Fun On this date in history...

17/7/1717 GF Handel premiered his Water Music in a command performance for King George I in party barges on the Thames River.

 

Disneyland opened its door for the first time 62 years ago

 

If I may...

ALSO ON JULY 17th:

In 1821, Spain ceded Florida to the United States.

In 1889, lawyer/author Earle Stanley Gardner, the creator of Perry Mason, was born in Malden, MA.

In 1899, actor/singer/dancer James Cagney was born in New York City.

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

In 1917, during World War I, the British royal family adopted the name "Windsor," replacing the German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

In 1918, Russia's Czar Nicholas II and his family were executed by the Bolsheviks.

In 1928, musician/singer/composer Vince Guaraldi was born in San Francisco. His association with the round-headed kid and his friends would come later.

In 1934, actor Donald Sutherland was born in St. John, New Brunswick, Canada.

In 1935, the entertainment trade publication “Variety” ran its legendary headline, "Sticks Nix Hix Pix" (which might be translated as, "Rural audiences reject rural-themed movies").

In 1936, the Spanish Civil War began as right-wing army generals launched a coup attempt against the Second Spanish Republic.

In 1938, Douglas Corrigan took off from Brooklyn to fly the "wrong way" to Ireland and becomes known as "Wrong Way" Corrigan.

In 1940, actor/Goodie Tim Brooke-Taylor was born in Buxton, Derbyshire, England.

In 1941, the longest hitting streak in baseball history ended when the Cleveland Indians pitchers held New York Yankee Joe DiMaggio hitless for the first time in 57 games. The streak had begun on May 15, 1941.

In 1944, during World War II, 320 men, two-thirds of them African-Americans, were killed when a pair of ammunition ships exploded at the Port Chicago Naval Magazine in California.

Also in 1944, actress Catherine Schell was born in Budapest, Hungary. Any Whovians having information on her involvement in the theft of the Mona Lisa are urged to contact the French police immediately.

In 1945, following Nazi Germany's surrender, President Harry S. Truman, Soviet leader Josef Stalin and British Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill began meeting at Potsdam in the final Allied summit of World War II.

In 1954, writer/producer J. Michael Straczynski, best-known for creating the “Babylon 5” TV series, was born in Paterson, NJ.

In 1956, the musical comedy “High Society” was released in the U.S. It starred Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Grace Kelly.

In 1959, the Hitchcock thriller “North by Northwest”, starring Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint, premiered in Los Angeles.

In 1959, the comedy “The Mouse that Roared”, starring Peter Sellers, Peter Sellers and Peter Sellers, was released in the UK.

Also in 1968, the animated movie “Yellow Submarine”, starring the Beatles, premiered in the U.K.

In 1971, the monster movie “Gamera tai Shinkai kaiju Jigura” was released in Japan. Retitled “Gamera vs. Zigra”, it would be the last Gamera movie (to date) to be MSTed.

In 1975, during the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, Apollo CSM-111 and Soyuz 19 docked in orbit in the first superpower link-up of its kind. Three hours after docking, mission commanders Thomas P. Stafford and Alexey Leonov historically shook hands.

In 1976, the Summer Olympic Games opened in Montreal, with 25 African teams boycotting the games because of New Zealand’s participation.

In 1979, Nicaraguan dictator General Anastasio Somoza Debayle resigned and fled to Miami, FL.

In 1981, 114 people were killed when a pair of suspended walkways above the lobby of the Kansas City Hyatt Regency Hotel collapsed during a tea dance.

In 1996, TWA Flight 800, a Europe-bound Boeing 747, exploded and crashed off Long Island, NY, shortly after leaving John F. Kennedy International Airport, killing all 230 people aboard.

In 1998, Nicholas II, last of the Romanov czars, was formally buried in Russia 80 years after he and his family were slain by the Bolsheviks.

In 2009, journalist Walter Cronkite died in New York City at age 92.

In 2014, Eric Garner, an unarmed black man accused of selling loose, untaxed cigarettes, died shortly after being wrestled to the ground by New York City police officers.

Also in 2014, all 298 passengers and crew aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 were killed when the Boeing 777 was shot down over rebel-held eastern Ukraine; both Ukraine's government and pro-Russian separatists have denied responsibility for downing the aircraft.

In 2016, three police officers were killed and several others wounded by a lone gunman in Baton Rouge, LA.

 

If I may...

ON JULY 18th:

In A.D. 64, the Great Fire of Rome began, consuming most of the city for about a week. (Some blamed the fire on Emperor Nero, who in turn blamed Christians.)

In 1863, during the Second Battle of Fort Wagner, one of the first formal African American military units, the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, supported by several white regiments, attempted an unsuccessful assault on Confederate-held Battery Wagner.

In 1870, The First Vatican Council decreed the dogma of papal infallibility.

In 1872, Britain enacted voting by secret ballot.

In 1908, musician/composer Barry Gray was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, England. He’s best-known for his work on several projects from producers Gerry & Sylvia Anderson.

In 1913, actor/announcer/voice artist Marvin Miller was born in St. Louis, MO. He’s best-known for the on-screen role of Michael Anthony in “The Millionaire”, and for providing the voice of Robby the Robot.

Also in 1913, entertainer Red Skelton was born in Vincennes, IN.

In 1921, aviator/astronaut/politician John Glenn was born in Cambridge, OH.

In 1925, Adolf Hitler published the first volume of his autobiographical screed, "Mein Kampf (My Struggle)."

In 1930, actor Burt Kwouk, OBE was born in Warrington, Lancashire, England. His employment with Clouseau would come later.

In 1932, the United States and Canada signed a treaty to develop the St. Lawrence Seaway.

In 1938, filmmaker Paul Verhoeven was born in Amsterdam in the Netherlands.

In 1944, Hideki Tojo was removed as Japanese premier and war minister because of setbacks suffered by his country in World War II.

Also in 1944, American forces in France captured the Normandy town of St. Lo.

In 1947, President Harry S. Truman signed a Presidential Succession Act which placed the speaker of the House and the Senate president pro tempore next in the line of succession after the vice president.

In 1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Soviet Premier Nikolai Bulganin, British Prime Minister Anthony Eden and French Premier Edgar Faure met for a summit in Geneva.

In 1960, the William Castle horror movie “13 Ghosts” premiered in Toronto. The gimmick was “Illusion-O”, requiring a special viewer to see the ghosts.

In 1966, Gemini 10, crewed by John W. Young and Michael Collins, was launched from Cape Kennedy on a 70-hour mission that included docking with an orbiting Agena target vehicle.

In 1967, the crime drama “Bonnie and Clyde”, starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, premiered in London.

In 1969, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy left a party on Chappaquiddick Island near Martha's Vineyard with Mary Jo Kopechne, age 28; some time later, Kennedy's car went off a bridge into the water. (Kennedy was able to escape, but Kopechne drowned.)

In 1974, the U.S. Justice Department ordered that John Lennon be deported. (A federal appeals court overturned the deportation order in 1975, and the following year, Lennon was granted permanent U.S. residency.)

In 1976, at the Montreal Olympics, Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci received the first-ever perfect score of 10 with her routine on uneven parallel bars. (Comaneci would go on to receive six more 10s at Montreal.)

In 1986, the sci-fi/horror sequel “Aliens” was released in the U.S.

In 1984, a gunman opened fire at a McDonald's fast food restaurant in San Ysidro, CA, killing 21 people before being shot dead by police.

Also in 1984, Walter F. Mondale won the Democratic presidential nomination in San Francisco.

In 1989, actress Rebecca Schaeffer, age 21, was shot to death at her Los Angeles home by an obsessed fan, who was later sentenced to life in prison.

In 1996, storms provoked severe flooding on the Saguenay River, beginning one of Quebec's costliest natural disasters.

In 1998, on “Mystery Science Theater 3000”, the monster movie “Gorgo” was broadcast on the Sci-Fi Channel. (Due to a broadcast rights dispute, the episode was aired twice that day, then was pulled formal circulation. It was finally released on DVD in 2013.)

In 2004, filming began in Cardiff on “Rose”, first episode of revived “Doctor Who” series.

In 2005, Eric Rudolph was sentenced in Birmingham, AL to life in prison for an abortion clinic bombing that killed an off-duty police officer and seriously wounded a nurse.

In 2013, the government of Detroit, MI, with up to $20 billion in debt, filed for the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history.

 

Um... that VW ad must have gone over like a fart in a space suit.

 

That's a parody ad from "National Lampoon", published around the time of the incident. Reportedly, while there was some measure of controversy, Kennedy didn't sue. However, VW did, for unauthorized use of its trademark.

 

Thank you. I thought that was really pushing it, albeit in a darkly humorous way. Interesting about VW...

and today, 41 years ago (though that might be much further back in Dark Dimension years),

Benedict Cumberbatch; the internet's favorite Sherlockian Sorcerer, was born.

 

If I may...

ON JULY 19th:

In 1553, King Henry VIII's daughter Mary was proclaimed Queen of England after pretender Lady Jane Grey was deposed.

In 1832, The British Medical Association was founded as the Provincial Medical and Surgical Association by Sir Charles Hastings at a meeting in the Board Room of the Worcester Infirmary.

In 1848, a two-day women's rights convention convened in Seneca Falls, NY.

In 1883, producer/director/animator Max Fleischer was born in Krakow, Austria-Hungary. He and his brothers Dave and Lou formed Fleischer Studios, best-known for the Popeye and Superman cartoon series.

In 1903, the first Tour de France was won by Maurice Garin.

In 1924, producer/director/writer Arthur Rankin, Jr. was born in New York City. He’s best-known for co-founding Rankin/Bass Productions, and providing some of the best-known TV specials for the Holiday season.

In 1944, the Democratic national convention convened in Chicago with the renomination of President Franklin D. Roosevelt considered a certainty.

In 1952, the Summer Olympics opened in Helsinki, Finland.

In 1961, the sci-fi movie “Uchu Kaisoku-sen” was released in Japan. Under the title “Invasion of the Neptune Men”, it would later cause Mike & the ‘bots a great deal of cinematic pain..

In 1965, the first president of South Korea, Syngman Rhee, died in Honolulu.

Also in 1965, filming began on “Where No Man Has Gone Before”, the second pilot episode for the original series “Star Trek”.

In 1977, the world's first Global Positioning System (GPS) signal was transmitted from Navigation Technology Satellite 2 (NTS-2) and received at RockwellCollins in Cedar Rapids, IA, at 12:41 a.m. Eastern time (ET).

In 1979, the Nicaraguan capital of Managua fell to Sandinista guerrillas, two days after President Anastasio Somoza fled the country.

In 1980, the Moscow Summer Olympics began, minus dozens of nations that were boycotting the games because of the Soviet military intervention in Afghanistan.

In 1984, U.S. Rep. Geraldine A. Ferraro of New York won the Democratic nomination for vice president by acclamation at the party's convention in San Francisco.

In 1985, Christa McAuliffe of New Hampshire was chosen to be the first schoolteacher to ride aboard the space shuttle. (McAuliffe and six other crew members died when the Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff in January 1986.)

In 1989, 111 people were killed when United Air Lines Flight 232, a DC-10 which suffered the uncontained failure of its tail engine and the loss of hydraulic systems, crashed while making an emergency landing at Sioux City, IA; 185 other people survived.

In 1990, President George H.W. Bush joined former presidents Ronald Reagan, Gerald R. Ford and Richard M. Nixon at ceremonies dedicating the Nixon Library and Birthplace (since redesignated the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum) in Yorba Linda, CA.

In 2016, at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, OH, Donald Trump was nominated as the Republican candidate for the 2016 Presidential Election.

 

If I may...

ON JULY 20th:

In1859, Brooklyn and New York played baseball at Fashion Park Race Course on Long Island, NY. The game marked the first time that admission was charged to see a ball game. It cost $.50 to get in and the players on the field did not receive a salary.

In 1861, the Congress of the Confederate States convened in Richmond, VA.

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

In 1903, The Ford Motor Company shipped its first car.

In 1917, the World War I draft lottery went into operation.

In 1923, Mexican revolutionary leader Pancho Villa was assassinated by gunmen in Parral.

In 1931, actor/voice artist Roy Skelton was born in Oldham, England. He’s best-known for his work on “Doctor Who”, providing the voices of the Daleks and the Cybermen.

In 1932, in Washington, D.C., police fired tear gas on World War I veterans, part of the Bonus Expeditionary Force, who attempted to march to the White House.

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, DBE was born in Doncaster, Yorkshire, England.

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

In 1946, the Daffy Duck cartoon “The Great Piggy Bank Robbery” was released in the U.S

In 1950, the first chapter of the movie serial “Atom Man vs. Superman” was released in the U.S. It featured Kirk Alyn as Clark Kent/Superman and Lyle Talbot as Lex Luthor (the first time the character was portrayed on-screen).

In 1954, the Geneva Accords divided Vietnam into northern and southern entities.

Also 1954, Elvis Presley, Scotty Moore and Bill Black performed in public for the first time, billing themselves as the Blue Moon Boys. They performed at the opening of a new drugstore in Memphis.

In 1960, the Polaris missile was successfully launched from a submarine, the USS George Washington, for the first time.

Also in 1960, the comedy “The Bellboy”, starring, written and directed by Jerry Lewis, was released in the U.S.

In 1968, the first International Special Olympics Summer Games, organized by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, were held at Soldier Field in Chicago.

In 1969, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became the first men to walk on the Moon after reaching the surface at the Sea of Tranquility in their Apollo 11 lunar module, Eagle.

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

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

In 1982, the Provisional IRA detonated two bombs in Hyde Park and Regent’s Park in central London, killing eight soldiers, wounding forty-seven people, and leading to the deaths of seven horses.

In 1997, the fully restored USS Constitution (a.k.a. Old Ironsides) celebrates its 200th birthday by setting sail for the first time in 116 years.

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

In 2006, Rifftrax released its first commentary. It featured Mike Nelson riffing on the Patrick Swayze action movie “Road House”.

In 2012, a gunman opened fire inside a crowded movie theater in Aurora, CO, during a midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises," killing 12 people and injuring 70 others. (In 2015, James Eagan Holmes was found guilty on 165 counts, including first degree murder and attempted first degree murder.)

In 2015, the U.S. and Cuba resumed full diplomatic relations after five decades.

In 2017, O.J. Simpson was granted parole to be released from prison after serving nine years of a 33 year sentence after being convicted of armed robbery in Las Vegas.

 

If I may...

ON JULY 21st:

In 1773, Pope Clement XIV issued an order suppressing the Society of Jesus, or Jesuits. (The Society was restored by Pope Pius VII in 1814.)

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

In 1865, in the market square of Springfield, MO, Wild Bill Hickock shot and killed Davis Tutt in what is regarded as the first western showdown.

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

In 1904, Louis Rigolly, a Frenchman, becomes the first man to break the 100 mph (161 km/h) barrier on land. He drove a 15-liter Gobron-Brillie in Ostend, Belgium.

In 1924, actor Don Knotts was born in Morgantown, VW. He’d be issued his single bullet later on.

In 1925, the so-called "Monkey Trial" ended in Dayton, Tennessee, with John T. Scopes found guilty of violating state law for teaching Darwin's Theory of Evolution. (The conviction was later overturned on a technicality.)

Also in 1925, Sir Malcolm Campbell became the first man to break the 150 mph (241 km/h) land barrier at Pendine Sands in Wales. He drove a Sunbeam at a two-way average speed of 150.33 mph (242 km/h).

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

Also in 1944, Claus von Stauffenberg and fellow conspirators were executed in Berlin, Germany, for the July 20 plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

In addition in 1944, the Democratic national convention in Chicago nominated Sen. Harry S. Truman to be vice president.

In 1949, the U.S. Senate ratified the North Atlantic Treaty.

In 1951, actor/comedian/voice artist/writer/producer Robin Williams was born in Chicago.

In 1955, during a summit in Geneva, President Dwight D. Eisenhower presented his "open skies" proposal under which the U.S. and the Soviet Union would trade information on each other's military facilities and allow aerial reconnaissance. (The Soviets rejected the proposal.)

In 1957, Althea Gibson became the first black woman to win a major U.S. tennis title when she won the Women’s National clay-court singles competition.

In 1959, the NS Savannah, the first nuclear-powered merchant ship, was christened by first lady Mamie Eisenhower at Camden, NJ.

Also in 1959, Elijah Jerry “Pumpsie” Green became the first African-American to play for the Boston Red Sox, the last MLB team to integrate.

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. However, due to a faulty hatch, the capsule filled up with seawater and sank soon after splashdown.

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 1973, Israeli agents in Lillehammer, Norway, killed Ahmed Bouchikhi, a Moroccan waiter, in a case of mistaken identity, apparently thinking he was an official with Black September, the group that attacked Israel's delegation at the 1972 Munich Olympics and killed 11 athletes.

In 1976, the Western “The Shootist” premiered in Los Angeles. It would be John Wayne’s last movie.

In 1980, draft registration began in the United States for 19- and 20-year-old men.

In 1990, a benefit concert took place in Germany at the site of the fallen Berlin Wall; the concert, which drew some 200,000 people, was headlined by Roger Waters, a founder of Pink Floyd. (The concert ended with the collapse of a mock Berlin Wall made of styrofoam.)

In 1995, actor Michael Wisher died in Dacorum, Hertfordshire, England at age 60. He’s best-known to Whovians as the first actor to play Davros, creator of the Daleks.

In 1997, the action movie “Air Force One”, starring Harrison Ford, premiered.

In 1998, naval aviator/astronaut Alan Shepard died in Pebble Beach, CA at age 74.

In 2003, writer/designer Matt Jefferies died in Los Angeles at age 81. He’s best-known for his designs for the original series “Star Trek”. The Jefferies Tubes on the U.S.S. Enterprise were named after him.

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

In 2007, the animated comedy “The Simpsons Movie” premiered in Sprinfield, VT.

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

In 2017, actress Deborah Watling, well-known to Whovians for playing Victoria Waterfield during the Troughton Era, died in Norwich, England at age 69.

 

Dang, forgot that Martin Ain's birthday was July 18th. You can partially blame him for Black Metal / Extreme Metal as he was the bassist/vocalist/lyricist and co-conceptualizer of Hellhammer and Celtic Frost. Unsure what he's up to now (the Metal Karoke thing he was doing for years seems to have finally gone silent.) He was a huge influence on me as a teen and I had a decades long crush on him which finally seems to be fading.

July 22nd birthdays include: (as per wikipedia...)

• 1955 – Willem Dafoe, American actor
• 1956 – Mick Pointer, English neo-progressive rock drummer (Marillion; Arena)

• 1964 – John Leguizamo, Colombian-American actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1964 – David Spade, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1965 – Shawn Michaels, American wrestler, trainer, and actor
• 1967 – Lauren Booth, English journalist and activist
• 1968 – Rhys Ifans, Welsh actor

 

23 July 2017, after two years in drydock for restoration, USS Constitution is refloated. Originally launched October 20 1797, she has sailed in the 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.

 

Time to get caught up...again.

ALSO ON JULY 22nd:

In 1298, King Edward I of England and his longbowmen defeated William Wallace and his Scottish schiltrons outside the town of Falkirk.

In 1587, an English colony fated to vanish under mysterious circumstances was established on Roanoke Island off North Carolina.

In 1686, Albany, NY was formally chartered as a municipality by Governor Thomas Dongan.

In 1706, The Acts of Union 1707 were agreed upon by commissioners from the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, which, when passed by each countries' Parliaments, led to the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain.

In 1796, Cleveland, Ohio, was founded by General Moses Cleaveland.

In 1893, Wellesley College professor Katharine Lee Bates visited the summit of Pikes Peak, where she was inspired to write the original version of her poem "America the Beautiful."

In 1916, a bomb went off during a Preparedness Day parade in San Francisco, killing 10 people.

In 1934, bank robber John Dillinger was shot to death by federal agents outside Chicago's Biograph Theater, where he had just seen the Clark Gable movie "Manhattan Melodrama."

In 1936, the film-noir “Satan Met a Lady”, starring Warren William and Bette Davis, was released in the U.S. It was the second film adaptation of The Maltese Falcon; most viewers have only seen the third one.

In 1937, the U.S. Senate voted down President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s proposal to add more justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, an effort many viewed as an attempt to “pack the Court”.

In 1937, actress Adrienne Hill was born. She played short-lived Companion Katarina during the Hartnell era on “Doctor Who”.

In 1938, actor Terrence Stamp was born in Stepney, London, England. The whole "KNEEL BEFORE ZOD" thing came later.

The answer is, “In 1940, he was born in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.” (“Who is Alex Trebek?”)

In 1942, The United States government began compulsory civilian gasoline rationing due to the wartime demands.

In 1943, during World War II, Allied forces captured the Italian city of Palermo.

In 1944, pitcher “Sparky” Lyle was born in DuBois, PA. A major league player for sixteen years, he is currently Manager Emeritus of the Somerset Patriots, frequent champions of the Atlantic League,

In 1946, Jewish extremists blew up a wing of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, killing 90 people.

In 1957, Walter "Fred" Morrison applied for a patent for a "flying toy" which became known as the Frisbee.

In 1959, “Plan 9 from Outer Space”, directed by Ed Wood, was released in the U.S. It has since gained some…notoriety.

In 1962, Jackie Robinson became the first African American to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

In 1963, Sonny Liston knocked out Floyd Patterson in the first round of their rematch in Las Vegas to retain the world heavyweight title.

In 1964, actress/dancer Bonnie Langford was born in Hampton Court, Surrey, England. She’d later play one of the Doctor’s companions, though we never actually saw her character first meet him.

Also in 1964, the Hitchcock suspense movie “Marnie”, starring Tippi Hedren and Sean Connery, was released in the U.S.

In 1965, the pilot episode of the Brit-com “Til Death Do Us Part” was broadcast on BBC 1. The U.S. version would start six years later.

In 1967, the science fiction adventure “King Kong Escapes” was released in Japan, where it was made.

In 1975, the U.S. House of Representatives joined the Senate in voting to restore the American citizenship of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. (President Gerald R. Ford signed the measure on August 5.)

In 1995, Susan Smith was convicted by a jury in Union, South Carolina, of first-degree murder for drowning her two sons. (She was later sentenced to life in prison, and will not be eligible for parole until 2024.)

In 2005, the sci-fi adventure movie “The Island”, starring Ewan MacGregor and Scarlett Johansson, went into wide release in the U.S. Its similarity to “The Clonus Horror” was the subject of a later legal action and out-of-court settlement.

In 2011, a right-wing extremist massacred 69 people at a Norwegian island youth retreat after detonating a bomb in nearby Oslo that killed eight others in the nation's worst violence since World War II.

In 2014, the book Good Night, Darth Vader by Jeffrey Brown was published by Chronicle Books.

In 2016, nine people were killed and at least sixteen wounded in a shooting incident at the Olympia Shopping Centre in Munich, Germany. The suspected gunman was later found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

 

If I may...

ALSO ON JULY 23rd:

In 1840, The Province of Canada was created by the Act of Union.

In 1885, Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th president of the U.S., died in Mount McGregor, NY at age 63.

In 1886, a legend was born as Steve Brodie claimed to have made a daredevil plunge from the Brooklyn Bridge into New York's East River. (However, there are doubts about whether the dive actually took place.)

In 1888, author/screenwriter 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 the outbreak of World War I.

In 1942, the Treblinka extermination camp was opened in occupied Poland.

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

In 1951, Henri Petain died in prison at age 95.

In 1952, Egyptian military officers led by Gamal Abdel Nasser launched a successful coup against King Farouk I.

In 1962, Telstar relayed the first publicly transmitted, live trans-Atlantic television program, featuring Walter Cronkite.

In 1967, a week of deadly race-related rioting that claimed 43 lives erupted in Detroit.

In 1968, in Cleveland, a violent shootout between a Black Militant organization and the Cleveland Police Dept. occurred. During the shootout, a riot began and lasted for five days.

In 1969, James Brown walked out of Los Angeles Mayor Sam Yorty's office when the mayor failed to show up on time to present the singer with a proclamation for "James Brown Day."

In 1977, a jury in Washington D.C. convicted 12 Hanafi Muslims of charges stemming from the hostage siege at three buildings the previous March.

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.)

In 1983, Air Canada Flight 143 ran out of fuel and safely made a deadstick landing at Gimli, Manitoba. There were no fatalities or serious injuries, and the plane was later nicknamed the “Gimli Glider”.

In 1984, Vanessa Williams became the first Miss America to resign her title, after nude photographs of her taken in 1982 were published in Penthouse magazine.

In 1986, in London, England, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, married Sarah Ferguson at Westminster Abbey.

In 1995, Comet Hale-Bopp was discovered independently by observers Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp; it became visible to the naked eye on Earth nearly a year later.

In 1999, Woodstock '99 began in Rome, NY. The three-day festival started off peacefully but ended in fires, looting and accusations of rape.

In 2004, a sneak preview of Pixar animated movie “The Incredibles” was shown at Comic-Con in San Diego.

In 2012, physicist/astronaut Sally Ride died in La Jolla, CA at age 61.

In 2014, the graphic novel The Star Wars, based on George Lucas’ original story treatment for the original “Star Wars” movie, was published.

 

Lest we forget...