Today’s Highlight

On Jan. 19, 1937, Howard Hughes set a new transcontinental air speed record in his H-1 Racer aircraft, flying from Los Angeles to Newark, New Jersey, in 7 hours, 28 minutes and 25 seconds.

On this date

1853: Giuseppe Verdi’s opera “Il Trovatore” premiered in Rome.

1861: Georgia became the fifth state to secede from the Union; it would join the Confederacy the following month.

1942: A German submarine sank the Canadian liner RMS Lady Hawkins off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, killing 251 people; 71 survived.

1955: President Dwight D. Eisenhower held the first televised presidential press conference.

1966: Indira Gandhi was elected to her first term as prime minister of India.

1987: H. Guy Hunt became Alabama’s first Republican governor since 1874 as he was sworn into office, succeeding George C. Wallace.

2012: Rupert Murdoch’s media empire apologized and agreed to cash payouts to 37 people whose telephones had been hacked by its tabloid press.

Today’s birthdays

Actor Tippi Hedren is 95. Actor-singer Michael Crawford is 83. Actor Shelley Fabares is 81. Country musician Dolly Parton is 79. Actor Katey Sagal is 71. Comedian Paul Rodriguez is 70. Basketball coach and commentator Jeff Van Gundy is 63. Tennis Hall of Famer Stefan Edberg is 59. Comedian-impressionist Frank Caliendo is 51. Actor Jodie Sweetin is 43. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is 43. Olympic Gymnastics gold medalist Shawn Johnson is 33.