Today in History and Celebrity Birthdays

Today in Music History for Feb. 10: In 1939, singer Roberta Flack was born in Asheville, N.C. She had a half-dozen ballad hits in the 1970s, including three No.

Today in Music History for Feb. 12: In 1915, blind hymnwriter Fanny Crosby died at age 95 in New York City. She wrote more than 9,000 texts, including ``Safe in the Arms of Jesus'' and ``Pass Me Not, O Gentle Saviour.

Today in Music History for Feb. 13: In 1867, Johann Strauss first conducted his ``Blue Danube Waltz,'' in Vienna. It is the most famous of the more than 400 waltzes that he composed.

Today in Music History for Feb. 11: In 1881, mezzo-soprano and actress Rosita del Vecchio, known as the Sarah Bernhardt of Canada, died of bronchial pneumonia at the age of 34.

Today in History for Feb. 14: In AD 270 (traditional), Valentine, a priest in Rome during the reign of Claudius II, was beheaded.

Celebrity Birthdays for Jan. 31: Composer Philip Glass is 88. Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, the former queen regent, is 87. Quebec singer-songwriter Claude Gauthier is 86. Bluesman Charlie Musselwhite is 81.

Today in History for Jan. 31: In 1561, Menno Simons, whose followers became known as Mennonites, died. Born in the Netherlands in 1496, he started his religious life as a Catholic priest.

Today in Music History for Jan. 31: In 1797, composer Franz Schubert was born in Vienna. He died in 1828 at the age of 31. Schubert's reputation grew after his death, to the point where is now considered one of the greatest composers of his era.

Celebrity Birthdays for Jan. 30: Actor Gene Hackman is 95. Actress Vanessa Redgrave is 88. Country singer Jeanne Pruett is 88. Chess grandmaster Boris Spassky is 88. Country singer Norma Jean is 87. Horn player William King of The Commodores is 76.

Today in History for Jan. 30: In 1649, King Charles I was beheaded. In 1730, Russian Czar Peter II died of smallpox on his wedding day. In 1868, the Nova Scotia legislature opened its first session.