Mongol armies of Genghis Khan lead by Subutai defeat Kievan Rus and Cumans.

1621Sir Francis Bacon thrown into Tower of London for 1 night

1969John Lennon & Yoko Ono record "Give Peace a Chance"

1879Madison Square Garden opens in New York, named after 4th President James Madison

1935Babe Ruth grounds out in his final at bat

1956Mickey Mantle HR just misses clearing Yankee Stadium's roof

1968American movie star Jimmy Stewart retires from the Air Force after 27 years of service, and is promoted to major general by President Reagan

1930Bradman gets his 1,000th run of the English Cricket season

2008Usain Bolt breaks the world record in the 100m sprint, with a wind-legal (+1.7m/s) 9.72 seconds.

1930Clint Eastwood, SF California, actor (Dirty Harry)/mayor (Carmel, California)

1819Walt Whitman, West Hills New York, American poet (Leaves of Grass)

1965Brooke Shields, NYC, model/actress (Blue Lagoon, Suddenly Susan)

1976Colin Farrell, Dublin, Irish actor (In Bruges, Minority Report)

1998Beastie Boys rapper Adam Yauch (33) weds daughter of prominent Tibetan activists Dechen Wangdu in New York

1889Pianist Ignacy Jan Paderewski (38) weds baroness Helena Maria Rosen

2010Chris Haney, creator of Trivial Pursuit, dies at 59

1983Jack Dempsey, former heavyweight boxing champ/actor, dies at 86

1910Elizabeth Blackwell, 1st woman physician, dies at 89

1970Terry Sawchuk, NHL goaltender, dies from injuries suffered during an off-ice scuffle with a teammate at 40