General Events
In 1840,
the first U.S. Dental college, the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, was incorporated.
In 1887, Harvey Wilcox of Kansas subdivided 120 acres he owned in Southern California and started selling it off as a real estate
development. His wife, Daeida, christened it Hollywood after the summer home of a woman she had met on a train.
In 1892, Mrs. William Astor invites 400 guests to a grand ball at her mansion, thus beginning the use of the "400" to describe the
socially elite.
In 1898, the first automobile insurance policy was issued by Travelers Insurance Co. of Connecticut to Dr. Truman J. Martin for
$11.05
In 1920, the first commercial armored car was introduced in St. Paul, Minn.
In 1926, Land at Broadway & Wall Street was sold at a record $7 per sq inch.
In 1933, SKIPPY PEANUT BUTTER INTRODUCED Now 100 million jars of it are sold annually
In 1959, Texas Instruments gets patent on IC, Integrated Circuit.
In 1959, Classrooms in Virginia are desegregated for the first time.
In 1960, four black college students began a sit-in at an all-white Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, NC after they are refused service. The first of many such protests throughout the US.
In 1978, The first African American woman honored with a U.S. postage stamp is Harriet Tubman.
In 1987, Terry Williams of Los Gatos, CA, won the largest slot machine payoff to that time. He put $4.9 million in his pockets after getting four lucky "7s" on a machine in Reno, NV. It is not known if his pants fell down from carrying all that money or not, but we believe so. It's happened to us with just $9 worth of nickels.
Government and Politics
In 1633,
The codification of the Virginia tobacco laws takes place.
In 1790, the U.S. Supreme Court convened for the first time, at the Royal Exchange Building in New York. (However, since only three of the six justices were present, the court was recessed until the next day.).
In 1810, US Population: 7,239,881, Black population: 1,377,808
(19%).
In 1850, Abraham Lincoln's son Edward dies after a two month
illness. Lincoln resumes his travel in the 8th Judicial Circuit covering
over 400 miles in 14 counties in Illinois. 'Honest Abe' gains a
reputation as an outstanding lawyer.
In 1861, Texas voted to secede from the Union and became the
seventh state to do so.
In 1865, President Lincoln approved the 13th Amendment that
abolished slavery (National Freedom Day).
In 1871, Jefferson Long of Georgia is the first black to make an
official speech in House of Reps (opposing leniency to former
Confederates).
In 1906, the first federal penitentiary building was completed in
Leavenworth, Kansas.
In 1915, Passport photographs were first required in Great
Britain.
In 1918, Russia adopts Gregorian calender (becomes Feb 14).
In 1920, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police came into existence as
the Royal Northwest Mounted Police merged with the Dominion Police.
In 1924, The British government recognizes the U.S.S.R.
In 1942, Vidkun Quisling became prime minister of Norway.
In 1946, Norwegian statesman Trygve Lie was chosen to be the
first secretary-general of the United Nations.
In 1949, A Presidential proclamation establishes National Freedom
Day to celebrate the signing of the 13th Constitutional Amendment
abolishing slavery.
In 1958, Egypt & Syria announce plans to merge into United Arab
Republic.
In 1958, Egypt and Syria proclaimed the union of their two
countries in a state to be known as "The United Arab Republic."
In 1960, COVER OF TIME Senator (and presidential hopeful) HUBERT
HUMPHREY
In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson rejects de Gaulle's plan for
a neutral Vietnam.
In 1965, COVER OF NEWSWEEK Tribute to Sir WINSTON CHURCHILL
In 1968, Richard M. Nixon enters the presidential race.
In 1968, South Vietnam President Nguyen Van Thieu declares
martial law.
In 1979, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini received a tumultuous
welcome as he stepped off a jetliner in Tehran, ending nearly 15 years
of exile.
In 1979, newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst, whose prison sentence
for bank robbery had been commuted by President Jimmy Carter, left a
federal prison near San Francisco.
In 1984, President Reagan presented Congress with a $925.5
billion budget for fiscal 1985 containing a deficit of $180.4 billion.
In 1988, denying any wrongdoing, Attorney General Edwin Meese III
said he didn't recall part of a memo about a proposed Iraqi pipeline
project that referred to a plan to bribe Israeli officials.
In 1989, in his first diplomatic mission of the Bush
administration, Vice President Dan Quayle began a trip to Venezuela and
El Salvador.
In 1990, East Germany's Communist premier, Hans Modrow, appealed
for negotiations with West Germany to forge a "united fatherland."
In 1991, In a move to spur the economy, the Federal Reserve
sharply reduces interest rates.
In 1991, South African President F.W. De Klerk announced that he
would seek repeal of key laws on which the apartheid system was based.
In 1992, President George Bush and Russian President Boris N.
Yeltsin met at Camp David.
In 1992, George Bush and Boris Yeltsin held their first meeting
since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The two presidents vowed to work
together to democratize Russia.
In 1993, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin announced that his
country would repatriate about 100 Palestinians deported to Lebanon, an
offer rejected by the deportees.
In 1993, President Clinton said he's "looking hard" at the
government purchasing childhood vaccines and then distributing them free
to ensure all children are properly vaccinated.
In 1995, House Republicans pushed through a bill restricting the
federal government's ability to impose unfunded mandates on states.
In 1995, The Federal Reserve boosted interest rates by one-half
of a percent, the seventh rate hike in a year.
In 1995, Communist Vietnam raised its red flag in Washington for
the first time 20 years after the end of the Vietnam War as the two old
foes began a new chapter, opening liaison offices in each others'
capital.
In 1995, the House followed the Senate's lead and approved a
measure making it hard for the federal government to pass so-called
"unfunded mandates"- laws that require states and cities to implement
but provide no money for doing so.
In 1996, 5 years ago, Both houses of Congress voted
overwhelmingly to rewrite the 61-year-old Communications Act, freeing
the exploding television, telephone and home computer industries to jump
into each other's fields.
In 1997, Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori promised to open
"preliminary dialogue" with rebels holding 72 hostages in Lima, but
again rejected their demand to release jailed comrades.
In 1998, With Israeli and Palestinian leaders digging in their
heels, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright conceded she'd made little
progress in a whirlwind visit to the region to prod the two sides closer
together.
In 1999, Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky gave a
deposition that was videotaped for senators weighing impeachment charges
against President Clinton.
In 1999, With the promise of huge federal surpluses, President
Clinton proposed a $1.77 trillion budget for fiscal 2000.
In 2000, Senator John McCain defeated Texas Governor George W.
Bush to win the Republican New Hampshire primary; Vice President Al Gore
edged Bill Bradley to win the Democratic primary.
War Crime and Disaster
In 1500,
The city of Milan rebels against the French occupation
In 1793, France declares war on England & Netherlands.
In 1810, Seville, Spain surrenders to the French.
In 1862, "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" was first published in
"Atlantic Monthly". The lyric was the work of Julia Ward Howe. "The
Battle Hymn of the Republic" is still being sung and to the tune of a
song titled, "John Brown's Body". Or is it the other way around? Is
"John Brown's Body" sung to the tune of "The Battle Hymn of the
Republic"? Put this one on the list of things we'll have to get back to
you on...
In 1904, Britain and France agree to stay neutral if Japan and
Russia go to war.
In 1909, U.S. troops leave Cuba after installing Jose Miguel
Gomez as president.
In 1917, Admiral Tirpitz proclaims limitless submarine war.
In 1940, Russia begins new offensive against Finland.
In 1942, The U.S. Pacific fleet batters Japanese bases in the
Marshall and Gilbert Islands.
In 1943, one of America's most highly decorated military units of
World War II, the 442d Regimental Combat Team, made up almost entirely
of Japanese-Americans, was authorized.
In 1943, American tanks and infantry are battered at German
positions in Fais pass.
In 1944, US seventh Infantry/25th Marine Division lands on
Kwajalein/Roi/Namur.
In 1945, 1,000 American bombers raid Berlin.
In 1945, U.S. Rangers and Filipino guerrillas rescue 513 American
survivors of the Bataan "death march".
In 1950, USSR asks condemnation emperor Hirohito because of war
crimes.
In 1951, -50 degrees F (-46 degrees C), Gavilan, New Mexico
(state record).
In 1951, third A-bomb tests are completed in the desert of
Nevada.
In 1968, during the Vietnam War, Saigon's police chief, Nguyen
Ngoc Loan, executed a Viet Cong officer with a pistol shot to the head
in a scene captured in a photo that was to become one of the famous
images of the war.
In 1970, Stalled commuter train rammed by express in Argentina,
139 die.
In 1974, Sao Paulo, Brazil: fire in upper stories of bank
building killed 189 persons, many of whom leaped to death.
In 1977, Heavy blizzard in New England claims 100 lives.
In 1985, -61 degrees F (-52 degrees C), Maybell, Colorado (state
record).
In 1985, -69 degrees F (-56 degrees C), Peter's Sink, Utah (state
record).
In 1986, 4,000 people gathered at the Kennedy Space Center at
Cape Canaveral, Fla., to bid farewell to the seven crew members of the
space shuttle Challenger.
In 1991, US Air & Skywest Fairchild jet collide at LA Airport
killing 32.
In 1991, A major Earthquake kills up to 400 persons in
Afghanistan and at least 300 in Pakistan.
In 1991, 35 people were killed when a USAir jetliner crashed atop
a commuter plane at Los Angeles International Airport.
In 1992, Meeting in Washington D.C., President George Bush and
Russian President Boris Yeltsin declare an official end to the Cold War.
In 1994, United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali
backed the use of air power in Bosnia.
Royalty and Religeous
In 1587,
Elizabeth I, Queen of England, signs the Warrant of Execution of Mary,
Queen of Scots
In 1669, French king Louis XIV limits freedom of religion.
In 1908, King Carlos I of Portugal was assassinated together with
his son in Lisbon.
In 1965, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. and 770 others are
arrested in protest against voter discrimination in Alabama.
Human Achievement and
Science
In 1709,
Alexander Selkirk [Robinson Crusoe] was rescued from the uninhabited
island he lived on for five years. Juan Fernandez. His adventure was the
basis for Daniel Defoe's book "Robinson Crusoe".
In 1788, the first US steamboat patent was issued by Georgia to
Briggs & Longstreet. Mickey Mouse got his speaking debut in one of those
in 1928.
In 1793, Ralph Hodgson of Lansingburg, NY, patented one of the
world's greatest inventions this day: Oiled silk. We think you might
want to go back and read this again, just to see how wonderful the
invention process is. Oiled silk ... with all the things that hadn't yet
been invented -- TV, MTV, radio, cars, planes, trains -- this guy came
up with oiled silk? What a country...
In 1851, Evaporated Milk invented by Gale Borden. He had trouble
getting his idea off the ground because his memory of it kept ...
evaporating.
In 1893, inventor Thomas A. Edison completed work on the world's
first motion picture studio, his "Black Maria," in West Orange, New
Jersey. (*)
In 1951, the first X-ray moving picture process demonstrated.
In 1959, Texas Instruments requests patent of IC (Integrated
Circuit).
In 1966, Nicholas Piantanida sets unofficial world altitude
record for manned balloon flight (123/800 ft or 37/700 m), but dies in
descent.
In 1972, the first scientific hand-held calculator (HP-35)
introduced for $395.
In 1994, Large meteorite falls near Kusaie, Pacific Ocean.
Entertainment
In 1919,
The first Miss America was crowned, not in Atlantic City, but in New
York City. Edith Hyde, it was discovered, was not a Miss. She was Mrs.
Tod Robbins, the mother of two children.
In 1923, Noel Coward's "Young Idea," premieres in London.
In 1964, "Stop the World, I Want to..." closes at Shubert NYC
after 556 perf.
In 1998, "Street Corner Symphony," closes at Brooks Atkinson NYC
after 79 perf.
Movies
In 1914,
the first motion picture censorship board was appointed in Pennsylvania.
In 1918, Sid Grauman's Million Dollar Theater, his first in Los
Angeles, opened with William S. Hart in "The Silent Man."
In 1929, "The Broadway Melody" starring Anita Page and Bessie
Love premiered in the Chinese Theater.
In 1935, the first "March of Time" newsreel premiered at the
Capitol.
In 1951, the first telecast of an atomic explosion.
In 1955, "Bad Day at Black Rock" starring Spencer Tracy, Lee
Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan, and Anne Francis opened at the
Rivoli.
In 1962, Marilyn Monroe entertained dinner in honor of Robert F.
Kennedy
In 1962, FEBRUARY 1962'S "MOTION PICTURE" MAGAZINE On the cover:
NATALIE WOOD; Inside there are articles on ELVIS PRESLEY and CONNIE
FRANCIS' European Tour
In 1963, COVER OF LIFE ALFRED HITCHCOCK is pictured, along with
his winged co-stars from "THE BIRDS"
In 1966, Peter Lawford and Patricia Kennedy divorced
In 1971, The soundtrack album from the movie, "Love Story",
starring Ryan O'Neal and Ali McGraw, with music by Frances Lai, was
certified as a gold record by the RIAA. "Love means never having to say
you're sorry."
In 1973, "Last Tango In Paris" opened in theaters.
In 1973, Bernardo Bertolucci's "Last Tango in Paris" starring
Marlon Brando premiered at the Trans-Lux East.
In 1978, NOTE NATURE: Director Roman Polanski skips bail and
flees to France after having earlier pleaded guilty to charges of
engaging in sex with a 13 year-old California girl.
In 1978, AT THE MOVIES "CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND" is
the box office champ; "SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER"; "THE GOODBYE GIRL"
In 1980, American Gigolo opens in movie theaters.
In 1994, "Reality Bites" album (soundtrack) was released
In 1999, "You've Got Mail" album by Soundtrack was certified Gold
by the RIAA
