In 1818, Congress decided the flag of the United States should consist of 13 red and white stripes and 20 stars, with a new star to be added for every new state of the Union.
In 1968, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot to death in Memphis, Tenn., where he had gone to support a strike by sanitation workers. He was 39.
In 1974, Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves tied Babe Ruth's home-run record by hitting his 714th round-tripper in Cincinnati.
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Former dance teacher Arthur Murray (1895)
Broadcaster John Cameron Swayze (1906)
Composer Elmer Bernstein (1922)
Actor Anthony Perkins (1932)
Actress Catherine Spaak (1945)
Actress Nancy McKeon (1966)
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"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."