World War II - Rickenbacker's Plane Goes Down October 21, 1942 U.S. Navy pilot Eddie Rickenbacker's plane goes down in the South Pacific. He and two of his crew drifted on a raft for three weeks before they were rescued. Rickenbacker, with 26 aerial victories in World War I and known as "The Ace of Aces", was...

Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash October 20, 1977 Six people die, including three members of the Lynyrd Skynyrd band, when their chartered plane runs out of fuel and crashes in Mississippi. Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines, backup singer Cassie Gaines (Steve's older sister), assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter ...

Luby's Cafeteria Massacre October 16, 1991 George Hennard drives his pick-up truck through the front window of the Luby's Cafeteria in Killeen, Texas and opens fire with semi-automatic weapons killing 23 people and wounding 27 others before killing himself. As he was shooting, he yelled, "All women of Killeen and ...

I Love Lucy (and one of the shrewdest deals in television) October 15, 1951 The I Love Lucy show debuts on CBS TV, starring Lucille Ball. When Ball was offered a TV show she insisted her real-life Cuban husband Desi Arnaz play the part of her husband. The TV executives were reluctant, because they didn't think audience...

President Roosevelt Shot - Gunman Prompted by a Ghost October 14, 1912 Former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt is shot in the chest by John Schrank in Milwaukee. Roosevelt, who served as President from 1901 to 1909, was running for reelection. Schrank claimed that he was told in a dream by the ghost of William McKinle...