308th day of 2009 - 57 remaining
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
20TH CENTURY REPUBLICAN FOR PRESIDENT DAY
November 4th was very lucky for Republican U.S. Presidential candidates during most of the 20th century. The lucky streak began back in 1924 when Calvin Coolidge was elected to the top office of the United States. Calvin Coolidge was already in the office of president having to complete Warren G. Harding’s term (Harding died in office). This time, and on this day, he was voted into office by the people of the United States. He served another four years.
History repeated itself in 1952. General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in World War II, was running against Democrat Adlai Stevenson. Once again, Election Day was on November 4, and Ike won - the first Republican presidential victory in 24 years. Eisenhower became the 34th U.S. President.
1980 was a good year for Republicans all around. Most of those Republicans running for seats in the U.S. Senate were victors, winning a majority of the seats. And Ronald Reagan won the race for President against the incumbent, Jimmy Carter.
Before 1924, it was a different story: Democrat Grover Cleveland made it to the top in 1884; and Democrat James Buchanan was elected President of the U.S. on November 4, 1856.
And the Republican lucky streak did not continue into this century. It ended on November 4, 2008 in the first presidential election held on November 4 in the 21st century, when Democrat Barack Obama was elected President of the United States of America.
We’re taking bets on the next November 4 election in 2036.
Events
November 4
1842 - Abe Lincoln, 33, married Mary Todd, 23, in Springfield, IL.
1846 - An artificial leg was patented by B.F. Palmer of Meredith, NH who “got a leg up” on all other competition, according to the U.S. Patent office.
1873 - Dr. John B. Beers of San Francisco, CA patented a gold crown for teeth.
1879 - James J. Ritty of Dayton, OH patented the cash register. Buy something today and try to remember how a cash register sounded before the age of computers.
1922 - King Tutankhamen’s tomb was discovered in Egypt -- in the Valley of the Kings. The tomb was hidden under a house that had been erected for workers excavating the tomb of Ramesses IV. King Tut came into power at the tender age of nine. He was pharaoh of ancient Egypt until his death at the ripe old age of 18 or 19 (in 1352 BC).
1938 - You’re a Sweet Little Headache, from the movie Paris Honeymoon, was recorded by Bing Crosby -- on Decca.
1948 - T.S. Eliot (Thomas Stearns Eliot) won the Nobel Prize in Literature “for his outstanding, pioneer contribution to present-day poetry.”
1949 - One Man’s Family debuted on NBC-TV. The show continued for three seasons. It also enjoyed one of the longest runs of any program on radio (1933-1959).
1952 - America said, “I Like Ike”. The Dwight D. Eisenhower/Richard M. Nixon ticket won a sweeping (55%-44%) victory over Democrat Adlai E. Stevenson and running-mate John J. Sparkman. Eisenhower was the 34th president of the U.S.
1954 - Florence Henderson, who was all of 20 years old, joined with Ezio Pinza and Walter Slezak in Fanny. The show lit up Broadway 888 times.
1958 - Angelo Roncalli became Pope John XXIII. He was expected by many to be a caretaker and transitional pope, but he astonished the church and the world with his energy and reforming spirit. Pope John XXIII’s convening of the Second Vatican Council and his changing of the church’s attitudes toward those who were not Catholic were milestones.
1962 - Bob Dylan gave his first major concert outside of Greenwich Village. The Carnegie Hall solo appearance was not well attended.
1963 - The Beatles played a Royal Command Performance as part of an evening of entertainment for Queen Elizabeth at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London. David Frost was the emcee.
1973 - Golfing great Ben Crenshaw won his first tournament on the pro tour by capturing the Texas Open.
1973 - The Chicago Bears set a National Football League record by holding the Green Bay Packers to a minus 12 yards passing.
1979 - 3,000 militants overran the U.S. Embassy in Teheran, Iran. They captured 54 embassy staff members. Religious extremist and Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeini praised their actions. The militants demanded that the Shah of Iran, who had ruled for decades and was now seeking medical treatment in the West, be turned over to them for trial; that the United States apologize for crimes against the Iranian people; and that the Shah’s assets be given to them. The Iran(ian) Hostage Crisis, as it came to be known, lasted 444 days, ending on President Ronald Reagan’s inauguration day, Jan. 20, 1981.
1980 - Republican Ronald Reagan won the White House defeating President Jimmy Carter. Reagan was the 40th President of the U.S., winning by a landslide (525 electoral votes to Carter’s 40).
1980 - Sadaharu Oh of the Tokyo Yomiuri Giants retired from professional baseball. The first baseman hit a record 868 home runs in his 22-year playing career.
1984 - The Artist Formerly Known as Prince kicked off his fall tour in Detroit. He broke the record for sold-out performances at the 20,000-seat Joe Louis Arena. The previous record-holder was The Artist Still Known as Neil Diamond (in 1983).
1991 - The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum was dedicated by five American presidents (the first gathering of five U.S. presidents). Reagan, President George Bush, and former presidents Jimmy Carter, Gerald R. Ford and Richard M. Nixon attended the ceremonies in Simi Valley, California.
1995 - Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, 73, was gunned down as he was about to enter his car after speaking at a pro-peace rally in Tel Aviv, Israel. Israeli law student Yigal Amir, confessed to killing Rabin because he opposed Rabin’s ongoing efforts to achieve a peaceful settlement with the Palestinians, saying Rabin wanted to “to give our country to the Arabs.”
Birthdays
November 4
1862 - Eden Phillpotts
author: Black, White and Brindled, A Deal With the Devil, The Red Redmaynes, Saurus; died Dec 29, 1960
1879 - Will (William Penn Adair) Rogers
entertainer: The Wall Street Girl, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court; humorist: “I never met a man I didn’t like.”; mayor: Beverly Hills; cowboy; subject of Broadway show: Will Rogers Follies; killed in plane crash Aug 15, 1935
1912 - Pauline Trigere
fashion designer: produced first reversible coat; Costume Designer: Breakfast at Tiffany’s
1913 - Gig Young (Byron Elsworth Barr)
Academy Award-winning actor: They Shoot Horses Don’t They? [1969]; Teacher’s Pet, Young at Heart, Desperate Hours, The Rogues; TV host/narrator: Warner Brothers Presents; died Oct 19, 1978
1916 - Walter Cronkite
Emmy Award-winning news anchor & news correspondent: CBS Evening News; narrator, host: The 20th Century, The 21st Century, The Facts We Face, Open Hearing, Man of the Week, It’s News to Me, Air Power; received Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Governor’s Award [1979]; died Jul 17, 2009
1917 - Virginia (Margaret Cynthia) Field
actress: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, Dance, Girl, Dance, Waterloo Bridge; died Jan 2, 1992
1918 - Art (William Matthew) Carney
Academy Award-winning actor: Harry and Tonto [1974]; Last Action Hero, Izzy and Moe, House Calls, Roadie, Take this Job and Shove It, Terrible Joe Moran; Emmy Award-winner: The Jackie Gleason Show: The Honeymooners [1954, 1955, 1966-1967, 1967-1968], The Art Carney Special [1959-1960]; died Nov 9, 2003
1918 - Cameron Mitchell (Mitzell)
actor: Trapped Alive, Hollywood Cop, Swift Justice, Blood and Black Lace, How to Marry a Millionaire, Desiree, The Tall Men, Carousel, Homecoming, The High Chaparral, Swiss Family Robinson; died July 6, 1994
1919 - Martin (Henry) Balsam
Academy Award-winning actor: A Thousand Clowns [1965]; All the President’s Men, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, The Carpetbaggers, Death Wish 3, Delta Force, The Goodbye People, Harlow, Little Big Man, Marjorie Morningstar, Murder on the Orient Express, Psycho, Tora! Tora! Tora!, Twelve Angry Men, All in the Family; died Feb 13, 1996
1923 - Alfred Heineken
beer mogul: Heineken Brewery; died Jan 3, 2002
1930 - **** (Richard Morrow) Groat
baseball: shortstop: Pittsburgh Pirates: [all-star: 1959, 1960, 1962/NL Batting Champ, Baseball Writers’ Award, Valuable Player, World Series: 1960]; SL Cardinals [all-star: 1963, 1964/World Series: 1964], Philadelphia Phillies, SF Giants; basketball: Ft. Wayne Pistons; sportscaster: WTAE, Pittsburgh: Panthers basketball [color]
1930 - Kate Reid
actress: Death of a Salesman, The Andromeda Strain, Atlantic City, Death Ship, Gavilan, Dallas; died Mar 27, 1993
1930 - Doris Roberts
Emmy Award-winning actress: St. Elsewhere [1983], Everybody Loves Raymond [2001, 2002, 2003, 2005]; Remington Steele, Maggie, Angie, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Ordinary Heroes, Used People
1933 - Tito (John Patsy) Francona
baseball: Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians [all-star: 1961], SL Cardinals, Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers
1937 - Loretta Swit
Emmy Award-winning actress: M*A*S*H [1979-80, 1981-82]; TV host/narrator: Those Incredible Animals
1938 - Harry Elston
musician: group: Friends of Distinction: Grazing in the Grass
1940 - Delbert McClinton
songwriter, singer: I Received a Letter [w/Glen Clark], Sandy Beaches; musician: harmonica: Hey Baby [w/singer, Bruce Channel]; solo: Giving It Up for Your Love
1941 - Walter Rock
football: Washington Redskins tackle: Super Bowl VII
1946 - Robert Mapplethorpe
photographer: known for photographs of sadomasochistic rituals, nudes, portraits, still lifes; work on exhibit: Art Institute of Chicago, New York’s Metropolitan Museum and Museum of Modern Art, Paris’ Pompidou Center, London’s Victoria and Albert Museum
1947 - Mike Smith
musician: saxophone: groups: Judas Jump; Amen Corner: Gin House Blues, Bend Me Shape Me, [If Paradise Is] Half as Nice
1950 - Markie Post
actress: Night Court, Hearts Afire, Fall Guy, The Gangster Chronicles
1961 - Ralph Macchio
actor: Eight is Enough, Karate Kid series, Distant Thunder, My Cousin Vinny
1966 - Kool Rock-Ski (Damon Wimbley)
rapper: group: Fat Boys
1969 - Matthew McConaughey
actor: Angels in the Outfield, Amistad, The Newton Boys, U-571
Chart Toppers
November 4
1951Because of You - Tony Bennett
I Get Ideas - Tony Martin
Down Yonder - Del Wood
Slow Poke - Pee Wee King
1959Mack the Knife - Bobby Darin
Mr. Blue - The Fleetwoods
Put Your Head on My Shoulder - Paul Anka
The Three Bells - The Browns
1967To Sir with Love - Lulu
Soul Man - Sam & Dave
It Must Be Him - Vikki Carr
You Mean the World to Me - David Houston
1975Island Girl - Elton John
Lyin’ Eyes - The Eagles
They Just Can’t Stop It (Games People Play) - Spinners
(Turn Out the Lights And) Love Me Tonight - Don Williams
1983All Night Long (All Night) - Lionel Richie
One Thing Leads to Another - The Fixx
Telefone (Long Distance Love Affair) - Sheena Easton
Islands in the Stream - Kenny Rogers with Dolly Parton
1991Romantic - Karyn White
Cream - Prince & The N.P.G.
Can’t Stop This Thing We Started - Bryan Adams
Anymore - Travis Tritt
Chart TopperNovember 4th, 1967...Soul Man-Sam & Dave