Fun On this date in history...

On This Day...

On July 20, 1969, at 10: 56 PM EDT, Neil Armstrong became the first human being to walk on the moon.

 

In 1871, British Columbia entered Confederation as a Canadian province.

In 1885, The Football Association legalized professionalism in association football under pressure from the British Football Association.

In 1938, the U.S. Dept. of Justice filed suit in New York City against the motion picture industry charging violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act in regards to the studio system. The case would eventually result in a break-up of the industry in 1948.

Also in 1938, Dame Diana Rigg was born in Doncaster, England. Younger people should be ashamed of not being aware that there's another team called "The Avengers" and that she was a very active part of it.

In 1944, an attempt by a group of German officials, led by Col. Claus von Stauffenburg, to assassinate Adolf Hitler with a bomb failed as the explosion only wounded the Nazi leader.

In 1945, matte painter Harrison Ellenshaw was born in Harrisburg, PA. He'd later work on the first two films of the STAR WARS OT, as well as several projects for Disney.

In 1968, the first International Special Olympics Summer Games were held at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill, with about 1,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities.

In 1969, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became the second human being to set foot upon the Moon.

In 1973, actor/martial artist Bruce Lee died in Hong Kong at age 32.

In 1976, America's Viking 1 robot spacecraft made a successful, first-ever landing on Mars.

In 1977, a flash flood hit Johnstown, PA, killing 84 people and causing millions of dollars in damages.

In 1999, after 38 years at the bottom of the Atlantic, astronaut Gus Grissom's Liberty Bell 7 Mercury capsule was lifted to the surface.

In 2005, actor James Doohan died Redmond, WA at age 85.

In 2012, a gunman opened fire at a movie premiere of "The Dark Knight Rises" in Aurora, CO, killing at least 12 people and injuring 59 others. James Holmes has been charged with the crime, but has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

In 2014, actor James Garner died in Los Angeles at age 86.

 

July 20, 1993, my first solo flight.

 

One I forgot for July 20:

In 2006, the first Rifftrax commentary was released. It was Mike Nelson's commentary for "Road House", starring Patrick Swayze.

 

On This Day...

Author Ernest Hemingway was born on July 21, 1899.

 

In 1861, during the Civil War, the first Battle of Bull Run, as it was known in the North, was fought at Manassas, VA, resulting in a Confederate victory.

In 1873, at Adair, Iowa, the James-Younger Gang pulled off the first successful train robbery in the American Old West.

In 1902, Willis Carrier created the first air conditioner in Buffalo, NY.

In 1924, actor Don Knotts was born in Morgantown, WV.

In 1925, in Dayton, TN, high school biology teacher John T. Scopes is found guilty of teaching evolution in class and fined $100.

In 1926, actor Bill Pertwee was born in Amersham, England. In his honor, we should all "PUT THAT LIGHT OUT!"

In 1930, President Herbert Hoover signed an executive order establishing the Veterans Administration (later the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs).

In 1944, American forces landed on Guam during World War II, capturing it from the Japanese some three weeks later.

In 1961, Capt. Virgil "Gus" Grissom became the second American to rocket into a sub-orbital pattern around the Earth, flying aboard the Liberty Bell 7.

In 1967, actor Basil Rathbone died in New York City at age 75.

In 1972, the Irish Republican Army carried out 22 bombings in Belfast, Northern Ireland, killing nine people and injuring 130 in what became known as "Bloody Friday."

In 1998, astronaut Alan B. Shepherd, the first American to travel in space and the fifth person to set foot on the Moon, died in Pebble Beach, CA at age 74.

In 2003, set designer Matt Jefferies, best-known for his work on the original "Star Trek" TV series, died at age 81.

In 2004, composer Jerry Goldsmith died in Beverly Hills at age 75.

In 2007, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the fastest-selling novel ever, was published. It sold 15 million copies in the first 24 hours of its release.

In 2009, actor Les Lye died in Ottowa, Canada at age 84. Those of us of a certain age may remember him from "You Can't Do That on Television".

In 2011, NASAs Space Shuttle program ended with the landing of Space Shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-135.

 

Well for next year we can say that we got a new X-Wing.

 

The Sun Also Rises...

 

Old Style.

Happy Birthday, Cargo Chief.

 

On This Day...

On July 22, 1987, Gorbechev indicates a willingness to negotiate a intermediate range nuclear missiles without conditions. That would lead to the INF treaty which banned the whole class of intermediate range nuclear weapons.

 

In 1869, engineer John A. Roebling, best-known as the designer of the Brooklyn Bridge, died in Brooklyn at age 63.

In 1933, Wiley Post became the first person to fly solo around the world traveling 15,596 miles (25,099 km) in seven days, 18 hours and 45 minutes.

In 1934, outside Chicago's Biograph Theater, "Public Enemy No. 1" John Dillinger was mortally wounded by FBI agents.

In 1937, the U.S. Senate voted down President Franklin D. Roosevelt's proposal to add more justices to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1939, actor Terrence Stamp was born in Stepney, England. Both his tenure with the government of Krypton and with the Senate of the Galactic Republic would end poorly.

The question is "Who is Alex Trebek?" The answer is, "He was born in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada on this date in 1940."

In 1942, the systematic deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto began.

In 1943, Allied forces captured the Italian city of Palermo.

In 1944, baseball player Sparky Lyle, currently Manager Emeritus of the Somerset Patriots baseball team, was born in DuBois, PA.

In 1951, aboard a Soviet spacecraft, Dezik (Дезик) and Tsygan (Цыган, "Gypsy") became the first dogs to make a sub-orbital flight.

In 1964, actress/dancer Bonnie Langford was born in Surrey, England. She'd later serve as a Companion to the Sixth and Seventh Doctors, but we're still not sure of how that all started.

In 1967, author/journalist Carl Sandburg died Flat Rock, NC at age 89.

In 2011, Norway was the victim of twin terror attacks, the first being a bomb blast which targeted government buildings in central Oslo, the second being a massacre at a youth camp on the island of Utoya.

 

Also...

On July 22, 1990, cyclist Greg LeMond (cleanly) won the Tour de France for a second time.

On July 22, 1991, infamous cannablistic serial killer Jeffery Dahmer is caught in Milwaukee, when police spot would be victim Tracy Edwards running down the street in handcuffs and subsquent look into Dahmer's appartment lead police to arrest him. He was sentenced to 15 life terms (Wisconsin has no death penalty), but was subsquently killed by fellow inmates in 1994.

On July 22, 2003, former Iraq POW Jessica Lynch recieved a hero's welcome in her West Virginia hometown. That same day, Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Quesay were killed in a firefight with US forces.

 

On This Day...


On July 23, 1984, the first black Miss America, Vanessa Williams resigned her crown as a result of a nude spread in Penthouse magazine. She managed to rebound and eek out a career as an actress and singer, including contributing a song to a Disney soundtrack called "Colors of the Wind."

On July 23, 1996 at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta Georgia, the Women's US Gymanstics Team, on the strength of an injured Kerri Strugs couragous pole vault, won team gold for the very first time.

 

My memory isn't what it was, but I don't think Kerri Strugs did a pole vault.

 

In 1885, Ulysses S. Grant, commanding general of the Union Army and 18th President of the United States, died in Wilton, NY at age 63.

In 1888, author Raymond Chandler was born in Chicago.

In 1914, Austria-Hungary presented a list of demands to Serbia following the killing of Archduke Franz Ferdinand by a Serb assassin; Serbia's refusal to agree to the entire ultimatum led to World War I.

In 1926, Fox Film bought the patents of the Movietone sound system for recording sound onto film.

In 1942, the Treblinka extermination camp was opened.

In 1945, French Marshal Henri Petain, who had headed the Vichy government during World War II, went on trial, charged with treason. (He was convicted and condemned to death, but the sentence was commuted.)

In 1951, Henri Petain died in prison.

In 1967, in Detroit, MI, one of the worst riots in U.S. began on 12th Street in the predominantly African-American inner city. It ultimately killed 43 people, injured 342 and burned about 1,400 buildings.

In 1982, actor Vic Morrow and two child actors, 7-year-old Myca Dinh Le and 6-year-old Renee Shin-Yi Chen, were killed when a helicopter crashed on top of them during filming of a Vietnam War scene for "Twilight Zone: The Movie." (Director John Landis and four associates were later acquitted of manslaughter charges.)

In 1986, Britain's Prince Andrew married Sarah Ferguson at Westminster Abbey in London.

In 2002, actor Leo McKern died in Bath, England at age 82.

In 2012, astronaut Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, died in La Jolla, CA at age 61.

 

On This Day...

On July 24, 1911, the ancient Inca city of Machu Picchu is discovered by archeologist Hiram Bingham

 

In 1862, Martin Van Buren, 8th President of the U.S., died in Kinderhook, NY at age 79.

In 1866, Tennessee became the first state to be readmitted to the Union after the Civil War.

In 1897, aviatrix Amelia Earhart was born in Atchison, KS.

In 1936, actor Mark Goddard was born in Lowell, MA. He'd later be known as part of the command crew of the still-missing Jupiter II mission.

In 1946, comedian Gallagher was born in Fort Bragg, NC. He'd later be known for a serious disagreement with Joel Hodgson.

In 1951, actress Lynda Carter was born in Phoenix, AZ. Her popular tenure as a certain Amazon on TV would occur later.

In 1959, during a visit to Moscow, Vice President Richard Nixon engaged in his famous "Kitchen Debate" with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

In 1969, the Apollo 11 astronauts splashed down safely in the Pacific, then went into quarantine as a precaution against possible infection by Lunar organisms.

In 1974, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that President Richard Nixon had to turn over subpoenaed White House tape recordings to the Watergate special prosecutor.

In 1980, actor Peter Sellers died in London at age 54.

In 1983, George Brett,batting for the Kansas City Royalsagainst the New York Yankees, had a game-winning home run nullified in the "Pine Tar Incident".

In 1998, director Steven Spielberg’s World War II film, "Saving Private Ryan", was released in the U.S.

In 2002, nine coal miners became trapped in a flooded tunnel of the Quecreek Mine in western Pennsylvania; the story ended happily 77 hours later with the rescue of all nine.

In 2013, a high-speed train derailed in Spain whilerounding a curve with an 80 km/h (50 mph) speed limit at 190 km/h (120 mph), killing 78 passengers.

 

I forgot one...

In 1952, the film "High Noon" had it's U.S. premiere in New York City.

 

Another one I forgot yesterday...

In 1996, Trace Beaulieu announced that he was leaving the cast of "Mystery Science Theater 3000".

 

If I may...

ON JULY 25th:

In 1783, the last action of the American Revolution, the Siege of Cuddalore, was ended by a preliminary peace agreement.

In 1915, RFC Captain Lanoe Hawker became the first British military aviator to earn the Victoria Cross, for defeating three German two-seat observation aircraft in one day, over the Western Front.

Also in 1915, aviator Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., was born in Brookline, MA.

In 1917, Sir Robert Borden introduced the first income tax in Canada as a "temporary" measure.

In 1941, cinematographer Peter Suschitzky was born in London. He'd later work on the first sequel to some fairly popular science fantasy movie.

In 1946, at Club 500 in Atlantic City, NJ, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis staged their first show as a comedy team.

in 1956, the Italian liner Andrea Doria collided with the Swedish passenger ship Stockholm off the New England coast late at night and began sinking; at least 51 people were killed.

In 1965, Bob Dylan performed playing an electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival, signaling a major change in folk and rock music.

In 1969, during the Vietnam War, U.S. President Richard Nixon declared the Nixon Doctrine, stating that the United States expected its Asian allies to take care of their own military defense.

In 1978, Louise Brown, the world's first "test tube baby" was born in Oldham, England.

In 1984, Salyut 7 cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya became the first woman to perform a space walk.

In 1985, actor Rock Hudson's publicist confirmed that Hudson had been diagnosed with AIDS.

In 1994, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Jordan's King Hussein signed a declaration at the White House ending their countries' 46-year-old formal state of war.

In 2010, WikiLeakspublished classified documents about the War in Afghanistan, one of the largest information leaks in U.S. military history.

 

On This Day...

On July 26, 1775, the Second Continental Congress establishes the US Postal System, with Ben Franklin as it's first Postmaster General.

On July 26, 1908, the FBI was born under the original name Office of the Chief Examiner.

On July 26, 1931, Grasshoppers bring ruin to the Midwest crops, becoming to one of the events that brought disaster to the reigion.

On July 26, 1943, Rolling Stone lead singer Mick Jagger is born.

On July 26, 1945, Winston Churchill resigns and Prime Minister of the UK.

On July 26, 1998, Three fans were killed and six others injured when debris from a CART racing crash littered the stands at Michigan motor speedway.

 

In 1861, George B. McClellan assumed command of the Army of the Potomac following a disastrous Union defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run (as the battle was called in the Union).

In 1895, actress/comedienne Gracie Allen was born in San Francisco.

In 1909, actress Vivian Vance was born in Cherryvale, KS.

In 1921, author/humorist Jean Shepherd was born in Chicago. Is it too late to set up a 21-BB gun salute in his honor?

In 1928, filmmaker Stanley Kubrick, the director of "2001", among other films, was born in the Bronx.

In 1943, filmmaker Peter Hyams, director of "2010", among other films, was born in New York City. (Coincidence?)

In 1944, the first German V-2 rocket hit the U.K.

In 1947, U.S. President Harry S. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947, creating the Central Intelligence Agency, the Department of Defense, the U.S. Air Force, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the National Security Council.

In 1948, President Truman signed Executive Order 9981, desegregating the U.S. military.

In 1971, Apollo 15, crewed by David R. Scott, Alfred M. Worden and James B. Irwin, was launched.

In 1990, President George Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law.

In 2004, chemist Dr. William A. Mitchell, the key inventor behind Pop Rocks, Tang and Cool Whip, died in Stockton, CA at age 92.

In 2012, actress Mary Tamm died in London at age 62.

 

On This Day...

On July 27, 1974, formal impeachment proceedings against President Richard Nixon begin. Nixon would resign before those preceedings were completed.

 

In 1890, artist Vincent van Gogh shot himself. He would die two days later.

In 1919, the Chicago Race Riot erupted after a racial incident occurred on a South Side beach, leading to 38 fatalities and 537 injuries over a five-day period.

In 1921, Canadian researcher Frederick Banting and his assistant, Charles Best, succeeded in isolating the hormone insulin at the University of Toronto.

In 1922, writer/director/producer Norman Lear was born in New Haven, CT.

In 1940, Bugs Bunny made his official debut when Warner Brothers released the animated short "A Wild Hare."

In 1950, actor Simon Jones was born in Wiltshire, England. He'd later be strongly advised to know where his towel was.

In 1953, fighting in the Korean War ended when the U.S., China, and North Korea signed an armistice agreement. Syngman Rhee, President of South Korea, refused to sign but pledged to observe the armistice.

In 1980, on day 267 of the Iranian hostage crisis, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, the deposed Shah of Iran died at a military hospital outside Cairo, Egypt, at age 60.

In 1981, Adam Walsh, age six, was abducted from a mall in Hollywood, FL, and later found murdered. In the aftermath of the crime, Adam's father, John Walsh, became a leading victims' rights activist and host of the long-running television show "America's Most Wanted".

In 1984, actor James Mason died in Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland at age 75.

In 1988, Frank Zamboni, inventor of the ice resurfacing machine that bears his name, died in Paramount, CA at age 87.

In 1995, the Korean War Veterans Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C.

In 1996, in Atlanta, GA, a pipe bomb exploded at Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 Summer Olympics. One woman was killed, and a cameraman suffered a heart attack fleeing the scene. 111 people were injured.

In 2003, actor/comedian Bob Hope died in Los Angeles at age 100.

In 2012, actor Geoffrey Hughes, best-known to my Mom for playing Onslow on "Keeping Up Appearances", died on the Isle of Wight at age 68.