239th day of 2009 - 126 remaining
Thursday, August 27, 2009
IT’S OIL DAY
Titusville, PA, August 27, 1859. A shaft was being sunk deep in the ground and the drill had reached 69 feet, 6 inches. W.A. Smith, better known to the drillers and other folk in the small town in Western Pennsylvania as Uncle Billy, saw a dark film floating on the water. The water was below the derrick floor.
Colonel Edwin Drake kept drilling, because what Uncle Billy saw was oil. Soon, the first commercial oil well was pumping out 20 barrels of crude oil a day.
This wasn’t Texas crude. It wasn’t Oklahoma gold. This was Pennsylvania oil, folks; Titusville, PA: home of the first oil well.
Events
August 27
1660 - John Milton’s books were burned in London, because of the author’s attacks on King Charles II.
1858 - The first cabled news dispatch was sent to, and published by, The New York Sun newspaper. The story was about China meeting the peace demands of England and France.
1889 - Boxer Jack Dempsey was defeated for the first time in his career as George LaBlanche used the pivot punch to knock Dempsey into nighty-night land. The punch was later banned from boxing. There are still other punches hanging around that make boxers see stars and hear birdies...
1889 - Charles G. Conn of Elkhart, IN patented the metal clarinet. More than 100 years later the name, Conn, still represents one of the most popular musical instrument names -- especially for clarinets.
1912 - Tarzan was born, or rather, came to life on this day. Tarzan of the Apes was published by writer Edgar Rice Burroughs.
1921 - J.E. Clair, who owned the Acme Packing Company, bought a pro football franchise for Green Bay, WI. Cheeseheads could have been their name, but he decided to pay tribute to those who packed the meat at his processing plant. Hence the name: the Green Bay Packers.
1932 - John M. Miller, performing at the National Air Races in Cleveland, OH, dazzled a large crowd as he did a perfect loop-the-loop in his autogyro.
1938 - Monte Pearson led the New York Yankees to a 13-0, no-hit victory over the Cleveland Indians.
1938 - At a poetry reading by Archibald MacLeish, another poet, in a fit of jealousy, set fire to some papers in order to disrupt the recital. That jealous poet, incidentally, was Robert Frost.
1939 - Singer Allan Jones recorded I’m Falling in Love with Someone on Victor Records.
1970 - The Troubadour in Los Angeles, CA was the venue of singer Elton John’s first concert appearance in America and a record company executive for UNI records (a division of MCA) signed Elton to a recording contract.
1981 - Divers probing the wreckage of the luxury cruise ship Andrea Doria recovered two safes from the purser’s office. The Andrea Doria sank in a collision with the Swedish liner Stockholm (July 25, 1956). What was in the safes? Oh, only about a million dollars in cash and jewelry.
1984 - The Minetta Lane Theatre in Greenwich Village opened. It was the first new off-Broadway theatre to be built in 50 years in New York City. The ribbon cutting was done by "America’s First Lady of the Stage," Helen Hayes.
1984 - A new face joined the group of journalists on CBS-TV’s 60 Minutes. Diane Sawyer became the fifth reporter on the top-rated TV newsmagazine. Mike Wallace, Morley Safer, Harry Reasoner and Ed Bradley welcomed Sawyer to the show.
1986 - Nolan Ryan of the Houston Astros notched career win #250, by leading the Astros to a 7-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
Birthdays
August 27
551 B.C. - Confucius (K’ung Fu-tzu)
philosopher; died in 479 B.C.
1809 - Hannibal Hamlin
15th U.S. Vice President [under Abraham Lincoln: 1861-1865]; died July 4, 1891
1850 - Margaret Wolfe Hungerford
‘The Duchess’: author: Molly Bawn: “Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder.”; died Jan 24, 1897
1865 - Charles Dawes
30th U.S. Vice President [under Calvin Collidge: 1925-1929]; awarded Nobel Peace Prize [1925]; songwriter: Melody in A Major aka It’s All in the Game; died Apr 23, 1951
1871 - Theodore Dreiser
novelist: An American Tragedy, Sister Carrie; died Dec 28, 1945
1908 - Lyndon Baines Johnson
36th U.S. President: succeeded assassinated President John F. Kennedy Nov 22, 1963 [1963-1969]; married to Claudia ‘Lady Bird’ Alta [two daughters]; nickname: LBJ; died Jan 22, 1973
1910 - Mother Teresa (Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu)
Nobel Peace Prize-winner [1979]: missionary, humanitarian; died Sep 5, 1997
1916 - Martha Raye (Margaret Teresa Yvonne Reed)
comedienne, actress: McMillan and Wife, All Star Revue, The Martha Raye Show, The Concorde, Airport ’79, Rhythm on the Range; winner of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award [1969], Presidential Medal of Freedom [1993]; died Oct 19, 1994
1918 - Peanuts (Harry Lee) Lowrey
baseball: Chicago Cubs [World Series: 1945/all-star: 1946], Cincinnati Reds, SL Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies; died July 2, 1986
1927 - Jimmy ‘Cajun’ Newman
singer: Cry, Cry Darling, A Fallen Star, You’re Making a Fool Out of Me, A Lovely Work of Art, Alligator Man, Bayou Talk, DJ for a Day, Artificial Rose
1928 - Mangosuthu Gatsha Buthelezi
Chief Minister of KwaZulu/Natal, South Africa
1929 - Ira Levin
writer: Rosemary’s Baby, The Stepford Wives, The Boys from Brazil, A Kiss Before Dying; died Nov 12, 2007
1931 - Joe (Joseph Robert) Cunningham
baseball: SL Cardinals [all-star: 1959], Chicago White Sox, Washington Senators
1932 - Jim (James Hubert) King
baseball: Chicago Cubs, SL Cardinals, SF Giants, Washington Senators, Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians
1935 - Ernie (Ernest Gilbert) Broglio
baseball: pitcher: SL Cardinals, Chicago Cubs
1937 - Tommy (Adrian) Sands
singer: Teen-Age Crush, Goin’ Steady; actor: Sing Boy Sing, None but the Brave, Babes in Toyland, The Longest Day
1942 - Daryl Dragon
Grammy Award-winning musician, songwriter: duo: The Captain & Tennille: Love Will Keep Us Together [1975], Muskrat Love, Shop Around, Do That To Me One More Time, The Way I Want To Touch You
1943 - Tuesday Weld (Susan Kerr)
actress: The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, Looking for Mr. Goodbar, Author, Author, Falling Down, Rock, Rock, Rock
1944 - Tim Bogert
musician: bass: groups: Showmen, Cactus, Vanilla Fudge: People Get Ready, Ticket to Ride, Bang, Bang, You Keep Me Hangin’ On, Take Me for a Little While
1947 - Barbara Bach (Goldbach)
actress: Caveman, Princess Daisy, Give My Regards to Broadstreet, The Spy Who Loved Me
1949 - Jeff Cook
singer, musician: guitar: group: Alabama: Love in the First Degree, Feels So Right
1950 - Cynthia Potter
champion diver: only woman to have won 28 championship titles
1951 - Buddy (David Gus) Bell
baseball: Cleveland Indians [all-star: 1973], Texas Rangers [all-star: 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984], Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros
1952 - Mike (Michael Lewis) Edwards
baseball: Pittsburgh Pirates, Oakland Athletics
1952 - Paul Reubens aka Pee-wee Herman
comedian, actor: Pee Wee’s Playhouse, Batman Returns, Pee Wee’s Big Top; TV host: You Don’t Know Jack
1953 - Alex Lifeson
musician: guitar: group: Rush: Rivendell, By-Tor and the Snow Dog, Necromancer, The Fountain of Lamneth, Distant Early Warning
1955 - Pat (Dale Patrick) Kelly
baseball: catcher: Toronto Blue Jays
1956 - Glen Matlock
musician: bass: group: The Sex Pistols: Anarchy in the UK
1976 - Sarah Chalke
actress: Roseanne, Ernest Goes to School, Robin of Locksley, Y2K
Chart Toppers
August 27
1946To Each His Own - Eddy Howard
Surrender - Perry Como
They Say It’s Wonderful - Frank Sinatra
New Spanish Two Step - Bob Wills
1954Sh-Boom - The Crew-Cuts
The Little Shoemaker - The Gaylords
Hey There - Rosemary Clooney
I Don’t Hurt Anymore - Hank Snow
1962The Loco-Motion - Little Eva
Things - Bobby Darin
You Don’t Know Me - Ray Charles
Wolverton Mountain - Claude King
1970Make It with You - Bread
Spill the Wine - Eric Burdon & War
War - Edwin Starr
Don’t Keep Me Hangin’ On - Sonny James
1978Grease - Frankie Valli
Miss You - The Rolling Stones
Boogie Oogie Oogie - A Taste of Honey
Talking in Your Sleep - Crystal Gayle
1986Papa Don’t Preach - Madonna
Higher Love - Steve Winwood
Venus - Bananarama
Strong Heart - T.G. Sheppard
Happy Birthday Jeff Cook of Alabama
Guapo Vic.
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