Today’s Highlights

On Feb. 18, 2001, auto racing star Dale Earnhardt Sr. died in a crash in the final lap of the Daytona 500; he was 49.

On this date

1885: Mark Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” was published in the U.S. for the first time.

1930: The dwarf planet Pluto was discovered by American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh.

1970: The “Chicago Seven” defendants were found not guilty of conspiring to incite riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention five were convicted of violating the Anti-Riot Act of 1968.

1983: 13 people were shot to death at a gambling club in Seattle’s Chinatown in what became known as the Wah Mee Massacre.

1994: In the final race of his Olympic career at the Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway, U.S. speedskater Dan Jansen broke the world record in the 1,000 meters, winning the gold medal.

2001: Veteran FBI agent Robert Philip Hanssen was arrested, accused of spying for Russia. 2003: An arson attack involving two South Korean subway trains in the city of Daegu claimed nearly 200 lives.

2021: The rover Perseverance successfully landed on Mars, where it continues to explore the planet’s surface today.

Today’s birthdays

Artist-singer Yoko Ono is 92. Restaurateur-TV host Prue Leith (TV: “The Great British Baking Show”) is 85. Singer Irma Thomas is 84. Actor Cybill Shepherd is 75. Actor John Travolta is 71. TV personality Vanna White is 68. Actor Matt Dillon is 61. Rapper-music executive Dr. Dre is 60. Actor Molly Ringwald is 57. Actor Ike Barinholtz is 48.