Way back when: Today in history
BY GENE CURTIS
Sunday, December 30, 2012
12/30/12 at 2:42 AM
1978 - Legendary coach fired
Legendary Ohio State University football coach Woody Hayes was fired for punching a Clemson University player whose interception of a pass in the closing minutes of the Gator Bowl game the day before sealed Clemson's win. The 65-year-old Hayes became a legend by posting 288 career victories to rank fourth on the all-time college coaching list. Charlie Bauman intercepted the Ohio State pass with two minutes left in the game. Hayes grabbed Bauman around the helmet after he was forced out of bounds and struck him three times in the face.
1993 - Israel, Vatican agree
Israel and the Vatican agreed to recognize each other in a search for an end to what Foreign Minister Shimon Peres called 2,000 years of "long, tortuous, painful relations between two great religions." The Vatican agreed to combat anti-Semitism, and Israel agreed to respect Catholic holy places and encourage Christians to visit the Holy Land. The agreement capped a wave of international acceptance of Israel following the collapse of the Soviet bloc beginning in 1989 and opening of U.S.-backed Middle East peace talks in 1991. The Vatican was the 41st state to establish, renew or upgrade relations.
1994 - Clinics attacked
A man dressed in black walked into two abortion clinics in Brookline, Mass., and "just started shooting and shooting and shooting," according to a witness. He used a rifle to kill two receptionists and wound five other employees. A handgun, some ammunition and a store receipt found in a duffel bag left at the second clinic led police to search for John Salvi, 23. Salvi was arrested the next day in Norfolk, Va., and later was sentenced to two life prison terms without possibility of parole.
1996 - India train bombed
An express passenger train loaded with 1,200 travelers headed for New Delhi was blown off the tracks by a bomb a few minutes after it left Gauhati, the state capital of Assam in far eastern India. At least 26 people were killed and dozens were injured by the explosion blamed on Bodo separatists, a rebel tribe in eastern India, although no group had claimed responsibility. The blast derailed the engine and some of the train's 18 coaches and blew apart three coaches that carried 300 passengers.
Associated Images:
Woody Hayes was fired as Ohio State football coach on Dec. 30, 1978, after punching a Clemson player in the closing moments of the Gator Bowl. AP file
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