Today in History for Jan. 23, 2013

Today is Wednesday, Jan. 23, the 23rd day of 2013. There are 342 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight:

On Jan. 23, 1973, President Richard Nixon announced an accord had been reached to end the Vietnam War, and would be formally signed four days later in Paris.

On this date:

In 1789, Georgetown University was established in present-day Washington, D.C.

In 1845, Congress decided all national elections would be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.

In 1932, New York Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination.

In 1933, the 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the so-called “Lame Duck Amendment,” was ratified as Missouri approved it.

In 1937, 17 people went on trial in Moscow during Josef Stalin’s “Great Purge.” (All were convicted of conspiracy; all but four were executed.)

In 1943, critic Alexander Woollcott suffered a fatal heart attack during a live broadcast of the CBS radio program “People’s Platform.”

In 1950, the Israeli Knesset approved a resolution affirming Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

In 1960, the U.S. Navy-operated bathyscaphe Trieste carried two men to the deepest known point in the Pacific Ocean, reaching a depth of more than 35,000 feet.

In 1964, the 24th Amendment to the Constitution, eliminating the poll tax in federal elections, was ratified.

In 1968, North Korea seized the Navy intelligence ship USS Pueblo, charging its crew with being on a spying mission. (The crew was released 11 months later.)

In 1977, the TV mini-series “Roots,” based on the Alex Haley novel, began airing on ABC.

In 1985, debate in Britain’s House of Lords was carried on live television for the first time.

Ten years ago: The government of Kuwait said a Kuwaiti had confessed to the shootings of two U.S. defense workers that left one dead. (The assailant, Sami al-Mutairi, was convicted and sentenced to death, but an appeals court commuted the sentence to life in prison.) Actress Nell Carter died in Beverly Hills at age 54.

Five years ago: Tens of thousands of Palestinians poured into Egypt from Gaza after Palestinian militants used land mines to breach a barrier dividing the border town of Rafah. French Open winner Michael Chang was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and IMG creator Mark McCormack and Tennis Week magazine founder Eugene Scott were selected posthumously.

One year ago: Republican presidential contenders Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich clashed repeatedly in heated, personal terms in a crackling campaign debate in Tampa, Fla. In a rare defeat for law enforcement, the Supreme Court unanimously agreed to bar police from installing GPS technology to track suspects without first getting a judge’s approval.

Today’s birthdays: Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg, D-N.J., is 89. Actress Jeanne Moreau is 85. Actress Chita Rivera is 80. Actor-director Lou Antonio is 79. Actor Gil Gerard is 70. Actor Rutger Hauer is 69. Rhythm-and-blues singer Jerry Lawson (The Persuasions) is 69. Sen. Thomas R. Carper, D-Del., is 66. Singer Anita Pointer is 65. Actor Richard Dean Anderson is 63. Rock musician Bill Cunningham is 63. Rock singer Robin Zander (Cheap Trick) is 60. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is 60. Princess Caroline of Monaco is 56. Singer Anita Baker is 55. Reggae musician Earl Falconer (UB40) is 54. Actress Gail O’Grady is 50. Actress Mariska Hargitay is 49. Rhythm-and-blues singer Marc Nelson is 42. Actress Tiffani Thiessen is 39. Rock musician Nick Harmer (Death Cab for Cutie) is 38. Christian rock musician Nick DePartee (Kutless) is 28. Singer-actress Rachel Crow is 15.

Thought for today: “It is easy to get a thousand prescriptions but hard to get one single remedy.” — Chinese proverb.