This Week in History, Oct 2 - Oct 8
Oct 02, 1985
Hollywood icon Rock Hudson dies of AIDS at 59, becomes the first major U.S. celebrity to die.
Oct 03, 1995
O.J. Simpson acquitted in brutal 1994 double murder of Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ronald Goldman.
Oct 04, 1957
Soviet Union inaugurates the "Space Age" with its launch of Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite.
Oct 05, 1947
First presidential speech on TV as President Harry Truman (1884-1972) makes the first-ever televised presidential request, asking Americans to cut back on their use of grain in order to help starving Europeans.
Oct 06, 1866
First U.S. train robbery as the Reno gang carries out the first robbery of a moving train in the U.S., making off with over $10,000 from an Ohio & Mississippi train in Jackson County, Indiana
Oct 07, 2003
Arnold Schwarzenegger becomes California governor in the most populous state in the nation with the world's fifth-largest economy. Despite his inexperience, he came out on top in the 11-week campaign.
Oct 08, 1871
Great Chicago Fire begins as flames spark in the barn of Patrick and Catherine O'Leary, igniting a 2-day blaze that kills between 200 and 300 people, destroys 17,450 buildings,leaves 100,000 homeless and causes an estimated $200 million (in 1871 dollars; $3 billion in 2007 dollars) in damages.