Today is the 78th anniversary of the founding of WHO (World Health Organization), started in 1948 on this date. This years topic of World Health Day 2025 is "Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures", urging governments and the health community to ramp up efforts to end preventable maternal and newborn deaths, and to prioritize women’s longer-term health and well-being.
Despite what those in Washington D.C. tell you, everyone, everywhere has the right to access to quality health services.
April 7, 1933 -
Today is also National Beer Day. While it is not actual a national holiday, in March of 1933, President Roosevelt signed the Cullen–Harrison Act allowing the sale of beer once again with the proviso, the beer remain no more than 3.2% alcohol by weight, the first legal alcohol allowed since Prohibition began in 1919.
On this date, the act became law, and beer production began – thus marking the imminent end of Prohibition. April 7th does NOT signify the end of National Prohibition. National Prohibition ended on December 5, 1933. New Beer's Eve (which was celebrated last night) occurred during National Alcohol Awareness Month.
Celebrate either as you see fit.
April 7, 1915 -
Eleanora Fagan, considered by many to be the greatest jazz vocalist of all time, was born on this day. Though her career was relatively short and often erratic, she left behind a body of work as great as any vocalist before or since.
Eleanora's (or as she was professionally known, Billie Holiday) vocal style — strongly inspired by instrumentalists — pioneered a new way of manipulating wording and tempo, and also popularized a more personal and intimate approach to singing.
April 7, 1933 -
Arguably his most influential film, French filmmaker Jean Vigo's feature, Zero de Conduite (Zero for Conduct) was released on this date.
The film was banned by the French censor until after 1946. The film has been ranked as one of the "100 Movies That Shook the World".
April 7, 1945 -
Another Looney Tunes short Behind the Meat-Ball, directed by Frank Tashlin was released on this date.
The working title of this short was "Chow Hounds". A short with a similar title, "Chow Hound", would be released in 1951.
April 7, 1951 -
Another Looney Tunes short A Bone for a Bone, directed by Friz Freleng and featuring The Goofy Gophers was released on this date.
Although the dog in this cartoon is named George P. Dog (which is Barnyard Dawg's real name), they are not the same character.
April 7, 1970 -
John Schlesinger's Midnight Cowboy won the Oscar for Best Picture on this date. It remains the only X-rated film to win an Academy Award.
The film was rated "X" (no one under 17 admitted) upon its original release in 1969, but the unrestricted use of that rating by pornographic filmmakers caused the rating to quickly become associated with hardcore sex films. Because of the stigma that developed around the "X" rating in the ratings system's early years, many theaters refused to run X-rated films, and many newspapers would not run ads for them. The film was given a new R-rating (children under 17 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian) rating in 1971, without having anything changed or removed. It remains the only X-rated film to win the Oscar for Best Picture, be shown on network television (although the "R" reclassification had taken place by then), or be screened by a sitting U.S. President, Richard Nixon.
April 7, 1973 -
The Universal Pictures western, High Plains Drifter, directed by Clint Eastwood, and starring Clint Eastwood, Verna Bloom, Mariana Hill, Mitchell Ryan, Jack Ging and Stefan Gierasch, was released on this date.
Shortly after this movie's release, Clint Eastwood wrote to John Wayne, suggesting that they make a western together. Wayne sent back an angry letter in reply, in which he denounced this movie for its violence and revisionist portrayal of the Old West. Eastwood did not bother to answer his criticisms, and consequently they did not work together.
April 7, 1976 -
The Paramount Pictures comedy The Bad News Bears, directed by Michael Ritchie and starring Walter Matthau, Tatum O'Neal, Vic Morrow, Joyce Van Patten, Ben Piazza, Jackie Earle Haley, and Alfred W. Lutter, went into general release in the US on this date.
Tatum O'Neal trained with a professional sports trainer for several weeks before filming began in August 1975, so she could get her pitch "pitch perfect," so to speak. Although some of the pitches in the movie were done by stunt doubles, O'Neal did the bulk of them on her own. (Rare for a movie like this.)
April 7, 1978 -
The Police release Roxanne in the UK on this date.
BBC Radio 1 refuses to play it, which tanks the song, but when the band tours America a year later it catches on in that country, becoming their first hit.
April 7, 1979 -
With Richard Benjamin as the guest host, Rickie Lee Jones is the musical guest on Saturday Night Live, on this date. She performs her hits Chuck E.'s In Love and Coolsville.
The episode is notable not only for Rickie Lee Jones performance but it is the first appearance of Rodney Dangerfield on the show, in this episode.
April 7, 1979 -
The one and only Grammy winner for Best Disco song, I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor topped the charts on this date.
The song beat out Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough, Bad Girls, Boogie Wonderland and Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? for the 1979 Grammy for Best Disco Recording. It was the first and last time the Grammy was offered in this category, but not the last win for Gaynor, who won Best Roots Gospel Album 40 years later in 2019 for Testimony.
April 7, 1993 -
The 20th Century Fox film, The Sandlot, directed by David Mickey Evans, and starring Tom Guiry, Mike Vitar, Karen Allen, Denis Leary, and James Earl Jones, opened in the US and Canada on this date.
In order to establish the close bond between Smalls and Benny, the director had Tom Guiry and Mike Vitar meet and rehearse together weeks before the rest of the kids showed up to film. It worked so well that the other kids genuinely believed the two actors had been friends for a long time. To this day, Tom Guiry and Mike Vitar remained friends and kept in touch with each other since filming for this movie ended.
Today's moment of Zen.
Today in History:
April 7, 1805 -
Beethoven conducted the premiere of his Eroica Symphony No. 3 in E flat major on this date. Beethoven used the symphony to convey popular notions about heroism and revolution, which were prevalent throughout Europe at the time.
He was full of enthusiasm and respect for the French Revolution's ideals, and especially (at first) Napoleon Bonaparte. Beethoven, like a teenage groupie, scrawled Napoleon's name all over the dedication page of the symphony.
But then Napoleon went on a world tour and started conquering random European countries. When he became a truly evil bastard, finally declared himself Emperor of the French in 1804, Beethoven flew into a rage.
He ripped through the paper as he scratched out Napoleon's name with a knife.
April 7, 1927 -
An audience in New York saw an image of Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover in the first successful long-distance demonstration of television. Hoover’s image and voice were transmitted across telephone lines. Edna Mae Horner, an operator at the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company, assisted the transmission and became the first woman on television.
Unfortunately, this was not a demonstration of a time machine and Hoover didn't get a message about the upcoming Great Depression.
April 7, 1939 -
That little old Italian wine maker, Francis Ford Coppola, (who is also a magazine publisher and hotelier) was born on this date.
Like Martin Scorsese, Coppola was a sickly youth, a case of polio which allowed him time to indulge in puppet theater and home movies.
April 7, 1954 -
President Dwight D. Eisenhower coined one of the most famous Cold War phrases when he suggests the fall of French Indochina to the communists could create a "domino" effect in Southeast Asia on this date.
The so-called "domino theory" dominated U.S. thinking about Vietnam for the next decade.
Who know that the President was so afraid of the Pizza boy?
April 7, 1956 -
Capitol Tower, the headquarters of Capitol Records in Hollywood, California, was dedicated on this date.
The building, designed to resemble a stack of records, was the first circular office tower in the U.S. The blinking light atop the tower spells out the word "Hollywood" in Morse code, and has done so since the building's opening in 1956.
April 7, 1989 -
Soviet nuclear submarine K-278 Komsomolets sank in the Norwegian sea, with two nuclear reactors and two nuclear torpedoes aboard on this date.
41 crew members died, and the submarine remains one mile below the surface of the ocean, with its nuclear weapons intact.
April 7, 1990 -
A display of Robert Mapplethorpe photographs opened at the Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati, the same day the center and its director, Dennis Barrie were indicted on obscenity charges on this date.
Both were later acquitted.
April 7, 1998 -
Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou was arrested by an undercover police officer after pleasuring himself in front of him in a public toilet.
If George only realized how many of his fans would have happily donned uniforms and stood provocatively before him in any restroom of his choice.
And so it goes.
Dr. Caligari's Cabinet
Read the ramblings of Dr. Caligari. Hopefully you will find that Time does wound all heels. You no longer need to be sad that nowadays there is so little useless information.
Tuesday, April 7, 2026
Monday, April 6, 2026
I might want to know when I get back
Today is National Caramel Popcorn Day - enjoy!
It's also Sorry Charlie Day. The day is dedicated to remind us that we have all been rejected, and yet somehow survived it.
Celebrate this day by taking a minute to remember a past rejection. After doing this, be happy and realize the fact, that most of us, will not end up in a tuna can.
April 6, 1906 -
J. Stuart Blackton premiered his animated film Humorous Phases of Funny Faces on this date. It is generally agreed upon that this is the first animated cartoon.
Despite the film’s rough use of simple animated chalkboard drawings, the film is a technologically revolutionary achievement.
April 6, 1936 -
Flash Gordon: The Planet of Peril, a film serial which tells the story of three people from Earth who travel to the planet Mongo to fight the evil Emperor Ming the Merciless, premiered on this date.
Despite its large budget, this serial utilized many sets from other Universal films, such as the laboratory and crypt set from The Bride of Frankenstein, the castle interiors from Dracula's Daughter, the idol from The Mummy and the opera house interiors from The Phantom of the Opera. In addition, the outer walls of Ming's castle were actually the cathedral walls from The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
April 6, 1946 -
Another in the series of Daffy/ Porky cartoons, Daffy Doodles, premiered on this date.
This cartoon is the first full-length cartoon that animator Robert McKimson directed.
April 6, 1953 -
Universal Pictures released the science fiction comedy film Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, directed by Charles Lamont and starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, in U.S. theaters on this date.
A very young Harry Shearer appears as one of the boys seen near the beginning.
April 6, 1967 -
The Star Trek episode The City on the Edge of Forever premiered on this date. It has been considered the best episode of the series by fans, critics, and crew alike.
The episode was widely be considered controversial for a number of reasons, not the least is which is that the subtext of the storyline addresses issues surrounding the Vietnam-war movement, but the episode is most notable for using the the word “hell” for the first time on television in its parting line (delivered by Kirk), “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
April 6, 1974 –
Waterloo won the Eurovision Song Contest for Sweden on this date.
ABBA not only recorded this song in their native Swedish and then in English but they also recorded a version in French for the French markets and one in German for the German markets. There is also a version in both French and Swedish that is an overdubbing of both the Swedish and French versions.
April 6, 1984 -
Paul Mazursky's comedy-drama, Moscow on the Hudson, starring Robin Williams and Maria Conchita Alonso premiered in the US on this date.
In preparation for his role, for about a year, lead actor Robin Williams studied Soviet customs and learned the Russian language. Reportedly, Williams spent five hours a day learning Russian and had learned to speak it well within a month. By the time of principal photography, Williams was at a proficiency level where he could carry out a conversation.
April 6, 1992 -
RCA Records released Annie Lennox's debut solo studio album, Diva, in the UK, on this date.
Annie Lennox had plenty to write about when she started work on the Diva album: She had recently become a mother, her father had died, and she was just getting going as a solo artist.
April 6, 2009 -
J.J. Abrams reboot of Star Trek, starring Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto premiered in Austin, Texas on this date.
The Korean-American actor John Cho was initially uncertain about being cast as the Japanese-American officer Hikaru Sulu, but George Takei, who played Sulu on Star Trek: The Original Series, encouraged him to take the role, as Sulu is a character who represents all of Asia.
Word of the Day
Today in History:
April 6, 1327 -
Francesco Petrarch, former priest and foot fetisher, met Laura de Sade (the wife of Count Hugues de Sade, an ancestor of the Marquis de Sade) in a church at Avignon on this date, and was inspired for the rest of his life. He wrote his finest poems about her beauty and loveliness.
church at Avignon on this date, and was inspired for the rest of his life. He wrote his finest poems about her beauty and loveliness.
This event has been taken to mark the beginning of the Renaissance.
Now you know.
April 6, 1570 -
Raffaello Sanzio (Raphael) was an Italian master painter and architect of the Florentine school in High Renaissance, celebrated for the perfection and grace of his paintings. To celebrate his upcoming 37th birthday, Raphael got together with his girlfriend, Margherita and made hot monkey love. As is often the case, too much of a good thing can kill you.
So, on Good Friday, April 6, 1570, attempted to get out of bed after a night of excessive sex, Raphael fell into a fever. And not telling his doctors that this was its cause, given it was Good Friday, was given the wrong cure, which killed him.
April 6, 1868 -
To celebrate the 38th anniversary of the founding of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Joseph Smith Jr. and the 8th anniversary of the the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints by Joseph Smith III (Joe Jr.'s son), Mormon prophet Brigham Young married 23-year-old Ann Eliza Webb on this date.
This was Young's 27th wife, 18 of which are still married to him.
All I can say is - it's hard enough to keep one woman moderately happy - imagine the amount of energy it takes to keep 19 women amused.
On this day in 1895, Oscar Wilde was arrested in room 118 of the Cadogan Hotel in London.
He was arrested for "gross indecency" i.e. sodomy.
April 6, 1896 -
The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, were held in Athens, Greece starting on this date. These games were the first modern Olympic Games and the first Games since Roman emperor Theodosius I banned the Ancient Olympic Games in 393.
They were held between Monday, April 6 and Wednesday, April 15, 1896. Europeans were so enthusiastic about the revival of the Olympics, they didn't notice until four years later that the Summer Games were held in early spring.
April 6, 1909 -
A team lead by Robert E. Peary, Matthew A. Henson and four Inuit team members become the first men to reach the North Pole on this date. Arctic explorer Frederick A. Cook claims to have discovered the North Pole a year earlier, but the assertion will later be disproved. They established "Camp Jesup" allegedly within five miles of the pole.
The claim was disputed by skeptics and in 1988 the original navigational records were uncovered from the dog-sled voyage indicating that Peary probably never got closer than 121 miles from the North Pole. The first person to undisputedly reach the exact North Pole was Joseph Fletcher in 1952.
On this day in 1917, the United States formally declared war against Germany and entered World War I. At the time, the war had been going on in Europe for three years, but there was no real immediate threat to the United States.
Up until then, Woodrow Wilson had been opposed to the war. His campaign for president in 1916 included the slogan, "He kept us out of the war," though Wilson never used that phrase himself.
April 6, 1925 -
The first in-flight film was shown on an airplane (Imperial Airline) on a flight from London to Paris on this date.
The film was, The Lost World, the first science-fiction film (with early examples of stop-motion special effects) about prehistoric dinosaurs in a remote South American jungle. Given the plane’s wood frame and fabric hull, the actual film stock, which was extremely flammable, poses a significant danger on the flight.
April 6, 1930 -
Hostess Twinkies were invented by bakery executive James Dewar on this date.
Twinkies are back on the shelves and will probably be there long after we are all carried away by the next pandemic.
April 6, 1971 -
The Rolling Stones held a party in Cannes to unveil the launching of Rolling Stone Records on this date. The record label was created to promote the hits of The Rolling Stones.
The record label was created to promote the hits of The Rolling Stones. The famous Stones trademark, the lips logo, became widely used.
Brown Sugar was the first hit by the Rolling Stones on the new label, followed by Wild Horses and Tumbling Dice.
April 6, 1994 -
The Rwandan Genocide began, on this date, with the assassination of Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana.
It lasted a little more than 100 days, but claimed over 800,000 lives. (It was very good news that Paul Rusesabagina was finally released.)
April 6, 1987 -
Al Campmpanis, the general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers appeared on ABC's Nightline to commemorate the 40th anniversary of his friend, Jackie Robinson's debut in baseball.
Unfortunately, he also gave his opinion that blacks "may not have some of the necessities" to hold managerial jobs in major-league baseball. Campanis ended up for his troubles, being fired over his remarks.
Oops.
April 6, 1998 -
Wendy O. Williams, former porn star and singer for The Plasmatics, killed herself with a gun near her Connecticut home on this date.
Please crank this up to 11 in her honor.
And so it goes.
It's also Sorry Charlie Day. The day is dedicated to remind us that we have all been rejected, and yet somehow survived it.
Celebrate this day by taking a minute to remember a past rejection. After doing this, be happy and realize the fact, that most of us, will not end up in a tuna can.
April 6, 1906 -
J. Stuart Blackton premiered his animated film Humorous Phases of Funny Faces on this date. It is generally agreed upon that this is the first animated cartoon.
Despite the film’s rough use of simple animated chalkboard drawings, the film is a technologically revolutionary achievement.
April 6, 1936 -
Flash Gordon: The Planet of Peril, a film serial which tells the story of three people from Earth who travel to the planet Mongo to fight the evil Emperor Ming the Merciless, premiered on this date.
Despite its large budget, this serial utilized many sets from other Universal films, such as the laboratory and crypt set from The Bride of Frankenstein, the castle interiors from Dracula's Daughter, the idol from The Mummy and the opera house interiors from The Phantom of the Opera. In addition, the outer walls of Ming's castle were actually the cathedral walls from The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
April 6, 1946 -
Another in the series of Daffy/ Porky cartoons, Daffy Doodles, premiered on this date.
This cartoon is the first full-length cartoon that animator Robert McKimson directed.
April 6, 1953 -
Universal Pictures released the science fiction comedy film Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, directed by Charles Lamont and starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, in U.S. theaters on this date.
A very young Harry Shearer appears as one of the boys seen near the beginning.
April 6, 1967 -
The Star Trek episode The City on the Edge of Forever premiered on this date. It has been considered the best episode of the series by fans, critics, and crew alike.
The episode was widely be considered controversial for a number of reasons, not the least is which is that the subtext of the storyline addresses issues surrounding the Vietnam-war movement, but the episode is most notable for using the the word “hell” for the first time on television in its parting line (delivered by Kirk), “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
April 6, 1974 –
Waterloo won the Eurovision Song Contest for Sweden on this date.
ABBA not only recorded this song in their native Swedish and then in English but they also recorded a version in French for the French markets and one in German for the German markets. There is also a version in both French and Swedish that is an overdubbing of both the Swedish and French versions.
April 6, 1984 -
Paul Mazursky's comedy-drama, Moscow on the Hudson, starring Robin Williams and Maria Conchita Alonso premiered in the US on this date.
In preparation for his role, for about a year, lead actor Robin Williams studied Soviet customs and learned the Russian language. Reportedly, Williams spent five hours a day learning Russian and had learned to speak it well within a month. By the time of principal photography, Williams was at a proficiency level where he could carry out a conversation.
April 6, 1992 -
RCA Records released Annie Lennox's debut solo studio album, Diva, in the UK, on this date.
Annie Lennox had plenty to write about when she started work on the Diva album: She had recently become a mother, her father had died, and she was just getting going as a solo artist.
April 6, 2009 -
J.J. Abrams reboot of Star Trek, starring Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto premiered in Austin, Texas on this date.
The Korean-American actor John Cho was initially uncertain about being cast as the Japanese-American officer Hikaru Sulu, but George Takei, who played Sulu on Star Trek: The Original Series, encouraged him to take the role, as Sulu is a character who represents all of Asia.
Word of the Day
Today in History:
April 6, 1327 -
Francesco Petrarch, former priest and foot fetisher, met Laura de Sade (the wife of Count Hugues de Sade, an ancestor of the Marquis de Sade) in a church at Avignon on this date, and was inspired for the rest of his life. He wrote his finest poems about her beauty and loveliness.
church at Avignon on this date, and was inspired for the rest of his life. He wrote his finest poems about her beauty and loveliness.
This event has been taken to mark the beginning of the Renaissance.
Now you know.
April 6, 1570 -
Raffaello Sanzio (Raphael) was an Italian master painter and architect of the Florentine school in High Renaissance, celebrated for the perfection and grace of his paintings. To celebrate his upcoming 37th birthday, Raphael got together with his girlfriend, Margherita and made hot monkey love. As is often the case, too much of a good thing can kill you.
So, on Good Friday, April 6, 1570, attempted to get out of bed after a night of excessive sex, Raphael fell into a fever. And not telling his doctors that this was its cause, given it was Good Friday, was given the wrong cure, which killed him.
April 6, 1868 -
To celebrate the 38th anniversary of the founding of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Joseph Smith Jr. and the 8th anniversary of the the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints by Joseph Smith III (Joe Jr.'s son), Mormon prophet Brigham Young married 23-year-old Ann Eliza Webb on this date.
This was Young's 27th wife, 18 of which are still married to him.
All I can say is - it's hard enough to keep one woman moderately happy - imagine the amount of energy it takes to keep 19 women amused.
On this day in 1895, Oscar Wilde was arrested in room 118 of the Cadogan Hotel in London.
He was arrested for "gross indecency" i.e. sodomy.
April 6, 1896 -
The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, were held in Athens, Greece starting on this date. These games were the first modern Olympic Games and the first Games since Roman emperor Theodosius I banned the Ancient Olympic Games in 393.
They were held between Monday, April 6 and Wednesday, April 15, 1896. Europeans were so enthusiastic about the revival of the Olympics, they didn't notice until four years later that the Summer Games were held in early spring.
April 6, 1909 -
A team lead by Robert E. Peary, Matthew A. Henson and four Inuit team members become the first men to reach the North Pole on this date. Arctic explorer Frederick A. Cook claims to have discovered the North Pole a year earlier, but the assertion will later be disproved. They established "Camp Jesup" allegedly within five miles of the pole.
The claim was disputed by skeptics and in 1988 the original navigational records were uncovered from the dog-sled voyage indicating that Peary probably never got closer than 121 miles from the North Pole. The first person to undisputedly reach the exact North Pole was Joseph Fletcher in 1952.
On this day in 1917, the United States formally declared war against Germany and entered World War I. At the time, the war had been going on in Europe for three years, but there was no real immediate threat to the United States.
Up until then, Woodrow Wilson had been opposed to the war. His campaign for president in 1916 included the slogan, "He kept us out of the war," though Wilson never used that phrase himself.
April 6, 1925 -
The first in-flight film was shown on an airplane (Imperial Airline) on a flight from London to Paris on this date.
The film was, The Lost World, the first science-fiction film (with early examples of stop-motion special effects) about prehistoric dinosaurs in a remote South American jungle. Given the plane’s wood frame and fabric hull, the actual film stock, which was extremely flammable, poses a significant danger on the flight.
April 6, 1930 -
Hostess Twinkies were invented by bakery executive James Dewar on this date.
Twinkies are back on the shelves and will probably be there long after we are all carried away by the next pandemic.
April 6, 1971 -
The Rolling Stones held a party in Cannes to unveil the launching of Rolling Stone Records on this date. The record label was created to promote the hits of The Rolling Stones.
The record label was created to promote the hits of The Rolling Stones. The famous Stones trademark, the lips logo, became widely used.
Brown Sugar was the first hit by the Rolling Stones on the new label, followed by Wild Horses and Tumbling Dice.
April 6, 1994 -
The Rwandan Genocide began, on this date, with the assassination of Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana.
It lasted a little more than 100 days, but claimed over 800,000 lives. (It was very good news that Paul Rusesabagina was finally released.)
April 6, 1987 -
Al Campmpanis, the general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers appeared on ABC's Nightline to commemorate the 40th anniversary of his friend, Jackie Robinson's debut in baseball.
Unfortunately, he also gave his opinion that blacks "may not have some of the necessities" to hold managerial jobs in major-league baseball. Campanis ended up for his troubles, being fired over his remarks.
Oops.
April 6, 1998 -
Wendy O. Williams, former porn star and singer for The Plasmatics, killed herself with a gun near her Connecticut home on this date.
Please crank this up to 11 in her honor.
And so it goes.
Sunday, April 5, 2026
Per Dominum nostrum Iesum Christum
Happy Easter, everybody!
We've spoken about Ishtar before: there is an ancient story about Tammuz (also known as Attis, Osiris, Dionysus, Adonis, Orpheus, or Jesus - you get the idea), who was born of a virgin, died, and was reborn. He was the lover of Ishtar.
!
The festival associated with Tammuz began as a day of blood on Black Friday and culminated, after three days, in a day of rejoicing over the resurrection. Tammuz, beloved of Ishtar, was killed by a wild pig. As Tammuz was killed by a pig, a pig must be slaughtered and eaten on that Sunday.
His blood fell on the stump of an evergreen tree, and the stump grew into a full new tree overnight. This made the evergreen tree sacred by the blood of Tammuz.
There is a forty-day period of sorrow each year prior to the anniversary of the death of Tammuz. During this time, no meat is to be eaten. Worshipers were to make the sign of a "T" in front of their hearts in honor of Tammuz. They were to make and eat sacred cakes with the marking of a "T" on top.
Every year, on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox, the celebration begins. That is Ishtar's Sunday, and it is commemorated with rabbits and eggs, which are sacred to her.
Now that Lent is completely over, resume all of your previous bad habits with barely any newfound spiritual insights.
Hopefully you'll find all those Easter eggs, or you'll be sorry. Year-old hard-boiled eggs left behind Grandma's couch really, really stink - enough said.
April 5, 1965 -
Happy Lava Lamp Day. The first motion lamp was designed in 1963 by an engineer, Edward Craven Walker, who sold it under the name Astro Lamp. In 1965, two American entrepreneurs, Adolph Wertheimer and William M. Rubinstein, saw the lamp displayed at a German trade show and were in awe at its beauty. They bought the rights to manufacture the lamp in North America. The Astro Lamp was brought to the USA, renamed the LAVA® brand motion lamp and production took off in Chicago.
Some of the original participants have not stopped celebrating.
Bonus info - Mr. Walker was an avid naturalist (actually he was a naturists but it was too dumb a joke,) and shot several 'documentaries' (nudie flix) during the early 60s under the alias Michael Keatering. (Look 'em up yourself.)
April 5, 1902 -
Maurice Ravel's Pavane pour une Infante Défunte, (Pavane for a Dead Princess) premiered in Paris, France on this date.
You may now feel morally superior to the person in the next cubicle for knowing this.
April 5, 1964 -
The Searchers made their U.S. debut when they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on this date.
They were the first British Invasion group to appear on the show after the Beatles.
April 5, 1975 –
Minnie Riperton (Maya Rudolph's mom) had her only No. #1 hit with Lovin’ You on this date.
Riperton worked with Stevie Wonder as a backup singer, and Stevie produced this track for her. Due to contractual obligations, Wonder's name could not appear on the credits, so he's listed as "Black Bull Productions" (Wonder's zodiac sign is Taurus, thus the bull).
April 5, 1978 -
Marvel Comics' first live-action Spider-Man based TV series, The Amazing Spider-Man debuted on CBS TV on this date.
Stan Lee, Spider-Man's co-creator, disliked the show and was vocal about his dissatisfaction with it; he had stated in interviews that he felt the series was "too juvenile" and that the Spider-Man character was being treated as a "Cardboard character".
April 5, 1987 -
The first prime time television series to air on Fox, Married... with Children, premiered on this date.
One of the show's creators said the reason Ed O'Neill was cast was that when he was auditioning for the pilot, he was required to simply walk through the front door into the Bundy home. Right before he opened the door, O'Neill let out a deep breath and slumped his shoulders, as if going home was a defeat. Producers said when they saw that, they knew O'Neill understood the show.
Also premiering on Fox that evening was The Tracy Ullman Show.
Besides being the jumping off point for the cartoon series, The Simpsons, the show featured many musical numbers, choreographed by Emmy Award-winner Paula Abdul.
Another album from the discount bin at The ACME Record Shoppe today
Today in History:
April 5, 348 BC -
According to some religious calculations, Noah's Ark grounded on Mt. Ararat in Turkey. The Bible only gives a general reference as to the landing place of the Ark.
So let's all thank our progenitor grandpappy for steering that ship away from the rocks and on to the right course.
April 5, 1242-
Alexander Nevsky of Novgorod defeated the Teutonic Knights at the Battle on the Icy More of Pskov (Battle of Lake Peipus) in Estonia on this date.
In 1938, Sergei Eisenstein made one of his most acclaimed films, Alexander Nevsky, based on Nevsky's victory over the Teutonic Knights.
It was on this day in 1614 that Pocahontas married John Rolfe (and not John Smith) in the English colony of Jamestown, Virginia.
The story of Pocahontas has become an American legend; it's been retold countless times, in history books, novels, poems, TV shows, and movies. Many versions distort the facts by focusing on Pocahontas' relationship with John Smith and ignoring her marriage to John Rolfe. The story goes that Smith was captured by the Powhatans and was about to be clubbed to death when a young Pocahontas ran out and took him in her arms, saving his life (Daffy Duck and Porky Pig even get into this act) — but most historians think that Smith made up most of the story.
John Davis, in his 1806 historical novel, The First Settlers of Virginia, added a dramatic romance between Smith and Pocahontas, and that romance has been included in most of the Pocahontas stories since then, including Disney's animated movie that came out in 1995 and Terrence Malick's A New World in 2005.
But it was John Rolfe who married Pocahontas, after she had been abducted by the colonists. They had hoped they could use her as a bargaining chip with her father, the chief of the Powhatan tribe, to negotiate a peace treaty. The kidnapping didn't work out, but after John Rolfe fell in love with the girl, he got the chief's blessing, and the marriage led to a long period of peace between Jamestown and the Powhatan Indians.
April 5, 1794 -
Georges Jacques Danton, a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution and the first President of the Committee of Public Safety was hoisted on his own petard on this date.
Robespierre, once an ally, sends Danton to the guillotine for antirevolutionary activity. Danton's last words were addressed to his executioner. "Don't forget to show my head to the people. It's well worth seeing."
April 5, 1887 -
Anne Sullivan had been attempting to get Helen Keller to make the connection between objects and words for about a month before she had her breakthrough associating the word "water" with water running across her hand.
Helen progressed rapidly after that, and is said to have exhausted Sullivan by running around asking the names of everything she could reach.
April 5, 1900 -
Jean-Baptiste Victor Sipido, a 15 year old Belgian anarchist attempt to shoot Edward, Prince of Wales in his private train compartment, as the train leaves the Brussel-Noord railway station on this date.
Amazingly, although Sipido fires two shoots through the window (and Edward was not a thin man,) he missed everyone inside and was quickly wrestled to the ground. Shockingly, Sipido was acquitted at his trial due to his age.
April 5, 1908 -
Old Age is not for sissies (my understanding is that she didn't use the word 'sissy'}
Ruth Elizabeth Davis, one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, was born on this date.
This appears to be a particularly unfortunate date for celebrities:
April 5, 1923 -
George Edward Stanhope Molyneux Herbert (Lord Carnarvon), died in Egypt from an infected mosquito bite on this date. He financed the excavation of the Egyptian New Kingdom Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb in Egypt's Valley of the Kings.
But remember, there was no mummy's curse.
April 5, 1964 -
Douglas MacArthur was wrong when he said, "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away."
The controversial five-star general left his dried husk in his penthouse suite at the Waldorf-Astoria on this date.
April 5, 1976 -
As it must to all men, death came to the frail, syphilitic, obsessive-compulsive bisexual playboy Howard Robard Hughes.
I guess if I had that much money, I'd 'sleep' with anything I could.
April 5, 1994 -
The lead singer and songwriter of Nirvana, Kurt Cobain, committed suicide with a shotgun blast to the head, prompting an unprecedented 24 hour MTV Cobain-athon.
Smells like brain splattered against the wall.
April 5, 1997 -
... Poetry is not an expression of the party line. It's that time of night, lying in bed, thinking what you really think, making the private world public, that's what the poet does.....
Allen Ginsberg, Beat poet giant died on this date.
April 5, 2008 -
Actor and former NRA president Charlton Heston died at 84 on this date.
Paramedics were finally able to pry that rifle from his cold rigor mortis stricken hands
April 5, 2063 -
Earth makes its first contact with the Vulcan race on this date. This meeting laid the foundation for what would eventually become the United Federation of Planets.
The first Vulcan who interacts with humans is named Solkar. Solkar is the grand father of Sarek, and subsequently the great-grandfather of Spock, (in case you were wondering.)
Before you go - my brother sent me this Easter gift and I had to share it with you:
Deeply disturbing but truly funny!
And so it goes.
We've spoken about Ishtar before: there is an ancient story about Tammuz (also known as Attis, Osiris, Dionysus, Adonis, Orpheus, or Jesus - you get the idea), who was born of a virgin, died, and was reborn. He was the lover of Ishtar.
!
The festival associated with Tammuz began as a day of blood on Black Friday and culminated, after three days, in a day of rejoicing over the resurrection. Tammuz, beloved of Ishtar, was killed by a wild pig. As Tammuz was killed by a pig, a pig must be slaughtered and eaten on that Sunday.
His blood fell on the stump of an evergreen tree, and the stump grew into a full new tree overnight. This made the evergreen tree sacred by the blood of Tammuz.
There is a forty-day period of sorrow each year prior to the anniversary of the death of Tammuz. During this time, no meat is to be eaten. Worshipers were to make the sign of a "T" in front of their hearts in honor of Tammuz. They were to make and eat sacred cakes with the marking of a "T" on top.
Every year, on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox, the celebration begins. That is Ishtar's Sunday, and it is commemorated with rabbits and eggs, which are sacred to her.
Now that Lent is completely over, resume all of your previous bad habits with barely any newfound spiritual insights.
Hopefully you'll find all those Easter eggs, or you'll be sorry. Year-old hard-boiled eggs left behind Grandma's couch really, really stink - enough said.
April 5, 1965 -
Happy Lava Lamp Day. The first motion lamp was designed in 1963 by an engineer, Edward Craven Walker, who sold it under the name Astro Lamp. In 1965, two American entrepreneurs, Adolph Wertheimer and William M. Rubinstein, saw the lamp displayed at a German trade show and were in awe at its beauty. They bought the rights to manufacture the lamp in North America. The Astro Lamp was brought to the USA, renamed the LAVA® brand motion lamp and production took off in Chicago.
Some of the original participants have not stopped celebrating.
Bonus info - Mr. Walker was an avid naturalist (actually he was a naturists but it was too dumb a joke,) and shot several 'documentaries' (nudie flix) during the early 60s under the alias Michael Keatering. (Look 'em up yourself.)
April 5, 1902 -
Maurice Ravel's Pavane pour une Infante Défunte, (Pavane for a Dead Princess) premiered in Paris, France on this date.
You may now feel morally superior to the person in the next cubicle for knowing this.
April 5, 1964 -
The Searchers made their U.S. debut when they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on this date.
They were the first British Invasion group to appear on the show after the Beatles.
April 5, 1975 –
Minnie Riperton (Maya Rudolph's mom) had her only No. #1 hit with Lovin’ You on this date.
Riperton worked with Stevie Wonder as a backup singer, and Stevie produced this track for her. Due to contractual obligations, Wonder's name could not appear on the credits, so he's listed as "Black Bull Productions" (Wonder's zodiac sign is Taurus, thus the bull).
April 5, 1978 -
Marvel Comics' first live-action Spider-Man based TV series, The Amazing Spider-Man debuted on CBS TV on this date.
Stan Lee, Spider-Man's co-creator, disliked the show and was vocal about his dissatisfaction with it; he had stated in interviews that he felt the series was "too juvenile" and that the Spider-Man character was being treated as a "Cardboard character".
April 5, 1987 -
The first prime time television series to air on Fox, Married... with Children, premiered on this date.
One of the show's creators said the reason Ed O'Neill was cast was that when he was auditioning for the pilot, he was required to simply walk through the front door into the Bundy home. Right before he opened the door, O'Neill let out a deep breath and slumped his shoulders, as if going home was a defeat. Producers said when they saw that, they knew O'Neill understood the show.
Also premiering on Fox that evening was The Tracy Ullman Show.
Besides being the jumping off point for the cartoon series, The Simpsons, the show featured many musical numbers, choreographed by Emmy Award-winner Paula Abdul.
Another album from the discount bin at The ACME Record Shoppe today
Today in History:
April 5, 348 BC -
According to some religious calculations, Noah's Ark grounded on Mt. Ararat in Turkey. The Bible only gives a general reference as to the landing place of the Ark.
So let's all thank our progenitor grandpappy for steering that ship away from the rocks and on to the right course.
April 5, 1242-
Alexander Nevsky of Novgorod defeated the Teutonic Knights at the Battle on the Icy More of Pskov (Battle of Lake Peipus) in Estonia on this date.
In 1938, Sergei Eisenstein made one of his most acclaimed films, Alexander Nevsky, based on Nevsky's victory over the Teutonic Knights.
It was on this day in 1614 that Pocahontas married John Rolfe (and not John Smith) in the English colony of Jamestown, Virginia.
The story of Pocahontas has become an American legend; it's been retold countless times, in history books, novels, poems, TV shows, and movies. Many versions distort the facts by focusing on Pocahontas' relationship with John Smith and ignoring her marriage to John Rolfe. The story goes that Smith was captured by the Powhatans and was about to be clubbed to death when a young Pocahontas ran out and took him in her arms, saving his life (Daffy Duck and Porky Pig even get into this act) — but most historians think that Smith made up most of the story.
John Davis, in his 1806 historical novel, The First Settlers of Virginia, added a dramatic romance between Smith and Pocahontas, and that romance has been included in most of the Pocahontas stories since then, including Disney's animated movie that came out in 1995 and Terrence Malick's A New World in 2005.
But it was John Rolfe who married Pocahontas, after she had been abducted by the colonists. They had hoped they could use her as a bargaining chip with her father, the chief of the Powhatan tribe, to negotiate a peace treaty. The kidnapping didn't work out, but after John Rolfe fell in love with the girl, he got the chief's blessing, and the marriage led to a long period of peace between Jamestown and the Powhatan Indians.
April 5, 1794 -
Georges Jacques Danton, a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution and the first President of the Committee of Public Safety was hoisted on his own petard on this date.
Robespierre, once an ally, sends Danton to the guillotine for antirevolutionary activity. Danton's last words were addressed to his executioner. "Don't forget to show my head to the people. It's well worth seeing."
April 5, 1887 -
Anne Sullivan had been attempting to get Helen Keller to make the connection between objects and words for about a month before she had her breakthrough associating the word "water" with water running across her hand.
Helen progressed rapidly after that, and is said to have exhausted Sullivan by running around asking the names of everything she could reach.
April 5, 1900 -
Jean-Baptiste Victor Sipido, a 15 year old Belgian anarchist attempt to shoot Edward, Prince of Wales in his private train compartment, as the train leaves the Brussel-Noord railway station on this date.
Amazingly, although Sipido fires two shoots through the window (and Edward was not a thin man,) he missed everyone inside and was quickly wrestled to the ground. Shockingly, Sipido was acquitted at his trial due to his age.
April 5, 1908 -
Old Age is not for sissies (my understanding is that she didn't use the word 'sissy'}
Ruth Elizabeth Davis, one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, was born on this date.
This appears to be a particularly unfortunate date for celebrities:
April 5, 1923 -
George Edward Stanhope Molyneux Herbert (Lord Carnarvon), died in Egypt from an infected mosquito bite on this date. He financed the excavation of the Egyptian New Kingdom Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb in Egypt's Valley of the Kings.
But remember, there was no mummy's curse.
April 5, 1964 -
Douglas MacArthur was wrong when he said, "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away."
The controversial five-star general left his dried husk in his penthouse suite at the Waldorf-Astoria on this date.
April 5, 1976 -
As it must to all men, death came to the frail, syphilitic, obsessive-compulsive bisexual playboy Howard Robard Hughes.
I guess if I had that much money, I'd 'sleep' with anything I could.
April 5, 1994 -
The lead singer and songwriter of Nirvana, Kurt Cobain, committed suicide with a shotgun blast to the head, prompting an unprecedented 24 hour MTV Cobain-athon.
Smells like brain splattered against the wall.
April 5, 1997 -
... Poetry is not an expression of the party line. It's that time of night, lying in bed, thinking what you really think, making the private world public, that's what the poet does.....
Allen Ginsberg, Beat poet giant died on this date.
April 5, 2008 -
Actor and former NRA president Charlton Heston died at 84 on this date.
Paramedics were finally able to pry that rifle from his cold rigor mortis stricken hands
April 5, 2063 -
Earth makes its first contact with the Vulcan race on this date. This meeting laid the foundation for what would eventually become the United Federation of Planets.
The first Vulcan who interacts with humans is named Solkar. Solkar is the grand father of Sarek, and subsequently the great-grandfather of Spock, (in case you were wondering.)
Before you go - my brother sent me this Easter gift and I had to share it with you:
Deeply disturbing but truly funny!
And so it goes.
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