This Day in History

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<em class="date"> Jul 28, 1868: 14th Amendment adopted </h2>Following its ratification by the necessary three-quarters of U.S. states, the 14th Amendment, guaranteeing to African Americans citizenship and all its privileges, is officially adopted into the U.S. Constitution . <em class="date"> Jul 28, 1945: Plane crashes into Empire State Building </h2> A United States military plane crashes into the Empire State Building on this day in 1945, killing 14 people. The freak accident was caused by heavy fog.  <em class="date"> Jul 28, 1990: A soft drink containing liquid cocaine sickens an unsuspecting drinker </h2>Maximo Menendez falls into a coma immediately after drinking a Colombian soft drink, Pony Malta de Bavaria, in Miami, Florida . Drinking half the bottle before heading off to his job at a pet shop, Menendez remarked, This is poisoned--it's bad stuff, before going into convulsions. The next day, officials at the Food and Drug Administration learned that the soft drink had been laced with a lethal dose of liquid cocaine.  <em class="date"> Jul 28, 1976: Worst modern earthquake </h2>At 3:42 a.m., an earthquake measuring between 7.8 and 8.2 magnitude on the Richter scale flattens Tangshan, a Chinese industrial city with a population of about one million people. As almost everyone was asleep in their beds, instead of outside in the relative safety of the streets, the quake was especially costly in terms of human life. An estimated 242,000 people in Tangshan and surrounding areas were killed, making the earthquake one of the deadliest in recorded history, surpassed only by the 300,000 who died in the Calcutta earthquake in 1737, and the 830,000 thought to have perished in China's Shaanxi province in 1556.  <em class="date"> Jul 28, 1978: Animal House released </h2>On this day in 1978, National Lampoons Animal House, a movie spoof about 1960s college fraternities starring John Belushi, opens in U.S. theaters. Produced with an estimated budget of $3 million, Animal House became a huge, multi-million-dollar box-office hit, spawned a slew of cinematic imitations and became part of pop-culture history with such memorable lines as Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son.  <em class="date"> Jul 28, 1901: Rudy Vallée is born </h2>Before the electronic microphone became commonplace in the 1920s , the one quality that was required of every professional singer in every musical genre was a talent for vocal projectioni.e., the ability to make oneself heard over one's instrumental accompaniment in a live or a recorded performance. Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra, for exampletwo of the greatest vocal stylists of the 20th centuryprobably would never have made their livings as singers had they been born just a decade or two earlier, when the ability to sing not just well but loudly was an absolute requirement. The man who paved the way for them and for every quietly emotive singer to follow was the first of the great crooners, Rudy Valléethe first musical superstar to make a virtue of his relative vocal weakness. Born Hubert Prior Vallée in Island Pond, Vermont , on this day in 1901, Rudy Vallée was a transformative figure in 20th-century popular music and one of the most popular all-around entertainers of his day or any other.  <em class="date"> Jul 28, 1991: Dennis Martinez pitches perfect game </h2>On this day in 1991, Dennis Martinez of the Montreal Expos pitches a perfect game to lead his team to a 2-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Martinez was the first Latino ever to pitch a perfect game.  <em class="date"> Jul 28, 1965: Johnson announces more troops to Vietnam </h2>President Lyndon B. Johnson announces that he has ordered an increase in U.S. military forces in Vietnam, from the present 75,000 to 125,000. Johnson also said that he would order additional increases if necessary. He pointed out that to fill the increase in military manpower needs, the monthly draft calls would be raised from 17,000 to 35,000. At the same time, Johnson reaffirmed U.S. readiness to seek a negotiated end to the war, and appealed to the United Nations and any of its member states to help further this goal. There was an immediate reaction throughout the world to this latest escalation, with communist leaders attacking Johnson for his decision to send more troops to Vietnam. Most members of Congress were reported to favor Johnson's decision, while most U.S. state governors, convening for their annual conference, also supported a resolution backing Johnson. This decision to send more troops was regarded as a major turning point, as it effectively guaranteed U.S. military leaders a blank check to pursue the war.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Jul 29, 1958: NASA created </h2>On this day in 1958, the U.S. Congress passes legislation establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) , a civilian agency responsible for coordinating America's activities in space. NASA has since sponsored space expeditions, both human and mechanical, that have yielded vital information about the solar system and universe. It has also launched numerous earth-orbiting satellites that have been instrumental in everything from weather forecasting to navigation to global communications.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1909: General Motors buys Cadillac </h2>On July 29, 1909, the newly formed General Motors Corporation (GM) acquires the country's leading luxury automaker, the Cadillac Automobile Company, for $4.5 million.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1976: Son of Sam terrorizes New York </h2>The so-called Son of Sam pulls a gun from a paper bag and fires five shots at Donna Lauria and Jody Valenti of the Bronx while they are sitting in a car, talking. Lauria died and Valenti was seriously wounded in the first in a series of shootings by the serial killer, who terrorized New York City over the course of the next year.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1967: Rocket causes deadly fire on aircraft carrier </h2>A fire on a United States Navy carrier stationed off the coast of Vietnam kills 134 service members on this day in 1967. The deadly fire on the USS Forrestal began with the accidental launch of a rocket.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1981: Prince Charles marries Lady Diana </h2>Nearly one billion television viewers in 74 countries tune in to witness the marriage of Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, to Lady Diana Spencer, a young English schoolteacher. Married in a grand ceremony at St. Paul's Cathedral in the presence of 2,650 guests, the couple's romance was for the moment the envy of the world. Their first child, Prince William, was born in 1982, and their second, Prince Harry, in 1984.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 2000: Hollywood golden couple weds </h2>On this day in 2000, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, one of Hollywood s highest-profile couples, marry at the Malibu, California , estate of the producer Marcy Carsey (The Cosby Show). The two actors reportedly met on a blind date in 1998 and quickly became favorites of the tabloid media once they went public with their romance. Their wedding cost an estimated $1 million and featured tight security to keep out the paparazzi.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1967: The Doors score their first #1 hit with Light My Fire </h2>By the beginning of 1967, The Doors were well-established members of the Los Angeles music scene. As the house band at the Whiskey a Go Go on the Sunset Strip, they had built a large local following and strong industry buzz, and out on the road, they were fast becoming known as a band that might typically receive third billing, but could blow better-known groups like The Young Rascals and The Grateful Dead off the stage. It would have been poetic if their popular breakthrough had come via their now-classic debut single, Break On Through, but that record failed to make the national sales charts despite the efforts of Jim Morrison and his bandmates to fuel the song's popularity by repeatedly calling in requests for it to local L.A. radio stations. It was the follow-up release from their debut album, The Doors, which would become their first bona fide smash. Light My Fire, which earned the top spot in the Billboard Hot 100 on this day in 1967, transformed The Doors from cult favorites of the rock cognoscenti into international pop stars and avatars of the 60s counterculture.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1996: Carl Lewis wins fourth consecutive long jump at 35 </h2>On this day in 1996, track and field legend Carl Lewis wins his fourth consecutive Olympic gold medal in the long jump. It was the ninth and final Olympic gold of his storied career.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1965: 101st Airborne Division arrives in Vietnam </h2>The first 4,000 paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division arrive in Vietnam, landing at Cam Ranh Bay. They made a demonstration jump immediately after arriving, observed by Gen. William Westmoreland and outgoing Ambassador (formerly General) Maxwell Taylor. Taylor and Westmoreland were both former commanders of the division, which was known as the Screaming Eagles. The 101st Airborne Division has a long and storied history, including combat jumps during the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, and the subsequent Market-Garden airborne operation in the Netherlands. Later, the division distinguished itself by its defense of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge.  <em class="date"> Jul 29, 1967: Fire ravages U.S. carrier off Vietnam </h2>Fire sweeps the U.S. aircraft carrier Forrestal off the coast of North Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin. It was the worst U.S. naval disaster in a combat zone since World War II . The accident took the lives of 134 crewmen and injured 62 more. Of the carrier's 80 planes, 21 were destroyed and 42 were damaged.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Jul 30, 1965: Johnson signs Medicare into law </h2>On this day in 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Medicare, a health insurance program for elderly Americans, into law. At the bill-signing ceremony, which took place at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri , former President Harry S. Truman was enrolled as Medicare's first beneficiary and received the first Medicare card. Johnson wanted to recognize Truman, who, in 1945, had become the first president to propose national health insurance, an initiative that was opposed at the time by Congress.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 2003: Last classic VW Beetle rolls off the line </h2>On this day in 2003, the last of 21,529,464 Volkswagen Beetles built since World War II rolls off the production line at Volkswagen's plant in Puebla, Mexico . One of a 3,000-unit final edition, the baby-blue vehicle was sent to a museum in Wolfsburg, Germany, where Volkswagen is headquartered.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1971: Fighter jet collides with passenger plane </h2>A mid-air collision between a Boeing 727 and a fighter jet in Japan kills 162 people on this day in 1971. The military plane was flying without radar.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1945: USS Indianapolis bombed </h2>On this day in 1945, the USS Indianapolis is torpedoed by a Japanese submarine and sinks within minutes in shark-infested waters. Only 317 of the 1,196 men on board survived. However, the Indianapolis had already completed its major mission: the delivery of key components of the atomic bomb that would be dropped a week later at Hiroshima to Tinian Island in the South Pacific.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1966: England wins World Cup </h2>In the first televised World Cup soccer match, host-nation England beats Germany 4 to 2 to win the tournament final at Wembley Stadium. In overtime play, England's Geoff Hurst scored his second of three match goals to give Britain a 3 to 2 lead. In the dying seconds of overtime play, he scored his third goal, making the score 4 to 2 and handing England the Jules Rimet Trophy for the first time in the World Cup's 36-year history. English star Bobby Charlton was marked on the field by German Franz Beckenbauer, an emerging talent who held the English midfielder to no goals. Hurst's second goal later stirred considerable controversy when film footage suggested that it failed to cross the goal line after bouncing off the crossbar.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1974: Watergate affair approaches climax </h2>Under coercion from the U.S. Supreme Court, President Richard M. Nixon releases subpoenaed White House recordings--suspected to prove his guilt in the Watergate cover-up--to special prosecutor Leon Jaworski. The same day, the House Judiciary Committee voted a third article of impeachment against the president: contempt of Congress in hindering the impeachment process. The previous two impeachment articles voted against Nixon by the committee were obstruction of justice and abuse of presidential powers.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1966: The Troggs take their signature hit, Wild Thing, to #1 </h2>If there is one song that has been played more times by more bands in more garages than any ever written, it is probably Louie Louie, The Kingsmen's classic 1966 hit. But if any other song warrants a place in the conversation, it would be Wild Thing, the three-chord masterpiece that became a #1 hit for The Troggs on this day in 1966 and instantly took its rightful place in the rock-and-roll canon.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1956: President Eisenhower signs In God We Trust into law </h2>On this day in 1956, two years after pushing to have the phrase under God inserted into the pledge of allegiance, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs a law officially declaring In God We Trust to be the nation's official motto. The law, P.L. 84-140, also mandated that the phrase be printed on all American paper currency. The phrase had been placed on U.S. coins since the Civil War when, according to the historical association of the United States Treasury, religious sentiment reached a peak. Eisenhower's treasury secretary, George Humphrey, had suggested adding the phrase to paper currency as well.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1976: Bruce Jenner wins decathlon </h2>On July 30, 1976, American Bruce Jenner wins gold in the decathlon at the Montreal Olympics. His 8,617 points set a world record in the event.  <em class="date"> Jul 30, 1943: Hitler gets news of Italy's imminent defection </h2>On this day in 1943, Adolf Hitler learns that Axis ally Italy is buying time before negotiating surrender terms with the Allies in light of Mussolini's fall from power.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Jul 31, 1975: Jimmy Hoffa disappears </h2>On July 31, 1975, James Riddle Hoffa, one of the most influential American labor leaders of the 20th century, disappears in Detroit, Michigan , never to be heard from again. Though he is popularly believed to have been the victim of a Mafia hit, conclusive evidence was never found, and Hoffa's death remains shrouded in mystery to this day.  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1916: First Lady of NASCAR Louise Smith born </h2>On this day in 1916, the future racing legend Louise Smith, who will become the first woman inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, is born in Barnesville, Georgia .  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1715: Hurricane sinks Spanish treasure ships </h2>A hurricane strikes the east coast of Florida , sinking 10 Spanish treasure ships and killing nearly 1,000 people, on this day in 1715. All of the gold and silver onboard at the time would not be recovered until 250 years later.  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1964: Ranger 7 photographs moon </h2>Ranger 7, an unmanned U.S. lunar probe, takes the first close-up images of the moon4,308 in totalbefore it impacts with the lunar surface northwest of the Sea of the Clouds. The images were 1,000 times as clear as anything ever seen through earth-bound telescopes.  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1965: J.K. Rowling born </h2>On this day in 1965, Joanne Rowling, better known the world over as J.K. Rowling, the author and creator of the celebrated Harry Potter book series, is born near Bristol, England. Beginning in the late 1990s, Rowlings seven Harry Potter novels became international blockbusters, selling over 400 million copies and being translated into more than 60 languages. The books also spawned a series of movies, video games and other merchandise that made Rowling one of the wealthiest people in the entertainment industry.  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1923: Ahmet Ertegun is born in Istanbul, Turkey </h2>One of the most influential figures in the history of American popular music was born on this day in 1923 in perhaps the unlikeliest of places: Istanbul, Turkey. The son of a high-ranking diplomat, Ahmet Ertegun enjoyed a cosmopolitan upbringing that included stops in Switzerland, Paris and London before his father's appointment as Turkish ambassador to the United States brought him to America. Intelligent, well-educated and well-connected, Ertegun had attractive career opportunities to consider when he graduated from Maryland 's St. John's College in 1944, but his Americanization had already gone too far. I had to decide whether I would go into a scholastic life or go back to Turkey in the diplomatic service, he recalled many years later. [But] what I really loved was music...and hanging out.  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1875: Former President Andrew Johnson dies </h2>On this day in 1875, former President Andrew Johnson , the man who had become president upon the tragic assassination of Abraham Lincoln in 1865, dies of a stroke while visiting his daughter in Tennessee .  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1990: Nolan Ryan wins 300th game </h2>On July 31, 1990, Nolan Ryan wins the 300th game of his career, throwing 7 2/3 strong innings with eight strikeouts to lead his Texas Rangers to an 11-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.  <em class="date"> Jul 31, 1964: Agreement on conduct of war </h2>In a news conference, Secretary of State Dean Rusk admits there are differences between the United States and South Vietnam on the issue of extending the war into North Vietnam, but agreement on the general conduct of the war. He stated that U.S. warnings to communist China and North Vietnam indicated total U.S. commitment.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 1, 1961: Texans head for the thrills at Six Flags </h2>On this day in 1961, amusement park lovers head for the thrills as Six Flags Over Texas , the first park in the Six Flags chain, opens. Located on 212 acres in Arlington, Texas, the park was the first to feature log flume and mine train rides and later, the first 360-degree looping roller coaster, modern parachute drop and man-made river rapids ride. The park also pioneered the concept of all-inclusive admission price; until then, separate entrance fees and individual ride tickets were the standard. During its opening year, a day at Six Flags cost $2.75 for an adult and $2.25 for a child. A hamburger sold for 50 cents and a soda set the buyer back a dime.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1774: Joseph Priestley discovers oxygen </h2>On this day in 1774, dissenting British minister Joseph Priestly, author of Observations on Civil Liberty and the Nature and Justice of the War with America, discovers oxygen while serving as a tutor to the sons of American sympathizer William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, at Bowood House in Wiltshire, England.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 2007: First drive-through ATM opens in China </h2>On this day in 2007, Citibank opens China's first drive-through automated teller machine (ATM) at the Upper East Side Central Plaza in Beijing.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1966: An ex-Marine goes on a killing spree at the University of Texas </h2>Charles Whitman takes a stockpile of guns and ammunition to the observatory platform atop a 300-foot tower at the University of Texas and proceeds to shoot 46 people, killing 14 people and wounding 31. A fifteenth died in 2001 because of his injuries. Whitman, who had killed both his wife and mother the night before, was eventually shot to death after courageous Austin police officers, including Ramiro Martinez, charged up the stairs of the tower to subdue the attacker.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1971: Mysterious flood strikes North Vietnam </h2>A severe flood of the Red River in North Vietnam kills an estimated 100,000 people on this day in 1971. This remarkable flood was one of the century's most serious weather events, but because the Vietnam War was going on at the time, relatively few details about the disaster are available.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1498: Columbus lands in South America </h2>Italian explorer Christopher Columbus sets foot on the American mainland for the first time, at the Paria Peninsula in present-day Venezuela. Thinking it an island, he christened it Isla Santa and claimed it for Spain.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1914: First World War erupts </h2>Four days after Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, Germany and Russia declare war against each other, France orders a general mobilization, and the first German army units cross into Luxembourg in preparation for the German invasion of France. During the next three days, Russia, France, Belgium, and Great Britain all lined up against Austria-Hungary and Germany, and the German army invaded Belgium. The Great War that ensued was one of unprecedented destruction and loss of life, resulting in the deaths of some 20 million soldiers and civilians.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1981: MTV launches </h2>On this day in 1981, MTV: Music Television goes on the air for the first time ever, with the words (spoken by one of MTVs creators, John Lack): Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll. The Buggles Video Killed the Radio Star was the first music video to air on the new cable television channel, which initially was available only to households in parts of New Jersey . MTV went on to revolutionize the music industry and become an influential source of pop culture and entertainment in the United States and other parts of the world, including Europe, Asia and Latin America, which all have MTV-branded channels  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1994: Pope John Paul II receives record-breaking advance </h2>Newspapers report on this day in 1994 that publishing house Alfred A. Knopf will pay Pope John Paul II a record-breaking $8.75 million advance for his new book, Crossing the Threshold of Hope. The book, a collection of essays addressing moral and theological questions, becomes a bestseller.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1972: Bush is suspended from flying with the Air National Guard </h2>On this day in 1972, future President George Walker Bush, son of former president George Herbert Walker Bush, is suspended from flying with the Texas Air National Guard for missing an annual medical examination.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1996: Michael Johnson brings home second gold </h2>On this day in 1996, sprinter Michael Johnson breaks the world record in the 200 meters to win gold at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Three days earlier, Johnson had also won the 400 meters, making him the first man in history to win both events at the Olympics.  <em class="date"> Aug 1, 1943: PT-109 sinks; Lieutenant Kennedy is instrumental in saving crew </h2>On this day in 1943, a Japanese destroyer rams an American PT (patrol torpedo) boat, No. 109, slicing it in two. The destruction is so massive other American PT boats in the area assume the crew is dead. Two crewmen were, in fact, killed, but 11 survived, including Lt. John F. Kennedy .  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 2, 1990: Iraq invades Kuwait </h2>At about 2 a.m. local time, Iraqi forces invade Kuwait, Iraq's tiny, oil-rich neighbor. Kuwait's defense forces were rapidly overwhelmed, and those that were not destroyed retreated to Saudi Arabia. The emir of Kuwait, his family, and other government leaders fled to Saudi Arabia, and within hours Kuwait City had been captured and the Iraqis had established a provincial government. By annexing Kuwait, Iraq gained control of 20 percent of the world's oil reserves and, for the first time, a substantial coastline on the Persian Gulf. The same day, the United Nations Security Council unanimously denounced the invasion and demanded Iraq's immediate withdrawal from Kuwait. On August 6, the Security Council imposed a worldwide ban on trade with Iraq.  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1776: Delegates sign Declaration of Independence </h2>On this day in 1776, members of Congress affix their signatures to an enlarged copy of the Declaration of Independence .  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1987: Michael Andretti races to fast finish at Marlboro 500 </h2>On this day in 1987, in the fastest race in Indy car racing at the time, 24-year-old Michael Andretti wins the Marlboro 500 at the Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan, with an average speed of 171.490 miles per hour.  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1985: Sudden thunderstorm causes plane crash </h2>On this day in 1985, strong and sudden wind gusts cause a plane crash at the Dallas /Fort Worth Airport in Texas that kills 135 people. The rapid and unexpected formation of a supercell, an extremely violent form of thunderstorm, led to the tragedy.  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1934: Hitler becomes fuhrer </h2>With the death of German President Paul von Hindenburg , Chancellor Adolf Hitler becomes absolute dictator of Germany under the title of Fuhrer, or Leader. The German army took an oath of allegiance to its new commander-in-chief, and the last remnants of Germany's democratic government were dismantled to make way for Hitler's Third Reich. The Fuhrer assured his people that the Third Reich would last for a thousand years, but Nazi Germany collapsed just 11 years later.  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1939: Einstein urges U.S. atomic action </h2>From his home on Long Island, New York , German-born physicist Albert Einstein writes to President Franklin D. Roosevelt , urging watchfulness and, if necessary, quick action on the part of the United States in atomic research. Einstein, a lifelong pacifist, feared that Nazi Germany had begun work on an atomic bomb .  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1983: Legendary Motown bassist James Jamerson dies </h2>Bassist James Jamerson, who laid the foundation of the Motown sound, dies of pneumonia on this day in 1983.  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1943: Japanese forces attack PT boat with Kennedy on board </h2>On this day in 1943, future President John F. Kennedy is serving as commander of a torpedo boat in the Solomon Islands when his ship is fired upon by the Japanese navy.   Aug 2, 1992: Jackie Joyner-Kersee wins gold in heptathlon, again </h2>On this day in 1992, Jackie Joyner-Kersee becomes the first woman ever to win two consecutive Olympic gold medals in the heptathlon.  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1964: North Vietnamese torpedo boats attack U.S. destroyer </h2>North Vietnamese torpedo boats attack the destroyer USS Maddox (DD-731).  <em class="date"> Aug 2, 1971: Nixon administration acknowledges secret army in Laos </h2>The Nixon administration officially acknowledges that the CIA is maintaining a force of 30,000 'irregulars' fighting the Communist Pathet Lao in Laos. The CIA trained and equipped this force of mountain tribesman, mostly from the Hmong tribe, to fight a secret war against the Communists and to sever the Ho Chi Minh Trail into South Vietnam. According to a once top-secret report released this date by the U.S. Defense and State Departments, U.S. financial involvement in Laos had totaled $284,200,000 in 1970.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 3, 1958: Nautilus travels under North Pole </h2>On August 3, 1958, the U.S. nuclear submarine Nautilus accomplishes the first undersea voyage to the geographic North Pole. The world's first nuclear submarine, the Nautilus dived at Point Barrow, Alaska , and traveled nearly 1,000 miles under the Arctic ice cap to reach the top of the world. It then steamed on to Iceland, pioneering a new and shorter route from the Pacific to the Atlantic and Europe.  <em class="date"> Aug 3, 1975: Boeing 707 crashes into a mountain near Agadir, Morocco </h2>On this day in 1975, a chartered Boeing 707 jetliner crashes in the Atlas Mountains near Agadir, a coastal city in southern Morocco. All 188 people aboard the plane were killed, in the fourth worst air disaster to that date. <em class="date"> Aug 3, 1492: Columbus sets sail </h2>From the Spanish port of Palos, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus sets sail in command of three shipsthe Santa Maria, the Pinta, and the Ninaon a journey to find a western sea route to China, India, and the fabled gold and spice islands of Asia.  <em class="date"> Aug 3, 1861: Last installment of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens is published </h2>The last entry of the serialized novel Great Expectations is published on this day in 1861. The book had been serialized in Dickens' literary circular, All the Year Round. The novel tells the story of young Pip, a poor orphan who comes to believe he will inherit a fortune.  <em class="date"> Aug 3, 1996: The Macarena begins its reign atop the U.S. pop charts </h2>If pop songs, like hurricanes, were rated on an objective scale according to their ability to devastate the pop-cultural landscape, then the song that reached the top of the American pop charts on this day in 1996 was a Category 5 monster. It first made landfall in Florida as a seemingly harmless Spanish-language rumba, but in the hands of a pair of Miami record producers, it soon morphed and strengthened into something called Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix), a song that laid waste to all competition during a record-setting run at #1 that began on August 3, 1996.  <em class="date"> Aug 3, 1846: Donner party encounters first delay </h2>An ominous sign of the troubles to come, the Donner party finds a note warning the emigrants that their expected route through the mountains ahead is nearly impassable.   Aug 3, 1923: Calvin Coolidge takes oath of office after Harding's death </h2>On this day in 1923, Calvin Coolidge is sworn in as the 30th president of the United States , hours after the death of President Warren G. Harding .  <em class="date"> Aug 3, 1949: NBA is born </h2>On this day in 1949, after a damaging three-year battle to win both players and fans, the rival Basketball Association of America (BAA) and National Basketball League (NBL) merge to form the National Basketball Association (NBA).  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 4, 1944: Anne Frank captured </h2>Acting on tip from a Dutch informer, the Nazi Gestapo captures 15-year-old Jewish diarist Anne Frank and her family in a sealed-off area of an Amsterdam warehouse. The Franks had taken shelter there in 1942 out of fear of deportation to a Nazi concentration camp. They occupied the small space with another Jewish family and a single Jewish man, and were aided by Christian friends, who brought them food and supplies. Anne spent much of her time in the secret annex working on her diary. The diary survived the war, overlooked by the Gestapo that discovered the hiding place, but Anne and nearly all of the others perished in the Nazi death camps.  <em class="date"> Aug 4, 1892: Lizzie Borden took an axe... </h2>Andrew and Abby Borden, elderly residents of Fall River, Massachusetts , are found bludgeoned to death in their home. Lying in a pool of blood on the living room couch, Andrew's face had been nearly split in two. Abby, Lizzie's stepmother, was found upstairs with her head smashed to pieces.  <em class="date"> Aug 4, 1972: Philippines hit hard by flooding </h2>Floodwaters finally recede in Luzon, Philippines, on this day in 1972, revealing devastation and hundreds dead. An astounding rainfall in July had caused rivers all over the large island to flood.  <em class="date"> Aug 4, 1753: Washington becomes Master Mason </h2>George Washington , a young Virginia planter, becomes a Master Mason, the highest basic rank in the secret fraternity of Freemasonry. The ceremony was held at the Masonic Lodge No. 4 in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Washington was 21 years old and would soon command his first military operation as a major in the Virginia colonial militia.  <em class="date"> Aug 4, 1964: Slain civil rights workers found </h2>The remains of three civil rights workers whose disappearance on June 21 garnered national attention are found buried in an earthen dam near Philadelphia, Mississippi . Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, both white New Yorkers, had traveled to heavily segregated Mississippi in 1964 to help organize civil rights efforts on behalf of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). The third man, James Chaney, was a local African American man who had joined CORE in 1963. The disappearance of the three young men led to a massive FBI investigation that was code-named MIBURN, for Mississippi Burning.  <em class="date"> Aug 4, 1927: Country legend Jimmie Rodgers is recorded for the very first time </h2>The Father of Country Music, Jimmie Rodgers, is recorded for the very first time on August 4, 1997, during the legendary Bristol Sessions.  <em class="date"> Aug 4, 1936: Jesse Owens wins long jump--and respect--in Germany </h2>On this day in 1936, American Jesse Owens wins gold in the long jump at the Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. It was the second of four gold medals Owens won in Berlin, as he firmly dispelled German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler s notion of the superiority of an Aryan master race, for all the world to see.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 5, 2002: Divers recover U.S.S. Monitor turret </h2>On this day in 2002, the rusty iron gun turret of the U.S.S. Monitor broke from the water and into the daylight for the first time in 140 years. The ironclad warship was raised from the floor of the Atlantic, where it had rested since it went down in a storm off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina , during the Civil War . Divers had been working for six weeks to bring it to the surface.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1914: First electric traffic signal installed </h2>The world's first electric traffic signal is put into place on the corner of Euclid Avenue and East 105th Street in Cleveland, Ohio , on this day in 1914.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1963: Nuclear Test Ban Treaty signed </h2>Representatives of the United States , the Soviet Union , and Great Britain sign the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which prohibited the testing of nuclear weapons in outer space, underwater, or in the atmosphere. The treaty was hailed as an important first step toward the control of nuclear weapons.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1998: Mother charged with smothering her eight children </h2>On August 5, 1998, Marie Noe, age 70, is arrested at her Philadelphia home and charged in the smothering deaths of eight of her children, who died between 1949 and 1968.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1948: Earthquake causes deadly landslides in Ecuador </h2>An earthquake hits Ecuador killing 6,000 people and injuring another 20,000 on this day in 1948. The 6.7-magnitude tremor was particularly deadly for its size.   Aug 5, 1858: First transatlantic telegraph cable completed </h2>After several unsuccessful attempts, the first telegraph line across the Atlantic Ocean is completed, a feat accomplished largely through the efforts of American merchant Cyrus West Field.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1962: Marilyn Monroe is found dead </h2>On August 5, 1962, movie actress Marilyn Monroe is found dead in her home in Los Angeles . She was discovered lying nude on her bed, face down, with a telephone in one hand. Empty bottles of pills, prescribed to treat her depression, were littered around the room. After a brief investigation, Los Angeles police concluded that her death was caused by a self-administered overdose of sedative drugs and that the mode of death is probable suicide.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1981: Reagan fires 11,359 air-traffic controllers </h2>On August 5, 1981, President Ronald Reagan begins firing 11,359 air-traffic controllers striking in violation of his order for them to return to work. The executive action, regarded as extreme by many, significantly slowed air travel for months.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1957: American Bandstand goes national </h2>Television, rock and roll and teenagers. In the late 1950s , when television and rock and roll were new and when the biggest generation in American history was just about to enter its teens, it took a bit of originality to see the potential power in this now-obvious combination. The man who saw that potential more clearly than any other was a 26-year-old native of upstate New York named Dick Clark, who transformed himself and a local Philadelphia television program into two of the most culturally significant forces of the early rock-and-roll era. His iconic show, American Bandstand, began broadcasting nationally on this day in 1957, beaming images of clean-cut, average teenagers dancing to the not-so-clean-cut Jerry Lee Lewis' Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On to 67 ABC affiliates across the nation.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1861: Lincoln imposes first federal income tax </h2>On this day in 1861, Lincoln imposes the first federal income tax by signing the Revenue Act. Strapped for cash with which to pursue the Civil War , Lincoln and Congress agreed to impose a 3 percent tax on annual incomes over $800.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1976: NBA merges with ABA </h2>On this day in 1976, the National Basketball Association (NBA) merges with its rival, the American Basketball Association (ABA), and takes on the ABAs four most successful franchises: the Denver Nuggets, the Indiana Pacers, the New York (later New Jersey) Nets and the San Antonio Spurs.  <em class="date"> Aug 5, 1944: Hundreds of Jews are freed from forced labor in Warsaw </h2>On this day in 1944, Polish insurgents liberate a German forced-labor camp in Warsaw, freeing 348 Jewish prisoners, who join in a general uprising against the German occupiers of the city.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 6, 1945: American bomber drops atomic bomb on Hiroshima </h2>On this day in 1945, at 8:16 a.m. Japanese time, an American B-29 bomber, the Enola Gay, drops the world's first atom bomb, over the city of Hiroshima. Approximately 80,000 people are killed as a direct result of the blast, and another 35,000 are injured. At least another 60,000 would be dead by the end of the year from the effects of the fallout.  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1997: Planes crashes in Guam jungle </h2>A Korean Air Boeing 747 crashes in Guam, killing 228 people on this day in 1997. An inexperienced crew and poor air-traffic policies on the island territory contributed to the disaster.  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1787: First draft of Constitution debated </h2>In Philadelphia, delegates to the Constitutional Convention begin debating the first complete draft of the proposed Constitution of the United States .  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1890: First execution by electric chair </h2>At Auburn Prison in New York , the first execution by electrocution in history is carried out against William Kemmler, who had been convicted of murdering his lover, Matilda Ziegler, with an axe.  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1928: Andy Warhol is born </h2>Andy Warhol, one of the most influential artists of the latter part of the 20th century, is born Andrew Warhola in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania . A frail and diminutive man with a shock of silver-blond hair, Warhol was a major pioneer of the pop art movement of the 1960s but later outgrew that role to become a cultural icon.  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1911: Lucille Ball born </h2>On this day in 1911, Lucille Desiree Ball, one of Americas most famous redheads and beloved comic actresses, is born near Jamestown , New York .  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1942: Isaac Hayes is born </h2>It's a long way indeed from the performing onstage at the Academy Awards to portraying a cartoon chef, but that's the singular journey traveled by the late Isaac Hayes in a remarkable career that included hugely successful work as a singer, songwriter, record producer and actor and a late-career role as an enormously popular cartoon voiceover artist. A significant force in popular culture from the mid-1960s until his death in 2008, Isaac Hayes was born in Covington, Tennessee on this day in 1942.  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1965: Johnson signs Voting Rights Act </h2>On this day in 1965, President Lyndon Baines Johnson signs the Voting Rights Act , guaranteeing African Americans the right to vote. The bill made it illegal to impose restrictions on federal, state and local elections that were designed to deny the vote to blacks.  <em class="date"> Aug 6, 1926: Gertrude Ederle becomes first woman to swim English Channel </h2>On this day in 1926, on her second attempt, 19-year-old Gertrude Ederle becomes the first woman to swim the 21 miles from Dover, England, to Cape Griz-Nez across the English Channel, which separates Great Britain from the northwestern tip of France.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 7, 1947: Wood raft makes 4,300-mile voyage </h2>On this day in 1947, Kon-Tiki, a balsa wood raft captained by Norwegian anthropologist Thor Heyerdahl, completes a 4,300-mile, 101-day journey from Peru to Raroia in the Tuamotu Archipelago, near Tahiti. Heyerdahl wanted to prove his theory that prehistoric South Americans could have colonized the Polynesian islands by drifting on ocean currents.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1782: Washington creates the Purple Heart </h2>On this day in 1782, in Newburgh, New York , General George Washington , the commander in chief of the Continental Army, creates the Badge for Military Merit, a decoration consisting of a purple, heart-shaped piece of silk, edged with a narrow binding of silver, with the word Merit stitched across the face in silver. The badge was to be presented to soldiers for any singularly meritorious action and permitted its wearer to pass guards and sentinels without challenge. The honoree's name and regiment were also to be inscribed in a Book of Merit.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1944: Volkswagen halts production during World War II </h2>On this day in 1944, under the threat of Allied bombing during World War II , the German car manufacturer Volkswagen halts production of the Beetle, as its small, insect-shaped automobile was dubbed in the international press.   Aug 7, 1945: Georgia institutes a State Board of Corrections </h2>Concerned with its reputation in light of recent revelations about inhumane prison conditions, Georgia changes its constitution to set up a State Board of Corrections. The board was directed to be more humane in its treatment of prisoners and abolished whippings, leg irons, and chains. Until 1945, prisoners in Georgia could expect to have heavy steel shackles put on by a blacksmith upon arrival. They were then taken out to work under severe conditions.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1956: Mysterious explosions in Colombia </h2>Seven army ammunition trucks explode in Cali, Colombia, killing more than 1,000 people and injuring thousands more on this day in 1956. The cause of the explosions remains a mystery.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1959: U.S. satellite photographs earth </h2>From the Atlantic Missile Range in Cape Canaveral, Florida , the U.S. unmanned spacecraft Explorer 6 is launched into an orbit around the earth. The spacecraft, commonly known as the Paddlewheel satellite, featured a photocell scanner that transmitted a crude picture of the earth's surface and cloud cover from a distance of 17,000 miles. The photo, received in Hawaii , took nearly 40 minutes to transmit.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1998: U.S. embassies in East Africa bombed </h2>At 10:30 a.m. local time, a massive truck bomb explodes outside the U.S. embassy in Nairobi, Kenya. Minutes later, another truck bomb detonated outside the U.S. embassy in Dar es Salaam, the capital of neighboring Tanzania. The dual terrorist attacks killed 224 people, including 12 Americans, and wounded more than 4,500. The United States accused Saudi exile Osama bin Laden , a proponent of international terrorism against America, of masterminding the bombings. On August 20, President Bill Clinton ordered cruise missiles launched against bin Laden's terrorist training camps in Afghanistan and against a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan, where bin Laden allegedly made or distributed chemical weapons.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 2005: Trapped Russian sub rescued </h2>On this day in 2005, a Russian Priz AS-28 mini-submarine, with seven crew members on board, is rescued from deep in the Pacific Ocean. On August 4, the vessel had been taking part in training exercises in Beryozovaya Bay, off the coast of Russia's far-eastern Kamchatka peninsula, when its propellers became entangled in cables that were part of Russia's coastal monitoring system. Unable to surface, the sub's crew was stranded in the dark, freezing submarine for more than three days.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1997: A free concert by Garth Brooks draws the last six-figure crowd to New York City's Central Park </h2>In 1979, folk-pop icon James Taylor became the first major popular-music figure to draw a crowd numbering in the hundreds of thousands to a free concert in New York City 's Central Park. On August 7, 1997, country-music giant Garth Brooks became the last. The reason for the abrupt end to six-figure crowds at concerts in the park? It wasn't a change of policy with regard to allowing such gatheringsbut a dramatic shift in how the crowds were counted.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1990: Bush orders Operation Desert Shield </h2>On this day in 1990, President George Herbert Walker Bush orders the organization of Operation Desert Shield in response to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait on August 2. The order prepared American troops to become part of an international coalition in the war against Iraq that would be launched as Operation Desert Storm in January 1991. To support Operation Desert Shield, Bush authorized a dramatic increase in U.S. troops and resources in the Persian Gulf.  <em class="date"> Aug 7, 1987: Lynne Cox swims into communist territory </h2>On this day in 1987, Lynne Cox braves the freezing waters of the Bering Strait to make the first recorded swim from the United States to the Soviet Union .  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 8, 1974: Nixon resigns </h2>In an evening televised address, President Richard M. Nixon announces his intention to become the first president in American history to resign. With impeachment proceedings underway against him for his involvement in the Watergate affair , Nixon was finally bowing to pressure from the public and Congress to leave the White House . By taking this action, he said in a solemn address from the Oval Office, I hope that I will have hastened the start of the process of healing which is so desperately needed in America.  <em class="date"> Aug 8, 1863: Lee offers resignation </h2>In the aftermath of his defeat at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania , Confederate General Robert E. Lee sends a letter of resignation as commander of the Army of Northern Virginia to Confederate President Jefferson Davis .   Aug 8, 1956: Fire traps 262 miners </h2>A coal-mine fire kills 262 workers in Marcinelle, Belgium, on this day in 1956. This highly publicized disaster was the worst ever in a Belgian mine and led to many policy changes.  <em class="date"> Aug 8, 1988: Gangsta rap hits the mainstream with the release of N.W.A's Straight Outta Compton </h2>As of 1988, the top-selling hip hop albums of all time were Run D.M.C.'s Raising Hell and the Beastie Boys' License to Ill, both released in 1987 and both selling millions without ruffling many feathers. In June 1988, Public Enemy released It Takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back, an album that broke new ground both musically and lyrically with its richly layered, aggressive sound and its angry, politically conscious content. Yet even Public Enemy were dwarfed commercially by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, whose kid-friendly single Parents Just Don't Understand and album He's the DJ, I'm The Rapper were both Top 5 pop hits that same summer. The group that would truly revolutionize hip hop was N.W.A Niggaz With Attitude whose debut album, Straight Outta Compton,was released on this day in 1988.  <em class="date"> Aug 8, 1988: Lights go on at Wrigley </h2>On this day in 1988, the Chicago Cubs host the first night game in the history of Wrigley Field.  <em class="date"> Aug 8, 1968: Nixon and Agnew receive the Republican Party nomination </h2>At the Republican National Convention in Miami, Richard M. Nixon and Spiro T. Agnew are chosen as the presidential and vice-presidential nominees for the upcoming election. In his speech accepting the nomination, Nixon promised to bring an honorable end to the war in Vietnam and to inaugurate an era of negotiations with leading Communist powers, while restoring the strength of America so that we shall always negotiate from strength and never from weakness. The party subsequently adopted a platform on the war that called for progressive de-Americanization of the war. Nixon was successful in his campaign bid and once in office, he instituted a program of Vietnamization (the turning over of the war to the South Vietnamese) and U.S. troop withdrawals.  <em class="date"> Aug 8, 1973: Vice President Agnew under attack </h2>Vice President Agnew branded reports that he took kickbacks from government contracts in Maryland as damned lies. Agnew had taken a lot of heat in the media when he assumed a lead position as Nixon's point man on Vietnam. He frequently attacked the student protest movement, blaming the intellectual community, which he referred to as impudent snobs, for campus unrest. Despite the charges of bribery and income tax evasion, Agnew vowed that he would never resign and blamed his troubles on the press, who, he said, were out to get him for his controversial stand on the war. Ultimately, however, he resigned from office on October 10, 1973.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 9, 1974: Unusual succession makes Ford president </h2>In accordance with his statement of resignation the previous evening, Richard M. Nixon officially ends his term as the 37th president of the United States at noon. Before departing with his family in a helicopter from the White House lawn, he smiled farewell and enigmatically raised his arms in a victory or peace salute. The helicopter door was then closed, and the Nixon family began their journey home to San Clemente, California . Richard Nixon was the first U.S. president to resign from office.  <em class="date"> Aug 9, 2000: Bridgestone/Firestone announces massive tire recall </h2>On August 9, 2000, tire manufacturer Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. announces that it is recalling 6.5 million of its model ATX, ATX II and Wilderness AT tires; the move comes two days after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration linked hundreds of accidents and at least 46 deaths to problems with the tread on the tires.  <em class="date"> Aug 9, 1969: Manson cult kills five people </h2>On this day in 1969, members of Charles Manson's cult kill five people in movie director Roman Polanski's Beverly Hills, California , home, including Polanski's pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate. Less than two days later, the group killed again, murdering supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary in their home. The savage crimes shocked the nation and, strangely, turned Charles Manson into a criminal icon.  <em class="date"> Aug 9, 1976: Hurricane Belle strikes Eastern Seaboard </h2>Hurricane Belle turns toward the United States from the Bahamas on this day in 1976. By the time Belle had run its course, the storm had killed 12 people and caused $24 million in damages from North Carolina to Vermont .  <em class="date"> Aug 9, 1936: Owens wins 4th gold medal </h2>At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, African American track star Jesse Owens wins his fourth gold medal of the Games in the 4x100-meter relay. His relay team set a new world record of 39.8 seconds, which held for 20 years. In their strong showing in track-and-field events at the XIth Olympiad, Jesse Owens and other African American athletes struck a propaganda blow against Nazi leader Adolf Hitler , who planned to use the Berlin Games as a showcase of supposed Aryan superiority.  <em class="date"> Aug 9, 2010: JetBlue flight attendant quits job via escape slide </h2>On this day in 2010, JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater quits his job in dramatic style by sliding down his planes emergency-escape chute while the aircraft is stopped near the terminal gate at New Yorks John F. Kennedy International Airport. Slater, who claimed his actions were prompted by the behavior of a rude passenger, quickly became a media sensation and national folk hero.  <em class="date"> Aug 9, 1995: Jerry Garcia dies </h2>Like his band the Grateful Dead, which was still going strong three decades after its formation, Jerry Garcia defied his life-expectancy not merely by surviving, but by thriving creatively and commercially into the 1990s--far longer than most of his peers. His long, strange trip came to an end, however, on this day in 1995, when he died of a heart attack in a residential drug-treatment facility in Forest Knolls, California . A legendary guitarist and true cultural icon, Jerry Garcia was 53 years old.  <em class="date"> Aug 9, 1988: The Great One gets traded </h2>On this day in 1988, Edmonton Oilers center Wayne Gretzky is traded to the Los Angeles Kings along with Mike Krushelnyski and Marty McSorley in return for Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelinas and first-round draft picks in the 1989, 1991 and 1993 drafts. At age 27, Gretzky was already widely considered the greatest player in hockey history and was the owner of 43 National Hockey League scoring records.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 10, 1846: Smithsonian Institution created </h2>After a decade of debate about how best to spend a bequest left to America from an obscure English scientist, President James K. Polk signs the Smithsonian Institution Act into law.  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 1978: Fatal Ford Pinto crash in Indiana </h2>On this day in 1978, three teenage girls die after their 1973 Ford Pinto is rammed from behind by a van and bursts into flames on an Indiana highway. The fatal crash was one of a series of Pinto accidents that caused a national scandal during the 1970s .  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 1949: Truman signs National Security Bill </h2>President Harry S. Truman signs the National Security Bill, which establishes the Department of Defense. As the Cold War heated up, the Department of Defense became the cornerstone of America's military effort to contain the expansion of communism.  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 1993: Three-ship collision causes oil spill </h2>A rare collision of three ships in Tampa Bay, Florida , results in a spill of 336,000 gallons of fuel oil on this day in 1993. Fortunately, a combination of favorable weather conditions and preparedness kept the damage to a minimum.  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 1821: New state west of the Mississippi </h2>Missouri enters the Union as the 24th state--and the first located entirely west of the Mississippi River .  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 1977: Son of Sam arrested </h2>On August 10, 1977, 24-year-old postal employee David Berkowitz is arrested and charged with being the Son of Sam, the serial killer who terrorized New York City for more than a year, killing six young people and wounding seven others with a .44-caliber revolver. Because Berkowitz generally targeted attractive young women with long brown hair, hundreds of young women had their hair cut short and dyed blond during the time he terrorized the city. Thousands more simply stayed home at night. After his arrest, Berkowitz claimed that demons and a black Labrador retriever owned by a neighbor named Sam had ordered him to commit the killings.  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 2003: Temperatures in UK top 100 F for first time during European heat wave </h2>On this day in 2003, the United Kingdom records its first-ever temperature over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Throughout the month, an intense heat wave scorched the European continent, claiming more than 35,000 lives.   Aug 10, 1984: Red Dawn, first PG-13 movie, is released </h2>On this day in 1984, the action thriller Red Dawn, starring Patrick Swayze, opens in theaters as the first movie to be released with a PG-13 rating. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), which oversees the movie rating system, had announced the new PG-13 category in July of that same year.  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 1937: First-ever electric guitar patent awarded to the Electro String Corporation </h2>Versatile, inexpensive and relatively easy to play, the acoustic guitar was a staple of American rural music in the early 20th century, particularly black rural music such as the blues. But a significant physical limitation made it a poor fit in ensembles made up of brass, woodwind and orchestral string instruments: The acoustic guitar was simply too quiet. What transformed the guitar and its place in popular music, and eventually transformed popular music itself, was the development of a method for transforming the sound of a vibrating guitar string into an electrical signal that could be amplified and re-converted into audible sound at a much greater volume. The electric guitarthe instrument that revolutionized jazz, blues and country music and made the later rise of rock and roll possiblewas recognized by the United States Patent Office on this day in 1937 with the award of Patent #2,089.171 to G.D. Beauchamp for an instrument known as the Rickenbacker Frying Pan.  <em class="date"> Aug 10, 1981: Pete Rose sets National League hits record </h2>On this day in 1981, Pete Rose of the Philadelphia Phillies gets the 3,631st hit of his baseball career, breaking Stan Musial's record for most hits by a National Leaguer. The record-breaking hit came in a game against the St. Louis Cardinals, the team with whom Musial had spent his entire career, and the former hits king was on hand to congratulate Rose.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 11, 1934: Federal prisoners land on Alcatraz </h2>A group of federal prisoners classified as most dangerous arrives at Alcatraz Island, a 22-acre rocky outcrop situated 1.5 miles offshore in San Francisco Bay. The convicts--the first civilian prisoners to be housed in the new high-security penitentiary--joined a few dozen military prisoners left over from the island's days as a U.S. military prison.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1973: American Graffiti released </h2>On this day in 1973, American Graffiti, a nostalgic coming-of-age tale set on the streets and steeped in the car-centric culture of suburban California , is released in theaters across the United States . The movie went on to become a sleeper hit.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1856: Hurricane submerges Louisiana resort </h2>A hurricane hits the Louisiana coast, killing more than 400 people, on this day in 1856. Isle Derniere, a resort community, was totally submerged by the storm surges.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1952: Hussein succeeds to Jordanian throne </h2>Prince Hussein is proclaimed the king of Jordan after his father, King Talal, is declared unfit to rule by the Jordanian Parliament on grounds of mental illness. Hussein was formally crowned on November 14, 1953, his 18th birthday. Hussein was the third constitutional king of Jordan and a member of the Hashemite dynasty, said to be in direct line of descent from the Prophet Muhammad.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1965: Watts Riot begins </h2>In the predominantly black Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles , racial tension reaches a breaking point after two white policemen scuffle with a black motorist suspected of drunken driving. A crowd of spectators gathered near the corner of Avalon Boulevard and 116th Street to watch the arrest and soon grew angry by what they believed to be yet another incident of racially motivated abuse by the police. A riot soon began, spurred on by residents of Watts who were embittered after years of economic and political isolation. The rioters eventually ranged over a 50-square-mile area of South Central Los Angeles, looting stores, torching buildings, and beating whites as snipers fired at police and firefighters. Finally, with the assistance of thousands of National Guardsmen, order was restored on August 16.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1998: Jonesboro schoolyard shooters guilty </h2>In Jonesboro, Arkansas , Mitchell Johnson pleads guilty to the Jonesboro schoolyard massacre on his 14th birthday, and Andrew Golden, age 12, is convicted. Both boys had been charged with five counts of murder and 10 counts of battery for the March 24 shooting that left four schoolmates and a teacher dead and 10 others wounded. Juvenile Court Judge Ralph Wilson Jr. sentenced them to the maximum penalty allowed by law--confinement to a juvenile center, perhaps until they turned 21. The judge, who declared during sentencing that here the punishment will not fit the crime, had rejected a plea of temporary insanity made by Golden.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1921: Alex Haley's birthday </h2>Alex Haley, author of Roots and The Autobiography of Malcolm X is born on this day in Ithaca, New York .  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1973: Hip Hop is born at a birthday party in the Bronx </h2>Like any style of music, hip hop has roots in other forms, and its evolution was shaped by many different artists, but there's a case to be made that it came to life precisely on this day in 1973, at a birthday party in the recreation room of an apartment building in the west Bronx, New York City . The location of that birthplace was 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, and the man who presided over that historic party was the birthday girl's brother, Clive Campbellbetter known to history as DJ Kool Herc, founding father of hip hop.   Aug 11, 1984: Reagan jokes about bombing Russia </h2>On this day in 1984, President Ronald Reagan makes a joking but controversial off-the-cuff remark about bombing Russia while testing a microphone before a scheduled radio address. While warming up for the speech, Reagan said My fellow Americans, I am pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1994: Major leaguers walk off the job </h2>On August 11, 1994, the longest work stoppage in major league history begins. Because of the strike, the 1994 World Series was cancelled; it was the first time baseball did not crown a champion in 89 years.  <em class="date"> Aug 11, 1972: Last U.S. ground combat unit departs South Vietnam </h2>The last U.S. ground combat unit in South Vietnam, the Third Battalion, Twenty-First Infantry, departs for the United States . The unit had been guarding the U.S. air base at Da Nang. This left only 43,500 advisors, airmen, and support troops left in-country. This number did not include the sailors of the Seventh Fleet on station in the South China Sea or the air force personnel in Thailand and Guam.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 12, 1990: Skeleton of Tyrannosaurus rex discovered </h2>On this day in 1990, fossil hunter Susan Hendrickson discovers three huge bones jutting out of a cliff near Faith, South Dakota . They turn out to be part of the largest-ever Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton ever discovered, a 65 million-year-old specimen dubbed Sue, after its discoverer.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1961: East Germany begins construction of the Berlin Wall </h2>In an effort to stem the tide of refugees attempting to leave East Berlin, the communist government of East Germany begins building the Berlin Wall to divide East and West Berlin. Construction of the wall caused a short-term crisis in U.S.-Soviet bloc relations, and the wall itself came to symbolize the Cold War .  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1964: Great Train robber escapes from prison </h2>On August 12, 1964, Charlie Wilson, part of the gang who pulled off the 1963 Great Train Robbery, one of the biggest heists of its kind, escapes from Winson Green Prison in Birmingham, England. Several men broke into the maximum-security facility to free Wilson, who remained on the loose until 1968.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 2000: Russian sub sinks with 118 onboard </h2>A Russian nuclear submarine sinks to the bottom of the Barents Sea on this day in 2000; all 118 crew members are later found dead. The exact cause of the disaster remains unknown.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1953: Soviets test Layer-Cake bomb </h2>Less than one year after the United States tested its first hydrogen bomb, the Soviets detonate a 400-kiloton device in Kazakhstan. The explosive power was 30 times that of the U.S. atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, and the mushroom cloud produced by it stretched five miles into the sky. Known as the Layer Cake, the bomb was fueled by layers of uranium and lithium deuteride, a hydrogen isotope. The Soviet bomb was smaller and more portable than the American hydrogen bomb, so its development once again upped the ante in the dangerous nuclear arms race between the Cold War superpowers.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1973: Nicklaus sets title record </h2>On August 12, 1973, American golfer Jack Nicklaus wins the Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) championship for his 14th major title, surpassing Bobby Jones' record of 13 major championships. Nicklaus shot a seven-under-par 277 at Canterbury Golf Club in Beachwood, Ohio , to win $45,000 and his third PGA National championship. The Golden Bear went on to win a total of 20 major tournaments, a record that still stands today. (Although it aptly describes his golden-colored hair and large build, Nicklaus' famous moniker is actually derived from his high school alma mater, the Upper Arlington Golden Bears.)  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1953: Soviets test Layer-Cake bomb </h2>Less than one year after the United States tested its first hydrogen bomb, the Soviets detonate a 400-kiloton device in Kazakhstan. The explosive power was 30 times that of the U.S. atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, and the mushroom cloud produced by it stretched five miles into the sky. Known as the Layer Cake, the bomb was fueled by layers of uranium and lithium deuteride, a hydrogen isotope. The Soviet bomb was smaller and more portable than the American hydrogen bomb, so its development once again upped the ante in the dangerous nuclear arms race between the Cold War superpowers.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1985: JAL air crash </h2>At 6:50 p.m. local time, a Japan Air Lines Boeing 747SR crashes into Mount Otsuka, 70 miles northwest of Tokyo. There were 524 people aboard, and all but four were dead by the time rescuers reached the remote crash site 12 hours later.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1964: James Bond creator Ian Fleming dies </h2>On this day in 1964, the British author and journalist Ian Fleming, creator of James Bond, the worlds most famous fictional spy, dies of a heart attack at age 56 in Kent, England. Flemings series of novels about the debonair Agent 007, based in part on their dashing authors real-life experiences, spawned one of the most lucrative film franchises in history.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1939: The Wizard of Oz movie musical premieres in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin </h2>The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland and featuring words and music by E.Y. Yip Harburg and Harold Arlen, receives its world premiere in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin , on this day in 1939.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1978: Rising NFL star paralyzed by hit </h2>Oakland Raiders free safety Jack Tatum levels New England Patriots wide receiver Darryl Stingley with a helmet-to-helmet hit in a preseason game, leaving Stingley paralyzed for life. Despite the sport's hard hits and reputation for roughness, this was the first and only time a player was permanently paralyzed as a result of an injury sustained in a National Football League game.  <em class="date"> Aug 12, 1938: Hitler institutes the Mother's Cross </h2>On this day in 1938, Adolf Hitler institutes the Mother's Cross, to encourage German women to have more children, to be awarded each year on August 12, Hitler's mother's birthday.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 13, 1961: Berlin is divided </h2>Shortly after midnight on this day in 1961, East German soldiers begin laying down barbed wire and bricks as a barrier between Soviet-controlled East Berlin and the democratic western section of the city.   Aug 13, 1902: Rotary engine inventor Felix Wankel born </h2>The German engineer Felix Wankel, inventor of a rotary engine that will be used in race cars, is born on August 13, 1902, in Lahr, Germany.  <em class="date"> Aug 13, 1878: First victim of Memphis yellow-fever epidemic dies </h2>On this day in 1878, Kate Bionda, a restaurant owner, dies of yellow fever in Memphis, Tennessee , after a man who had escaped a quarantined steamboat visited her restaurant. The disease spread rapidly and the resulting epidemic emptied the city.  <em class="date"> Aug 13, 1899: Hitchcock born </h2>Alfred Hitchcock, the macabre master of moviemaking, is born in London on August 13, 1899. His innovative directing techniques and mastery of suspense made him one of the most popular and influential filmmakers of the 20th century.  <em class="date"> Aug 13, 1926: Fidel Castro born </h2>Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro is born in the Oriente province of eastern Cuba. The son of a Spanish immigrant who had made a fortune building rail systems to transport sugar cane, Fidel attended Roman Catholic boarding schools in Santiago de Cuba. He became involved in revolutionary politics while he was a student and in 1947 took part in an abortive attempt by Dominican exiles and Cubans to overthrow Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo. In the next year, he took part in urban riots in Bogota, Colombia. The most outstanding feature of his politics during the period was his anti-American beliefs; he was not yet an overt Marxist.  <em class="date"> Aug 13, 1952: Hound Dog is recorded for the first time by Big Mama Thornton </h2>Elvis Presley's Hound Dog (1956) is one of the biggest and most instantly recognizable pop songs in history. It's a song so closely associated with the King of Rock and Roll, in fact, that many may mistakenly assume that it was a Presley original. In fact, the story of the song that gave Elvis his longest-running #1 hit (11 weeks) in the summer of 1956 began four years earlier, when Hound Dog was recorded for the very first time by the rhythm-and-blues singer Ellie Mae Big Mama Thornton in Los Angeles , California .  <em class="date"> Aug 13, 1981: Reagan signs Economic Recovery Tax Act (ERTA) </h2>On this day in 1981, at his California home Rancho del Cielo, Ronald Reagan signs the Economic Recovery Tax Act (ERTA), a historic package of tax and budget reductions that set the tone for his administration's overall economic policy.   <em class="date"> Aug 13, 1995: Yankee legend dies </h2>Former New York Yankees star Mickey Mantle dies of liver cancer at the age of 63. While The Mick patrolled center field and batted clean-up between 1951 and 1968, the Yankees won 12 American League pennants and seven World Series championships  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 14, 2003: Blackout hits Northeast United States </h2>On this day in 2003, a major outage knocked out power across the eastern United States and parts of Canada. Beginning at 4:10 p.m. ET, 21 power plants shut down in just three minutes. Fifty million people were affected, including residents of New York , Cleveland and Detroit, as well as Toronto and Ottawa, Canada. Although power companies were able to resume some service in as little as two hours, power remained off in other places for more than a day. The outage stopped trains and elevators, and disrupted everything from cellular telephone service to operations at hospitals to traffic at airports. In New York City , it took more than two hours for passengers to be evacuated from stalled subway trains. Small business owners were affected when they lost expensive refrigerated stock. The loss of use of electric water pumps interrupted water service in many areas. There were even some reports of people being stranded mid-ride on amusement park roller coasters. At the New York Stock Exchange and bond market, though, trading was able to continue thanks to backup generators.  <em class="date"> Aug 14, 1933: Logging accident sparks forest fire in Oregon Coast Range </h2>On this day in 1933, a devastating forest fire is sparked in the Coast Range Mountains, located in northern Oregon , 50 miles west of Portland. Raging for 11 days over some 267,000 acres, the blaze began a series of fires that struck the region at six-year intervals until 1951 that became known collectively as the Tillamook Burn. <em class="date"> Aug 14, 1784: Russians settle Alaska </h2>On Kodiak Island, Grigory Shelikhov, a Russian fur trader, founds Three Saints Bay, the first permanent Russian settlement in Alaska .  <em class="date"> Aug 14, 1985: Michael Jackson takes control of the Beatles' publishing rights </h2>It was during their collaboration on 1983's Say Say Say that former Beatle Paul McCartney is said to have advised King of Pop Michael Jackson to invest some of his enormous wealth in music publishing. It was sound financial advice that McCartney may have come to regret giving on this day in 1985, when Michael Jackson purchased the publishing rights to the vast majority of the Beatles' catalog for $47 million, outbidding McCartney himself.  <em class="date"> Aug 14, 1935: FDR signs Social Security Act </h2>On this day in 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs into law the Social Security Act. Press photographers snapped pictures as FDR, flanked by ranking members of Congress, signed into law the historic act, which guaranteed an income for the unemployed and retirees. FDR commended Congress for what he considered to be a patriotic act.  <em class="date"> Aug 14, 1971: Pitching ace throws first no-hitter </h2>On August 14, 1971, St. Louis Cardinals ace Bob Gibson throws the first no-hitter of his storied career. Gibsons heroics helped his team sail to an 11-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.  <em class="date"> Aug 14, 1917: China declares war on Germany </h2>On this day in 1917, as World War I enters its fourth year, China abandons its neutrality and declares war on Germany.  <em class="date"> Aug 14, 1945: Japan's surrender made public </h2>On this day in 1945, an official announcement of Japan 's unconditional surrender to the Allies is made public to the Japanese people.  history.com -- Edited by PMM2008 on Sunday 14th of August 2011 11:00:26 AM

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 15, 1969: The Woodstock festival opens in Bethel, New York </h2>On this day in 1969, the Woodstock Music Festival opens on a patch of farmland in White Lake, a hamlet in the upstate New York town of Bethel.  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1899: Henry Ford leaves Edison to start automobile company </h2>On this day in 1899, in Detroit, Michigan , Henry Ford resigns his position as chief engineer at the Edison Illuminating Company's main plant in order to concentrate on automobile production.  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1983: Hurricane Alicia pounds Texas coast </h2>Hurricane Alicia forms south of Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico on this day in 1983. Three days later, the Texas Gulf Coast is slammed by the storm, causing 21 deaths, thousands of injuries and billions of dollars in damages.  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1057: Malcolm slays Macbeth </h2>At the Battle of Lumphanan, King Macbeth of Scotland is slain by Malcolm Canmore, whose father, King Duncan I, was murdered by Macbeth 17 years earlier.  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1914: Panama Canal open to traffic </h2>The American-built waterway across the Isthmus of Panama, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, is inaugurated with the passage of the U.S. vessel Ancon, a cargo and passenger ship.  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1947: India and Pakistan win independence </h2>The Indian Independence Bill, which carves the independent nations of India and Pakistan out of the former Mogul Empire, comes into force at the stroke of midnight. The long-awaited agreement ended 200 years of British rule and was hailed by Indian independence leader Mohandas Gandhi as the noblest act of the British nation. However, religious strife between Hindus and Muslims, which had delayed Britain's granting of Indian independence after World War II , soon marred Gandhi 's exhilaration. In the northern province of Punjab, which was sharply divided between Hindu-dominated India and Muslim-dominated Pakistan, hundreds of people were killed in the first few days after independence.  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1961: Berlin Wall built </h2>Two days after sealing off free passage between East and West Berlin with barbed wire, East German authorities begin building a wall--the Berlin Wall --to permanently close off access to the West. For the next 28 years, the heavily fortified Berlin Wall stood as the most tangible symbol of the Cold War --a literal iron curtain dividing Europe.  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1930: Hoover looks to combat drought and economic depression </h2>On this day in 1930, President Herbert Hoover gives a press conference in which he offers plans for relief of individuals and businesses affected by a series of devastating droughts. The droughts, combined with a major stock market crash in October 1929, resulted in dire economic conditions in the country that lasted throughout the early to mid-1930s , an era known as the Great Depression .  <em class="date"> Aug 15, 1859: Charles Comiskey born </h2>On August 15, 1859, Charles Albert Comiskey, namesake of Chicago s famous Comiskey Park, is born in Chicago, Illinois . Comiskey went on to become the first and only player to later own a team.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 16, 1896: Gold discovered in the Yukon </h2>While salmon fishing near the Klondike River in Canada's Yukon Territory on this day in 1896, George Carmack reportedly spots nuggets of gold in a creek bed. His lucky discovery sparks the last great gold rush in the American West.  <em class="date"> Aug 16, 1987: Plane crashes into highway </h2>A plane crash at Detroit Metropolitan Airport in Michigan kills 156 people on this day in 1987. A four-year-old girl was the sole survivor of the accident, which was caused by pilot error.  <em class="date"> Aug 16, 1812: Detroit surrenders without a fight </h2>During the War of 1812, American General William Hull surrenders Fort Detroit and his army to the British without a fight. Hull, a 59-year-old veteran of the American Revolution , had lost hope of defending the settlement after seeing the large English and Indian force gathering outside Detroit's walls. The general was also preoccupied with the presence of his daughter and grandchildren inside the fort.  <em class="date"> Aug 16, 1948: Babe Ruth dies </h2>On August 16, 1948, baseball legend George Herman Babe Ruth dies from cancer in New York City . For two days following, his body lay in state at the main entrance to Yankee Stadium, and tens of thousands of people stood in line to pay their last respects. He was buried in Hawthorne, New York .  <em class="date"> Aug 16, 1977: Elvis Presley dies </h2>Popular music icon Elvis Presley dies in Memphis, Tennessee . He was 42. The death of the King of Rock and Roll brought legions of mourning fans to Graceland, his mansion in Memphis. Doctors said he died of a heart attack, likely brought on by his addiction to prescription barbiturates.  <em class="date"> Aug 16, 1958: Madonna born </h2>On this day in 1958, Madonna Louise Ciccone, the entertainment icon later known around the world by her first name only, is born near Detroit, Michigan . After rising to stardom as a pop singer and dancer in the 1980s , Madonna added acting to her resume, with roles in such films as Desperately Seeking Susan, Dick Tracy, A League of Their Own and Evita. The provocative performer, who often tackled sexual and religious themes in her work, also became famous for her ever-changing hairstyles and fashion sense as well as her personal life, which remains an ongoing source of fascination to the tabloid media.  <em class="date"> Aug 16, 1974: The Ramones play their first public gig at CBGB's in downtown Manhattan </h2>Five years to the day after half a million rain-soaked hippies grooved and swayed to the psychedelic sounds of the Grateful Dead at Woodstock, four young men from Forest Hills, Queens, took to the stage of an East Village dive bar in jeans, motorcycle jackets and Converse high-tops to launch a two-minute sonic attack on everything those 60s icons stood for. The date was August 16, 1974, the bar was CBGB's and the band was the Ramones, giving their debut public performance. The rapidly shouted words with which they opened that show and launched the punk-rock revolution were, as they would always be, One! Two! Three! Four!   Aug 16, 1920: Batter sustains fatal injury at plate </h2>On August 16, 1920, Cleveland Indians shortstop Ray Chapman is struck in the temple by a ball pitched by Carl Mays of the New York Yankees. He died 12 hours later. This was the first and only death to occur as the result of a pitched ball in major league history.  history.com -- Edited by PMM2008 on Tuesday 16th of August 2011 09:47:29 AM

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 17, 1969: Woodstock Music Festival concludes </h2>On this day in 1969, the grooviest event in music history--the Woodstock Music Festival--draws to a close after three days of peace, love and rock 'n' roll in upstate New York .  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1915: Charles Kettering receives patent for electric self-starter </h2>Charles F. Kettering, co-founder of Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company (DELCO) in Dayton, Ohio , is issued U.S. Patent No. 1,150,523 for his engine-starting device --the first electric ignition device for automobiles --on August 17, 1915.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1999: Earthquake exposes weak infrastructure </h2>On this day in 1999, an earthquake in northwestern Turkey kills more than 17,000 people and leaves more than 250,000 homeless. The immense disaster exposed serious problems with government and building contractors in Turkey.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1978: Balloon crosses the Atlantic </h2>The Double Eagle II completes the first transatlantic balloon flight when it lands in a barley field near Paris, 137 hours after lifting off from Preque Isle, Maine . The helium-filled balloon was piloted by Ben Abruzzo, Maxie Anderson, and Larry Newman and flew 3,233 miles in the six-day odyssey.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1987: Hitler's last living henchman dies </h2>Rudolf Hess, Nazi leader Adolf Hitler 's former deputy, is found strangled to death in Spandau Prison in Berlin at the age of 93, apparently the victim of suicide. Hess was the last surviving member of Hitler's inner circle and the sole prisoner at Spandau since 1966.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1999: Deadly earthquake strikes Turkey </h2> Just after 3 a.m., an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale strikes northwestern Turkey, home to one-third of the country's population and half its industry. The epicenter of the earthquake was Izmit, located 65 miles from Istanbul and on the North Anatolian fault line. The quake came at the worst possible time, when people were at home in their beds, and thousands were killed instantly as their homes collapsed on them. Thousands more died of injuries, suffocation, dehydration, or exhaustion as rescue crews scrambled to pull them from the rubble. All told, more than 17,000 people were killed and damages totaled $6.5 billion, making it one of the most devastating earthquakes of the 20th century.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1993: Random House gives Colin Powell largest autobiography advance to date </h2>Random house agrees to pay Gen. Colin Powell an advance of about $6 million for the rights to his autobiography, My American Journey.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1974: The Night Chicago Died by Paper Lace tops the U.S. pop charts </h2>In America, it is a fairly well-known historical fact that the legendary mob boss Al Capone was brought to justice not by uniformed officers of the Chicago Police Department, but by the punctilious accountants of the FBI. However, in England there were at least a few young men that didn't have all the facts straight, and in the 1970s their pop group from Nottingham turned their romantic misunderstanding of American history into a historically dubious yet gloriously catchy hit record. Though it was never intended for the American market, Paper Lace's The Night Chicago Died crossed the Atlantic and became a #1 hit on the U.S. pop charts on this day in 1974.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1998: Clinton testifies before grand jury </h2>On this day in 1998, President Bill Clinton becomes the first sitting president to testify before the Office of Independent Council as the subject of a grand-jury investigation.  <em class="date"> Aug 17, 1933: Lou Gehrig goes the distance </h2>On August 17, 1933, New York Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig plays in his 1,308th consecutive game, breaking former Yankee Everett Scotts record for consecutive games played. Gehrig would go on to play in 2,130 games in a row, setting a record that would stand for over half a century.  history.com

 

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Aug 18, 1991: Soviet hard-liners launch coup against Gorbachev </h2>On this day in 1991, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev is placed under house arrest during a coup by high-ranking members of his own government, military and police forces.  <em class="date"> Aug 18, 1940: Walter P. Chrysler dies </h2>Walter Percy Chrysler, the founder of the American automotive corporation that bears his name, dies on this day in 1940 at his estate in Great Neck, New York , after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage. He was 65 years old.  <em class="date"> Aug 18, 1988: A Seattle judge involved in a sex scandal commits suicide </h2>The Honorable Gary M. Little shoots himself just hours before the Seattle Post-Intelligencer releases an article accusing him of abusing his power by sexually exploiting juvenile defendants who appeared before him. The front-page article also suggested that he had exploited his teenage students as a teacher in the 1960s and 1970s . The scandal raised questions about the judicial system, because Little had been investigated and disciplined, but the investigations had been kept a secret. In 1981, Little's first year as a judge, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer received a tip about Little's unusual relations with juvenile defendants. When the reporter investigated the matter, he found that Little, who was working as a volunteer counselor in juvenile court at the time, had been charged with third-degree assault in 1964. He was accused of assaulting a 16-year-old defendant in his apartment, but the charges had been dismissed. The paper never published the story, but it sparked an investigation by deputies working for King County prosecuting attorney Norm Maleng.   Aug 18, 1931: Yangtze River peaks in China </h2>On this day in 1931, the Yangtze River in China peaks during a horrible flood that kills 3.7 million people directly and indirectly over the next several months. This was perhaps the worst natural disaster of the 20th century.  <em class="date"> Aug 18, 1920: Woman suffrage amendment ratified </h2>The 19th Amendment to the Constitution, guaranteeing women the right to vote, is ratified by Tennessee , giving it the two-thirds majority of state ratification necessary to make it the law of the land. The amendment was the culmination of more than 70 years of struggle by woman suffragists. Its two sections read simply: The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex and Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.  <em class="date"> Aug 18, 1979: Chic's Good Times hits #1 on the U.S. pop charts </h2>In the final decadent years of the disco era, the group Chic reached the height of their popularity just as their musical niche was about to disappear. They were fresh, they were sexy, they were massively successful, and while the death of disco brought their recording career to a premature end, what distinguished Chic from the many groups that suffered a similar fate was the enormous influence they would have on the sounds rushed in to take disco's place--including, perhaps surprisingly, rap. The greatest example of that influence relates to the historic importance of their second #1 hit, Good Times, which topped the Billboard Hot 100 on this day in 1979.   Aug 18, 1992: Larry Bird hangs it up </h2>On August 18, 1992, celebrated Boston Celtics forward Larry Bird retires.  <em class="date"> Aug 18, 1971: Australia and New Zealand decide to withdraw troops from Vietnam </h2>Australia and New Zealand announce the end of the year as the deadline for withdrawal of their respective contingents from Vietnam. The Australians had 6,000 men in South Vietnam and the New Zealanders numbered 264. Both nations agreed to leave behind small training contingents. Australian Prime Minister William McMahon proclaimed that the South Vietnamese forces were now able to assume Australia's role in Phuoc Tuy province, southeast of Saigon and that Australia would give South Vietnam $28 million over the next three years for civilian projects. Total Australian losses for the period of their commitment in Vietnam were 473 dead and 2,202 wounded; the monetary cost of the war was $182 million for military expenses and $16 million in civilian assistance to South Vietnam.  <em class="date"> Aug 18, 1941: Hitler suspends euthanasia program </h2>On this day in 1941, Adolf Hitler orders that the systematic murder of the mentally ill and handicapped be brought to an end because of protests within Germany.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 19, 1909: First race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway </h2>On this day in 1909, the first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, now the home of the world's most famous motor racing competition, the Indianapolis 500.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1909: Louis Schwitzer wins first race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway </h2>In front of some 12,000 spectators, automotive engineer Louis Schwitzer wins the two-lap, five-mile inaugural race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana , on August 19, 1909.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1980: Fire on Saudi jet kills 301 </h2>On this day in 1980, a fire aboard a plane bound for Saudi Arabia forces an emergency landing. The Saudi Airlines flight began in Karachi, Pakistan, headed for Jidda, Saudi Arabia, with a stopover in Riyadh. The first leg of the flight was uneventful, and the Lockheed L-1011 took off from Riyadh with no problems. Shortly after takeoff from Riyadh, however, the pilot reported a fire onboard the plane and told air-traffic controllers that he needed immediate clearance to head back to the airport. The fire started while passengers onboard were cooking with a portable butane stove. Apparently, this was not unusual, as Middle Eastern airlines are often willing to accommodate their Muslim passengers' needs to follow the strict dietary laws of their religion. The pilot was able to land the plane back at Riyadh safely and headed to the end of the runway where a rescue crew was waiting. When the plane reached the end of the runway, however, it burst into flames. The crew sprayed fire-fighting foam at the fire, but it was no match for the intense blaze. None of the 301 people onboard escaped the fire. It is still unclear why there were no survivors. Bodies were found piled up near the escape hatches. One theory is that panic on the plane caused a stampede that prevented the hatches from being opened. Another possibility is that the crew failed to depressurize the cabin, which would have prevented the hatches from opening. It is also possible that everyone on the flight was overcome by fumes before they could save themselves.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1812: Old Ironsides earns its names </h2>During the War of 1812, the U.S. Navy frigate Constitution defeats the British frigate Guerrière in a furious engagement off the coast of Nova Scotia. Witnesses claimed that the British shot merely bounced off the Constitution's sides, as if the ship were made of iron rather than wood. By the war's end, Old Ironsides destroyed or captured seven more British ships. The success of the USS Constitution against the supposedly invincible Royal Navy provided a tremendous boost in morale for the young American republic.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1960: Captured U.S. spy pilot sentenced in Russia </h2>In the USSR, captured American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers is sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for his confessed espionage.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1964: The Beatles kick off first U.S. tour at San Francisco's Cow Palace </h2>The Beatles took America by storm during their famous first visit, wowing the millions who watched them during their historic television appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964. But after the first great rush of stateside Beatlemania, the Beatles promptly returned to Europe, leaving their American fans to make do with mere records. By late summer of that same year, however, having put on an unprecedented and still unmatched display of pop-chart dominance during their absence, the Beatles finally returned. On August 19, 1964, more than six months after taking the East Coast by storm, the Fab Four traveled to California to take the stage at the Cow Palace in San Francisco for opening night of their first-ever concert tour of North America.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1951: Little person makes big league debut </h2>On this day in 1951, little person Eddie Gaedel makes his big league baseball debut with the St. Louis Browns, and is walked on four pitches in his one at-bat. Gaedel was the lead character in the most famous stunt ever devised by legendary owner and showman Bill Veeck.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1968: Many Americans against a bombing halt </h2>A Harris survey indicates that 61 percent of those polled are against calling a halt to the bombing in Vietnam. President Johnson, in a major speech at the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Detroit, challenged Hanoi to respond to the limitations of the bombing campaign that he had announced in March. But he refused to curtail other military activities in Southeast Asia, saying that, there are some among us who appear to be searching for a formula which would get us out of Vietnam and Asia on any terms, leaving the people of South Vietnam and Laos and Thailand... to an uncertain fate.  <em class="date"> Aug 19, 1934: Adolf Hitler becomes president of Germany </h2>On this day in 1934, Adolf Hitler , already chancellor, is also elected president of Germany in an unprecedented consolidation of power in the short history of the republic.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 22, 1950: Althea Gibson becomes first African-American on U.S. tennis tour </h2>On this day in 1950, officials of the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) accept Althea Gibson into their annual championship at Forest Hills, New York , making her the first African-American player to compete in a U.S. national tennis competition.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1933: The Barker clan kills an officer in their fruitless robbery </h2> The notorious Barker gang robs a Federal Reserve mail truck in Chicago , Illinois , and kills Officer Miles Cunningham. Netting only a bunch of worthless checks, the Barkers soon returned to a crime with which they had more successkidnapping. A few months later, the Barkers kidnapped wealthy banker Edward Bremer, demanding $200,000 in ransom.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1992: Hurricane Andrew pounds Bahamas </h2>Hurricane Andrew hits the Bahamas on this day in 1992. There and in South Florida , where it arrived two days later, the storm was responsible for the deaths of 26 people and an estimated $35 billion in property damage. Hurricane Andrew was so concentrated that it resembled a tornado in its effects.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1851: U.S. wins first America's Cup </h2>On August 22, 1851, the U.S.-built schooner America bests a fleet of Britain's finest ships in a race around England's Isle of Wight. The ornate silver trophy won by the America was later donated to the New York Yacht Club on condition that it be forever placed in international competition. Today, the America's Cup is the world's oldest continually contested sporting trophy and represents the pinnacle of international sailing yacht competition.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1864: International Red Cross founded </h2>The Geneva Convention of 1864 for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick of Armies in the Field is adopted by 12 nations meeting in Geneva. The agreement, advocated by Swiss humanitarian Jean-Henri Dunant, called for nonpartisan care to the sick and wounded in times of war and provided for the neutrality of medical personnel. It also proposed the use of an international emblem to mark medical personnel and supplies. In honor of Dunant's nationality, a red cross on a white background--the Swiss flag in reverse--was chosen. In 1901, Dunant was awarded the first Nobel Peace Prize.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1992: Incident at Ruby Ridge </h2>In the second day of a standoff at Randy Weaver's remote northern Idaho cabin, FBI sharpshooter Lon Horiuchi wounds Randy Weaver, Kevin Harrison, and kills Weaver's wife, Vicki.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1938: Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers grace Life cover </h2>On this day in 1938, Hollywood s most famous dancing duo, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, are featured on the cover of Life magazine, offering readers a graceful vision at a time when America is in the grips of the Great Depression .  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1969: Zager and Evans end a six-week run at #1 with their smash-hit In The Year 2525 (Exordium & Terminus) </h2>Despite the impression one might get from movies and television, the actual soundtrack of late 1960s America was not utterly monopolized by darlings of the counterculture. Hollywood has certainly conditioned us to expect a song by Jimi Hendrix, the Jefferson Airplane, Creedence Clearwater Revival or Buffalo Springfield every time we see footage of hippies in the Haight-Ashbury or helicopters in the skies over Vietnam. Yet a glance at the pop charts of 1969 reveals a musical landscape that was far more diverse and. In fact, when half a million kids piled into their cars for the long drive home from Woodstock, the song that was likely playing when they clicked on their AM radios wasn't Purple Haze, White Rabbit, Run Through The Jungle or For What It's Worth. It was probably In The Year 2525 (Exordium & Terminus) by Zager and Evansthe monumental smash hit that ruled the charts and airwaves for nearly that entire summer before finally ending its run at #1 on August 22, 1969.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1989: Nolan Ryan registers 5,000th strikeout </h2>On this day in 1989, Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers becomes the first pitcher in major league history to register 5,000 career strikeouts. Ryan would go on to rack up a total of 5,714 strikeouts, over 1,500 more than his closest competition.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1962: Kennedy reports stalemate in Vietnam </h2>Kennedy administration officials quoted in The New York Times estimate that there are 20,000 guerrilla troops in South Vietnam. Despite hundreds of engagements during the preceding two months and encouraging victories for South Vietnamese forces, the Viet Cong had grown in numbers, and U.S. officials felt that the war had reached a point of stalemate.  <em class="date"> Aug 22, 1972: Demonstrators disrupt Republican National Convention in Miami Beach </h2>Delegates entering the Republican National Convention in Miami Beach are harassed by 3,000 antiwar demonstrators, many painted with death masks. The rest of the convention is marked by demonstrations outside the meeting hall; hundreds of protestors are arrested and many are injured when police use riot-control agents .

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 23, 1902: Fannie Farmer opens cooking school </h2>On this day in 1902, pioneering cookbook author Fannie Farmer, who changed the way Americans prepare food by advocating the use of standardized measurements in recipes, opens Miss Farmer's School of Cookery in Boston. In addition to teaching women about cooking, Farmer later educated medical professionals about the importance of proper nutrition for the sick.   Aug 23, 1904: Patent for tire chain issued </h2>On this day in 1904, Harold D. Weed of Canastota, New York , is issued U.S. Patent No. 768,495 for his Grip-Tread for Pneumatic Tires, a non-skid tire chain to be used on automobiles in order to increase traction on roads slick with mud, snow or ice.   <em class="date"> Aug 23, 1999: NYC reports first cases of West Nile virus </h2>The first cases of an encephalitis outbreak are reported in New York City on this day in 1999. Seven people die from what turns out to be the first cases of West Nile virus in the United States .  <em class="date"> Aug 23, 1926: Valentino dies </h2>The death of silent-screen idol Rudolph Valentino at the age of 31 sends his fans into a hysterical state of mass mourning. In his brief film career, the Italian-born actor established a reputation as the archetypal screen lover. After his death from a ruptured ulcer was announced, dozens of suicide attempts were reported, and the actress Pola Negri--Valentino's most recent lover--was said to be inconsolable. Tens of thousands of people paid tribute at his open coffin in New York City , and 100,000 mourners lined the streets outside the church where funeral services were held. Valentino's body then traveled by train to Hollywood , where he was laid to rest after another funeral.  <em class="date"> Aug 23, 2000: First Survivor finale airs </h2>On this day in 2000, Richard Hatch, a 39-year-old corporate trainer from Rhode Island , wins the season-one finale of the reality television show Survivor and takes home the promised $1 million prize. In a four-to-three vote by his fellow contestants, Hatch, who was known for walking around naked on the island in Borneo where the show was shot, was named Sole Survivor over the river raft guide Kelly Wiglesworth. Survivor, whose slogan is Outwit, Outplay, Outlast, was a huge ratings success and spawned numerous imitators in the reality-competition genre.  <em class="date"> Aug 23, 1970: Lou Reed plays his last show with the Velvet Underground </h2>The most famous and widely quoted observation about rock pioneers the Velvet Underground is generally credited to guitarist Brian Eno, who supposedly said that while only a handful of people bought their albums in their original release, every one of those people was inspired to go out and start his own rock band. To judge from the number of artists over the last four decades whose sound and songwriting reflect the Velvets' influence, Eno was right on the mark. Arguably the most influential American band of the late 1960s and early 1970s , the Velvet Underground had an impact on modern rock and roll that was well out of proportion to the popularity they achieved in their short-lived heyday. That heyday, which included four studio albums still cited as major influences by bands whose members were not even alive at the time of their release, came to an end on this day in 1970, when lead singer and primary songwriter Lou Reed played his last gig with the Velvet Underground at the famous Manhattan rock club Max's Kansas City.  <em class="date"> Aug 23, 1989: Pete Rose gets booted from baseball </h2>On this day in 1989, as punishment for betting on baseball, Cincinnati Reds manager Pete Rose accepts a settlement that includes a lifetime ban from the game. A heated debate continues to rage as to whether Rose, a former player who remains the games all-time hits leader, should be given a second chance.  <em class="date"> Aug 23, 1939: The Hitler-Stalin Pact </h2>On this day in 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression pact, stunning the world, given their diametrically opposed ideologies. But the dictators were, despite appearances, both playing to their own political needs.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 24, 79: Vesuvius erupts </h2>After centuries of dormancy, Mount Vesuvius erupts in southern Italy, devastating the prosperous Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum and killing thousands. The cities, buried under a thick layer of volcanic material and mud, were never rebuilt and largely forgotten in the course of history. In the 18th century, Pompeii and Herculaneum were rediscovered and excavated, providing an unprecedented archaeological record of the everyday life of an ancient civilization, startlingly preserved in sudden death.  <em class="date"> Aug 24, 1982: A Wall Street scheme is hatched </h2>Martin Siegel meets Ivan Boesky at the Harvard Club in New York City to discuss his mounting financial pressures. Arbitrageur Boesky offered Siegel, a mergers-and-acquisitions executive at Kidder, Peabody & Co., a job, but Siegel, who was looking for some kind of consulting arrangement, declined. Boesky then suggested that if Siegel would supply him with early inside information on upcoming mergers there would be something in it for him.  <em class="date"> Aug 24, 1572: Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre </h2>King Charles IX of France, under the sway of his mother, Catherine de Medici, orders the assassination of Huguenot Protestant leaders in Paris, setting off an orgy of killing that results in the massacre of tens of thousands of Huguenots all across France.  <em class="date"> Aug 24, 1814: British capture and burn Washington </h2>During the War of 1812, British forces under General Robert Ross overwhelm American militiamen at the Battle of Bladensburg, Maryland , and march unopposed into Washington, D.C. Most congressmen and officials fled the nation's capital as soon as word came of the American defeat, but President James Madison and his wife, Dolley, escaped just before the invaders arrived. Earlier in the day, President Madison had been present at the Battle of Bladensburg and had at one point actually taken command of one of the few remaining American batteries, thus becoming the first and only president to exercise in actual battle his authority as commander in chief.  <em class="date"> Aug 24, 1821: Spain accepts Mexican independence </h2>Eleven years after the outbreak of the Mexican War of Independence, Spanish Viceroy Juan de O'Donojú signs the Treaty of Córdoba, which approves a plan to make Mexico an independent constitutional monarchy.   Aug 24, 1981: John Lennons killer sentenced </h2>On this day in 1981, Mark David Chapman is sentenced to 20 years to life for the murder of John Lennon, a founding member of The Beatles, one of the most successful bands in the history of popular music.   Aug 24, 1974: Paul Anka has a #1 hit with (You're) Having My Baby </h2>On August 24, 1967, 17 years after his first trip to the top of the pop charts, Paul Anka earns a #1 hit with (You're) Having My Baby, a duet with singer Odia Cotes.  <em class="date"> Aug 24, 1875: Captain Webb swims English Channel </h2>On August 24, 1875, Captain Matthew Webb of Great Britain becomes the first man to successfully swim the English Channel without assistance. After the feat, Webb became an international celebrity, admired for both his prowess in the water and his penchant for risk-taking.  <em class="date"> Aug 24, 1969: U.S. unit refuses commander's order </h2>Company A of the Third Battalion, 196th Light Infantry Brigade refuses the order of its commander, Lieutenant Eugene Schurtz, Jr., to continue an attack that had been launched to reach a downed helicopter shot down in the Que Son valley, 30 miles south of Da Nang. The unit had been in fierce combat for five days against entrenched North Vietnamese forces and had taken heavy casualties. Schurtz called his battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Robert C. Bacon, and informed him that his men had refused to follow his order to move out because they had simply had enough and that they were broken. The unit eventually moved out when Bacon sent his executive officer and a sergeant to give Schurtz's troops a pep talk, but when they reached the downed helicopter on August 25, they found all eight men aboard dead. Schurtz was relieved of his command and transferred to another assignment in the division. Neither he nor his men were disciplined. This case of combat refusal, as the Army described it, was reported widely in U.S. newspapers.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 25, 1835: The Great Moon Hoax </h2>On this day in 1835, the first in a series of six articles announcing the supposed discovery of life on the moon appears in the New York Sun newspaper.  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1991: Michael Schumacher makes Formula One debut </h2> The German race car driver Michael Schumacher makes his Formula One (Europe's top racing circuit) debut in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa Francorchamps on this day in 1991.  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1979: Hurricane David is born </h2>On this day in 1979, the storm that will become Hurricane David forms near Cape Verde off the African coast in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. It would go on to devastate the island of Dominica, and then the Dominican Republic, killing 1,500 people.  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1875: Englishman swims the Channel </h2>Matthew Webb, a 27-year-old merchant navy captain, becomes the first known person to successfully swim the English Channel. Captain Webb accomplished the grueling 21-mile crossing, which really entailed 39 miles of swimming because of tidal currents, in 21 hours and 45 minutes. During the overnight crossing from Dover, England, to Calais, France, Captain Webb drank brandy, coffee, and beef tea to keep his strength and heat up. He was hailed as a national hero upon his return to England, and a triumphal arch was erected in his honor in his hometown in Shropshire. The Daily Telegraph proclaimed, At this moment the Captain is probably the best-known and most popular man in the world.  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1944: Paris liberated </h2>After more than four years of Nazi occupation, Paris is liberated by the French 2nd Armored Division and the U.S. 4th Infantry Division. German resistance was light, and General Dietrich von Choltitz, commander of the German garrison, defied an order by Adolf Hitler to blow up Paris' landmarks and burn the city to the ground before its liberation. Choltitz signed a formal surrender that afternoon, and on August 26, Free French General Charles de Gaulle led a joyous liberation march down the Champs d'Elysees.  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 2009: Ted Kennedy, liberal lion of the Senate, dies at 77 </h2>On this day in 2009, Edward Ted Kennedy, the youngest brother of President John F. Kennedy and a U.S. senator from Massachusetts from 1962 to 2009, dies of brain cancer at age 77 at his home in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. Kennedy, one of the longest-serving senators in American history, was a leader of the Democratic Party and a spokesman for liberal causes who also was known for his ability to work with those on both sides of the political aisle. <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1939: The Wizard of Oz debuts </h2>On this day in 1939, The Wizard of Oz, which will become one of the best-loved movies in history, opens in theaters around the United States .  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1962: Little Eva earns a #1 hit with Loco-Motion </h2>Just as pop stardom most often depends on possessing abundant talent and a great capacity for hard work, it also can require being in the right place at the right time. This was certainly true for the diminutive, 17-year-old singer named Eva Narcissus Boyd, who scored her first and only #1 hit on this day in 1962 with The Loco-Motion.  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1950: Truman orders army to seize control of railroads </h2>On this day in 1950, in anticipation of a crippling strike by railroad workers, President Harry S. Truman issues an executive order putting America's railroads under the control of the U.S. Army, as of August 27, at 4:00 pm.  <em class="date"> Aug 25, 1985: Gooden becomes youngest 20-game winner in history </h2>On August 25, 1985, New York Mets pitcher Dwight Gooden becomes the youngest 20-game winner in Major League Baseball history. Gooden was 20 years, nine months and nine days old when he led his Mets over the San Diego Padres 9-3--a month younger than Bullet Bob Feller was when he racked up his 20th win in 1939. Although Gooden was one of the best young pitchers in baseball history, his star burned out quickly as a result of substance abuse.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 26, 1939: First televised Major League baseball game </h2>On this day in 1939, the first televised Major League baseball game is broadcast on station W2XBS, the station that was to become WNBC-TV. Announcer Red Barber called the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York .  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1959: Mini makes its debut </h2>On this day in 1959, the British Motor Corporation (BMC) launches its newest car, the small, affordableat a price tag of less than $800Mark I Mini. The diminutive Mini went on to become one of the best-selling British cars in history.  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1957: Russia tests an intercontinental ballistic missile </h2>The Soviet Union announces that it has successfully tested an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of being fired into any part of the world. The announcement caused great concern in the United States , and started a national debate over the missile gap between America and Russia.  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1986: Preppy Murder stuns New York </h2>On this day in 1986, 18-year-old Jennifer Levin is found dead in New York Citys Central Park less than two hours after she was seen leaving a bar on the citys Upper East Side with 19-year-old Robert Chambers. The tall, handsome Chambers was soon arrested and charged with murder. The tabloid media dubbed Chambers, who had attended Manhattan private schools, the Preppy Killer. The case shocked the city and raised questions about underage drinking, drug use and casual sex among New Yorks privileged youth. <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1948: NYC and Philly sizzle in heat wave </h2>On this day in 1948, the temperature hits 108 degrees Fahrenheit in New York City during a week-long heat wave that kills at least 33 people.  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1920: 19th Amendment adopted </h2>The 19th Amendment , guaranteeing women the right to vote, is formally adopted into the U.S. Constitution by proclamation of Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby. The amendment was the culmination of more than 70 years of struggle by woman suffragists. Its two sections read simply: The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex and Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1974: Charles Lindbergh dies </h2>Charles Lindbergh, the first man to accomplish a solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean, dies in Maui, Hawaii , at the age of 72.  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1978: Grease movie soundtrack earns its second #1 hit </h2>The 1960s was the final decade in which the musical hits of Broadway were routinely and successfully adapted by Hollywood into big-budget screen versions. West Side Story (1961), My Fair Lady (1964), The Sound Of Music (1965), Funny Girl (1968)all of these movie musicals were among the biggest critical and commercial hits of their era. But while the early part of the subsequent decade brought successful adaptations of Fiddler on the Roof (1971) and Cabaret (1972), Hollywood had all but given up Broadway by the middle of the 1970s . And then, in 1978, Paramount Pictures placed a big bet on a small musical called Grease and came up with not just an enormous hit movie, but a true pop-cultural phenomenon that included one of the most successful original motion picture soundtrack albums in music history. On August 29, 1978, that album earned its second chart-topping hit when its third singleFrankie Valli's Grease reached the #1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100.  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1939: Lights, cameras, baseball </h2>On this day in 1939, television station W2XBS in New York City broadcasts a doubleheader between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Cincinnati Reds from Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. The game, filmed with two cameras, was the first Major League Baseball game ever aired on television.  <em class="date"> Aug 26, 1964: Johnson receives Democratic nomination for president </h2>Lyndon B. Johnson is nominated to run for the presidency at the Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey . His running mate would be Hubert H. Humphrey . Former Vice President Johnson had assumed the reigns of government in November 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Upon assuming office, he inherited a commitment to Vietnam where Kennedy had sent military advisors to support the South Vietnamese government in Saigon. Following the Tonkin Gulf incident earlier in August when North Vietnamese torpedo boats reportedly attacked U.S. destroyers, Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution empowering Johnson to take all necessary measures to repel an armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression. With the support of Congress in hand and having been nominated for the presidency in his own right, Johnson said he would stop the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, but that American boys should not be sent to do the fighting that Asian boys with U.S. help could do themselves. Receiving opposing views from various experts inside and outside the government, Johnson chose to listen to those he wanted to hear, discounting those who suggested that the U.S. should not become deeply involved in the war. Trying to protect his domestic agenda at home, he nevertheless gradually escalated the U.S. commitment in South Vietnam, eventually sending U.S. combat units that resulted in more than 500,000 American troops in-country by early 1968.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 27, 1883: Krakatau explodes </h2>The most powerful volcanic eruption in recorded history occurs on Krakatau (also called Krakatoa), a small, uninhabited volcanic island located west of Sumatra in Indonesia, on this day in 1883. Heard 3,000 miles away, the explosions threw five cubic miles of earth 50 miles into the air, created 120-foot tsunamis and killed 36,000 people.  <em class="date"> Aug 27, 1937: George Eyston breaks own automobile land speed record </h2>On August 27, 1937, Captain George E. T. Eyston breaks his own automobile land speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah , raising the mark to 345.49 mph.   <em class="date"> Aug 27, 2007: NFL star Michael Vick pleads guilty in dogfighting case </h2>On this day in 2007, Michael Vick, a star quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons, formally pleads guilty before a Richmond, Virginia , judge to a federal felony charge related to running a dogfighting ring. That December, the 27-year-old Vick, once the highest-paid player in the NFL, was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison.  <em class="date"> Aug 27, 1953: Roman Holiday opens, featuring Hepburns first starring role </h2> On this day in 1953, Roman Holiday, featuring Audrey Hepburn in her first starring movie role, premieres in New York City . Hepburns performance in Roman Holiday, as a European princess who ditches her official duties and falls for an American journalist (played by Gregory Peck) while on tour in Rome, earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress and instantly established her as a leading Hollywood star.  <em class="date"> Aug 27, 1967: Beatles manager Brian Epstein dies </h2>On August 27, 1967, Brian Epstein, manager of the Beatles, was found dead of an accidental drug overdose in his Sussex, England, home. The following day, the headline in the London Daily Mirror read EPSTEIN (The Beatle-Making Prince of Pop) DIES AT 32. Brian Epstein was, by all accounts, the man who truly got the Beatles off the ground, and in John Lennon's estimation, it was difficult to see how they'd manage to go on without the man who had managed every aspect of the Beatles' business affairs up until his unexpected death. I knew that we were in trouble then, John later recalled. I didn't really have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music. I was scared. I thought, 'We've ******* had it.'  <em class="date"> Aug 27, 1908: LBJ is born </h2>On this day in 1908, future President Lyndon Baines Johnson is born on a farm near Stonewall, Texas . The brash, outspoken Johnson grew up in an impoverished rural area and worked his way through a teachers' training college before entering politics  <em class="date"> Aug 27, 1982: Henderson steals his way to a record </h2>Oakland Athletics outfielder Rickey Henderson steals his 119th base of the year, breaking Hall of Famer Lou Brocks 1979 record for stolen bases in a season.  history.com

 

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<em class="date"> Aug 28, 1996: Charles and Diana divorce </h2>After four years of separation, Charles, Prince of Wales and heir to the British throne, and his wife, Princess Diana, formally divorce.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1877: Charles S. Rolls born </h2>Charles Stewart Rolls, the pioneering British motorist, aviator and co-founder (with Henry Royce) of the Rolls-Royce Ltd. luxury automobile company, is born on August 28, 1877, in London's upscale Mayfair district.   <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1988: Air-show accident burns spectators </h2>An air show involving military jets at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany turns tragic on this day in 1988 when three jets collide in mid-air and fall into the crowd. Sixty-nine of the 100,000 spectators died and hundreds more were injured.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1955: The death of Emmett Till </h2>While visiting family in Money, Mississippi , 14-year-old Emmett Till , an African American from Chicago , is brutally murdered for flirting with a white woman four days earlier. His assailants--the white woman's husband and her brother--made Emmett carry a 75-pound cotton -gin fan to the bank of the Tallahatchie River and ordered him to take off his clothes. The two men then beat him nearly to death, gouged out his eye, shot him in the head, and then threw his body, tied to the cotton-gin fan with barbed wire, into the river.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1963: King speaks to March on Washington </h2>On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. , the African American civil rights movement reaches its high-water mark when Martin Luther King , Jr., speaks to about 250,000 people attending the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The demonstrators--black and white, poor and rich--came together in the nation's capital to demand voting rights and equal opportunity for African Americans and to appeal for an end to racial segregation and discrimination.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1968: Protests at Democratic National Convention in Chicago </h2>On this day in 1968, at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago , tens of thousands of Vietnam War protesters battle police in the streets, while the Democratic Party falls apart over an internal disagreement concerning its stance on Vietnam. Over the course of 24 hours, the predominant American line of thought on the Cold War with the Soviet Union was shattered.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1963: Mahalia Jackson, the Queen of Gospel, puts her stamp on the March on Washington </h2>If the legendary gospel vocalist Mahalia Jackson had been somewhere other than the National Mall in Washington, D.C. , on this day in 1963, her place in history would still have been assured purely on the basis of her musical legacy. But it is almost impossible to imagine Mahalia Jackson having been anywhere other than center stage at the historic March on Washington on August 28, 1963, where she not only performed as the lead-in to Dr. Martin Luther King , Jr. and his I Have a Dream speech, but she also played a direct role in turning that speech into one of the most memorable and meaningful in American history.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1917: President Woodrow Wilson picketed by women suffragists </h2>On this day in 1917, President Woodrow Wilson is picketed by woman suffragists in front of the White House , who demand that he support an amendment to the Constitution that would guarantee women the right to vote.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1977: Pele leads Cosmos to title </h2>On this day in 1977, Brazilian soccer superstar Pelé leads the New York Cosmos to victory in the Soccer Bowl, the championship of the North American Soccer League (NASL). With the help of international talent on its rosters, the NASL enjoyed surprising success in the mid-to-late 1970s in the United States , a country not particularly noted for its love for soccer. The 1977 Cosmos were a star-studded team that, at least for a short time, put soccer on nearly equal footing with the other major American sports.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1941: Mass slaughter in Ukraine </h2>On this day in 1941, more than 23,000 Hungarian Jews are murdered by the Gestapo in occupied Ukraine.  <em class="date"> Aug 28, 1968: DNC endorses Johnson administration platform on the war in Vietnam </h2>The Democratic National Convention in Chicago endorses the Johnson administration's platform on the war in Vietnam and chooses Vice President Hubert Humphrey as the party's nominee for president. The decision on the party platform resulted in a contentious three-hour debate inside the convention hall. history.com