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:
1786 – “The Pittsburgh Gazette” became the first newspaper west of the Alleghenies to be published.
1909 – The newly formed General Motors Corporation (GM) acquired the country’s leading luxury automaker, the Cadillac Automobile Company, for $4.5 million.
1914 – The first transcontinental telephone service began when two people held a conversation between the cities of New York, NY and San Francisco, CA.
1925 – Marvin Pipkin patented the frosted light bulb. He created the bulb to reduce glare.
1938 – The comic strip “Dennis the Menace” debuted.
1950 – Disney’s film adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island” was released.
1953 – The Interstate Highway System was created when the Federal Highway Act authorized the building of more than 42,000 miles of highway.
1957 – Jack Paar began hosting “The Tonight Show” on NBC.
1957 – The NBA’s Pistons move from Fort Wayne, IN to Detroit, MI.
1958 – The United States Congress authorized the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
1974 – A group of investors, headed by Guardian Industries President Bill Davidson, bought the Detroit Pistons for $8.1 million.
1975 – President Gerald R. Ford became the first U.S. president to visit the site of the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz in Poland.
1976 – In New York, NY, David Berkowitz (the “Son of Sam”) killed one person and seriously wounded another in the first of a series of attacks.
1981 – England’s Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer were married at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Over 700 million people watched the wedding on TV.
1983 – The movie “National Lampoon’s Vacation”, starry Chevy Chase, was released in theaters.
1985 – General Motors announced that Spring Hill, TN, would be the home of the new Saturn automobile assembly plant.
1987 – Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream introduced “Cherry Garcia”
1988 – The movie “Cocktail”, starring Tom Cruise, premiered in theaters. Critics hated the movie. It won the Golden Raspberry award for the “Worst Picture” of the year.
1994 – The movie “The Mask”, starring Jim Carrey, premiered in theaters.
1998 – The United Auto Workers union ended a 54-day strike against General Motors. The strike caused General Motors $2.8 billion in lost revenues.
2003 – Boston Red Sox batter Bill Mueller became the first player in major league history to hit grand slams from both sides of the plate in a single game in a 14-7 win at Texas.
2004 – In Chumuckla, Florida, the volunteer firefighters were called to respond to a fire alarm. The building that was on fire was the firehouse. The first firefighter got there soon enough to save two fire trucks, but the rest of the firehouse was lost to the blaze.
2005 – Astronomers announced that they had discovered a new planet named “Xena” that was larger than Pluto in orbit around the sun.
2011 – The 3D live-action/computer-animated comedy movie “The Smurfs” premiered in theaters.
2015 – Microsoft launched Windows 11.
2021 – The International Space Station temporarily spun out of control, moving the ISS 45 degrees out of attitude, following an engine malfunction of Russian module Nauka.
BIRTHDAYS:
Robert Fuller – 90 years old (1933) – Actor (played Dr. Kelly Brackett on TV’s “Emergency!”)
Elizabeth Dole – 87 years old (1936) – Politician, wife of Bob Dole
Neal Doughty – 77 years old (1946) – Keyboardist (REO Speedwagon)
Ken Burns – 70 years old (1953) – Filmmaker (“The Civil War”, “Baseball”, “Jazz”, “The War”, “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea”, “Prohibition”, “The Central Park Five”, “The Roosevelts”)
Geddy Lee – 70 years old (1953) – Lead vocalist, bassist, keyboardist (Rush)
Patti Scialfa – 70 years old (1953) – Singer, guitarist (E Street Band)
Alexandra Paul – 60 years old (1963) – Actress (“Christine”, “8 Million Ways to Die”, “Dragnet”, played Lt. Stephanie Holden on TV’s “Baywatch”)
Martina McBride – 57 years old (1966) – Singer
Wil Wheaton – 51 years old (1972) – Actor (Played Wesley Crusher on TV’s “Star Trek: The Next Generation” also appeared as himself on “The Big Bang Theory”, movies “Stand by Me”, “Toy Soldiers”)
Stephen Dorff – 50 years old (1973) – Actor (“The Power of One”, “Backbeat”, “Somewhere”, “Blade”, “Cecil B. DeMented”, “The Motel Life”, “S.F.W.”, “Space Truckers”)
Wanya Morris – 50 years old (1973) – Singer (Boyz II Men)
Josh Radnor – 49 years old (1974) – Actor (TV’s “How I Met Your Mother”)
TODAY IS:
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.
