Today is Monday, May 5, the 125th day of 2025 with 240 to follow.
Today is Cinco de Mayo.
The moon is waxing. Morning stars are Mars, Mercury, Saturn and Venus. Evening stars are Jupiter, Mars and Uranus.
Those born on this date are under the sign of Taurus. They include philosopher Soren Kierkegaard in 1813; political theorist Karl Marx in 1818; hatmaker John Stetson in 1830; journalist Nellie Bly in 1864; radio personality Freeman Gosden, Amos of "Amos and Andy," in 1899; chef/cookbook author James Beard in 1903; actor Tyrone Power in 1914; musician/actor Alice Faye in 1915; actor Michael Murphy in 1938 (age 87); actor Lance Henriksen in 1940 (age 85); musician Tammy Wynette in 1942; actor Michael Palin in 1943 (age 82); actor John Rhys-Davies in 1944 (age 81); actor Roger Rees in 1944; writer/TV personality Kurt Loder in 1945 (age 80); musician Bill Ward (Black Sabbath) in 1948 (age 77); actor Richard E. Grant in 1957 (age 68); musician Ian McCulloch (Echo & the Bunnymen) in 1959 (age 66); TV newsman Brian Williams in 1959 (age 66); actor Tina Yothers in 1973 (age 52); actor Vincent Kartheiser in 1979 (age 46); actor Danielle Fishel in 1981 (age 44); actor Henry Cavill in 1983 (age 42); musician Adele in 1988 (age 37); musician Chris Brown in 1989 (age 36); model Hannah Jeter in 1990 (age 35); U.S. figure skater Nathan Chen, first to land six quad jumps in Olympics program, in 1999 (age 26); actor Jenna Davis in 2004 (age 21).
On this date in history:
In 1821, Napoleon Bonaparte died in exile on the island of St. Helena.
In 1847, the American Medical Association was founded in Philadelphia.
In 1862, Mexican troops, outnumbered 3-1, defeated invading French forces of Napoleon III.
In 1925, biology teacher John Scopes was arrested for teaching Darwin's theory of evolution in violation of Tennessee state laws.
In 1930, British and Indian troops were put on alert in the major cities throughout India following the arrest and incarceration of Mahatma Gandhi.
In 1932, Sen. George W. Norris, R-Neb., leader of the western insurgent Republicans, bolted the party and threw his support behind Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt for president.
In 1942, Japanese forces stormed the Philippine island of Corregidor in a bid to capture a strategic access point to Manila Bay. By 9:30 a.m. on May 6, the Japanese had taken control of the island fortress.
In 1945, Elsie Mitchell and five neighborhood children were killed in Lakeview, Ore., when a Japanese balloon they had found in the woods exploded. They were listed as the only known World War II civilian fatalities in the continental United States.
In 1961, astronaut Alan Shepard became the United States' first man in space in a brief sub-orbital flight from Cape Canaveral.
In 1981, imprisoned Irish-Catholic militant Bobby Sands died after refusing food for 66 days in protest of his imprisonment by British authorities as a criminal rather than a political prisoner.
In 1995, a surprise hail storm and flash flooding in Dallas left 17 people dead. It was the worst recorded hail storm in the United States in the 20th century.
In 1996, Jose Maria Aznar became prime minister of Spain.
In 2003, authorities said a two-day wave of tornadoes killed about 40 people in Kansas, Missouri and Tennessee. About 400 tornadoes would go on to strike several Southern states over a nine-day period, killing 42 people and causing nearly $1 billion in damage.
In 2010, Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua died after a long illness and Goodluck Jonathan, the vice president, assumed the presidency.
In 2019, Thailand officially crowned a new king for the first time in nearly 70 decades -- Maha Vajiralongkorn. His reign began Oct. 13, 2016, upon the death of his father, Rama IX.
In 2022, President Joe Biden announced Karine Jean-Pierre would replace Jen Psaki, making her the first Black and first openly LGBTQI White House press secretary in U.S. history.
A thought for the day: "You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist." -- Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi
