Today in History for Nov. 11, 2012

Today is Sunday, Nov. 11, the 316th day of 2012. There are 50 days left in the year. This is Veterans Day.

Today’s Highlight:

On Nov. 11, 1918, fighting in World War I came to an end with the signing of an armistice between the Allies and Germany.

On this date:

In 1620, 41 Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, anchored off Massachusetts, signed a compact calling for a “body politick.”

In 1831, former slave Nat Turner, who’d led a violent insurrection, was executed in Jerusalem, Va.

In 1889, Washington became the 42nd state.

In 1909, President William Howard Taft accepted the recommendation of a joint Army-Navy board that Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands be made the principal U.S. naval station in the Pacific.

In 1921, the remains of an unidentified American service member were interred in a Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in a ceremony presided over by President Warren G. Harding.

In 1932, a new tomb to house the remains of the Unknown Soldier was dedicated at Arlington National Cemetery.

In 1942, during World War II, Germany completed its occupation of France.

In 1960, South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem survived a coup attempt by army rebels. (However, he was overthrown and killed in 1963.)

In 1966, Gemini 12 blasted off from Cape Kennedy with astronauts James A. Lovell and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin Jr. aboard.

In 1972, the U.S. Army turned over its base at Long Binh to the South Vietnamese, symbolizing the end of direct U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War.

In 1987, following the failure of two Supreme Court nominations, President Ronald Reagan announced his choice of Judge Anthony M. Kennedy, who went on to win confirmation.

In 1992, the Church of England voted to ordain women as priests.

Ten years ago: Iraqi lawmakers denounced a tough, new U.N. resolution on weapons inspections as dishonest, provocative and worthy of rejection. But the Iraqi parliament said it ultimately would trust whatever President Saddam Hussein decided.

Five years ago: President Gen. Pervez Musharraf said Pakistan would stick to its January schedule for parliamentary elections, but set no time limit on emergency rule. Marking his fifth Veterans Day since the invasion of Iraq, President George W. Bush honored U.S. troops past and present at a tearful ceremony in Texas.

One year ago: Heralding the end of one war and the drawdown of another, President Barack Obama observed Veterans Day at Arlington National Cemetery by urging Americans to hire the thousands of servicemen and women coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan. In the evening, President Obama and his wife, Michelle, watched from midcourt as No. 1 North Carolina beat Michigan State 67-55 in the Carrier Classic on the flight deck of the USS Carl Vinson, anchored off the coast of San Diego. A gunman armed with an assault rifle fired a series of shots at the White House from long range; suspect Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez is charged with the attempted assassination of President Obama.

Today’s birthdays: Dancer-choreographer Nicholas Royce is 87. Comedian Jonathan Winters is 87. Jazz singer-musician Mose Allison is 85. Actress Bibi Andersson is 77. Country singer Narvel Felts is 74. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., is 72. Americana roots singer/songwriter Chris Smither is 68. Rock singer-musician Vince Martell (Vanilla Fudge) is 67. The president of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega, is 67. Golfer Fuzzy Zoeller is 61. Pop singer-musician Paul Cowsill (The Cowsills) is 61. Rock singer-musician Andy Partridge (XTC) is 59. Singer Marshall Crenshaw is 59. Rock singer Dave Alvin is 57. Rock musician Ian Craig Marsh (Human League; Heaven 17) is 56. Actor Stanley Tucci is 52. Actress Demi Moore is 50. Actress Calista Flockhart is 48. Actor Philip McKeon is 48. Rock musician Scott Mercado is 48. Actor Frank John Hughes is 45. TV personality Carson Kressley is 43. Actor David DeLuise is 41. Actor Adam Beach is 40. Actor Leonardo DiCaprio is 38. Rock musician Jonathan Pretus (Cowboy Mouth) is 31. NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez is 26. Actress Christa B. Allen is 21. Actor Ian Patrick (“The Neighbors”) is 10.

Thought for today: “Old myths, old gods, old heroes have never died. They are only sleeping at the bottom of our mind, waiting for our call. We have need for them. They represent the wisdom of our race.” — Stanley Kunitz, American poet laureate (1905-2006).