Friday, June 26, 2009

26 June: "I'm A Jelly Doughnut!"

Today is Friday, June 26, the 177th day of 2009. There are 188 days left in the year. From an AP somewhere. A/V. UPI Almanac. Today's Highlight in History: On June 26, 1963, President John F. Kennedy visited West Berlin, where he expressed solidarity with the city's residents by declaring: "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a Berliner). [Just Another Blog™ has been led to believe that JFK really said: "I am a jelly doughnut," or some kind of Kraut pastry. If he'd really wanted to say "I'm w/ you, I'm one of you," he would have said "Ich bin Berliner." It's all in the article usage. — Ed.]Listen for yourself. On this date: In 1870, the first section of Atlantic City's Boardwalk was opened to the public in New Jersey. In 1894, the American Railway Union, led by Eugene Debs, called a general strike in sympathy with Pullman workers.
In 1900, Dr. Walter Reed and his medical team began a successful campaign to wipe out yellow fever in the Panama Canal Zone. In 1917, the first troops of the American Expeditionary Force arrived in France during World War I.Ninety years ago, in 1919, the New York Daily News was first published. In 1945, the charter of the United Nations was signed by 50 countries in San Francisco. In 1948, the Berlin Airlift began in earnest after the Soviet Union cut off land and water routes to the isolated western sector of Berlin. In 1950, President Harry S. Truman authorized the Air Force and Navy to enter the Korean conflict. Fifty years ago, in 1959, President Dwight D. Eisenhower joined Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in ceremonies officially opening the St. Lawrence Seaway. Swedish boxer Ingemar Johansson knocked out Floyd Patterson in the third round of their match at New York's Yankee Stadium to win the heavyweight title. In 1973, former White House counsel John W. Dean told the Senate Watergate Committee about an "enemies list" kept by the Nixon White House.In 1977, 42 people were killed when a fire sent toxic smoke pouring through the Maury County Jail in Columbia, Tenn. In 1988, three people were killed when a new Airbus A320 jetliner carrying more than 130 people crashed into a forest during an air show demonstration flight in Mulhouse, France. Twenty years ago, in 1989, the Supreme Court ruled the death penalty may be imposed for murderers who committed their crimes as young as age 16, and for mentally retarded killers as well. In 1992, U.S. Navy Secretary H. Lawrence Garrett resigned, accepting responsibility for the "Tailhook" incident involving the harassment of Navy women by naval aviators. Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates, the target of public wrath for the Rodney King beating, resigned. In 1993, in response to an Iraqi plot to assassinate former U.S. President George H.W. Bush during a visit to Kuwait, two U.S. ships in the Persian Gulf fired missiles at Iraq's intelligence complex. The main headquarters building was badly damaged. In 1995, an attempted assassination of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak failed during his visit to Ethiopia. Ten years ago: An advance contingent of Russian troops flew into Kosovo to help reopen a strategic airport and join an uneasy alliance with NATO peacekeepers. In 2003, the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, struck down state bans on gay sex. [Possibly related:] Strom Thurmond, the second longest-serving senator in U.S. history, died in Edgefield, S.C., at age 100. Sir Denis Thatcher, husband of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, died at age 88. Five years ago: President George W. Bush won support from the 25-nation European Union for an initial agreement to help train Iraq's armed forces. A memorial service was held in Egg Harbor Township, N.J., for Paul M. Johnson Jr., an engineer slain by kidnappers in Saudi Arabia. One year ago: The Supreme Court struck down a handgun ban in the District of Columbia as it affirmed, 5-4, that an individual right to gun ownership existed. Juan Alvarez, who triggered a 2005 rail disaster in Glendale, Calif., by parking an SUV on the tracks, was convicted of 11 counts of first-degree murder. (Alvarez was later sentenced to 11 consecutive life terms.) Today's Birthdays: Actress Eleanor Parker is 87. Jazz musician-film composer Dave Grusin is 75. Actor Josef Sommer is 75. Singer Billy Davis Jr. is 69. Rock singer Georgie Fame is 66. Actor Clive Francis is 63. R&B singer Brenda Holloway is 63. Actor Michael Paul Chan is 59. Actor Robert Davi is 56. Singer-musician Mick Jones is 54. Actor Gedde Watanabe is 54. Rock singer Chris Isaak is 53. Rock singer Patty Smyth is 52. Singer Terri Nunn (Berlin) is 48. Rock singer Harriet Wheeler (The Sundays) is 46. Rock musician Colin Greenwood (Radiohead) is 40. Writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson is 39. Actor Sean Hayes is 39. Actor Matt Letscher is 39. Actor Chris O'Donnell is 39. Actress Rebecca Budig is 36. New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter is 35. Country singer Gretchen Wilson is 35. Green Bay Packers offensive tackle Chad Clifton is 33. Rock musician Nathan Followill (Kings of Leon) is 30. Pop-rock singer-musician Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic) is 30. Actor-musician Jason Schwartzman is 29. Utah Jazz guard Deron Williams is 25. Today In Entertainment History -- In 1925, Charlie Chaplin's comedy "The Gold Rush" premiered in Hollywood. In 1964, "It's All Over Now" by the Rolling Stones was released. It was the first Stones song to reach number one in Britain. In 1965, the Byrds hit number one on the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart with "Mr. Tambourine Man," which was written by Bob Dylan. In 1971, promoter Bill Graham announced the closing of his Fillmore East and West concert halls in New York and San Francisco. In 1975, Sonny and Cher Bono's divorce was finalized in Santa Monica, California. They had married in 1964. Four days after the divorce, Cher married Greg Allman. Van McCoy earned his first gold record for "The Hustle." In 1977, Elvis Presley performed his last concert, in Indianapolis. In 1982, Bryan Ferry of Roxy Music married Lucy Helmore. In 1992, an Oklahoma family sued Van Halen, claiming the band's fans damaged their property. Van Halen put the family's phone number on the cover of their "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" album. In 1996, Van Halen announced original singer David Lee Roth would rejoin the band for a greatest hits album. Singer Sammy Hagar left because of "creative differences." An arrest warrant was issued for Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland after he left a drug rehabilitation center in Los Angeles without permission. He turned up a few days later at another treatment center. Thought for Today: "When I was a young man I vowed never to marry until I found the ideal woman. Well, I found her — but, alas, she was waiting for the perfect man." — Robert Schuman, French statesman (1886-1963).

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