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Today is Thursday, Feb. 7, the 38th day of 2002. There are 327 days left in the year. 

Today’s Highlight in History: 

On Feb. 7, 1964, the Beatles began their first American tour as they arrived at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. 

On this date: 

In 1812, author Charles Dickens was born in Portsmouth, England. 

In 1931, aviator Amelia Earhart married publisher George P. Putnam in Noank, Conn. 

In 1936, President Franklin Roosevelt authorized a flag for the office of the vice president. 

In 1943, the government announced that shoe rationing would go into effect, limiting consumers to buying three pairs per person for the remainder of the year. 

In 1944, during World War II, the Germans launched a counteroffensive at Anzio, Italy. 

In 1948, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower resigned as Army chief of staff; he was succeeded by Gen. Omar Bradley. 

In 1971, women in Switzerland won the right to vote. 

In 1984, space shuttle astronauts Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart went on the first untethered space walk. 

In 1986, Haitian President-for-Life Jean-Claude Duvalier fled his country, ending 28 years of his family’s rule. 

In 1999, Jordan’s King Hussein died of cancer at age 63; he was succeeded by his eldest son, Abdullah. 

Ten years ago: Russian President Boris N. Yeltsin and French President Francois Mitterrand signed a cooperation treaty in Paris. Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson testified at his rape trial in Indianapolis that his accuser, a Miss Black America contestant, had consented to having sex with him. 

Five years ago: The Air Force suspended all its flights in restricted training areas on the East Coast after a pair of close calls between National Guard jets and civilian airliners. Mindful of Russian President Boris Yeltsin’s ailments, President Clinton agreed to shift their March summit meeting from the United States to Helsinki, Finland. 

One year ago: The Senate voted to release $582 million in dues owed the United Nations. The space shuttle Atlantis blasted off on a trip to the international space station. Jean-Bertrand Aristide was sworn in as Haiti’s president. Death claimed singer-actress Dale Evans at age 88 and author Anne Morrow Lindbergh, wife of aviator Charles Lindbergh, at age 94. 

Today’s Birthdays:  

Actor Eddie Bracken is 82. Country singer Wilma Lee Cooper is 81. Author Gay Talese is 70. Blues singer-musician Earl King is 68. Actor Miguel Ferrer (“Crossing Jordan”) is 47. Reggae musician Brian Travers (UB40) is 43. Actor James Spader is 42. Country singer Garth Brooks is 40. Rock musician David Bryan (Bon Jovi) is 40. Comedian Eddie Izzard is 40. Actor-comedian Chris Rock is 36. Actor Jason Gedrick is 35. Actor Ashton Kutcher (“That 70’s Show”) is 24. Actress Tina Majorino is 17.