Today in History and Celebrity Birthdays

Celebrity birthdays for Aug. 17: Actor Robert De Niro is 82. Movie director Martha Coolidge is 79. Guitarist Gary Talley of The Box Tops is 78. Actor/screenwriter/producer Julian Fellowes is 76. Actor Robert Joy ("CSI: NY") is 74.

Celebrity birthdays for Aug. 20: Boxing promoter Don King is 94. Jazz drummer Terry Clarke is 81. News anchor Connie Chung is 79. Trombone player Jimmy Pankow of Chicago is 78. Actor Ray Wise ("Reaper," ''Twin Peaks") is 78.

Today in History for Aug. 28: On this date: In 430, St. Augustine of Hippo, the great early Latin Church father and one of the outstanding theological figures of the ages, died at age 76. It was St.

Today in Music History for Aug. 28: In 1948, Danny Seraphine, the original drummer and founding member of "Chicago," was born in the city from which the group takes its name.

Today in Music History for Aug. 30: In 1919, "The Queen of Country Music" Kitty Wells was born Ellen Muriel Deason in Nashville. She took her stage name from an old folk song, "Sweet Kitty Wells.

Today in Music History for Aug. 26: In 1907, the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto opened with the musical revue "Top of the World." It was the world's first fully fireproof theatre and the first to be air-conditioned.

Today in History for Aug. 27: On this date: In 1612, landing in his ship "The Discovery," Captain Thomas Button became the first European to winter in Manitoba. In 1758, Fort Frontenac, now Kingston, Ont., was captured and destroyed by the British.

Today in History for Aug. 30: On this date: In 30 B.C., Cleopatra, the celebrated queen of Egypt, committed suicide. In 1463, King Louis XI died after ruling France for 22 years.

Today in History for Aug. 29: On this date: In 1583, the "Delight," one of Sir Humphrey Gilbert's ships, ran aground and was lost at Sable Island, drowning 85 people, in one of Canada's first marine disasters.

Today in History for Aug. 25: On this date: In 1530, Ivan the Terrible, Czar of Muscovy, was born. He ascended to the Russian throne at the age of three and eventually became the first czar.