Wednesday, May 7, 2008

May Eighth

Were you all wondering about the major significance of May 8th? I thought you might be. So, here I am, sharing all this wonderful (useless bar-trivia) knowledge with you all.

That's what kind of friend I am.

On May 8th, over the recorded history of time (listed on Wikipedia) the following events took place ...


589 - Reccared summons the Third Council of Toledo
1450 - Jack Cade's Rebellion: Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI.
1541 - Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River and names it Río de Espíritu Santo.
1794 - Branded a traitor during the Reign of Terror by revolutionists, French chemist Antoine Lavoisier, who was also a tax collector with the Ferme Générale, was tried, convicted, and guillotined all on one day in Paris.
1821 - Greek War of Independence: The Greeks defeat the Turks in Gravia.
1846 - Mexican-American War: The Battle of Palo AltoZachary Taylor defeats a Mexican force north of the Rio Grande in the first major battle of the war.
1861 - American Civil War: Richmond, Virginia, is named the capital of the Confederate States of America.
1877 - At Gilmore's Gardens in New York City, the first Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show opens (ends May 11).
1886 - Pharmacist John Styth Pemberton invents a carbonated beverage that would later be named "Coca-Cola".
1898 - The first games of the Italian Football League are played.
1899 - The Irish Literary Theatre in Dublin opens.
1902 - In Martinique, Mount Pelée erupts, destroying the town of Saint-Pierre and killing over 30,000 people. Only a handful of residents survive the blast.
1914 - Paramount Pictures is formed.
1919 - Edward George Honey first proposed the idea of a moment of silence to commemorate The Armistice of World War I, which later resulted in the creation of Remembrance Day.
1933 - Mohandas Gandhi begins a 21-day fast in protest of British oppression in India.
1942 - World War II: The Battle of the Coral Sea comes to an end. This is the first time in the naval history where two enemy fleets fight without visual contact between warring ships.
1942 - World War II: Gunners of the Ceylon Garrison Artillery on Horsburgh Island in the Cocos Islands rebelled in the Cocos Islands Mutiny. Their mutiny was crushed and three of them were executed, the only British Commonwealth soldiers to be executed for mutiny during the Second World War.
1945 - Hundreds of Algerian civilians are killed by French Army soldiers in the Sétif massacre.
1945 - Combat in Europe ends in World War II: V-E Day. German forces agree to an unconditional surrender.
1945 - End of the Prague uprising, today still celebrated as national holiday in the Czech Republic
1946 - The Estonian school girls Aili Jõgi and Ageeda Paavel blow up the Soviet memorial that preceded the Bronze Soldier in Tallinn.
1967 - The Philippine province of Davao is split into three: Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, and Davao Oriental.
1970 - The Hard Hat riot occurs in the Wall Street area of New York City as blue-collar construction workers clash with anti-war demonstrators protesting the Vietnam War.
1972 - Vietnam WarU.S. President Richard M. Nixon announces his order to place mines in major North Vietnamese ports in order to stem the flow of weapons and other goods to that nation.
1973 - A 71-day standoff, between federal authorities and the American Indian Movement members occupying the Pine Ridge Reservation at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, ends with the surrender of the militants.
1982 - Formula One driver Gilles Villeneuve dies in a crash during practice for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder.
1984 - The Soviet Union announces that it will boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California.
1984 - Cpl. Denis Lortie enters the Quebec National Assembly and opens fire, killing three and wounding 13. René Jalbert, sergeant-at-arms of the assembly, succeeds in calming him, for which he will later receive the Cross of Valour.
1987 - The Loughgall ambush: The SAS kill 8 IRA soldiers and 1 civilian, in Loughgall, Northern Ireland.
1988 - A fire at Illinois Bell's Hinsdale Central Office triggered an extended 1AESS outage once considered the 'worst telecommunications disaster in US telephone industry history' is still the worst to occur on Mother's Day.
1990 - Reindependence Day of Estonia
1997 - A China Southern Airlines Boeing 737 crashes on approach into Shenzhen's Huangtian Airport, killing 35 people.
1999 - Nancy Mace becomes the first female cadet to graduate from The Citadel military college.
2005 - The new Canadian War Museum opens, in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of V-E Day.
2007 - A new Northern Ireland Executive is formed under the leadership of Ian Paisley of the Democratic Unionist Party as First Minister and Martin McGuinness of Sinn Féin as Deputy First Minister.

Coca-Cola, The Irish Literary Theatre, Paramount Pictures and V-E Day ...and so much more...


And, just in case you were interested ... the following births took place on May 8th...


1326 - Joanna I of Auvergne, queen of France (d. 1360)
1460 - Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (d. 1536)
1521 - Petrus Canisius, Dutch Jesuit (d. 1597)
1587 - Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy (d. 1637)
1622 - Claes Rålamb, Swedish statesman (d. 1698)
1629 - Niels Juel, Danish admiral (d. 1697)
1632 - Heino Heinrich Graf von Flemming, German marshal (d. 1706)
1653 - Claude-Louis-Hector de Villars, Marshall of France (d. 1734)
1668 - Alain-René Lesage, French writer (d. 1747)
1670 - Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans, English soldier (d. 1726)
1735 - Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland, English painter (d. 1811)
1738 - Mikhail Kamensky, Russian general (d. 1809)
1753 - Miguel Hidalgo Mexican revolutionary (d. 1811)
1786 - Jean Vianney, French Catholic priest (d. 1859)
1821 - William Henry Vanderbilt, member of the Vanderbilt family (d. 1885)
1825 - George Bruce Malleson, Indian officer (d. 1898)
1828 - Jean Henri Dunant, Founder of the Red Cross; Nobel laureate (d. 1910)
1828 - Sharbel Makhluf, Lebanese monk (d. 1898)
1829 - Louis Moreau Gottschalk, American musician (d. 1869)
1839 - Adolphe-Basile Routhier, French Canadian lyricist (O Canada) (d. 1920)
1842 - Emil Christian Hansen, Danish physiologist (d. 1909)
1847 - Oscar Hammerstein I, American theater producer and impresario (d. 1919)
1850 - Ross Barnes, baseball player (d. 1915)
1853 - Dan Brouthers, baseball player (d. 1932)
1858 - John Meade Falkner, English novelist (d. 1932)
1859 - Johan Jensen, Danish mathematician (d. 1925)
1884 - Harry S. Truman, President of the United States (d. 1972)
1893 - Edd Roush, baseball player (d. 1988)
1893 - Teddy Wakelam, English sports broadcaster and rugby union player (d. 1963)
1895 - James H. "Dutch" Kindelberger, American aerospace pioneer (d. 1962)
1895 - Fulton J. Sheen, American bishop (d. 1979)
1895 - Edmund Wilson, American writer (d. 1972)
1899 - Arthur Q. Bryan, American voice actor (d. 1959)
1899 - Friedrich Hayek, Nobel laureate (d. 1992)
1901 - Turkey Stearnes, baseball player (d. 1979)
1902 - Andre Michael Lwoff, Nobel laureate (d. 1994)
1903 - Fernandel, French actor (d. 1971)
1904 - John Snagge, British radio personality (d. 1996)
1905 - Red Nichols, American musician (d. 1965)
1906 - Roberto Rossellini, Italian director (d. 1977)
1910 - Andrew E. Svenson, American children's book author and publisher (d. 1975)
1911 - Robert Johnson, American blues musician (d. 1938)
1913 - Bob Clampett, American animator (d. 1984)
1914 - Romain Gary, Polish writer (d. 1980)
1916 - João Havelange, Brazilian industrialist
1916 - Swami Chinmayananda, Indian spiritualist (d. 1993)
1919 - Lex Barker, American actor (d. 1973)
1920 - Saul Bass, American graphic designer (d. 1996)
1920 - Tom of Finland, Finnish fetish artist (d. 1991)
1920 - Sloan Wilson, American author (d. 2003)
1925 - Ali Hassan Mwinyi, President of Tanzania
1926 - David Attenborough, English naturalist
1926 - Don Rickles, American comedian
1927 - Chumy Chúmez, Spanish film director (d. 2003)
1928 - Theodore Sorenson, American writer
1929 - Claude Castonguay, Quebec politician
1929 - Miyoshi Umeki, Japanese-born Academy Award-winning actress (d. 2007)
1930 - Heather Harper, Irish singer
1930 - Gary Snyder, American poet
1932 - Julieta Campos, Cuban-Mexican writer (d. 2007)
1932 - Phyllida Law, Scottish actress
1932 - Sonny Liston, American boxer (d. 1970)
1935 - Princess Elisabeth of Denmark, 7th in the Line of succession to the Danish Throne
1935 - Jack Charlton, English footballer
1937 - Carlos Gaviria Díaz, Colombian politician
1937 - Thomas Pynchon, American novelist
1937 - Mike Cuellar, baseball player
1940 - Peter Benchley, American author (d. 2006)
1940 - Ricky Nelson, American singer (d. 1985)
1940 - Irwin Cotler, Canadian politician
1941 - Mahmoud Ahmed, Ethiopian singer
1941 - John Fred, American singer (d. 2005)
1941 - Bill Lockyer, American politician
1942 - Terry Neill, Northern Irish footballer
1943 - Toni Tennille, American singer
1943 - Paul Samwell-Smith, British bassist (The Yardbirds)
1944 - Gary Glitter, English singer
1945 - Keith Jarrett, American musician
1946 - André Boulerice, Quebec politician
1947 - H. Robert Horvitz, Nobel laureate
1948 - Felicity Lott, English singer
1948 - Steve Braun, baseball player
1948 - Stephen Stohn, Canadian television producer (Degrassi)
1950 - Robert Mugge, American music documentary film maker
1951 - Philip Bailey, American singer (Earth, Wind & Fire)
1951 - Chris Frantz, American musician (Talking Heads)
1953 - Alex Van Halen, Dutch drummer (Van Halen)
1953 - Billy Burnette, American singer and guitarist (Fleetwood Mac)
1954 - David Keith, American actor
1957 - Bill Cowher, American football coach
1957 - Marie Myriam, French singer
1960 - Franco Baresi, Italian footballer
1960 - Eric Brittingham, American bassist
1961 - Janet McTeer, British actress
1961 - David Winning, Canadian film director
1963 - Terry Christian, British radio presenter
1963 - Sylvain Cossette, Quebec singer and songwriter
1963 - Anthony Field, Australian musician and actor
1963 - Robin Jarvis, British writer
1963 - Izabela Kloc, Polish politician
1964 - Melissa Gilbert, American actress
1964 - Bobby Labonte, American race car driver
1964 - Dave Rowntree, British musician (Blur)
1966 - Claudio Taffarel, Brazilian footballer
1966 - Marta Sánchez, Spanish singer
1968 - Jamie Summers, American porn star
1968 - Johan Pehrson, Swedish politician
1968 - Nathalie Normandeau, Quebec politician
1969 - Akebono Taro, sumo wrestler
1970 - Luis Enrique, Spanish football player
1972 - Darren Hayes, Australian singer
1972 - Ray Whitney, Canadian ice hockey player
1973 - Hiromu Arakawa, Japanese artist
1974 - Jon Tickle, English entertainer
1974 - Korey Stringer, American football player (d. 2001)
1975 - Enrique Iglesias, Spanish singer
1975 - Jussi Markkanen, Finnish ice hockey player
1975 - Gastón Mazzacane, Argentine racing driver
1976 - Martha Wainwright, Canadian musician and songwriter
1976 - Ian "H" Watkins, pop singer (Steps)
1978 - Jang Woo Hyuk, Korean singer
1978 - Matthew Davis, American actor
1978 - Lúcio, Brazilian footballer
1978 - Josie Maran, American model
1980 - Michelle McManus, Scottish singer
1980 - Benny Yau, Canadian entertainer
1981 - Andrea Barzagli, Italian footballer
1981 - Björn Dixgård, Swedish guitarist
1981 - Yasuko Tajima, Japanese swimmer
1981 - John Maine, American baseball player
1982 - Adrian Gonzalez, American baseball player
1983 - Matt Willis, British singer
1984 - Nadine Chandrawinata, 2006 Miss Universe Pageant (Indonesia)
1985 - Mashio Miyazaki, Japanese actress
1986 - Marvell Wynne, American soccer player



Oscar Hammerstein I, Harry S. Truman, Bishop Fulton Sheen, Roberto Rossellini, Lex Barker, David Attenborough, Don Rickels (saw him in concert at a very young age) Phyllida Law (fantastic actress and mother of Emma Thompson, who is one of my all time favorite actresses), Sonny Liston, Thomas Pynchon, Peter Benchley, Ricky Nelson, Toni Tennille (yes, I loved the Captain and Tennille), Phillip Bailey (Earth, Wind and Fire), Alex Van Halen ( Oh My Gawd did I love Van Halen ... words cannot express ...), David Keith (hubba, hubba), Melissa Gilbert (I grew up with her while watching Little House on the Prairie) .....those are my personal favorites.

Besides the birth of Luis Enrique and the Hard Hat Riot in NYC ... one other little event took place on May 8th, 1970.

The birth of yours truly.

Yep, I'm 38 years old today.

My kids are planning on posting a birthday tribute to me sometime today. All I can say is brace yourselves. I have no idea what they will write, and I doubt they will let me proof-read it and correct the spelling errors and my daughter's conscious avoidance of capitalization.

But I'm bracing myself and believe I'm well prepared.
I think ...

10 comments:

RiverPoet said...

Let me be the first to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!! and many moooore....

Peace - D

Cissa Fireheart said...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LORI!! *big ole hugs*

Jen said...

Gee that was a long winded way of telling us it is your birthday!!!

Happy Birthday! :)

Your American Idol! said...

Many happy returns! Sharing a birthday with Sonny Liston...how cool.

Viva ocho de Mayo!

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday, Lori! Hope it's filled with lots of wonderful things.

Coal Miner's Granddaughter said...

Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday! I'm sending you birthday vibes and a gigantic chocolate cake your way! :-)

Rhonda said...

Happy Birthday Lori!! I didn't realize yours was in May too! Mine is the 22nd of this month. Apparently all great people were born in May! HA!!

Just don't tell Gene that one...he'll never let us live it down! ;)

v said...

Happy, Happy Birthday! I can't wait to see what Peyton and Katie write.

Lori said...

Momma & Cissa -
Thank you so much!

Jen -
I am sooooo long winded. Dontcha know that by now?

Ray -
I know, right? And that's funny you say Viva Ocho de Mayo - because I do the same thing!

Toasty-
Thanks bunches!
It's been a pretty nice day so far.

Heather -
I can feel the good vibes (or is that an earthquake from Reno?) and I'm going to go sit by the mailbox and wait for my chocolate cake.

Rhonda-
All the awesomely great people were born in May! And we get the best birthstone too!
And you ought to know by now I DELIGHT in pushing Gene's buttons so I'll have to share that tidbit with him really soon.
(For the rest of you - Rhonda is my (husband's) cousin and she's talking about my father-in-law.)

Vickie-
I'm a little scared of what they are going to write. And that earthquake comment up there was just for you! Mom and I were just talking about your earthquake fears today.

Shelley Jaffe said...

Lori: I'm a day late - so sorry! I hope your day was filled with laughter and lots of cake! Your kidlets did an admirable job of a Lori retrospective - think of all the pictures they could have used...

Warmest wishes for a fulfilling and meaningful new Lori year!

Thomas likes to play with your mouse ... he'll even purr!