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Today in History: April 23

1348 The first English order of knighthood is founded.

1856 Free Stater J.N. Mace in Westport, Kansas shoots pro-slavery sheriff Samuel Jones in the back.

1896 Motion pictures premiere in New York City.

1914 The Federals defeat Kansas City 9-1 in the first major league game to be played in Chicago's Weeghman Park, later renamed Wrigley Field.

1924 The U.S. Senate passes the Soldiers' Bonus Bill.

1969 Sirhan Sirhan is sentenced to death for killing Senator Robert Kennedy.

1971 The Soviet Union launches Soyuz 10, becoming the first mission to the Salyut 1 space station.

2003 Beijing closes all schools for two weeks because of the SARS virus

2020 German Chancellor Angela Merkel warns this is "not the end phase but still just the beginning" of the COVID-19 pandemic

2020 US President Donald Trump suggests COVID-19 might be treated by injecting disinfectant or UV lights into a human body at a White House press briefing. Government officials and disinfectant companies quickly state doing so is not only extremely dangerous but potentially deadly.

2020 Ecuador's COVID-19 death toll is then one of world's highest per capita after 7,600 more deaths than usual (503 official toll), in report by "The New York Times"

2024 Australian PM Anthony Albanese hits back at Elon Musk saying it will "do what's necessary to take on this arrogant billionaire who thinks he's above the law" as a court orders X take down terrorist attack footage

Born on April 23

1926 Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, Mercury and Gemini astronaut, died in an accident on Apollo 1.

1928 Shirley Temple Black, child actress, later U.S. ambassador.

1932 Jim Fixx, runner and writer who popularized running as a form of exercise in the 1970s.

1968 Timothy McVeigh, American Oklahoma City bomber and terrorist, born in Lockport, New York (d. 2001)

Joke of the Day
Job Opening

The FBI had an opening for an assassin. After all the background checks, interviews and testing were done, there were 3 finalists; two men and a woman.
For the final test, the FBI agents took one of the men to a large metal door and handed him a gun. "We must know that you will follow your instructions no matter what the circumstances. Inside the room you will find your wife sitting in a chair . Kill her!!" The man said, "You can't be serious. I could never shoot my wife." The agent said, "Then you're not the right man for this job. Take your wife and go home."
The second man was given the same instructions. He took the gun and went into the room. All was quiet for about 5 minutes. The man came out with tears in his eyes, "I tried, but I can't kill my wife." The agent said, "You don't have what it takes. Take your wife home."
Finally, it was the woman's turn. She was given the same instructions, to kill her husband. She took the gun and went into the room. Shots were heard, one after another. They heard screaming, crashing, banging on the walls. After a few minutes, all was quiet. The door opened slowly and there stood the woman, wiping the sweat from her brow. "This gun is loaded with blanks" she said. "I had to beat him to death with the chair."