Dean Gooderham Acheson was born on April 11, 1893, in Middletown, Connecticut. Serving in the state department for over a decade, he was influential in many of the United States’ World War II and post-war initiatives, including the Lend-Lease Act, Marshall Plan, and NATO.
On January 27, 1973, the Paris Peace Accords ended US involvement in the Vietnam War. It marked the end of a decade of US presence in Vietnam, though the fighting would continue for two more years.
America’s 36th President, Lyndon Baines Johnson, was born on August 27, 1908, in Stonewall, Texas. President Johnson promoted a “Great Society” and signed many initiatives into law aimed at civil rights, public broadcasting, health, education, the arts, and public services.
On July 18, 1979, the first National POW/MIA Recognition Day was observed. It’s a day to honor past and present POW/MIAs, rededicate efforts to bring them home, and care for the families still waiting on their return home.
Leslie Lynch King Jr., better known as Gerald Rudolph Ford, was born on July 14, 1913, in Omaha, Nebraska. He was the only US president not elected to the presidency or vice presidency.
Leslie Townes “Bob” Hope was born on May 29, 1903, in Eltham, London, England. Hope was the most honored entertainer in history, but his greatest legacy was the gift of laughter he brought to millions of American service men and women stationed far from home.
The fourth USS Yorktown was launched on January 21, 1943. During its more than 25 years of service, the Yorktown participated World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
One of the world’s first female war correspondents, Martha Ellis Gellhorn, was born on November 8, 1908, in St. Louis, Missouri.
Marguerite Higgins Hall was born on September 3, 1920, in Hong Kong, China. A war correspondent for World War II, Korea, and Vietnam, she was the first woman awarded a Pulitzer Prize for international reporting.