View todays celebrity birthdays and find out what happened in history today.
1904 – The birth of Sir Cecil Beaton, fashion and portrait photographer, writer and theatrical designer. He was a photographer for Vanity Fair and Vogue magazines, often photographed the Royal Family for official publications and was a major influence on the work of photographer David Bailey.
1937 – The first Gallup Opinion Poll was conducted in Britain. It was the invention of the American George Horace Gallup who founded the Gallup Institute in 1935.
1943 – World War II: Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt met in Casablanca, Morocco, to discuss their strategy for the next phase of the war.
1947 – Covent Garden Opera Company opened with Karl Rankl’s production of Carmen, in the newly renovated theatre which had been a dance hall during the war.
1969 – Football legend Sir Matt Busby announced that he would retire as manager of Manchester United at the end of the season. Formerly a Scottish football player and manager he was most noted for his time as managing Manchester United between 1945 and 1969. His manager records and longevity at the helm of Manchester United are only surpassed by Sir Alex Ferguson.
1975 – 17-year-old heiress, Lesley Whittle, was kidnapped from her home in Shropshire. Her body was found on 7th March, 1975, hanging from a wire at the bottom of a drain shaft in Bathpool Park, Staffordshire. Donald Neilson, also known as the Black Panther, was convicted of her murder (and three others) in July 1976.
1978 – The Sex Pistols play their last chaotic show at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco with Johnny Rotten yelling to the crowd as the band fell apart on stage, “Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?” On the same day, Olympic althlete Harold Abrahams dies aged 78.
1989 – Muslims in Bradford ritually burned a copy of Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses in the first serious protest in Britain. The book had been banned in some Muslim countries.
1994 – The Duchess of Kent becomes the first member of the Royal Family to convert to Catholicism for more than 300 years.
2002 – After three months of no cases being reported, the United Kingdom was finally declared free from the ‘Foot and Mouth’ infection, after a crisis that started in 2001 in which millions of cows and sheep were destroyed.
2013 – Music and DVD chain HMV appointed an administrator, making it the latest casualty on the High Street and putting 4,350 jobs at risk. Quote from retail analyst Neil Saunders – “In the digital era, where 73.4% of music and film are online …. there is no real future for physical retail in the music sector.”
2014 – Justin Bieber was questioned by police over the egging of his neighbour’s house in Calabasas, California.
2014 – Monkeys at Paignton Zoo in Devon were banned from eating bananas. Keepers said – “Giving monkeys bananas that have been cultivated for humans is like giving them cake and chocolate. Reducing the sugar in their diets has calmed them down and made their group more settled.”
The modern version of the Hippocratic Oath was written in 1964 by a man named Louis Lasagna.
The original drawings of Snoopy were based on Charles Schulz’s childhood dogs, Snooky and Spike.
Using the word ‘eloquent’ indicates that you are eloquent. #eloquent
“All you’ve got is lifetime… go!” #songlyrics
The stars of “Rebel Without a Cause” all met an untimely death. James Dean died in a car crash, Natalie Wood drowned, and Sal Mineo was stabbed.
“Why don’t you come up sometime and see me?” Lady Lou (Mae West) #moviequotes
“I was tuning in the shine on the light night dial doing anything my radio advised.” #songlyrics
Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.
In an alternate universe, this is the most popular post of all time!
Statistically, the chance of something statistically unlikely occurring at some point, is very high.
The only state that doesn’t contain any of the letters in the word “mackerel” is Ohio.
Sundance Kid – Real Name: Henry Longbaugh
Butch Cassidy – Real Name: Robert Leroy Parker
“I think it’s the duty of the comedian to find out where the line is drawn and cross it deliberately.” – George Carlin
I’m not allergic to fashion. I’m just one of those people who when they put on a suit look like they’re going to a funeral or to court. – Dave Grohl
Dreams don’t have deadlines. I’m thinking of doing bigger and better things and having more fun with it. – LL Cool J
Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears. – Mark Antony
Singing into a microphone and learning to play an instrument and learning to do your craft, that’s the most important thing for people to do. It’s not about being perfect, it’s not about sounding absolutely correct, it’s not about what goes on in a computer. It’s about what goes on in here [your heart] and what goes on in here [your head]. – Dave Grohl
Dolphins : Animals that are so intelligent that, within a few weeks of captivity, they can train a man to stand on the edge of their pool and throw them food three times a day. – Hal Roach
The only way out of today’s misery is for people to become worthy of each other’s trust. – Albert Schweitzer
1993 – The Holbeck Hall Hotel in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, fell into the sea following a landslide, making news around the world.
1805 – The first Trooping of the Colour took place on Horse Guards Parade. It was Edward VII who moved Trooping the Colour to its June date, because of the vagaries of British weather.
2012 – The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant took place on the Tideway of the River Thames, as part of the celebrations of the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.