Today is Tuesday, January 22nd, the 22nd day of the year. There are 343 days until the end of the year.
On this day:
In 1879, James Shields took the oath of office as U.S. Senator from Missouri, becoming the first person to serve as Senator for three different states. He had previously served as U.S. Senator from Illinois and Minnesota.
In 1901, Britain's Queen Victoria died at the age of 82.
In 1973, former President Lyndon B. Johnson died at the age of 64.
In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in the Roe versus Wade case. The justices ruled the Constitution allows women the right to an abortion.
In 1980, the Professional Golf Association began a senior tour.
In 1995, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy died at the age of 104. She is the only woman in history to be the daughter of a mayor of a major city, wife of an ambassador, and the mother of a president, two senators and an ambassador.
In 1997, the Senate confirmed Madeleine Albright as the nation's first female secretary of state.
In 1998, Theodore Kaczynski pled guilty to being the Unabomber. His multi-year mail bombing spree left several people dead and many others injured. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
In 2005, real estate mogul Donald Trump married 34-year-old Slovenian model Melania Knauss, during a lavish wedding reception in Palm Beach, Florida. It was the third marriage for Trump.
In 2006, Los Angeles Lakers NBA star Kobe Bryant scored 81 points in a matchup between the Lakers and the Toronto Raptors. It was the second-most points scored by a single player in a single game in NBA history. Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a game in 1962.
In 2008, actor Heath Ledger was found dead in his New York City apartment. He was 28.
In 2009, in one of his first official acts as Commander-in-Chief, President Obama signed orders to close the military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba within a year. Obama also set policies on interrogation of suspects and set up a special task force.
In 2012, former Penn State head football coach Joe Paterno died after a brief battle with lung cancer. He was 85. Paterno was Division One's all-time winningest coach before he was fired in November 2011 amid a sex abuse scandal involving an assistant coach.