Post by Rhonda on Dec 28, 2007 2:55:41 GMT -5
It's...
Bah Humbug Day About This Date
Whether you are sick of the holidays or sorry they are almost over, today is officially Whiner's Day. And nobody was a bigger whiner than Ebenezer Scrooge, so here he is to say...
BAH HUMBUG!
1865
James H. Mason patented the coffee percolator.
1906
The world's first feature film, "The Story of the Kelly Gang," was premiered at the Athenaeum Hall, Melbourne, Australia.
1908
American Jack Johnson became the first black boxer to win the world heavyweight title when he defeated Canadian Tommy Burns in Sydney.
1917
During World War I, the United States government took over operation of the nation's railroads.
1931
At the Music box Theatre in New York City, George Gershwin’s musical, "Of Thee I Sing", opened; becoming the first American musical awarded a Pulitzer Prize.
1939
In New York City, W.C. Handy, of Memphis, Tennessee, one of the most legendary blues composers ever, recorded "St. Louis Blues" with his band for Varsity Records. Handy was among the first to use the flat third and seventh notes, known in the music world as 'blue’ notes, in a composition. The music awards for blues artists’ were named for him, titled, the W.C. Handy National Blues Awards.
1943
The last major German battleship, the Scharnhorst, was sunk by the British Royal Navy.
1947
In New York City, the heaviest snowfall since 1888 hit.
1950
The Gillette Safety Razor Company signed agreements to the rights of the next six years of baseball’s World Series and All-Star games for $6 million dollars.
1954
"The Shadow," one of radio’s most popular programs hit the air for the last time. Since 1903, vigilante crime-fighter Lamont Cranston had fought greed and corruption. “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows.”
1963
Capitol Records rushed to release its first Beatles' single. On February 1, 1964, "I Want to Hold Your Hand", backed by "I Saw Her Standing There", reached #1. The music by John, Paul, George and Ringo started the British Invasion; forever changing contemporary.
1967
The Dave Brubeck Quartet formally broke up after saxophone player Paul Desmond left the group. Desmond had been in the jazz group 16 years and can be heard on all the Brubeck standards, including "Take Five".
1973
Soyuz 13 returned to Earth.
1982
"TIME" magazine's Man of the Year was, for the first time, a non-human. The winner was a computer, honored as 1982’s “greatest influence for good or evil.”
1984
House Speaker Tip O’Neill was chosen as the winner of "TV Guide's" J. Fred Muggs Award, given by for television blunders. The Speaker of the House earned the unwanted prize when he ordered CSPAN cameras to pan the nearly empty House of Representatives while Republicans made rip-roaring speeches. J. Fred Muggs was the rougish, yet cute, chimpanzee that, in the 1950s, wreaked havoc on the "Today" show. The NBC thought the chimp would liven things up for the boring Dave Garroway. Unfortunately, Garroway hated Muggs and the chimp, who knew it, proceeded to terrorize the entire show for a while. When Garroway threatened to quit Muggs was soon history.
1985
Thirteen 8 x 10 drawings from such classic animated movies as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, Bambi, and Dumbo, were stolen from the Walt Disney Studios's Ink and Paint building in California. The cels were valued at $65,000.
1986
"Search for Tomorrow," television's longest-running drama was seen for the final time after 35 years on TV. The CBS program included show veterans, Wayne Rogers, Jill Clayburgh, Morgan Fairchild and Don Knotts.
1989
Romania's National Salvation Front named a new government headed by President Ion Iliescu, a day after announcing the execution of deposed dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.
1990
Romania expelled ex-King Michael only hours after he had returned from exile after 43 years.
1993
Four gunmen vanished into the mountainous wilds of southern Russia with a $10 million ransom after a four-day hostage drama aboard a commandeered helicopter.
1994
French anti-terrorist police stormed a hijacked jet at Marseille, killing all four Islamic fundamentalist hostage-takers and saving the lives of some 170 passengers and crew.
1996
The day after Christmas, 6-year-old beauty pageant winner JonBenet Ramsey was found dead in the cellar of her family's expensive Boulder, Colorado home. The tiny blonde beauty, the youngest child of a former beauty queen and a wealthy computer businessman, was found 8 hours following her mother's early-morning discovery of a handwritten 3-page ransom note, demanding $118,000 for JonBenet's return, spread on a back stairway. There was no sign of forced entry, and the note was block printed in an attempt to alter the handwriting. After more than a year of investigation, Boulder police still had no suspects, and many elements in the case still baffled them. The precocious girl had reigned as National Tiny Miss Beauty, Little Miss Colorado, America's Royale Miss, as well as many other pageant titles.
2002
French Raelian scientist Brigitte Boisselir says Clonaid has delivered the first of a supposed five clone babies through cesarean section.
2003
A strong magnitude 6.6 earthquake devastates southeast Iranian city of Bam, killing tens of thousands and destroying the citadel of Arg-é Bam.
2004
An earthquake measuring 9.3 on the Richter magnitude scale creates a tsunami causing devastation in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, The Maldives and many other areas around the rim of the Indian Ocean, killing more than 300,000.
Birthdays
1893
Mao Tse-Tung [Zedong]
communist-revolutionist d: 1976
1914
Richard Widmark
actor
1921
Steve Allen
comedian, author, musician, composer d: 2000
1927
Alan King [Irwin Kniberg]
comedian, producer, actor
1940
Phil Spector
record company executive, singer, songwriter
1942
Gray Davis
Governor of California
1954
Susan Butcher
dogsled racer
1955
Evan Bayh
U.S. Senator
1975
Marcelo Rios
tennis
MUSIC
1960
Are You Lonesome To-night? - Elvis Presley
Wonderland by Night - Bert Kaempfert
A Thousand Stars - Kathy Young with The Innocents
Wings of a Dove - Ferlin Husky
1968
I Heard It Through the Grapevine - Marvin Gaye
Abraham, Martin & John - Dion
Stormy - Classics IV featuring Dennis Yost
Wichita Lineman - Glen Campbell
1976
Tonight's the Night (Gonna be Alright) - Rod Stewart
You Don't Have to be a Star (To be in My Show) - Marilyn Coo & Billy Davis, Jr.
You Make Me Feel like Dancing - Leo Sayer
Sweet Dreams - Emmylou Harris
1984
Like a Virgin - Madonna
Sea of Love - The Honeydrippers
Cool It Now - New Edition
Why Not Me - The Judds
Today's Quote
The strokes of the pen need deliberation as much as the sword needs swiftness.
— Julia Ward Howe
Bah Humbug Day About This Date
Whether you are sick of the holidays or sorry they are almost over, today is officially Whiner's Day. And nobody was a bigger whiner than Ebenezer Scrooge, so here he is to say...
BAH HUMBUG!
1865
James H. Mason patented the coffee percolator.
1906
The world's first feature film, "The Story of the Kelly Gang," was premiered at the Athenaeum Hall, Melbourne, Australia.
1908
American Jack Johnson became the first black boxer to win the world heavyweight title when he defeated Canadian Tommy Burns in Sydney.
1917
During World War I, the United States government took over operation of the nation's railroads.
1931
At the Music box Theatre in New York City, George Gershwin’s musical, "Of Thee I Sing", opened; becoming the first American musical awarded a Pulitzer Prize.
1939
In New York City, W.C. Handy, of Memphis, Tennessee, one of the most legendary blues composers ever, recorded "St. Louis Blues" with his band for Varsity Records. Handy was among the first to use the flat third and seventh notes, known in the music world as 'blue’ notes, in a composition. The music awards for blues artists’ were named for him, titled, the W.C. Handy National Blues Awards.
1943
The last major German battleship, the Scharnhorst, was sunk by the British Royal Navy.
1947
In New York City, the heaviest snowfall since 1888 hit.
1950
The Gillette Safety Razor Company signed agreements to the rights of the next six years of baseball’s World Series and All-Star games for $6 million dollars.
1954
"The Shadow," one of radio’s most popular programs hit the air for the last time. Since 1903, vigilante crime-fighter Lamont Cranston had fought greed and corruption. “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows.”
1963
Capitol Records rushed to release its first Beatles' single. On February 1, 1964, "I Want to Hold Your Hand", backed by "I Saw Her Standing There", reached #1. The music by John, Paul, George and Ringo started the British Invasion; forever changing contemporary.
1967
The Dave Brubeck Quartet formally broke up after saxophone player Paul Desmond left the group. Desmond had been in the jazz group 16 years and can be heard on all the Brubeck standards, including "Take Five".
1973
Soyuz 13 returned to Earth.
1982
"TIME" magazine's Man of the Year was, for the first time, a non-human. The winner was a computer, honored as 1982’s “greatest influence for good or evil.”
1984
House Speaker Tip O’Neill was chosen as the winner of "TV Guide's" J. Fred Muggs Award, given by for television blunders. The Speaker of the House earned the unwanted prize when he ordered CSPAN cameras to pan the nearly empty House of Representatives while Republicans made rip-roaring speeches. J. Fred Muggs was the rougish, yet cute, chimpanzee that, in the 1950s, wreaked havoc on the "Today" show. The NBC thought the chimp would liven things up for the boring Dave Garroway. Unfortunately, Garroway hated Muggs and the chimp, who knew it, proceeded to terrorize the entire show for a while. When Garroway threatened to quit Muggs was soon history.
1985
Thirteen 8 x 10 drawings from such classic animated movies as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, Bambi, and Dumbo, were stolen from the Walt Disney Studios's Ink and Paint building in California. The cels were valued at $65,000.
1986
"Search for Tomorrow," television's longest-running drama was seen for the final time after 35 years on TV. The CBS program included show veterans, Wayne Rogers, Jill Clayburgh, Morgan Fairchild and Don Knotts.
1989
Romania's National Salvation Front named a new government headed by President Ion Iliescu, a day after announcing the execution of deposed dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.
1990
Romania expelled ex-King Michael only hours after he had returned from exile after 43 years.
1993
Four gunmen vanished into the mountainous wilds of southern Russia with a $10 million ransom after a four-day hostage drama aboard a commandeered helicopter.
1994
French anti-terrorist police stormed a hijacked jet at Marseille, killing all four Islamic fundamentalist hostage-takers and saving the lives of some 170 passengers and crew.
1996
The day after Christmas, 6-year-old beauty pageant winner JonBenet Ramsey was found dead in the cellar of her family's expensive Boulder, Colorado home. The tiny blonde beauty, the youngest child of a former beauty queen and a wealthy computer businessman, was found 8 hours following her mother's early-morning discovery of a handwritten 3-page ransom note, demanding $118,000 for JonBenet's return, spread on a back stairway. There was no sign of forced entry, and the note was block printed in an attempt to alter the handwriting. After more than a year of investigation, Boulder police still had no suspects, and many elements in the case still baffled them. The precocious girl had reigned as National Tiny Miss Beauty, Little Miss Colorado, America's Royale Miss, as well as many other pageant titles.
2002
French Raelian scientist Brigitte Boisselir says Clonaid has delivered the first of a supposed five clone babies through cesarean section.
2003
A strong magnitude 6.6 earthquake devastates southeast Iranian city of Bam, killing tens of thousands and destroying the citadel of Arg-é Bam.
2004
An earthquake measuring 9.3 on the Richter magnitude scale creates a tsunami causing devastation in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, The Maldives and many other areas around the rim of the Indian Ocean, killing more than 300,000.
Birthdays
1893
Mao Tse-Tung [Zedong]
communist-revolutionist d: 1976
1914
Richard Widmark
actor
1921
Steve Allen
comedian, author, musician, composer d: 2000
1927
Alan King [Irwin Kniberg]
comedian, producer, actor
1940
Phil Spector
record company executive, singer, songwriter
1942
Gray Davis
Governor of California
1954
Susan Butcher
dogsled racer
1955
Evan Bayh
U.S. Senator
1975
Marcelo Rios
tennis
MUSIC
1960
Are You Lonesome To-night? - Elvis Presley
Wonderland by Night - Bert Kaempfert
A Thousand Stars - Kathy Young with The Innocents
Wings of a Dove - Ferlin Husky
1968
I Heard It Through the Grapevine - Marvin Gaye
Abraham, Martin & John - Dion
Stormy - Classics IV featuring Dennis Yost
Wichita Lineman - Glen Campbell
1976
Tonight's the Night (Gonna be Alright) - Rod Stewart
You Don't Have to be a Star (To be in My Show) - Marilyn Coo & Billy Davis, Jr.
You Make Me Feel like Dancing - Leo Sayer
Sweet Dreams - Emmylou Harris
1984
Like a Virgin - Madonna
Sea of Love - The Honeydrippers
Cool It Now - New Edition
Why Not Me - The Judds
Today's Quote
The strokes of the pen need deliberation as much as the sword needs swiftness.
— Julia Ward Howe