Today is Saturday, Oct. 11, the 285th day of 2008. There are 81 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 11, 1968, Apollo 7, the first manned Apollo mission, was launched with astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn F. Eisele and Walter Cunningham aboard.

On this date:

In 1779, Polish nobleman Casimir Pulaski, fighting for American independence, died two days after being wounded during the Revolutionary War Battle of Savannah, Ga.

In 1890, the Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in Washington, D.C.

In 1908, the Chicago Cubs took a 2-0 lead in the World Series, defeating the visiting Detroit Tigers 6-1 at the West Side Grounds.

In 1948, the musical comedy "Where's Charley?," starring Ray Bolger and featuring songs by Frank Loesser, opened on Broadway.

In 1958, the lunar probe Pioneer 1 was launched; it failed to go as far out as planned, fell back to Earth and burned up in the atmosphere.

In 1962, Pope John XXIII convened the first session of the Roman Catholic Church's Second Ecumenical Council, also known as "Vatican 2."

In 1968, the government of Panama was overthrown in a military coup.

In 1983, the last full-fledged hand-cranked telephone system in the United States went out of service as 440 telephone customers in Bryant Pond, Maine, were switched over to direct-dial service. Continued...