2016: The Chicago Cubs win the World Series for the first time in 108 years. Chicago had trailed the Cleveland Indians three games to one before rallying to force a deciding Game 7 in Cleveland. That game began on November 2, went to extra innings after a rain delay, and ended after midnight with an 8 to 7 Cubs win in the 10th inning.
2014: One World Trade Center opens in New York City. The skyscraper stands on the site of the original World Trade Center, much of which was destroyed in the September 11, 2001, attacks. Rising a symbolic 1,776 feet, it became the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.
1998: Batman co-creator Bob Kane dies in Los Angeles at 83. The cartoonist developed Batman with writer Bill Finger, and the character first appeared in a 1939 comic book. The pair also introduced Batman's sidekick, Robin, who went on to become a fixture of the franchise.
1992: Carol Moseley Braun becomes the first African American woman elected to the U.S. Senate. The Illinois Democrat won her seat in the same election that sent Bill Clinton to the White House. She served one term and later became U.S. ambassador to New Zealand.
1992: Bill Clinton is elected president of the United States. The Arkansas governor defeated incumbent George H. W. Bush and independent candidate Ross Perot in a three-way race. Clinton went on to serve two terms.
1978: Dominica gains full independence from Britain. The Caribbean island nation ended its status as a British associated state. Patrick John became its first prime minister.
1973: NASA launches Mariner 10 toward Venus and Mercury. The probe used the gravity of Venus to swing toward Mercury, becoming the first spacecraft to visit that planet. It sent back the first close-up images of Mercury's cratered surface.
1964: Lyndon B. Johnson wins a full term as president. Johnson, who had taken office after the assassination of John F. Kennedy a year earlier, defeated Republican Barry Goldwater in one of the largest landslides in American history.
1957: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2 with a dog named Laika aboard. Laika became the first living creature sent into orbit around Earth. The launch came less than a month after Sputnik 1, and the craft was not designed to return, so Laika did not survive the mission.
1956:The Wizard of Oz airs on television for the first time. The 1939 film was broadcast on CBS to an estimated audience of about 45 million viewers. Repeat broadcasts over the following decades made it a family tradition and one of the most beloved movies ever made.
1916: Eugene O'Neill makes his New York City debut with Bound East for Cardiff. The one-act sea play was staged by the Provincetown Players in Greenwich Village. O'Neill went on to win four Pulitzer Prizes and the Nobel Prize in Literature.
1903: Panama declares its independence from Colombia. A revolutionary junta proclaimed the break with backing from U.S. interests and French engineer Philippe-Jean Bunau-Varilla. The United States quickly recognized the new nation and soon secured the rights to build the Panama Canal.
1793: French feminist Olympe de Gouges is executed by guillotine. A playwright and social reformer, she challenged accepted ideas about women's place as citizens, most famously in her Declaration of the Rights of Woman. She was put to death in Paris during the Reign of Terror.
1783: The Continental Army is disbanded. With the Revolutionary War over and the Treaty of Paris signed that September, most of the army that George Washington had led was formally discharged.
1295: Mahmud Ghazan is formally enthroned as ruler of the Il-Khanate. He became the most prominent of the Il-Khans, the Mongol dynasty that ruled Iran. Ghazan had converted to Islam, and his reign brought major administrative and economic reforms.
Born on This Day
2002: Stephen Sanchez, American pop singer Turns 24. Known for his retro-styled hit “Until I Found You.”
1995: Kendall Jenner, American model and TV personality Turns 31. Rose to fame on Keeping Up with the Kardashians before becoming one of the world's top fashion models.
1994: Ella Mai, English R&B singer Turns 32. Grammy winner best known for the hit “Boo'd Up.”
1987: Colin Kaepernick, American football player Turns 39. Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback who led the team to the Super Bowl and later drew national attention for kneeling during the national anthem.
1987: Elizabeth Smart, American activist Turns 39. Advocate for child safety and crime prevention whose 2002 abduction and rescue drew national attention.
1982: John Shuster, American curler Grew up in Chisholm, Minnesota, and skipped the U.S. team to Olympic gold in 2018.
1973: Mick Thomson, American guitarist Turns 53. Longtime guitarist for the heavy metal band Slipknot.
1962: Gabe Newell, American businessman Turns 64. Co-founder of Valve, the company behind the Half-Life games and the Steam gaming platform.
1957: Dolph Lundgren, Swedish actor Turns 69. Played Ivan Drago in Rocky IV and starred in The Expendables films.
1952: Roseanne Barr, American comedian and actress Turns 74. Star of the hit sitcom Roseanne.
1952: Jim Cummings, American voice actor Turns 74. The longtime voice of Winnie the Pooh and Tigger.
1951: Dwight Evans, American baseball player Gold Glove right fielder who spent most of his career with the Boston Red Sox.
1949: Anna Wintour, British American magazine editor Turns 77. Longtime editor in chief of American Vogue.
1949: Larry Holmes, American boxer Heavyweight champion known as the “Easton Assassin.”
1949: Mike Evans, American actor Played Lionel Jefferson on All in the Family and The Jeffersons and co-created Good Times.
1948: Lulu, Scottish singer and actress Sang the chart-topping “To Sir with Love” and the James Bond theme “The Man with the Golden Gun.”
1930: Lois Smith, American actress Veteran stage and screen actress seen in East of Eden, Twister, and Lady Bird.
1793: Stephen F. Austin, American settler and politician Known as the Father of Texas; the state capital, Austin, is named for him.
