This Day In History: April 7, 1891 “Every crowd has a silver lining” – P.T. Barnum “The Great American Showman”, P.T. Barnum, died on April 7, 1891. Considered one of the most important figures in America’s entertainment history, LIFE magazine also dubbed him “the patron saint of promoters.” Always the consummate businessman, it’s said that his last thoughts were about […]

This Day In History: April 6, 1896 On April 6, 1896, King George I of Greece proclaimed the opening of the first international Olympic Games held since Roman Emperor Theodosius I banned them about 1,500 years earlier. A crowd of 60,000 gathered in Athens to welcome athletes from 13 nations gathering to compete in 43 events, including swimming, wrestling, track-and-field, […]

This Day In History: April 3, 1955 “I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked” – Allen Ginsberg, “Howl” On April 3, 1955, the American Civil Liberties Union announced it would defend Beat poet Allen Ginsberg’s book “Howl” against obscenity charges. A few weeks previously, the U.S. Customs Department had seized 520 copies of […]

This Day In History: April 2, 742 Charlemagne, son of Pepin III and grandson of Charles Martel, is believed to have been born on April 2, 742. The first emperor in the West since Romulus Augustulus in 476, Charlemagne’s influence did much to shape the future of medieval Europe. When Pepin died in 768, his kingdom was split between Charlemagne […]

This Day In History: April 1, 1984 On April 1, 1984, Marvin Gaye, Motown pioneer and one of the most influential R&B artists of all time, was shot and killed by his father during a heated altercation between the two men. Marvin was one day shy of his 45th birthday. Marvin’s love of music developed early in childhood. It was […]

This Day In History: March 31, 1918 The concept of daylight saving time (or at least something like it) was first bandied about, albeit jokingly, by that American sage Benjamin Franklin during his sojourn in Paris in 1784. The idea was included in a satirical essay he wrote called ‘An Economical Project” published anonymously in Journal de Paris. By the […]

This Day In History: March 30, 1905 On March 30, 1905, an unassuming and dapper Englishman named Albert Pierrepoint was born who would one day own a pub in Lancashire called “Help the Poor Struggler.” He would also have another job that was a bit more unusual – Great Britain’s Chief executioner. His atypical trade was a family affair. The […]

This Day In History: March 27, 1973 In one of the most memorable, if controversial, moments in Academy Award history, iconic actor Marlon Brando refused a best actor Oscar for his role in “The Godfather.” Brando sent Sacheen Littlefeather, a 26-year-old aspiring actress in his stead. Attired in full Apache dress, Littlefeather explained that Brando could not accept the award […]

This Day In History: March 26, 1904 “Life is like arriving late for a movie, having to figure out what was going on without bothering everybody with a lot of questions, and then being unexpectedly called away before you find out how it ends.” – Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell, the renowned professor, author, anthropologist, speaker and mythologist was born […]

This Day In History: March 24, 1765 On March 24, 1765 the British Parliament passed the Quartering Act, which specified the obligation of the American colonists to provide British troops with shelter and provisions. The Act ordered the colonists to provide barracks for the soldiers stationed nearby, and if they did not have ample space in the barracks, housing must […]

This Day In History: March 23, 1839 OK is an expression that almost all of us, young or old, rich or poor, sprinkle throughout our sentences all day, every day. We use it so often and with so many shades of meaning that most of us assume it’s been around since the Big Bang. Surprisingly, the expression isn’t even two […]

This Day In History: March 20, 1778 In the 18th century, as is the case now, politics was a dirty, self-serving business. During its earliest days as a nation, the United States of America deftly took advantage of France’s age-old antipathy towards England. In turn, King Louis XVI of France was using the Americans to vex his old enemies as […]

This Day In History: March 19, 1976 Divorce has become as commonplace, if not more so, in the British Royal Family as it is among us mere peasants; three out of the present Queen’s four offspring have had failed marriages. But before the rash of royal divorces in the 1990s, the break-up of a royal union was a Really Big […]

This Day In History: March 18, 1911 “My struggles didn’t actually begin until after I’d written Alexander’s Ragtime Band. It’s been a struggle ever since to keep success going.” – Irving Berlin Before the phonograph and radio became common fixtures in most homes, popular music still thrived through the sale of sheet music. Families would gather around the piano and […]

This Day In History: March 17, 461 After St. Patrick’s death on March 17, 461, his story was largely forgotten. It took centuries for him to attain mythological status, and even at that, the St. Patrick that is revered today bears little resemblance to the man who actually existed. To begin with, St. Patrick wasn’t Irish. He was born as […]

This Day In History: March 16, 1190 The Jewish people inspired fear, revulsion and hatred among the English during the Middle Ages. They looked and talked a little different, their customs were different, and their religion was different. They were also reviled as the killers of Christ, a Jew who advocated “love thy neighbor as thyself” second only in importance […]

This Day In History: March 13, 1942 Dogs had been trained for military purposes by both sides during World War I. Once the war was over, the practice was temporarily abandoned. On March 13, 1942, the Quartermaster Corps of the U.S. Army once again began training dogs for the now official War Dog Program called the K-9 Corps. Over a […]

This Day In History: March 12, 1969 March 12, 1969, was a busy day in the Land of Fab Four. Paul McCartney, the last bachelor Beatle, married his girlfriend Linda Eastman, while George and Pattie Harrison were paid a visit by the Drugs Squad. One of the most enduring marriages in rock began, after a night of intense arguing according […]