Today in History - History - May 9th

1502Columbus left Spain on his 4th & final trip to New World

1934Bradman out for a Cricket duck against Cambridge University!

198318th Academy of Country Music Awards: Alabama & Willie Nelson

1958Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo", starring Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak, is released

1978Corpse of kidnapped ex-premier Aldo Moro found

1922The International Astronomical Union formally adopt Annie Jump Cannon's stellar classification system, which with only minor changes, is still used today

1987Oriole Eddie Murray is 1st to switch hit HRs in 2 consecutive games

1768John Hancock pays duties on 25 pipes of wine, only one fourth of his ship's carrying capacity, and British officials accuse him of unloading the rest during the night to avoid paying the duties on the entire cargo

1973For 2nd time, Johnny Bench hits 3 HRs in a game

2012United States President Barack Obama officially states his support for same sex marriage

1964Miloslav Mecir, Bojnice Czechoslovakia, tennis player (Olympic-gold-1988)

1918Mike Wallace, Brookline Mass, newscaster (Biography, 60 Minutes), (d. 2012)

1965Steve Yzerman, Cranbrook British Columbia, NHL forward (Team Canada, Detroit)

1949Billy Joel, Bronx, rock vocalist (Pianoman, Capt Jack, Bridge)

1800John Brown, Torrington, Connecticut, American revolutionary abolitionist (d. 1859)

1873Howard Carter, London, British archaeologist and egyptologist (found King Tutankhamen's tomb)

1987Actor Tom Cruise (27) & actress Mimi Rogers (33), marry

1942Physicist Robert Hofstadter (27) weds Nancy Givan

1979Cyrus S. Eaton, Canadian-American financier, industrialist and steel magnate, dies at 95

2012Vidal Sassoon, British hairdresser and businessman, dies from leukemia at 84

1978Aldo Moro, 5 times PM of Italy, assassinated by the Marxist-Leninist terrorist organization Red Brigades at 61

1986Tenzing Norgay, Tibetan climber (Mount Everest 1953), dies at 71