Today in History: July 1, Medicare program takes effect

Today in History

Today is Saturday, July 1, the 182nd day of 2023. There are 183 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On July 1, 1966, the Medicare federal insurance program went into effect.

On this date:

In 1863, the pivotal, three-day Civil War Battle of Gettysburg, resulting in a Union victory, began in Pennsylvania.

In 1867, Canada became a self-governing dominion of Great Britain as the British North America Act took effect.

In 1903, the first Tour de France began. (It ended on July 19; the winner was Maurice Garin.)

In 1944, delegates from 44 countries began meeting at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, where they agreed to establish the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

In 1963, the U.S. Post Office inaugurated its five-digit ZIP codes.

In 1973, the Drug Enforcement Administration was established.

In 1991, President George H.W. Bush nominated federal appeals court judge Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court, beginning an ultimately successful confirmation process marked by allegations of sexual harassment.

In 1997, Hong Kong reverted to Chinese rule after 156 years as a British colony.

In 2004, actor Marlon Brando died in Los Angeles at age 80.

In 2009, actor Karl Malden, 97, died in Brentwood, California.

In 2015, after more than a half-century of hostility, the United States and Cuba declared they would reopen embassies in each other’s capitals, marking a historic full restoration of diplomatic relations between the Cold War foes.

In 2019, 15-year-old Coco Gauff, the youngest player to qualify at Wimbledon in the professional era, defeated 39-year-old Venus Williams in the first round.

Ten years ago: Ex-convict Nicholas T. Sheley, suspected in eight grisly slayings in two states, was arrested outside a bar in Granite City, Ill. (Sheley is serving multiple life sentences.) The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver agreed to pay $5.5 million to settle 18 more claims by people who said they’d been sexually abused by priests when they were children. Clay Felker, founding editor of New York magazine, died at age 82.

Five years ago: Mexican voters, angry over corruption and violence, elected leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador as president. Canada began imposing tariffs on $12.6 billion in U.S. goods as retaliation for the Trump administration’s new taxes on steel and aluminum imported to the United States. LeBron James announced that he would be signing with the Los Angeles Lakers, leaving Cleveland for the second time in his career.

One year ago: The U.S. announced it would provide Ukraine with $820 million in new military aid, including new surface-to-air missile systems and counter-artillery radars, to respond to Russia’s heavy reliance on long-range strikes in the war. American basketball star Brittney Griner went on trial in Russia after her arrest on charges of possessing cannabis oil while returning to play for a team there, in a case that unfolded amid tense relations between Moscow and Washington. (Griner would be found guilty and sentenced to nine years in prison, but would be released months later in a U.S.-Russia prisoner exchange). Canadian rock legend Randy Bachman was reunited in Tokyo with a cherished guitar, ending a 45-year search after it was stolen from a Toronto hotel.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor-dancer Leslie Caron is 92. Actor Jean Marsh is 89. Actor Jamie Farr is 89. Cookiemaker Wally Amos is 87. Dancer-choreographer Twyla Tharp is 82. Actor Genevieve Bujold is 81. Rock singer-actor Deborah Harry is 78. Movie-TV producer-director Michael Pressman is 73. Actor Daryl Anderson is 72. Actor Trevor Eve is 72. Actor Terrence Mann is 72. Rock singer Fred Schneider (B-52s) is 72. Pop singer Victor Willis (Village People) is 72. Actor-comedian Dan Aykroyd is 71. Actor Lorna Patterson is 67. Actor Alan Ruck is 67. Mystery novelist Louise Penny is 65. R&B singer Evelyn “Champagne” King is 63. Olympic gold medal track star Carl Lewis is 62. Country singer Michelle Wright is 62. Actor Andre Braugher is 61. Actor Dominic Keating is 61. Actor Pamela Anderson is 56. Rock musician Mark Pirro is 53. Rock musician Franny Griffiths (Space) is 53. Actor Henry Simmons is 53. Hip-hop artist Missy Elliott is 52. Actor Julianne Nicholson is 52. Actor Melissa Peterman is 52. Actor/writer Jill Kargman is 49. Rock musician Bryan Devendorf (The National) is 48. Singer/songwriter Sufjan Stevens is 48. Actor Thomas Sadoski is 47. Actor Liv Tyler is 46. Actor Hilarie Burton is 41. Actor Lynsey Bartilson is 40. Actor Lea Seydoux (LEE’-uh say-DOO’) is 38. Actor Evan Ellingson is 35. Actors Andrew and Steven Cavarno are 31. Actor/singer Chloe Bailey is 25. Actor Storm Reid is 20.