1536

English theologian William Tyndale, who was the first to translate the Bible into Early Modern English, was executed for heresy.

1927

The era of talking movies arrived with the opening of “The Jazz Singer.”

1979

Pope John Paul II, on a U.S. tour, became the first pontiff to visit the White House, where he was received by President Jimmy Carter.

2014

The Supreme Court unexpectedly cleared the way for a dramatic expansion of gay marriage in the United States as it rejected appeals from five states seeking to preserve their bans, effectively making such marriages legal in 30 states.