Though not as front of mind as Monkeypox (MPXV), mosquito-borne diseases, like Dengue Fever or West Nile Virus cases have been been once again on the rise in New York City, as it has been in the past. Beyond being itch-provoking summer pests, mosquitoes kill more that an an estimated million people around the world each year. That makes them more deadly than any animal on Earth, humans included. The World Health Organization estimates that between 300 and 500 million cases of malaria occur each year, which are transmitted person to person in a one-celled parasite that female mosquitoes pass around when they suck our blood.
ACME takes some pride in this (not the deaths, mind you, but reporting on this.) and once again we would like to publish this importance health update:
It's not always easy to discern whether or not a given mosquito is carrying the Malaria parasite, so the prudent move is to avoid all mosquitoes.
This may be unfair to innocent mosquitoes who mean you no harm--the so-called "moderate" mosquitoes - but political niceties must be subordinated to threats to your survival.
It's important to remember that mosquitoes are masters of disguise. With a little makeup or a fancy hat, any mosquito can take on the appearance of several other species. They cannot, however, conceal their stingers.
Avoid all insects with stingers. If you encounter one that claims its stinger is merely a golf-club wedged into its rectum, do not believe it: insects don't golf.
Do not open your doors or windows to strangers before ascertaining whether or not they're mosquitoes. If they acknowledge being mosquitoes but deny carrying the Malaria parasite, do not trust them. Some mosquitoes may even offer to show you a doctor's certificate, but such evidence is meaningless: they may have picked up the Malaria parasite in the time elapsed since their doctor tested them.
Upon your ole doctor's advice: Continue to drink large quantities of Gin and Tonics during these summer months.
August 7 is annually recognizes a famous sea serpent sighting. This sighting was made by the men and officers of HMS Daedalus in August 1848 during a voyage to Saint Helena in the South Atlantic. The 60 foot long creature that they saw held a peculiar maned head above the ocean water.
Let us also remember that in 1752, Erik Pontoppidan, the Bishop of Bergen, wrote a published report of seeing the Kraken, a horned creature so large that when it surfaced, most of its body remained underwater.
(We should always celebrate Cecil the sea sick sea serpent. )
August 7, 1948 -
... Huh! I must be walking in my sleep. But how can I be walking in my sleep if I'm awake enough to know I'm walking in my sleep. The strange things people do in their sleep, especially if they're awake.
Chuck Jones guided Daffy Duck's personality change from a "screwball" character, to a greedy, self-centered one in You Were Never Duckier which premiered on this date.
August 7, 1953 -
The best musical of the Golden Age of Hollywood Musicals (unless you consider Singing in the Rain the best), The Band Wagon, premiered on this date.
Choreographer Michael Kidd was terrified of showing Fred Astaire his ideas for the Girl Hunt ballet because they were the antithesis of the persona that Astaire usually had - that of an elegant man in top hat, white tie, and tails. It turned out Astaire loved all Kidd's ideas and even suggested some of his own.
August 7, 1963 -
American International released the first "beach-blanket" film, Beach Party, on this date.
Although "old fogey" Professor Sutwell knew nothing about beach life, actor Robert Cummings was a competent surfer himself, as documented in personal home movies shot in Hawaii by Hollywood's television host and author Ken Murray.
August 7, 1971 -
The Bee Gees early hit How Can You Mend a Broken Heart? topped the charts on this date. It became their first US #1 hit.
This was written during the same afternoon as The Bee Gees' previous American hit, Lonely Days in Barry Gibb's basement flat at Addison Road, Holland Park, London.
August 7, 1976 -
Elton John and Kiki Dee's song Don't Go Breaking My Heart hits #1 in America for the first of four weeks, on this date.
This was the second-biggest-selling record of 1976 in both the UK and US (In the UK, Save Your Kisses for Me was #1; in the US it was Silly Love Songs by Wings.) It was a huge international success, topping the charts in a number of countries, including France, Italy, Australia and Canada.
August 7, 1981 -
The animated sci-fi film Heavy Metal went into general release in the US and Canada on this date.
This movie was inspired by a long-running science fiction magazine of the same title, which began in Europe as Metal Hurlant. Most of the story segments are based on stories or characters featured in the magazine.
August 7, 2018 -
Jon M Chu's suprprise mega-hit romantic comedy (with all-Asian cast,) Crazy Rich Asians, starring Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Gemma Chan, Lisa Lu, Awkwafina, Ken Jeong, and Michelle Yeoh, premieres in Los Angeles on this date.
Awkwafina was supposed to wear several different wigs throughout the movie; however, after putting on the blonde wig, it was decided to scrap other wigs and just keep the one. The joke about this was kept in the scene where actor Ken Jeong starts calling her "Asian Ellen" (aka Ellen DeGeneres).
Another book from the back shelves of The ACME Library
Today in History:
August 7, 1782 -
... the road to glory in a patriot army and a free country is is thus open to all.
Washington authorized the award of the Purple Heart for soldiers wounded in combat.
August 7, 1876 -
The German spy Mata Hari, a Dutchwoman named Margaretha Geertruida Zelle, was born on this day. She was executed by the French on October 14, 1917. (I seem to bring her up a lot.)
There was not much actual evidence of espionage, but she had been seen naked with German officers and the French found this distasteful enough to kill her.
August 7, 1882 -
Ellison Hatfield was stabbed 26 times and shot in the back by Tolbert McCoy and two of his brothers. Two days later, the Hatfield clan captures the three McCoys and executes them by firing squad.
Thus begins generations of bloodshed between the families, ultimately causing about 100 casualties.
Louis Leakey was born on this day, in 1903. Mr Leakey was a prominent British archeologist who discovered that either mankind was much older than had previously been supposed or that mankind had not actually been mankind but some other kind instead.
August 7, 1947 -
Thor Heyerdahl's balsa wood raft the Kon-Tiki, (which started the trip on April 28, 1947,) smashes into the reef at Raroia in the Tuamotu Islands after a 101-day, 7,000 kilometres (4,300 miles) journey across the Pacific Ocean in an attempt to prove that pre-historic peoples could have traveled from South America.
Heyerdahl's theory of Polynesian origins never gained acceptance among anthropologists. Physical and cultural evidence had long suggested that Polynesia was settled from west to east, migration having begun from the Asian mainland, not South America. In the late 1990s, genetic testing found that the mitochondrial DNA of the Polynesians is more similar to people from southeast Asia than to people from South America, showing that their ancestors most likely came from Asia. Easter Islanders are of Polynesian descent.
August 7, 1953 -
If only Nixon had given Eisenhower that rum toddy today and tucked him in for his afternoon nap, the 2016 election might have been different.
President Eisenhower signed legislation retroactively granting Ohio official statehood for the previous 150 years. In 1803, apparently everyone just assumed that Ohio was a state, even though Congress had never passed legislation to that effect. The nation remained blissfully unaware of this fact until nosy historians began snooping around in preparation for Ohio's Sesquicentennial.
August 7, 1955 -
The first transistor radio, the model TR-55, was sold in Japan on this date. The first transistor radio in the US, the Regency TR1, was put on the market on October 18, 1954.
Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering, the forerunner of the later Sony, launched the line of radios.
August 7, 1957 -
It was 1954 and the world's most beloved comedy duo were getting ready for a comeback. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were enjoying a resurgence of popularity in the U.S. thanks to constant showings of their old movies on television. The duo were on the verge of starring in a series of TV comedy specials when Stan Laurel suffered a stroke in April of 1955. While recuperating, Oliver Hardy suffered a massive heart attack. Doctors ordered Hardy bed rest and a diet regime. Hardy lost an amazing 150 lbs and Laurel completely recovered from his stroke.
Unfortunately, on September 12, 1956, Oliver Hardy suffered a debilitating stroke. while he survived, he was left completely disabled. His wife cared for him constantly (at home) while Laurel visited often. Oliver Hardy succumbed to his stroke on this date. Upon hearing the news of his death, Stan Laurel said, "What's there to say? It's shocking of course. Ollie was like a brother."
August 7, 1959 -
Explorer 6 transmitted the first TV photo of Earth from space on this date.
The satellite, popularly known as the 'paddlewheel satellite,' featured a photocell scanner that transmitted a crude picture of the earth's surface and cloud cover from a distance of 17,000 miles.
August 7, 1960 -
Film and television actor David Duchovny (recovering sex addict and another member of the Milton Berle club) was born in New York City on this date. Two of his most popular TV roles include Special Agent Fox Mulder from The X-Files and troubled writer Hank Moody on Showtime's Californication.
Remember, the truth is out there. But then again, What is truth, what is beauty and remember hemlock is poison.
August 7, 1974 -
Yes bunkies - The past is a foreign country; they did things differently there.
Philippe Petit, the French high wire artist, walked between the Twin Towers in New York City on this date.
And so it goes.
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