Today is Wednesday, Oct. 16, the 290th day of 2024. There are 76 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Oct. 16, 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis began as President John F. Kennedy was informed that reconnaissance photographs had revealed the presence of nuclear missile bases in Cuba.

Also on this date:

In 1758, American lexicographer Noah Webster was born in Hartford, Conn.

In 1793, during the French Revolution, Marie Antoinette, the queen of France, was beheaded.

In 1859, radical abolitionist John Brown led a raid on the U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry in what was then a part of western Virginia. (Ten of Brown’s men were killed and five escaped. Brown and six followers were captured; all were executed.)

In 1934, Chinese Communists, under siege by the Nationalists, began their “long march” lasting a year from southeastern to northwestern China.

In 1964, China set off its first atomic bomb, codenamed “596,” on the Lop Nur Test Ground.

In 1968, American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos sparked controversy at the Mexico City Olympics by giving “Black power” salutes during a victory ceremony after they had won gold and bronze medals in the 200-meter race.

In 1978, the College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church chose Cardinal Karol Wojtyla (voy-TEE’-wah) to be the new pope; he took the name John Paul II.

In 1984, Anglican Bishop Desmond Tutu was named winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for his decades of non-violent struggle for racial equality in South Africa.

In 1987, 18-month-old Jessica McClure was pulled from an abandoned well in Midland, Texas, after being stuck there for more than two days. The efforts to rescue “Baby Jessica” captured the attention of the nation.

In 1991, a gunman opened fire at a Luby’s Cafeteria in Killeen, Texas, killing 23 people before taking his own life.

In 1995, the Million Man March, a gathering of Black men meant to foster unity in the face of economic and social issues affecting African Americans, was held in Washington D.C.

In 2017, Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who had been captured and held by the Taliban for five years after walking away from his post in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty to desertion and endangering his comrades.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Fernanda Montenegro is 95. Actor Barry Corbin is 84. Musician Bob Weir is 77. Actor-director Tim Robbins is 66. Rock musician Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 62. Filmmaker Kenneth Lonergan is 62. Actor Terri J. Vaughn is 55. Singer John Mayer is 47. Former WNBA point guard Sue Bird is 44. Actor Caterina Scorsone is 43. Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper is 32. Tennis player Naomi Osaka is 27.