Thursday, July 7, 2011

On This Day in History

1456 – Better late than never (I guess): A retrial verdict acquits Joan of Arc of heresy 25 years after she was unjustly burned at the stake.  She was finally canonized by the Catholic church 453 years later in 1909.

1928 – Sliced bread is sold for the first time by the Chillicothe Baking Company in Chillicothe, Missouri.  So when someone says you're the greatest thing since sliced bread, they're really saying that you're the best thing to come along in the past 83 years.

1940 – Richard Starkey – better known as Ringo Starr, or as I prefer it, the luckiest man who ever lived – was born in Liverpool, England.

1954 – Elvis Presley made his radio debut when WHBQ in Memphis played "That's Alright Mama," his first recording for Sun Records.  Formerly an R&B station, WHBQ became a sports-themed station in the late '80s that currently boasts one of the worst morning rush hour shows among any of the major radio markets.  Believe me on that one.

1985 – Boris Becker, at age 17, became the youngest player ever to win Wimbledon.  He did it again the following year en route to six career major championships along with an impressive 38-3 record in Davis Cup competition.  He remains one of my all-time favorites.

Information obtained via Wikipedia and confirmed, with revisions, through various sources. 

No comments: