FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Space Shuttle Discovery (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-103) is one of the orbiters from NASA‘s Space Shuttle program and the third of five fully operational orbiters to be built. Its first mission, STS-41-D, flew from August 30 to September 5, 1984. Over 27 years of service it launched and landed 39 times, aggregating […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS John Barton Gruelle (December 24, 1880 – January 9, 1938) was an American artist, political cartoonist, children’s book and comics author, illustrator, and storyteller. He is best known as the creator of Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy dolls and as the author/illustrator of dozens of […]

Raymond Allen Liotta (Italian: [liˈɔtta]; December 18, 1954 – May 26, 2022) was an American actor and producer. His best-known roles include Shoeless Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams (1989), Henry Hill in Goodfellas (1990) and Tommy Vercetti in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002). His other roles included Ray Sinclair in Something Wild (1986), for which he received […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS David Cunningham Garroway (July 13, 1913 – July 21, 1982) was an American television personality. He was the founding host and anchor of NBC‘s Today from 1952 to 1961. His easygoing and relaxing style belied a lifelong battle with depression. Garroway has been honored for his contributions to radio […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Mariano Rivera (born November 29, 1969) is a Panamanian-American former professional baseball pitcher who played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, from 1995 to 2013. Nicknamed “Mo” and “Sandman“, he spent most of his career as a relief pitcher and served as the Yankees’ closer for 17 seasons. A thirteen-time All-Star and five-time World […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Robert Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman; May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career spanning more than 60 years. Much of his most celebrated work […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS James Hugh Calum Laurie CBE (/ˈlɒri/; born 11 June 1959) is an English actor and comedian, best known for starring on the medical drama series House (2004–2012). He has received two Golden Globe Awards and many other accolades for portraying Dr. Gregory House on the Fox television show. He was listed in the 2011 Guinness World Records as […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Richard Marvin HansenCCOBC (born August 26, 1957) is a Canadian track and field athlete (Paralympic Games), activist, and philanthropist for people with disabilities. Following a pickup truck accident at the age of 15, Hansen sustained a spinal cord injury and became a person with paraplegia. […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Cyrus Hall McCormick (February 15, 1809 – May 13, 1884) was an American inventor and businessman who founded the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, which later became part of the International Harvester Company in 1902. Originally from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, he and many members […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Jacqueline Cochran (May 11, 1906 – August 9, 1980) was an American pilot and business executive. She pioneered women’s aviation as one of the most prominent racing pilots of her generation. She set numerous records and was the first woman to break the sound […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Ellen Church (September 22, 1904 – August 22, 1965) was the first female flight attendant. A trained nurse and pilot, Church wanted to pilot commercial aircraft, but those jobs were not open to women. Still wanting to fly, Church successfully worked to convince Boeing Air Transport that […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Freddie Joe Ward (December 30, 1942 – May 8, 2022) was an American actor and producer. Starting with a role in an Italian television movie in 1973, he long took parts in such diverse films as Escape from Alcatraz, Southern Comfort, The Right Stuff, Timerider: The Adventure […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Seinfeld (/ˈsaɪnfɛld/; SYNE-feld) is an American sitcom television series created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as a fictionalized version of himself and focuses on his personal life with three of his friends: […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Justin Gatlin (born February 10, 1982) is a retired American sprinter who competed in the 60 metres, 100 metres and 200 metres. He is the 2004 Olympic Champion in the 100 metres, the 2005 and 2017 World Champion in the 100 metres, the 2005 World Champion in the 200 metres, and the 2019 World Champion in the 4 […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Thailand[a] (/ˈtaɪlænd, ˈtaɪlənd/ TY-land, TY-lənd), historically known as Siam (/saɪˈæm, ˈsaɪæm/) and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia spanning 513,120 square kilometres (198,120 sq mi), with a population of almost 70 million. It is bordered to the north by Myanmar and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to […]

Popular country star Mickey Gilley, whose Texas honky-tonk, Gilley’s, inspired the 1980 movie “Urban Cowboy” and a nationwide wave of Western-themed nightspots, died over the weekend at age 86. His death was announced by Pasadena, Texas Mayor Jeff Wagner. The cousin of pianist Carl McVoy, […]

TODAY’S ALMANAC Question of the Day Is there a best feeding time for fish, and is this also the best time to see deer, rabbits, and other animals?All fish in all waters — salt or fresh — feed most heavily when the ocean tides are restless, […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and popular music‘s recognition as an art form. Rooted in skiffle, beat and 1950s rock ‘n’ roll, their sound […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Cinco de Mayo (pronounced [ˈsiŋko̞ ðe̞ ˈma̠ʝo̞] in Mexico, Spanish for “Fifth of May”) is a yearly celebration held on May 5, which commemorates the anniversary of Mexico’s victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza. The victory of a smaller, poorly equipped Mexican force […]