Today in History.....February 8

On this day in …

* 1904, the Russo-Japanese War, a conflict over control of Manchuria and Korea, began as Japanese forces attacked Port Arthur

* 1910, the Boy Scouts of America was incorporated

* 1915, D.W. Griffith's groundbreaking as well as controversial silent movie epic about the Civil War, "The Birth of a Nation,"
premiered in Los Angeles

* 1918, "Stars & Stripes," weekly US armed forces newspaper, premiers

* 1922, President Harding had a radio installed in the White House

* 1924, the first execution by gas in the United States took place at the Nevada State Prison in Carson City

* 1974, the three-man crew of the Skylab space station returned to Earth after spending 84 days in space

* 1983, Wayne Gretzky sets NHL all star record for 4 goals in 1 period

* 1993, General Motors sues NBC, alleging that "Dateline NBC"
program had rigged 2 car-truck crashes to show that 1973-87 GM pickups were prone to fires

* 1995, in a ceremony at the Library of Congress, President Clinton signed legislation revamping the telecommunications industry, saying it would "bring the future to our doorstep."

* 2000, a House committee opened hearings into former President Clinton's last-minute pardon of fugitive financier Marc Rich, with former prosecutors complaining that they hadn't been consulted before the pardon was granted

* 2004, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas announced a cease-fire at a summit in Egypt