TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is Sunday, May 19, the 139th day of 2019. There are 226 days left in the year.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN HISTORY

On May 19, 1649, England was declared a republic by Parliament after the execution of King Charles I. (The monarchy was restored in 1660.)

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS

• PBS newscaster Jim Lehrer is 85. • Rock singer-composer Pete Townshend (The Who) is 74. • Singer-actress Grace Jones is 68. • Race car driver Dario Franchitti is 46. • TV personality Kim Zolciak Biermann (“Real Housewives of Atlanta”) is 41. • Country/rock singer Shooter Jennings is 40. • Actorcomedian Michael Che (“Saturday Night Live”) is 36. • Pop singer Sam Smith is 27. • Actor Nolan Lyons is 18.

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

“The most exciting happiness is the happiness generated by forces beyond your control.” — Ogden Nash, American poet (born in 1902, died this date in 1971).

ON THIS DATE

In 1536, Anne Boleyn, the second wife of England’s King Henry VIII, was beheaded after being convicted of adultery.

In 1962, actress Marilyn Monroe sang “Happy Birthday to You” to President John F. Kennedy during a Democratic fund fundraiser at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

In 1992, in a case that drew much notoriety, Mary Jo Buttafuoco of Massapequa, New York, was shot and seriously wounded by her husband Joey’s teenage lover, Amy Fisher.

In 1994, former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis died in New York at age 64.

In 2017, former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., whose penchant for sexting strangers ended his career, pleaded guilty in Manhattan to a sex charge, tearfully apologizing for communications with a 15-year-old girl. He received a 21-month prison sentence.

In 2018, Britain’s Prince Harry wed American actress Meghan Markle in a service that reflected Harry’s royal heritage and his bride’s biracial roots, as well as their shared commitment to put a more diverse, modern face on the monarchy.