On This Day - March 19, 2026

Nevada legalized gambling, setting the stage for “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.”

NBC presents the first televised Academy Awards. Master of Ceremonies, Comedian Bob Hope opened the 25th Oscars at the RKO Pantages Theatre in Hollywood, California. The Greatest Show on Earth directed by Cecil B. DeMille took home Best Picture honors. Best Actor actor went to Gary Cooper for High Noon and Best Actress went to Shirly Booth in Come Back, Little Sheba.

Geraldine Mock departs from Columbus, Ohio in her single-engine Cessna 180 christened the "Spirit of Columbus" in an ambitious adventure. She earned the nickname the "Flying Housewife" and became the first woman to fly around the world solo when she returned to Columbus on April 17, 1964.

C-Span launches and begins broadcasting live from the U.S. House of Representatives.