Today is October 2 2014

National Fried Scallops Day: More

• National Custodial Workers Day: More
  
• National Name Your Car Day: More
• World Farm Animals Day: More
• Poetry Day: More
  The theme is: Remember
• Phileas Fogg's Wager Day: More
  The famous around the world in 80 dys wager made on thei day in 1872.
• International Day of Non-violence: More
  Un day sanctioned day of peace each year on Gandhi’s birthday.

• In 1608, The first telescope is demonstrated by Hans Lippershey of Middelburg.
  From Wikipedia: 'Hans Lippershey (1570 – buried 29 September 1619), also known as Johann Lippershey or Lipperhey, was a German-Dutch spectacle-maker. He is commonly associated with the invention of the telescope, although it is unclear if he was the first to build one.
  
  Hans Lippershey is known for the earliest written record of a refracting telescope, a patent he filed in 1608. His work with optical devices grew out of his work as a spectacle maker, an industry that had started in Venice and Florence in the thirteenth century, and later expanded to the Netherlands and Germany.
  
  Lippershey applied to the States General of the Netherlands on 2 October 1608 for a patent for his instrument "for seeing things far away as if they were nearby", a few weeks before another Dutch instrument-maker's patent, that of Jacob Metius. Lippershey failed to receive a patent since the same claim for invention had also been made by other spectacle-makers but he was handsomely rewarded by the Dutch government for copies of his design.
  
  Lippershey's application for a patent was mentioned at the end of a diplomatic report on an embassy to Holland from the Kingdom of Siam sent by the Siamese king Ekathotsarot: Ambassades du Roy de Siam envoyé à l'Excellence du Prince Maurice, arrivé à La Haye le 10 Septemb. 1608 (Embassy of the King of Siam sent to his Excellency Prince Maurice, arrived at The Hague on 10 September 1608). This report was issued in October 1608 and distributed across Europe, leading to experiments by other scientists, such as the Italian Paolo Sarpi, who received the report in November, the Englishman Thomas Harriot, who was using a six-powered telescope by the summer of 1609, and Galileo Galilei, who improved the device.
  
  There are many stories as to how Lippershey came by his invention. One version has Lippershey observing two children playing with lenses in his shop and commenting how they could make a far away weather-vane seem closer when looking at it through two lenses. Other stories have Lippershey's apprentice coming up with the idea or have Lippershey copying someone else's discovery. Lippershey's original instrument consisted of either two convex lenses with an inverted image or a convex objective and a concave eyepiece lens so it would have an upright image. This "Dutch perspective glass" (the name "telescope" would not be coined until three years later by Giovanni Demisiani) had a three-times (or 3X) magnification.
  
  The lunar crater Lippershey, the minor planet 31338 Lipperhey, and the exoplanet Lipperhey (55 Cancri d) are named after him'.
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• In 1835, The Texas Revolution begins with the Battle of Gonzales. Mexican soldiers attempt to disarm the people of Gonzales, Texas, but encounter stiff resistance from a hastily assembled militia.
  From Wikipedia: 'In the early 1830s, the army loaned the citizens of Gonzales a small cannon for protection against Indian raids. After a Mexican soldier bludgeoned a Gonzales resident on September 10, 1835, tensions rose even further, and Mexican authorities felt it unwise to leave the settlers with a weapon. Colonel Domingo de Ugartechea, commander of all Mexican military forces in Texas, sent a small detachment of troops to retrieve the cannon. After settlers escorted the group from town without the cannon, Ugartechea sent 100 dragoons with Lieutenant Francisco de Castañeda to demand compliance, with orders to avoid force if possible.
  
  Many of the settlers believed Mexican authorities were manufacturing an excuse to attack the town and eliminate the militia. Texians stalled Castañeda's attempts to negotiate the cannon's return for several days as they waited for reinforcements from other colonies. In the early hours of October 2, approximately 140 Texian volunteers attacked Castañeda's force. After a brief skirmish, Castañeda requested a meeting with Texian leader John Henry Moore. Castañeda revealed that he shared their federalist leanings, but that he was honor-bound to follow orders. As Moore returned to camp, the Texians raised a homemade white banner with an image of the cannon painted in black in the center, over the words "Come and Take It". Realizing that he was outnumbered and outgunned, Castañeda led his troops back to Béxar. In this first battle of the revolution, two Mexican soldiers were killed, and one Texian was injured when he fell off his horse. Although the event was, as characterized by historian William C. Davis, "an inconsequential skirmish in which one side did not try to fight", Texians soon declared it a victory over Mexican troops. News of the skirmish spread throughout the United States, encouraging many adventurers to come to Texas to join the fight.
  
  Volunteers continued to arrive in Gonzales. On October 11, the troops unanimously elected Austin, who had no official military experience, the leader of the group he had dubbed the Army of the People. From the beginning, the volunteer army proved to have little discipline. Austin's first official order was to remind his men that they were expected to obey their commanding officers. Buoyed by their victory, the Texians were determined to drive the Mexican army out of Texas, and they began preparing to march to Béxar'.
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• In 1866, J. Osterhoudt patents tin can with a key opener. This was the key that rolled up a pre-scored strip on the side of the can.
  From Wikipedia: 'Another key opener with completely different design was patented by J. Osterhoudt in 1866. Instead of piercing the can, it was used to tear off and roll up a pre-scored strip on the side of the can, just below the lid. It was also called "key", because of resemblance to a door key. Such openers are spot-welded or soldered to many small, thin-walled cans nowadays and are separated prior to use by prying the key up and bending it back and forth a few times until it breaks loose'.
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• In 1876, The Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas opened for enrollment (6 students the first day). It was the state's first venture into public higher education. The school was formally dedicated 2 days later by Texas Gov. Richard Coke.
  From Wikipedia: 'Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, TAMU /'tæmu?/, or A&M) is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas, United States. It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System, the fourth-largest university in the United States and the largest university in Texas. The university enjoys a strong athletic program and fan following, known as the twelfth man, and is a member of the Southeastern Conference. It is consistently ranked among the top 20 public universities in the United States; most notably, its engineering school ranks in the top 10 of public schools. Texas A&M's designation as a land, sea, and space grant institution reflects a range of research with ongoing projects funded by agencies such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Office of Naval Research. The school ranks in the top 20 American research institutes in funding and has made contributions to such fields as animal cloning and petroleum engineering.
  
  The U.S. Congress laid the groundwork for the establishment of Texas A&M in 1862 with the adoption of the Morrill Act. The act auctioned land grants of public lands to establish endowments for colleges where the "leading object shall be, without excluding other scientific and classical studies and including military tactics, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and mechanical arts... to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions in life". In 1871, the Texas Legislature used these funds to establish the state's first public institution of higher education, the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, then known as Texas A.M.C. Brazos County donated 2,416 acres (10 km2) near Bryan, Texas, for the school's campus.
  
  Enrollment began on October 2, 1876. Six students enrolled on the first day, and classes officially began on October 4, 1876, with six faculty members. During the first semester, enrollment increased to 48 students, and by the end of the spring 1877 semester, 106 students had enrolled. Admission was limited to white males, and all students were required to participate in the Corps of Cadets and receive military training. Although traditional Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets "campusologies" indicate 40 students began classes on October 4, 1876, the exact number of students enrolled on that day is unknown. Enrollment climbed to 258 students before declining to 108 students in 1883, the year the University of Texas opened in Austin, Texas. Though originally envisioned and annotated in the Texas Constitution as a branch of the University of Texas, Texas A.M.C. had a separate Board of Directors from the University of Texas from the first day of classes and was never enveloped into the University of Texas System'.
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• In 1902, Beatrix Potter's 'The Tale of Peter Rabbit' is published by Frederick Warne & Co. in London.
  From Wikipedia: 'Peter Rabbit is a fictional animal character in various children's stories by Beatrix Potter. He first appeared in The Tale of Peter Rabbit in 1902 and subsequently in five more books between 1904 and 1912. Spinoff merchandise includes dishes, wallpaper, and dolls. He appears as a character in a number of adaptations.
  
  The rabbits in Potter's stories are anthropomorphic and wear human clothes: Peter wears a jacket and shoes. Peter, his mother, Mrs. Josephine Rabbit, as well as his sisters, Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail live in a rabbit hole that has a human kitchen, human furniture, as well as a shop where Mrs. Rabbit sells various items. Peter's relatives are Cousin Benjamin Bunny and Benjamin's father Mr. Benjamin Bunny.
  
  Peter Rabbit was named after a pet rabbit Beatrix Potter had as a child called Peter Piper. The first Peter Rabbit story, The Tale of Peter Rabbit, was originally created in 1893 as a letter to Noel Moore, the five-year-old son of Potter's former governess, Annie Moore. The boy was ill and Potter wrote him a picture and story letter to help him pass the time and to cheer him up. The letter included sketches illustrating the narrative.
  
  In June 1903, a trade edition of the tale was published by Frederick Warne and Co, and by the end of the year, 28,000 copies were in print. Over the years, The Tale of Peter Rabbit has sold more than 40 million copies worldwide and as of 2008, the Peter Rabbit series has sold more than 151 million copies in 35 languages'.
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• In 1925, John Logie Baird performs the first test of a working television system. It worked on a mechanical (scanning disk) principle not an electronic principle used today.
  From Wikipedia: 'The development of television was the result of work by many inventors. Among them, Baird was a prominent pioneer and made major advances in the field. Many historians credit Baird with being the first to produce a live, moving, greyscale television image from reflected light. Baird achieved this, where other inventors had failed, by obtaining a better photoelectric cell and improving the signal conditioning from the photocell and the video amplifier.
  
  Between 1902 and 1907, Arthur Korn invented and built the first successful signal-conditioning circuits for image transmission. The circuits overcame the image-destroying lag effect that is part of selenium photocells. Korn's compensation circuit allowed him to send still fax pictures by telephone or wireless between countries and even over oceans, while his circuit operated without benefit of electronic amplification. Korn's success at transmitting halftone still images suggested that such compensation circuits might work in television. Baird was the direct beneficiary of Korn's research and success.
  
  In his first attempts to develop a working television system, Baird experimented with the Nipkow disk. Paul Gottlieb Nipkow had invented this scanning disc system in 1884. Television historian Albert Abramson calls Nipkow's patent "the master television patent". Nipkow's work is important because Baird and many others chose to develop it into a broadcast medium.
  
  In early 1923, and in poor health, Baird moved to 21 Linton Crescent, Hastings, on the south coast of England. He later rented a workshop in the Queen's Arcade in the town. Baird built what was to become the world's first working television set using items including an old hatbox and a pair of scissors, some darning needles, a few bicycle light lenses, a used tea chest, and sealing wax and glue that he purchased. In February 1924, he demonstrated to the Radio Times that a semi-mechanical analogue television system was possible by transmitting moving silhouette images. In July of the same year, he received a 1000-volt electric shock, but survived with only a burnt hand, and as a result his landlord, Mr Tree, asked him to vacate the premises. Baird gave the first public demonstration of moving silhouette images by television at Selfridges department store in London in a three-week series of demonstrations beginning on 25 March 1925.
  
  In his laboratory on 2 October 1925, Baird successfully transmitted the first television picture with a greyscale image: the head of a ventriloquist's dummy nicknamed "Stooky Bill" in a 30-line vertically scanned image, at five pictures per second. Baird went downstairs and fetched an office worker, 20-year-old William Edward Taynton, to see what a human face would look like, and Taynton became the first person to be televised in a full tonal range. Looking for publicity, Baird visited the Daily Express newspaper to promote his invention. The news editor was terrified and he was quoted by one of his staff as saying: "For God's sake, go down to reception and get rid of a lunatic who's down there. He says he's got a machine for seeing by wireless! Watch him — he may have a razor on him."'.
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• In 1928, The radio show 'The National Farm and Home Hour' debuted on NBC radio. It was a combination of variety and farm and agricultural information. It ran from 1928 to 1958 in various time slots.
  From Wikipedia: 'The National Farm and Home Hour was a variety show which was broadcast in various formats from 1928 to 1958. Aimed at listeners in rural America, it was known as "the farmer's bulletin board" and was produced by the United States Department of Agriculture with contributions from, and the cooperation of, various farm organizations (among them the American Farm Bureau, 4-H Club, Farmers Union, Future Farmers of America and the National Grange). Raymond Edward Johnson and, later, Don Ameche appeared in dramatic sketches in the role of the Forest Ranger.
  
  With live coverage of livestock expositions, harvest festivals and "the most spectacular happenings in agricultural America," the program offered tips to farmers, music and news, plus advice from agencies and government officials.
  
  The series first aired on Pittsburgh's KDKA (1928-29), moving to the Blue Network (later ABC) from September 30, 1929 to March 17, 1945, usually heard Monday through Saturday at 12:30 (Eastern). Under the sponsorship of Allis-Chalmers, it continued on NBC as a 30-minute show on Saturdays at noon (Eastern) from September 15, 1945 to January 25, 1958; in its final three years (1955-58), it would be incorporated into the Saturday lineup of NBC's weekend anthology Monitor.
  
  Host Everett Mitchell opened each broadcast with his trademark line, "It's a beautiful day in Chicago!", which became a familiar catch phrase'.
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• In 1946,The first American TV network soap opera 'Faraway Hill' debuted on the Dumont network. It starred Flora Campbell, Mel Brandt, Eve McVeagh, Julie Christy, Barry Doig, Munroe Gabler, Jack Halloran, Vivian King, Ben Low Frederic Meyer, Lorene Scott, Ann Stell, Hal Studer, Jacqueline Waite. It ran from October 2, 1946 – December 18, 1946.
  From Wikipedia: 'Faraway Hill was the first soap opera broadcast on an American television network, airing on the DuMont Television Network on Wednesday nights at 9 pm between October 2 and December 18, 1946.
  
  A widowed New York City resident, Karen St. John (played by Flora Campbell), moved to a small town to be near relatives. There she met a man who had been adopted by her family, and with whom she fell in love. However, he was already engaged to another woman. In addition, the sophisticated St. John clashed with her rural relatives'.
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• In 1949, The TV comedy 'The Aldrich Family' debuted on NBC-TV. It ran for 4 seasons. It started on radio (different cast) and both ran for a while on both mediums.
  From Wikipedia: 'The Aldrich Family, a popular radio teenage situation comedy (July 2, 1939-April 19, 1953), was also presented in films, television and comic books. In the radio series' well-remembered weekly opening exchange, awkward teen Henry's mother called, "Hen-reeeeeeeeeeeee! Hen-ree Al-drich!", and he responded with a breaking adolescent voice, "Com-ing, Mother!"
  
  The creation of playwright Clifford Goldsmith, Henry Aldrich began on Broadway as a minor character in Goldsmith's play What a Life. Produced and directed by George Abbott, What a Life ran for 538 performances (April 13, 1938 to July 8, 1939). The Broadway cast included Eddie Bracken, Betty Field and Butterfly McQueen. The actor who brought Henry to life on stage was 20-year-old Ezra Stone, who was billed near the bottom as the 20th actor in the cast. Stone was also employed as the play's production assistant.
  
  On October 2, 1949, the program premiered on NBC while continuing to air on the radio with a primarily different cast. Over the course of its nearly four-year run on television, Henry was portrayed by five different actors: Robert Casey, Richard Tyler, Henry Girard, Kenneth Nelson and Bobby Ellis, the only one to participate in the radio production as well. Other characters — including Mrs. Aldrich, Henry's sister Mary, and his best friend Homer Brown — were portrayed by multiple actors as well, a practice not uncommon in radio but unusual for television, where cast changes are more noticeable.
  
  The program garnered some adverse publicity when film and radio veteran Jean Muir was signed to play Mrs. Aldrich in the second season, which was to begin on August 27, 1950. Shortly before Muir's scheduled premiere, Right-wing groups accused the actress of being a Communist sympathizer (her name appeared in Red Channels, a pamphlet listing the names of performers allegedly involved in left-wing activities), and General Foods, the show's sponsor, cancelled the first episode of the new season, replacing her with Nancy Carroll a week later, when the series returned on September 3. Muir went on to defend herself before a Congressional committee, but her career never recovered from the charges. After General Foods ended their sponsorship in the spring of 1951, Campbell Soup Company became the new sponsor when the series moved from Sundays to Friday nights that fall. The final episode was broadcast on May 29, 1953, slightly more than a month after the radio series came to an end.
  
  The cast of the television series included Marcia Henderson as Kathleen Anderson.
  
  The series finished at #18 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1950-1951 season.
  
  The comedy troupe Firesign Theatre parodied the show with the sketch "Don't Crush That Dwarf Hand Me the Pliers"'.
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• In 1950, The comic strip 'Peanuts' is first published.
  From Wikipedia: 'Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. The strip is the most popular and influential in the history of comic strips, with 17,897 strips published in all, making it "arguably the longest story ever told by one human being". At its peak, Peanuts ran in over 2,600 newspapers, with a readership of 355 million in 75 countries, and was translated into 21 languages. It helped to cement the four-panel gag strip as the standard in the United States, and together with its merchandise earned Schulz more than $1 billion. Reprints of the strip are still syndicated and run in almost every U.S. newspaper.
  
  The strip focuses entirely on a miniature society of young children, with no shown adult characters. The main character, Charlie Brown, is meek, nervous, and lacks self-confidence. He is unable to fly a kite, win a baseball game, or kick a football. Peanuts is one of the literate strips with philosophical, psychological, and sociological overtones that flourished in the 1950s. The strip's humor (at least during its '60s peak) is psychologically complex, and the characters' interactions formed a tangle of relationships that drove the strip.
  
  Peanuts achieved considerable success with its television specials, several of which, including A Charlie Brown Christmas and It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, won or were nominated for Emmy Awards. The holiday specials remain popular and are currently broadcast on ABC in the U.S. during the corresponding seasons. The Peanuts franchise met acclaim in theatre, with the stage musical You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown being a successful and often-performed production.
  
  In 2013, TV Guide ranked the Peanuts television specials the fourth Greatest TV Cartoon of All Time. A computer-animated feature film based on the strip, The Peanuts Movie, was released on November 6, 2015'.
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• In 1953,The TV show 'Person to Person' debuted on CBS-TV. It's format was of a celebrity remote viewing visit. It ran for 2 seasons from October 2, 1953-September 8, 1961.
  From Wikipedia: 'Person to Person is a popular television program in the United States that originally ran from 1953 to 1961, with two episodes of an attempted revival airing in 2012. Edward R. Murrow hosted the original series from its inception in 1953 until 1959, interviewing celebrities in their homes from a comfortable chair in his New York studio (his opening: "Good evening, I'm Ed Murrow. And the name of the program is 'Person to Person'. It's all live – there's no film"). In the last two years of its original run, Charles Collingwood was the host.
  
  Although Murrow is best remembered as a reporter on programs such as Hear It Now and See It Now and for publicly confronting Senator Joseph McCarthy, on Person to Person he was a pioneer of the celebrity interview.
  
  The program was well planned but not strictly scripted, with as many as six cameras and TV lighting installed to cover the guest's moves through his home, and a microwave link to transmit the signals back to the network. The guests wore wireless microphones to pick up their voices as they moved around the home or its grounds. The interviews were done live. The two 15-minute interviews in each program were typically with very different types of people, such as a movie star and a scientist. Guests often used the appearance to promote their latest project or book'.
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• In 1955, The TV show 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents', and anthology series (different stories, usually a different cast), premieres. It ran for 10 seasons for 360 ep. from October 2, 1955 – May 10, 1965.
  From Wikipedia: 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents is an American television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock, which aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It featured dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. By the time it premiered on October 2, 1955, Hitchcock had been directing films for over three decades. Time magazine named it one of "The 100 Best TV Shows of all time". The Writers Guild of America ranked it #79 on their list of the 101 Best-Written TV Series tying it with Monty Python's Flying Circus, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Upstairs, Downstairs.
  
  A series of literary anthologies with the running title Alfred Hitchcock Presents were issued to capitalize on the success of the television series. One volume, devoted to stories that censors wouldn't allow to be adapted for broadcast, was entitled Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Stories They Wouldn't Let Me Do on TV—though eventually several of the stories collected were adapted'.
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• In 1959, The anthology science fiction TV series 'The Twilight Zone' premieres. It ran for 5 seasons for 156 ep. from October 2, 1959 – June 19, 1964.
  From Wikipedia: 'The Twilight Zone is an American science-fiction, fantasy, psychological-supernatural horror anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consists of unrelated dramas depicting characters dealing with paranormal, futuristic, Kafkaesque, or otherwise disturbing or unusual events; characters who find themselves dealing with these strange, sometimes inexplicable happenings are said to have crossed over into "The Twilight Zone". Each story typically features a moral and a surprise ending.
  
  The series is notable for featuring both established stars (Joan Blondell, Ann Blyth, Art Carney, William Demarest, Buddy Ebsen, Jack Elam, Buster Keaton, Kevin McCarthy, Burgess Meredith, Agnes Moorehead, Ed Wynn) and younger actors who would become more famous later on (Bill Bixby, Charles Bronson, Donna Douglas, Robert Duvall, Anne Francis, Mariette Hartley, Earl Holliman, Dennis Hopper, Elizabeth Montgomery, Leonard Nimoy, Robert Redford, Burt Reynolds, Don Rickles, William Shatner, Telly Savalas, Alan Sues, George Takei, and Lee Van Cleef). Serling served as executive producer and head writer; he wrote or co-wrote 92 of the show's 156 episodes. He was also the show's host and narrator, delivering monologues at the beginning and end of each episode. Serling's opening and closing narrations usually summarize the episode's events encapsulating how and why the main character(s) had entered the Twilight Zone.
  
  In 1997, the episodes "To Serve Man" and "It's a Good Life" were respectively ranked at 11 and 31 on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time; Serling himself stated that his favorite episodes of the series were "The Invaders" and "Time Enough at Last". In 2002, The Twilight Zone was ranked No. 26 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.
  
  In 2013, the Writers Guild of America ranked it as the third best-written TV series ever and TV Guide ranked it as the fifth greatest show of all time'.
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• In 1961, The TV medical drama 'Ben Casey' premieres. It starred Vince Edwards, Sam Jaffe, Bettye Ackerman, Jeanne Bates John Zaremba, Ben Piazza, Jim McMullan, Franchot Tone, Stella Stevens Marlyn Mason, Harry Landers, Linda Lawson. It ran for 5 seasons 153 ep. from October 2, 1961 – March 21, 1966.
  From Wikipedia: 'Ben Casey is an American medical drama series which ran on ABC from 1961 to 1966. The show was known for its opening titles, which consisted of a hand drawing the symbols "?, ?, ?, †, 8" on a chalkboard, as cast member Sam Jaffe intoned, "Man, woman, birth, death, infinity." Neurosurgeon Joseph Ransohoff was a medical consultant for the show and may have influenced the personality of the title character.
  
  The series starred Vince Edwards (credited as Vincent Edwards) as medical doctor Ben Casey, a young, intense but idealistic surgeon at County General Hospital. His mentor was Doctor David Zorba, played by Sam Jaffe. The show began running multi-episode stories, starting with the first five episodes of Season 4; Casey developed a romantic relationship with Jane Hancock (Stella Stevens), who had just emerged from a coma after fifteen years. At the beginning of Season 5 (the last season), Jaffe left the show and Franchot Tone replaced Zorba as new Chief of Neurosurgery, Doctor Daniel Niles Freeland'.
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• In 1971, The TV musical variety/dance show 'Soul Train' premieres. It ran from October 2, 1971 – March 25, 2006.
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  From Wikipedia: 'Soul Train is an American musical variety television program which aired in syndication from 1971 until 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featured performances by R ad B, soul and hip hop artists, although funk, jazz, disco and gospel artists also appeared. The series was created by Don Cornelius, who also served as its first host and executive producer.
  
  Production was suspended following the 2005–2006 season, with a rerun package (known as The Best of Soul Train) airing for two years subsequently. As a nod to Soul Train's longevity, the show's opening sequence during later seasons contained a claim that it was the "longest-running first-run, nationally syndicated program in American television history," with over 1,100 episodes produced from the show's debut through the 2005–2006 season. Despite the production hiatus, Soul Train held that superlative until 2016, when Entertainment Tonight surpassed it completing its 35th season. Among non-news programs, Wheel of Fortune will surpass it in 2025 (that show has already been renewed through that year)'.
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• In 1996, The Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments are signed by former U.S. President Bill Clinton. It set the conditions under which government records could be revealed.
  From Wikipedia: 'The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552 , is a federal freedom of information law that allows for the full or partial disclosure of previously unreleased information and documents controlled by the United States government. The Act defines agency records subject to disclosure, outlines mandatory disclosure procedures and grants nine exemptions to the statute. This amendment was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, despite his misgivings, on July 4, 1966, and went into effect the following year.
  
  As indicated by its long title, FOIA was actually extracted from its original home in Section 3 of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Section 3 of the APA, as enacted in 1946, gave agencies broad discretion concerning the publication of governmental records. Following concerns that the provision had become more of a withholding than a disclosure mechanism, Congress amended the section in 1966 as a standalone act to implement "a general philosophy of full agency disclosure." The amendment required agencies to publish their rules of procedure in the Federal Register, 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(1)(C), and to make available for public inspection and copying their opinions, statements of policy, interpretations, and staff manuals and instructions that are not published in the Federal Register, § 552(a)(2). In addition, § 522(a)(3) requires every agency, "upon any request for records which ... reasonably describes such records" to make such records "promptly available to any person." If an agency improperly withholds any documents, the district court has jurisdiction to order their production. Unlike the review of other agency action that must be upheld if supported by substantial evidence and not arbitrary or capricious, FOIA expressly places the burden "on the agency to sustain its action," and directs the district courts to "determine the matter de novo."
  
  The Federal Government's Freedom of Information Act should not be confused with the different and varying Freedom of Information Acts passed by the individual states. Many of those state acts may be similar but not identical to the federal act'.
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Tomorrow's food holiday will be 'National Fried Scallops Day'. Fried or broiled, is OK by me. I love 'um cause they are not fishy tasting.

OK, I saw that. take that used gum from under the desk, wrap it in paper and toss it in the trash can. tomorrow is 'National Custodial Workers Day'.

If you are getting a new car, think hard and come up with a good name for it. tomorrow will be 'National Name Your Car Day'. My mother did the car naming job in my family.

We have an animal(s) awareness day tomorrow. It will be 'World Farm Animals Day'.

Get out the pen an paper, or word processor. You will need it for 'Poetry Day'., tomorrow. No, not a repeat day. that was 'Poet's Day' and 'World Poetry Day' we celebrated earlier in the year. The poetry theme is: Remember

Tomorrow is a literary event, of sorts. It was on October 2 1872 that a quick journey was planned around the world. It was to take only 80 days. tomorrow is ' Phileas Fogg's Wager Day'. He pulled off the wager, but could only do it with the help of the International Date Line..

Another awareness day tomorrow is 'International Day of Non-violence'. It is a Un day sanctioned day of peace each year on Gandhi’s birthday.

It has been said "Men talk of killing time, while time quietly kills them. - Dion Boucicault". Well we had better take our look back while we have the chance. How about October 2 in the past:

In 1835, The Texas Revolution begins with the Battle of Gonzales. Mexican soldiers attempt to disarm the people of Gonzales, Texas, but encounter stiff resistance from a hastily assembled militia.

In 1866, J Osterhoudt patents a tin can with key opener. I would like to have that famous nickel for every can of Spam I opened that way in the good ole days. I use to dave the keys and try to find a use for them. Never did.

In 1950, 'Peanuts' is first published. It was called 'Charlie Brown' back them and was a four frame strip. It showed Charlie walking by his friends who greeted him warmly until he passed by and then belittled him to one another.

In 1955, The TV show 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' premieres.

In 1959, The anthology TV series 'The Twilight Zone' premieres. I am currently storing away food and beverage for the annual New Years TZ marathon.

In 1961, The TV show 'Ben Casey' premieres.

In 1971, The TV dance show 'Soul Train' premieres.

No. 1 song

• Oh, Pretty Woman - Roy Orbison: More
  'The House of the Rising Sun' has been displaced by 'Oh, Pretty Woman', which will hold the no. 1 spot until October 17 2014, when 'Do Wah Diddy Diddy', takes over.

Top movie

• Mary Poppins More
  Having displaced 'A Hard Day's Night', it will be there until the weekend box office of October 4 1964 when, 'Cheyenne Autumn', takes over.

• FamousBirthdays.com: October 2 Birthdays More
• FamousDaily.com: October 2 History More
• History.com: Historical Events on 2nd October More
• HistoryOrb.com: Famous Deaths on 2nd October More
• On-This-day.com history 2nd October More
• On-This-day.com music history 2nd October More
• Wikipedia.com: History October 2 More

Food: Apple Month, Rhubarb Month, Sausage Month, Spinach Lovers Month, National Chili Month, National Popcorn Poppin' Month, National Seafood Month Pear and Pineapple Month, , Vegetarian Month
Other
AIDS Awareness Month, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Bullying Prevention Month, Celiac Disease Awareness Month, Class Reunion Month, Down Syndrome Awareness Month, Dyslexia Awareness Month, National Book Month, National Dental Hygiene Month, National Down Syndrome Month, National Spina Bifida Awareness Month, National Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Awareness Month

October is:

October origin (from Wikipedia): October is the tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with a length of 31 days. The eighth month in the old Roman calendar, October retained its name (from the Greek meaning 'eight') after January and February were inserted into the calendar that had originally been created by the Romans. "
October is commonly associated with the season of autumn in the Northern hemisphere and spring in the Southern hemisphere, where it is the seasonal equivalent to April in the Northern hemisphere and vice versa.

October at Wikipedia: More

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

Best selling books of 1964 More

• 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

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