Thursday 30 April 2009

What Happened on my Birthday April 30

Today is April 30, the 120th day. There are 245 days left in the year. Did you ever wonder what happened on your birthday April 30? What famous person was born on your birthday, what historical event took place on the day you were born, or what special celebrations took place during your birth month? This blog offers information about historical happenings and famous birthdays
For the definitive list,click the link
April 30 Events



Today's Highlight in History:

One hundred and fifty years ago, on April 30, 1859, the Charles Dickens novel "A Tale of Two Cities" was first published in serial form in the premiere issue of All the Year Round, a literary magazine owned by Dickens. (The novel was presented in 31 weekly installments.)

What Happened on my Birthday April 30 in US

1789, George Washington took office in New York as the first president of the United States.
1803, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France for 60 million francs, the equivalent of about $15 million.
1812, Louisiana became the 18th state of the Union.
1904, the Louisiana Purchase Exposition opened in St. Louis.
1939, the New York World's Fair officially opened with a ceremony that included an address by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
1948, the Charter of the Organization of American States was signed in Bogota, Colombia.
1970, President Richard M. Nixon announced the U.S. was sending troops into Cambodia, an action that sparked widespread protest.
1973, Nixon announced the resignations of top aides H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, along with Attorney General Richard G. Kleindienst and White House counsel John Dean.
1999 The Rev. Jesse Jackson met with each of the three U.S. soldiers being held prisoner by Yugoslavia.
2004 Arabs expressed outrage at graphic photographs of naked Iraqi prisoners being humiliated by U.S. military police; President George W. Bush condemned the mistreatment of prisoners, saying "that's not the way we do things in America."

What Happened on my Birthday April 30 in UK and Other History

1909, Juliana, queen of the Netherlands from 1948 to 1980, was born in The Hague.

1945, as Russian troops approached his Berlin bunker, Adolf Hitler committed suicide along with his wife of one day, Eva Braun see picture
1999 A bomb exploded at a gay pub in London, killing three people and injuring more than 70. (David Copeland, a white supremacist, was later convicted of murder for a series of bombings in London and sentenced to six life sentences.)

Famous Birthdays


1933 Willie Nelson, US singer
1933 Dickie Davies British TV presenter
1947 Leslie Grantham, British Actor
1958 James Hewitt, once friend of Princess Dianna

Birthday Poems for those born on April 29



It's Willie Nelson's birthday
A person who's gone far
Coincidentally, it's your birthday
My own Superstar


You want to take over the World
That's the aim you've got
Your birthday is Hitler's deathday
So that explains a lot

For more, click the link
What Happened on my Birthday April 30

This ‘What Happened Birthday April 30’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

What Happened on my Birthday April 30

Today is April 30, the 120th day. There are 245 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:
One hundred and fifty years ago, on April 30, 1859, the Charles Dickens novel "A Tale of Two Cities" was first published in serial form in the premiere issue of All the Year Round, a literary magazine owned by Dickens. (The novel was presented in 31 weekly installments.)
On this date:
In 1789, George Washington took office in New York as the first president of the United States.
In 1803, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France for 60 million francs, the equivalent of about $15 million.
In 1812, Louisiana became the 18th state of the Union.
In 1904, the Louisiana Purchase Exposition opened in St. Louis.
In 1909, Juliana, queen of the Netherlands from 1948 to 1980, was born in The Hague.
In 1939, the New York World's Fair officially opened with a ceremony that included an address by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
In 1945, as Russian troops approached his Berlin bunker, Adolf Hitler committed suicide along with his wife of one day, Eva Braun.
In 1948, the Charter of the Organization of American States was signed in Bogota, Colombia.
In 1970, President Richard M. Nixon announced the U.S. was sending troops into Cambodia, an action that sparked widespread protest.
In 1973, Nixon announced the resignations of top aides H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, along with Attorney General Richard G. Kleindienst and White House counsel John Dean.
Ten years ago: A bomb exploded at a gay pub in London, killing three people and injuring more than 70. (David Copeland, a white supremacist, was later convicted of murder for a series of bombings in London and sentenced to six life sentences.) The Rev. Jesse Jackson met with each of the three U.S. soldiers being held prisoner by Yugoslavia.
Five years ago: Arabs expressed outrage at graphic photographs of naked Iraqi prisoners being humiliated by U.S. military police; President George W. Bush condemned the mistreatment of prisoners, saying "that's not the way we do things in America." On ABC's "Nightline," Ted Koppel read aloud the names of 721 U.S. servicemen and women killed in the Iraq war (the Sinclair Broadcast Group refused to air the program on seven ABC stations). Michael Jackson pleaded not-guilty in Santa Maria, Calif., to a grand jury indictment that expanded the child molestation case against him. (Jackson was acquitted at trial.) Former NBA star Jayson Williams was acquitted of aggravated manslaughter in the shotgun slaying of a limousine driver at his New Jersey mansion, but found guilty of trying to cover up the shooting. (Williams faces retrial on a reckless manslaughter count.)
One year ago: The Federal Reserve cut interest rates for a seventh straight time, reducing the federal funds rate a quarter-point to 2 percent. An avalanche in Italy's northwestern Alps killed five French ski-mountaineers.
Today's Birthdays: Actress Cloris Leachman is 83. Singer Willie Nelson is 76. Actor Gary Collins is 71. Actor Burt Young is 69. Singer Bobby Vee is 66. Actress Jill Clayburgh is 65. Movie director Allan Arkush is 61. Actor Perry King is 61. Singer Merrill Osmond is 56. Movie director Jane Campion is 55. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper is 50. Actor Paul Gross is 50. FIU coach Isiah Thomas is 48. Country musician Robert Reynolds (The Mavericks) is 47. Actor Adrian Pasdar is 44. Rapper Turbo B (Snap) is 42. Rock musician Clark Vogeler is 40. R&B singer Chris "Choc" Dalyrimple (Soul For Real) is 38. Rock musician Chris Henderson (3 Doors Down) is 38. Country singer Carolyn Dawn Johnson is 38. Actress Lisa Dean Ryan is 37. R&B singer Akon is 36. R&B singer Jeff Timmons (98 Degrees) is 36. Actor Johnny Galecki is 34. Singer-musician Cole Deggs (Cole Deggs and the Lonesome) is 33. Rapper Lloyd Banks is 27. Actress Kirsten Dunst is 27. Country singer Tyler Wilkinson (The Wilkinsons) is 25.

Tuesday 28 April 2009

What Happened Birthday April 29

Today is April 29, the 119th day. There are 246 days left in the year
Did you ever wonder what happened on your birthday April 29? What famous person was born on your birthday, what historical event took place on the day you were born, or what special celebrations took place during your birth month? This blog offers information about historical happenings and famous birthdays
For the definitive list,click the link
April 29 Events





How Very Odd


The 1st Duke of Wellington was born on April 29 as was Duke Ellington. The only two rhyming Dukes in history and they share the same birthday. You couldn't make it up. I've googled and I'm the only one to comment. If you are reading this after April 29 2009 there be lots of people copycatting but it was here first
Some websites have the Duke of Wellington's birthday as c May 1 but more favour April 29





What Happened on my Birthday April 29 in US

1861 - Maryland's House of Delegates votes against seceding from the Union of the United States.
1862 - New Orleans falls to Union forces during the American Civil War.
1913 - Gideon Sundback of Hoboken, New Jersey, patents the zipper.
1916 - The Easter Rising in Dublin collapses as Irish nationalists surrender to British authorities.
1918 - Germany's main offensive on Western Front in World War I ends.
1928 - British ultimatum forces Egypt to provide freedom of public meetings.
1931 - U.S. President Herbert Hoover receives the King of Siam. It was the first time an absolute monarch had traveled to the White House.
1945 - U.S. soldiers in Germany liberate 32,000 Nazi victims from a concentration camp in Dachau in World War II; in a Berlin bunker, Adolf Hitler marries Eva Braun and designates Admiral Karl Doenitz his successor. Hitler kills himself the next day.
1946 - Anglo-U.S. committee advises against partition of Palestine; 28 former Japanese leaders are indicted in Tokyo as war criminals.
1974 - U.S. President Richard Nixon announces he is releasing edited transcripts of secretly made White House tape recordings related to the Watergate scandal.
1975 - U.S. task force evacuates foreigners and Vietnamese by helicopter from Saigon.
1992 - A jury in Los Angeles acquits policemen charged with a videotaped beating of black man Rodney King, setting off three days of riots that kill 55 people and causes $1 billion in damage.

What Happened on my Birthday April 29 in UK and Other History


1429 - Joan of Arc enters Orleans, France, and defeats English.
1628 - Sweden and Denmark sign defense treaty against Duke of Wallenstein, bringing Sweden into the Thirty Years' War.
1706 - Electors of Bavaria and Cologne are outlawed by Holy Roman Empire.
1781 - French fleet under Admiral Suffren prevents Britain from seizing Cape of Good Hope.
1826 - Liberal constitution is promulgated in Portugal for a hereditary monarchy.
1848 - Pope Pius IX dissociates himself from Italian national movement.

1965 - Australia decides to send troops to South Vietnam.
1973 - Israel decides to expand civil rights of its 336,000 Arab citizens to reward Israeli Arab community for its loyalty.
1981 - Truck driver Peter Sutcliffe admits in a London court to being the "Yorkshire Ripper," the killer of 13 women in northern England during a five-year period.
1989 - Police arrest about 2,200 workers and students in South Korea to try to block labor rally.
1990 - Wrecking cranes tear down the section of the Berlin Wall surrounding the Brandenburg Gate, the wall's most famous section.
1993 - Gunmen in Costa Rica free 18 Supreme Court justices they had held hostage for four days. Police capture the five gunmen after a brief gun battle.
1994 - South Africa's first democratic elections end after an extra day of balloting intended to overcome delays and confusion.
1995 - In Sri Lanka, Tamil separatist rebels down a military jet with a missile, killing 52 people and escalating their 12-year war for a homeland.
1996 - Heavy fighting between rival factions sends civilians fleeing for shelter again as a 10-day-old truce collapses in Monrovia, Liberia.
1997 - Astronaut Jerry Linenger and cosmonaut Vasily Tsibliyev go on the first U.S.-Russian space walk.
1998 - Brazil announces an unprecedented plan to protect an area of Amazon forest half the size of France.
2000 - Police in Azerbaijan beat back more than 1,000 demonstrators seeking to stage an unsanctioned opposition rally in the capital Baku.
2003 - Pakistani police in Karachi arrest six suspected members of the al-Qaida terrorist network who allegedly were planning attacks on U.S. targets in Pakistan.
2005 - U.N. peacekeepers sexually abused and exploited local women and girls in Liberia, a U.N. spokesman reports. Allegations that were found to be substantiated in Liberia are the latest to be leveled against U.N. peacekeepers who had been accused of sexually abusing the very people they were sent to protect in missions from Bosnia and Kosovo to Cambodia, East Timor and Congo.
2006 - Bolivian President Evo Morales joins Fidel Castro of Cuba and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela in Havana for an endorsement of a socialist trade initiative aimed at providing an alternative to U.S.-backed free trade efforts in Latin America.
2007 - Gunmen seriously wound one of Iraq's best known radio and television journalists, Amal al-Moudares, near her home in the capital. On April 5, Baghdad police found the bullet-ridden body of Khamael Muhsin, another famous radio and TV presenter.
2008 - The United States and France introduce a U.N. resolution that would allow countries to chase pirates off Somalia's coast into the country's territorial waters and arrest the sea thieves.

Famous Birthdays:

1667 John Arbuthnot, English physicist-satirist (1667-1745);
1769 Duke of Wellington
1899 Duke Ellington
1881 Alexander II, czar of Russia (1818-81);
Sir Malcolm Sargent, English conductor (1895-1967)
1901 Japan's Emperor Hirohito (1901-1989);
1931 Lonnie Donegan
1937 Saddam Hussein
1954 Jerry Seinfeld, U.S. comedian (1954--);
1957 Daniel Day-Lewis, English-born actor
1958 Michelle Pfeiffer, U.S. actress
1970 Uma Thurman, U.S. actress .
1970 Andre Agassi
Birthday Poems for those born on April 29

It's your's and Daniel Day-Lewis' birthday
That's a coincidence, I find
He's talented, rich and good looking
And you're not....arhhhh...never mind
..........I love you, anyway
or

It's Daniel Day-Lewis' birthday
A person who's gone far
Coincidentally, it's your birthday
My own Superstar

and

(Susie), you're a modern woman
And your acting's pretty hot
You share your birthday with Michelle Pfeiffer
So that explains a lot

or

You want to take over the World
That's the aim you've got
You have the same birthdate as Saddam Hussein
So that explains a lot

For more, click the link
What Happened on my Birthday April 29

This ‘What Happened Birthday April 29’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Monday 27 April 2009

What Happened on my Birthday April 28

Today is April 28, the 118th day. There are 247 days left in the year.
Did you ever wonder what happened on your birthday April 28? What famous person was born on your birthday, what historical event took place on the day you were born, or what special celebrations took place during your birth month? This blog offers information about historical happenings and famous birthdays

For the definitive list,click the link
What Happened Birthday April 28





Today's Highlight in History





On April 28, 1789, there was a mutiny on HMS Bounty as the crew of the British ship set Capt. William Bligh and 18 sailors adrift in a launch in the South Pacific. (Bligh and most of the men with him managed to reach Timor in 47 days.)




What Happened on my Birthday April 28 in US


1758, the fifth president of the United States, James Monroe, see picture above, was born in Westmoreland County, Va.
1788, Maryland became the seventh state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.
1952, war with Japan officially ended as a treaty signed in San Francisco the year before took effect.
1958, the United States conducted the first of 35 nuclear test explosions in the Pacific Proving Ground as part of Operation Hardtack I. Vice President Richard Nixon and his wife, Pat, began a goodwill tour of Latin America that was marred by hostile mobs in Lima, Peru, and Caracas, Venezuela.
1967, heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali refused to be inducted into the Army, the same day Gen. William C. Westmoreland told Congress the U.S. "would prevail in Vietnam."
1988, a flight attendant was killed and more than 60 people injured when part of the roof of an Aloha Airlines Boeing 737 tore off during a flight from Hilo to Honolulu.
2008 The first tax rebates were direct-deposited into bank accounts from a $168 billion stimulus package. In a defiant appearance at the National Press Club in Washington, Democrat Barack Obama's longtime pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, said criticism surrounding his fiery sermons was an attack on black churches, and he rejected those who'd labelled him unpatriotic


What Happened on my Birthday April 28 in UK and Other History

1770 Capt James Cook in Endeavor lands at Botany Bay in Australia
1918, Gavrilo Princip, the assassin of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and the archduke's wife, Sophie, died in prison of tuberculosis.
1945, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini and his mistress, Clara Petacci, were executed by Italian partisans as they attempted to flee the country.
1969, French President Charles de Gaulle resigned. (He was succeeded by Georges Pompidou.)
1996, a man armed with a semiautomatic rifle opened fire on tourists on the Australian island of Tasmania, killing 35 people; Martin Bryant was captured by police after a 12-hour standoff at a guest cottage. (Bryant is serving a life sentence.)
.
Famous Birthdays

1442 King Edward IV
Harper Lee, Author is 83.
James A. Baker III, Former Secretary of State is 79.
1948 Terry Pratchitt, English author
1950 Jay Leno, TV Presenter
1958 Hal Sutton, Golfer
1966 John Daly, Golfer
1970 Howard Donald, Member of Take That



Birthday Poems for those born on April 28

It's your's and John Daly's birthday
That's a coincidence, I find
He's talented and rich
And you're not....arhhhh...never mind
..........I love you, anyway

You share a birthday with Howard Donald
A very famous name
He's very slim and earns fat cheques (checks)
And you're sort of...close to being the same



For more, click the link
Today in History April 28

This ‘Today in History April 28’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Sunday 26 April 2009

What Happened Birthday April 27

Today is April 27, the 117th day. There are 248 days left in the year.
Did you ever wonder what happened on your birthday April 27? What famous person was born on your birthday, what historical event took place on the day you were born, or what special celebrations took place during your birth month? This blog offers information about historical happenings and famous birthdays
For the definitive list,click the link
April 27 Events


What Happened on my Birthday April 27 in US


1865, the steamer Sultana exploded on the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tenn., killing more than 1,400 people, mostly freed Union prisoners of war.
1937 US Social Security system made its 1st benefit payment
1964 John Lennon's "In His Own Write" was published in US
1973, acting FBI Director L. Patrick Gray resigned after it was revealed that he had handed over bureau files on the Watergate burglary to the Nixon White House.
1978, convicted Watergate defendant John D. Ehrlichman was released from an Arizona prison after serving 18 months. Fifty-one construction workers plunged to their deaths when a scaffold inside a cooling tower at the Pleasants Power Station site in West Virginia fell 168 feet to the ground.


What Happened on my Birthday April 27 in UK and Elsewhere

1509, Pope Julius II placed the Republic of Venice under an interdict following its refusal to give up lands claimed by the Papal States. (The pope lifted the sanction the following year.)
1521, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan was killed by natives in the Philippines.
1570 Pope Pius V excommunicated Queen Elizabeth I.
1773 British Parliament passed Tea Act that 8 months later led to the Boston Tea Party on 16 December of that year
1828 Zoological Gardens at Regent's Park London, opened
1908 4th modern Olympic games opened in London
1967, Expo '67 was officially opened in Montreal by Canadian Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson.
1981 Beatle Ringo Starr married actress Barbara Bach

Famous Birthdays April 27

1791 Samuel Morse (telegraph inventor) See Picture above
1822 Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th president of the United States
1922 Jack Klugman, Actor .
1944 Michael Fish, British TV weatherman
1959 Sheena Easton, Pop singer

Birthday poems for those born on April 27

(Harry), you're so dotty
But do you cut a dash, or what?
Your birthday's shared with Samuel Morse
So that explains a lot

(Susie), you're stunning looking
And your singing's really hot, (not)
Your birthday's shared with Sheena Easton,
So that explains a lot


For more, click the link

What Happened on my Birthday April 27

This 'What Happened on my Birthday April 27' blog entry is copyright Jon Bratton 2009

Saturday 25 April 2009

Today in History April 26


Today in History... what happened on my birthday

Today is April 26, the 116th day. There are 249 days left in the year.







What happened on my birthday April 26 in USA

1865, John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Abraham Lincoln, was surrounded by federal troops near Bowling Green, Va., and killed.
1968, the United States exploded beneath the Nevada desert a 1.3 megaton nuclear device called "Boxcar." In 1970, the Stephen Sondheim musical "Company" opened at the Alvin Theatre in New York.
1989, actress-comedian Lucille Ball died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at age 77.
2000, Vermont Gov. Howard Dean signed the nation's first bill allowing same-sex couples to form civil unions.



What happened on my birthday 26th April in UK history and others

1607, English colonists went ashore at present-day Cape Henry, Va., on an expedition to establish the first permanent English settlement in the Western Hemisphere.
1909, Abdul Hamid II was deposed as sultan of the Ottoman Empire.
1937, planes from Nazi Germany raided the Basque town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.
1945, Marshal Henri Philippe Petain, the head of France's Vichy government during World War II, was arrested.
1964, the African nations of Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged to form Tanzania.
1986, the world's worst nuclear accident occurred at the Chernobyl plant in the Soviet Union..see pic
1999 BBC anchorwoman Jill Dando, host of a crime-fighting program, was fatally shot on the steps of her London home.
2008 Police in Austria arrested Josef Fritzl, freeing his daughter Elisabeth and her six children, whom he had fathered while holding her captive in a cellar for 24 years. (Fritzl was later sentenced to life in a psychiatric ward.)


Famous Birthdays

1894 Rudolf Hess
1914 Charlie Chester
1926 David Coleman
1927 Jack Douglas
1933 Carol Burnett, Actress-comedian
1938 Duane Eddy, Songwriter-musician

Birthday poem for someone born on April 26

(Harry), you want to take over the World
That‘s a powerful urge you've got
You share your birthday with Rudolf Hess
So that explains a lot


It's Duane Eddy's birthday
A person who's gone far
Coincidentally, it's your birthday
My own Superstar.
or

It's your's and Duane Eddy's birthday
That's a coincidence, I find
He was talented, rich and good looking
And you're not....arhhhh...never mind
..........I love you, anyway



Get Yourself in the Newspaper


For more, click the link
What Happened on my Birthday April 26

This ‘Today in History April 26’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Today in History April 25


Today in History

Today is April 25, the 115th day . There are 250 days left in the year.
Did you ever wonder what happened on your birthday April 25? What famous person was born on your birthday, what historical event took place on the day you were born, or what special celebrations took place during your birth month? This blog offers information about historical happenings and famous birthdays
For the definitive list,click the link
April 25 Events



Highlights in US History

1945, during World War II, U.S. and Soviet forces linked up on the Elbe River, a meeting that dramatized the collapse of Nazi Germany's defenses.
1507, German cartographer Martin Waldseemueller named a huge land mass in the Western Hemisphere "America," in honor of Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci.
1898, the United States formally declared war on Spain.
1901, New York Gov. Benjamin Barker Odell Junior signed an automobile registration bill which imposed a 15-mile-per-hour speed limit on highways.
1945, delegates from some 50 countries met in San Francisco to organize the United Nations.
1959, the St. Lawrence Seaway opened to shipping.


Highlights of UK and Other History

1792, highwayman Nicolas Jacques Pelletier became the first person under French law to be executed by the guillotine.
1859, ground was broken for the Suez Canal.


Famous Birthdays

1940 Actor Al Pacino
1945 Singer Bjorn Ulvaeus (ABBA)
1969 Actress Renee Zellweger

Birthday Poems for those born on April 25

It's your's and Al Pacino's birthday
That's a coincidence, I find
He's talented, rich and good looking
And you're not....arhhhh...never mind
..........I love you, anyway
or

It's Al Pacino's birthday
A person who's gone far
Coincidentally, it's your birthday
My own Superstar

and

(Susie), you're a modern woman
And your acting's pretty hot
You share your birthday with Renee Zellweger
So that explains a lot



For more, click the link
Today in History April 25

This ‘Today in History April 25’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Friday 24 April 2009

Today in History April 24

Today in History

Today is April 24, the 114th day. There are 251 days left in the year.

Highlights in US History

To see Today in History April 24 You Tube footage

1800 Library of Congress establishes with $5,000 allocation
1888 Eastman Kodak forms
1898 Spain declares war on U.S. rejecting ultimatum to withdraw from Cuba (The United States responded in kind the next day.)
1877, federal troops were ordered out of New Orleans, ending the North's post-Civil War rule in the South.
1981 IBM-PC computer introduced
1990, the space shuttle Discovery blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., carrying the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope.
2005 Cosmetics queen Estee Lauder died in New York at age 97.



Highlights of UK and Other History

1792, the national anthem of France, "La Marseillaise", was composed by Captain Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle. Click the link to hear it
1916, 1,600 Irish nationalists launched the Easter Rising by seizing several key sites in Dublin. (The rising was put down by British forces almost a week later.)
1953, British statesman Winston Churchill was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.


Famous Birthdays

Barbara Streisand, Actress Singer (1942)
Lee Westwood British Golfer(1973)
Jean-Paul Gaultier Designer(1952)
Stuart Pearce, Footballer (soccer player) (1962)
Anthony Trollope, Author(1815)
Shirley MacLaine, Actress (1934)
Clement Freud, Broadcaster (1924)

For more, click the link
Today in History April 24

This ‘Today in History April 24’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Thursday 23 April 2009

Today in History April 23



Today in History

April 23, the 113th day . There are 252 days left in the year.
Click this link to see a YouTube summary of this day in history Today in History April 23
April 23, is the birth date and death date of English poet and playwright William Shakespeare.
So, the most famous (possibly) Englishman was born and died on St Georges Day, St George being the Patron Saint of England

"Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them” from Twelfth Night by Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was born and died
On the very same day
Well, he didn’t last very long
I hear some of you say

If he really was born and died
On the very same day
He couldn’t have managed a sonnet
Never mind a 3 act play

Fortunately for us (but not for schoolchildren)
There were 52 years in between
The first 23rd April was in 1564
And the second in 1616

Most of his work was produced
In a 23 year period of time
Nearly 40 plays and over 150 sonnets
And some poems that don’t even rhyme

Jon Bratton 2009


Highlights in US History


1791, the 15th president of the United States, James Buchanan, was born in Franklin County, Pa.

1969, Sirhan Sirhan was sentenced to death for assassinating New York Senator Robert F. Kennedy. (The sentence was later reduced to life imprisonment.)

In 1985, the Coca-Cola Co. announced it was changing the secret flavour formula for Coke (negative public reaction forced the company to resume selling the original version).

1998, James Earl Ray, who'd confessed to assassinating the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and then insisted he'd been framed, died at a Nashville hospital at age 70.


Highlights in British and Other History

April 23, 1564, is believed to be the birth date of English poet and dramatist William Shakespeare; he died 52 years later, also on April 23.
St Georges Day in England

Famous Birthdays

1928 Shirley Temple Black, Actress-turned-diplomat.
1939 Lee Majors, Actor

For more, click the link
Today in History April 23

This ‘Today in History April 23’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Wednesday 22 April 2009

Today in History April 22


Today is April 22, the 112th day . There are 253 days left in the year.

Highlights in US History

Click the link to see YouTube footage
Today in History April 22

On April 22, 1898, with the United States and Spain on the verge of formally declaring war, the U.S. Navy began blockading Cuban ports. The USS Nashville captured a Spanish merchant ship, the Buena Ventura, off Key West, Fla.
Congress authorized creation of the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry, also known as the "Rough Riders."
1864, Congress authorized the use of the phrase "In God We Trust" on U.S. coins
1970 Earth Day was first observed when an estimated 20 million people in the US attended the inaugural event. Earth Day is now on April 22 every year, a day designed to inspire awareness and appreciation for the environment.
1994, Richard M. Nixon, the 37th president of the United States, died at a New York hospital four days after suffering a stroke


Highlights in British and Other History

1969 – British yachtsman Sir Robin Knox Johnson completes the first solo non-stop circumnavigation of the world.
1971 Haiti's ruler, Francois 'Papa Doc' Duvalier, died after 14 years in power.



Famous Birthdays

Yehudi Menuhin 1916 - Violinist, played with New York Symphony Orchestra at age ten
Glen Campbell 1936 - Singer, actor
(John Joseph) Jack Nicholson 1937-Actor
George Cole 1925 , British Actor

For more, click the link
Today in History April 22

This ‘Today in History April 22’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Monday 20 April 2009

Today in History April 21

Today in History April 21

Today is Tuesday, April 21, the 111th day . There are 254 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On this day 83 years ago, Lilibet was born
And it just couldn’t be foreseen
That one day the baby Princess
Would become our Queen

Her uncle would become the King
And have children of his own
And the eldest of those children
Would ascend to the throne

But Uncle Bertie abdicated
And her Dad as King was bound
When he died, Her Royal Highness The Princess Elizabeth
As our Queen was crowned

This is a birthday tribute, Your Majesty
It gives me much pleasure
To say happy birthday Ma’am
Our Queen and National Treasure

Jon Bratton 2009

Yes, Britain's Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her birthday.

And still on British Royalty, exactly five hundred years ago today, on April 21, 1509, England's King Henry VII died; he was succeeded by his 17-year-old son, Henry VIII.

Highlights US History

To see You Tube footage, click the link
Today in History April 21

1789, John Adams was sworn in as the first vice president of the United States.

1836, Texans led by Sam Houston defeated the Mexicans at San Jacinto, assuring independence.
1910, author Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens), died in Redding, Conn., at age 74.



Highlights British and Other History

1816, Charlotte Bronte, author of "Jane Eyre," was born in Thornton, England
1918, the German pilot, the "Red Baron," was killed in action during World War I.
1960, Brazil inaugurated its new capital, Brasilia, transferring the seat of national government from Rio de Janeiro.
1975, South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu resigned after ten years in office.


Famous Birthdays:

1926 Britain's Queen Elizabeth II .
1816, Charlotte Bronte, author
1947 Singer-musician Iggy Pop
Anthony Quinn 1915
John Mortimer 1923
Andie MacDowell 1958

For more click the link
Today in History April 21

This ‘Today in History April 21’ blog entry is copyright of Jon Bratton 2009

Today in History April 20


Today in History April 20, click the link to see footage
Today is the 110th day . There are 255 days left in the year.


The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon sporting event hosted by the city of Boston, on Patriot‘s Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897





Highlights in US History

1999, two students shot and killed 12 classmates and one teacher at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. They then took their own lives.
1812, 4th President James Madison’s Vice President George Clinton, died in Washington at age 73, becoming the first vice president to die while in office.
1836, the Territory of Wisconsin was established by Congress.
1972, the manned lunar module from Apollo 16 landed on the moon. Astronauts John Young and Charles Duke became the fifth team to step down onto the Moon

Highlights
British and other History



1653 – Oliver Cromwell dissolves the Rump Parliament
1889, Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau, Austria.
1968, Pierre Elliott Trudeau was sworn in as prime minister of Canada.
1968 – British politician Enoch Powell makes his controversial Rivers of Blood speech

Today’s Birthdays

1941 Actor Ryan O’Neal .
1949 Actress Jessica Lange
Actor Clint Howard is 50. Actor Crispin Glover is 45. Country singer Wade Hayes is 40. Actor Shemar Moore is 39. Rock musician Mikey Welsh is 38. Actress Carmen Electra is 37. Actor Joseph Lawrence is 33.
1924 – Leslie Phillips, English actor
1976 – Shay Given, Irish footballer

For more click the link

Today in History April 20

This Today in History April 20 blog entry is copyright Jon Bratton 2009

Sunday 19 April 2009

Today in History April 19

Harry Truman April 19, 1945

Alan Shearer of Newcastle United facing the press on this day in 2009, having lost the match to Spurs...desperate to avoid relegation from the Premiership...very similar ears


Today is April 19, the 109th day. There are 256 days left in the year.

There or thereabouts it's Boston Marathon Day...third Monday in April


Highlight in US Today in History April 19


1775, the American Revolutionary War began with the battles of Lexington and Concord.
1933, the United States went off the gold standard.
1951, Gen. Douglas MacArthur, relieved of his Far East command by President Harry S. Truman, bid farewell in an address to Congress in which he quoted a line from a ballad: "Old soldiers never die; they just fade away."
1993, the 51-day siege at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, ended as fire destroyed the structure after federal agents began smashing their way in; dozens of people, including leader David Koresh, were killed.
2004 A Russian rocket soared into space carrying an American, a Russian and a Dutchman to the international space station on the third manned mission since the halt of the U.S. shuttle


Highlights in British Today in History 19th April


1587 Sir Frances Drake sails into Cadiz Spain and sinks Spanish fleet
1824 Lord Byron died of a fever while helping the Greeks fight the Turks.
2009 Newcastle United lost to Spurs in desperate relegation battle
1956: Prince Rainier marries Grace Kelly. Prince Rainier III of Monaco marries film actress Grace Kelly in a religious ceremony at the Cathedral of Monaco.


Famous Birthdays

Rock musician Alan Price (The Animals) is 67.
Former tennis player Sue Barker is 53.
1935 Dudley Moore (actor)
1903 Eliot Ness untouchable (FBI agent)
1932 - Jayne Mansfield, [Vera Jane Palmer], Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania,
1946 - Tim Curry, born in Cheshire, England, actor, Rocky Horror Show


For more, click the link

Today in History April 19


This Today in History April 19 blog entry is copyright Jon Bratton 2009