So go out and eat some raw cookie dough to celebrate (hopefully they've licked the whole salmonella poisoning thing.)The 135th Preakness Stakes at the Pimilico Race Course is run this afternoon (it a run for the black-eyed Susans.)
May 15, 1958 -
Vincente Minnelli's lush valentine to the La Belle Époque era, Gigi premiered in NYC on this date.
From 1954-56, Arthur Freed had to battle the Hays Code in order to bring Colette's tale of a courtesan-in-training to the cinema. He eventually convinced the film industry's Code Office to view the story as condemning rather than glorifying a system of mistresses.
May 15, 1886 -
Emily Dickenson finally heard the buzzing of that fly in her room on this date.
This day is little remembered and yet of great import. It was on May 15, 1916, that Sir Mark Sykes of Britain and Georges Picot of France, with Russia's assent, confirmed their agreement to carve up the tottering Ottoman Empire between them.
Most of the mess that was the 20th Century can be traced back to the accord. In brief, here are some of the some of the issues these knuckleheads were trying to sort out -Russia vs Turkey vs Greece over Constantinople, the Straits and Thrace
France vs the Arabs vs Turkey over Syria
Britain vs France vs the Arabs vs the Zionists over Palestine
Greece vs Turkey vs Italy over Smyrna and southwest Asia Minor
Britain vs France vs the Arabs vs Turkey over Kurdish northern Iraq
France vs Turkey over southeastern Asia Minor and Alexandretta
Russia vs Turkey over Armenia and The southeast Black Sea coast
America, for once, wasn't in on the deal.
May 15, 1918 -
The US Post Office Department (later renamed the USPS) begins the first regular airmail service in the world (between New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC).
Of course this new service was a rousing success - the plane got lost and the mail finally had to be sent via train days later.The Postal Service has not improved much since then
May 15, 1928 -
Plane Crazy was the first animated cartoon to feature Mickey Mouse as well as Minnie Mouse (Mickey's girlfriend). The short was co-directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. Iwerks was also the main animator for this short and reportedly spent six weeks working on it. Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising were credited for assisting him; these two had already signed their contracts with Charles Mintz, but he was still in the process of forming his new studio and so for the time being they were still employed by Disney.
This short would be the last they animated under this somewhat awkward situation. In case you don't know it kids, these guys are the giants of animation and they all worked on this one cartoon.
May 15, 1960 -
The Soviet Union launches Sputnik IV, a three-ton spacecraft containing a "dummy cosmonaut." The mission goes fine until they attempt to retrofire.
A bug in the guidance system had pointed the capsule in the wrong direction, so instead of dropping into the atmosphere the satellite moves into a higher orbit.May 15, 1972 -
On February 16, 1972, Arthur Bremer quit his job as a janitor. Two weeks later, he began his diary on March 1 with the words, "It is my personal plan to assassinate by pistol either Richard Nixon or George Wallace". His purpose was "to do SOMETHING BOLD AND DRAMATIC, FORCEFUL & DYNAMIC, A STATEMENT of my manhood for the world to see".
In his haste, the gunman forgets to yell his carefully-chosen catchphrase, "Penny for your thoughts!"
And when Wallace survives the assassination attempt, albeit confined to a wheelchair, Bremer's name is soon forgotten.
Happy Birthday Michael.
And so it goes
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