On this day: August 9
Construction begins on the Leaning Tower of Pisa, a firefighting bear makes his debut, the United States drops the bomb on Japan again, Charles Manson's followers commit mass murder and Nixon resigns, all on this day.
1173: Construction of the campanile of the cathedral of Pisa (now known as the Leaning Tower of Pisa) begins. It will take two centuries to complete.
1173: Construction of the campanile of the cathedral of Pisa (now known as the Leaning Tower of Pisa) begins. It will take two centuries to complete.
1483: Rome's Sistine Chapel opens with the celebration of a Mass.
1854: Henry David Thoreau publishes "Walden," which described his experiences living near Walden Pond in Massachusetts.
1892: Thomas Edison receives a patent for a two-way telegraph.
1927: Actor Robert Shaw ("The Sting," "Jaws") is born in Westhoughton, Lancashire, England.
1930: Betty Boop makes her cartoon debut in "Dizzy Dishes." The character starts out as an anthropomorphic French poodle, as seen here.
1936: Jesse Owens wins his fourth gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Berlin as the United States takes first place in the 400-meter relay. Owens becomes the first American to win four medals in one Olympiad.
1942: Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi is arrested in Bombay by British forces, launching the Quit India Movement, a civil disobedience movement seeking India's immediate independence from Great Britain. Gandhi was held for two years in the Aga Khan Palace in Pune, India, before being released.
1944: The United States Forest Service and the Wartime Advertising Council release posters featuring Smokey Bear for the first time.
1944: Actor Sam Elliott ("Roadhouse," "Tombstone," "The Big Lewbowski") is born in Sacramento, Calif.
1945: Nagasaki is devastated when an atomic bomb, "Fat Man," is dropped by the United States B-29 Bockscar. More than 73,000 people are killed in the bombing, and another 70,000 injured. Japan would surrender six days later.
1957: Actress Melanie Griffith ("Working Girl," "The Bonfire of the Vanities") is born in New York City.
1963: Singer and actress Whitney Houston is born in Newark, N.J.
1964: Former hockey star Brett Hull, who played 19 seasons in the NHL for the Calgary Flames, St. Louis Blues, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings and Phoenix Coyotes, is born in Belleville, Ontario, Canada. He's pictured here in 2005 alongside his father, fellow NHL star Bobby Hull.
1968: Actress Gillian Anderson ("The X-Files") is born in Chicago.
1968: Actor Eric Bana ("Hulk," "Munich," "Troy") is born in Melbourne, Australia.
1969: Followers of Charles Manson murder pregnant actress Sharon Tate (wife of Roman Polanski), coffee heiress Abigail Folger, Polish actor Wojciech Frykowski, men's hairstylist Jay Sebring and recent high-school graduate Steven Parent. Manson and three others are eventually found guilty in the murders, and in the murders the following night of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca, and sentenced to death, although their sentences are later commuted to life in prison.
1974: As a direct result of the Watergate scandal, Richard Nixon becomes the first president of the United States to resign from office. Vice President Gerald Ford is sworn in as the new president.
1985: The movie "Pee-wee's Big Adventure" debuts in theaters.
1988: Wayne Gretzky is traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings in one of the most controversial player transactions in hockey history, upsetting many Canadians.
1988: The Chicago Cubs beat the New York Mets 6-4 in their first official night game at Wrigley Field. The Cubs had attempted to play the first night game at the stadium the night before, but were rained out in the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies.
1995: Grateful Dead co-founder Jerry Garcia dies of a heart attack at the age of 53 in Forest Knolls, Calif.
2003: Actor and dancer Gregory Hines ("Running Scared," "White Nights," "Waiting to Exhale") dies of liver cancer at the age of 57 in Los Angeles.
2004: Terry Nichols is sentenced to 161 consecutive life sentences on state murder charges in the Oklahoma City bombing. In 1997, he had been convicted on federal charges as Timothy McVeigh's accomplice in the bombing.
2008: Actor and comedian Bernie Mac ("The Bernie Mac Show," "Ocean's Eleven") dies from sarcoidosis complicated by pneumonia at the age of 50 in Chicago.
