February 8

February 8 in history:

• 1837, the Senate selected the vice president of the United States, choosing Richard Mentor Johnson after no candidate received a majority of electoral votes

• 1904, the Russo-Japanese War, a conflict over control of Manchuria and Korea, began as Japanese forces attacked Port Arthur

• 1910, the Boy Scouts of America was incorporated

• 1915, D.W. Griffith's groundbreaking and controversial silent movie epic about the Civil War, "The Birth of a Nation," premiered in Los Angeles

• 1924, the first execution by gas in the United States took place at the Nevada State Prison in Carson City as Gee Jon, a Chinese immigrant convicted of murder, was put to death

• 1974, the last three-man crew of the Skylab space station returned to Earth after spending 84 days in space

• 1978, the deliberations of the Senate were broadcast on radio for the first time as members opened debate on the Panama Canal treaties

• 2002, the Taliban's foreign minister (Mullah Abdul Wakil Muttawakil) turned himself in to authorities in Afghanistan

• 2003, Tens of thousands of Venezuelans marched in support of 9,000 oil workers fired for leading a two-month strike against President Hugo Chavez

Birthdays on February 8th

• Seth Green Actor 1974
• Alex Chiu Businessman 1971
• Alonzo Mourning Athlete 1970
• Gary Coleman Actor 1968
• Vince Neil Musician 1961
• John Grisham Writer 1955
• Michael Bergdahl Author 1954
• Mary Steenburgen Actress 1953
• Julia Barr Actress 1949
• Robert Klein Comedian 1942
• Terry Melcher Musician 1942
• Nick Nolte Actor 1941
• Ted Koppel Journalist 1940
• John Williams Composer 1932
• James Dean Actor 1931
• Neal Cassady Writer 1926
• Audrey Meadows Actress 1926
• Jack Lemmon Actor 1925
• Jack Lemon Actor 1925
• Lana Turner Actress 1920
• Elizabeth Bishop Poet 1911
• Jim Fraser Politician 1908
• Edith Evans Actress 1885
• Joseph A. Schumpeter Economist 1883
• Franz Marc Artist 1880
• Martin Buber Philosopher 1878
• Kate Chopin Author 1850
• Dmitri Mendeleev Scientist 1834
• Jules Verne Author 1828
• John A. Logan Soldier 1826
• Henry Walter Bates Environmentalist 1825
• William Tecumseh Sherman Soldier 1820
• John Ruskin Writer 1819
• Eliphas Levi Author 1810
• Robert Burton Writer 1577