April 16

Scott Winters, Realtor

A quick look at Today in History, check out some Celebrity Birthdays, and find out what Days of the Year to celebrate.

 

TODAY IN HISTORY:

1818 – The U.S. Senate ratified Rush-Bagot amendment to form an unarmed U.S.-Canada border.

1889 – U.S. Patent Number 432,728 was issued for the air-conditioned hat. It was a hat with a wind-up exhaust fan at the back. The fan pulled air in through vents in the front and top of the hat.

1895 – Detroit’s baseball club was called the “Tigers” for the first time in an article by Phil Reed in the Detroit Free Press.

1900 – The first book of postage stamps was issued. The two-cent stamps were available in books of 12, 24 and 48 stamps.

1905 – Andrew Carnegie donated $10,000,000 of personal money to set up the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

1922 – Annie Oakley shot 100 clay targets in a row, to set a women’s record.

1940 – The first no-hit, no-run game to be thrown on an opening day of the major league baseball season was earned by Bob Feller. The Cleveland Indians beat the Chicago White Sox 1-0.

1943 – In Basel, Switzerland, chemist Albert Hoffman accidentally discovered the the hallucinogenic effects of LSD-25 while working on the medicinal value of lysergic acid.

1947 – An explosion on board a freighter in port caused the city of Texas City, TX to catch fire. The blaze killed almost 600 people.

1947 – The Zoomar lens, invented by Dr. Frank Back, was demonstrated in New York, NY. It was the first lens to exhibit zooming effects.

1962 – Walter Cronkite began anchoring TV’s “The CBS Evening News”.

1966 – Sherman Poppen of Muskegon, MI was issued a patent for a “surf-type snow ski”. He called the sport toy a “snurfer”. He sold the idea to Brunswick Corp and it was sold beginning Christmas of 1966. It is considered to be the original snowboard.

1968 – The Pentagon announced that troops would begin coming home from Vietnam.

1968 – Major league baseball’s longest night game was played when the Houston Astros defeated the New York Mets 1-0. The 24 innings took six hours, six minutes to play.

1972 – Apollo 16 blasted off from Cape Canaveral, FL, on a voyage to the Moon. It was the fifth manned Moon landing.

1972 – Two giants pandas, named Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing, arrived in the U.S. from China. They would reside at the National Zoo in Washington, DC.

1985 – Mickey Mantle was reinstated after being banned from baseball for several years.

1987 – The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) sternly warned U.S. radio stations to watch the use of indecent language on the airwaves.

1987 – The U.S. Patent Office began allowing the patenting of new animals created by genetic engineering.

1990 – Dr. Jack Kevorkian participated in his first assisted suicide.

1993 – Two of the four Los Angeles, CA police officers charged with violating Rodney King’s rights are convicted. The other two are acquitted.

1994 – Minnie Pearl and her $1.98 hat entered the National Comedy Hall of Fame. She was the very first female inductee.

1999 – Wayne Gretzky announced his retirement from the National Hockey League.

2001 – A British TV game show called “You Are the Weakest Link” debuted in the U.S.

2007 – In Blacksburg, VA, a student opens fire on the campus of Virginia Tech University, killing 32 and injuring at least 28 people before committing suicide. The gunman is later identified as Cho SeungHui, a student at the school.

 

 

BIRTHDAYS:

Bobby Vinton – 89 years old (1935) – Singer (“Blue Velvet”)

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 77 years old (1947) – Basketball player, actor (“Airplane!”)

Bill Belichick – 72 years old (1952) – NFL Coach (New England Patriots)

Peter Garrett – 71 years old (1953) – Singer (Midnight Oil)

Jay O. Sanders – 71 years old (1953) – Actor (“The Day After Tomorrow”, “Green Lantern”, “Glory”, “JFK”, “Angels in the Outfield”, “Half Nelson”, “Revolutionary Road”)

Ellen Barkin – 70 years old (1954) – Actress (“Eddie and the Cruisers”, “Tender Mercies”, “Sea of Love”, “Ocean’s 13”, “This Boy’s Life”, TV’s “The New Normal”)

Jimmy Osmond – 61 years old (1963) – Singer (The Osmonds), the youngest Osmond

David Pirner – 60 years old (1964) – Lead Vocalist (Soul Asylum)

Jon Cryer – 59 years old (1965) – Actor (“Superman 4: The Quest for Peace”, “Pretty in Pink”, TV’s “Two and a Half Men”)

Martin Lawrence – 59 years old (1965) – Actor, comedian (TV’s “Martin”, movies “Death at a Funeral”, “Wild Hogs”, “National Security”, “Bad Boys”, “Big Momma’s House” and sequels)

Peter Billingsley – 53 years old (1971) – Actor (Played Ralphie in “A Christmas Story”)

Lukas Haas – 48 years old (1976) – Actor (“Lady in White”, “Solarbabies”, “Music Box”)

 

TODAY IS:

National Bean Counter Day

National Eggs Benedict Day

National Healthcare Decisions Day

National Librarian Day

National Orchid Day

National Wear Your Pajamas to Work Day

Save The Elephant Day

World Circus Day

World Voice Day

 

For additional information check out websites like: www.on-this-day.com, www.born-today.com, www.famousbirthdays.com, www.daysoftheyear.com, and www.nationaldaycalendar.com.

My goal is to keep you informed and/or entertained on a regular basis. Maybe you'll learn something new, or just get that much needed laugh. My topics will include a wide range of subjects....from what's going on in the world, to places I've been, things I've seen, or even just a fun video that I've found online. Check back often to see what I've posted.

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