JULY

July 1

"A Streetcar Named Desire" actor Karl Malden dies at 97.

July 3

Sarah Palin announces she will resign as Alaska governor, effective July 26.

July 4

Former NFL quarterback Steve McNair fatally shot by woman who then kills herself.

Statue of Liberty crown reopens to tourists for first time since Sept. 11, 2001.

Serena Williams beats sister Venus for third Wimbledon title.

July 6

Robert McNamara, Pentagon chief who directed escalation of Vietnam War despite private doubts, dies at 93.

July 8

Leaders of world's richest countries pledge to dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

South Korea blames North Korea for cyber attacks targeting Web sites in U.S. and South Korea.

July 13

German prosecutors formally charge retired U.S. auto worker John Demjanjuk with 27,900 counts of accessory to murder.

July 17

Walter Cronkite, premier TV anchorman of networks' golden age, dies at 92.

July 22

Obama says police "acted stupidly" in arresting Henry Louis Gates when the black Harvard University scholar was locked of his home.

July 23

Search warrant says Michael Jackson's personal doctor is target of manslaughter probe.

More than 40 New Jersey leaders are arrested in corruption probe.

July 26

Mother drives wrong way on New York highway and crashes into SUV, killing eight people. Toxicology tests show she was drunk and had used marijuana.

July 29

Microsoft and Yahoo announce Internet search partnership.

July 30

Harvard scholar Gates and the officer who arrested him, Sgt. James Crowley, have beers with Obama and Vice President Joe Biden at White House.

July 31

Three Americans jailed in Iran after crossing border from Iraq and later accused of espionage.

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AUGUST

Aug. 4

Gunman kills three women and himself in suburban Pittsburgh health club. Diary mentions decades of rejection by women.

Aug. 5

Former President Bill Clinton brings home two U.S. journalists after they were pardoned for entering North Korea illegally.

Aug. 6

Sonia Sotomayor confirmed as first Hispanic Supreme Court justice.

John Hughes, director of "Sixteen Candles" and "The Breakfast Club," dies at 59.

Aug. 7

Leader of Pakistan's Taliban, Baitullah Mehsud, dies in CIA missile strike.

Aug. 8

Small plane, helicopter carrying Italian tourists collide above Hudson River, killing all nine people aboard both.

Aug. 11

Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver dies at 88.

Aug. 13

Philadelphia Eagles sign Michael Vick to a one-year deal, prompting criticism from animal rights activists.

Aug. 17