Today is Wednesday, March 30, the 89th day of the year. There are 276 days remaining until the end of the year.
In Washington, D.C., on this day in 1981, barely two months after his inauguration as the 40th president of the United States, Ronald Reagan was shot and seriously wounded by would-be assassin John W. Hinckley, Jr.
1842. Anesthesia was used for the first time in an operation.
In 1867 the U.S .buys Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000 ($109 million in 2018), roughly 2 cents an acre.
1870, the US adopted the 15th amendment, guaranteeing citizens the right to vote.
1939 The Heinkel He 100 fighter, a German pre-World War II fighter aircraft designset a world airspeed record of 463 mph.
1959 The Dalai Lama received political asylum in India after fleeing from China.
1984 A police detective offered to split a lottery ticket with his regular waitress at a pizzeria in Yonkers, NY. Each chose three numbers and the following weekend the ticket won $6 million. The waitress ended up with a $3 million tip!
1987 Vincent van Gogh’s famous painting “Sunflowers” was sold for an incredible $39.7 million, the most ever paid for a painting at the time.
2001 Swimmer Michael Phelps smashed the world record for the 200-meter butterfly swim at just 15 years old. He swam an impressive 1:54.58 and held the record for 18 years.
Actor-director Warren Beatty turns 86.
Rock musician Eric Clapton turns 78.
Singer Celine Dion turns 55.
1853 - Vincent Van Gogh one of the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art.