Today is Thursday, Aug. 21, the 234th day of 2008. There are 132 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

In the early hours of Aug. 21, 1968, the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact nations began invading Czechoslovakia to crush the "Prague Spring" liberalization drive led by Alexander Dubcek.

On this date:

In 1831, former slave Nat Turner led a violent insurrection in Virginia. (He was later executed.)

In 1858, the first of seven debates between Illinois senatorial contenders Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas took place.

In 1911, Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris. (The painting turned up two years later, in Italy.)

In 1963, martial law was declared in South Vietnam as police and army troops began a crackdown on Buddhist anti-government protesters.

In 1983, Philippine opposition leader Benigno S. Aquino Jr., ending a self-imposed exile in the United States, was shot dead moments after stepping off a plane at Manila International Airport.

In 1991, the hard-line coup against Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev collapsed in the face of a popular uprising led by Russian federation President Boris N. Yeltsin.

Today's Birthdays: Actor-director Melvin Van Peebles is 76. Singer Kenny Rogers is 70. Actor Clarence Williams III is 69. Rock-and-roll musician James Burton is 69. Singer Harold Reid (The Statler Brothers) is 69. Singer Jackie DeShannon is 64. Actress Patty McCormack is 63. Actress Loretta Devine is 59. CBS "Early Show" co-host Harry Smith is 57. Singer Glenn Hughes is 56. Country musician Nick Kane is 54. Actress Kim Cattrall is 52. Rock singer Serj Tankian (System of a Down) is 41. Actress Carrie-Anne Moss is 38. Rock musician Liam Howlett (Prodigy) is 37. Actress Alicia Witt is 33. Singer Kelis is 29. Singer Melissa Schuman is 24. Actor Cody Kasch is 21. Actress Hayden Panettiere is 19. Actor RJ Mitte (TV: "Breaking Bad") is 16.

Thought for Today: "Of course, there are a lot of ways you can treat the blues, but it will still be the blues." -- Count Basie, American bandleader (born this day in 1904, died 1984).