ON THIS DAY

On this date in 1783, the very first free flight in a hot air balloon took place in France. Thanks to a very, very poorly tied knot.
  • It was from 300-feet in the air that those famous words were spoken: "OK, who's the smart-Alec that cut the rope?" 
  • His last words before ascending into the skies: "Hey, who let go of the rope?" 
  • After his tether rope that held the balloon down broke for the very first time. 
  • With hot air balloons, it's not the taking off or flying you gotta worry about -- just the landing. 
  • His first words upon landing were, "Next time, we need to use stronger rope!" 

In 1877, Thomas Edison announced his invention of "the talking machine," better known as the photograph.
  • For Edison, it was a new record. 
  • Had he invented it today, it probably would have been called the iRecordPlayer. 
  • Now that's the name given to the phone the guy behind you in the theater is listening to. 

On this date in 1942, the Alaska Highway opened in Canada.
  • Ironically, on the same day, the Canadian Highway opened up in Alaska. Me thinks there was a sign mix up. 
  • It's like a fire extinguisher -- nice to know it's there, but never plan to use it. 
In 1952, the U.S. Postal Service issued the first two-color postage stamp. Their motto at the time: takes a licking and keeps on sticking! Frankly, if it would make postage cheaper, I'd be willing to switch back to black and white.

On this date in 1967, the world kite flying record was set... at 28,000 feet! It took three weeks to pull in the string.

In 1980, the "Who Shot J.R." episode of Dallas aired. That was back in the day when shootings were actually rare.

For those who remember, it was in 1981 that Luke & Laura got married on the daytime soap, "General Hospital."

TODAY IS

Carly Rae Jepsen turns 32 today. She actually got her big break on "Canadian Idol."

Michael Strahan turns 46 today and hasn't quit a show for over 6 months.

Ken Griffey Junior -- or, just call him Junior -- turns 48 today. I can never remember his dad's name.

The football commentator I always mistake for Harry Connick, Jr. -- Troy Aikman, the three-time Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl champ, turns 51 today.

Former "Desperate Housewives" star Nicolette Sheridan turns 54 today. Hopefully, she'll go outside and wash the car again.

Lorna Luft, Judy Garland's other daughter, turns 65 today.

Livingston Taylor turns 67 today. Of course, "Livingston" is the English name meaning "I'm no James."

Goldie Hawn turns 72 today.
  • She's most famous these days for being Kate Hudson's mom. 
  • On "Laugh In," she was the dumb blonde. Now, she's the "smart blonde but probably gray underneath." 
Basketball's Earl "The Pearl" Monroe turns 73 today. Back in his day, he had more moves than Lindsay Lohan during an earthquake.

Tweety Bird turns 75 today. You tot his speech impetiment was terwible before!

World Hello Day -- Anyone can participate simply by greeting ten people. The annual celebration demonstrates the "importance of personal communication for preserving peace." http://www.WorldHelloDay.org

World Television Day -- declared by the United Nations General Assembly in 1997 commemorating the date on which the first World Television Forum was held in 1996.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Fall Book Discussion and Movie Series

Book discussion group to meet

City Page Survey