Today in History - May 9

Today's Highlight in History:

On May 9, 1754, a cartoon in Benjamin Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette showed a snake cut into sections, each part representing an American colony; the caption read, "JOIN, or DIE."

On this date:

In 1883, Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset was born in Madrid.

In 1936, Italy annexed Ethiopia.

In 1945, U.S. officials announced that a midnight entertainment curfew was being lifted immediately.

In 1958, "Vertigo," Alfred Hitchcock's eerie thriller starring James Stewart and Kim Novak, premiered in San Francisco, the movie's setting.

In 1961, FCC chairman Newton N. Minow decried the majority of television programming as a "vast wasteland" in a speech to the National Association of Broadcasters.

In 1974, the House Judiciary Committee opened public hearings on whether to recommend the impeachment of President Nixon.

In 1978, the bullet-riddled body of former Italian prime minister Aldo Moro, who'd been abducted by the Red Brigades, was found in an automobile in the center of Rome.

In 1980, 35 people were killed when a freighter rammed the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay in Florida, causing a 1,400-foot section to collapse.

In 1982, the musical "Nine," inspired by the Federico Fellini film "8 1/2," opened on Broadway.

In 1987, 183 people were killed when a New York-bound Polish jetliner crashed while attempting an emergency return to Warsaw.

Ten years ago: Indonesian President Suharto left his troubled country for a summit in Egypt with a warning his army would quell violence over his 32-year rule and the worsening economy.

Five years ago: The United States and its allies asked the U.N. Security Council to give its stamp of approval to their occupation of Iraq. The Republican-led House approved 222-203 a $550 billion tax cut package. Louisiana Democrat Russell B. Long, who greatly influenced tax laws during nearly four decades in the Senate, died at age 84. In Cleveland, a camouflage-clad gunman fired hundreds of rounds as he roamed the halls of Case Western Reserve University's business school, killing one person. (Suspect Biswanath Halder was later convicted and sentenced to life in prison).

One year ago: Vice President Dick Cheney pressed Iraq's leaders to do more to reduce violence and achieve political reconciliation in a visit to Baghdad that was punctuated by an explosion that shook windows at the U.S. Embassy where Cheney was visiting. Pope Benedict XVI began his first trip to Latin America as he arrived in Brazil.

Today's Birthdays: CBS News correspondent Mike Wallace is 90. Actress Geraldine McEwan is 76. Actor-writer Alan Bennett is 74. Rock musician Nokie Edwards (The Ventures) is 73. Actor Albert Finney is 72. Actress-turned-politician Glenda Jackson is 72. Musician Sonny Curtis (Buddy Holly and the Crickets) is 71. Producer-director James L. Brooks is 68. Singer Tommy Roe is 66. Singer-musician Richie Furay (Buffalo Springfield and Poco) is 64. Actress Candice Bergen is 62. Pop singer Clint Holmes is 62. Actor Anthony Higgins is 61. Singer Billy Joel is 59. Blues singer-musician Bob Margolin is 59. Rock singer-musician Tom Petersson (Cheap Trick) is 58. Actress Alley Mills is 57. Actress Wendy Crewson is 52. Actor John Corbett is 47. Singer Dave Gahan (Depeche Mode) is 46. Rapper Ghostface Killah is 38. Country musician Mike Myerson (Heartland) is 37. Rhythm-and-blues singer Tamia is 33. Rock musician Dan Regan (Reel Big Fish) is 31. Rock singer Pierre Bouvier (Simple Plan) is 29. Actress Rosario Dawson is 29. Actress Rachel Boston is 26. TV personality Audrina Patridge is 23.

Thought for Today: "We cannot put off living until we are ready." -Jose Ortega y Gasset, Spanish philosopher (1883-1955).