312th day of 2009 - 53 remaining
Sunday, November 8, 2009
X-RAY DAY
Superman could see through walls with his X-ray vision; and so could Ray Milland in his title role, X: The Man with X-Ray Eyes. He played an unstable scientist.
Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen (Röntgen), a scientist, but hardly unstable, took the first X-ray pictures on this day in 1895. It wasn’t his eyes he was using, but his brain. He had been experimenting with electricity but failed to turn off the machine. The device he was working with overheated and emitted rays. After a number of hours of head-scratching, writing equations and much hypothesis, Roentgen came upon the scientific principle that would allow him to take X-ray pictures. Other X-rays had been observed before this; but Roentgen was the only one to have performed repeated experiments -- proving that his machine worked.
Roentgen may have been a clever scientist; but he had no business savvy. He never patented his X-ray machine and never received any money for it.
Tell that to your dentist or doctor when you get the bill for your X-rays.
Events
November 8
1793 - The Louvre Museum opened in Paris.
1864 - Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, was reelected this day. He defeated Democrat George B. McClellan and carried all but three states, getting 212 of 233 electoral votes with 55 percent of the popular vote and 212 of 233 electoral votes. “I earnestly believe that the consequences of this day’s work will be to the lasting advantage, if not the very salvation, of the country,” Lincoln told supporters.
1880 - Sarah Bernhardt made her American stage debut. Bernhardt appeared in Adrienne Lecouvreur in New York City.
1889 - The Treasure State or Montana entered the United States of America as number 41. And, it turned out to be quite a treasure. Coal, copper, lead, zinc and silver have all been mined in Montana. Helena is the capital of Montana; the western meadowlark is the state bird and the bitterroot is the state flower. Of course, this has nothing to do with some of Montana’s bitter history, its most notorious event: The Battle of Little Big Horn (Custer’s Last Stand).
1892 - In a rerun of the 1888 U.S. election, it was Harrison against Cleveland. This time, however, former President Grover Cleveland defeated incumbent President Benjamin Harrison, becoming the first -- and only -- chief executive to win non-consecutive terms in the White House. And, Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th Presidents of the United States.
1904 - Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, who had succeeded the assassinated William McKinley, was elected to a term in his own right this day. He defeated Democrat Alton B. Parker, 7,628,461 votes to 5,084,223 and 336 Electoral College votes to 140. Roosevelt had become know as Teddy, a name he was not crazy about, but which he kept for public purposes.
1910 - William H. Frost of Spokane, Washington patented the insect exterminator (zzzzk! zzzzk!) As you can see (zzzzzk!) by the purple light and snapping (zzzzk!) sound, the unit here (zzzk!) is working (zzzzk!) just swell. Someday, we’ll get rid of (zzzk!) all these bugs.
1932 - The team of Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II debuted with their show, Music in the Air. The Broadway production continued for 342 performances.
1932 - New York Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt defeated incumbent President Herbert Hoover to become the 32nd President of the United States. Roosevelt captured 22,821,857 votes to incumbent President Hoover’s 15,761,841 and 472 Electoral College votes to 59.
1939 - This day marked Frank Sinatra’s last recording session with the Harry James Band. Sides recorded were Every Day of My Life and Ciribiribin.
1939 - Life With Father premiered on Broadway in New York City. Eight years later, the show broke the existing record for longest-running stage production.
1954 - The American League approved the transfer of the Philadelphia Athletics baseball team to Kansas City, MO. Charles O. Finley of Chicago would later tire of Kansas City and move the A’s to Oakland, California.
1959 - The ‘Big E’, Elgin Baylor of the Minneapolis Lakers, scored 64 points and set a National Basketball Association scoring mark. The Lakers beat Boston 136-115.
1960 - Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy defeated Vice President Richard M. Nixon in the presidential election. The Republican insider was Richard Nixon of California, relatively young but experienced as the nation's vice-president for eight years under Dwight Eisenhower. The Democratic newcomer was John F. Kennedy, senator from Massachusetts, who at the age of 43 was the youngest person elected president. Kennedy, the 35th U.S. President, was also the first Roman Catholic to be elected president.
1964 - Judy Garland and her daughter, Liza Minnelli, appeared together at the London Palladium. The program was shown on U.S. TV; and the LP, Live at the London Palladium became a classic on Capitol Records.
1965 - “Like sands through the hourglass, these are the days of our lives...” The voice of McDonald Carey introduced the popular soap opera, Days of Our Lives, which debuted on NBC-TV this day.
1967 - The first solo movie by a Beatle opened in the U.S. It was John Lennon’s How I Won the War.
1975 - Elton John’s album, Rock of the Westies, debuted at #1 on US album charts. It was his second album to jump on the chart at number one. "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy had debuted at #1 six months earlier. Tracks on Rock of the Westies: Medley (Yell Help, Wednesday Night, Ugly), Dan Dare (Pilot of the Future), Island Girl, Grow Some Funk Of Your Own, I Feel Like a Bullet (In the Gun of Robert Ford), Street Kids, Hard Luck Story, Feed Me, Billy Bones and the White Bird.
1979 - A new late-night news program debuted on ABC-TV. The program, The Iran Crisis: America Held Hostage, was expected to be on the schedule only temporarily, according to ABC News chief Roone Arledge. Instead, the program, with Ted Koppel hosting, evolved into Nightline in March of 1980.
1980 - Bruce Springsteen’s album, The River, hit #1 for four weeks in the U.S. Tracks on the album: The Ties that Bind, Sherry Darling, Jackson Cage, Two Hearts, Independence Day, Hungry Heart, Out in the Street, Crush on You, You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch), I Wanna Marry You, The River, Point Blank, Cadillac Ranch, I’m a Rocker, Fade Away, Stolen Car, Ramrod, The Price You Pay, Drive All Night, Wreck on the Highway.
1984 - The first attempt to rescue two crippled satellites took place as the space shuttle Discovery lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (The mission was accomplished on November 14th.)
1986 - This day saw the biggest blowout of the year happen. Oklahoma defeated Missouri, 77-0, in a college football game.
1988 - Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush and running-mate Indiana Senator Dan Quayle were elected President and Vice-President of the United States. They defeated Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis and his running-mate, Texas Senator Lloyd Bentsen. Bush was inaugurated the 41st president of the United States on January 20, 1989. He was the first incumbent vice president to win election since Martin Van Buren won in 1836.
1993 - Microsoft Windows for Workgroups 3.11 was released. The operating system boasted improved support for NetWare and Windows NT, and slipped in numerous architectural changes to improve performance and stability (changes that later found their way into Windows 95).
1995 - Michael Jackson merged his ATV Music Publishing Company, and its catalog of Beatles songs, with Sony Music Publishing, creating Sony/ATV Music Publishing. Jackson retained 50% ownership of the new company and received at some $110 million dollars from Sony in the deal.
1996 - These movies had U.S. debuts: Mad Dog Time, with Richard Dreyfuss, Jeff Goldblum, Diane Lane and Ellen Barkin; Ransom, starring Mel Gibson, Rene Russo, Gary Sinise and Delroy Lindo.
1997 - The mighty Yangtze River (China’s largest) was successfully diverted in preparation for the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. As engineers completed the dumping of 60,000 cubic meters (78,000 cubic yards) of rockfill and cement into the river, its flow was diverted through a canal. Boats on the river sounded horns and construction workers sent flares into the sky. Jiang Zemin, President of the People’s Republic of China, told the assembled crowd, “The damming of the Yangtze River is of great political and economic significance, and it proves to the whole world the Chinese people’s capability of building the world’s first-rate hydroelectric project.” The dam project’s target date for completion is 2009.
Birthdays
November 8
1656 - Edmund Halley
astronomer: first to observe the great comet of 1682 [known to us as Halley’s Comet]; died Jan 14, 1742
1845 - Edward Douglass White
Justice of U.S. Supreme Court [1894-1910], 9th Chief Justice [1910-1921]; died May 19, 1921
1847 - Bram (Abraham) Stoker
author: Dracula; died Apr 20, 1912
1900 - Margaret Mitchell
Pulitzer Prize-winning author: Gone with the Wind [1937]; died Aug 16, 1949
1913 - June Havoc
actress: Brewster’s Millions, Gentlemen’s Agreement, Sing Your Worries Away, Willy
1914 - Norman Lloyd
actor: St. Elsewhere, Journey of Honor, Jaws of Satan, Saboteur, The Southerner
1920 - Esther Rolle
Academy Award-winning actress: Summer of My German Soldier [10/30/78]; Good Times, Maude, Scarlett, Driving Miss Daisy, A Raisin in the Sun, The Mighty Quinn; died Nov 17, 1998
1921 - Gene Saks
actor: A Fine Romance, Prisoner of Second Avenue, A Thousand Clowns; director: Barefoot in the Park, Mame, The Odd Couple, Cactus Flower
1921 - Walter Mirisch
Academy Award-winning producer: The Apartment [1960]
1922 - Christiaan Barnard
surgeon, medical pioneer: performed first known heart transplant [1967]; author: Good Life, Good Death: A Doctor’s Case for Euthanasia and Suicide; died Sep 2, 2001
1924 - Joe Flynn
actor: The Tim Conway Show, McHale’s Navy, The Joey Bishop Show, The George Gobel Show, The Bob Newhart Show, The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet, Superdad, Million Dollar Duck, The Barefoot Executive, The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes; died July 19, 1974
1927 - Patti Page (Clara Ann Fowler)
singer: Tennessee Waltz, Old Cape Cod, I Went to Your Wedding, Doggie in the Window, Allegheny Moon, Steam Heat, Cross over the Bridge; in film: Elmer Gantry
1927 - Chris Connor
singer: I Miss You So, Trust in Me
1931 - Morley Safer
TV correspondent: CBS News: 60 Minutes
1935 - Alain Delon
actor: Nouvelle Vague, The Concorde: Airport ’79, Gypsy, Red Sun, Is Paris Burning?, Honor Among Thieves, Rocco and His Brothers, Sois Belle et Tais-Toi
1941 - Rodney Slater
musician: saxophone, trumpet: group: The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band: I’m the Urban Spaceman, Look at Me I’m Wonderful, Bad Blood, Straight from My Heart
1942 - Angel Cordero Jr.
National Horse Racing Hall of Famer: Jockey of the Year [1982, 1983]; winner of Breeder’s Cup [1985 Distaff, 1988 Juvenile Fillies, 1988 & 1989 Sprint), Kentucky Derby [1974, 1985], Preakness [1976, 1980, 1984], Belmont [1976]
1944 - Bonnie Bramlett
songwriter, singer: group: Delaney and Bonnie and Friends: Never Ending Song of Love, Only You Know and I Know
1944 - Ed Kranepool
baseball: NY Mets [only player to have played in each of Mets’ first 17 seasons; holds Mets’ record for most games played: 1853]
1946 - Roy Wood (Ulysses Adrian Wood)
musician, singer, songwriter: formed Electric Light Orchestra: 10538 Overture; group: Wizzard: See My Baby Jive, Angel Fingers, Dear Elaine, Forever
1947 - Minnie (Julia) Riperton
singer: Lovin’ You; LP: Come to My Garden, Adventure in Paradise; group: Wonderlove; died July 12, 1979
1949 - Alan Berger
musician: bass: group: Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes: I Don’t Wanna Go Home, The Fever, This Time It’s for Real, Love on the Wrong Side of Town, When You Dance, Hearts of Stone
1949 - Bonnie Raitt
Grammy Award-winning singer [1990]: Runaway, The Boy Can’t Help It, Something to Talk About, Sweet Forgiveness; actress: Urban Cowboy; musician: guitar; daughter of actor, John Raitt
1950 - Charles ‘Boobie’ Clark
football: Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Oilers; died Oct 25, 1988
1950 - Mary Hart
TV host: Entertainment Tonight
1952 - Christie Hefner
magazine executive: Playboy; daughter of magazine’s founder Hugh Hefner
1952 - Alfre Woodard
Emmy Award-winning actress: Hill Street Blues: Alice in Wonderland [1983-1984]; guest performance: L.A. Law [1986-1987]; St. Elsewhere, Tucker’s Witch, Cross Creek, Miss Firecracker, Grand Canyon, Passion Fish, Bopha, Heart and Souls
1954 - Ricki Lee Jones
singer: Chuck E.’s in Love, On Saturday Afternoons in 1963
1958 - Terry Lee Miall
musician: drums: group: Adam & The Ants: Goody Two-Shoes, Apollo Nine
1961 - Leif Garrett
actor: Spirit of ’76, Thunder Alley, Kid Vengeance, Three for the Road; singer: I Was Made for Dancin’
1967 - Courtney Thorne-Smith
actress: Melrose Place, Fast Times, Day by Day, Breach of Conduct, Side Out, Welcome to 18, Summer School, Revenge of the Nerds 2: Nerds in Paradise, Lucas
1968 - Parker Posey
actress: Party Girl, The Daytrippers, You’ve Got Mail, Scream 3, Best in Show
1969 - Roxana Zal
Emmy Award-winning actress: Something about Amelia [1984]; Shattered Spirits, Under the Boardwalk, Goodbye, Miss 4th of July, River’s Edge, Testament, Table for Five
1972 - Gretchen Mol
actress: The Magnificent Ambersons, Donnie Brasco, Subway Stories: Tales from the Underground, Rounders, Finding Graceland, The Thirteenth Floor
1975 - Tara Reid
actress: The Big Lebowski, American Pie series, Body Shots, Dr. T & the Women, Josie and the *****cats
Chart Toppers
November 8
1947Near You - The Francis Craig Orchestra (vocal: Bob Lamm)
You Do - Dinah Shore
And Mimi - Art Lund
I’ll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms) - Eddy Arnold
1955Autumn Leaves - Roger Williams
Moments to Remember - The Four Lads
I Hear You Knocking - Gale Storm
That Do Make It Nice - Eddy Arnold
1963Sugar Shack - Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs
Deep Purple - Nino Tempo & April Stevens
Washington Square - The Village Stompers
Love’s Gonna Live Here - Buck Owens
1971Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves - Cher
Theme from Shaft - Isaac Hayes
Imagine - John Lennon Plastic Ono Band
Here Comes Honey Again - Sonny James
1979Pop Muzik - M
Heartache Tonight - Eagles
Dim All the Lights - Donna Summer
You Decorated My Life - Kenny Rogers
1987I Think We’re Alone Now - Tiffany
Causing a Commotion - Madonna
Mony Mony "Live" - Billy Idol
Am I Blue - George Strait
Chart Topper November 8th, 1971...Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves-Cher
Guapo Vic.
WELCOME TOO ABADSS 
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