On this day, Oct. 6 ...
2018: In the narrowest Senate confirmation of a Supreme Court justice in nearly a century and a half, Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed by a 50-48 vote; he is sworn in hours later.
Also on this day:
- 1536: English theologian and scholar William Tyndale, who was the first to translate the Bible into Early Modern English, is executed for heresy.
American actor and singer Al Jolson with his wife Ruby after their arrival at Cherbourg Harbour, France, on Aug. 29, 1928. (AP Photo)
- 1927: The era of talking pictures arrives with the opening of "The Jazz Singer" starring Al Jolson, a feature containing both silent and sound-synchronized sequences.
- 1939: In a speech to the Reichstag, German Chancellor Adolf Hitler speaks of his plans to reorder the ethnic layout of Europe — a plan which would entail settling the "Jewish problem."
- 1949: President Harry S. Truman signs the Mutual Defense Assistance Act, providing $1.3 billion in military aid to NATO countries.
- 1958: The nuclear submarine USS Seawolf surfaces after spending 60 days submerged.
- 1973: War erupts in the Middle East as Egypt and Syria launch a surprise attack on Israel during the Yom Kippur holiday.
Pope John Paul II stands on the balcony of the White House with President Jimmy Carter and first lady Rosalynn Carter in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 6, 1979. (AP Photo)
- 1979: Pope John Paul II, on a weeklong U.S. tour, becomes the first pontiff to visit the White House, where he is received by President Jimmy Carter.
- 1981: Egyptian President Anwar Sadat is shot to death by extremists while reviewing a military parade.
- 1989: Actress Bette Davis dies at age 81.
- 2004: The top U.S. arms inspector in Iraq, Charles Duelfer, reports no evidence Saddam Hussein's regime produced weapons of mass destruction after 1991.
- 2014: The Supreme Court unexpectedly clears the way for a dramatic expansion of gay marriage in the United States as it rejected appeals from five states seeking to preserve their bans, effectively making such marriages legal in 30 states.
- 2014: USA Swimming suspends Michael Phelps for six months as a result of the Olympic champion's second DUI arrest.
- 2018: In the narrowest Senate confirmation of a Supreme Court justice in nearly a century and a half, Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed by a 50-48 vote; he is sworn in hours later.
