As per usual, mine is Bombay Sapphire - Gin so good, you wished you were embalmed in it. Drink enough and you will be. Apparently you will become quite artistic and see lots of things once you drink enough Bombay Sapphire.
Somehow I forgot that today is the 15th World Gin Day as well - (I've added this after the fact, and not because I was celebrating,) started by Neil Houston and Emma Stokes in 2009, always celebrated on the second Saturday in June, (National Martini Day is coming up on Monnday, June 19, the day after Father's Day - I will just have to pace myself!).
Remember - A perfect martini should be made by filling a glass with gin then waving it in the general direction of Italy (or Paris - pick your poison.)
(As always, please celebrate responsibly.)
June 8, 1946 -
The very funny Looney Tunes cartoon, Kitty Kornered, was released on this date.
It have a number of firsts going for it:
1.) It's the first appearance of Sylvester the Cat (as this point unnamed) in a Warner Bros. cartoon.
2.) It's the first pairing of Porky and Sylvester.
June 8, 1950 -
The Asphalt Jungle, the superb film noir directed by John Huston, was released on this date.
When the film was being prepared for a British bow, the producers hesitated because it was so full of American slang. At the time, films heavy with slang were usually re-dubbed for English audiences. Gerard Fairlie, the British author of the Bulldog Drummond adventure stories, was called upon as a consultant, and he advised against re-dubbing, even though some words would go right over the heads of British viewers. The film was not re-dubbed and earned good box-office returns in England.
June 8, 1963 -
The Crystals' Da Doo Ron Ron peaked at No.3 on the US singles chart. Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich wrote this song.
Phil Spector produced this song, marking his first real "Wall of Sound" production. Backing musicians include Glen Campbell on guitar, Leon Russell on piano, Hal Blain on drums and Nino Tempo on sax.
June 8, 1968 -
The Rolling Stones released Jumpin' Jack Flash on this date.
This was intended for Beggar's Banquet, but they left it off the album and released it as a single because The Stones were very pleased with the results. One year later on this date, founding member Brian Jones quit (some say 'pushed out') The Rolling Stones.
He died a month later, at age 27.
June 8, 1974 -
Dolly Parton's single I Will Always Love You went to No.1 on the US country charts on this date.
Elvis Presley let it be known that he wanted to cover the song. Parton was interested until Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, told her that it was standard procedure for the songwriter to sign over half of the publishing rights to any song Elvis recorded. Parton refused.
I Will Always Love You later became a worldwide No.1 hit for Whitney Houston in 1992 when featured in The Bodyguard.
June 8, 1983 -
John Landis' mega-hit comedy Trading Places, starring Dan Aykroyd, Eddie Murphy, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche, Denholm Elliott, and Jamie Lee Curtis premiered in the US on this date.
In 2010, as part of the Wall Street Transparency and Accountability Act, which was to regulate financial markets, a rule was included which barred anyone from using secret inside information to corner markets, similar to what the Duke brothers tried to do in the movie. Since the movie inspired this rule, it has since become known as the Eddie Murphy Rule.
June 8, 1984 -
Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!
Ivan Reitman's comedy - horror film, Ghostbusters, premiered on this date.
In the middle of the film's initial release, to keep interest going, Ivan Reitman ran a trailer that was basically the commercial the Ghostbusters used in the movie, but the 555 number was replaced with a 1-800 number, allowing people to actually call in. Callers got a recorded message of Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd saying something to the effect of "Hi. We're out catching ghosts right now." They got 1,000 calls per hour, 24 hours a day, for six weeks.
June 8, 1985 –
The Tears for Fears song Everybody Wants to Rule the World became the group's highest-charting single when it reached No. #1 on the Billboard Charts on this date.
This song is about the quest for power, and how it can have unfortunate consequences. In an interview with Mix magazine, the band's producer Chris Hughes explained that they spent months working on Shout, and near the end of the sessions, Roland Orzabal came into the studio and played two simple chords on his acoustic guitar, which became the basis for the song. Said Hughes: "'Everybody Wants to Rule the World' was so simple and went down so quickly, it was effortless, really. In fact, as a piece of recording history, it's bland as hell." The song has been covered by a diverse group of people - Patti Smith, Lorde and the jazz group, The Bad Plus are among the artists to cover this song. Weezer included it on their 2019 covers collection known as The Teal Album.
And amazingly, they have performed the song again nearly 40 years later.
June 8, 1996 -
The Fugees' reworking of Killing Me Softly, featuring lead vocals by Lauryn Hill, goes to #1 in the UK, on this date, where it becomes the top-selling single of 1996.
The Fugees wanted to change the lyrics and make it a song about poverty and drug abuse in the inner city with the title Killing Him Softly, but the songwriting team of Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel refused.
Today in History:
June 8, 632 -
According to tradition, the prophet Mohammed died on this date. He was the founder of Islam, and his death was the first in a long chain of events that ultimately resulted in the Treaty of Tordesillas. Whether he is at this very moment reclining on a soft couch somewhere in Paradise, being serviced by a high-bosomed virgin with dark eyes or consuming a handful of raisins is debatable.
June 8, 1810 -
Robert Schumann, the great composer during the Romantic period, was born on this date. Schumann was able to create a large amount of work while battling the twin demons of bi-polar disease and dementia brought on by mercury poisoning related to the treatment of syphilis, contracted in his teens.
For the last two years of his life, after an attempted suicide, Robert Schumann was confined to a mental institution at his own request.
You may now impress your friends with this info.
June 8 1869 -
Ives W. McGaffey of Chicago patented his sweeping machine (patent # 91,145,) the first suction vacuum cleaner, on this date.
June 8, 1906 -
Pres. Theodore Roosevelt signed the American Antiquities Act, first proposed in 1882. It was used to set aside American resources by executive order.
Roosevelt had urged the passage of the Antiquities Act to allow the president to designate areas of scientific, historic or archeological significance as national monuments without the approval of Congress.
June 8, 1928 -
On May 31, 1928, Charles Kingsford Smith, Charles Ulm, Harry Lyon and James Warner left Oakland California in a Fokker VIIb-3m, called the Southern Cross, to attempt the first flight across the Pacific.
Flying via Hawaii and Fiji, they reach Brisbane, Australia 7,389 miles away, nine days later, on this date.
June 8, 1933 -
Certain key structural areas of the late, great Joan Alexandra Molinsky, comic and actress, were born on this date.
Unfortunately, some of her 'newer' parts have outlived her.
Nancy Sinatra was born on this date - it would be impolite to say how old she is.
Her boots must be made for endurance walking
June 8, 1978 -
Naomi James broke the solo round-the-world sailing record by two days with her 53 ft yacht Express Crusader when she crossed the finish line in Dartmouth taking 272 days to complete the record. She also became the first woman to sail solo around the globe via Cape Horn - the classic "Clipper Route".
In 1979 Naomi was given the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in recognition of her achievement. Naomi gave up sailing in 1982 after winning the Round Britain Race with her husband Rob James. In 1983 Rob fell overboard whilst sailing to Salcombe from Plymouth and drowned, their daughter was born ten days after the tragedy.
June 8, 1982 -
President Ronald Reagan became the first US chief executive to address the two houses of British Parliament on this day.
His assistants became slightly concerned about the President's faculties when Reagan mentioned to them, that he believed that scene went well but he could be more convincing in the next take. He also mentioned to them that he'd be having dinner with Hedy Lamarr at the Trocadero.
And so it goes.
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