On Valentines Day in...

I know Valentines Day isn't until Sunday but I thought it would be interesting to see what historical events transpired on the day of love and who was born under Cupid's sign. All apologies to any birthdays on the 12th. I know Eddie Robinson was born on the 12th but I'm sure his ghost will understand.

On this day in...
1778 – The United States Flag is formally recognized by a foreign naval vessel for the first time, when French Admiral Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte rendered a nine gun salute to USS Ranger, commanded by John Paul Jones.
1803 – Chief Justice John Marshall declares that any act of U.S. Congress that conflicts with the Constitution is void.
1849 – In New York City, James Knox Polk becomes the first serving President of the United States to have his photograph taken.
1855 – Texas is linked by telegraph to the rest of the United States, with the completion of a connection between New Orleans and Marshall, Texas.
1859 – Oregon is admitted as the 33rd U.S. state.
1876 – Alexander Graham Bell applies for a patent for the telephone, as does Elisha Gray.
1912 – Arizona is admitted as the 48th U.S. state.
1924 – The International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is founded.
1929 – St. Valentine's Day Massacre: Seven people, six of them gangster rivals of Al Capone's gang, are murdered in Chicago, Illinois.
1962 – First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy takes television viewers on a tour of the White House.
2008 – Northern Illinois University shooting: a gunman opened fire in a lecture hall of the DeKalb County, Illinois university resulting in 6 fatalities (including gunman) and 18 injuries.

Births
1894 – Jack Benny, American actor and comedian (d. 1974)
1913 – Mel Allen, American sports reporter (d. 1996)
1913 – Woody Hayes, American college football coach (d. 1987)
1913 – Jimmy Hoffa, American labor union leader (presumed d. 1975)
1921 – Hugh Downs, American television host
1934 – Florence Henderson, American actress
1942 – Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City
1944 – Carl Bernstein, American journalist
1960 – Jim Kelly, American football player
1972 – Rob Thomas, American musician (Matchbox Twenty)
1973 – Steve McNair, American football player (d. 2009)

Pretty good list of Valentines Day birthdays with a dead mobster, a legendary coach, a couple top notch journalists, two AFC QBs and the Brady Bunch mom. Plus Matchbox Twenty frontman Rob Thomas. Here's a muted Rob in a scene from 'Sunny.'