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On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on January 01:
0379 Basilius the Great, of Caesarea, holyman (Moralia)
1387 Charles The Angry One, king of Navarra (1349-87)
1431 Alexander VI [Rodrigo Borgia] Spanish/Italian pope (1492-1503)
1449 Lorenzo de' Medici [The Magnificent] of Florence
1467 Sigismund I the old, king of Poland
1481 Huldrych Zwingli Swiss Protestant reformer
1709 Johann H H Bütz German/Dutch organ builder
1714 Kristijonas Donelaitis Lutheran pastor, Lithuanian poet (The Seas)
1723 Christian Friedrich Gregor composer
1729 Edmund Burke British author/famous Whig (Philosophy & Inquiry, Reflections on the Revolution)
1735 Paul Revere silversmith/US patriot (British are coming)
1745 "Mad" Anthony Wayne General
1752 Elizabeth Griscom (Betsy) Ross flag maker
1819 Arthur Hugh Clough poet, friend of Matthew Arnold
1819 George Foster Shepley Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1878
1827 William Lewis "Old Tige" Cabell Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
1854 Sir James Frazer Britain, anthropologist/author (The Golden Bough)
1863 Baron Pierre de Coubertin France, revived Olympic games
1864 Alfred Stieglitz US photographer-father of modern photography/art dealer (Camera Work)
1879 E[dward] M Forster London England, novelist (Howard's End, Passage to India)
1887 Wilhelm Canaris German admiral/head German military intelligence
1895 J Edgar Hoover Washington DC, Director of US Fedreal Bureau of Investigation
1900 Xavier Cugat [Francisco de Asís Javier Cugat Mingall de Brue y Deulofeo] Tirona Spain, bandleader (married Abbe Lane, Charo)
1905 Melvin Price (Representative-D-IL, 1945- )
1909 Dana Andrews Collins MS, actor (Battle of the Bulge, Laura)
1909 Barry Goldwater (Senator-R-AZ, 1953-65, 69- )/Presidential candidate (R) 1964)
1909 D D Hindlekar cricketer (Indian batsman & wicket-keeper 1936-46)
1911 Hammerin' Hank Greenberg Hall-of-Fame 1st baseman (Detroit Tiger)
1912 Kim Philby British spy/Soviet mole
1912 Victor Reuther Wheeling WV, labor leader
1919 J[erome] D[avid] Salinger New York City, NY, novelist (Catcher in the Rye)
1922 Ernest F Hollings (Senator-D-SC, 1966- )
1923 Milton Jackson US, vibraphonist (MJQ)
1942 Country Joe McDonald California, rock guitarist/vocalist (& the Fish)
1945 Jacques Ickx Belgium, Le Mans auto race (6-time winner)

Deaths which occurred on January 01:
0404 Telemachus Roman monk, murdered
0898 Odo Earl of Paris/king of France (888-98), dies at about 39
1502 Gregorius XIII [Ugo Buoncampagni], Italy, pope (1572-85), dies
1515 Louis XII Father of People, "the Justified" King of France (1498-1515), dies at 52
1557 Jacques Cartier French explorer (Canada), dies at 65
1559 Christian III king of Denmark/Norway (1534-59), dies
1782 Johann Christian Bach German composer/Mozart's tutor, dies at 46
1787 Arthur Middleton US farmer (signed Declaration of Independence), dies at 44
1817 Martin H Klaproth German chemist (uranium), dies at 73
1949 Malcolm Campbell English cyclist (world speed-record), dies at 63
1953 Hank Williams country singer (Cold Cold Heart), dies at 29
1957 Ruth Draper US elocutionist, dies at 67
1972 Jane Morgan actress (Mrs Margaret Davis-Our Miss Brooks), dies at 91
1972 Maurice A Chevalier French actor (Can Can, Gigi), dies at 83
1982 Victor Buono actor (Mr Schubert-Man from Atlantis), dies at 43
1994 Cesar Romero US actor (Joker-Batman), dies at 86
1995 Frederick West English contractor/serial killer, commits suicide at 53
1996 Arleigh Albert Burke British Admiral, dies at 94
1997 Townes Van Zandt musician/songwriter (Pancho And Lefty), dies at 52

Reported: MISSING in ACTION
1966 KIRKSEY ROBERT L.---MOBILE AL.
1968 DENNISON JAMES R.---ROCHESTER NY.
[LOST AT SEA]
1968 HANLEY TERENCE H.---GARDINER ME.
1968 HERRIN HENRY H. JR.---WEST SPRINGFIELD MA.
1969 CLACK CECIL J.---CHESTER SC.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

On this day...
0045 BC Origin of Julian Era; Julian calendar begins
0001 Origin of Christian Era
0069 Roman garrison of Mainz uprising
0089 Gov Lucius Antonius Saturninus of Germany becomes emperor of Rome
0404 Last gladiator competition in Rome
0722 Hofmeier Charles Martel flees from bishop Willibrord
0990 Russia adopts Julian calendar
1430 Jews of Sicily are no longer required to attend conversionist services
1438 Albrecht II von Habsburg becomes king of Hungary
1502 Portuguese navigators discover Rio de Janeiro
1515 Jews are expelled from Laibach Austria
1515 François, Duke of Angoulême succeeds Louis XII as François I of France
1586 Sir Francis Drake launches a surprise attack on the heavily fortified city of Santo Domingo in Hipanola.
1610 German astronomer Simon Marius 1st discovers the Jupiter moons, but does not officially report it, Galileo does on July 1 1610
1622 Papal Chancery adopts Jan 1 as beginning of the year (was Mar 25)
1651 Charles II Stuart crowned king of Scotland
1660 1st entry in Samuel Pepys' diary
1660 General Moncks army battles with the Tweed on way to London
1673 Regular mail delivery begins between New York & Boston
1700 Protestant West-Europe (except England) begin using Gregorian calendar
1700 Russia replaces Byzantines with Julian calendar
1701 Great Britain & Ireland union is in effect, creating United Kingdom
1707 Jacob V succeeds his father Pedro II as king of Portugal
1772 1st traveler's checks issued (London)
1776 General George Washington hoists Continental Union Flag
1785 "Daily Universal Register" (Times of London) publishes 1st issue
1788 Quakers in Pennsylvania emancipate their slaves
1797 Albany replaces New York City as capital of NY
1798 Russia appoints 1st Jewish censor to censor Hebrew books
1800 Dutch East Indies Company dissolves
1804 Jean Jacques Dessalines proclaims independence of Haiti from France
1808 Congress prohibits importation of slaves
1814 Field marshal Blücher's troops cross the Rhine at Kaub
1818 Official reopening of the White House
1827 Dutch Trade Company NHM gets opium monopoly on Java
1831 William Lloyd Garrison publishes 1st issue of abolitionist journal
1838 1st official horse race in South Australia-Adelaide
1840 1st recorded bowling match in US, Knickerbocker Alleys, New York City NY
1842 1st illustrated weekly magazine in US publishes 1st issue, New York City NY
1847 Michigan is 1st state to abolish capital punishment
1852 1st US public bath opens in New York City NY
1853 1st practical fire engine (horse-drawn) in US enters service
1858 Canada begins using decimal currency system
1860 Slavery ends of in Netherlands Indies
1861 Porfirio Diaz conquers Mexico City
1862 1st US income tax (3% of incomes > $600, 5% of incomes > $10,000)
1862 Battle of Fort McRee FL, Battle of Port Royal SC (Port Royal Ferry)
1863 1st homestead under the Homestead Act claimed, near Beatrice NE
1863 Battle of Galveston, TX - Confederates recapture the city
1863 Battle of Helena AK
1863 Emancipation Proclamation (ending slavery) issued by Lincoln
1865 -Apr 26th] Carolinas' campaign (Uncle Billy Sherman)
1871 Belgium disbands salt tax
1873 Origin of Japanese Era
1874 New York City annexes the Bronx
1877 England's Queen Victoria proclaimed empress of India
1880 Building of Panamá Canal, begins
1881 Dr John H Watson is introduced to Sherlock Holmes
1886 1st Tournament of Roses, Pasadena CA
1892 Ellis Island becomes reception center for new immigrants
1893 1st US college extension courses for credit, University of Chicago
1893 Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar
1896 Wilhelm Röntgen announces his discovery of x-rays
1897 1st football game between black colleges-Atlanta University 10, Tuskegee 0
1899 Cuba liberated from Spain by US (National Day) (US occupies till 1902)
1900 Compulsory education in Netherlands goes into effect
1901 Australia declares independence from federation of UK colonies
1902 1st Rose Bowl game (Pasadena CA) (University of Michigan-49, Stanford-0)
1904 Netherlands Indies colony begins opium production
1906 Dutch law makes driver's license mandatory
1907 President Theodore Roosevelt shakes a record 8,513 hands in 1 day
1911 Belgian Mining law introduces 9½-hour work day
1912 1st running of San Francisco's famed "Bay to Breakers" race (7.63 miles/12.3 km)
1912 Sun Yat-sen forms Chinese Republic
1913 Post office begins parcel post deliveries
1914 1st scheduled airline flight, St Petersburg-Tampa (Tony Jannus pilot)
1915 DW Griffith shows "Clansman" at a sneak preview
1915 Jews of Laibach Austria expelled
1918 Last day of the Julian calendar in Finland
1918 The first gasoline pipeline begins operation. Along the 40 miles and three inches of pipe from Salt Creek to Casper, Wyoming.
1919 Belorussian SSR established
1922 Vancouver BC starts driving on the right side of road
1923 Union of Socialist Soviet Republics established
1925 Norway's capital Christiania changes name to Oslo
1928 1st US air-conditioned office building opens, San Antonio
1929 Roy Riegels runs 60 yards the wrong way with Rose Bowl fumble recovery
1930 Earl Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to 2nd lieutenant
1930 Jurgens & Van den Berg merge with Lever Brothers to form Unilever
1932 Rasse und Siedlungshauptamt publishes Himmler's wedding laws
1934 Alcatraz officially becomes a federal prison
1934 Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (US bank guarantor) effective
1935 1st Sugar Bowl & 1st Orange Bowl
1935 Associated Press inaugurates Wirephoto
1935 Eastern Airlines hires Eddie Rickenbacker as GM
1935 President Mustapha Kemal Pasha names himself "Atatürk Father of Turkey"
1937 US Army Air Corps physiological research laboratory completed, Ohio
1937 At a party at the Hormel Mansion in Minnesota, a guest wins $100 for naming a new canned meat--Spam.
1937 Anastasio Somoza becomes President of Nicaragua
1937 Count Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to captain
1941 Russian General Zhukov appointed chief of General staff
1942 US & 25 other countries sign a united declaration against the Axis
1943 Count Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel
1944 1st feature-length foreign movie, African Journey, shown on TV, New York City NY
1944 Army defeats Navy 10-7 in football "Arab Bowl", Oran, North Africa
1944 General Clark replaces General Patton as commander of 7th Army
1945 France joins the UN
1945 German air raid on allied airports at Eindhoven/Saint-Trond/Brussels
1946 Emperor Hirohito of Japan announces he is not a god
1946 National Assembly proclaims Hungary a republic
1946 ENIAC, US 1st computer finished by Mauchly/Eckert
1947 Britain nationalizes its coal industry
1948 1st color newsreel filmed, Pasadena CA
1948 Britain nationalizes its railways
1948 General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade effective
1948 Italy adopts constitution
1950 Ho Chi Minh begins offensive against French troops in Indo-China
1951 Massive Chinese/North Korean assault on UN-lines
1952 Dmitri Shostakovich completes his 5th string quartet
1956 Sudan (Anglo-Egyptian Sudan) gains independence from Britain & Egypt (National Day)
1956 Elvis Presley records Heartbreak Hotel for RCA in Nashville
1957 France returns Saar to becomes the 10th state of German Federal Republic
1957 International Geophysical Year begins; ends 6/30/1958 (18-month year)
1958 BOAC Britannia flies London to New York in a record 7hours 57minutes
1958 European Economic Community (Common Market) starts operation
1958 Sammy Davis Jr marries Loray White
1959 Castro leads Cuba to victory as Fulgencio Batista flees to Dominican Republic
1960 Johnny Cash plays 1st of many free concerts behind bars
1960 US census at 179,245,000
1961 Largest check issued, National Bank of Chicago to Sears ($960.242 billion)
1961 Briggs Stadium is renamed Tigers Stadium
1962 Beatles' Decca audition is unsuccessful
1964 KTVS TV channel 3 in Sterling CO (CBS) begins broadcasting
1965 International Cooperation Year begins
1965 Palestinian al-Fatah organization forms
1966 12 day transit worker strike shuts down New York City NY subway
1966 All US cigarette packs have to carry "Caution Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health"
1966 Military coup by Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa in Central African Republic
1966 Simon & Garfunkel's "Sounds of Silence" reaches #1
1967 Green Bay Packers beat Dallas Cowboys 34-27 in NFL championship game
1967 Kansas City Chiefs beat Buffalo Bills 31-7 in AFL championship game
1968 Evel Knievel fails in his attempt to jump Cæsar's Palace Fountain
1970 Revised calendar for Western (RC) Church goes into effect
1970 "The Epoch" (Time 0 for UNIX systems, Midnight GMT)
1971 Cigarette advertisements banned on TV
1972 "Promises Promises" closes at Shubert Theater New York City NY after 1281 performances
1972 KDSD TV channel 16 in Aberdeen SD (PBS) begins broadcasting
1972 People's Republic of China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor People's Rebulic of China
1973 Britain, Ireland & Denmark become 7th-9th members of Common Market
1974 NBC radio begins on the hour news 24 hours a day (following CBS lead)
1975 Haldeman, Ehrlichman, Mitchell & Mardian convicted of Watergate crime
1975 International Women's Year begins
1976 NBC replaces the peacock logo
1976 Liberty Bell moves to new home behind Independence Hall
1977 1st woman formally ordained an Episcopal priest (Jacqueline Means)
1977 Czech intellectuals & Chinas begin Human Rights Group Chapter 77
1978 President Ford signs 1st major revision of copyright law since 1909
1979 International Year of the Child begins
1979 US & China (People's Republic) begin diplomatic relations
1980 Mob storms Russian embassy in Teheran
1981 Roger Smith becomes CEO of General Motors
1981 Greece is 10th country to join European Economic Community
1982 Pope John Paul II prays for an end to martial law in Poland
1982 Javier Pérez de Cuellar becomes Secretary-General of UN
1984 AT&T's 22 owned Bell system companies divests into 8 companies
1985 US's 1st manadatory seat belt law goes into effect (NY)
1985 VH-1 made its broadcasting debut
1986 As the United States builds its strength in the Mediterranean, Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi threatens to retaliate if attacked (I'm sooo scared)
1986 Spain & Portugal become 11th & 12th members of Common Market (European Economic Community)
1990 David Dinkins sworn in as 1st black mayor of New York City NY
1990 FCC implements "SYNDEX" giving independent stations more rights over cable TV outlets for exclusive syndicated programs
1990 Mitsuko Nishiwaki beats Nakano to become Japan Women wrestling champ
1991 5% sales tax on consumer goods & services goes into effect in USSR
1991 Iraq rejects peace proposal from Egyptian President Hosi Mubarak
1992 Bush is 1st US President to address Australian Parliament
1993 Cigarette advertisements are banned in New York City NY's MTA
1993 Czechoslovakia separates into Czech Republic (Bohemia) & Slovakia
1994 Microsoft CEO Bill Gates (38) marries Melinda French (29)
1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect
1995 Austria, Finland & Sweden act to join European Union
1995 Centennial of Canadian Mounties presence in Canada's Yukon Territory
1995 International Year of Tolerance
1995 Last "Far Side" by cartoonist Gary Larson (started 1980)
1996 After 27 years, Betty Rubble debuts as a Flintstone vitamin
1998 All California bars, clubs & card rooms must be smoke-free
1998 US Census Bureau estimates population at 268,921,733
1999 International Year of Elderly

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Alabama : Mobile Carnival
Cameroon : Independence Day (1960)
Cuba : Revolution Day
Haiti : Independence Day (1804)
Japan : New Year (year = AD + 660)
Mozambique : Universal Fraternity
Pasadena CA : Tournament of Roses Parade
Philadelphia : Mummers' Parade
Sudan : Independence Day (1956)
Western Samoa : Independence Day (1962)
Scotland : Handsel Monday (Monday)
Capetown, South Africa : Coon Carnival
Taiwan : Foundation of the Republic
US : Z-Day (honors those who end up last when placed in alphabetical order)
US : Imani -- Faith Day (seventh day of Kwanzaa)
National Barbecue Month.

Religious Observances
Anglican, Lutheran : Feast of Holy Name of Jesus
Christian : Feast of St Odilo
old Roman Catholic : Commemoration of Circumcision of Jesus
Roman Catholic : Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Unification Church : God's Day
Orthodox : St Basil's Day

Religious History
1780 Pioneer Methodist bishop and circuit rider Francis Asbury wrote in his journal: 'My God, keep me through the water and fire, and let me rather die than live to sin against thee!'
1802 Thomas Jefferson, in a letter written to the Danbury [CT] Baptist Association, coined the metaphor, "a wall of separation between Church and State." From 1947, the "wall of separation" concept gained acceptance as a constitutional guideline.
1832 In Lexington, KY, 12,000 followers of Alexander Campbell, (called "Campbellites") merged with 10,000 followers of Barton W. Stone (known as "Christians") to form the Disciples of Christ (Christian) Church.
1871 The Church of Ireland was formally disestablished. Aligned with Anglicanism from 1537, the Irish Church represented the faith of only 12% of the populace by the mid-19th century.
1977 Jacqueline Means, wife of an Indiana truck driver and mother of four, became the first woman in the U.S. to be ordained a priest in the Protestant Episcopal Church.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

Thought for the day :
"Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It is already tomorrow in Australia."

Question of the day...
How can there be self-help "groups"?

Murphys Law of the day...(First Law of Socio-Genetics)
Celibacy is not hereditary

Amazing Fact #2,004...
In many countries, it is the custom to wish friends a "Happy Birthday" on January 1st, rather than a "Happy New Year." This day is nicknamed "Everyman's Birthday," and is considered the day when everyone becomes a year older, whether it's their actual day of birth or not. Similarly, this practice is observed in horse racing. No matter when a race horse is born, they all "become" a year older on New Year's Day, although there are no records explaining how or why this came to be.

1986 As the United States builds its strength in the Mediterranean, Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi threatens to retaliate if attacked (I'm sooo scared)

LOL! Remember "The Line Of Death"?
Cross this line and you die!
Ok. Cross this Line and you die
Ok. Cross THIS line and you die.

Our first assignment upon entering the Med was to demonstrate freedom of navigation by conducting a missile exercise inside the claimed territorial limits of Libya. Libya had claimed the entire Gulf of Sidra as their territory. This gave them a 200-mile territorial limit. If we did not challenge that claim, it would become international law. Our task force combined the USS Nimitz and the USS Forrestal task groups to conduct the exercise. Drones would be launched from a support ship within the missile test area and we were one of four missile ships that would be assigned to launch surface-to-air missiles loaded with telemetry instruments at the drones.

The first day of the exercise was August 18th and it was clear that the Libyans were going to do everything in their power to foil our plans. In addition, it seemed clear that the Libyan pilots were itching to find a U.S. carrier to attack. As the Libyans launched fighters from three airports, our task force would assign F-14s to cover them. Covering means to maintain a firing position on the contacts until they either shot at something or turned back to home. We had no authority to attack until we were fired upon. The F-14s were under the strict control of the E-2C (Hawkeyes) from the carrier. On board the Nimitz was the Sixth Fleet battle staff.

Needless to say the Libyans did not take kindly to having the pesky F-14s on their tail and so they would try to shake them with lots of high G-force air combat maneuvering techniques. Things were tense but no one lost their cool… at least not on day one of the missilex. The next day, on almost the first run of the day, two of the Libyan pilots decided to shoot at the lead pilot of a flight of two F-14s from VF-41.

Bad idea #1 It was a head-on shot with a heat-seeking missile.

Bad idea #2 It just happened to be the VF-41 Squadron Commander.

Bad idea #3 This missile missed its mark but during the ensuing dog fight, AIM-9 missiles from the two F-14s downed both Libyan SU-22 Fitters.

No survivors were ever found. Immediately after the engagement, the F-14s were returning to the carrier and at that time received “Permission to defend yourselves” from the carrier.

From the time we were aware of the attack until its conclusion was about a minute. The Tactical Action Officer (TAO) in CIC was the Operations Officer LCDR Pilnick and I was the Ships Weapons Coordinator (SWC). After the engagement, the TAO leaned over to me and said, “I guess we should go to GQ.” So we did. It was an awesome thing to here general quarters without the “This is a drill” preamble. We struck the telemetry missiles below decks and loaded war shot birds on the rails. No more action took place. The Libyans continued to look for the carrier (this time with their fingers off the triggers). The F-14s continued to cover the Libyans (with no authority to shoot) and the missilex was successfully concluded. After the operation we detached from the task force and headed for the Black Sea.