Good morning (or whatever it is wherever you are) my lovely Bombers. I trust all is as well as can be expected with you. Remember, it's a scary blogosphere out there, filled with sockpuppets (they only look benign) and zombies and trolls and all manner of nightmares straight out of Hollywood's greatest low budget dreams!
Today's Very Important subjects to argue about: Laurel and Hardy or Abbott and Costello? Does cilantro really taste like soap? What is the right height for a tree? Martinis, shaken or stirred? Vodka or Gin? Olive or twist? Is it right that a drink can be a martini just because it is served in a martini glass? Which Dr. Who was the best? What was the most interesting century outside of our own? Discuss!
Today's Twitter Review:
Now, get out your notebooks, it's history time!
On This Day
In 1867, African American men were granted the right to vote in Washington, D.C. over President Andrew Johnson’s veto.
In 1790, George Washington delivers the first State of the Union address in New York, New York. The first SOTU drinking game had not yet been invented.
In 1835, the United States national debt was 0 for the only time.
In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson declared a "War on Poverty" in the United States. Sadly, this has not lasted as long as the War on Drugs or the War on Terror.
In 1975, Ella T. Grasso became Governor of Connecticut. She was the first woman to serve as a Governor in the U.S. who hadn’t succeeded her husband.
In 2002, the so-called No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law by George W. Bush.
In 2011, in a suburb of Tucson, Arizona, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords was wounded along with 13 others, and 6 were killed by a disturbed young man wielding a semi-automatic pistol loaded with a high capacity magazine.
Born on This Day
1824 – Wilkie Collins, British novelist (d. 1889)
1830 – Albert Bierstadt, German/American painter (d. 1902)
1836 – Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Dutch artist (d. 1912)
1867 – Emily Greene Balch, American writer and pacifist, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (d. 1961)
1879 – Charles Bryant, British actor and film director (d. 1948)
1883 – Pavel Filonov, Russian painter (d. 1941)
1888 – Matt Moore, Irish-American actor (d. 1960)
1891 – Bronislava Nijinska, Russian choreographer (d. 1972)
1904 – Tampa Red, American blues musician (d. 1981)
1908 – William Hartnell, British actor who was the very first Doctor in the Doctor Who series. (d. 1975)
1912 – José Ferrer, Puerto Rican actor (d. 1992)
1926 – Soupy Sales, American comedian (d. 2009)
1931 – Bill Graham, German-born American music promoter (d. 1991)
1931 – Chuck Metcalf, American jazz double-bassist (d. 2012)
1935 – Elvis Presley, American singer (d. 1977)
1937 – Dame Shirley Bassey, Welsh singer
1938 – Bob Eubanks, American game show host
1941 – Graham Chapman, British comedian (d. 1989)
1942 – Yvette Mimieux, American actress
1944 – Terry Brooks, American fantasy writer
1946 – Robby Krieger, American musician (The Doors and The Butts Band)
1947 – David Bowie, English musician
1959 – Paul Hester, Australian drummer (Crowded House and Split Enz) (d. 2005)
1966 – Andrew Wood, American singer (Mother Love Bone and Malfunkshun) (d. 1990)
1979 – Torry Castellano, American musician (The Donnas)
Died on This Day
1324 – Marco Polo, Italian explorer (b. 1254)
1337 – Giotto di Bondone, Italian artist who went by the name Giotto. (b. 1267)
1825 – Eli Whitney, American inventor (b. 1765)
1880 – Joshua A. Norton, aka Emperor Norton: "Emperor of the United States, Protector of Mexico" (b. 1811)
1896 – Paul Verlaine, French poet (b. 1844)
1916 – Ada Rehan, Irish-born American actress (b. 1860)
1996 – François Mitterrand, President of France (b. 1916)
2007 – Yvonne De Carlo, Canadian-born actress (b. 1922)
Today is
National English Toffee Day
Male Watcher’s Day
Bubble Bath Day
Show and Tell At Work Day