On November 16, 1973, President Richard Nixon authorizes construction of the Trans Alaska Pipeline System. When completed in 1977, TAPS is one of the longest oil pipelines in the world, connecting the Prudhoe Bay oilfield in the northern region of the state with Port Valdez on the southern coast, via about 800 miles of pipe. Fun fact: the pipeline, which is above ground for almost all of its length, merely sits in its elevated supports and is designed to move and flex with the extreme weather conditions. There are 11 miles of extra line built into the system to allow for this movement.


On November 16, 1532, Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro pulls a dirty trick on Atahualpa. The Incan emperor had just deposed his half-brother Huascar and was in the process of uniting the divided empire. Seizing the opportunity, Pizarro sent an envoy inviting Atahualpa to a massive feast to celebrate his success. Atahualpa arrived with 5,000 unarmed men (he had an army of 80,000 under his command) to be greeted by one of Pizarro's friars, who immediately demanded the emperor swear loyalty to Spanish King Charles V and to convert to Christianity. Atahualpa refused, and the friar gave a hand signal to 200 conquistadors to emerge from hiding and open fire. In less than an hour, Atahualpa's force is decimated and the emperor taken captive. He would capitulate to his captives demands 10 months later, under threat of being burned at the stake. But by then, Pizarro had brought the Incans under his control, Atahualpa was deemed expendable and executed by strangulation.


On November 16, 1945, the U.S. launches Operation Paperclip, the transfer of about 1,600 German scientists and their families to America. Most of the scientists - most notably Werner Von Braun - had been instrumental in developing the German V-1 and V-2 rocket program. The Soviet Union had already been recruiting Germans to jumpstart their rocket program and President Truman approved Operation Paperclip in an effort to keep up. (Werner Von Braun)

On November 17,1777, Congress sends the Articles of Confederation to the states for approval. A border dispute between Virginia and Maryland will delay final ratification for four years, but the Articles will be the new nation's governing document until replaced by the U.S. Constitution in 1789.


On November 17, 1958, the Kingston Trio hits #1 on the Billboard pop chart with "Tom Dooley" a 100-year old folk song memorializing a man wrongfully executed for the death of his fiance'e (true story). "Tom Dooley"'s success gives folk music a legitimate place in the current music scene, paving the way for later commercial successes such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez..


On November 17, 2003, former soldier and Gulf War veteran John Muhammad is convicted in the October 2002 shooting death of Dean Myers. He is one of 13 victims of the suspected "Beltway Sniper", who terrorized the Washington area for 3 weeks, all shot at long range and apparently at random. All were shot with a Bushmaster .223 rifle, the civilian version of the military M-16, a weapon with which Muhammad had qualified as "expert." Ten of the victims died, including Myers, who was shot while pumping gas in Manassas, VA. Muhammad and an accomplice, 17-year old Lee Boyd Malvo, were arrested not far from the scene in a car that had been rigged with a hole in the trunk from which a sniper could shoot. Muhammad, convicted of murder and charges related to domestic terrorism, was executed in March, 2004. Malvo, convicted in a separate trial, was sentenced to life in prison without hope of parole.

Thanks; some days it ain't easy.

I knew either he or Malvo was, couldn't remember which. Thanks!

On November 18, 1626, St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is consecrated. Although not considered the Mother Church or even the Cathedral of the Diocese of Rome (both of these titles go to the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran), St. Peter's is the largest Catholic church in the world, at more than 700 feet in length and almost 500 feet at the tip of the dome. Several Renaissance masters, including Michelangelo, had a hand in its design. St. Peter is supposedly buried directly beneath the high altar and most popes of the last 500 years are buried there.


On November 18, 1477, Dictes and Sayings of the Philosophers, an English translation by Anthony Woodville of an earlier Arabic book, is published. It is believed to be the first book printed in the English language.

On November 18, 2003, American composer and arranger Michael Kamen dies of a heart attack in London. He was 55 years old. Although not many in the record-buying public knew who he was, everyone in the music industry knew Kamen. Highly sought out for his unique orchestral arrangements, Kamen's work appear in as diverse a collection of the industry possible, from Aerosmith to Jim Croce, from Queen to Eric Clapton, from Rush to Herbie Hancock. He co-wrote Bryan Adams hit ballad "Everything I Do (I Do For You), collaborated on Pink Floyd's epic The Wall, and scored dozens of movies, including both the "Die Hard" and Lethal Weapon" franchises. Later in his career, he wrote the score for "Mr. Holland's Opus", leading him to create the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation, which specializes in acquiring and refurbishing old musical instruments for donation to low income area schools.

On November 19, 1983 President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev meet in Geneva, the first summit meeting of American and Soviet heads of state in 8 years. Although nothing of substance comes from the 3-day meeting, the summit sets the table for improved relations between the world's two superpowers.


On November 19, 1703, "The man in the iron mask" dies in France. There is no record of this prisoner's name or crimes, but his imprisonment was likely political in nature, and the most popular theory suggests he was the older, illegitimate brother of King Louis XIV. That theory was first proposed by French writer/philosopher Voltaire, who also created the "iron mask" myth; the prisoner's mask was more likely made of black cloth. More recent research suggests the prisoner was a political dissident named Eustache Dauger. Whoever he was, he was held prisoner by the French government for 34 years, moved from prison to prison (including the Bastille for a time), but always tended by the same jailer, who had instructions to execute the prisoner if he ever spoke about anything but his immediate needs. Dumas would later write of "The man in the iron mask" in his D'Artagnan (The Three Musketeers) series, and he has been portrayed dozens of times in film.


On November 19, 2003, the State of California issues an arrest warrant for Michael Jackson, on charges of child molestation. "The King of Pop" had been under a cloud of suspicion since settling a civil suit for sexual molestation of a juvenile out of court 10 years earlier. That case, combined with taped interviews for a documentary in which Jackson revealed he would occasionally have young boys as overnight visitors to his Neverland Ranch, would lead to criminal charges, 4 counts each of intoxicating and molesting a minor, one count of abduction, and one count of conspiracy to hold a minor and his parents hostage. Ironically, the charges are filed one year to the day after Jackson drew public ire for dangling his infant son out of a Berlin hotel window for the benefit of the paparazzi. Jackson would be acquitted of all counts in 2005.