September 2010
66 posts
1 tag
In Memoriam: Tony Curtis
In memory of the great late Tony Curtis I went for a dig in the archives to pull together a brief history of the Hollywood legend.
Born Bernard Schwartz, he grew up the son of a tailor, a scrappy New York City Jewish street kid determined to be somebody. After a stint in the Navy, he got his first show business job in Chicago in 1946 with a Yiddish theater located at Ogden and Kedzie...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1399 – Henry IV is named King of England. Like all English monarchs, he is a descendant of William the Conqueror. Interesting fact, at his coronation, Henry IV was the first king to make his address in English since 1066.
1791 – French Revolution: The National Constituent Assembly in Paris is dissolved; and Parisians proclaim Robespierre an “incorruptible patriot”. And then the...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
Today is the Christian holy day of Michaelmas, the feast of St. Michael the Archangel. In the Middle Ages it was a holy day of obligation and also served to mark the beginning of Autumn. In England and Ireland it was also a designated day for settling accounts.
Traditional meal for the day includes goose (a “stubble-goose”, i.e. one prepared around harvest time) and a special cake...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1066 – Norman “Bastard” William the Conqueror invades England, thus beginning the Norman Conquest. This is as world changing an event as we get in “this day in history.” 1542 – Portuguese Navigator João Rodrigues Cabrilho lands in California at the site of modern-day San Diego. 1781 – In another game changing military event, American Colonial forces attack Yorktown,...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1529 – Ottaman Sultan Suleiman I begins The Siege of Vienna with his attack on the city. According to culinary legend, this also marks the invention of the crescent shaped croissant.
1777 – In random American history today, Lancaster, Pennsylvania is named the capital of the United States, for one day.
1821 – Felicidades! Today is 189th anniversary of Mexico’s independence from Spain.
1905...
The Evolution Of NFL Protective Gear →
visualoop:
Today in History...This Stuff Happened
622 – Prophet Muhammad completes his hijra “flight” from Mecca to Medina with his followers. 1664 – The Dutch surrender New Amsterdam to the British, who promptly rename it New York. The little known Anglo-Dutch wars result in some “tug of war” over the island, but by 1674 it becomes officially British and in return, the Dutch get the South American island of Suriname. Fair...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1122 – Concordat of Worms is established between the Pope and Holy Roman Emperor, bringing to an end their dispute over the powers of Church and State within European kingdoms. Of course, related issues would be contested well into the 20th century. Some things never change.
1642 – First commencement exercises occur at Harvard College. We hear the parking was not too bad in Harvard Yard.
1780 –...
“Journalism, whatever that is anymore, is a jungle. Bring your machete.”
– Bill White (via soupsoup)
niemanlab:
Good morning! NYT Co. expects digital advertising revenues to increase around 14% in Q3 http://nie.mn/coH2MR
niemanlab:
Does more speed and more content come at the cost of creativity? http://j.mp/ao0rJ5 hamsterwheel
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
451 – The Battle of Châlons takes place in North Eastern France. The largest battle of the ancient world, the defeat of Attila the Hun preserves the independence of Western Europe from Hun occupation.
1187 – Saladin begins the Siege of Jerusalem. By Oct. 2 he concurs the city. Saladin allows Jews to resettle in Jerusalem. This action and others means that he is remembered in Western history as a...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1787 The U.S. Constitution is completed at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. A testament to democracy, most but not all the delegates sign the historic document. It’s also fitting that it should not be unanimously ratified, as it will continue to be debated to this very day. Happy Birthday, Constitution!
1920 The American Professional Football Association – the forerunner of...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1620 The Mayflower sets sail for the “New World.” These plain clothed Puritans would be amazed to see their “descendants” decked out in pink polos and Madras.
1630 The Massachusetts village of Shawmut changes its name to Boston. Because a Boston accent sounds so much classier. 1638 France’s King Louis XIV is born. Wonder if he was born wearing heels? 1810 Viva Mexico! Mexico...
niemanlab:
“Comic Sans is basically shorthand for stupid, in design terms.” http://nie.mn/bgl8EY
niemanlab:
What newtwitter means for news http://nie.mn/akYz1u
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1616 – The first non-aristocratic, free public school in Europe is opened in Frascati, Italy. What’s pretty incredible, is that by 1635 there would be one in the United States as well (the Boston Latin School)!
1812 – Napoleon’s army reaches the Kremlin in Moscow. This ends badly.
1821 –Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica all declare independence from Spain....
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1901 President William B. McKinley dies of gunshot wounds as a result of a shooting 8 days earlier. VP Theodore Roosevelt, 42, is sworn in, becoming the youngest president in U.S. history. Mckinley has renewed fame these days, as the high school on Glee is named for him. Am sure he would be thrilled. 1948 Ground is broken in New York City for the United Nations’ world headquarters. 1975...
“In May, two academics researching the display of social information looked at...”
– The internet was supposed to transcend colour, social identity and national borders. But research suggests that the internet is not so radical. People are online what they are offline: divided, and slow to build bridges. (via theeconomist)
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
1814- Francis Scott Key pens the words to the Star Spangled Banner. Then chooses a drinking song for the tune and condemns America to an anthem which is difficult for anyone but the most talented singers to perform well.
1857- Chocoholics rejoice and thank god that on this day in 1857 Milton S. Hershey was born!
1916- Children’s book author Roald Dahl is born. His childhood and Swedish...
Out of office: High holy daze
soupsoup:
today:
Hey there! The TODAY Tumblr will be off for the next few days to celebrate Rosh Hashanah (shocker: a Jew in media)
While we’re busy consuming abnormal amounts of kugel (pronounced “koo-gel”), please be sure to visit some of our favorite Tumblrs (including our religious friends at Young Manhattanite)
Interesting things: SoupSoup
News: msnbc
Celebs/Ent: Whatevs
Opinion: Peter...
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Today in History...This Stuff Happened
Happy Birthday to America’s name, California, North Korea and… Hugh Grant (the dapper Englishman turns, 50).
1776-By order of the 2nd Continental Congress “The United States” replaces “United Colonies” as America’s official name.
1850-California becomes the 31st state of the Union. 10 years ago, we celebrated with a commemorative stamp. Wonder what...
Baltimore teen completes solo flight to California →
Cool story.
6 tags
Today in History...This Stuff Happened
September 8th is a good day for American culture.
In 1952 Ernest Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea, the bane of every middle school-er’s reading list, was published. Am still waiting for the publication of “Old Man and the Mine” (my equally thrilling life story).
In 1966, Star Trek premiered on television, as a result middle school-er’s everywhere had an even...
niemanlab:
How does the Bay Citizen-New York Times relationship work? http://nie.mn/9CyosB
Newspapers Actually Starting to CARE What Readers... →
A great commentary, I thought, from A Sellout’s Samizdat:
Here’s a novel thought - run a newspaper like a business and actually give customers what they want…
This story in the Times today cracks me up. This comes from the media’s biggest eat-your-vegetables paper, that delights in telling people what to think through its distorted NYC lens.
Maybe running a paper like a business feels dirty...
Victorian Quote - Arthur Conan Doyle on camels
Arthur Conan Doyle is the man. He also was a huge believer in Spiritualism, attended a lot of seances in his day.
msthackeray:
I have decided to try and make Victorian quotes a regular thing. There will be one every Tuesday and the first few will all be Conan Doyle, mainly because I am just reading his biography. They have no particular theme; they will just be things that struck me as either...
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Another interesting find: "Southern Sudan unveils...
For as long as there have been cities, governments have embraced various schemes for urban planning, ranging from the imperial: Rome’s universal grid plan, to the practical: Manhattan, to the spiritual: Salt Lake City’s numbered grid centered on Temple Sqaure, to the militaristic: Florence’s star shaped defense against canon-fire.
But a city laid out like an animal?
The...
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Fun Facts from the Archives: How 12 dog breeds got... →
“I don’t give anyone Hell. I tell the truth, and they call it Hell.”
– What a man.
Harry Truman (via soupsoup)
This is the headline of the year →
Indeed. Somewhere in Pennsylvania, there’s a copy editor still laughing his butt off. Get it?
idlewyld:
Amazing.
“I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to interview people with your shades on, but...”
– Eric Lawson and Zoneil Maharaj (via tiffanythedoe)
Words of wisdom.
