July 10

It’s Don’t Step on a Bee Day and Teddy Bear Picnic Day

ON THIS DAY…
0988 The City of Dublin is founded on the banks of the river Liffey
1212 The most severe of several early fires of London burns most of the city to the ground
1553 Lady Jane Grey takes the throne of England
1821 The United States takes possession of its newly-bought territory of Florida from Spain
1850 Millard Fillmore is inaugurated as the 13th President of the United States upon the death of President Zachary Taylor, 16 months into his term
1866 The first US patent for an indelible pencil was issued to Edson P Clark of Northampton, MA as an “Producing Indelible Writing on Linen and other Fabrics”
1877 The then villa of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico formally receives its city charter from the Royal Crown of Spain
1890 Wyoming is admitted to the Union as the 44th state
1892 The first concrete-paved street was built – Court Avenue, around the Logan County Court House, in Bellefountaine, OH
1892 The violent strike of steelworkers at Carnegie Steel’s Homestead works ends when the state militia disperses the strikers. Four days earlier, company guards had shot into the picketers, starting a riot
1913 The National Weather Service records a temperature of 134° F in California’s Death Valley, the highest temperature ever measured in the United States
1925 The so-called Monkey Trial of teacher John Scopes for teaching evolution begins in Dayton, TN; the trial matches nationally famous lawyers Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryant
1933 The first police radio system began operating in Eastchester Township, NY
1938 Howard Hughes sets a new record by completing a 91 hour airplane flight around the world
1953 Four months after the death of Joseph Stalin, Soviet leaders arrest Lavrenty Beria, his longtime head of security. Beria is executed later that year for treason
1958 The first parking meters were installed in England (625 were installed)
1962 A US patent was issued to Swedish engineer, Nils Bohlen, for the three-point seat-belt
1962 Telstar 1, the world’s first geosynchronous communications satellite, was launched from Cape Canaveral, FL to relay TV and telephone signals between the United States and Europe
1973 The Bahamas gain full independence within the Commonwealth of Nations
1978 ABC News World News Tonight premieres
1985 In response to market demand, Coca-Cola re-introduces it’s old formula cola as “Coca-Cola Classic”
1991 Boris Yeltsin begins his 5-year term as the first elected President of Russia
1992 In Miami, FL former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega is sentenced to 40 years in prison for drug and racketeering violations
1997 London scientists report their DNA analysis findings from a Neandertal skeleton which support the out of Africa theory of human evolution placing an “African Eve” at 100,000 to 200,000 years ago
1999 After playing to a scoreless tie through regulation and overtime, the US women’s soccer team defeats China in a shootout, 5 goals to 4, to win their second World Cup

BORN:
1839 Adolphus Busch, co-founder of Anheuser-Busch with his father-in-law, Eberhard Anheuser
1899 John Gilbert, actor (He Who Gets Slapped, The Merry Widow, The Big Parade, Flesh and the Devil, Queen Christina)
1903 John Wyndham (John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris), post-apocalyptic British science fiction writer (The Day of the Triffids, The Midwich Cuckoos)
1905 Wolfram Sievers, Nazi shithead who worked at the Dachau concentration camp and became deputy director/conductor of the adviser of the office for realm research; he also also participated in high altitude experiments and freezing experiments where concentration camp inmates were kept in ice-cold water until they lost consciousness or died – approximately 300 prisoners died in the freezing experiments
1914 Joe Shuster, comic book artist best known for co-creating the DC Comics character Superman, with writer Jerry Siegel
1917 Reg Smyth, cartoonist who created the Andy Capp comic strip
1917 Don Herbert, better known as “Mr. Wizard”, was the host of two popular television shows about science aimed at children
1920 Edward H. Lowe, inventor of Kitty Litter
1926 Fred Gwynne, character actor (Car 54 Where Are You?, The Munsters, My Cousin Vinny, The Cotton Club)
1940 Dennis Allen, actor (Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, The Leslie Uggams Show, What’s It All About, World?)
1943 Arthur Ashe, pro tennis player who, during his playing career, he won three Grand Slam titles
1945 Ron Glass, actor (Firefly, Barney Miller, Houseguest, Teen Angel, Shark)
1946 Sue Lyon, actress (Lolita, The Flim-Flam Man, Tony Rome, Evel Knievel)
1947 Arlo Guthrie, folk singer whose most famous work is “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree”, a talking blues song that lasts for 18 minutes
1954 Neil Tennant, musician, singer and songwriter (Pet Shop Boys)
1960 Roger Craig, former NFL running back who won three Super Bowls (1985, 1989, 1990) while playing with the San Francisco 49ers
1970 John Simm, actor (Life on Mars, Doctor Who, State of Play, The Lakes, 24 Hour Party People)
1972 Peter Serafinowicz, writer-producer-comedian-actor (How Do You Want Me?, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Spaced, Shaun of the Dead, Hardware, Marple: Sleeping Murder)
1974 Chiwetel Ejiofor, actor (Amistad, Dirty Pretty Things, Love Actually, Serenity, Kinky Boots, American Gangster)

DIED:
0138 Hadrian (Publius Aelius Traianus Hadrianus), Roman emperor (117-138) dies at 62
1099 El Cid Campeador (Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar), Castilian nobleman, military leader and gifted diplomat, who after being exiled, conquered and governed the city of Valencia, dies at 59
1989 Mel Blanc, voice actor and comedian; having earned the nickname “The Man of a Thousand Voices,” Blanc is regarded as one of the most gifted and influential persons in his field, dies at 81
1993 Sam Rolfe, writer-producer-TV series creator (The Man From U.N.C.L.E., The Naked Spur, Have Gun – Will Travel), dies at 69
1999 Aaron “Bunny” Lapin, inventor of Reddi-Wip, whipped cream dessert topping in a spray can, dies at 85
2007 Doug Marlette, Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist dies in a car crash at 57