“Jul 8 1932
In 1932, MGM's "Freake" directed by Tod Browning opened at the Rialto. This movie exploited the shock value of real people with severe disabilities. Studio head Louis B. Mayer was appalled while critics and moviegoers felt the same way. It was withdrawn and rereleased as "Nature's Mistakes."

Jul 8 1936
Spanish Civil War begins

Jul 8 1969
Marianne Faithfull was found in a coma after a suicide attempt in Australia.

Jul 8 1976
In 1976, former president Richard Nixon was removed from the New York Bar Association. His license to practice law was revoked.

Jul 8 1987
Kitty Dukakis, revealed addiction to amphetamines for 26 years.

Jul 8 1997
Michael Kennedy, son of Robert F Kennedy, publicly apologizes to his children's babysitter, with whom he had a five year relationship starting when she was age 14. On the same day, the district attorney of Norfolk declined to press charges over the matter.”

“July 9 1952
Pop superstar vocalist and renaissance man John Tesh born in Garden City, NY.

July 9 1980
Seven faithful are trampled in a stampede during a papal visit to Brazil by John Paul II. Way to go!

July 9 1986
The US Attorney General's Commission on Pornography releases their voluminous report, erroneously linking hard core porn to sex crimes. I can only link such porn to sticky pages.

July 9 1995
Disgruntled postal worker William Clark kills his supervisor, in the City of Industry, CA.

July 9 1997
Mike Tyson banned from boxing for one year, and fined $3M for biting Evander Holyfield's ear off in a mysterious cajun ritual.

July 9 1997
Rebecca Thornton, who met her death row inmate husband Floyd on the Internet, attempts to break the man out of prison, armed with an AK47. She dies in a shootout with guards, but not before shooting her husband, who begged for his death as the escape failed.”

“Jul 10 1856
Nikola Tesla's birthday.

July 10 1923
Hailstones as heavy as two pounds kill 23 people in Rostov Russia.

July 10 1972
A herd of angry, startled elephants kills 24 people in Chandka Forest, India.

July 10 1984
To the embarrassment of their ruling junta, Nigerian embassy officials in London attempt to smuggle a kidnapped foreign minister using a sealed diplomatic bag.

July 10 1985
Greenpeace ship "Rainbow Warrior" was blown up by French secret agents when docked at Auckland Harbor, killing a photographer. New Zealand's investigation determined that France was responsible; subsequently the French Defense Minister resigned, and the agents responsible went to jail.

July 10 1992
Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega sentenced to 40 years in prison for eight counts of drug trafficking, money laundering, and racketeering.”

“Jul 12 1843
Mormom #1 Joseph Smith announces a revelation that permits his followers to have multiple wives, sanctioning polygamy. Party on.

July 12 1979
Bonanno boss Carmine Galante, the "cigar problem", whacked at Joe and Mary's Restaurant in Brooklyn. He dies with a cigar still in his mouth. Nearly everyone in the New York mob feared the ruthless Galante, and the killing was sactioned by a consensus of Paul Castellano, Joe Bonanno, and Santo Trafficante.

July 12 1979
It was "Disco Demolition Night" at Comiskey Park, where fans could buy tickets for 98 cents if they brought a disco record to be burned. Thousands of records, however, flew into the field during the second game of the doubleheader, and enough chaos ensued that the Chicago White Sox had to forfeit.

July 12 1996
Talk show host Morton Downey Jr., a boardmember of the National Smokers Alliance and notorious for smoking on the air, undergoes lung cancer surgery at Cedars Sinai in Los Angeles. He will now begin a nationwide anti-smoking crusade.

July 12 1997
Reston VA fastfood worker Eric Barcia assembles a bungee cord reaching nearly 70 feet in length and jumps from a 70 foot railroad trestle. Barcia did not take into account the fact that a bungee stretches on use, therefore his head impacted the pavement at the full force of gravity. (Source: Washington Post)”

“July 13 1793
French revolutionary writer Jean Paul Marat is stabbed to death in his bathtub by Charlotte Corday, as she gives him a list of names to be guillotined. The assassination inspired the famous painting by Jacques Louis David; Corday was executed four days after slaying Marat.

July 13 1917
The first appearance of the B.V.M. (Blessed Virgin Mary) to three young shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal. A later apparition that year was witnessed by 70,000 people in some manner of mass hallucination. The B.V.M. entrusted the children with three prophecies of the coming apolcalypse, the third of which the Vatican retains in a locked wooden box, refusing to reveal it.

July 13 1946
Cheech Marin's birthday. He's actually (gasp) Iranian, and his name is Richard.

July 13 1985
A cancerous growth is removed from President Reagan's colon.

July 13 1994
Tonya Harding's ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, is sentenced in Portland, Oregon, to two years in prison for his role in the attack on Nancy Kerrigan. He serves six months.”

“July 15 1205
Because they killed Jesus, all Jews are condemned to perpetual subjugation and servitude by Pope Innocent III. Sorry guys.

July 15 1857
200 British men, women and children are chopped up and thrown down a well during Indian mutiny (1857)

July 15 1864
A train containing hundreds of Confederate prisoners through Shohola, PA crashes head on with a coal train. The trains was off schedule because of an escape attempt. 74 people, mostly prisoners, died.

July 15 1869
During war with Prussia, French ruler Napoleon III commissions Hippolye Mege Mouries to find a butter substitute. A patent for margarine is issued, it being based on beef fat instead of milk fat. But even with the tactically superior spread, the war is still lost.

July 15 1974
Chris Chubbuck, hostess of morning talkshow Suncoast Digest in Sarasota, FL, blows her brains out with a .38 on live television. "In keeping with Channel 40's policy of bringing you the latest in blood and guts, and in living color, you are going to see another first -- attempted suicide." BLAM.

July 15 1997
Fashion designer/Homosexual Gianni Versace assassinated outside his home by a male whore.”

“Jul 16 1054
1054 The 'Great Schism' between the Western and Eastern churches began over rivalclaims of universal pre-eminence. (In 1965, 911 years later, Pope Paul VI and PatriarchAthenagoras I met to declare an end to the schism.)

Jul 16 1860
A decree from Emperor Norton I of San Francisco, Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, dissolves the United States of America.

Jul 16 1917
The Bolsheviks execute the Czar, Czarina, and their children. Contrary to popular mythos, Anastasia did not escape. DNA tests in the 1990's conclude that the woman who was posing as Anastasia was instead a batty old woman.

Jul 16 1945
First atom bomb is exploded at Trinity, Alamagordo New Mexico. The exposion yields the equivalent 18,0000 tons of TNT.

Jul 16 1964
In 1964, in accepting the Republican presidential nomination in San Francisco, Sen. Barry M. Goldwater said "extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice" and that "moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."

Jul 16 1973
1973 During Watergate hearings, Butterfield reveals existence of tapes

Jul 16 1998
An inattentive deputy sheriff in Lafayette, IN, drives his automobile into the stolen tombstone of actor James Dean. The 400 pound tombstone, which was stolen two days prior from Dean's gravesite at Park Cemetary (and later abandoned on a country road), ripped the transmission out of the deputy's vehicle.”

“* 1941, the Birth of the Jeep. Parade magazine called it "...the
Army's
most intriguing new gadget ... a tiny truck which can do practically
everything." During World War I, the U.S. Army began looking for a
fast,
lightweight all-terrain vehicle, but the search did not grow urgent
until early 1940. At this time, the Axis powers had begun to score
victories in Europe and Northern Africa, intensifying the Allies' need
for an all-terrain vehicle. The U.S. Army issued a challenge to
automotive companies, requesting a working prototype, fit to army
specifications, in just forty-nine days.

Willy's Truck Company was the first to successfully answer the Army's
call, and the new little truck was christened "the Jeep." General
Dwight
D. Eisenhower said that America could not have won World War II without
it.”

“"t was on the 1st of August, 1291 that the origins of present-day Switzerland were established. In a defensive alliance against outside foes, the settlers of central Switzerland formed an alliance and with that the first three cantons of the Confoederatio Helvetica, or “Swiss/Helvetian Confederation”—the cantons of Uri, Unterwalden and Schwyz pledged an oath of allegiance to what is today the world's oldest democracy. The 1st of August is therefore celebrated as Switzerland's national holiday. "

Swiss News Online”

“Aug 16 1938
Blues musician Robert Johnson, who presumably sold his soul to the devil (the story somewhat being told by the movie Crossroads), is poisoned by a jealous husband in Three Forks, Mississippi.

Aug 16 1960
Emmett O. Hashfield abducts, murders, dismembers, and eats part of Avril Terry, an 11 year old girl in Boonevill, IN.

Aug 16 1977
Elvis Presley dies atop his toilet.

Aug 16 1987
Harmonic Convergence!

Aug 16 1997
Aida Nur el-Din - Another from the Nurse Rachet file. An Egyptian hospital matron in Alexandria, Aida confessed to killing at least 18 patients so that she would get a good night sleep. After confessing to her serial poisonings, she jumped from a third-story room in a failed suicide attempt. Aida, 42, allegedly killed her patients by injecting them with various drugs she stole.”

“the world has issues. amen.”

“(2002, England) I am a high school science teacher in Birmingham. I usually teach physics, but due to teacher shortages, I ended up teaching chemistry a few years ago. As you all know, chemistry can be fun, especially when you get onto the subject of reactive metals.
I decided to liven up a particular chemistry lesson by demonstrating the awesome energy released when silver nitrate, magnesium, and a drop of water are mixed. This particular reaction is very violent, exploding in a brilliant white flash when the water is added. It usually ends up shattering the crucible. On this particular occasion I decided to put the chemicals in a sturdy mortar dish to save on crockery. This was my first mistake.

I carefully mixed the powders in the bone-dry mortar, stepped back, and at arms length added a drop of water with a pipette. A small fizz preceded a violent flash, and a collective "ahhhh" from the impressed pupils. As always on these occasions, the pupils shouted, "Do it again, sir!" And as always I said, "OK!" But this time I didn't require a new, bone-dry crucible because Mr. Clever had used a sturdy, reusable mortar dish. I proceeded to add the chemicals again to the mortar, and that was my second mistake.

I added the silver nitrate crystals and crushed them up a little. I then added a liberal spatula of magnesium powder and began to mix the two, my head bent over the dish to see that they were mixed properly. Unfortunately for me, the mortar was damp and warm from the previous reaction. Fortunately for me, as well as having inherited a stupidity gene, I inherited a gene for very fast reflex actions.

At the first hint of a fizz, I threw my head back whilst simultaneously shielding the mortar from my face and body with my hands as the violence of nature was unleashed from the chemicals in the dish. Within a hundredth of a second the reactants spewed forth their energy in a blinding flash of pure white light and heat. You can guess what happened to my hands.

My third mistake occurred later at home, after my trip to the hospital for emergency treatment. Both my hands were heavily bandaged and my head was pretty fuzzy on account of the prescription painkillers I had taken for the excruciating pain of the second-degree burns. I decided to have a cigarette, since it had been a pretty rough day. I don't know if you've ever tried to light a cigarette lighter with fully bandaged hands. Anyway, let me just say I found it rather ironic that burn dressings are flammable.

thinnin out the egene pool:

(25 May 1999, Ukraine) A fisherman in Kiev electrocuted himself while fishing in the river Tereblya. The 43-year-old man connected cables to the main power supply of his home, and trailed the end into the river. The electric shock killed the fish, which floated belly-up to the top of the water. The man waded in to collect his catch, neglecting to remove the live wire, and tragically suffered the same fate as the fish.

In an ironic twist, the man was fishing for a mourning meal to commemorate the first anniversary of his mother-in-law's death.

elsewhere:
In a related story, on January 9 the China Post reported that a 23-year-old Pingtung man died after eating fish he poisoned in a nearby ditch. Three days of diarrhea and vomiting led to his demise after he ate fish he caught by pouring toxic chemicals in the water at the suggestion of friends.”

“Since we're talking about thinning the gene pool....Some guy in Canada died because he couldn't afford alcohol. This nut mixed gasoline and milk together to have a potent drink. After consuming a few glasses of the drink, he started to throw up. It wasn't the mixture that killed him. He threw up in a fireplace...the resulting fire burned down the house, and killed him and his sleeping sister. Duh.”

“now that was a tale i'll remember!!”

“The eruption of Krakatau volcano destroyed most of its body (3/4 of it) and caused wave 40 meters in height.”

“How tall is that in English.”

“LOL
40 meters = 131 feet and a few inches.”

“Thank you, Cliffy.”

“Your welcome Coach!
BTW: The answer was not hard to fathom, in fact its just about 22 fathoms.”

“I'm getting more Norm like as the years tick by!”

“Oct 15 1913
Birthday of Klaus Barbie, the famous Nazi War Criminal. After WWII, US Intelligence helped the "Butcher of Lyons" enter Bolivia, where he lived openly for many years in the capital La Paz. Barbie was finally deported to France in 1987.

Oct 15 1917
The Dutch spy Mata Hari (Spy H21, born as Gertrude Zelle) executed by a 12-man firing squad, Paris, age 41. In Berlin, the dancer slept with officers from many armies, and passed information to the German High Command. After execution her body was given to the University of Paris medical school for dissection.

Oct 15 1976
Ike and Tina Turner break up as a musical duo. Ike being such a nice guy, it's hard to understand why she would want to leave.

Oct 15 1981
Mork has Mindy's baby.”

“I think Jonathan Winters IS from outer space, LOL”

“Nov 4 1963
At a Beatles command performance (present: Queen Elizabeth; the Queen Mother; Princess Margaret), John Lennon utters the remark: "Will the people in the cheaper seats clap their hands? And the rest of you, if you'll just rattle your jewelry."

Nov 4 1966
The Arno and Po rivers in Italy flood, submerging 2/3 of Florence. Irreplaceable rennaisance art treasures and books were destroyed. 113 people died and 30,000 were rendered homeless.

Nov 4 1979
The US Embassy in Tehran is stormed by "students", holding 52 hostages for 444 days. The incident propels Ted Koppel and his magnificent hair onto the national scene with a long series of repetitive Nightline: America Held Hostage specials.

Nov 4 1986
The Iran-Contra Scandal first reported in "Al Shiraa", an obscure Lebanese magazine. The public would come to learn that millions had been paid for US weapons and equipment for Iran in exchange for the release of American hostages in Lebanon. Profits were illegally channeled to the Contras fighting the Sandinista government in Nicaragua.

Nov 4 1993
A series of fires rage in Southern California, destroying 300 very expensive homes in Malibu and 700 homes scattered elsewhere. Damage totals $500M to $1B. Half of the large fires were arson.”

“1853, the United States bought some 45,000 square miles of land from Mexico in a deal known as the Gadsden Purchase. [including Arizona and New Mexico]”

“and it only cost three pesos....


j/k”

“and to this day some, including Rand McNally a couple of years ago, refuse to believe that New Mexico is part of the US.”

“There was someone on C-SPAN the other day reading a leter they rec'd from the IRS detailing the tax implications for residents of a foreign country (New Mexico) working in the US...

And so it goes....

LOL”

“What? New Mexico is part of the US? Next thing ya know New York will be part of the US.”

“Dec 31 1898
Joseph Vacher, known as "Jack the Ripper of France", guillotined. He had a hideous appearance and suffered from Bell's Palsy, a partial paralysis of the face. Vacher killed and mutilated at least 14 victims, young men and women, and commited necrophilia on many of their corpses.

Dec 31 1916
Forty-five retarded girls die in a fire at the St. Ferdinand de Halifax convent asylum in Canada.

Dec 31 1970
The Beatles break up, as Paul McCartney files suit to dissolve their partnership.

Dec 31 1973
Carlos "The Jackal" tries to assassinate Teddy Zeiff, Jewish owner of a major English department store chain. His gun jams. But we all learn his name when he takes the OPEC ministers hostage two years later.

Dec 31 1980
Marshall McLuhan dead at age 69.

Dec 31 1982
A coordinated series of four bombs planted by the Puerto Rican nationalist group FALN explode in Brooklyn and lower Manhattan inside of 90 minutes, injuring three police.

Dec 31 1984
The drummer from Def Leppard, Rick Allen, has his arm torn off in a car accident. He continues with the band single-handedly (ba da boom).

Dec 31 1985
Rock musician Ricky Nelson dies in an airplane crash in De Kalb, TX at age 45.

Dec 31 1999
Paris intends the Eiffel Tower to lay "a gigantic egg" at midnight to honor the coming millenium. What do they smoke in Paris?”

“

4977 BC

, the universe was created (according to calculations by Johannes Kepler).”

“seems like he's off a little, about 400 million or so.”

“I don't think it was Kepler, Violin, although I could be VERY wrong. I once read about an English cleric who worked it out from Bible text. He concluded it was a Wednesday, BTW.”

“Hey, If it started on Wed, then wouldn't Tue be the 7th day?

Woohoo! That means I shouldn't be working today!”

“Does that include daylight savings time, Grem?”

“I think that was the Archbishop Ussher, who worked out the date of the creation of the Earth from his extensive study of the avaliable genealogies in the Bible. His estimate was in 4004 B.C. (can't remember the exact date though).

Kepler may well have calculated a creation date for the Universe, based on what they thought they knew at the time, that could be different than Ussher's calculation.

The current estimates for the age of the Earth are around 4.5x 10⁹ years, at least the last time I saw an estimate, that's what it was. The estimated age of the Universe keeps changing as we discover new astronomical objects that are further away, but I think the current estimate is in the range of 12-15x10⁹ years.”