Today in History - March 5

updated 12:12 a.m. ET March 5, 2007

Today is Monday, March 5, the 64th day of 2007. There are 301 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On March 5, 1946, Winston Churchill delivered his famous “Iron Curtain” speech at Westminster College in Fulton, Mo. Said Churchill: “From Stettin in the Baltic, to Trieste in the Adriatic, an ’iron curtain’ has descended across the continent, allowing police governments to rule Eastern Europe.”

On this date:

In 1770, the Boston Massacre took place as British soldiers who’d been taunted by a crowd of colonists opened fire, killing five people.

In 1849, Zachary Taylor took the oath of office at his presidential inauguration.

In 1868, the Senate was organized into a Court of Impeachment to decide charges against President Andrew Johnson.

In 1933, in German parliamentary elections, the Nazi Party won 44 percent of the vote, enabling it to join with the Nationalists to gain a slender majority in the Reichstag.

In 1953, Soviet dictator Josef Stalin died at age 73 after 29 years in power.

In 1963, country music performers Patsy Cline, “Cowboy” Copas and “Hawkshaw” Hawkins died in a plane crash near Camden, Tenn.

In 1970, a nuclear nonproliferation treaty went into effect after 43 nations ratified it.

In 1977, President Carter took questions from 42 telephone callers in 26 states on a network radio call-in program moderated by Walter Cronkite.

In 1982, comedian John Belushi was found dead of a drug overdose in a rented bungalow in Hollywood, Calif.; he was 33.

In 2004, Martha Stewart was convicted in New York of lying to the government about a stock sale; her ex-stockbroker, Peter Bacanovic, also was found guilty. (Each later received a five-month prison sentence.)

Ten years ago: The Ohio River rose to its highest level in a generation, flooding the Louisville, Ky., area. Tommy Lasorda, Nellie Fox and Willie Wells Sr. were elected to baseball’s Hall of Fame. North and South Korea met for the first time in 25 years to talk peace.

Five years ago: President Bush slapped punishing tariffs of 8 percent to 30 percent on several types of imported steel in an effort to aid the ailing U.S. industry. California Congressman Gary Condit, dogged by the Chandra Levy scandal, lost a Democratic primary election to Dennis Cardoza.

One year ago: AT&T Inc. announced it was buying BellSouth Corp., a big step toward resurrecting the old Ma Bell telephone system. “Crash” won the Best Picture Academy Award in an upset over “Brokeback Mountain”; Philip Seymour Hoffman won Best Actor for “Capote” and Reese Witherspoon won Best Actress for “Walk the Line.”

Today’s Birthdays: Actor James Noble is 85. Actor James B. Sikking is 73. Actor Dean Stockwell is 71. Actor Fred Williamson is

69. Actor Michael Warren is 61. Actor Eddie Hodges is 60. Singer Eddy Grant is 59. Violinist Eugene Fodor is 57. Rock musician Alan Clark (Dire Straits) is 55. Actress-comedian Marsha Warfield is 53. Magician Penn Jillette is 52. Actress Adriana Barraza (“Babel”) is 51. Pop singer Teena Marie is 51. Rock singer Charlie Reid is

45. Rock singer Craig Reid is 45. Rock musician John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 37. Singer Rome is 37. Actor Kevin Connolly is 33. Actress Jolene Blalock is 32. Model Niki Taylor is

32. Actress Eva Mendes is 29. Actor Jake Lloyd is 18.

Thought for Today: “More tears have been shed over men’s lack of manners than their lack of morals.” — Helen Hathaway, American writer (1893-1932).

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