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October 26, 2011 by · 7 Comments
Filed under: Ramblings 

Hello and welcome – thank you for dropping by :)

I will be updating this site with various ramblings and articles

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On This Day – May 21st

May 21, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: On This Day 

May 21 is the 141st day of the year (142nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 224 days remaining until the end of the year.

 

Events

  • 293 – Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian appoint Galerius as Caesar to Diocletian, beginning the period of four rulers known as the Tetrarchy.
  • 878 – Syracuse, Italy, is captured by the Muslim sultan of Sicily.
  • 879 – Pope John VIII gives blessings to duke Branimir and to Croatian people, considered to be international recognition of the Croatian state.
  • 996 – Sixteen-year-old Otto III is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
  • 1349 – Dušan’s Code, the constitution of the Serbian Empire, is enacted by Dušan the Mighty.
  • 1502 – The island of Saint Helena is discovered by the Portuguese explorer João da Nova.
  • 1554 – A royal Charter is granted to Derby School as a grammar school for boys in Derby, England, by Queen Mary I.
  • 1674 – The nobility elect John Sobieski King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania.
  • 1725 – The Order of St. Alexander Nevsky is instituted in Russia by Empress Catherine I. It would later be discontinued and then reinstated by the Soviet government in 1942 as the Order of Alexander Nevsky.
  • 1758 – Ten-year-old Mary Campbell is abducted in Pennsylvania by Lenape during the French and Indian War. (She would be returned some six and a half years later.)
  • 1809 – The first day of the Battle of Aspern-Essling between the Austrian army led by Archduke Charles and the French army led by Napoleon I of France sees the French attack across the Danube held.
  • 1851 – Slavery is abolished in Colombia, South America.
  • 1856 – Lawrence, Kansas is captured and burned by pro-slavery forces.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: The Union Army succeeds in closing off the last escape route from Port Hudson, Louisiana, in preparation for the coming siege.
  • 1863 – Organization of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Battle Creek, Michigan.
  • 1864 – Russia declares an end to the Russian-Circassian War and many Circassians are forced into exile. The day is designated the Circassian Day of Mourning.
  • 1871 – French troops invade the Paris Commune and engage its residents in street fighting. By the close of “Bloody Week” some 20,000 communards have been killed and 38,000 arrested.
  • 1871 – Opening of the first rack railway in Europe, the Rigi-Bahnen on Mount Rigi.
  • 1879 – War of the Pacific: Two Chilean ships blocking the harbor of Iquique (then belonging to Peru) battle two Peruvian vessels in the Battle of Iquique.
  • 1881 – The American Red Cross is established by Clara Barton in Washington, D.C..
  • 1894 – The Manchester Ship Canal in England is officially opened by Queen Victoria, who later knights its designer Sir Edward Leader Williams.
  • 1904 – The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) is founded in Paris.
  • 1911 – Mexican President Porfirio Díaz and the revolutionary Francisco Madero sign the Treaty of Ciudad Juárez to put an end to the fighting between the forces of both men, and thus concluding the initial phase of the Mexican Revolution.
  • 1917 – The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is established through Royal Charter to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations military forces.
  • 1917 – The Great Atlanta fire of 1917 causes $5.5 million in damages, destroying some 300 acres including 2,000 homes, businesses and churches, displacing about 10,000 people and leading to only fatality (due to heart attack).
  • 1924 – University of Chicago students Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold, Jr. murder 14-year-old Bobby Franks in a “thrill killing”.
  • 1927 – Charles Lindbergh touches down at Le Bourget Field in Paris, completing the world’s first solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean.
  • 1932 – Bad weather forces Amelia Earhart to land in a pasture in Derry, Northern Ireland, and she thereby becomes the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.
  • 1934 – Oskaloosa, Iowa, becomes the first municipality in the United States to fingerprint all of its citizens.
  • 1936 – Sada Abe is arrested after wandering the streets of Tokyo for days with her dead lover’s severed genitals in her hand. Her story soon becomes one of Japan’s most notorious scandals.
  • 1937 – A Soviet station, North Pole-1, becomes the first scientific research settlement to operate on the drift ice of the Arctic Ocean.
  • 1939 – The Canadian National War Memorial is unveiled by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in Ottawa.
  • 1946 – Physicist Louis Slotin is fatally irradiated in a criticality incident during an experiment with the Demon core at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
  • 1951 – The opening of the Ninth Street Show, otherwise known as the 9th Street Art Exhibition – a gathering of a number of notable artists, and the stepping-out of the post war New York avant-garde, collectively known as the New York School.
  • 1961 – American civil rights movement: Alabama Governor John Malcolm Patterson declares martial law in an attempt to restore order after race riots break out.
  • 1966 – The Ulster Volunteer Force declares war on the Irish Republican Army in Northern Ireland.
  • 1969 – Civil unrest in Rosario, Argentina, known as Rosariazo, following the death of a 15-year-old student.
  • 1972 – Michelangelo’s Pietà in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome is damaged by a vandal, the mentally disturbed Hungarian geologist Laszlo Toth.
  • 1976 – The Yuba City bus disaster occurs in Martinez, California, 29 people are killed which makes it the deadliest road accident in U.S. history.
  • 1979 – White Night riots in San Francisco following the manslaughter conviction of Dan White for the assassinations of George Moscone and Harvey Milk.
  • 1981 – Irish Republican hunger strikers Raymond McCreesh and Patsy O’Hara die on hunger strike in Maze prison.
  • 1981 – The Italian government releases the membership list of Propaganda Due, an illegal pseudo-Masonic lodge that was implicated in numerous Italian crimes and mysteries.
  • 1982 – Falklands War: British amphibious assault during Operation Sutton lead to the Battle of San Carlos.
  • 1990 – The Democratic Republic of Yemen and North Yemen agree to merge into the Republic of Yemen.
  • 1991 – Former Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi is assassinated by a female suicide bomber near Madras.
  • 1991 – Mengistu Haile Mariam, president of the People’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, flees Ethiopia, effectively bringing the Ethiopian Civil War to an end.
  • 1994 – The Democratic Republic of Yemen unsuccessful attempts to secede from the Republic of Yemen; a war breaks out.
  • 1996 – The ferry MV Bukoba sinks in Tanzanian waters on Lake Victoria, killing nearly 1,000.
  • 1996 – The Trappist Martyrs of Atlas, kidnapped during the Algerian Civil War and held for two months, are found dead.
  • 1998 – In Miami, Florida, five abortion clinics are hit by a butyric acid attacker.
  • 2001 – French Taubira law is enacted, officially recognizing the Atlantic slave trade and slavery as crimes against humanity.
  • 2003 – An earthquake hits northern Algeria killing more than 2,000 people.
  • 2005 – The tallest roller coaster in the world, Kingda Ka opens at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey.
  • 2006 – The Republic of Montenegro holds a referendum proposing independence from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. The Montenegrin people choose independence with a majority of 55%.
  • 2010 – JAXA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, launches the solar-sail spacecraft IKAROS aboard an H-IIA rocket. The vessel would make a Venus flyby late in the year.

Births

  • 1471 – Albrecht Dürer, German painter (d. 1528)
  • 1527 – King Philip II of Spain (d. 1598)
  • 1653 – Eleonora Maria Josefa of Austria (d. 1697)
  • 1664 – Giulio Alberoni, Italian cardinal (d. 1754)
  • 1688 – Alexander Pope, English poet (d. 1744)
  • 1755 – Alfred Moore, American judge (d. 1810)
  • 1763 – Joseph Fouché, French statesman (d. 1820)
  • 1775 – Lucien Bonaparte, French politician, soldier and academic (d. 1840)
  • 1780 – Elizabeth Fry, British social reformer (d. 1845)
  • 1792 – Gaspard-Gustave Coriolis, French scientist (d. 1843)
  • 1799 – Mary Anning, British fossil collector and paleontologist (d. 9 March 1847).
  • 1827 – William P. Sprague, American politician (d. 1899)
  • 1832 – Elizabeth Storrs Mead, American educator (d. 1917)
  • 1835 – František Chvostek, Moravian physician (d. 1884)
  • 1843 – Charles Albert Gobat, Swiss politician (d. 1914)
  • 1844 – Henri Rousseau, French artist (d. 1910)
  • 1850 – Giuseppe Mercalli, Italian vulcanologist (d. 1914)
  • 1851 – Léon Bourgeois, French statesman, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (d. 1925)
  • 1853 – Jacques Marie Eugène Godefroy Cavaignac, French politician (d. 1905)
  • 1856 – José Batlle y Ordóñez, Uruguayan politician (d. 1929)
  • 1860 – Willem Einthoven, Dutch physiologist; Nobel laureate (d. 1927)
  • 1863 – Archduke Eugen of Austria, Austrian field marshal (d. 1954)
  • 1864 – Princess Stephanie of Belgium (d. 1945)
  • 1873 – Hans Berger, German neuroscientist (d. 1941)
  • 1878 – Glenn Curtiss, American aviation engineer (d. 1930)
  • 1880 – Tudor Arghezi, Romanian writer (d. 1967)
  • 1884 – Manuel Pérez y Curis, Uruguayan poet (d. 1920)
  • 1885 – Sophie of Schönburg-Waldenburg, wife of William, Prince of Albania (d. 1936)
  • 1898 – Armand Hammer, American businessman and physician (d. 1990)
  • 1898 – Charles Léon Hammes, Luxembourgian lawyer and jurist (d. 1967)
  • 1901 – Manfred Aschner, German-born Israeli microbiologist (d. 1989)
  • 1901 – Horace Heidt, American band leader (d. 1986)
  • 1901 – Sam Jaffe, American film producer (d. 2000)
  • 1901 – Suzanne Lilar, Belgian essayist and playwright (d. 1992)
  • 1902 – Earl Averill, American baseball player (d. 1983)
  • 1902 – Marcel Lajos Breuer, Hungarian-born architect (d. 1981)
  • 1903 – Manly Wade Wellman, American writer (d. 1986)
  • 1904 – Robert Montgomery, American actor (d. 1981)
  • 1904 – Fats Waller, American pianist (d. 1943)
  • 1907 – John C. Allen, American roller coaster designer (d. 1979)
  • 1909 – François-Albert Angers, Quebec economist (d. 2003)
  • 1912 – John Curtis Gowan, American psychologist (d. 1986)
  • 1912 – Monty Stratton, American baseball player (d. 1982)
  • 1912 – Akiva Vroman, Dutch-born Israeli geologist (d. 1989)
  • 1913 – Gina Bachauer, Greek pianist (d. 1976)
  • 1916 – Tinus Osendarp, Dutch runner (d. 2002)
  • 1916 – Harold Robbins, American novelist (d. 1997)
  • 1917 – Raymond Burr, Canadian actor (d. 1993)
  • 1918 – Dennis Day, American singer and comedian (d. 1988)
  • 1920 – Anthony Steel, British actor (d. 2001)
  • 1920 – Forrest White, American musical instruments industry executive (d. 1994)
  • 1920 – Bill Barber, American jazz tuba player(d. 2007)
  • 1921 – Andrei Sakharov, Russian physicist (d. 1989)
  • 1921 – A.S. Douglas, British computer scientist (d. 2010)
  • 1923 – Armand Borel, Swiss mathematician (d. 2003)
  • 1923 – Ara Parseghian, American football coach
  • 1923 – Vernon Biever, American photographer (d. 2010)
  • 1923 – Evelyn Ward, American actress
  • 1924 – Peggy Cass, American actress (d. 1999)
  • 1926 – Robert Creeley, American poet (d. 2005)
  • 1928 – Tom Donahue, American disc jockey (d. 1975)
  • 1929 – Alice Drummond, American actress
  • 1929 – Larance Marable, American jazz drummer
  • 1930 – Malcolm Fraser, Australian politician
  • 1930 – Tommy Bryant, American jazz double-bassist (d. 1982)
  • 1932 – Billy Wright, American jump blues singer (d. 1991)
  • 1933 – Maurice André, French trumpeter (d. 2012)
  • 1933 – Yevgeni Minaev, Soviet weightlifter (d. 1993)
  • 1934 – Bengt I. Samuelsson, Swedish biochemist, Nobel laureate
  • 1935 – Terry Lightfoot, British clarinettist and bandleader
  • 1936 – Günter Blobel, German biologist, Nobel laureate
  • 1938 – Lee “Shot” Williams, American blues singer (d. 2011)
  • 1939 – Heinz Holliger, Swiss oboist, composer and conductor
  • 1941 – Martin Carthy, English folk singer and guitarist
  • 1941 – Ronald Isley, American singer (The Isley Brothers)
  • 1941 – Bobby Cox, American baseball manager and former player
  • 1942 – Danny Ongais, American race car driver
  • 1943 – Hilton Valentine, British guitarist (The Animals)
  • 1944 – Marcie Blane, American singer
  • 1944 – Mary Robinson, President of Ireland
  • 1945 – Ernst Messerschmid, German astronaut
  • 1947 – Bill Champlin, American singer
  • 1947 – Jonathan Hyde, Australian-born actor
  • 1948 – Leo Sayer, English singer and songwriter
  • 1948 – Elizabeth Buchan, née Oakleigh-Walker, English writer
  • 1951 – Al Franken, American comedian and politician, junior senator of Minnesota
  • 1952 – Mr. T, American actor
  • 1954 – Marc Ribot, American guitarist and composer
  • 1954 – Janice Karman, American film producer, record producer, singer, and voice artist
  • 1954 – Stephen Betts, keyboardist for the Associates
  • 1955 – Paul Barber, British field hockey player
  • 1955 – Stan Lynch, American drummer (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers)
  • 1957 – James Bailey, American basketball player
  • 1957 – Bruce Buffer, American Mixed Martial Arts announcer
  • 1957 – Nadine Dorries, British Conservative politician
  • 1957 – Judge Reinhold, American actor
  • 1957 – Renée Soutendijk, Dutch actress
  • 1958 – Jefery Levy, American television director
  • 1959 – Nick Cassavetes, American actor and director
  • 1960 – Jeffrey Dahmer, American serial killer (d. 1994)
  • 1960 – Kent Hrbek, American baseball player
  • 1960 – Mohanlal, Indian actor
  • 1960 – Jeffrey Toobin, American writer and political analyst
  • 1960 – Vladimir Salnikov, Russian swimmer
  • 1962 – Richard Caputo, American Author
  • 1962 – David Crumb, American Composer, son of the American composer George Crumb
  • 1963 – Richard Appel, American writer
  • 1963 – Kevin Shields, American-born Irish vocalist and guitarist (My Bloody Valentine)
  • 1963 – Dave Specter, American Chicago blues and jazz guitarist
  • 1964 – Danny Bailey, English footballer
  • 1964 – Danny Lee Clark, American football player
  • 1964 – Nancy Benoit, American professional wrestler (d. 2007)
  • 1964 – Carolyn Lawrence, American actress
  • 1967 – Lisa Edelstein, American actress
  • 1967 – Chris Benoit, Canadian professional wrestler (d. 2007)
  • 1967 – Blake Schwarzenbach, American musician (Jawbreaker, Jets to Brazil)
  • 1968 – Julie Vega, Filipino child actress and singer (d. 1985)
  • 1968 – Matthias Ungemach, German rower
  • 1969 – Pierluigi Brivio, Italian footballer
  • 1969 – Georgiy R. Gongadze, Ukrainian/Georgian journalist
  • 1969 – Masayo Kurata, Japanese voice actress
  • 1969 – George LeMieux, American politician
  • 1970 – Dorsey Levens, American football player
  • 1970 – Carl Veart, Australian soccer player
  • 1972 – Adriano Cintra, Brazilian musician (CSS)
  • 1972 – The Notorious B.I.G., American rapper (d. 1997)
  • 1972 – Alesha Oreskovich, American model
  • 1973 – Noel Fielding, British comedian
  • 1973 – Stewart Cink, American golfer
  • 1974 – Fairuza Balk, American actress
  • 1974 – Havoc, American rapper (Mobb Deep)
  • 1975 – Lee Gaze, Welsh guitarist (Lostprophets)
  • 1976 – Aditi Gowitrikar, Indian model, actress and physician
  • 1976 – Deron Miller, American singer, guitarist and songwriter (CKY)
  • 1977 – Quinton Fortune, South African footballer
  • 1977 – Michael Fuß, German footballer
  • 1977 – Ricky Williams, American football player
  • 1978 – Adam Gontier, Canadian singer (Three Days Grace)
  • 1978 – Jamaal Magloire, Canadian basketball player
  • 1979 – Damián Ariel Álvarez, Argentinian footballer
  • 1979 – Gaspard Augé, French DJ
  • 1979 – Briana Banks, German-American pornographic actress and model
  • 1979 – Jamie Hepburn, Scottish politician
  • 1979 – James Clancy Phelan, Australian novelist
  • 1979 – Scott Smith, American mixed martial arts fighter
  • 1980 – Chris Raab, American television personality
  • 1980 – Gotye, Australian Musician
  • 1981 – Craig Anderson, American ice hockey player
  • 1981 – Edson Buddle, American footballer
  • 1981 – Josh Hamilton, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Maximilian Mutzke, German singer and drummer
  • 1982 – Brian Klemm, American guitarist and vocalist (Suburban Legends)
  • 1983 – Veloso, Brazilian footballer
  • 1984 – Lorena Ayala, Dutch/Spanish model
  • 1984 – Brandon Fields, American football player
  • 1984 – Sara Goller, German beach volleyball player
  • 1985 – Mutya Buena, English singer (Sugababes)
  • 1985 – Marco Carta, Italian singer
  • 1985 – Mark Cavendish, Manx cyclist
  • 1985 – Isa Guha, English cricketer
  • 1985 – Lucie Hradecká, Czech tennis player
  • 1985 – Kano, British rapper
  • 1985 – Marie McCray, American adult actress
  • 1985 – Andrew Miller, American baseball player
  • 1985 – Alexander Dale Oen, Norwegian swimmer (d. 2012)
  • 1986 – Mario Mandžukić, Croatian footballer
  • 1986 – Myra, American singer
  • 1986 – Alexander Noyes, American drummer (Honor Society)
  • 1986 – Greg Stewart, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1988 – Park Gyuri, Korean singer/actress/disc jockey
  • 1988 – Jonathan Howson, English footballer
  • 1989 – Hal Robson-Kanu, Welsh footballer
  • 1991 – Sarah Ramos, American actress
  • 1992 – Hutch Dano, American actor
  • 1992 – Philipp Grüneberg, German footballer
  • 1992 – Olivia Olson, American singer and actress
  • 1994 – Tom Daley, English diver and Olympian

Deaths

  • 987 – King Louis V of France (b. 967)
  • 1237 – Olaf the Black, King of Mann and the Isles
  • 1254 – King Conrad IV of Germany (b. 1228)
  • 1481 – King Christian I of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden (b. 1426)
  • 1512 – Pandolfo Petrucci, ruler of Siena (b. 1452)
  • 1524 – Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk, English soldier (b. 1443)
  • 1542 – Hernando de Soto, Spanish explorer (b. 1496 or 1497)
  • 1607 – John Rainolds, English scholar (b. 1549)
  • 1639 – Tommaso Campanella, Italian theologian (b. 1568)
  • 1647 – Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, Dutch poet (b. 1581)
  • 1650 – James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, Scottish royalist (b. 1612)
  • 1664 – Elizabeth Poole, English-born Puritan settler and founder of Taunton, Massachusetts (b. 1588)
  • 1670 – Niccolò Zucchi, Italian astronomer (b. 1586)
  • 1686 – Otto von Guericke, German scientist (b. 1602)
  • 1690 – John Eliot, English Puritan missionary (b. 1604)
  • 1719 – Pierre Poiret, French mystic (b. 1646)
  • 1724 – Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Mortimer, English statesman (b. 1661)
  • 1742 – Lars Roberg, Swedish physician (b. 1664)
  • 1771 – Christopher Smart, English poet (b. 1722)
  • 1786 – Carl Wilhelm Scheele, Swedish chemist (b. 1742)
  • 1790 – Thomas Warton, English poet (b. 1728)
  • 1844 – Giuseppe Baini, Italian composer (b. 1775)
  • 1862 – John Drew, Irish-born American actor (b. 1827)
  • 1879 – Arturo Prat, Chilean naval officer (b. 1848)
  • 1894 – Emile Henry, French anarchist (b. 1872)
  • 1894 – August Kundt, German physicist (b. 1839)
  • 1895 – Franz von Suppé, Austrian composer (b. 1819)
  • 1911 – Williamina Fleming, Scottish-born astronomer (b. 1857)
  • 1915 – Leonid Gobyato, Russian general (b. 1875)
  • 1919 – Yevgraf Fyodorov, Russian mathematician (b. 1853)
  • 1920 – Venustiano Carranza, 54th President of Mexico (b. 1859)
  • 1925 – Hidesaburō Ueno, Japanese agricultural scientist and guardian of Hachikō (b. 1871)
  • 1929 – Archibald Primrose, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1847)
  • 1935 – Jane Addams, American social worker, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (b. 1860)
  • 1949 – Klaus Mann, German writer (b. 1906)
  • 1952 – John Garfield, American actor (b. 1913)
  • 1956 – Harry Bensley, English rake and adventurer (b. 1877)
  • 1957 – Alexander Vertinsky, Russian poet, singer, composer, cabaret artist and actor (b. 1889)
  • 1964 – James Franck, German-born physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1882)
  • 1965 – Geoffrey de Havilland, British aircraft designer (b. 1882)
  • 1970 – E. L. Grant Watson, English biologist and writer (b. 1885)
  • 1973 – Vaughn Monroe, American baritone singer, trumpeter and big band leader (b. 1911)
  • 1981 – Raymond McCreesh, Irish hunger striker (b. 1957)
  • 1981 – Patsy O’Hara, Irish hunger striker (b. 1957)
  • 1983 – Kenneth Clark, English art historian (b. 1903)
  • 1984 – Ann Little, American actress (b. 1891)
  • 1988 – Sammy Davis, Sr., American dancer (b. 1900)
  • 1991 – Lino Brocka, Filipino movie Director (b. 1939)
  • 1991 – Rajiv Gandhi, Prime Minister of India (b. 1944)
  • 1995 – Les Aspin, American politician (b. 1938)
  • 1996 – Paul Delph, American singer, songwriter and producer (b. 1957)
  • 1996 – Lash LaRue, American actor (b. 1917)
  • 1999 – Karnail “Bugz” Pitts, American rapper (D12) (b. 1979)
  • 2000 – Barbara Cartland, English author (b. 1901)
  • 2000 – Sir John Gielgud, British actor (b. 1904)
  • 2000 – Mark R. Hughes, American entrepreneur (b. 1956)
  • 2002 – Niki de Saint Phalle, French sculptor, painter and filmmaker (b. 1930)
  • 2003 – Alejandro de Tomaso, Argentine-Italian racing driver and car manufacturer (b. 1928)
  • 2003 – Frank D. White, American politician (b. 1933)
  • 2005 – Howard Morris, American comic actor and director (b. 1919)
  • 2006 – Spencer Clark, American racecar driver (b. 1987)
  • 2006 – Katherine Dunham, American dancer (b. 1909)
  • 2006 – Cherd Songsri, Thai film director (b. 1931)
  • 2006 – Billy Walker, American singer (b. 1929)

Holidays and observances

  • Afro-Colombian Day (Colombia)
  • Christian Feast Day:
    • Charles-Joseph-Eugene de Mazenod
    • Emperor Constantine I
    • Earliest day on which Corpus Christi can fall, while June 24 is the latest; held on Thursday after Trinity Sunday. (Roman Catholic Church)
    • Helena of Constantinople, also known as “Feast of the Holy Great Sovereigns Constantine and Helen, Equal-to-the-Apostles.” (Eastern Orthodox Church)
    • May 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Circassian Day of Mourning (Circassians)
  • Day of Patriots and Military (Hungary)
  • Independence Day, honors the 2006 plebiscite that indicated that 55.5% of Montenegrins were in favor of becoming a sovereign nation. (Montenegro)
  • Navy Day (Chile)
  • Saint Helena Day, celebrates the discovery of Saint Helena in 1502.
  • World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development (International)

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Quote of the Day – Alexander Pope

May 21, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Quote of the Day 

Trust not your self; but your Defects to know, Make use of ev’ry Friend — and ev’ry Foe.

–Alexander Pope

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Word of the Day – cloudburst

May 21, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
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cloudburst:

A sudden heavy rainstorm.

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Bad Teacher

May 19, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Films 

After wanting to see this we finally sat down to watch it on Sky and loved it

 

 

Storyline

When her wealthy fiancé breaks it off, gold digger Elizabeth Halsey returns to middle school: she’s an awful teacher but wants to save for breast-implant surgery. She brightens when Scott, a new teacher, turns out to be rich, and she stops showing films and sleeping in class when told there’s a bonus for the teacher whose class scores highest on the state exam. Her competition for Scott and the bonus is cheery and tightly wound Amy. Amy digs for dirt on Elizabeth who cheats her way toward Scott’s bed and the money. Honesty with students seems to be her only skill. She ignores Russell, a droll gym teacher, who looks on. Will she succeed with Scott and get those new breasts?

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On This Day – May 18th

May 18, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: On This Day 

May 18 is the 138th day of the year (139th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 227 days remaining until the end of the year.

 

Events

  • 332 – Constantine the Great announced free distributions of food to the citizens in Constantinople.
  • 1152 – Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine.
  • 1268 – The Principality of Antioch, a crusader state, falls to the Mamluk Sultan Baibars in the Battle of Antioch.
  • 1302 – Bruges Matins, the nocturnal massacre of the French garrison in Bruges by members of the local Flemish militia.
  • 1498 – Vasco da Gama reaches the port of Calicut, India.
  • 1499 – Alonso de Ojeda sets sail from Cadiz on his voyage to what is now Venezuela.
  • 1565 – The Siege of Malta begins, in which Ottoman forces attempt and fail to conquer Malta.
  • 1593 – Playwright Thomas Kyd’s accusations of heresy lead to an arrest warrant for Christopher Marlowe.
  • 1631 – In Dorchester, Massachusetts, John Winthrop takes the oath of office and becomes the first Governor of Massachusetts.
  • 1652 – Rhode Island passes the first law in English-speaking North America making slavery illegal.
  • 1756 – The Seven Years’ War begins when Great Britain declares war on France.
  • 1763 – Fire destroys a large part of Montreal, Quebec.
  • 1783 – First United Empire Loyalists reach Parrtown (later called Saint John), New Brunswick, Canada after leaving the United States.
  • 1803 – Napoleonic Wars: The United Kingdom revokes the Treaty of Amiens and declares war on France.
  • 1804 – Napoleon Bonaparte is proclaimed Emperor of the French by the French Senate.
  • 1811 – Battle of Las Piedras: The first great military triumph of the revolution of the Río de la Plata in Uruguay led by Jose Artigas.
  • 1812 – John Bellingham is found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging for the assassination of British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval.
  • 1843 – The Disruption in Edinburgh of the Free Church of Scotland from the Church of Scotland.
  • 1848 – Opening of the first German National Assembly (Nationalversammlung) in Frankfurt, Germany.
  • 1860 – Abraham Lincoln wins the Republican Party presidential nomination over William H. Seward, who later becomes the United States Secretary of State.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: The Siege of Vicksburg begins.
  • 1896 – The United States Supreme Court rules in Plessy v. Ferguson that the “separate but equal” doctrine is constitutional.
  • 1896 – Khodynka Tragedy: A mass panic on Khodynka Field in Moscow during the festivities of the coronation of Russian Tsar Nicholas II results in the deaths of 1,389 people.
  • 1900 – The United Kingdom proclaims a protectorate over Tonga.
  • 1910 – The Earth passes through the tail of Comet Halley.
  • 1912 – The first Indian film, Shree Pundalik by Dadasaheb Torne is released in Mumbai.
  • 1917 – World War I: The Selective Service Act of 1917 is passed, giving the President of the United States the power of conscription.
  • 1926 – Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappears while visiting a Venice, California beach.
  • 1927 – The Bath School Disaster: forty-five people are killed by bombs planted by a disgruntled school-board member in Michigan.
  • 1927 – After being founded for 20 years, the Government of the Republic of China approves Tongji University to be among the first national universities of the Republic of China.
  • 1933 – New Deal: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs an act creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.
  • 1944 – World War II: Battle of Monte Cassino – Conclusion after seven days of the fourth battle as German paratroopers evacuate Monte Cassino.
  • 1944 – Deportation of Crimean Tatars by the Soviet Union government.
  • 1948 – The First Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China officially convenes in Nanking.
  • 1953 – Jackie Cochran becomes the first woman to break the sound barrier.
  • 1955 – Operation Passage to Freedom, the evacuation of 310,000 Vietnamese civilians, soldiers and non-Vietnamese members of the French Army from communist North Vietnam to South Vietnam following the end of the First Indochina War, ends.
  • 1956 – First ascent of Lhotse 8,516 meters, by a Swiss team.
  • 1958 – An F-104 Starfighter sets a world speed record of 1,404.19 mph (2,259.82 km/h).
  • 1959 – Launch of the National Liberation Committee of Côte d’Ivoire in Conakry, Guinea.
  • 1965 – Israeli spy Eli Cohen was hanged in Damascus, Syria.
  • 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 10 is launched.
  • 1974 – Nuclear test: under project Smiling Buddha, India successfully detonates its first nuclear weapon becoming the sixth nation to do so.
  • 1974 – Completion of the Warsaw radio mast, the tallest construction ever built at the time. It collapsed on August 8, 1991.
  • 1980 – 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens: Mount St. Helens erupts in Washington, United States, killing 57 people and causing $3 billion in damage.
  • 1980 – Gwangju Massacre: students in Gwangju, South Korea begin demonstrations calling for democratic reforms.
  • 1983 – In Ireland, the government launches a crackdown, with the leading Dublin pirate Radio Nova being put off the air.
  • 1990 – In France, a modified TGV train achieves a new rail world speed record of 515.3 km/h (320.2 mph).
  • 1991 – Northern Somalia declares independence from the rest of Somalia as the Republic of Somaliland but is not recognized by the international community.
  • 1993 – EU - riots in Nørrebro, Copenhagen caused by the approval of the four Danish exceptions in the Maastricht Treaty referendum. Police opened fire against civilians for the first time since World War II and injured 11 demonstrators. In total 113 bullets are fired.
  • 1995 – Shawn Nelson, 35, goes on a tank rampage in San Diego.
  • 2005 – A second photo from the Hubble Space Telescope confirms that Pluto has two additional moons: Nix and Hydra.
  • 2006 – The post Loktantra Andolan government passes a landmark bill curtailing the power of the monarchy and making Nepal a secular country.
  • 2009 – Sri Lankan Civil War: The LTTE are defeated by the Sri Lankan government, ending almost 26 years of fighting between the two sides.

Births

  • 1048 – Omar Khayyám, Persian mathematician, poet and philosopher (d. 1131)
  • 1186 – Konstantin of Rostov, Prince of Novgorod (d. 1218)
  • 1474 – Isabella d’Este, Marquise of Mantua (d. 1539)
  • 1610 – Stefano della Bella, Italian printmaker (d. 1664)
  • 1616 – Johann Jakob Froberger, German composer (d. 1667)
  • 1662 (O.S.) – George Smalridge, English bishop of Bristol (d. 1719)
  • 1692 (O.S.) – Joseph Butler, English bishop and philosopher (d. 1752)
  • 1711 – Ruđer Josip Bošković, Croatian atomic theorist (d. 1787)
  • 1777 – John George Children, British chemist, mineralogist and zoologist (d. 1852)
  • 1778 – Charles William Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry (d. 1854)
  • 1785 – John Wilson, Scottish writer (d. 1854)
  • 1797 – King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony (d. 1854)
  • 1822 – Mathew Brady, American photographer (d. 1896)
  • 1850 – Oliver Heaviside, English physicist (d. 1925)
  • 1851 – James Budd, Governor of California (d. 1908)
  • 1852 – Gertrude Käsebier, American photographer (d. 1934)
  • 1854 – Bernard Zweers, Dutch composer and music teacher (d. 1924)
  • 1855 – Francis Bellamy, American author, editor, and Baptist minister (d. 1931)
  • 1862 – Josephus Daniels, American publisher and United States Secretary of the Navy (d. 1948)
  • 1868 – Tsar Nicholas II of Russia (d. 1918)
  • 1872 – Bertrand Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, British mathematician, writer and philosopher, Nobel laureate (d. 1970)
  • 1873 – Lucy Beaumont, English actress (d. 1937)
  • 1876 – Hermann Müller, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1931)
  • 1882 – Babe Adams, American baseball player (d. 1968)
  • 1883 – Eurico Gaspar Dutra, President of Brazil (d. 1974)
  • 1883 – Walter Gropius, German architect (d. 1969)
  • 1887 – Jeanie MacPherson, American actress and screenwriter (d. 1946)
  • 1889 – Thomas Midgley, Jr., American chemist and inventor (d. 1944)
  • 1891 – Rudolf Carnap, German philosopher (d. 1970)
  • 1892 – Ezio Pinza, Italian-born bass (d. 1957)
  • 1895 – Augusto Nicolás Calderón Sandino, Nicaraguan revolutionary (d. 1934)
  • 1897 – Frank Capra, American film producer, director, and writer (d. 1991)
  • 1901 – Vincent du Vigneaud, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1978)
  • 1902 – Meredith Willson, American composer (d. 1984)
  • 1904 – Jacob K. Javits, American politician (d. 1986)
  • 1905 – Hedley Verity, English cricketer (d. 1943)
  • 1907 – Carl Mydans, American photographer (d. 2004)
  • 1907 – Lincoln Stedman, American actor (d. 1948)
  • 1909 – Fred Perry, British former tennis player (d. 1995)
  • 1911 – Big Joe Turner, American blues singer (d. 1985)
  • 1912 – Richard Brooks, American film director, writer and producer (d. 1992)
  • 1912 – Perry Como, American singer (d. 2001)
  • 1912 – Walter Sisulu, South African anti-apartheid activist (d. 2003)
  • 1913 – Jane Birdwood, Canadian-born British far right activist (d. 2000)
  • 1913 – Charles Trenet, French singer and songwriter (d. 2001)
  • 1913 – Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, Indian politician (d. 1996)
  • 1913 – Mary Howard de Liagre, American actress (d. 2009)
  • 1914 – Pierre Balmain, French fashion designer (d. 1982)
  • 1914 – Robert J. Wilke, American actor (d. 1989)
  • 1918 – Massimo Girotti, Italian actor (d. 2003)
  • 1919 – Dame Margot Fonteyn, English ballet dancer (d. 1991)
  • 1920 – Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła) (d. 2005)
  • 1920 – Lucia Mannucci, Italian singer (Quartetto Cetra)
  • 1922 – Gerda Boyesen, Norwegian-born body psychotherapist (d. 2005)
  • 1922 – Bill Macy, American actor
  • 1922 – Kai Winding, Danish-born jazz trombonist and composer (d. 1983)
  • 1923 – Hugh Shearer, Prime Minister of Jamaica (d. 2004)
  • 1923 – Jean-Louis Roux, French Canadian actor and artistic director
  • 1924 – Priscilla Pointer, American actress
  • 1924 – Jack Whitaker, American sportscaster
  • 1926 – Dirch Passer, Danish actor (d. 1980)
  • 1928 – Pernell Roberts, American actor (d. 2010)
  • 1929 – Jack Sanford, American baseball player (d. 2000)
  • 1930 – Warren Rudman, American politician
  • 1931 – Don Martin, American cartoonist (d. 2000)
  • 1931 – Robert Morse, American actor
  • 1931 – Clément Vincent, Canadian politician
  • 1933 – Bernadette Chirac, French politician
  • 1933 – Don Whillans, English mountaineer (d. 1985)
  • 1934 – Dwayne Hickman, American actor and television executive
  • 1936 – Ante Peterlić, Croatian film theorist (d. 2007.)
  • 1937 – Brooks Robinson, American baseball player
  • 1937 – Jacques Santer, Luxembourg statesman
  • 1938 – Joan Blackman, American actress
  • 1939 – Giovanni Falcone, Italian magistrate and Mafia victim (d. 1992)
  • 1939 – Gordon O’Connor, Canadian politician
  • 1940 – Eddy Palchak, Canadian ice hockey trainer and equipment manager with the Montreal Canadiens (d. 2011)
  • 1941 – Gino Brito, Canadian professional wrestler
  • 1941 – Lobby Loyde, Australian guitarist and songwriter (Billy Thorpe & the Aztecs) (d. 2007)
  • 1941 – Miriam Margolyes, British actress
  • 1942 – Nobby Stiles, English footballer
  • 1943 – Jimmy Snuka, American professional wrestler
  • 1944 – Albert Hammond, British/Gibraltarian musician and composer
  • 1944 – W. G. Sebald, German-born writer (d. 2001)
  • 1946 – Bruce Gilbert, English guitarist (Wire)
  • 1946 – Frank Hsieh, Premier of Taiwan
  • 1946 – Reggie Jackson, American baseball player
  • 1946 – Andreas Katsulas, American actor (d. 2006)
  • 1947 – John Bruton, ninth Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland
  • 1947 – Gail Strickland, American actress
  • 1948 – Tom Udall, American politician
  • 1948 – Yi Munyol, South Korean writer
  • 1949 – Rick Wakeman, English composer and musician (Yes)
  • 1949 – Bill Wallace, Canadian bassist (The Guess Who)
  • 1950 – Thomas Gottschalk, German television show host
  • 1950 – Mark Mothersbaugh, American composer, musician, and singer (Devo)
  • 1951 – Jim Sundberg, American baseball player
  • 1952 – Diane Duane, American writer
  • 1952 – George Strait, American country musician
  • 1952 – Jeana Yeager, American aviator
  • 1954 – Reinhold Heil, German composer
  • 1954 – Wreckless Eric, New Wave singer/songwriter
  • 1955 – Chow Yun-fat, Hong Kong actor
  • 1955 – Lena T. Hansson, Swedish actor
  • 1957 – Michael Cretu, Romanian-born German musician (Enigma)
  • 1958 – Toyah Willcox, English actor and singer
  • 1959 – Jay Wells, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1960 – Brent Ashton, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1960 – Jari Kurri, Finnish ice hockey player
  • 1960 – Yannick Noah, French tennis player
  • 1961 – Jim Bowden, American baseball executive
  • 1962 – Mike Whitmarsh, American volleyball player (d. 2009)
  • 1962 – Nanne Grönvall, Swedish singer
  • 1962 – Sandra, German singer
  • 1962 – Mike Darnell, American television executive
  • 1963 – Marty McSorley, Canadian hockey player
  • 1963 – Sam Vincent, American basketball player
  • 1965 – Ingo Schwichtenberg, German drummer (Helloween) (d. 1995)
  • 1966 – Michael Tait, American musician (dc Talk, Tait)
  • 1967 – Heinz-Harald Frentzen, German Formula One racing driver
  • 1967 – Rob Base, American rapper
  • 1967 – Nancy Juvonen, American film producer
  • 1967 – Nina Björk, Swedish feminist and author
  • 1969 – Martika, Cuban-American singer
  • 1970 – Tina Fey, American writer/actress
  • 1970 – Tim Horan, Australian rugby union player
  • 1970 – Billy Howerdel, American guitarist (A Perfect Circle)
  • 1971 – Brad Friedel, American soccer player
  • 1971 – Desiree Horton, American helicopter pilot/television reporter
  • 1971 – Nobuteru Taniguchi, Japanese racing driver
  • 1972 – Turner Stevenson, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1973 – Brian Heffron, American professional wrestler (“The Blue Meanie”)
  • 1973 – Donyell Marshall, American basketball player
  • 1973 – Chantal Kreviazuk, Canadian singer songwriter
  • 1974 – Nelson Figueroa, American baseball player
  • 1975 – John Higgins, Scottish snooker player
  • 1975 – Jack Johnson, American musician
  • 1976 – Ron Mercer, American basketball player
  • 1976 – Oleg Tverdovsky, Ukrainian ice hockey player
  • 1976 – Marko Tomasović (composer), Croatian composer
  • 1977 – Lee Hendrie, English footballer
  • 1977 – Danny Mills, English footballer
  • 1978 – Ricardo Carvalho, Portuguese footballer
  • 1978 – Jessica Cutler, American author
  • 1978 – Marcus Giles, American baseball player
  • 1978 – Chad Donella, Canadian actor
  • 1979 – Jens Bergensten, Swedish video game designer
  • 1979 – Anna Chatziathanassiou, Greek figure skater
  • 1979 – Mariusz Lewandowski, Polish footballer
  • 1979 – Michal Martikán, Slovak slalom canoeist
  • 1979 – David Nail, American country singer
  • 1979 – Milivoje Novakovič, Slovenian footballer
  • 1979 – Julián Speroni, Argentine footballer
  • 1980 – Jeff Roehl, American football player
  • 1980 – Matt Long, American actor
  • 1980 – Diego Pérez, Uruguayan footballer
  • 1980 – Ali Zafar, Pakistani singer and model
  • 1980 – Aileen Campbell, Scottish politician
  • 1980 – Reggie Evans, American basketball player
  • 1980 – Felicia Pearson, Actress
  • 1981 – Mahamadou Diarra, Malian footballer
  • 1982 – Jason Brown, English footballer
  • 1982 – Marie-Ève Pelletier, Canadian tennis player
  • 1983 – Gary O’Neil, English footballer
  • 1983 – Luis Terrero, Dominican baseball player
  • 1983 – Vince Young, American football player
  • 1984 – Joakim Soria, Mexican baseball player
  • 1984 – Niki Terpstra, Dutch cyclist
  • 1985 – Dalma Kovács, Romanian singer and actress
  • 1985 – Francesca Battistelli, American singer
  • 1986 – Ryan Lamb, English rugby union player
  • 1986 – Ahmed Hamada, Egyptian racer
  • 1987 – Luisana Lopilato, Argentine actress and model
  • 1988 – Ryan Cooley, Canadian actor
  • 1988 – Kōji Seto, Japanese actor and singer
  • 1988 – Taeyang, South Korean singer (Big Bang)
  • 1990 – Gayoon, South Korean singer (4minute)
  • 1992 – Spencer Breslin, American actor
  • 1993 – Jessica Watson, Australian solo sailor
  • 1993 – Stuart Percy, Canadian ice hockey player

Deaths

  • 1401 – Władysław Opolczyk (German: Ladislaus von Oppel), count palatine of Hungary 1367-1372, governor of Halych-Volhynia 1372 – 1378, count palatine of Poland (b. 1332)
  • 1550 – John, Cardinal of Lorraine, French churchman (b. 1498)
  • 1551 – Domenico di Pace Beccafumi, Italian Renaissance-Mannerist painter (b. 1486)
  • 1584 – Ikeda Motosuke, Japanese samurai commander (b. 1559)
  • 1675 – Stanisław Lubieniecki, Polish Socinian theologist (b. 1623)
  • 1675 – Jacques Marquette, French Jesuit missionary and explorer (b. 1637)
  • 1692 – Elias Ashmole, English antiquarian (b. 1617)
  • 1733 – Georg Böhm, German organist (b. 1761)
  • 1780 – Charles Hardy, British governor of Newfoundland (b. 1714)
  • 1781 – Túpac Amaru II, Peruvian Indian revolutionary, a descendant of the last Inca ruler, Túpac Amaru (b. 1742)
  • 1795 – Robert Rogers, hero of the French and Indian War. (b. 1731)
  • 1799 – Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, French playwright (b. 1732)
  • 1800 – Alexander Suvorov, Russian general (b. 1729)
  • 1807 – John Douglas, Scottish Anglican bishop and man of letters (b. 1721)
  • 1808 – Elijah Craig, American minister and inventor (b. 1738/1743)
  • 1829 – Maria Josepha of Saxony, queen consort of Spain (b. 1803)
  • 1844 – Richard McCarty, American politician (b. 1780)
  • 1889 – Isabella Glyn Dallas, Scottish Shakepearean actress (b. 1823)
  • 1900 – Jean Gaspard Felix Ravaisson-Mollien, French philosopher (b. 1813)
  • 1908 – Louis-Napoléon Casault, French Canadian lawyer, judge and politician (b. 1823)
  • 1909 – George Meredith, English novelist and poet (b. 1828)
  • 1909 – Isaac Albéniz, Spanish pianist and composer (b. 1860)
  • 1910 – Pauline Viardot, French mezzo-soprano and composer (b. 1821)
  • 1910 – Eliza Orzeszkowa, Polish novelist (b. 1841)
  • 1911 – Gustav Mahler, Austrian composer (b. 1860)
  • 1922 – Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran, French physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1845)
  • 1927 – Andrew Kehoe, Member of the School Board of Bath, Michigan, Perpetrator of the Bath School Disaster (b. 1872)
  • 1941 – Werner Sombart, German economist and sociologist (b. 1863)
  • 1943 – Ōnishiki Daigorō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 28th Yokozuna (b. 1883)
  • 1947 – Hal Chase, American baseball player (b. 1883)
  • 1955 – Mary McLeod Bethune, American educator and activist (b. 1875)
  • 1956 – Maurice Tate, English cricketer (b. 1895)
  • 1958 – Jacob Fichman, Israeli poet and essayist (b. 1881)
  • 1963 – Ernie Davis, American football player (b. 1939)
  • 1967 – Andy Clyde, American actor (b. 1892)
  • 1971 – Aleksandr Gennadievich Kurosh, Russian mathematician (b. 1908)
  • 1973 – Jeannette Rankin, American politician and first U.S. Congresswoman (b. 1880)
  • 1975 – Leroy Anderson, American composer (b. 1908)
  • 1980 – Ian Curtis, English musician, singer and lyricist (Joy Division) (b. 1956)
  • 1980 – Victims of Mount St. Helens eruption:
    • Harry Randall Truman (b. 1896)
    • David A. Johnston, U.S. volcanologist (b. 1949)
    • Reid Blackburn, photojournalist for National Geographic (b. 1952)
  • 1981 – Arthur O’Connell, American actor (b. 1908)
  • 1981 – William Saroyan, American author (b. 1908)
  • 1988 – Daws Butler, American voice actor (b. 1916)
  • 1989 – Dorothy Ruth, American horse breeder; adopted daughter of Babe Ruth (b. 1921)
  • 1990 – Jill Ireland, English actress (b. 1936)
  • 1992 – Skip Stephenson, American TV personality (b. 1940)
  • 1992 – Marshall Thompson, American actor (b. 1925)
  • 1995 – Elisha Cook, Jr., American actor (b. 1903)
  • 1995 – Alexander Godunov, Russian ballet dancer and actor (b. 1949)
  • 1995 – Elizabeth Montgomery, American actress (b. 1933)
  • 1995 – Brinsley Le Poer Trench, British ufologist (b. 1911)
  • 1997 – Bridgette Andersen, American actress (b. 1975)
  • 1999 – Augustus Pablo, Jamaican singer (b. 1954)
  • 1999 – Betty Robinson, American runner (b. 1911)
  • 2000 – Stephen M. Wolownik, Russian musician and arranger (b. 1946)
  • 2000 – Maulana Yousuf Ludhianvi, Indian Muslim scholar (b. 1932)
  • 2002 – Davey Boy Smith, English professional wrestler (b. 1962)
  • 2003 – Anna Santisteban, Puerto Rican beauty contest organizer (b. 1914)
  • 2003 – Barb Tarbox, Canadian anti-smoking crusader (b. 1961)
  • 2004 – Elvin Jones, American jazz drummer (b. 1927)
  • 2004 – Vladislav Terzyul, Ukrainian mountaineer (b. 1953)
  • 2004 – Serge Turgeon, Quebec actor and union leader (b. 1946)
  • 2006 – Andrew Martinez, U.C. Berkeley’s “Naked Guy” and American nudism advocate(b. 1972)
  • 2007 – Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, French physicist (b. 1932)
  • 2007 – Yoyoy Villame, Philippine novelty singer and movie actor (b. 1932)
  • 2008 – Joseph Pevney, American television director (b. 1911)
  • 2009 – Roderick Anthony Burton II (a.k.a. Dolla), American Rapper (b. 1987)
  • 2009 – Wayne Allwine, American voice actor (b.1947)
  • 2009 – Velupillai Prabhakaran, Leader of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Ceylon (b.1954)

Holidays and observances

  • Battle of Las Piedras Day (Uruguay)
  • Christian Feast Day:
    • Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury
    • Eric IX of Sweden
    • Felix of Cantalice
    • Pope John I
    • Venantius of Camerino
    • May 18 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Flag and Universities Day (Haiti)
  • Independence Day (Somaliland (unrecognized))
  • International Museum Day (International)
  • Revival, Unity, and Poetry of Magtymguly Day (Turkmenistan)
  • World AIDS Vaccine Day (International)

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Quote of the Day – Bertrand Russell

May 18, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Quote of the Day 

Modern methods of production have given us the possibility of ease and security for all; we have chosen, instead, to have overwork for some and starvation for the others. Hitherto we have continued to be as energetic as we were before there were machines; in this we have been foolish, but there is no reason to go on being foolish for ever.

–Bertrand Russell

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Word of the Day – upend

May 18, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
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upend:

1. (transitive) To end up; to set on end.

2. To tip or turn over.

3. To destroy, invalidate, overthrow, or defeat.

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On This Day – May 17th

May 17, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
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May 17 is the 137th day of the year (138th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 228 days remaining until the end of the year.

 

Events

  • 1521 – Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for treason.
  • 1536 – George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford and four other men are executed for treason.
  • 1590 – Anne of Denmark is crowned Queen of Scotland.
  • 1642 – Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve (1612–1676) founds the Ville Marie de Montréal.
  • 1673 – Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette begin exploring the Mississippi River.
  • 1775 – American Revolutionary War: the Continental Congress bans trade with Quebec.
  • 1792 – The New York Stock Exchange is formed.
  • 1805 – Muhammad Ali becomes Wāli of Egypt.
  • 1809 – Napoleon I of France orders the annexation of the Papal States to the French Empire.
  • 1814 – Occupation of Monaco changes from French to Austrian.
  • 1814 – The Constitution of Norway is signed and the Danish Crown Prince Christian Frederik is elected King of Norway by the Norwegian Constituent Assembly.
  • 1849 – A large fire nearly burns St. Louis, Missouri to the ground.
  • 1863 – Rosalía de Castro publishes Cantares Gallegos, the first book in the Galician language.
  • 1865 – The International Telegraph Union (later the International Telecommunication Union) is established in Paris.
  • 1869 – Imperial Japanese forces defeat the remnants of the Tokugawa shogunate in the Battle of Hakodate to end the Boshin War.
  • 1875 – Aristides wins the first Kentucky Derby.
  • 1900 – Second Boer War: British troops relieve Mafeking.
  • 1902 – Greek archaeologist Valerios Stais discovers the Antikythera mechanism, an ancient mechanical analog computer.
  • 1914 – The Protocol of Corfu is signed recognising full autonomy to Northern Epirus under nominal Albanian sovereignty.
  • 1915 – The last British Liberal Party government (led by Herbert Henry Asquith) falls.
  • 1933 – Vidkun Quisling and Johan Bernhard Hjort form Nasjonal Samling — the national-socialist party of Norway.
  • 1939 – The Columbia Lions and the Princeton Tigers play in the United States’ first televised sporting event, a collegiate baseball game in New York City.
  • 1940 – World War II: Germany occupies Brussels, Belgium.
  • 1940 – World War II: the old city centre of the Dutch town of Middelburg is bombed by the German Luftwaffe, to force the surrender of the Dutch armies in Zeeland.
  • 1943 – The United States Army contracts with the University of Pennsylvania’s Moore School to develop the ENIAC.
  • 1943 – World War II: the Dambuster Raids by No. 617 Squadron RAF on German dams.
  • 1954 – The United States Supreme Court hands down a unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas.
  • 1967 – Six-Day War: President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt demands dismantling of the peace-keeping UN Emergency Force in Egypt.
  • 1969 – Venera program: Soviet Venera 6 begins its descent into the atmosphere of Venus, sending back atmospheric data before being crushed by pressure.
  • 1970 – Thor Heyerdahl sets sail from Morocco on the papyrus boat Ra II to sail the Atlantic Ocean.
  • 1973 – Watergate scandal: Televised hearings begin in the United States Senate.
  • 1974 – Police in Los Angeles, California, raid the Symbionese Liberation Army’s headquarters, killing six members, including Camilla Hall.
  • 1974 – Dublin and Monaghan bombings: Thirty-three civilians are killed when the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) explodes car bombs in Dublin and Monaghan, Republic of Ireland.
  • 1980 – General Chun Doo-hwan of South Korea seizes control of the government and declares martial law in order to suppress student demonstrations.
  • 1980 – On the eve of presidential elections, Maoist guerrilla group Shining Path attacks a polling location in the town of Chuschi, Ayacucho, starting the Internal conflict in Peru.
  • 1983 – The U.S. Department of Energy declassifies documents showing world’s largest mercury pollution event in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (ultimately found to be 4.2 million pounds), in response to the Appalachian Observer’s Freedom of Information Act request.
  • 1983 – Lebanon, Israel, and the United States sign an agreement on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
  • 1984 – Prince Charles calls a proposed addition to the National Gallery, London, a “monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much-loved and elegant friend,” sparking controversies on the proper role of the Royal Family and the course ofmodern architecture.
  • 1987 – An Iraqi Dassault Mirage F1 fighter jet fires two missiles into the U.S. Navy warship USS Stark, killing 37 and injuring 21 of her crew.
  • 1990 – The General Assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO) eliminates homosexuality from the list of psychiatric diseases.
  • 1992 – Three days of popular protests against the government of Prime Minister of Thailand Suchinda Kraprayoon begin in Bangkok, leading to a military crackdown that results in 52 officially confirmed deaths, many disappearances, hundreds of injuries, and over 3,500 arrests.
  • 1994 – Malawi holds its first multi-party elections.
  • 1997 – Troops of Laurent Kabila march into Kinshasa. Zaire is officially renamed Democratic Republic of the Congo.
  • 2004 – Massachusetts becomes the first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.
  • 2006 – The aircraft carrier USS Oriskany is sunk in the Gulf of Mexico as an artificial reef.
  • 2007 – Trains from North and South Korea cross the 38th Parallel in a test-run agreed by both governments. This is the first time that trains have crossed the Demilitarized Zone since 1953.

Births

  • 1155 – Jien, Japanese poet and historian (d. 1225)
  • 1443 – Edmund, Earl of Rutland, brother of Kings Edward IV of England and Richard III of England (d. 1460)
  • 1551 – Martin Delrio, Flemish theologian and occultist (d. 1601)
  • 1571 – William White, English composer (d. 1634)
  • 1628 – Archduke Ferdinand Charles of Austria, Regent of Tyrol (d. 1662)
  • 1682 – Bartholomew Roberts, Welsh pirate (d. 1722)
  • 1706 – Andreas Felix von Oefele, German historian and librarian (d. 1780)
  • 1718 – Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness, English diplomat and politician (d. 1778)
  • 1732 – Thomas Erskine, 6th Earl of Kellie, British musician and composer (d. 1781)
  • 1732 – Francesco Pasquale Ricci, Italian composer and violinist (d. 1817)
  • 1743 – Seth Warner, American revolutionary leader (d. 1784)
  • 1749 – Edward Jenner, English medical researcher (d. 1823)
  • 1758 – John St Aubyn, British fossil collector (d. 1839)
  • 1768 – Caroline of Brunswick, German-born Queen consort of George IV of the United Kingdom (d. 1821)
  • 1768 – Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey, English general (d. 1854)
  • 1794 – Anna Brownell Jameson, British writer (d. 1860)
  • 1821 – Sebastian Kneipp, German naturopathist (d. 1897)
  • 1836 – Wilhelm Steinitz, Austrian chess player (d. 1900)
  • 1836 – Virginie Loveling, Belgian writer and poet (d. 1923)
  • 1844 – Julius Wellhausen, German biblical scholar (d. 1918)
  • 1845 – Jacint Verdaguer, Catalan poet (d. 1902)
  • 1863 – Léon Gérin, French Canadian civil servant and sociologist (d. 1951)
  • 1866 – Erik Satie, French composer (d. 1925)
  • 1868 – Horace Elgin Dodge, American automobile manufacturer (d. 1920)
  • 1873 – Henri Barbusse, French novelist and journalist (d. 1935)
  • 1873 – Dorothy Richardson, English writer (d. 1957)
  • 1886 – King Alfonso XIII of Spain (d. 1941)
  • 1888 – Tich Freeman, English cricketer (d. 1965)
  • 1891 – Princess Alexandra, Duchess of Fife (d. 1959)
  • 1891 – Napoleon Zervas, Greek general and resistance leader during World War II (d. 1957)
  • 1895 – Saul Adler FRS, Russian-born British-Israeli expert on parasitology (d. 1966)
  • 1895 – Mary Josephine Ray, Canadian supercentenarian (d. 2010)
  • 1897 – Odd Hassel, Norwegian chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1981)
  • 1898 – Alfred Joseph Casson, Canadian painter (d. 1992)
  • 1901 – Werner Egk, German composer (d. 1983)
  • 1903 – Cool Papa Bell, baseball player (d. 1991)
  • 1904 – Jean Gabin, French actor (d. 1976)
  • 1906 – Zinka Milanov, Croatian soprano (d. 1989)
  • 1909 – Julius Sumner Miller, American physicist (d. 1987)
  • 1911 – Lisa Fonssagrives, Swedish-born supermodel (d. 1992)
  • 1911 – Maureen O’Sullivan, Irish actress (d. 1998)
  • 1912 – Archibald Cox, American lawyer and politician (d. 2004)
  • 1912 – Ace Parker, American baseball and football player
  • 1913 – Hans Ruesch, Swiss racing driver (d. 2007)
  • 1914 – Robert N. Thompson, Canadian politician (d. 1997)
  • 1918 – Birgit Nilsson, Swedish soprano (d. 2005)
  • 1918 – A. C. Lyles, American film producer
  • 1919 – Antonio Aguilar, Mexican singer and actor (d. 2007)
  • 1919 – Merle Miller, American biographer (d. 1986)
  • 1921 – Dennis Brain, English French horn player (d. 1957)
  • 1921 – Bob Merrill, American composer and lyricist (d. 1998)
  • 1926 – Franz Sondheimer, German-born British chemist (d. 1981)
  • 1931 – Marshall Applewhite, American cult leader of Heaven’s Gate (d. 1997)
  • 1934 – Friedrich-Wilhelm Kiel, German politician
  • 1934 – Ronald Wayne, co-founder of Apple Computer
  • 1935 – Dennis Potter, English writer (d. 1994)
  • 1936 – Dennis Hopper, American actor and director (d. 2010)
  • 1937 – Hazel R. O’Leary, 7th United States Secretary of Energy
  • 1938 – Jason Bernard, American actor (d. 1996)
  • 1938 – Pervis Jackson, American singer (The Spinners) (d. 2008)
  • 1939 – Gary Paulsen, American author
  • 1940 – Alan Kay, American computer scientist
  • 1940 – Reynato Puno, Filipino Supreme Court Chief Justice
  • 1941 – David Cope, American composer and author
  • 1941 – Ben Nelson. 40th Governor of Nebraska & United States Senator from Nebraska
  • 1941 – Grace Zabriskie, American actress
  • 1942 – Taj Mahal, American musician
  • 1943 – Johnny Warren, Australian footballer (d. 2004)
  • 1945 – Tony Roche, Australian tennis player
  • 1946 – Udo Lindenberg, German musician
  • 1946 – F. Paul Wilson, American novelist
  • 1947 – Andrew Latimer, English musician (Camel (band))
  • 1948 – Dick Gaughan, Scottish musician, singer and songwriter
  • 1949 – Bill Bruford, English drummer (Yes, King Crimson)
  • 1950 – Howard Ashman, American lyricist (d. 1991)
  • 1950 – Janez Drnovšek, Slovenian politician (d. 2008)
  • 1950 – Valeria Novodvorskaya, Russian politician, dissident, founder and chairwoman of the Democratic Union party
  • 1951 – Simon Hughes, British politician
  • 1952 – Howard Hampton, Canadian politician
  • 1953 – Luca Prodan, Italian-Scottish singer and musician (Sumo, Hurlingham Reggae Band)
  • 1955 – Bill Paxton, American actor and film director
  • 1955 – David Townsend, American musician (Surface) (d. 2005)
  • 1956 – Sugar Ray Leonard, American boxer
  • 1956 – Bob Saget, American actor
  • 1956 – Dave Sim, Canadian cartoonist
  • 1957 – Pascual Pérez, Dominican baseball player
  • 1958 – Paul Di’Anno, English singer (Iron Maiden)
  • 1959 – Marcelo Loffreda, Argentine rugby player and coach
  • 1959 – Jim Nantz, American broadcaster
  • 1960 – Lou DiBella, American boxing promoter
  • 1961 – Enya, Irish singer and songwriter
  • 1962 – Craig Ferguson, Scottish actor and comedian
  • 1962 – Lise Lyng Falkenberg, Danish writer
  • 1962 – Jane Moore, British journalist
  • 1963 – Jon Koncak, American basketball player
  • 1963 – Page McConnell, American musician and songwriter (Phish)
  • 1964 – Stratos Apostolakis, Greek footballer
  • 1964 – David Eigenberg, American actor
  • 1964 – Menno Oosting, Dutch tennis player (d. 1999)
  • 1965 – Trent Reznor, American musician (Nine Inch Nails)
  • 1965 – Paige Turco, American actress
  • 1965 – Jeremy Vine, British journalist and presenter
  • 1966 – Hill Harper, American actor
  • 1966 – Mark Kratzmann, Australian tennis player
  • 1966 – Danny Manning, American basketball player
  • 1967 – Mohamed Nasheed, President of the Maldives
  • 1969 – Tabatha Coffey, Australian hairstylist and television personality
  • 1969 – Alan Doyle, Canadian musician (Great Big Sea)
  • 1969 – Thom Filicia, American television personality
  • 1970 – Jordan Knight, American singer (New Kids on the Block)
  • 1970 – Hubert Davis, American basketball player
  • 1970 – Angelica Agurbash, Belarusian singer, actress and model
  • 1970 – Matt Lindland, American mixed martial arts fighter
  • 1971 – Shaun Hart, Australian footballer
  • 1971 – Princess Máxima of the Netherlands
  • 1973 – Josh Homme, American musician and songwriter (Queens of the Stone Age)
  • 1973 – Matthew McGrory, American actor (d. 2005)
  • 1973 – Sasha Alexander, American television actress
  • 1973 – Steve Barakatt, Canadian composer
  • 1974 – Andrea Corr, Irish singer (The Corrs)
  • 1974 – Wiki González, Venezuelan baseball player
  • 1974 – Eddie Lewis, American football (soccer) player
  • 1974 – Sendhil Ramamurthy, American actor
  • 1975 – Cheick Kongo, French martial artist
  • 1975 – Jonti Picking, British cartoonist
  • 1975 – Kostas Sommer, Greek actor
  • 1975 – Laura Voutilainen, Finnish singer
  • 1975 – Alex Wright, German professional wrestler
  • 1976 – José Guillén, Dominican baseball player
  • 1976 – Leehom Wang, American-born Taiwanese musician and composer
  • 1978 – John Foster, American baseball player
  • 1978 – Paddy Kenny, Irish football goalkeeper
  • 1978 – Carlos Peña, Dominican baseball player
  • 1979 – Wayne Thomas, English footballer
  • 1980 – Davor Džalto, Serbian/Croatian art historian
  • 1980 – Dallas Taylor, American singer (Underoath)
  • 1981 – Beñat Albizuri, Spanish cyclist
  • 1981 – Shiri Maimon, Israeli singer
  • 1981 – Leon Osman, English footballer
  • 1981 – Giannis Taralidis, Greek footballer
  • 1981 – Lim Jeong Hee, Korean singer
  • 1982 – Tony Parker, French-American basketball player
  • 1982 – Matt Cassel, American football player
  • 1982 – Reiko Nakamura, Japanese swimmer
  • 1983 – Channing Frye, American basketball player
  • 1983 – Nicky Hofs, Dutch footballer
  • 1983 – Jeremy Sowers, American baseball player
  • 1983 – DJ Yonny, American DJ, producer and remixer
  • 1983 – Chris Henry, American football player (d. 2009)
  • 1984 – Christine Robinson, Canadian water polo player
  • 1984 – Christian Bolaños, Costa Rican footballer
  • 1985 – Derek Hough, American dancer and singer
  • 1985 – Christine Nesbitt, Canadian long track speed skater
  • 1985 – Matt Ryan, American football player
  • 1985 – Emil Sitoci, Dutch professional wrestler and television personality.
  • 1986 – Tahj Mowry, American actor
  • 1988 – Nikki Reed, American actress
  • 1989 – Tessa Virtue, Canadian ice dancer
  • 1989 – Kris Bernal, Filipina actress
  • 1990 – Leven Rambin, American actress
  • 1991 – Adil Omar, Pakistani rapper
  • 1991 – Daniel Curtis Lee, American actor
  • 1994 – Julie Anne San Jose, Filipina child actress and singer
  • 1996 – Ryan Ochoa, American teen actor

 

Deaths

  • 290 – Sima Yan (Jin Wudi), Chinese emperor of the Jin Dynasty (b. 236)
  • 1189 – Minamoto no Yoshitsune, Japanese general (b. 1159)
  • 1336 – Emperor Go-Fushimi of Japan (b. 1288)
  • 1365 – Louis VI the Roman, Duke of Bavaria and Elector of Brandenburg (b. 1328)
  • 1395 – Constantine Dragaš, Serbian ruler of a semi-independent realm (b. 1355)
  • 1464 – Thomas de Ros, 10th Baron de Ros, English politician (executed) (b. 1427)
  • 1510 – Sandro Botticelli, Italian painter (b. 1445)
  • 1521 – Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, English politician (b. 1478)
  • 1536 – George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford, English diplomat (executed) (b. c. 1504)
  • 1536 – Francis Weston, English courtier and Gentleman of the Privy Chamber (executed) (b. 1511)
  • 1536 – Henry Norris, English courtier and Groom of the Stool (executed) (b. c. 1482)
  • 1536 – William Brereton, English courtier and Groom of the Privy Chamber (executed)
  • 1536 – Mark Smeaton, English courtier and musician (executed) (b. c. 1512)
  • 1551 – Shin Saimdang, korean writer and artist, poet (b. 1504)
  • 1575 – Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1504)
  • 1626 – Juan Pujol, Catalan composer (b. 1570)
  • 1643 – Giovanni Picchi, Italian composer (b. 1751/1752)
  • 1727 – Empress Catherine I of Russia (b. 1684)
  • 1729 – Samuel Clarke, English philosopher (b. 1675)
  • 1765 – Alexis Claude de Clairaut, French mathematician (b. 1713)
  • 1797 – Michel-Jean Sedaine, French dramatist (b. 1719)
  • 1801 – William Heberden, English physician (b. 1710)
  • 1807 – John Gunby, Maryland Soldier in the American Revolutionary War (b. 1745)
  • 1809 – Leopold Auenbrugger, Austrian physician (b. 1722)
  • 1822 – Armand-Emmanuel du Plessis, Duc de Richelieu, French-Russian statesman (b. 1766)
  • 1829 – John Jay, first Chief Justice of the United States (b. 1745)
  • 1838 – Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, French diplomat (b. 1754)
  • 1838 – René Caillé, French explorer (b. 1799)
  • 1839 – Archibald Alison, Scottish author (b. 1757)
  • 1868 – Isami Kondo, Japanese Shinsengumi Commander (b. 1834)
  • 1875 – John C. Breckinridge, 14th Vice President of the United States (b. 1821)
  • 1879 – Asa Packer, American railroad magnate and founder of Lehigh Valley Railroad (b. 1805)
  • 1886 – John Deere, American blacksmith and manufacturer (b. 1804)
  • 1888 – Giacomo Zanella, Italian poet (b. 1820)
  • 1911 – Frederick August Otto Schwarz, American entrepreneur (b. 1836)
  • 1916 – Boris Borisovich Galitzine, Russian physicist (b. 1862)
  • 1917 – Charles Anthoni Johnson Brooke, ruler of Sarawak (b. 1829)
  • 1919 – Guido von List, German occult author (b. 1848)
  • 1927 – Harold Geiger, U.S. Army aviation pioneer (b. 1884)
  • 1935 – Paul Dukas, French composer (b. 1865)
  • 1936 – Panagis Tsaldaris, twice Greek prime minister (b. 1868)
  • 1938 – Jakob Ehrlich, Austrian politician and zionist (b. 1877)
  • 1947 – George William Forbes, 22nd Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1869)
  • 1947 – Zhang Lingfu, a general of the National Revolutionary Army (b. 1903)
  • 1951 – William Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood, British general (b. 1865)
  • 1964 – Nandor Fodor, Hungarian-born psychologist and parapsychologist (b. 1895)
  • 1966 – Randy Turpin, English boxer, known as the Leamington Licker, (b. 1928)
  • 1963 – John Wilce, American physician and former head football coach at the Ohio State University (b. 1888)
  • 1974 – Ernest Nash, German-born archaeologist (b. 1898)
  • 1985 – Abe Burrows, American songwriter, composer, and writer (b. 1910)
  • 1987 – Gunnar Myrdal, Swedish economist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1898)
  • 1992 – Lawrence Welk, American musician (b. 1903)
  • 1995 – Hector “Toe” Blake, Canadian ice hockey player and NHL coach (b. 1912)
  • 1996 – Kevin Gilbert, American singer, composer and instrumentalist (b. 1966)
  • 1996 – Scott Brayton, American race car driver (b. 1959)
  • 1996 – Johnny “Guitar” Watson, American funk and blues guitarist and singer (b. 1935)
  • 1999 – Bruce Fairbairn, Canadian record producer and musician (b. 1949)
  • 2000 – Donald Coggan, 101st Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1909)
  • 2001 – Frank G. Slaughter, American novelist and physician (b. 1908)
  • 2002 – Dave Berg, American cartoonist (b. 1920)
  • 2002 – Sharon Sheeley, American songwriter (b. 1940)
  • 2002 – Ladislao Kubala, Hungarian-Spanish footballer (b. 1927)
  • 2002 – Aşık Mahzuni Şerif, Turkish folk musician, composer and poet (b. 1940)
  • 2003 – Frank “Pop” Ivy, American and Canadian football coach (b. 1916)
  • 2004 – Jørgen Nash, Danish artist (b. 1920)
  • 2004 – Tony Randall, American actor (b. 1920)
  • 2004 – Ezzedine Salim, leader of the Iraqi Governing Council (b. 1943)
  • 2005 – Frank Gorshin, American actor (b. 1934)
  • 2006 – Cy Feuer, American playwright (b. 1911)
  • 2006 – Eric Forth, British Member of Parliament (b. 1944)
  • 2006 – Captain Nichola Goddard, Canadian soldier (b. 1980)
  • 2007 – Lloyd Alexander, American author (b. 1924)
  • 2007 – T.K. Doraiswamy (also known as Nakulan), Indian poet and author (b. 1921)
  • 2009 – Mario Benedetti, Uruguayan journalist, novelist, and poet (b. 1920)
  • 2009 – Jung Seung-hye, South Korean film producer (b. 1965)
  • 2010 – Yvonne Loriod, French pianist, composer and teacher (b. 1924)
  • 2010 – Walasse Ting, Chinese/American painter (b. 1929)
  • 2011 – Harmon Killebrew, American baseball player (b. 1936)

Holidays and observances

  • Birthday of the Raja (Perlis)
  • Christian Feast Day:
    • Paschal Baylon
    • Restituta
    • May 17 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Constitution Day (Nauru)
  • Constitution Day (Norway)
  • Earliest date on which Trinity Sunday can fall, while June 20 is the latest; celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost. (Western Christianity)
  • Feast of ‘Aẓamat (Bahá’í Faith)
  • Galician Literature Day or Día das Letras Galegas (Galicia)
  • International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia aka IDAHO
  • Liberation Day (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
  • National Famine Memorial Day (Ireland)
  • Navy Day (Argentina)
  • World Information Society Day (International)

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Quote of the Day – Henri Barbusse

May 17, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Quote of the Day 

Affection is the greatest of human feelings because it is made of respect, of lucidity, and light. To understand the truth and make one’s self equal to it is everything; and to love is the same thing as to know and to understand. Affection, which I call also compassion, because I see no difference between them, dominates everything by reason of its clear sight. It is a sentiment as immense as if it were mad, and yet it is wise, and of human things it is the only perfect one. There is no great sentiment which is not completely held on the arms of compassion.

–Henri Barbusse

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Word of the Day – morpheme:

May 17, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Word of the Day 

morpheme:

(linguistics) The smallest linguistic unit within a word that can carry a meaning, such as “un-”, “break”, and “-able” in the word “unbreakable”.

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