Author Topic: Event of the Day  (Read 29951 times)

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #30 on: September 10, 2004, 12:34:34 AM »
Here is proper explaination of Jami's sub-standard Event of the Day


September 9, 1971


Prisoners riot and seize control of the maximum-security Attica Correctional Facility near Buffalo, New York. Later that day, state police retook most of the prison, but 1,281 convicts occupied an exercise field called D Yard, where they held 39 prison guards and employees hostage for four days. After negotiations stalled, state police and prison officers launched a disastrous raid on September 13, in which 10 hostages and 29 inmates were killed in an indiscriminate hail of gunfire. Eighty-nine others were seriously injured.

By the summer of 1971, the state prison in Attica, New York, was ready to explode. Inmates were frustrated with chronic overcrowding, censorship of letters, and living conditions that limited them to one shower per week and one roll of toilet paper each month. Some Attica prisoners, adopting the radical spirit of the times, began to perceive themselves as political prisoners rather than convicted criminals.

On the morning of September 9, the eruption came when inmates on the way to breakfast overpowered their guards and stormed down a prison gallery in a spontaneous riot. They broke through a faulty gate and into a central area known as Times Square, which gave them access to all the cellblocks. Many of the prison's 2,200 inmates then joined in the rioting, and prisoners rampaged through the facility beating guards, acquiring makeshift weapons, and burning down the prison chapel. One guard, William Quinn, was severely beaten and thrown out a second-story window. Two days later, he died in a hospital from his injuries.

Using tear gas and submachine guns, state police regained control of three of the four cellblocks held by the rioters without loss of life. By 10:30 a.m., the inmates were only in control of D Yard, a large, open exercise field surrounded by 35-foot walls and overlooked by gun towers. Thirty-nine hostages, mostly guards and a few other prison employees, were blindfolded and held in a tight circle. Inmates armed with clubs and knives guarded the hostages closely.

Riot leaders put together a list of demands, including improved living conditions, more religious freedom, an end to mail censorship, and expanded phone privileges. They also called for specific individuals, such as U.S. Representative Herman Badillo and New York Times columnist Tom Wicker, to serve as negotiators and civilian observers. Meanwhile, hundreds of state troopers arrived at Attica, and New York Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller called in the National Guard.

In tense negotiations, New York Correction Commissioner Russell Oswald agreed to honor the inmates' demands for improved living conditions. However, talks bogged down when the prisoners called for amnesty for everyone in D Yard, along with safe passage to a "non-imperialist country" for anyone who desired it. Observers pleaded with Governor Rockefeller to come to Attica as a show of good faith, but he refused and instead ordered the prison to be retaken by force.

On the rainy Monday morning of September 13, an ultimatum was read to the inmates, calling on them to surrender. They responded by putting knives against the hostages' throats. At 9:46 a.m., helicopters flew over the yard, dropping tear gas as state police and correction officers stormed in with guns blazing. The police fired 3,000 rounds into the tear gas haze, killing 29 inmates and 10 of the hostages and wounding 89. Most were shot in the initial indiscriminate barrage of gunfire, but other prisoners were shot or killed after they surrendered. An emergency medical technician recalled seeing a wounded prisoner, lying on the ground, shot several times in the head by a state trooper. Another prisoner was shot seven times and then ordered to crawl along the ground. When he didn't move fast enough, an officer kicked him. Many others were savagely beaten.

In the aftermath of the bloody raid, authorities said the inmates had killed the slain hostages by slitting their throats. One hostage was said to have been castrated. However, autopsies showed that these charges were false and that all 10 hostages had been shot to death by police. The attempted cover-up increased public condemnation of the raid and prompted a Congressional investigation.

The Attica riot was the worst prison riot in U.S. history. A total of 43 people were killed, including the 39 killed in the raid, guard William Quinn, and three inmates killed by other prisoners early in the riot. In the week after its conclusion, police engaged in brutal reprisals against the prisoners, forcing them to run a gauntlet of nightsticks and crawl naked across broken glass, among other tortures. The many injured inmates received substandard medical treatment, if any.

In 1974, lawyers representing the 1,281 inmates filed a $2.8 billion class-action lawsuit against prison and state officials. It took 18 years before the suit came to trial, and five more years to reach the damages phase, delays that were the fault of a lower-court judge opposed to the case. In January 2000, New York State and the former and current inmates settled for $8 million, which was divided unevenly among about 500 inmates, depending on the severity of their suffering during the raid and the weeks following.

Families of the slain correction officers lost their right to sue by accepting the modest death-benefit checks sent to them by the state. The hostages who survived likewise lost their right to sue by cashing their paychecks. Both groups attest that no state officials apprised them of their legal rights, and they were denied compensation that New York should have paid to them.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #31 on: September 10, 2004, 04:32:27 PM »
1897 First DWI

Even without Breathalyzers and line tests, George Smith's swerving was enough to alarm British police and make him the first person arrested for drunken driving. Unfortunately, Smith's arrest did nothing to discourage the many other drunk drivers who have taken to the road since. Although drunk driving is illegal in most countries, punished by heavy fines and mandatory jail sentences, it continues to be one of the leading causes of automobile accidents throughout the world. Alcohol-related automobile accidents are responsible for approximately one-third of the traffic fatalities in the United States - 16,000 deaths each year, and also account for over half a million injuries and $1 billion of property damage annually.


And a love story..

1977 Serial-killing couple meets


Charlene Williams meets Gerald Gallego at a poker club in Sacramento, California, resulting in one of the worst serial killing teams in American history. Before they were finally caught, the Gallegos killed and sexually assaulted at least 10 people over a two-year period.

Within a week of their first encounter, Charlene moved in with Gerald. The son of the first man to be executed in Mississippi's gas chamber, Gerald had amassed seven felony convictions by the age of 32. He had also been married seven times and was wanted for sexually abusing his six-year-old daughter. By the time Charlene met Gerald, she had already gone through two marriages and had acquired a hard-drug habit.

Gerald, who had a taste for multiple women in his bed, brought home a teenage runaway so that he could indulge in a threesome shortly after Charlene moved in with him. However, he became extremely angry when he found out that Charlene and the girl were engaging in sex without him.

The couple soon decided to find victims that could keep Gerald sexually satisfied. After two months of planning, they abducted their first victims in September 1978: two teenage girls, whom they sexually assaulted, beat with a tire iron, and then shot in the head.

The couple, now married, waited until the following June before striking again, grabbing two young girls in Reno, Nevada. However, this time Charlene became mad at Gerald because he started raping the girls without her, while she was driving the van. When she began firing shots at him, he quickly killed the victims.

The pace of the couple's killings quickened in 1980. In April, they kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and murdered two girls from a mall in Reno. Two months later, they found another victim during a vacation in Oregon. This time they buried their victim alive.

In July, the Gallegos kidnapped and killed a couple as they were leaving a fraternity party. However, partygoers got the license plate of their car, and a manhunt was instituted. The Gallegos managed to elude authorities for a few months but were finally caught in November in Omaha, Nebraska. While awaiting trial, Charlene agreed to testify to save her own life. Gerald Gallego was tried in both Nevada and California and received death sentences in both states. Charlene got a 20-year sentence in return for her testimony.

 :flower:
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #32 on: September 15, 2004, 02:43:33 AM »
1974 A song about crime hits the charts


"I Shot the Sheriff" hits No. 1 on the music charts. While the song had been written by reggae legend Bob Marley the previous year, it was Eric Clapton's version that ascended to the top of the charts.

Crime and murder have been the subject of popular recorded music since the invention of the phonograph. "Stakalee," also known and performed as "Stagger Lee," was one of the 20th century's first hits. The lyrics, in which the theft of a Stetson hat leads to the death of a self-professed family man, were based on an actual murder that occurred in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1895. Over the years, it has been recorded by hundreds of artists, including, more recently, the Grateful Dead and Nick Cave.

Another early hit was "White House Blues," which recounted the assassination of President William McKinley in 1901. It has since become a bluegrass standard. Country and folk songs often feature murder as a theme as well. The Louvin Brothers had a huge hit in the 1950s with "Knoxville Girl," a story-song in which the protagonist cannot help but kill his girlfriend, and Johnny Cash sang of killing a man "just to watch him die" in "Folsom Prison Blues."

In the 1990s, crime became a common theme of rap music too. Ice-T's "Cop Killer" caused a big controversy when opponents pressured Warner Brothers to stop the release of the record. And, in two separate murder trials, young men claimed that the violent imagery of Tupac Shakur's lyrics provoked them to kill police officers. Both juries, however, rejected the arguments.

 :batman:
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #33 on: September 16, 2004, 02:44:04 PM »
1845 Mormons commit an act of "blood atonement"  :hug:


Phineas Wilcox is stabbed to death by fellow Mormons in Nauvoo, Illinois, because he is believed to be a Christian spy. Wilcox was one of the first victims of "blood atonement," an old Mormon doctrine conceived of by Brigham Young that taught that murder is sometimes necessary in order to save a sinful soul.

The murder of Wilcox reflected the serious and often violent conflict between the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the surrounding communities. Joseph Smith, who founded the Mormon Church in 1830, had been living with his followers in Missouri, where they had various conflicts with locals, including an armed skirmish with the state militia. In 1838, Governor Lilburn Boggs, who was wounded four years later by an unidentified sniper at his home, signed a military order directing that the Mormons be expelled or exterminated: "The Mormons must be treated as enemies and must be exterminated or driven from the state, if necessary, for the public good."

Smith and the Mormons fled across the Mississippi to Nauvoo, Illinois, which quickly became the second most populous town in the state. But there were conflicts and tensions in Nauvoo as well. When a local newspaper printed editorials claiming that the religious leader was a fraud, Smith sent a group of followers to destroy the newspaper office. He was then arrested and sent to jail, where a lynch mob tracked him down and killed him.

Brigham Young, who quickly took command of the church and its followers, tried to stifle any dissent and banish his rivals. The killing of Phineas Wilcox was part of his consolidation of power. Tensions with other communities continued to escalate, and, a year later, over 2,000 armed anti-Mormons marched on Nauvoo. Young decided that it no longer was wise to stay in the area. He led his flock west and settled in the Salt Lake Valley, where he and his followers would become instrumental in founding the state of Utah.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #34 on: September 17, 2004, 04:19:32 PM »
1862 Antietam: The bloodiest day in American history  :2gun:  :usa:  :chair:  :pistols:


Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union General George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac fight to a standstill along a Maryland creek on the bloodiest day in American history. Although the battle was a tactical draw, it forced Lee to end his invasion of the North and retreat back to Virginia.

After Lee's decisive victory at the Second Battle of Bull Run on August 30, 1862, the Confederate general had steered his army north into Maryland. Lee and Confederate President Jefferson Davis believed that another Rebel victory might bring recognition and aid from Great Britain and France. Lee also sought to relieve pressure on Virginia by carrying the conflict to the North. His ragtag army was in dire need of supplies, which Lee hoped to obtain from Maryland farms that were untouched by the war.

Lee split his army as he moved into Maryland. One corps marched to capture Harpers Ferry, Virginia, while the other two searched for provisions. Although a copy of Lee's orders ended up in the hands of McClellan, the Union general failed to act quickly, allowing Lee time to gather his army along Antietam Creek at Sharpsburg, Maryland. McClellan arrived on September 16 and prepared to attack.

The Battle of Antietam actually consisted of three battles. Beginning at dawn on September 17, Union General Joseph Hooker's men stormed Confederate General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's troops around the Dunker Church, the West Woods, and David Miller's cornfield. The Federals made repeated attacks, but furious Rebel counterattacks kept the Yankees in check. By early afternoon, the fighting moved south to the middle of the battlefield. Union troops under General Edwin Sumner inflicted appalling casualties on the Confederates along a sunken road that became known as "Bloody Lane" before the Southerners retreated. McClellan refused to apply reserves to exploit the opening in the Confederate center because he believed Lee's force to be much larger than it actually was. In the late afternoon, Union General Ambrose Burnside attacked General James Longstreet's troops across a stone bridge that came to bear Burnside's name. The Yankees crossed the creek, but a Confederate counterattack brought any further advance to a halt.

The fighting ended by early evening, and the two armies remained in place throughout the following day. After dark on September 18, Lee began pulling his troops out of their defenses for a retreat to Virginia. The losses for the one-day battle were staggering. McClellan lost a total of 12,401 men, including 2,108 dead, 9,540 wounded, and 753 missing. Lee lost 10, 406, including 1,546 dead, 7,752 wounded, and 1,108 missing.

Although the Union army drove Lee's force back to Virginia, the battle was a lost opportunity for the Yankees. McClellan had an overwhelming numerical advantage, but he did not know it. Another attack on September 18 may well have scattered the Confederates and cut off Lee's line of retreat.

A week later, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation and changed the Northern goal from a war for reunification into a crusade for the end of slavery.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #35 on: September 20, 2004, 03:46:06 PM »
What a shitty day for events, had to settle with this.

1984 Marvin Gaye's father accepts a plea bargain


On September 20, 1984, Marvin Gay Sr. agrees to a plea bargain agreement that will keep him out of jail for shooting his son, singer Marvin Gaye, during an argument on April 1. Originally charged with first-degree murder, Gaye's 70-year-old father agreed to plead no contest to involuntary manslaughter after an investigation into the shooting revealed that he had received massive bruises from the violent argument. In addition, Gaye, who was to turn 45 the next day, had cocaine in his system.

Marvin Gaye, who added the "e" to his name when he broke into show business, was one of Motown's biggest stars with massive hits such as "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," "What's Going On," and "Sexual Healing." He was also the third acclaimed soul singer of the 1960s to die a premature and tragic death. Sam Cooke ("You Send Me," "Cupid"), who had just crossed over into becoming a mainstream star, was shot to death in December 1963 outside a Los Angeles motel. And Otis Redding, one of the finest rhythm and blues singers, perished in a 1967 plane crash, right before his "Dock of the Bay" became a No. 1 hit.

A popular singer throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s, Gaye's career hit a lull during the disco era. But, just prior to his death, he had made a comeback with one of his biggest-selling albums, Midnight Love.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #36 on: September 21, 2004, 07:52:50 PM »
1942 The Superfortress takes flight


On this day in 1942, the U.S. B-29 Superfortress makes its debut flight in Seattle, Washington. It was the largest bomber used in the war by any nation.

The B-29 was conceived in 1939 by Gen. Hap Arnold, who was afraid a German victory in Europe would mean the United States would be devoid of bases on the eastern side of the Atlantic from which to counterattack. A plane was needed that would travel faster, farther, and higher than any then available, so Boeing set to creating the four-engine heavy bomber. The plane was extraordinary, able to carry loads almost equal to its own weight at altitudes of 30,000 to 40,000 feet. It contained a pilot console in the rear of the plane, in the event the front pilot was knocked out of commission. It also sported the first radar bombing system of any U.S. bomber.

The Superfortress made its test run over the continental United States on September 21, but would not make its bombing-run debut until June 5, 1944, against Bangkok, in preparation for the Allied liberation of Burma from Japanese hands. A little more than a week later, the B-29 made its first run against the Japanese mainland. On June 14, 60 B-29s based in Chengtu, China, bombed an iron and steel works factory on Honshu Island. While the raid was less than successful, it proved to be a morale booster to Americans, who were now on the offensive.

Meanwhile, the Marianas Islands in the South Pacific were being recaptured by the United States, primarily to provide air bases for their new B-29s-a perfect position from which to strike the Japanese mainland on a consistent basis. Once the bases were ready, the B-29s were employed in a long series of bombing raids against Tokyo. Although capable of precision bombing at high altitudes, the Superfortresses began dropping incendiary devices from a mere 5,000 feet, firebombing the Japanese capital in an attempt to break the will of the Axis power. One raid, in March 1945, killed more than 80,000 people. But the most famous, or perhaps infamous, use of the B-29 would come in August, as it was the only plane capable of delivering a 10,000-pound bomb--the atomic bomb. The Enola Gay and the Bock's Car took off from the Marianas, on August 6 and 9, respectively, and flew into history.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #37 on: September 24, 2004, 02:40:35 PM »
1948 Honda Starts Its Engines

The Honda Motor Company, one of the world's leading automobile manufacturers, began as a research institute founded by engineer Honda Soichiro. The institute focused on creating small, efficient internal-combustion engines, before it began incorporating these engines into motorcycles under the Honda name. It was on this day that the Honda Technical Research Institute officially became the Honda Motor Company, establishing a corporation that would become the leading producer of motorcycles in the world. Still, while Honda is the unchallenged leader in motorcycle production, the bulk of the company's revenue comes from its automobiles. Popular models like the Civic and Accord, and its dedication to lightweight, fuel-efficient cars, have made Honda a leader in the automotive industry.


Although I doubt they ever forsaw this.
« Last Edit: September 24, 2004, 02:42:59 PM by Bob »
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #38 on: October 06, 2005, 04:26:29 PM »
Hmmm a little over a year since the last update.  Guess I wont worry too much about repeats for a bit.


October 6

1866 The Reno brothers carry out the first train robbery in U.S. history


On this day in 1866, the brothers John and Simeon Reno stage the first train robbery in American history, making off with $13,000 from an Ohio and Mississippi railroad train in Jackson County, Indiana.

Of course, trains had been robbed before the Reno brothers' holdup. But these previous crimes had all been burglaries of stationary trains sitting in depots or freight yards. The Reno brothers' contribution to criminal history was to stop a moving train in a sparsely populated region where they could carry out their crime without risking interference from the law or curious bystanders.

Though created in Indiana, the Reno brother's new method of robbing trains quickly became very popular in the West. Many bandits, who might otherwise have been robbing banks or stagecoaches, discovered that the newly constructed transcontinental and regional railroads in the West made attractive targets. With the western economy booming, trains often carried large amounts of cash and precious minerals. The wide-open spaces of the West also provided train robbers with plenty of isolated areas ideal for stopping trains, as well as plenty of wild spaces where they could hide from the law. Some criminal gangs, like Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch, found that robbing trains was so easy and lucrative that for a time they made it their criminal specialty.

The railroad owners, however, were not about to sit back and let Cassidy or any other bandit freely pillage their trains. To their dismay, would-be train robbers increasingly found that the cash and precious metals on trains were well protected in massive safes watched over by heavily armed guards. Some railroads, such as the Union Pacific, even began adding special boxcars designed to carry guards and their horses. In the event of an attempted robbery, these men could not only protect the train's valuables, but could also quickly mount their horses and chase down the fleeing bandits--hopefully putting a permanent end to their criminal careers. As a result, by the late 19th century, train robbery was becoming an increasingly difficult--and dangerous--profession.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #39 on: November 08, 2005, 04:25:29 PM »
LOUVRE MUSEUM OPENS:
November 8, 1793


After more than two centuries as a royal palace, the Louvre is opened as a public museum in Paris by the French revolutionary government. Today, the Louvre's collection is one of the richest in the world, with artwork and artifacts representative of 11,000 years of human civilization and culture.

The Louvre palace was begun by King Francis I in 1546 on the site of a 12th-century fortress built by King Philip II. Francis was a great art collector, and the Louvre was to serve as his royal residence. The work, which was supervised by the architect Pierre Lescot, continued after Francis' death and into the reigns of kings Henry II and Charles IX. Almost every subsequent French monarch extended the Louvre and its grounds, and major additions were made by Louis XIII and Louis XIV in the 17th century. Both of these kings also greatly expanded the crown's art holdings, and Louis XIV acquired the art collection of Charles I of England after his execution in the English Civil War. In 1682, Louis XIV moved his court to Versailles, and the Louvre ceased to be the main royal residence.

In the spirit of the Enlightenment, many in France began calling for the public display of the royal collections. Denis Diderot, the French writer and philosopher, was among the first to propose a national art museum for the public. Although King Louis XV temporarily displayed a selection of paintings at the Luxembourg Palace in 1750, it was not until the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789 that real progress was made in establishing a permanent museum. On November 8, 1793, the revolutionary government opened the Musée Central des Arts in the Grande Galerie of the Louvre.

The collection at the Louvre grew rapidly, and the French army seized art and archaeological items from territory and nations conquered in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars. Much of this plundered art was returned after Napoleon's defeat in 1815, but the Louvre's current Egyptian antiquities collections and other departments owe much to Napoleon's conquests. Two new wings were added in the 19th century, and the multi-building Louvre complex was completed in 1857, during the reign of Napoleon III.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Grand Louvre, as the museum is officially known, underwent major remodeling. Modern museum amenities were added and thousands of square meters of new exhibition space were opened. The Chinese American architect I.M. Pei built a steel-and-glass pyramid in the center of the Napoleon courtyard. Traditionalists called it an outrage. In 1993, on the 200th anniversary of the museum, a rebuilt wing formerly occupied by the French ministry of finance was opened to the public. It was the first time that the entire Louvre was devoted to museum purposes.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Bob

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1265
  • Karma: +2/-0
    • MSN Messenger - humpfest@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • http://www.humpfest.ca
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #40 on: November 21, 2005, 04:54:48 PM »
1877 Edison's first great invention

The American inventor announces his invention of the phonograph, a way to record and play back sound.

Edison stumbled on one of his great inventions--the phonograph--while working on a way to record telephone communication at his laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. His work led him to experiment with a stylus on a tinfoil cylinder, which, to his surprise, played back the short song he had recorded, "MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB". Public demonstrations of the phonograph made the Yankee inventor world famous, and he was dubbed the "Wizard of Menlo Park."

Edison set aside this invention in 1878 to work on the incandescent light bulb, and other inventors moved forward to improve on the phonograph. In 1887, Edison resumed work on the device, using the wax-cylinder technique developed by Charles Tainter. Although initially used as a dictating machine, the phonograph proved to be a popular tool for entertainment, and in 1906 Edison unveiled a series of musical and theatrical selections to the public through his National Phonograph Company. Continuing to improve on models and cylinders over the years, the Edison Disc Phonograph debuted in 1912 with the aim of competing in the popular record market. Edison's discs offered superior sound quality but were not compatible with other popular disc players.

During the 1920s, the early record business suffered with the growth of radio, and in 1929 recording production at Edison ceased forever. Edison, who acquired an astounding 1,093 patents in his 84 years, died in 1931.
Regal Hosting Services http://www.regalhosting.ca - Very Low Cost Web Hosting

Offline Mikal

  • A-Team
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 961
  • Karma: +0/-0
    • MSN Messenger - mikegoodwin@hotmail.com
    • View Profile
    • Email
Event of the Day
« Reply #41 on: December 17, 2005, 08:07:27 PM »
Events that happened today:
324 - Licinius abdicates his position as Roman Emperor.
1187 - Pope Clement III elected
1732 - Benjamin Franklin publishes Poor Richard's Almanack
1777 - George Washington's army goes into winter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
1828 - John C. Calhoun pens South Carolina Exposition and Protest, protesting the Tariff of 1828.
1835 - Toledo Blade newspaper begins publishing.
1842 - United States recognizes the independence of Hawaii
1912 - William H. Van Schaick, captain of the steamship General Slocum which killed over 1,000 people was pardoned by President Taft after 3 1/2 years in Sing Sing prison .
1916 - The Battle of Verdun ended.
1928 - First autogiro flight in the United States
1945 - Austria becomes a republic for the second time, the first having been founded in 1918 and interrupted by the Austro-fascist dictatorship from 1934 onwards and the Nazi invasion of Austria in 1938.
1946 - Ho Chi Minh attacks French in Hanoi
1961 - The Indian Army invades the Portuguese province of Estado da India Portuguesa (Portuguese State of India) which will become part of India.
1962 - Nyasaland secedes from Rhodesia and Nyasaland
1963 - Zanzibar received its independence from the United Kingdom to become a constitutional monarchy under the sultan.
1965 - Prisoners Ronald Ryan and Peter Walker escape from Pentridge Prison, Melbourne. During the escape a guard is killed. Ryan would hang for his death, in 1967.
1972 - Apollo 17, the last manned lunar flight, returns to Earth.
1974 - Australian Prime Minister, Harold Holt is pronounced dead.
1974 - The Altair 8800, the first personal computer, goes on sale
1978 - John Wayne Gacy is arrested for the killings of 33 boys and young men
1980 - Anguilla is made a dependency of the United Kingdom separate from Saint Kitts and Nevis
1982 - In Venezuela, the storage tanks of an oil-fired power plant catches fire killing 154 people.
1984 - The United Kingdom and People's Republic of China sign the Sino-British Joint Declaration, which handed Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.
1988 - Lawn darts are banned from sale in the United States.
1997 - A Silkair Boeing 737-300 crashes into the Musi River, in Sumatra, Indonesia killing 104
1997 - Titanic (the highest-grossing movie ever as of 2005) opens in U.S. theaters.
1998 - The U.S. House of Representatives passes articles of impeachment against President Bill Clinton over the Lewinsky scandal.
2000 - The Leninist Guerrilla Units attack a party office of the far-right MHP in Istanbul, Turkey. One MHP member is killed and several wounded.
2001 - The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the first film in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy, opens in theaters.
2001 - A new world-record high barometric pressure of 1085.6 hPa (32.06 inHg) is set at Tosontsengel, Hövsgöl Aymag, Mongolia.
2001 - The Argentine economic crisis burst into street riots after the announcement by the economy minister of the measures of holding back the bank deposits.
Only Jack Van Impe can save us now... PRAISE HIM!