Today in History

Today is Monday, September 15, the 258th day of 2014. There are 107 days left in the year.

Today's Highlights in History:

On September 15, 1789, the U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs was renamed the Department of State. Author James Fenimore Cooper was born in Burlington, New Jersey.

On this date:

In 1776, British forces occupied New York City during the American Revolution.

In 1857, William Howard Taft -- who served as President of the United States and as U.S. chief justice -- was born in Cincinnati, Ohio.

In 1887, the city of Philadelphia launched a three-day celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Constitution of the United States.

In 1935, the Nuremberg Laws deprived German Jews of their citizenship.

In 1949, "The Lone Ranger" premiered on ABC-TV with Clayton Moore as the masked hero and Jay Silverheels as Tonto.

In 1950, during the Korean conflict, United Nations forces landed at Incheon in the south and began their drive toward Seoul.

In 1954, as raucous fans looked on, Marilyn Monroe filmed the famous billowing-skirt scene for "The Seven Year Itch" over a Lexington Ave. subway grate in Manhattan (however, little, if any, of the footage ended up in the movie; the scene was later reshot on a Hollywood set).

In 1963, four black girls were killed when a bomb went off during Sunday services at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. (Three Ku Klux Klansmen were eventually convicted for their roles in the blast.)

In 1964, the prime-time soap opera "Peyton Place" premiered on ABC-TV.

In 1972, a federal grand jury in Washington indicted seven men in connection with the Watergate break-in.

In 1989, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Penn Warren, the first poet laureate of the United States, died in Stratton, Vermont, at age 84.

In 1994, a tape recording of John Lennon singing with his teen-age band, The Quarrymen, in a Liverpool club on July 6, 1957, was sold at Sotheby's for $122,500 (it was at this gig that Lennon first met Paul McCartney).

Ten years ago: Three Americans were found guilty in Kabul, Afghanistan, of torturing Afghans in a private jail and were sentenced to prison. (Edward Caraballo, a freelance cameraman, was released in May 2006; Brent Bennett was freed in September 2006; Jack Idema, a former Green Beret, was pardoned in June 2007.) National Hockey League owners agreed to lock out the players. Johnny Ramone, guitarist and co-founder of the seminal punk band The Ramones, died in Los Angeles at age 55.

Five years ago: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the worst recession since the 1930s was "very likely over," although he cautioned that pain -- especially for nearly 15 million unemployed Americans -- would persist. An unrepentant Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the Iraqi reporter who'd thrown his shoes at President George W. Bush in December 2008, was freed from prison.

One year ago: Hundreds of people, black and white, many holding hands, filled the Alabama church that was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan 50 years earlier to mark the anniversary of the blast that killed four little girls and became a landmark moment in the civil rights struggle. Norway's Suzann Pettersen beat teen star Lydia Ko of New Zealand by two shots to win the Evian Championship and clinch the second major title of her career. Miss New York Nina Davuluri was crowned Miss America at the pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Jackie Lomax, 69, a singer-songwriter who'd worked with the Beatles and had a long solo career, died in Wirral, England.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Forrest Compton is 89. Comedian Norm Crosby is 87. Actor Henry Darrow is 81. Baseball Hall-of-Famer Gaylord Perry is 76. Actress Carmen Maura is 69. Opera singer Jessye Norman is 69. Writer-director Ron Shelton is 69. Actor Tommy Lee Jones is 68. Movie director Oliver Stone is 68. Rock musician Kelly Keagy (Night Ranger) is 62. Rock musician Mitch Dorge (Crash Test Dummies) is 54. Football Hall-of-Famer Dan Marino is 53. Actor Danny Nucci is 46. Rap DJ Kay Gee is 45. Actor Josh Charles is 43. Singer Ivette Sosa (Eden's Crush) is 38. Actor Tom Hardy is 37. Pop-rock musician Zach Filkins (OneRepublic) is 36. Actor Dave Annable is 35. Actress Amy Davidson is 35. Britain's Prince Harry is 30. TV personality Heidi Montag is 28. Actress Kate Mansi (TV: "Days of Our Lives") is 27.

Thought for Today: "The lack of a sense of history is the damnation of the modern world." -- Robert Penn Warren (1905-1989).

Copyright 2014, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.