Today is Sunday, May 24, the 144th day of 2026, with 221 to follow.
The moon is waxing. Morning stars are Jupiter, Mars, Neptune and Saturn. Evening stars are Jupiter, Mercury and Venus.
Those born on this date are under the sign of Gemini. They include journalist/revolutionary Jean-Paul Marat in 1743; British Queen Victoria in 1819; U.S. Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Cardozo in 1870; chocolate maker H.B. Reese in 1879; actor Lilli Palmer in 1914; comedian/actor Tommy Chong in 1938 (age 88); musician Bob Dylan in 1941 (age 85); actor Gary Burghoff in 1943 (age 83); musician Patti LaBelle in 1944 (age 82); actor/businesswoman Priscilla Presley in 1945 (age 81); actor Jim Broadbent in 1949 (age 77); actor Alfred Molina in 1953 (age 73); musician Rosanne Cash in 1955 (age 71); actor Kristin Scott Thomas in 1960 (age 66); writer Michael Chabon in 1963 (age 63); actor John C. Reilly in 1965 (age 61); musician/actor Heavy D in 1967; musician Rich Robinson (Black Crowes) in 1969 (age 57); Moldovan President Maia Sandu in 1972 (age 54); actor Dash Mihok in 1974 (age 52); actor Bryan Greenberg in 1978 (age 48); actor Brianne Howey in 1989 (age 37); musician G-Eazy in 1989 (age 37); stock car racer Joey Logano in 1990 (age 36); actor Daisy Edgar-Jones in 1998 (age 28); actor Charlie Plummer in 1999 (age 27).
On this date in history:
In 1844, the first U.S telegraph line was formally opened — between Baltimore and Washington. The first message sent was “What hath God wrought?”
In 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was opened to the public, linking Brooklyn and Manhattan in New York City.
In 1935, the first night game in Major League Baseball was played at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. The Reds beat the Philadelphia Phillies 2-1.
In 1943, Josef Mengele, the so-called “Angel of Death” became the new doctor at the Auschwitz death camp in Poland. He fled Germany at the conclusion of World War II and died in 1979 in Brazil.
In 1958, United Press and the International News Service merged, forming United Press International.
In 1962, Mercury astronaut Scott Carpenter became the second American to orbit Earth, circling it three times. John Glenn was the first, earlier in the year.
In 1983, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled private religious schools that practice racial discrimination aren’t eligible for church-related tax benefits.
In 1987, 250,000 people jammed San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge on its 50th anniversary, temporarily flattening the arched span.
In 1991, Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia after a 30-year war that left hundreds of thousands dead.
In 2007, the U.S. Congress voted to increase the minimum wage for the first time in 10 years — from $5.15 an hour to $7.25 over a three-year period.
In 2018, President Donald Trump posthumously pardoned Jack Johnson, the first black heavyweight boxing champion, for his conviction under a Jim Crow-era law.
In 2022, a mass shooting at a Uvalde, Texas, elementary school left 19 students and two adults dead. Law enforcement officers fatally shot the gunman.
In 2025, Jafar Panahi’s Un Simple Accident won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in France.
A thought for the day: “Comedy is the ultimate truth. Jazz is hitting the notes that no one else would hit, and comedy is saying words that no one else would say.” — Canadian-American actor Tommy Chong