Roe v. Wade at 40: Six questions about the state of abortion rights today

1923 – Juan de la Cierva makes the first autogyro flight.



Ironically, he died as a passenger in a commercial airliner crash, several years later.

1835: The only fiscal year in American history wherein the nation debt was $0.

 oldslabsides wrote: 
a dark, dark day

1913: The Federal Reserve Act is signed into law by Woodrow Wilson

 black321 wrote: 
Nice story!  Would love to see that photo. 

On this day (+3) in 1931, America was spiraling into the depths of the Depression. Thousands of banks had closed and there was a national panic that more closings might be imminent. And large corporations announced huge layoff programs, stunning many who thought they were safe. Those who had a job were grateful just to be employed.

Among those were a group of construction workers in New York City. As they stood amidst the rubble of demolished buildings in midtown Manhattan, they talked of how lucky they were that some rich guy had hired them for a new but risky development. And, since it was near Christmas, they decided to celebrate the fact that they had a job.

They got a Christmas tree from a guy in a lot on the corner who apparently had discovered that folks with apartments suitable for 18 foot trees were not too free with the green pictures of dead presidents in 1931. So the workers stood the big tree up in the rubble and decorated it with tin cans and other items on the lot. A photographer saw it as a perfect symbol of 1931. It caught on immediately and each Christmas as the project proceeded a new tree was put up. And even after the project (Rockefeller Center) was completed, management put up a new (and much bigger) tree each year.

Betty Grable born, 1916.

1903: The Wright brothers achieve powered flight.

On this day in 1941, the Imperial Japanese Naval Air Forces pulled off a major surgical strike (before that term became popular). In less than 110 minutes, they
severely damaged or sank eight huge battleships, three light cruisers and a score of lesser vessels. In addition, they destroyed almost 200 aircraft and killed nearly 3,000 men. And for the next five decades, American schoolboys have learned of the "surprise" attack on Pearl Harbor.

But it shouldn't have been a surprise. First, nearly 10 hours before the attack, Americans intercepted a fourteen part Japanese radio message. They managed to
decipher that by about 4:30 a.m. (Washington time). But the message stayed in the code room awaiting the arrival of the officer of the day so he could see if it was important enough to awaken the President. FDR got it at 7:30 a.m. (still plenty of time). After some discussion, it was determined by the Chief of Naval Operations to send the message to all areas of the Pacific. Because of re-encoding (so the Japanese wouldn't know we knew) the message was not sent till 11:00 a.m. (still a little time.) Out it went to everywhere but Hawaii because….the code receiver was not working. By the time it was relayed to Pearl, the "Arizona" had been on the harbor bottom for a bit over three hours.

A second reason it should not have been a surprise was a book titled "The Great Pacific War". In the book, the author predicted a Japanese "sneak attack" to destroy the American fleet. When it was published (in 1925), it was the cover feature of a New York Times Book Review. That happened to be the same year that a Japanese Ensign named Yamamoto was a Consular Aide in Washington D.C. The final reason it shouldn't have been a surprise is that it was an American idea. Ten years earlier, U.S. Adm. Harry Yarnell had tried to prove the vulnerability of Pearl Harbor. The plan he devised and demonstrated in 1932 was copied and used by the Japanese right down to the exact course that their carriers would use and the exact spot at sea for launching the planes. In a series of investigations after the war,  congressmen refused to believe the Japanese had actually used Yarnell's plan.

No wonder they were skeptical. Who ever heard of someone taking an innovative American idea, shaping it to their own designs and exploiting it against the Americans themselves.

This date in 1923 was the first time a Presidential speech was broadcast to the nation via radio. Calvin Coolidge speaking to a joint session of Congress.

 black321 wrote: 
Interesting origins regarding the feast of St. Nicholas, but with hints at one slight, urban myth: Apparently, Thomas Nast had portrayed Santa Claus in the red and white attire, in a book published around 1890.  The legendary (among illustrators) Haddon Sundblom's famous illustrations for Coca Cola (starting in 1931) were apparently inspired by Nast's works, and not dictated by the client's product colors.

Jumping the gun on this one...

On this day (+1), which would be December 6th if you have a graduate degree, in about 705 A.D., the Nordic tribes of Europe, recently converted to Christianity, began to adopt a theologically un-definable affection to an Archbishop who had existed three centuries before in an area east of Greece. Legend says he was as wise as they come. And, certainly he was devout. But was that enough to make him a big hit? He did have the added benefits of being the designated patron saint of scholars (ain't we all); merchants (a popular Nordic pastime); sailors (the other Viking pastime) and children. He had gained the latter role
through the legend that he had saved three dowry-less young girls by dropping jewels into their home through an open window.

So, over the next thousand years, these Nordic tribes would recall his love of children and his generosity by giving gifts to their children and the poor on St. Nick's feast day – December 6th. When the Dutch came to America, they brought their gift-giving "Sinte Klaus" with them. America moved the day to Christmas and mispronounced his name to Santa Claus.

Of course, by this time Nordic and American winters had made open windows rather impractical in December. So the chimney became the logical point of entry. And, since cold floors tended to make you reach for your stockings (hung to dry by the fire), they became the logical place to hide the jewels (gifts).
Santa's American evolution from an affable Archbishop to the rotund old elf we know today came with the assistance of a lot of helpers.
First among these is probably Washington Irving the creator of Rip Van Winkle, the Headless Horseman and a variety of stories around the early Dutch settlers. Irving took Sinte Klaus out of his clerical robes and dressed him in the long wool coats favored by the early Dutch burghers around Sleepy Hollow.

Then, around 1822, a classical language scholar, Clement Clark Moore, wrote a poem for his children, which he called – A Visit From St. Nicholas (it quickly became known by its first line – "T'was the night before Christmas"). Moore tried to keep the poem private but his wife mailed it to many friends and the poem and its Jolly Old Elf image swept the new nation.

During the Civil War, Harpers Weekly asked the budding political cartoonist, Thomas Nast, to give them a Christmas image. Nast drew Santa visiting Union troops at the front lines. Nast's first Santa had a certain "Uncle Sam" look about him and was garbed in stars and stripes. In succeeding years, Nast mellowed the image and it became more like the portrayal in Moore's poem.

Then came a rather critical year in the evolution of Christmas and Santa. It was 1931 and it would see the first Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree. (A rather ragtag version, erected and decorated by the grateful construction workers building Rockefeller Center.) 

Hoping to cheer up a nation slipping into a Depression, Coca-Cola hired an advertising artist to paint them a cheerful Santa for a fun and festive holiday promotion. The artist thought that Santa's outfit should not clash with the Coke sign, so he used the same colors – red and white. Thus, Santa had a bright red coat, trimmed in snow white fur that matched his snow white beard. At last the current image was complete as Coca-Cola flashed the ads around the globe.

To prepare for the feast of good old St. Nick, go to the Rooftop Inn and sip enough well-laced eggnog to make your nose look like Rudolph's. But don't get out of line or they'll put coal in your stocking.

Five interesting facts about Prohibition’s end in 1933

 mzpro5 wrote: 

Happy birthday, 21st Amendment!

 mzpro5 wrote: 

Raise a glass and celebrate Repeal Day! Prohibition (21st amendment) was repealed on Dec. 5, 1933

1942 – During the Manhattan Project, a team led by Enrico Fermi initiates the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction.