WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2013

Today is Wednesday, March 13, the 72nd day of 2013. There are 293 days left in the year.

1519 ― Cortez lands in Mexico

1634 ― Academie Francaise opens

1781 ― Sir William Herschel sees “comet” (really discovered Uranus)

1884 ― U.S. adopts Standard Time

1943 ― Failed assassin attempt on Hitler during Smolensk-Rastenburg flight

1954 ― Viet Minh General Giap opens assault on That Bien Phu

1961 ― Pablo Picasso (79) marries his model Jacqueline Rocque (37)

1965 ― Jeff Beck replaces Eric Clapton of the Yardbirds

1979 ― European Monetary System is established, ECU created

1991 ― Exxon pays $1-billion dollars in fines and cleanup of Valdez oil spill (Prince William Sound, Alas.)