On this date in history:

(2021) American record producer Phil Spector, who scored a number of hits with his unique take on pop music but who was later convicted of second-degree murder, died at age 80. (2017) American  astronaut Eugene Cernan, the last person to walk on the Moon (1972), died at age 82. (1991) The Persian Gulf War, triggered by Iraq‘s occupation of Kuwait in August 1990, began on this day in 1991 with a U.S.-led air offensive against Iraq that continued until a cease-fire was declared on February 28. (1973) The last episode of Bonanza aired on NBC as the popular western series ended after 14 seasons. (1934) Opera singer Marilyn Horne, an American mezzo-soprano noted for the seamless quality and exceptional range and flexibility of her voice, was born. (1883) The Pendleton Civil Service Act, a bill sponsored by Senator George H. Pendleton of Ohio, established the Civil Service Commission in the United States. (1547) Ivan the Terrible was crowned “tsar and grand prince of all Russia.”