Before anything else today, I’d like to take a moment and remind husbands all through our civilisation that next Sunday is Mother’s Day, so please help the rest of us break the very mythical and erronuous belief than men can’t remember such ocassions as birthdays, anniversaries and Mother’s Day by bringing some flowers and a nice Hallmark card. Ladies, you’re welcome.
The 1471 Battle of Tewkesbury is valiantly fought and won by the Lancastrians and Number 4 captain “Illigitimate” Eddie. The vanquished Yorkists claimed their chances of winning and advancing to the Rose-War finals would have been much greater had they not suffered the loss of star forward Edward Wales.
A smallish business transaction concluded on this date of 1626 made Dutch seaman Peter Minuit laughingly pay 24$ worth of clothes and buttons for a 20,000-acre piece of North American land. The last laugh however went to the sellers, Native tribe Canarsee, who weren’t even settlers of the region. The Weckquaesgeek were the actual –peed off- owners of what would later be called Manhattan.
1910 is the official commissioning of the Royal Canadian Navy, albeit off to a rocky start. It seems that no one cared to inform government officials that automobiles don’t float. A year after what pundits referred to as the Great Big Canuck Swim, Prime Minister Robert Borden issued a statement saying “Thank God Canadians carry two big hats to paddle with”. (First-time readers might have to consult the May 2nd posting for this one)
Quasi mythical writer ernest Hemingway is offered the Pullitzer prize in 1953 for his self-reflected masterpiece The Old Man and the Sea. The author however refused to attend the ceremony since the prize itself consisted merely of a substantial cheque and certificate. “An Oscar“, Hemingway then told reporters, “now that you can crack some skulls with“.
American TV network NBC today launched their soap opera Another World in 1964. The fact that the show still has substantial viewership 44 years later is described by St. John in Revelations as a very bad sign. May God have mercy on us all.
And finally May 4th 1998 was the last day of trial for Theodore Kaczynski, also known in some circles under the name Una Bomber. The defendant was sentenced to four consecutive terms of 30-year imprisonment, because only one might not have been enough. Kaczynski thanked the judge for his time and asked him to be his pen pal.
WOW: Words Of (a certain) Wisdom
“Always do sober what you said you’d do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.” - Ernest Hemingway