Sunday, February 9, 2014

This Day in Comical History

By Tiffany Amber Stockton


Congratulations to Maxie, who won an autographed copy of a book from my newest series. Keep checking all month for the SURPRISE GIVEAWAYS here on the blog.

Now, here we are in the 2nd month of 2014 already. I don't know about you, but it feels as if time and days are zipping by even faster lately. Might be because I'm getting older and constantly surprised at how fast my children are growing. With each passing day--or year--we are fortunate to have historical events to make up our past and showcase a bit of the influences of earlier times.

With that being said, I thought it'd be fun to explore some highlights from today in history, both comical and straightforward.

THIS DAY IN COMICAL HISTORY

Born 1909: Carmen Miranda, "The Lady in the Tutti-Frutti Hat," Brazilian musical superstar, turned to Hollywood and became a planetary icon during WWII, even so far as to influencing the public's attire with her flamboyant outfits and wild headgear. Some of her popular film work can be seen in "Down Argentine Way" (1940), "Weekend in Havana" (1941), "The Gang's All Here" (1943), and "Scared Stiff" (1951). Died 1955, hours after a heart attack believed suffered during her appearance on TV's "The Jimmy Durante Show."

Mae West, the notorious screen comedienne of the 1930s, saw two of her best-loved motion pictures open on this day: "She Done Him Wrong" (1933) with Cary Grant and "My Little Chickadee" (1940) with W.C. Fields.

Born 1943: Joe Pesci, actor. His comic movie favorites include "Easy Money" (1983), "My Cousin Vinny" (1992), plus the "Home Alone" and "Lethal Weapon" series.

Born 1945: Mia Farrow, actress, enjoyed bright successes in comedy films written by her offscreen mate, Woody Allen, among them: "A Midsummer's Night Sex Comedy" (1982), "Broadway Danny Rose" (1984), "The Purple Rose of Cairo" (1985), "Hannah and Her Sisters" (1986), and "Alice" (1990).

Born 1949: Judith Light, actress, fought weekly in Sitcomland opposited Tony Danza to discover "Who's the Boss?" (1984-92).

Born 1955: JM J. Bullock, actor, best recalled as Monroe on "Too Close for Comfort" (1980-85).


1997: With the airing of episode 167 on Fox-TV, "The Simpsons" surpassed "The Flintstones" to become the longest-running prime time animated series.

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

1825 - The U.S. House of Representatives elected John Quincy Adams president. No candidate had received a majority of electoral votes.

1861 - The Provisional Congress of the Confederate States of America elected Jefferson Davis as its president.

1870 - The United States Weather Bureau was authorized by Congress. The bureau is officially known as the National Weather Service (NWS).

1884 - Thomas Edison and Patrick Kenny executed a patent application for a chemical recording stock quotation telegraph (U.S. Pat. 314,115).

1885 - The first Japanese arrived in Hawaii.

1895 - Volley Ball was invented by W.G. Morgan.

1895 - The first college basketball game was played as Minnesota State School of Agriculture defeated the Porkers of Hamline College, 9-3.

1900 - Dwight F. Davis put up a new tennis trophy to go to the winner in matches against England. The trophy was a silver cup that weighed 36 pounds.

1909 - The first forestry school was incorporated in Kent, Ohio.

1932 - America entered the 2-man bobsled competition for the first time at the Olympic Winter Games held at Lake Placid, NY.

1942 - The U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff held its first formal meeting to coordinate military strategy during World War II.

1942 - Daylight-saving "War Time" went into effect in the U.S.

1943 - During World War II, the battle of Guadalcanal ended with an American victory over Japanese forces.

1950 - U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy charged that the State Department was riddled with Communists. This was the beginning of "McCarthyism."

1953 - The movie "Superman" premiered.

1958 - CBS radio debuted "Frontier Gentleman".

1960 - A verbal agreement was reached between representatives of the American and National Football Leagues. Both agreed not to tamper with player contracts.

1960 - The first star was placed on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The star was for Joanne Woodward.

1969 - The Boeing 747 flew its inaugural flight.

1971 - The San Fernando Valley experienced the Sylmar earthquake that registered 6.4 on the Richter Scale.

1971 - The Apollo 14 spacecraft returned to Earth after mankind's third landing on the moon.

1975 - The Russian Soyuz 17 returned to Earth.

1984 - NBC Entertainment president, Brandon Tartikoff, gave an interviewer the "10 Commandments for TV Programmers."

1989 - Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Co. completed the $25 billion purchase of RJR Nabisco, Inc.

* * * * *

What memories do you have of any of those facts listed above. Me? Eight years of TV watching included WHO'S THE BOSS. That entire ensemble of characters entertained me week in and week out, and I enjoyed the show for years after its original broadcast thanks to syndication.

How about you?


BIO
Tiffany Amber Stockton has been crafting and embellishing stories since childhood. Today, she is an award-winning authorspeaker, and brand partner with Nerium International, who lives with her husband and fellow author, Stuart Vaughn Stockton, in Colorado. They have one girl and one boy, and an Aussie/retriever mix named Roxie. She has sold fourteen books so far and is represented by Sandra Bishop of MacGregor Literary Agency. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.

1 comment:

  1. Amber, I do remember some of these things. Both things in WW ll, (my brother served in WW LL) the Apollo 14,Superman started, and Hollywood Walk of Fame. and I'm sure I would have heard of some of this other stuff on TV, but just didn't remember. Enjoyed reading of these happenings. Maxie Anderson

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