There’s a daily column in the local newspaper called “Today in History,” which lists things that happened on today’s date in other years. For instance, on August 4, 1944, Anne Frank and her family were discovered, after hiding in a garret for over two years. Sent to a concentration camp, fifteen-year-old Anne died about a month before it was liberated.
On August 5, 1957, “American Bandstand” made its network debut. As a teenager who was younger than Anne Frank, I remember exactly where I was at the time, and I watched Dick Clark for years after. And on today’s date in 1988, the Chicago Cubs were scheduled to play their first home game under lights, but rain forced its cancellation in the fourth inning.
I have no idea how The Associated Press, which syndicates “Today in History,” makes its selections, although I suspect choices must be memorable enough that readers’ can relate to the incidents and want to read the column regularly.
For the fun of it I went to Google® and checked to see what other events might also have occurred on August 8 in other years, and I found an almost endless list to choose from.
For instance, baseball legend Pete Rose began his five month prison term on this date in 1990, the temperature hit a high of 88 degrees in New York City on 8/8/88, and Brigadier General Efrain Rios Montt was deposed as the president of Guatemala. In 1960, the song “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini” hit number one on this date; today it’s mostly recognized as part of a commercial. In 1925, the Ku Klux Klan held it first national march in Washington, D.C., and the Queen of the Sandwich Islands visited New York City in 1860.
When I read the paper this evening, I’ll be curious to see if The Associated Press and I picked any of the same events, and I’m betting we haven’t. One thing is for sure, however. The AP probably won’t list the fact that Earl was born on this date, while I put this event at the top of the list.
Happy birthday, Earl.
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