Daily Almanac for Thursday, February 1, 2024

By Marie Reader

English singer Harry Styles is celebrating a birthday today. Born in 1994, he is 30. Here is Styles at Wembley in 2023. By Raph_PH -170623, CC BY 2.0, https commons.wikimedia.org

WIKIPEDIA COMMONS

Harry Edward Styles (born 1 February 1994) is an English singer. His musical career began in 2010 as part of One Direction, a boy band formed on the British music competition series The X Factor after each member of the band had been eliminated from the solo contest. They became one of the best-selling boy groups of all time before going on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Styles released his self-titled debut solo album through Columbia Records in 2017. It debuted at number one in the UK and the US and was one of the world’s top-ten best-selling albums of the year, while its lead single, “Sign of the Times“, topped the UK Singles Chart. Styles’ second album, Fine Line (2019), debuted atop the US Billboard 200 with the biggest ever first-week sales by an English male artist, and was the most recent album to be included in Rolling Stones “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” in 2020. Its fourth single, “Watermelon Sugar“, topped the US Billboard Hot 100. Styles’ third album, Harry’s House (2022), broke several records and was widely acclaimed, receiving the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 2023. Its lead single, “As It Was“, became the number-one song of 2022 globally according to Billboard.

Styles has received various accolades, including six Brit Awards, three Grammy Awards, an Ivor Novello Award, and three American Music Awards. His film roles include Dunkirk (2017), Don’t Worry Darling (2022), and My Policeman (2022). Aside from music and acting, Styles is known for his flamboyant fashion. He is the first man to appear solo on the cover of Vogue.

HIS RELATIONSHIPS

From November 2011 to January 2012, 17-year-old Styles dated television presenter Caroline Flack; their relationship stirred controversy, as she was 14 years older than him. He briefly dated American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift later in 2012, leading to fan and media speculation about them writing songs about each other after their breakup. From 2017 to 2018, Styles was in a relationship with French-American model Camille Rowe, who inspired his 2019 album Fine Line. From January 2021 to November 2022, Styles was in a relationship with actress and director Olivia Wilde. Rolling Stone said in 2022 that “If Styles is already held up to a high standard, his potential partners are held to an unreachable one for some of his fans.”

TODAY’S ALMANAC

February came from the Latin word februa, “to cleanse.” The month was named after the Roman Februalia, which was a month-long festival of purification and atonement. Find fun facts all about the month of February!

Question of the Day

Why do professional interior house painters wear white overalls rather than blue overalls?

By the mid-1800s, the colors were standardized — painters and plasterers wore white overalls, farmers wore blue or brown. Railway workers sported a variety of pinstripes.

Advice of the Day

Don’t light a candle from the fireplace if you hope to grow rich.

Home Hint of the Day

To clean cobwebs from the edges of hard-to-reach ceilings, slip an old nylon stocking over a yardstick and use it to reach the cobwebs.

Word of the Day

Dew

Droplets of water which have condensed on objects, such as plants, which have cooled below the dewpoint temperature of the air.

Puzzle of the Day

If all the letters of the alphabet were asked out to dinner, why could they not all go together?

Because six always go after tea (T).

Born

  • Thomas Cole (painter) – 
  • Victor Herbert (cellist) – 
  • Louis Stephen St. Laurent (Canadian Prime Minister) – 
  • Clark Gable (actor) – 
  • Langston Hughes (poet) – 
  • John Hart (broadcast journalist) – 
  • Don Everly (musician) – 
  • Sherman Hemsley (actor) – 
  • Rick James (singer) – 
  • Princess Stéphanie of Monaco – 
  • Brandon Lee (actor) – 
  • Lisa Marie Presley (daughter of Elvis and Priscilla Presley) – 
  • Lee Thompson Young (actor) – 
  • Harry Styles (singer) – 

Died

  • Mary Shelley (author) – 
  • Buster Keaton (actor) – 
  • Heather O’Rourke (actress) – 
  • Don Cornelius (creator of Soul Train) – 
  • Edward “Ed” Koch (former mayor of New York City) – 

Events

  • Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish sailor, was found on an island where he had been stranded for over 4 years. His experience was the basis for Daniel DeFoe’s novel, Robinson Crusoe– 
  • First U.S. dental dispensary opened, New York City– 
  • The first dental college was incorporated, Baltimore, Maryland– 
  • Texas seceded from the Union– 
  • Battle Hymn of the Republic, a poem written by Julia Ward Howe, was published in Atlantic Monthly– 
  • “Edition One” of the Oxford English Dictionary was published– 
  • First automobile insurance policy issued– 
  • First U.S. Marine Division activated– 
  • Gordon Matthews received a patent for “voice message exchange” system (better known as voicemail)– 
  • Space shuttle Columbia broke apart during re-entry, killing all seven astronauts onboard – 
  • New England Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady became the youngest quarterback to lead his team to two Super Bowl victories– 
  • During Super Bowl XLIII, Pittsburgh Steeler James Harrison intercepted a pass on the goal line and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown. It was the longest play in Super Bowl history– 

Weather

  • Forty-five degrees below zero F in Pittsburg, New Hampshire– 
  • The greatest ice storm of record in the United States produced a layer of ice up to four inches thick from Texas to Pennsylvania, causing 25 deaths, 500 serious injuries, and $100 million worth of damage. Communications and utilities were interrupted for a week to ten days.– 
  • -50 degrees F, Gavilan, New Mexico– 
  • A high temperature of 50 degrees F was reported in Burlington, Vermont– 

 

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