UNITED NATIONS DAY Today is noted as United Nations Day to mark the anniversary of the United Nations charter, which went into effect on October 24, 1945. Organizations and schoolchildren throughout the world mark this day with meetings, discussions, and exhibits on the achievements and […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Peter Thomas Scolari (September 12, 1955 – October 22, 2021) was an American actor, best known for his roles as Michael Harris on Newhart (1984–1990) and Henry Desmond in Bosom Buddies (1980–1982). Scolari received three Emmy nominations for his work on Newhart and won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The contraction of cardiac muscle (heart muscle) in all animals is initiated by electrical impulses known as action potentials. The rate at which these impulses fire controls the rate of cardiac contraction, that is, the heart rate. The cells that create these rhythmic impulses, setting the pace for blood pumping, are called pacemaker cells, and they directly control […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (/ˈsɑːrtrə/, US also /ˈsɑːrt/; French: [saʁtʁ]; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic. He was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism and phenomenology, and one of the leading figures in 20th-century French philosophy and Marxism. His work has also influenced sociology, critical […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the American Graphophone Company, the successor to the Volta Graphophone Company. Columbia is the oldest […]

ON THIS DATE IN 1968, FORMER FIRST, LADY JACQUELINE KENNEDY MARRIED GREEK SHIPPING MAGNATE, ARISTOTLE ONASSIS. THE MARRIAGE CAUSED A CONTROVERSY AND UPSET THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. ONASSIS WAS KNOWN TO BE A PLAYBOY, HAVING SEVERAL AFFAIRS WITH SEVERAL WOMEN, INCLUDING OPERA SINGER MARIA CALLAS, FROM […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Colin Luther Powell (/ˈkoʊlɪn/ KOHL-in; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, diplomat, statesman, and four-star general who served as the 65th United States secretary of state from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African-American secretary of state. Prior to the election of Barack Obama as president in 2008, […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team’s home venue has been Tropicana Field. Following nearly three decades of unsuccessfully trying to gain an expansion franchise or […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Thelma Lou, or Thel by boyfriend Barney Fife, is a character on the American television sitcom The Andy Griffith Show (1960-1968). The character appeared in 26 episodes, starting with the first-season episode, “Cyrano Andy”.[1] Thelma Lou was portrayed by Betty Lynn. Thelma Lou lives in the community of Mayberry, North Carolina. She […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The Mason–Dixon line, also called the Mason and Dixon line or Mason’s and Dixon’s line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia (part of Virginia until 1863). Historically, it came to be seen as demarcating the North from the South in the U.S. It was surveyed between 1763 and […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS William “Buck” Ewing (October 17, 1859 – October 20, 1906) was an American Major League Baseball player and manager. Renowned for his offensive and defensive skills, he was the first 19th-century catcher elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. TODAY’S ALMANAC Every Year ST. IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH 1660s 1662: […]

NOAH WEBSTER’S BIRTHDAY Noah Webster, America’s first lexicographer, was born on October 16, 1758. We remember Webster as the author of the first American dictionary, but he was also the first authority to advocate American English. His American Spelling Book, published in 1783 (later known […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The Statue of Liberty, officially known as Liberty Enlightening the World (French: La Liberté éclairant le monde), is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor within New York City, in the United States. The copper statue, a gift from the people of France to the people of the United States, was designed […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The United States Air Force Memorial honors the service of the personnel of the United States Air Force and its heritage organizations. The Memorial is located in Arlington County, Virginia, on the former grounds of the Navy Annex near The Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery. The Memorial is southwest of […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The United States Navy Memorial is a memorial in Washington, D.C. honoring those who have served or are currently serving in the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and the Merchant Marine. It lies on Pennsylvania Avenue NW between 7th Street Northwest and 9th Street Northwest, adjacent to the Archives station of the Washington Metro and the National Archives building. The National Park Service, […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS An iron lung, also known as a tank ventilator or Drinker tank, is a type of negative pressure ventilator (NPV); a mechanical respirator which encloses most of a person’s body, and varies the air pressure in the enclosed space, to stimulate breathing. It assists breathing when muscle control is lost, or the work of breathing […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Saturday Night Live (also known as SNL) is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol. Michaels currently serves as the program’s showrunner. The show premiere was hosted by George Carlin on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title NBC’s Saturday Night. The […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS The Patriots hold the records for most Super Bowl wins (6, tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers), appearances (11), and losses (5, tied with the Denver Broncos). Generally unsuccessful prior to the 21st century, the team enjoyed a period of dominance under head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady from 2001 […]

LEIF ERIKSSON DAY In A.D. 1000, long before Columbus, Eriksson led a Viking voyage westward from Greenland and reached the coast of North America, in what is now Newfoundland. He named his discovery Vinland. Although Eriksson is not officially credited with the European discovery of […]

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS Walter Francis O’Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979. In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he brought major league baseball to the West Coast, moving the […]