Wednesday, August 28, 2013

This Date in History - August 28

Happy birthday, Lou Piniella.  Finally a year where you're not celebrating with a baseball team.

475:  THE ROMAN GENERAL ORESTES FORCES WESTERN ROMAN EMPEROR JULIUS NEPOS TO FLEE.  

Every single Wednesday, there's at least one reference to those crazy nuts in the Roman Empire.

489:  THEODORIC, KING OF THE OSTROGOTHS, DEFEATS ODOACER, FORCING HIS WAY INTO ITALY.

And sometimes there are two.

1189:  THE CRUSADERS BEGIN THE SIEGE OF ACRE UNDER GUY OF LUSIGNAN.

Years before the Crusaders played the Apollo Theater.

1521:  THE OTTOMAN TURKS OCCUPY BELGRADE.

These goofy Ottomans turn up a lot on Wednesdays, too.

1609:  HENRY HUDSON DISCOVERS DELAWARE BAY.

What did Delaware?  A size 12.

1619:  FERDINAND II IS ELECTED EMPEROR OF THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE.

Okay, three in one week is my limit.

1709:  MEIDINGNU PAMHEIBA IS CROWNED KING OF MANIPUR.

Who?  What?  Where?

1830:  THE BALTIMORE AND OHIO RAILROAD'S NEW TOM THUMB STEAM LOCOMOTIVE RACES A HORSE-DRAWN CAR.

In its first years on the air, this is the kind of event that ESPN would have covered.

1845:  THE FIRST ISSUE OF SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN IS PUBLISHED.

Circulation: 1.

1898:  CALEB BRADHAM INVENTS PEPSI-COLA.

Little did Caleb know but, years later, there would be about two dozen versions of the same soda.

1913:  QUEEN WILHELMINA OPENS THE PEACE PALACE IN THE HAGUE.

And, luckily, they had Pepsi available to drink at this conference.

1916:  DURING WORLD WAR I, GERMANY DECLARES WAR ON ROMANIA.

Sure, pick on the small kids.

1916:  DURING WORLD WAR I, ITALY DECLARES WAR ON GERMANY.

Obviously close friends with the folks in Romania.

1917:  TEN SUFFRAGETTES ARE ARRESTED WHILE PICKETING THE WHITE HOUSE.

And that's how women's prison movies got started.

1921:  ACTRESS NANCY KULP IS BORN.

Chief!

1925:  ACTOR DONALD O'CONNOR IS BORN.

Make 'em laugh.

1930:  ACTOR BEN GAZZARA IS BORN.

Officially running for his life.

1937:  TOYOTA MOTORS BECOMES AN INDEPENDENT COMPANY.

I had no idea they existed way back then.

1943:  BASEBALL STAR LOU PINIELLA IS BORN.

In his honor, argue with an umpire today.

1943:  ACTOR DAVID SOUL IS BORN.

Starsky is waiting for you.

1944:  DURING WORLD WAR II, MARSEILLE AND TOULON ARE LIBERATED.

Viva les assholes.

1953:  NIPPON TELEVISION BROADCASTS JAPAN'S FIRST TV SHOW, INCLUDING THE FIRST TV ADVERTISEMENT.

For Ginsu knives, no doubt.

1955:  BLACK TEENAGER EMMETT TILL IS BRUTALLY MURDERED IN MISSISSIPPI, GALVANIZING THE AMERICAN CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT.

Screw that whole Trayvon Martin incident.  This was really a racial incident.

1957:  US SENATOR STROM THURMOND BEGINS A DAY-LONG FILIBUSTER TO PREVENT THE SENATE FROM VOTING ON A CIVIL RIGHTS ACT.  

Note to all:  he was a liberal Democrat at the time.

1963:  REVEREND MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. GIVES HIS "I HAVE A DREAM" SPEECH DURING THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON.

I'm sure we're being inundated with fifty year remembrances today on MSNBC and CNN.

1963:  EMILY HOFFERT AND JANICE WYLIE ARE MURDERED IN THEIR MANHATTAN APARTMENT, PROMPTING EVENTS THAT LEAD TO THE PASSING OF THE MIRANDA RIGHTS.

"You have the right to remain silent..."

1964:  THE PHILADELPHIA RACE RIOTS BEGINS.

So much for that dream.

1968:  RIOTS IN CHICAGO DURING THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION.

Dan Rather got punched.  How bad could this be?

1976:  ACTRESS ANISSA JONES DIES.

And Mrs. Beasley is devastated.

1978:  ACTOR ROBERT SHAW DIES.

Three years after he sort of died in "Jaws."

1985:  ACTRESS RUTH GORDON DIES.

Rosemary's Coffin.

1987:  DIRECTOR JOHN HUSTON DIES.

Caskets?  I don't need no stinkin' caskets.

1991:  MIKHAIL GORBACHEV RESIGNS AS GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE SOVIET COMMUNIST PARTY.

And he went through all that trouble of tearing down a wall.

1996:  CHARLES, PRINCE OF WALES AND DIANA, PRINCESS OF WALES DIVORCE.

As it will turn out, the end of August is not a good time for her.

2007:  ACTRESS MIYOSHI UMEKI DIES.

The easiest gag still works.   Sayonara.

2011:  HURRICANE IRENE STRIKES THE EAST COAST OF THE US.

And they think it's a killer storm.  Just wait...

Dinner last night:  Ham and swiss on pretzel bread at the Dodger game.

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