Magellan and On This Date

On Nov. 28, 1520, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan first passed through South America to the Pacific Ocean

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Celebrity Birthdays for November 28th
The Associated Press

12:01 a.m. EST, November 28, 2010
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Today is Sunday, Nov. 28, the 332nd day of 2010. There are 33 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Nov. 28, 1520, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan reached the Pacific Ocean after passing through the South American strait that now bears his name.

On this date:

In 1859, American author Washington Irving died in present-day Tarrytown, N.Y. at age 76.

In 1885, at the end of the Third Anglo-Burmese War, British troops occupied Mandalay.

In 1909, Sergei Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30 had its world premiere in New York, with Rachmaninoff at the piano.

In 1919, American-born Lady Astor was elected the first female member of the British Parliament.

In 1942, nearly 500 people died in a fire that destroyed the Cocoanut Grove nightclub in Boston.

In 1958, Chad, Gabon and Middle Congo became autonomous republics within the French community.

In 1960, American author Richard Wright ("Native Son") died in Paris at age 52. Mauritania became independent of France.

In 1964, the United States launched the space probe Mariner 4 on a course to Mars.

In 1979, an Air New Zealand DC-10 en route to the South Pole crashed into a mountain in Antarctica, killing all 257 people aboard.

In 1987, a South African Airways Boeing 747 crashed into the Indian Ocean with the loss of all 159 people aboard.

Ten years ago: George W. Bush's lawyers asked the U.S. Supreme Court to bring "legal finality" to the presidential election by ending any further ballot recounts; Al Gore's team countered that the nation's highest court should not interfere in Florida's recount dispute. Former Texas Congressman Henry B. Gonzalez, a Democrat who'd served 37 years on Capitol Hill, died in San Antonio at age 84.

Five years ago: Eight-term Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham pleaded guilty to graft and tearfully resigned; the California Republican had admitted taking $2.4 million in bribes mostly from defense contractors in exchange for government business and other favors. (Cunningham was later sentenced to 8 years in prison.) A corruption scandal brought down the minority government of Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin. A 10-day U.N. Climate Control Conference opened in Montreal.

One year ago: A conservative Iranian legislator warned his country might pull out of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty after a U.N. resolution censuring Tehran. For a second straight day, Tiger Woods was unavailable to speak to the Florida Highway Patrol about an accident involving his SUV that sent him to the hospital with injuries.

Today's Birthdays: Recording executive Berry Gordy Jr. is 81. Former Sen. Gary Hart (D-Colo.) is 74. Singer-songwriter Bruce Channel is 70. Singer Randy Newman is 67. CBS News correspondent Susan Spencer is 64. Movie director Joe Dante is 63. "Late Show" orchestra leader Paul Shaffer is 61. Actor Ed Harris is 60. Former NASA teacher in space Barbara Morgan is 59. Actress S. Epatha (eh-PAY'-thah) Merkerson is 58. Former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff is 57. Country singer Kristine Arnold (Sweethearts of the Rodeo) is 54. Actor Judd Nelson is 51. Movie director Alfonso Cuaron (kwahr-OHN') is 49. Rock musician Matt Cameron is 48. Actress Jane Sibbett is 48. Comedian Jon Stewart is 48. Actress Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon is 44. Rhythm-and-blues singer Dawn Robinson is 42. Hip-hop musician apl.de.ap ( Black Eyed Peas) is 36. Actress Aimee Garcia is 32. Rapper Chamillionaire is 31. Actor Daniel Henney is 31. Rock musician Rostam Batmanglij (bot-man-GLEESH') ( Vampire Weekend) is 27. Actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead is 26. Actress Scarlett Pomers ("Reba") is 22.

Thought for Today: "Happiness is a sort of atmosphere you can live in sometimes when you're lucky. Joy is a light that fills you with hope and faith and love." — Adela Rogers St. Johns, American journalist (1894-1988).