March 12th
1664
New Jersey became a British colony as King Charles II granted land in North America to his brother James, the Duke of York.
1912
Juliette Gordon Low founded the Girl Scouts (originally called the Girl Guides).
1913
The American League approved the name change of the New York Highlanders to the Yankees.
1930
Mohandas Gandhi began his 200-mile march to protest the British salt tax.
1933
President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave the first of his nation-wide "fireside chats" on radio.
1947
President Truman established the "Truman Doctrine" to aid in the containment of Communism.
1972
Bill Russell had his No. 6 retired at Boston Garden.
1974
"Wonder Woman" debuted on ABC-TV. The show later went to CBS-TV.
1980
A Chicago jury found John Wayne Gacy Jr. guilty of the murders of 33 men and boys.
1987
The musical "Les Miserables" opened on Broadway.
1994
The Church of England ordained women priests for the first time in 460 years.
2001
Television talk show host Morton Downey, Jr. died at age 67.
2002
The color-coded terror alert system was unveiled by Homeland Security chief Tom Ridge.
2008
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned two days after reports had surfaced that he was a client of a prostitution ring.
Birthdays
86 Mae Young Professional wrestler
76 Barbara Feldon Actress ("Get Smart")
67 Jimmy Wynn Baseball player (New York Yankees)
63 Liza Minnelli Singer-actress
62 Mitt Romney Former Massachusetts governor
61 James Taylor Singer, songwriter
60 Bill Payne Rock musician (Little Feat)
60 Rob Cohen Film director, producer and writer
59 Jon Provost Actor ("Lassie")
56 Ron Jeremy Adult film actor, tv personality
52 Steve Harris Rock musician (Iron Maiden)
52 Marlon Jackson Singer (The Jackson Five)
52 Jerry Levine Actor
49 Courtney B. Vance Actor
48 Titus Welliver Actor
47 Darryl Strawberry Baseball player
46 Julia Campbell Actress
44 Steve Levy Sports journalist (ESPN)
27 Samm Levine Actor
15 Tyler Patrick Jones Actor ("Ghost Whisperer")
10 Kendall Applegate Actress ("Desperate Housewives")
70 Clement Studebaker 3/12/1831 - 11/27/1901 American manufacturer; leader in the auto industry
67 Adolph Simon Ochs 3/12/1858 - 4/8/1935 American newspaper publisher; owned The New York Times