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1789 - North Carolina ratifies constitution, becomes 12th US state.

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1933 - First US ambassador to USSR, W.C. Bullitt, begins service.

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1941 - Juanita Spellini is first woman executed in California, USA.

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1945 - General Motors' workers go on strike.

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1952 - First US postage stamp in two colors (rotary process) introduced.

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1959 - Jack Benny (violin) and Richard Nixon (piano) play their famed duet.

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1964 - World's longest suspension bridge "Verrazano Narrows" opens (New York City, New York).

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1977 - First flight of the Concorde from London to New York.

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1980 - A fire at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada kills 85 people. The cause is determined to be faulty electrical system on the first floor.

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1986 - US National Security Council member Oliver North and his secretary start shredding documents implicating them in selling weapons to Iran and channeling the proceeds to help fund the Contra rebels in Nicaragua.

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