Today in the SCV

PFLAG meeting at St. Stephens
Join PFLAG (Parents & family of Lesbians and Gays) SCV monthly meeting will be held 7-8:30 p.m. at St. Stephens Church, Valencia. Info: 661-254-2177

Signal tip line
 
Got a news tip? Call The Signal’s tip line: 661-255-1234.
Want your event listed? Email calendar@signalscv.com with your event’s details. Include the time, date, location and contact information with your submission. To have your item viewed immediately online, post it to the community portion of Signalscv.com.

Today in history

Today is Wednesday, Feb. 27, the 58th day of 2013. There are 307 days left in the year.

On this date in the SCV: On this day in 2001, City Council voted 3-2 to close the public road between Valley Street and Calgrove Boulevard.

Today’s Highlight in History: On Feb. 27, 1933, Germany’s parliament building, the Reichstag was gutted by fire. Chancellor Adolf Hitler, blaming the Communists, used the fire as justification for suspending civil liberties.

Ten years ago: The Bush administration lowered the national terror alert from orange to yellow. Iraq agreed in principle to destroy its Al Samoud II missiles, two days before a U.N. deadline. Former Bosnian Serb leader Biljana Plavsic was sentenced by the U.N. tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, to eleven years in prison for war crimes. (She was released in 2009.) Children’s television host Fred Rogers died in Pittsburgh at age 74.

Five years ago: William F. Buckley Jr., the author and conservative commentator, was found dead at his home in Stamford, Conn.; he was 82. Civil rights leader John Lewis dropped his support for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton in favor of Barack Obama. A judge in Canton, Ohio, sentenced former police officer Bobby Cutts Jr. to life in prison with a chance of parole after 57 years for killing his pregnant lover, Jessie Davis, and their unborn child.

One year ago: President Barack Obama urged the nation’s governors at the White House to invest more state resources in education, saying a highly skilled workforce was crucial for the U.S. to remain competitive with other countries. Three students were shot to death in a Chardon, Ohio, high school cafeteria, allegedly by a 17-year-old who was charged with aggravated murder. Matt Kenseth won his second Daytona 500, holding off Dale Earnhardt Jr. a day after rain had postponed the race for the first time in its 54-year history from Sunday to Monday.

Birthdays

Actress Joanne Woodward is 83. Consumer advocate Ralph Nader is 79. Actor Howard Hesseman is 73. Actress Debra Monk is 64. Rock singer-musician Neal Schon (Journey) is 59. Rock musician Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden) is 56. Country singer Johnny Van Zant (Van Zant) is 53. Rock musician Leon Mobley (Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals) is 52. Basketball Hall-of-Famer James Worthy is 52. Actor Adam Baldwin is 51. Rhythm-and-blues singer Chilli (TLC) is 42. Actor Brandon Beemer is 33. Chelsea Clinton is 33. Rhythm-and-blues singer Bobby Valentino is 33. Singer Josh Groban is 32. Rock musician Jared Champion (Cage the Elephant) is 30. Actress Kate Mara is 30.