Today in History

On This Day In History, August 7th

2008 War Between Russia and Georgia Breaks Out

The conflict began over South Ossetia and Abkhazia, two breakaway regions of Georgia. When the two provinces broke away from Georgia in the early 1990s and most of the international community did not recognize their independence. Russia on the other hand, backed them and placed peacekeeping forces in the two regions. In 2008, tensions escalated between the two countries after Russia moved a large number of troops into the area. The war ended with a Russian victory and with Georgia losing parts of South Ossetia and Abkhazia to Russia.

1998 Coordinated bomb attacks in American embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya killing over 200 people
Responsibility for the twin attacks in the capital cities was taken by an Al-Qaeda affiliate Egyptian Islamic Jihad.

1974 Daredevil Walks a High Wire Between Twin Towers of the World Trade Center

French high-wire artist Philippe Petit, who was 24 years old at the time, walked 8 times across a high wire between the two towers in 45 minutes. The high wire was 1,350 feet from the ground.

1960 Ivory Coast Independence

The West African country known as Côte d'Ivoire gained its independence from France after being a member of the French Community for 2 years. Ivory Coast became a French Colony in 1893 under the leadership of explorer Louis Gustave Binger. Felix Houphouet-Boigny became the first president of the independent country and remained in office until his death in 1993.

1782 George Washington Institutes the Purple Heart
Then known as the Badge of Military Merit, the Purple Heart is a military decoration. In 1932, on the 200th birth anniversary of Washington, it was decided that the award would be given to those wounded or killed while serving in the United States Armed Forces as a result of enemy action on or after April 5, 1917. August 7 is annually observed as Purple Heart Day in the United States.
 

Births On This Day, August 7th 🎂

1987 Sidney Crosby
Canadian ice hockey player

1975 David Hicks
Australian alleged terrorist

1975 Charlize Theron
South African model, actress

1958 Bruce Dickinson
English singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor

1876 Mata Hari
Dutch spy

Deaths On This Day, August 7th 🪦


2011 Mark Hatfield
American politician

2005 Peter Jennings
Canadian/American journalist

1957 Oliver Hardy
American comedian, actor

1941 Rabindranath Tagore
Indian author, poet, Nobel Prize laureate

1938 Constantin Stanislavski
Russian actor, director
 
1927
Peace Bridge over the Niagara River which connects Buffalo, NY and Fort Erie, Ontario Canada is dedicated to commemorate 100 yrs of peace between the two countries
BTW: I live 10 min from the bridge
1940
the largest amount of $ paid for one 1856 British Guiana stamp $45,000
1955
Tokyo Telecommunications, the precursor to Sony begins selling its 1st transistor radios in Japan
1976
scientists in Pasadena, Calif announce Viking 1 found strong evidence of possible life on Mars
2018
movie' Crazy Rich Asians' directed by Jon. M. Chu released by a major Hollywood studio, Warner Brothers,features an all Asian cast. The movie is based on the book of same name by Kevin Kwan. It stars Constance Wu, Michelle Yeoh, Henry Golding. The story is about Rachel, Chinese- American prof who travels to Singapore with her boyfriend Nick. She is shocked to learn his family is very wealthy
The movie became a critical & commerical success grossed over $230 mill
 

On This Day In History, August 8th

1988 8888 Uprising in Myanmar Begins

The pro-democracy uprising began as a student protest in Burma’s capital city, Yangon. Hundreds and thousands protesters came out on the streets to protest against the one-party rule by General Ne Win. The protests lasted for over a month and were violently put down by the government. They ended after the State Peace and Development Council, a group of senior military officers took over the government in a coup and installed a military junta. The uprisings get their name from the date the protests began - August 8, 1988.

1974 Nixon Announces His Resignation
The 37th President of the United States, Richard Nixon’s resignation came as a response to the Watergate Scandal. The scandal erupted after it was revealed that the Nixon government was involved in the cover-up of a break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Complex. The revelations prompted Congress to initiate impeachment proceedings against Nixon. His resignation made him the first president in American history to resign while in office.

1969 Photographer Iain Macmillan Takes an Iconic Photograph of the Beatles
One of the most recognizable images of the 20th century, the photograph was taken in the middle of Abbey Road in London and showed all the members of the popular rock band, The Beatles crossing the road on a zebra crossing. The photograph was used as a cover for their 11th album, Abbey Road.

1967 ASEAN is Founded
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is an economic and political organization which was formed after the heads of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand signed the Bangkok Declaration. The purpose of the organization is to promote regional peace and stability and encourage economic development in the region. Today, ASEAN has 10 member states.

1908 Wright Brothers Publicly Show Off Their Flying Machine For the First Time
The human air flight pioneers displayed their flying machine and its capabilities at a racecourse at Le Mans, France, 5 years after they made their first successful flight in 1903. The flight piloted by Wilbur lasted only 1 minute and 45 seconds captured the imagination of their audiences, and silenced their critics and doubters.
 
Births On This Day, August 8th 🎂

1981 Roger Federer
Swiss tennis player

1981 Harel Skaat
Israeli singer-songwriter

1969 Faye Wong
Chinese singer-songwriter, actress

1953 Nigel Mansell
English race car driver

1937 Dustin Hoffman
American actor

Deaths On This Day, August 8th 🪦


1985 Louise Brooks
American actress, dancer

1973 Dean Corll
American serial killer

1944 Michael Wittmann
German SS officer

1909 Mary MacKillop
Australian saint co-founded the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart

1827 George Canning
English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
 
9th August 1975
The Bee Gees hit "Jive Talkin" topped the Billboard Hot 100.
The inspiration for the song came to Barry Gibb as his car passed over a Florida bridge on the way to a recording studio. His wife said, "Hey, listen to that noise. It's the same every evening. It's our drive talking."
 
On This Day In History, August 9th

1965 Singapore Leaves Malaysia

The Southeast Asian Island country joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 as part of the Malaysia Agreement. In 1965, due to disagreements between leaders of the other members of the federation and Singaporean leaders and race tensions, the Malaysian parliament decided to expel Singapore from the Federation. The country reluctantly became independent on August 9 under the leadership of Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

1945 An Atomic Bomb is dropped on the Japanese city of Nagasaki
3 days after the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, the city of Nagasaki was destroyed by a 21-kiloton atomic bomb nicknamed Fat Boy. About 40 to 80 thousand people were estimated killed during this American-led attack towards the end of the Second World War. A few days later on August 15, Japan surrendered to the Allies, effectively bringing the War to a close by September 1945.

1942 Quit India Movement Begins in India
The civil disobedience movement against the British colonists was spearheaded by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Gandhi had called for peaceful protests in a speech a day earlier at the Gowalia Tank Maidan, Mumbai. In the speech, he made a call of “do or die” and asked his followers to adopt nonviolence when interacting with the British. The movement began with the British imprisoning the Congress Party leadership, including Gandhi. The British ruled India from 1858 when the British Crown took over control of the country from the British East India Company. India gained its independence on August 15, 1947.

1930 Betty Boop Makes Her Debut
The animated cartoon character made her first appearance in the cartoon, Dizzy Dishes. Thought to be modelled after singer Helen Kane, Betty was shown as a woman with an exaggerated body and a child-like face. Created by animator Max Fleischer, she is one of the most recognizable cartoon characters in the world.

1854 Henry David Thoreau Publishes Walden
An American transcendentalist, Thoreau wrote the book in a span of just over two years while residing near Walden Pond, a lake in Concord Massachusetts. The book, which is also known as Walden; or, Life in the Woods is about his time living near the lake and is a reflection on living a life of simplicity and austerity.
 
Births On This Day, August 9th 🎂

1981 Li Jiawei
Singaporean table tennis player

1963 Whitney Houston
American singer, actress, producer, model

1947 Roy Hodgson
English football manager

1922 Philip Larkin
English poet

1896 Jean Piaget
Swiss psychologist

Deaths On This Day, August 9th 🪦

2012 David Rakoff
Canadian/American author, actor

1996 Frank Whittle
English engineer, and inventor, developed the jet engine

1995 Jerry Garcia
American singer-songwriter, guitarist

1975 Dmitri Shostakovich
Russian composer

1962 Hermann Hesse
German writer, Nobel Prize laureate
 
9th August

1870 The Elementary Education Act was passed. It gave compulsory, free education to every child in England and Wales between the age of five and 13.

1902 Edward VII was crowned in Westminster Abbey following the death of his mother Queen Victoria.

1969 Actress Sharon Tate was murdered in her Los Angeles home.

1974 Vice President Gerald Ford was sworn in as the 38th president of the United States following Richard Nixon's decision to stand down.

1979 Brighton established the first nudist beach in Britain, despite protests from those fearing depravity.

2006 Suspected terrorists were arrested in an overnight operation. The arrests were in relation to a plot to detonate liquid explosives carried on board at least 10 airliners travelling from Britain to the United States and Canada. In July 2010 three men were found guilty at Woolwich Crown Court and sentenced to life imprisonment for conspiracy to murder.
 
On This Day In History, August 10th

2003 The First Person to Get Married While in Space

Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko was on the International Space Station when he married Ekaterina Dmitrieva, who was located in Texas at the time of the wedding. The wedding took place through a NASA satellite hookup.

2001 An attack on a train during the Angolan Civil War kills about 250 people

Rebels from the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) in Angola derailed a train using an anti-tank mine and opened fire on the passengers.

1990 Magellan Space Probe is Inserted in Orbit Around Venus
The first spacecraft to be launched by a space shuttle, Magellan was a robotic space probe that spent 8 months gathering data about the surface of the planet also known as Earth's twin. The probe was launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida on May 4, 1989, when Space Shuttle Atlantis took it to low Earth orbit and released it.

1944 Battle of Narva ends
The 8-day-long battle was fought between the German Army and the Soviet Leningrad Front for the control of the Narva Isthmus in Estonia during the Second World War. The battle ended with a decisive German victory

1675 The foundation stone for the Royal Observatory, Greenwich is laid

Commissioned by King Charles II of England, the Royal Observatory started operating in 1676 under the supervision of John Flamsteed, the first British Astronomer Royal. The observatory is famous around the world because its location marks the Prime Meridian passes through it.
 

Births On This Day, August 10th 🎂


1980 Wade Barrett
English wrestler

1973 Lisa Raymond
American tennis player

1971 Roy Keane
Irish footballer

1960 Antonio Banderas
Spanish actor

1874 Herbert Hoover
American politician, 31st President of the United States

Deaths On This Day, August 10th 🪦

2008 Isaac Hayes
American singer-songwriter, pianist, producer, actor

1980 Yahya Khan
Pakistan general, politician, 3rd President of Pakistan

1945 Robert H. Goddard
American physicist, inventor

1932 Rin Tin Tin
German/American acting dog

1896 Otto Lilienthal
German pilot, engineer
 
On This Day In History, August 11th

1999 Last Total Solar Eclipse of the Millennium

The eclipse was visible from Europe, most of Asia and Africa and in parts of North America. Because of its path through heavily populated parts of the world, the solar eclipse is thought to be one of the most viewed eclipses in recorded history.

1992 Mall of America Opens its Doors to Shoppers
Located in Bloomington, Minnesota, the mall is the largest shopping Mall in the United States. Spanning 4,870,000 sq ft, it has an indoor theme park and attracts about 40 million visitors each year.

1962 The Soviet Space Agency Launches Vostok 3
The spacecraft was piloted by Andriyan Nikolayev, the first cosmonaut to have orbited the Earth 64 times in 4 days.

1960 Chad gains its independence from the French
The Central African country came under French rule in 1900 after the Battle of Kousséri. Francois Tombalbay became independent Chad's first president.

1948 The first Olympic Games after the 1936 Berlin Olympics open in London
The next two games after Berlin, scheduled in Tokyo and Helsinki were cancelled due to the Second World War. The first Olympics to be broadcast on television, the London Olympics was popularly known at the time as the Austerity Games. This was because of the cutbacks the host nation had to do due to the post-war economy.
 
Births On This Day, August 11th 🎂

1978 Jermain Taylor
American boxer

1953 Hulk Hogan
American wrestler, actor

1950 Steve Wozniak
American computer scientist, and programmer, co-founded Apple Inc.

1943 Pervez Musharraf
Pakistani general, politician, 10th President of Pakistan

1897 Enid Blyton
English author

Deaths On This Day, August 11th 🪦

1984 Alfred A. Knopf, Sr.
American publisher founded Alfred A. Knopf Inc.

1956 Jackson Pollock
American painter

1919 Andrew Carnegie
Scottish/American businessman founded the Carnegie Steel Company

1908 Khudiram Bose
Indian activist

1890 John Henry Newman
English cardinal
 
1866
the world's 1st roller skating rink opens in Newport, Rhode Island. The Atlantic House Hotel converted its dining room into the rink
1877
Harry S. Parmlee patents sprinkler head
1929
NY Yankee, slugger, Babe Ruth hits his 500 home run off of Cleveland Indians pitcher, Willis Hudin
1966
The Beatles arrive in Chicago, Ill for their last U.S tour
1984
at the Los Angeles Summer Olympics, U.S. track& field athlete, Carl Lewis duplicated Jesse Owens 1936 feat of winning his 4th gold medal.Lewis was part of the 4x100 m relay team in world record time 37.83
2016
a Greenland shark declared the oldest vertebrate animal in the world at 392 yrs by international team of scientists
 
On This Day In History, August 13th

1997 South Park Makes its Debut on Comedy Central

The popular American animated series was created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and it follows the lives and adventures of 4 boys – Eric Cartman, Kenny McCormick, Kyle Broflovski, and Stan Marsh – in a fictional town called South Park, Colorado. While being popular, the show has attracted widespread criticism for profane language and for addressing controversial subjects.

1961 Construction of Berlin Wall starts

The construction of the Berlin Wall, a wall that divided West Berlin from East Berlin started. It was built by the German Democratic Republic of East Germany.

1960 First Two-Way Telephonic Conversation With a Satellite
The conversation was made possible by NASA’s Echo 1, a balloon satellite. It was launched into space on August 12. The satellite worked as a reflector – signals sent to it were reflected back to the Earth.

1960 Central African Republic Gains its Independence From France.

The landlocked African Country came under French rule in the late 19th century. On this day, Barthélemy Boganda, a nationalist politician declared the creation of an independent Central African Republic and became the first Prime Minister of the country.

1918 First Woman enlists in the United States Marines

After joining the Marine Corps, Opha May Johnson was assigned desk duty at the Marine Corps headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.
 
Births On This Day, August 13th 🎂

1983 Sebastian Stan
Romanian/American actor

1970 Alan Shearer
English footballer

1926 Fidel Castro
Cuban lawyer, politician, 15th President of Cuba

1899 Alfred Hitchcock
English director, producer

1818 Lucy Stone
American activist

Deaths On This Day, August 13th 🪦

2009 Les Paul
American guitarist, songwriter, co-designed the Gibson Guitar

2004 Julia Child
American chef, author

1995 Mickey Mantle
American baseball player

1946 H. G. Wells
English author

1910 Florence Nightingale
Italian/English nurse
 
1889
William Gray in Hartford, Conn patents the coin-operated telephone
1913
Harry Brearly in Sheffield, England invents stainless steel
1942
The Manhattan Project begins under the direction of U.S. general, Leslie Groves.Its aim was the development an atomic bomb
1961
the construction of the Berlin Wall in East Germany begins was torn down on Nov 9,1989
1988
Ronald J. Dossenbach sets a world record by pedaling across Canada. He departed Vancouver, British Columbia arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 13 days,15hr, 4min
1996
Microsoft releases Internet Explorer 3.0
 
On This Day in History, August 14th

2010 The First Youth Olympics Begins

The Olympic-style games meet was organized by the International Olympic Committee and was held in Singapore. Like the games, the Youth Olympics are held every 4 years and have both summer and winter versions. The first Winter Youth Olympics were held in Innsbruck, Austria in January 2012. Only athletes aged 14 to 18 years are allowed to compete in these games.

1971 Stanford prison experiments begin

The controversial Stanford prison experiments to study the effects of authority in a prison setting began. The experiment had to be shut down by the 6th day because of the adverse effect on the subjects.

1947 Pakistan becomes Independent from British rule
The South Asian country was part of the British India Empire, until August 14, 1947, when the region held by the British was partitioned into India and Pakistan. The new country became a part of the Commonwealth and appointed Liaquat Ali Khan as its first Prime Minister.

1935 Social Security Act is Signed into Law in the United States
The act, which was signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, provided benefits to the unemployed, retirees, and the disabled.

1904 Battle of Ulsan begins
Also known as the Battle of the Japanese Sea, the conflict took place between Russia and Japan during the Russo-Japanese War.
 

Births On This Day, August 14th 🎂


1987 Tim Tebow
American football player

1983 Mila Kunis
Ukrainian/American actress

1960 Sarah Brightman
English soprano, songwriter, actress

1959 Magic Johnson
American basketball player

1945 Steve Martin
American actor, singer, writer, producer

Deaths On This Day, August 14th🪦

1956 Bertolt Brecht
German author

1951 William Randolph Hearst
American publisher, politician, founded the Hearst Corporation

1941 Maximilian Kolbe
Polish martyr, saint

1938 Hugh Trumble
Australian cricketer, accountant

1909 William Stanley
English inventor, engineer
 
On This Day In History, August 15

2015 North Korea Introduces Pyongyang Time

The East Asian country introduced the time change to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of the Japanese occupation of Korea. Before the change, North Korea was UTC+09:00. Since this day, the time in the country is UTC+08:30.

1973 US involvement in Vietnam ends
The Case–Church Amendment passed by the US Congress set August 15 as the deadline for the end of the US military involvement in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Because of this, the US ended all military offensives in Vietnam on this day.

1969 The Woodstock Music & Art Fair opens its doors to participants and spectators
The iconic music festival, popularly known as Woodstock was held in Bethel, New York at the 600-acre farm of farmer Max B. Yasgur. Over 400,000 people attended the festival, which is often thought to be a key moment in the anti-establishment movement that was gaining popularity in the United States.

1960 Congo gains its Independence
The Central African country came under French control in the late 19th century. In the early 20th century, the French consolidated their territories in Central Africa to create the French Equatorial Africa, with Brazzaville as its capital. During the Second World War, when the Nazis occupied France, Brazzaville acted as the temporary capital of Free France. After violent protests and riots, the country became independent with Fulbert Youlou as its first President.

1947 India Becomes Independent From British Rule

British control of the South Asian country began in mid-1800s with the East India Company. The company initially established itself in the subcontinent for trading purposes, and then slowly took control over the princely states that separately ruled the country. A violent rebellion in 1857 prompted the British Crown to take over direct rule of India. The time between then and independence in 1945 was marked by violent and nonviolent movements targeted towards gaining independent rule. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was a key figure in the nonviolent civil disobedience movement against the British. Independence came with the country being partitioned into India and Pakistan. Jawaharlal Nehru became the first Prime Minister of India, while Liaquat Ali Khan became the first Prime Minister of Pakistan.
 
Births On This Day, August 15 🎂

1968 Debra Messing
American actress

1954 Stieg Larsson
Swedish writer

1912 Julia Child
American chef, author

1872 Sri Aurobindo
Indian philosopher

1769 Napoleon
Corsican/French military officer, political leader

Deaths On This Day, August 15 🪦


2011 Rick Rypien
Canadian ice hockey player

1975 Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Bangladeshi politician, 1st President of Bangladesh

1935 Will Rogers
American actor

1907 Joseph Joachim
Austrian violinist

1118 Alexios I Komnenos
Byzantine Emperor
 
16th August 1977
42-year-old Elvis Presley died at his Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tennessee. He was rushed to Baptist Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:30 p.m. After an examination it was revealed that Presley's body contained butabarbital, codeine, morphine, pentobarbital, Placidyl, Quaalude, Valium and Valmid.
 
16th August 1977
42-year-old Elvis Presley died at his Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tennessee. He was rushed to Baptist Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:30 p.m. After an examination it was revealed that Presley's body contained butabarbital, codeine, morphine, pentobarbital, Placidyl, Quaalude, Valium and Valmid.
Good grief he was a walking pharmacy!
 
On This Day In History, August 16th

1987 First Day of Harmonic Convergence

The largest worldwide meditation event lasted for 2 days and was organized by new-age author José Argüelles. The dates for the event were chosen because of their astrological significance – on these days the Sun, the Moon and 6 of the planets were aligned in a triangular position as seen from the Earth.

1960 Cyprus Attains Freedom From the British

The Mediterranean island country first came under British control in the early 20th century as a strategic British outpost. In 1925, it was formally added to the British Empire. the London and Zurich Agreements signed in February 1959 gave independence to Cyprus and set up a system of governance based on ethnicity.

1954 First Issue of Sports Illustrated Hits the Newsstands
The sports magazine which is famous for its annual swimsuit issue was not profitable for the first few years of its existence. The boost in spectator sports eventually helped it become successful.

1898 Patent for Loop-the-Loop Roller Coaster is Awarded

The United States Patent Office awarded the patent for the loop-the-loop roller coaster to American inventor Edwin Prescott. First installed in Coney Island, New York, the roller coaster was able to carry only 4 people at a time.

1858 The First Transatlantic Telegraph Message is sent

The message sent by Britain’s Queen Victoria to American President James Buchanan, read ‘Europe and America are united by telegraphic communication. Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, goodwill to men.’ The cable, which cut down the time of communication between the two continents was successful only for a few months. Technical difficulties led to the cable being closed in October of 1858.
 
Births On This Day, August 16th 🎂

1991 G.E.M.
Hong Kong singer-songwriter, actress

1958 Madonna
American singer-songwriter, actress, producer, director

1954 James Cameron
Canadian film director, screenwriter, producer

1913 Menachem Begin
Israeli politician, 6th Prime Minister of Israel, Nobel Prize laureate

1815 John Bosco
Italian priest, educator

Deaths On This Day, August 16th 🪦

2003 Idi Amin
Ugandan dictator

2002 Abu Nidal
Palestinian militant leader

1977 Elvis Presley
American singer, guitarist, actor

1959 William Halsey, Jr.
American Admiral

1938 Robert Johnson
American singer-songwriter, guitarist
 


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