WHAT HAPPENED TODAY IN HISTORY?

JULY 18

Nadia Comaneci became the first gymnastics competitor ever to score a perfect 10 in the Olympics. (1976) The 1976 Olympics were also her first Olympics. She would go on to win many medals before she retired in 1981. She is considered one of the most well-known gymnasts and is credited for helping make the sport popular throughout the world.

The 14th perfect game in Major League Baseball (MLB) history was pitched. (1999) David Cone pitched the historic perfect game for the New York Yankees, playing against the Montreal Expos. Only 20 perfect games have been pitched since the MLB was founded in 1869.

Ty Cobb hit his 4,000th career hit. (1927) Cobb is considered one of the best Major League Baseball players in history, having set 90 league records throughout his career. He still holds the highest career batting average at 0.366. His total career hits, 4,189, remained the record until 1985.

US President Franklin D. Roosevelt was nominated for a third term — a first in US presidential history. (1940) In November of 1941, President Roosevelt became the only president in history to be elected to a third term. He served as the 32nd President of the United States from 1933 to 1945.

An unexpected tsunami killed almost 3,000 people on the coast of Papua New Guinea. (1998) The 59-foot (15-meter) waves were spawned from a magnitude 7.1 earthquake. Two villages, Arop and Warapu, were destroyed.

A gunman entered a McDonald's in San Ysidro, California, and shot and killed 21 people. (1984) In what became known as the "San Ysidro McDonald's massacre," James Oliver Huberty was ultimately shot and killed by police after killing 21 people.

American Actress Rebecca Schaeffer was shot and killed by an obsessed fan. (1989) Schaeffer was murdered by Robert John Bardo, who had been stalking her for three years. Her death led to the first anti-stalking law in the US.

The Boeing 747 airplane got its first female captain. (1984) Beverly Lynn Burns captained her first flight on this day as she flew from New York to Los Angeles. When she retired years later, she had captained for 27 years and clocked more than 25,000 flight hours.

Hitler published Mein Kampf, Volume 1. (1925) Part autobiography and part political manifesto, the book was originally published in two volumes, one in 1925 and one in 1926, and later was combined into one book. By the end of the war, more than 10 million copies were in circulation — including the free copies given to all newly-married couples. It remains a highly controversial book today.

Rome burned to the ground. (64) The fire, which burned for five and half days, destroyed all but four of Rome's 14 districts. Historians aren't certain how the fire got started.