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Epic Idiot's what happened
On This Day
February 19Copyright 1989-2007 epicidiot.com
1988 5½-year horseback ride: Two men begin a horseback journey from the southern tip of South America to the Arctic Circle, completing the voyage in September of 1993.
1968 First statewide teachers strike in the U.S., more than half of Florida's public school teacher walk out protesting poor pay and inadequate funding of education.
1949 First Bollingen Prize for Poetry is awarded, Ezra Pound for Pisan Cantos.
1945 World War II - U.S. troops land on Iwo Jima: With more than 7,000 U.S. soldiers killed, it was one of the costliest battles of the war.
1942 World War II: 110,000 Japanese-Americans are ordered by Pres. Roosevelt to relocate in U.S. prison camps. Two-thirds of these people were citizens.
1923 Hindus: The U.S. Supreme Court decides that Hindus are not eligible for U.S. citizenship.
1922 First radio stage show: Ed Wynn stars in The Perfect Fool on WJZ of Newark, New Jersey.
1878 Phonograph: Thomas Edison receives a patent for the first phonograph.
1807 First arrest of a U.S. Vice-President: Former Vice-Pres. Aaron Burr is arrested for treason against the U.S. He had organized an armed militia of about 60 men; the exact purpose of which has never been determined. He was acquitted.
1700 Gregorian calendar is adopted by Denmark and Norway: Today's date became March 1.
1682 Gregorian calendar is adopted by Strassburg, Germany: Today's date became March 1.
1966 Justine Bateman, American actress. TV: Family Ties (Mallory Keaton).
1960 Prince Andrew, Duke of York.
1955 Margaux Hemingway, American actress, model. Film: They Call Me Bruce? (1982). She is the granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway.
1940 Smokey Robinson (William Robinson, Jr.), American singer, with The Miracles. Music: Shop Around (1961) and The Tears of a Clown (1970, #1).
1924 d. 1987 Lee Marvin, American Oscar-winning actor. Film: Cat Ballou (1965, Oscar) and The Dirty Dozen (1967). TV: M Squad (Lt. Frank Ballinger).
1916 d. 1997 Eddie Arcaro, American Hall of Fame jockey. He was the first jockey to win the Triple Crown twice (1941, 1948), and he is a 5-time winner of the Kentucky Derby. (Source: Famous First Facts)
1909 d. 2002 Selden Rodman, American author. He edited One Hundred American Poems (1948), which became the first paperback published by Signet Books.
1902 d. 1986 John Bubbles (John William Sublett), American tap dancer, creator of Rhythm Tap. Known for his role as Sportin' Life in Porgy and Bess (1935).
1865 d. 1952 Sven Hedin, Swedish explorer, scientist. His explorations (1899-1902) provided the first substantial knowledge of Tibet to the rest of the world.
1817 d. 1890 William III, King of Holland (1849-90). In 1862 he decreed the end of slavery in the Dutch West Indies.
1473 d. 1543 Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish astronomer, developed the concept of the Sun as the center of the solar system.
1986 b. 1922 Adolfo Celi, Italian actor. Film: Thunderball (1965, one-eyed SPECTRE agent Emilio Largo).
1951 b. 1869 André Gide, French author, winner of Nobel Prize for literature (1947). The Catholic Church placed his works on the Index of Forbidden Books (1952). Quote: The color of truth is gray.
1936 b. 1879 William "Billy" Mitchell, American brigadier general. His persistent lobbying for a strong air force was ridiculed by military leaders and led to his being busted to private.
1916 b. 1838 Ernst Mach, Austrian physicist. The unit of measure of speed "Mach" is named for him.
1897 b. 1824 Charles Blondin (Jean Francois Gravelet), French acrobat, aerialist. He is best remembered for crossing Niagara Falls on a tightrope. He also crossed it blindfolded, pushing a wheelbarrow, carrying a man on his back, and on stilts.
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