Epic Idiot's what happened
On This Day

June 1

1957
Four-minute mile: Don Bowden becomes the first American to run a four-minute mile (3:58.7). Roger Bannister of Britain had done it three years earlier.

1941
First scheduled color TV broadcasts: CBS station WCBW of New York.

1925
Lou Gehrig begins his record 2,130 consecutive major-league games.

1869
Edison receives his first patent, for his electrical vote recorder.

1813
War of 1812 - Don't give up the ship: Ordered by U.S. Capt. James Lawrence after being mortally wounded in battle.

1809
1,000-mile walk: Capt. Allardyce Barclay of Scotland begins his long journey. He had to walk one mile each and every hour for 1,000 hours. He finished on July 12.

1796
Tennessee becomes the 16th state.

1792
Kentucky becomes the 15th state.

1638
Great earthquake in Plymouth.

1956
Lisa Hartman, American actress. TV: Tabatha (grown-up Tabatha from Bewitched) and Knots Landing (both Ciji Dunne and Cathy Rush).

1953
Diana Canova, American actress. TV: Soap (Corrine Tate).

1947
Ron Wood, British rock guitarist, with The Rolling Stones.

1940
René Auberjonois, American actor of French-Canadian descent. TV: Benson (Clayton Endicott).

1940
Kip Stephen Thorne, American physicist. Developed the theory of cosmic wormholes (1985) - based on Einstein's theory of relativity - in which long distance space travel would be possible without exceeding the speed of light.

1939     d. 1992
Cleavon Little, American Tony-Emmy-winning actor. Film: Blazing Saddles (1974, the sheriff).

1937
Morgan Freeman, American actor. Film: Driving Miss Daisy (1989, the chauffeur). TV: The Electric Company (Easy Reader).

1934
Pat Boone (Charles Eugene Boone), American singer. Music: Love Letters in the Sand (1957) and Moody River (1961).

1926     d. 1962
Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jean Mortenson Baker), American actress. Film: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), How To Marry a Millionaire (1953), and Some Like it Hot (1959).

1926
Andy Griffith, American actor. TV: The Andy Griffith Show (Sheriff Andy Taylor).

1890     d. 1949
Frank Morgan (Francis Wuppermann), American actor. Film: The Wizard of Oz (1939, the Wizard).

1849     d. 1940
Freelan O. Stanley, American automaker. He and his twin brother formed the Stanley Steamer Co. (1897-1924), which produced steam-powered automobiles.

1849     d. 1918
Francis E. Stanley, American automaker. He and his twin brother formed the Stanley Steamer Co. (1897-1924), which produced steam-powered automobiles. He also invented a dry photographic plate used by the Eastman Kodak Co.

1815     d. 1867
Otto I, King of Greece (1835-62). His unpopular rule caused him to be deposed in the revolution of 1862.

1801     d. 1877
Brigham Young, Mormon leader. Founder of Salt Lake City and first Gov. of Utah. He left behind 17 widows.

1980     b. 1889
Rube Marquard (Richard William Marquard), American baseball Hall of Fame pitcher. He pitched 19 consecutive wins for the New York Giants in 1912 - a modern day major-league record.

1980     b. 1897
Arthur Charles Nielsen, American marketing researcher. He founded A.C. Nielsen Co. (1923), which conducts radio and TV audience surveys.

1973     b. 1917
Mary Kornman, American actress. She appeared in 41 Our Gang films.

1968     b. 1880
Helen Keller, American author, lecturer. She overcame being both blind and deaf since the age of 19 months.

1962     b. 1906
Adolf Eichmann, German war criminal. As a member of the SS, he organized the transportation of Jews to concentration camps for "the final solution." After the war he was discovered hiding in Argentina. He was then smuggled to Israel where he was hanged for his war crimes.

1959     b. 1883
Sax Rohmer (Arthur Sarsfield Ward), English author, creator of Dr. Fu Manchu (1913).

1952     b. 1859
John Dewey, American philosopher, education reformer. He promoted the idea of learning by doing.

1943     b. 1893
Leslie Howard (Leslie Stainer), English actor. Film: Gone with the Wind (1939, Ashley Wilkes). He was killed by Nazis who, believing Winston Churchill was aboard, shot down his plane.

1941     b. 1873
Hans Berger, German psychiatrist. Invented the electroencephalograph (1929), which is used to record brain waves.

1927     b. 1860
Lizzie Borden (Lisbeth A. Borden), American murder suspect. She was accused of axing her parents to death in 1892; she was acquitted in 1893.

1925     b. 1854
Thomas Riley Marshall, 28th U.S. Vice-President (1913-21). Proclaimed "What this country really needs is a good five-cent cigar" (1915).

1879     b. 1810
James Shields, American general, politician. He is the only person to have served as a U.S. Senator for three states: Illinois (1849-55), Minnesota (1858-59), and Missouri (1879).

1872     b. 1795
James Gordon Bennett, Scottish-born American publisher. Founder of The New York Herald (1835).

1868     b. 1791
James Buchanan, 15th U.S. President (1857-61). The only bachelor U.S. president.

1846     b. ????
Gregory XVI, religious leader, 254th Pope (1831-46).

1660     b. ????
Mary Dyer, American Quaker. Massachusetts had banned Quakers from entering the jurisdiction, the second offense being punishable by death. She violated this law and was hanged in Boston Common.

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