Today:
30 BC – Cleopatra VII, the last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, died in Alexandria, traditionally believed to have taken her own life following the defeat and death of Mark Antony. Egypt subsequently became a province of the Roman Empire.
1797 – Mary Shelley was born in London. She later wrote Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, first published anonymously in 1818 when she was just 20 years old.
1862 – Confederate forces won the Second Battle of Bull Run (Second Manassas) in Virginia. General Robert E. Lee’s victory over Union forces opened the way for his first invasion of the North.
1905 – Baseball legend Ty Cobb made his Major League debut for the Detroit Tigers at age 18. He hit a double in his first major-league at-bat and went on to become one of baseball’s greatest hitters.
1963 – The Moscow–Washington “hotline” became operational, giving leaders of the United States and Soviet Union a direct communications link intended to reduce the risk of accidental nuclear war following the Cuban Missile Crisis.
1967 – Thurgood Marshall was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the first Black justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He had previously argued the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case before the Court.
1983 – Guion Bluford became the first African American to travel into space when the Space Shuttle Challenger launched on mission STS-8 from Kennedy Space Center.
1993 – The Late Show with David Letterman premiered on CBS. Letterman had moved to the network after more than 11 years hosting Late Night on NBC.
2003 – American actor Charles Bronson died at age 81. Known for his tough-guy roles, his films included The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, Once Upon a Time in the West and the Death Wish series.
2015 – Wes Craven, the influential filmmaker who directed horror classics including A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream, died at age 76.