In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2, the second manmade satellite, into orbit; on board was a dog named Laika who was sacrificed in the experiment.
1839: The first Opium War between China and Britain broke out.
1900: The first major U.S. automobile show opened at New York's Madison Square Garden under the auspices of the Automobile Club of America.
1903: Panama proclaimed its independence from Colombia.
1911: The Chevrolet Motor Car Co. was founded in Detroit by Louis Chevrolet and William C. Durant. (The company was acquired by General Motors in 1918.)
1936: President Franklin D. Roosevelt won a landslide election victory over Republican challenger Alfred M. “Alf” Landon.
1954: The Japanese monster movie “Godzilla” was released by Toho Co.
1960: Meredith Willson’s musical “The Unsinkable Molly Brown” opened on Broadway with Tammy Grimes in the title role.