Today in History

Today is Tuesday, Aug. 5, the 217th day of 2025. There are 148 days left in the year. Today in history On Aug. 5, 1962, South African anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela was arrested on charges of leaving the country without a valid passport and inciting workers to strike; it was the beginning of 27 years of imprisonment. Also on this date In 1861, Abraham Lincoln signed the Revenue Act of 1861, which levied the first income tax on Americans (a flat tax of 3% on those making over $800/year) to help fund the Union's Civil War effort. In 1864, during the Civil War, Union Adm. David G. Farragut led his fleet to victory in the Battle of Mobile Bay, Alabama. In 1884, the cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty's pedestal was laid on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor. In 1914, what's believed to be the first electric traffic light system was installed in Cleveland, Ohio, at the intersection of East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue. In 1936, Jesse Owens of the United States won the 200-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics, collecting the third of his four gold medals. In 1953, Operation Big Switch began as remaining prisoners taken during the Korean War were exchanged at Panmunjom. In 1957, the music and dance show "American Bandstand," hosted by Dick Clark, made its national network debut, beginning a 30-year run on ABC-TV. In 1962, Marilyn Monroe, 36, was found dead in her Los Angeles home; her death was ruled a probable suicide from "acute barbiturate poisoning." In 1964, U.S. Navy pilot Everett Alvarez Jr. became the first American flier to be shot down and captured by North Vietnam; he was held prisoner until February 1973. In 1974, the White House released transcripts of subpoenaed tape recordings showing that President Richard Nixon and his chief of staff, H.R. Haldeman, had discussed a plan in June 1972 to use the CIA to thwart the FBI's Watergate investigation; revelation of the tape sparked Nixon's resignation. In 2010, thirty-three workers were trapped in a copper mine in northern Chile after a tunnel caved in (all were rescued after being entombed for 69 days). In 2011, the sun-powered robotic explorer Juno rocketed toward Jupiter on a five-year quest to discover the secret recipe for making planets. (Juno reached Jupiter on July 4, 2016.) Today's birthdays Country music songwriter Bobby Braddock is 85. Actor Loni Anderson is 80. Pop singer Samantha Sang is 74. Actor-singer Maureen McCormick is 69. Rock musician Pat Smear is 66. Author David Baldacci is 65. Actor Janet McTeer is 64. Basketball Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing is 63. Actor Mark Strong is 62. Director-screenwriter James Gunn is 59. Actor Jonathan Silverman is 59. Actor Jesse Williams is 44. Actor/singer Olivia Holt is 28. NBA guard Anthony Edwards is 24. Actor Albert Tsai is 21.