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Today is March 23 2014

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   I.
Today's Holidays and Historical Events (updated daily)
Today's Food Holiday

National Chip and Dip Day: More
If it is not pizza day, this is the next best food day.

Other celebrations/observances today:
  • World Meteorological Day: More
  • Near Miss Day: More
  • National Melba Toast Day: More
    Make your own: More
Events in the past on: March 23
  • In 1775, Patrick Henry delivers his famous address.
    From Wikipedia: 'Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799) was an American attorney, planter and politician who became known as an orator during the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia, from 1776 to 1779 and from 1784 to 1786.

    'Henry led the opposition to the Stamp Act 1765 and is remembered for his "Give me liberty, or give me death!" speech. Along with Samuel Adams and Thomas Paine, he is regarded as one of the most influential champions of Republicanism and an invested promoter of the American Revolution and its fight for independence.

    '"Give me liberty, or give me death!" is a quotation attributed to Patrick Henry from a speech he made to the Virginia Convention in 1775, at St. John's Church in Richmond, Virginia.

    He is credited with having swung the balance in convincing the convention to pass a resolution delivering Virginian troops for the Revolutionary War. Among the delegates to the convention were future U.S. Presidents Thomas Jefferson and George Washington.
    - At FamousDaily.com: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1923, Frank Silver and Irving Conn release 'Yes, We Have No Bananas'.
    From Wikipedia: '"Yes! We Have No Bananas" is a novelty song by Frank Silver and Irving Cohn from the 1922 Broadway revue Make It Snappy. Sung by Eddie Cantor in the revue, the song became a major hit in 1923 (placing No. 1 for five weeks) when it was recorded by Billy Jones, Arthur Hall, Irving Kaufman, and others. It was covered later by Benny Goodman and his Orchestra, Spike Jones AND His City Slickers, and many more. It also inspired a follow-up song, "I've Got the Yes! We Have No Bananas Blues", recorded by Billy Jones and others in 1923'.
    - At Wikipediau: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1839, First published use of the term 'OK', a whimsical [oll korrect] (all correct).
    From Wikipedia: '"OK" (/o?ke?/; also spelled "okay", "ok", or "O.K.") is a word denoting approval, acceptance, agreement, assent, or acknowledgment. "OK", as an adjective, can also express acknowledgment without approval. "OK" has frequently turned up as a loanword in many other languages.]

    'Allen Walker Read identifies the earliest known use of O.K. in print as 1839, in the March 23 edition of the Boston Morning Post (an American newspaper). The announcement of a trip by the Anti-Bell-Ringing Society (a "frolicsome group" according to Read) received attention from the Boston papers. Charles Gordon Greene wrote about the event using the line that is widely regarded as the first instance of this strain of OK, ...'.
    - At FamousDaily.com: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1912, The 'Dixie Cup' was marketed.
    From Wikipedia: 'Dixie Cup is the brand name for a line of disposable paper cups that were first developed in the United States in 1907 by Lawrence Luellen, a lawyer in Boston, Massachusetts, who was concerned about germs being spread by people sharing glasses or dippers at public supplies of drinking water. Luellen developed an ice-cooled water-vending machine with disposable cups, and with another Bostonian, Hugh Moore, embarked on an advertising campaign to educate the public and to market his machine, principally to railroad companies. Professor Davison's study was instrumental in abolishing the public glass and opening the door for the paper cup. Soon, the devices, which would dispense cool water for one cent, became standard equipment on trains.

    The Dixie Cup was first called "Health Kup", but from 1919 it was named after a line of dolls made by Alfred Schindler's Dixie Doll Company in New York. Success led the company, which had existed under a variety of names, to call itself the Dixie Cup Corporation and move to a factory in Wilson, Pennsylvania. Atop the factory was a large water tank in the shape of a cup'.
    - At IdeaFinder.com: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1940, The first radio broadcast of 'Truth or Consequences' on CBS.
    From Wikipedia: 'Truth or Consequences is an American television show originally hosted on NBC radio by Ralph Edwards (1940–1957) and later on television by Edwards (1950–1954), Jack Bailey (1954–1955), Bob Barker (1956–1975), Bob Hilton (1977–1978) and Larry Anderson (1987–1988). The television show ran on CBS, NBC and also in syndication. The premise of the show was to mix the original quiz element of game shows with wacky stunts.

    'Ralph Edwards stated he got the idea for a new radio program after playing the parlor game Forfeits. The show premiered on NBC Radio in March 23, 1940, and was an instant hit with listeners'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube (radio): More
    - On YouTube (TV): More
  • In 1950, At the 22nd Academy Awards:
    From Wikipedia: More
    Best Picture is, All the King's Men
    -- At Wikipedia: More
    -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
    -- On YouTube: More
    Best Actor is Broderick Crawford for 'All the King's Men'
    Best Actress is Olivia de Havilland for 'The Heiress'
    -- At Wikipedia: More
    -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
    -- On YouTube: More
    Best Supporting Actor is Dean Jagger for 'Twelve O'Clock High'
    Best Supporting Actress is Mercedes McCambridge for 'All the King's Men'
    Best Song is Baby, It's Cold Outside' from 'Neptune's Daughter'
    -- at Wikipedia: More
    -- On YouTube: More
  • In 1950, First TV broadcast of 'Beat the Clock'on CBS-TV.
    From Wikipedia: 'Beat the Clock is a Goodson-Todman game show that aired on American television in several versions from 1950 to 2003.

    The original show, hosted by Bud Collyer, ran on CBS from 1950 to 1958 and ran on ABC from 1958 to 1961. The show was revived in syndication as The New Beat the Clock from 1969 to 1974, with Jack Narz as host until 1972, when he was replaced by the show's announcer, Gene Wood. Another version ran on CBS from 1979 to 1980 (as The All-New Beat the Clock, and later as All-New All-Star Beat the Clock), with former Let's Make a Deal host Monty Hall as host and Narz as announcer. The most recent version aired from 2002 to 2003 on PAX (now ION) with Gary Kroeger and Julielinh Parker as co-hosts. The series was also featured as the third episode of Gameshow Marathon in 2006. Ricki Lake hosted while Rich Fields announced.

    In 2013, the show appeared in TV Guide's list of the 60 greatest game shows ever'.'

    'Contestants were required to perform tasks (called "problems") within a certain time limit which was counted down on a large 60-second clock. If they succeeded, they were said to have "beaten the Clock"; otherwise, "the Clock beat them". The show had several sponsors over its run, with the most longstanding being the electronics company Sylvania.'.
    - At Wikipediau: More
    - On YouTube (TV): More
  • In 1965, NASA launches 'Gemini 3', the United State's first two-man space flight (crew: Gus Grissom and John Young).
    From Wikipedia: 'Gemini 3 was the first manned mission in NASA's Gemini program, the second American manned space program. On March 23, 1965, astronauts Gus Grissom and John Young flew three low Earth orbits in their spacecraft, which they nicknamed Molly Brown. This was the ninth manned US spaceflight (including two X-15 flights over 100 kilometers), and the 17th world human spaceflight including eight Soviet flights. It was also the final manned flight controlled from Cape Kennedy Air Force Station in Florida, before mission control functions were shifted to a new control center located at the newly opened Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston, Texas'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1983, President Reagan announces the 'Star Wars' project.
    From Wikipedia: 'The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) was a proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from attack by ballistic strategic nuclear weapons (Intercontinental ballistic missiles and Submarine-launched ballistic missiles). The system, which was to combine ground-based units and orbital deployment platforms, was first publicly announced by President Ronald Reagan on March 23, 1983. The initiative focused on strategic defense rather than the prior strategic offense doctrine of mutual assured destruction (MAD). The Strategic Defense Initiative Organization (SDIO) was set up in 1984 within the United States Department of Defense to oversee the Strategic Defense Initiative.

    'The ambitious initiative was criticized for allegedly threatening to destabilize the MAD -approach and to possibly re-ignite "an offensive arms race". SDI was nicknamed, largely in the mainstream media, as "Star Wars", after the popular 1977 film by George Lucas. In 1987, the American Physical Society concluded that a global shield such as "Star Wars" was extremely ambitious and with existing technology not directly feasible for operational status, and that about ten more years of research was needed to learn about such a comprehensive and complex system to set up and make it fully operational.'

    'It was never truly developed or deployed, though certain aspects of SDI research and technologies paved the way for some anti-ballistic missile systems of today.'.
    - At FamousDaily.com: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In Asteroid 4581 Asclepius passes within 425,000 miles of Earth.
    From Wikipedia: '4581 Asclepius (/?'skli?pi?s/ ?-SKLEE-pee-?s) is a small asteroid of the Apollo group that makes close orbital passes with Earth. Discovered in 1989 by American astronomers Henry E. Holt (1929-) and Norman G. Thomas (1930-), Asclepius is named after the Greek demigod of medicine and healing.

    Asclepius passed by Earth on March 22, 1989, at a distance of 0.00457 AU (684,000 km; 425,000 mi). Although this exceeds the Moon's orbital radius, the close pass received attention at that time, especially since the asteroid passed through the exact position of Earth only six hours earlier. "On the cosmic scale of things, that was a close call," said Dr. Henry Holt. Geophysicists estimate that collision with Asclepius would release energy comparable to the explosion of a 600 megaton atomic bomb. The asteroid was discovered March 31, 1989, nine days after its closest approach to the Earth.

    Subsequent discoveries revealed that a whole class of such objects exists. Close approaches by objects the size of Asclepius pass by every two or three years, undetected until the start of computerized near-Earth object searches.

    On 2051-Mar-24 the asteroid will pass 0.0123 AU (1,840,000 km; 1,140,000 mi) from the Earth. It will be the eighth pass of less than 30 Gm in this century. JPL shows that the uncertainty region of the asteroid will cause it to mostly likely pass from 0.02 AU to 0.17 AU from the Earth in 2135'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1998, At the 70th Academy Awards:
    From Wikipedia: More
    Best Picture is, Titanic
    -- At Wikipedia: More
    -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
    -- On YouTube: More
    Best Actor is Jack Nicholson for 'As Good as It Gets'
    -- At Wikipedia: More
    -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
    -- On YouTube: More
    Best Actress is Helen Hunt for 'As Good as It Gets'
    Best Supporting Actor is Robin Williams for 'Good Will Hunting'
    Best Supporting Actress is Kim Basinger for 'L.A. Confidential'
    Best Song is My Heart Will Go On from 'Titanic'
    -- at Wikipedia: More
    -- On YouTube: More
  • In 2001, Space station 'Mir' crashes (planned deorbit) into the southern Pacific Ocean near Fiji.
    From Wikipedia: 'Mir, (Peace) was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, owned by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. Mir was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996. It had a greater mass than any previous spacecraft. Until 21 March 2001 it was the largest artificial satellite in orbit, succeeded by the International Space Station after Mir's orbit decayed. The station served as a microgravity research laboratory in which crews conducted experiments in biology, human biology, physics, astronomy, meteorology and spacecraft systems with a goal of developing technologies required for permanent occupation of space.

    The station was launched as part of the Soviet Union's manned spaceflight programme effort to maintain a long-term research outpost in space, and following the collapse of the USSR, was operated by the new Russian Federal Space Agency (RKA). As a result, most of the station' occupants were Soviet; however, through international collaborations such as the Intercosmos, Euromir and Shuttle-Mir programmes, the station was made accessible to space travelers from several Asian, European and North American nations. Mir was deorbited in March 2001 after funding was cut off. The cost of the Mir programme was estimated by former RKA General Director Yuri Koptev in 2001 as $4.2 billion over its lifetime (including development, assembly and orbital operation)'.
    - At FamousDaily.com: More
    - On YouTube: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 2003, At the 75th Academy Awards:
    From Wikipedia: More
    Best Picture is, Chicago
    -- At Wikipedia: More
    -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
    -- On YouTube: More
    Best Actor is Adrien Brody for 'The Pianist'
    -- At Wikipedia: More
    -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
    -- On YouTube: More
    Best Actress is Nicole Kidman for 'The Hours'
    -- At Wikipedia: More
    -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
    -- On YouTube: More
    Best Supporting Actor is Chris Cooper for 'Adaptation'
    Best Supporting Actress is Catherine Zeta-Jones for 'Chicago'
    Best Song is Lose Yourself' from '8 Mile'
    -- at Wikipedia: More
    -- On YouTube: More
  II.
Henry's Heads Up! - previous days social media post (updated daily)

Nothing. Looks like I was lazy on this day.

 III.
Top Song & Movie 50 years ago today

No. 1 song

  • She Loves You - The Beatles: More
    I Want To Hold Your Hand, has been displaced by another Beatles song. 'She Loves You', which will hold the no. 1 spot until April 4th, when another Beatles song, Twist And Shout, takes over.

Top movie

  • The Pink Panther More
    Having displaced 'Kissin' Cousins', it will be there until the weekend box office of April 12, 1964 when, 'The Carpetbaggers', takes over.
  IV.
Today in the Past (reference sites): March 23
   V.
This month March 2014 (updated once a month - last updated - )

National Celery Month, National Flour Month, National Nutrition Month, National Noodle Month, National Peanut Month, National Sauce Month


March is:

March origin (from Wikipedia):
'The name of March comes from Latin Martius, the first month of the earliest Roman calendar. It was named for Mars, the Roman god of war who was also regarded as a guardian of agriculture and an ancestor of the Roman people through his sons Romulus and Remus. '

March 'is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is one of seven months that are 31 days long. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20th or 21st marks the astronomical beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of autumn in the Southern Hemisphere, where September is the seasonal equivalent of the Northern Hemisphere's March. '

March at Wikipedia: More

  VI.
TV fifty years ago 1964 (updated yearly - last updated Jan. 1 2014)

If you couldn't afford 90 cents for a movie ticket, 50 years ago, or your 45 RPM record player was broke, you might watch one of these shows on TV.
From this Wikipedia article: More

 VII.
Best selling books fifty years ago (updated yearly - last updated Jan. 1 2014)

Best selling books of 1964 More

VIII.
Fun (Last link added October 1 2014, but content on each site may change daily)
  • Astronomy Picture of the Day: More
  • NOAA: - National Hurricane Center - Atlantic Graphical Tropical Weather Outlook: More
  • Listen to Old Radio Shows: (streaming mp3 with schedule) More
  • NASA TV: (video feed) More
    NASA TV schedule: More
  • Public Domain eBook Links

    Sites for downloading or reading free Public Domain eBooks. Available in various formats. More

  • Podcast: A Moment of Science. Approximately 1 minute general science facts.
    Home page: More
    RSS: More
  • Podcast: The Naked Scientists. Current science, medicine, space and other science
    Home page: More
    RSS: More
  • Podcast: Quirks & Quarks. Current science news.
    Home page: More
    RSS: More
  • Articles and videos: Universe Today. Current space and astronomy news.
    Home page: More
    RSS: More
  • Old Picture of the Day - "Each day we bring you one stunning little glimpse of history in the form of a historical photograph."
    Home page: More
    RSS: More
  IX.
Other Holiday Sites (Last link added October 1 2014. Link content changes yearly)

Below, are listed several holiday sites that I reference in addition to other holiday researches.


US Government Holidays

  • 2014 Postal Holidays More
  • 2014 Official Federal Holidays More

Holidays Worldwide

  • List of holidays by country More
  • Holidays and Observances around the World More
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