Today is October 8 2014

National Fluffernutter Day: More
A sandwich made with bread, peanut butter, and marshmallow fluff.

• American Tag Day: More
  A playground sport.
• National Pierogy Day: More
• National Emergency Nurses Day: More
  Second Wednesday in October
• National Stop Bullying Day: More
  Second Wednesday in October
• Bring Your Teddy Bear To Work & School Day: More
• Alvin C. York Day: More
  During WW I, his action in battle, on this day in 1918, earned him the Medal of Honor.
• Pet Obesity Awareness Day: More

• In 1645, Jeanne Mance opened the Hôtel-Dieu de Montral, the first lay hospital in North America.
  From Wikipedia: 'Jeanne Mance (November 12, 1606 – June 18, 1673) was a French nurse and settler of New France. She arrived in New France two years after the Ursuline Nuns came to Quebec. Among the founders of Montreal, Canada, in 1642, she established its first hospital, the Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal, in 1645. She returned twice to France to seek financial support for the hospital. After providing most of the care directly for years, in 1657 she recruited three sisters of the Religious Hospitallers of St. Joseph, and continued to direct operations of the hospital'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
• In 1871, Four major fires break out on the shores of Lake Michigan in Chicago, Peshtigo, Wisconsin, Holland, Michigan, and Manistee, Michigan including the Great Chicago Fire.
  From Wikipedia: 'The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871. The fire killed up to 300 people, destroyed roughly 3.3 square miles (9 km2) of Chicago, Illinois, and left more than 100,000 residents homeless.
  
  The fire started at about 9:00 p.m. on October 8, in or around a small barn belonging to the O'Leary family that bordered the alley behind 137 DeKoven Street. The shed next to the barn was the first building to be consumed by the fire, but city officials never determined the exact cause of the blaze. There has, however, been much speculation over the years. The most popular tale blames Mrs. O'Leary's cow, who allegedly knocked over a lantern; others state that a group of men were gambling inside the barn and knocked over a lantern. Still other speculation suggests that the blaze was related to other fires in the Midwest that day.
  
  The fire's spread was aided by the city's use of wood as the predominant building material in a style called balloon frame; a drought before the fire; and strong southwest winds that carried flying embers toward the heart of the city. More than two thirds of the structures in Chicago at the time of the fire were made entirely of wood. Most houses and buildings were topped with highly flammable tar or shingle roofs. All the city's sidewalks and many roads were made of wood. Compounding this problem, Chicago had only received an inch (2.54 cm) of rain from July 4 to October 9 causing severe drought conditions.
  
  In 1871, the Chicago Fire Department had 185 firefighters with just 17 horse-drawn steam engines to protect the entire city. The initial response by the fire department was quick, but due to an error by the watchman, Matthias Schaffer, the firefighters were sent to the wrong place, allowing the fire to grow unchecked. An alarm sent from the area near the fire also failed to register at the courthouse where the fire watchmen were. Also, the firefighters were tired from having fought numerous small fires and one large fire in the week before. These factors combined to turn a small barn fire into a conflagration'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1918, In the Argonne Forest in France, United States Corporal Alvin C. York kills 28 German soldiers and captures 132, for which he is awarded the Medal of Honor.
  From Wikipedia: Alvin Cullum York (December 13, 1887 – September 2, 1964), known also by his rank, Sergeant York, was one of the most decorated soldiers of the United States Army in World War I. He received the Medal of Honor for leading an attack on a German machine gun nest, taking 35 machine guns, killing at least 28 German soldiers, and capturing 132 others. This action occurred during the United States-led portion of the broader Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France to breach the Hindenburg line and make the opposing German forces surrender.
  
  'York was drafted into the United States Army and served in Company G, 328th Infantry Regiment, 82nd Infantry Division at Camp Gordon, Georgia. Deeply troubled by the conflict between his pacifism and his training for war, he spoke at length with his company commander, Captain Edward Courtney Bullock Danforth (1894–1974) of Augusta, Georgia and his battalion commander, Major Gonzalo Edward Buxton (1880–1949) of Providence, Rhode Island, a devout Christian himself. Biblical passages about violence ("He that hath no sword, let him sell his cloak and buy one." "Render unto Caesar ..." "... if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight.") cited by Danforth persuaded York to reconsider the morality of his participation in the war. Granted a 10-day leave to visit home, he returned convinced that God meant for him to fight and would keep him safe, as committed to his new mission as he had been to pacifism. He served with his Division in the St Mihiel Offensive.
  
  During an attack (Meuse-Argonne) by his battalion to capture German positions near Hill 223 (49.28558°N 4.95242°E ) along the Decauville rail-line north of Chatel-Chéhéry, France, on October 8, 1918, York's actions earned him the Medal of Honor'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
  - On YouTube (Sargent York movie trailer): More
• In 1921, KDKA in Pittsburgh's Forbes Field conducts the first live broadcast of a football game.
  From Wikipedia: 'As a pioneer in radio broadcasting, KDKA struggled in particular with studio acoustics, especially for large groups of performers. An early attempt to broadcast a concert by Westinghouse employees from a local auditorium found that the sensitive microphones picked up echoes from the walls, causing severe distortion. Moving the performers outdoors eliminated the echoing, so a tent was erected on the building roof, and for a time concerts were performed from this location. Eventually the tent was blown down in a storm, so it was moved indoors, where it was found the tent material helped deaden the echoes. This lead to modern studio design, including walls covered with noise-absorbing material, initially "monks cloth" (which turned out to be a fancy name for burlap).
  
  Early programming often featured live musical performances by a band composed of Westinghouse employees. The station provided its first remote broadcast on January 2, 1921, airing a religious service from Calvary Episcopal Church. The Calvary services soon became a regular Sunday evening offering, and were continued until 1962. On January 15, 1921, at 8 p.m., KDKA broadcast a speech on European relief by Herbert Hoover from the Duquesne Club in Pittsburgh, that was carried ten miles (sixteen kilometers) by a telephone line connection to Westinghouse's East Pittsburgh Works. On July 2, 1921, an announcer repeated the ringside commentary, sent by telegraph, from the Jack Dempsey - Georges Carpentier fight in New Jersey. On August 21, 1921, KDKA became the first radio station to broadcast a major league professional baseball game, when announcer Harold W. Arlin called the Pittsburgh Pirates-Philadelphia Phillies game from Forbes Field. In the fall of that year, the station became the first to broadcast a college football game. In 1922, KDKA hosted political humorist Will Rogers in his first radio appearance'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
• In 1944, The Battle of Crucifix Hill (a key point in the enemy's defense of Aachen, Germany) occurs on Crucifix Hill just outside Aachen. Capt. Bobbie Brown receives a Medal of Honor for his heroics in this battle. He was wounded three times, refused medical attention, took out several machine gun nests and drew fire on himself to provide valuable information on German gun positions.
  From Wikipedia: 'Robert "Bobbie" Evan Brown Jr. (September 2, 1903 – November 8, 1971) was a recipient of the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Crucifix Hill, near Aachen, Germany, on October 8, 1944. He left home and joined the army in 1922, lying about his age. At the start of World War II, he was the first sergeant of the Headquarters Company of the 2nd Armored Division. He received a battlefield commission to second lieutenant and was transferred to the 1st Infantry Division in 1943. Following the death of his company commander on D-Day he assumed command of his company, Company C. Brown left the army with the rank of captain in 1952.
  
  At the army recruiter's in Columbus, he told the Sergeant he was 18. Because he filled out his first enlistment papers with his nickname "Bobbie," that's how the army knew him for next 3 decades.
  
  He qualified as an expert with every weapon in army's arsenal and took up boxing and American football. He scored 38 victories in the ring and made all-army team for football in 1927. Three universities offered him scholarships to play football for them before they learned he'd only completed 7th grade.
  
  When World War II began he was the First Sergeant in the Headquarters Company of Patton's 2nd Armored Division. After fighting across North Africa, he received battlefield promotion to Second Lieutenant and transferred to the 1st Infantry Division. He led a platoon of Company C up Omaha Beach on D-Day. While fighting across France he assumed command of his unit when his Company Commander was killed.
  
  A few days later the promotion became official. At 04:00, October 8, 1944, he received orders for an attack on Crucifix Hill. Of 43 known pillboxes and bunkers, his company was responsible for numbers 17, 18, 19, 20, 26, 29, and 30. After a formation of P-47 Thunderbolts finished an air strike at 13:15, he led his company out of positions in a graveyard at the foot of the hill. They made it about 150 yards (140 m) to an antitank ditch in front of pillbox 18 before heavy German fire forced them to seek cover. He turned to his platoon Sergeant, "Get me a couple of flamethrowers, some pole and satchel charges." Once armed with those, he had his riflemen lay down a base of fire, then started crawling alone toward the pillbox. A bomb had earlier blown a hole near the pillbox, which he jumped into and dropped a satchel charge through an aperture by a door. The pillbox erupted, clouds of smoke billowing from its rifle ports.
  
  He wriggled his way back to his men to pick up more charges and went back uphill 35 yards (32 m) past the still smoking bunker and toward pillbox 19 while under heavy machine-gun fire. Several mortar rounds fell nearby, slamming his body to the ground. Once in range, he dropped a pole charge through a 12-inch (300 mm) opening, blowing a hole in the pillbox, followed with a satchel charge. On his way back downhill for more charges, he noticed blood covering one knee. Then his Sergeant told him, "Sir, there's bullet holes in your canteen." He had no idea when he'd been hit.
  
  Pillbox 20 was perhaps the largest and most heavily armed fortification on the hill. A turret, mounting a cut-down 88 mm cannon, revolved 360 degrees on the top, while the concrete walls were 6 feet (1.8 m) thick. The structure was manned by 45 soldiers with no less than 6 machine-guns. Following a communications trench 20 yards (18 m) from number 19 to 20, he threw 2 satchel charges through a steel door that an ammunition-laden soldier was entering through. With the destruction of pillbox 20, enemy resistance on Crucifix Hill soon crumbled, allowing allied forces to mop up, and securing the 1st Division's flank.
  
  He was wounded during street fighting in Aachen when an artillery shell landed practically beside him. Numb, blood streaming from his nose, ears, and mouth, he headed for an aid station. He spent several months in a hospital in Belgium, then went home on a 30-day leave. He rejoined Company C in Germany and fought with it into Czechoslovakia. After the war ended, he flew home to receive his Medal of Honor on August 23, 1945'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
• In 1944, The radio comedy 'The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet' debut on CBS radio.
  From Wikipedia: The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet is an American sitcom, airing on ABC from October 3, 1952, through April 23, 1966, starring the real-life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television, where it continued its success, initially running simultaneously on radio and television. The series stars Ozzie Nelson and his wife, singer Harriet Nelson, and their young sons, David and Eric "Ricky" Nelson. Don DeFore had a recurring role as the Nelsons' friendly neighbor "Thorny". Currently, reruns of the show are broadcast on Retro Television Network.
  
  When Red Skelton was drafted in March 1944, Ozzie Nelson was prompted to create his own family situation comedy. The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet launched October 8, 1944 on CBS, it moved to NBC in October 1948, then made a late-season switch back to CBS in April 1949. The final years of the radio series were on ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) from October 14, 1949 to June 18, 1954. In total 402 radio episodes were produced. In an arrangement that exemplified the growing pains of American broadcasting, as radio "grew up" into television, the Nelsons' deal with ABC gave the network the option to move their program to television. The struggling network needed proven talent that was not about to defect to the more established and wealthier networks like CBS or NBC.
  
  The Nelsons' sons, David and Ricky, did not join the cast until the radio show's fifth year (initially appearing on the February 20, 1949 episode, ages 12 and 8, respectively). The two boys were played by professional actors prior to their joining because both were too young to perform. The role of David was played by Joel Davis from 1944 until 1945 when he was replaced by Tommy Bernard. Henry Blair appeared as Ricky. Other cast members included John Brown as Syd "Thorny" Thornberry, Lurene Tuttle as Harriet's mother, Bea Benaderet as Gloria, Janet Waldo as Emmy Lou, and Francis "Dink" Trout as Roger. Vocalists included Harriet Nelson, The King Sisters, and Ozzie Nelson. The announcers were Jack Bailey and Verne Smith. The music was by Billy May and Ozzie Nelson. The producers were Dave Elton and Ozzie Nelson. The show's sponsors included International Silver Company (1944–49), H.J. Heinz Company (1949–52) and Lambert Pharmacal's Listerine (1952–54)'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube (radio): More
  - On YouTube (TV): More
• In 1958, Dr Ake Senning installs first pacemaker (Stockholm).
  From Wikipedia: 'Åke Senning (14 September 1915 — 21 July 2000) was a pioneering Swedish cardiac surgeon, who implanted the first human implantable cardiac pacemaker in 1958, invented the Senning operation, and contributed to many other advances.
  
  Senning was influenced to become a cardiovascular surgeon when during his training, he heard of Clarence Crafoord's operations to repair coarctation of the aorta. He trained under Crafoord from 1948 to 1956 in Sabbatsberg Hospital, where he and the doctor turned engineer Rune Elmqvist developed the first totally implantable pacemaker. From 1956, Senning led the Department of Experimental Surgery at Karolinska Hospital. In 1957 Senning performed the first repair of a common congenital heart malformation called transposition of the great arteries or TGA. He made history on October 8, 1958 by implanting the first pacemaker. Although this first device lasted only a few hours, it proved the feasibility of the procedure and opened the way to a new field in the area of device therapy. In 1961, Senning became head of the Department of Surgery at the University of Zurich and in 1969 he performed the first heart transplant in Switzerland. He retired in 1985 and died in 2000 at the age of 84'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1981, The TV show 'Cagney and Lacey' premiers.
  From Wikipedia: 'Cagney and Lacey is an American television series that originally aired on the CBS television network for seven seasons from March 25, 1982 to May 16, 1988. A police procedural, the show stars Tyne Daly and Sharon Gless as New York City police detectives who lead very different lives: Christine Cagney (Gless) was a single, career-minded woman, while Mary Beth Lacey (Daly) was a married working mother. The series was set in a fictionalized version of Manhattan's 14th Precinct (known as "Midtown South"). For six consecutive years, one of the two lead actresses won the Emmy for Best Lead Actress in a Drama (four wins for Daly, two for Gless), a winning streak unmatched in any major category by a show'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More

We have two, count 'um, two food holidays tomorrow. As usual in such cases, I will need to prescribe the proper order of consumption. First is 'National Pierogy Day'. After, and only after you finish your Polish entree, you may have your dessert for 'National Fluffernutter Day'. The dessert is suppose to be a sandwich made with bread, peanut butter, and marshmallow fluff.. While I have eaten this combo before, I didn't know it had a name. Maybe it's from a particular region. Using the P&J type of naming convention, I would call it P&M, for Peanut and Marsh. Anyway, I'll have both and you can never make too many Pierogy.

For the kids, tomorrow is 'American Tag Day'.

There is an awareness day tomorrow, 'National Stop Bullying Day'. tagging someone doesn't count. Trashing them does.

Tomorrow is 'National Emergency Nurses Day'. In a life threatening emergency, I wonder if anyone has time to say thanks. So, if you know a nurse, tell them thanks beforehand. How about tomorrow? There is a related entry below 'Jeanne Mance '.

OK, here is another one where you can test the patience (and HR policy) of your boss or teacher. Tomorrow will be 'Bring Your Teddy Bear To Work and School Day'. Disclaimer, you never read it here.

Tomorrow is 'Alvin C. York Day'. During WW I in the Battle of the Argon,, 1918,, his action in battle, earned him the Medal of Honor. There is a good movie starring Gary Cooper, 'Sergeant York' made in 1941. It is a Hollywood movie, but I think it has the main points correct. Below, there is a WW II tribute to another soldier, Capt. Bobbie Brown, who's actions stood out on this day.

While you are feeding your face with Pierogy , tomorrow, keep in mind that it is also 'Pet Obesity Awareness Day'. So, no matter how cute, sad or pitiful that look is from your pet: no Fluffernutter for them.

J.M. Barrie once said: "You must have been warned against letting the golden hours slip by; but some of them are golden only because we let them slip by." Let's get our money's worth of October 8 in the past, before it slips by again.

In 1645, Jeanne Mance opened the Hôtel-Dieu de Montral, the first lay hospital in North America.

In 1871, The Great Chicago Fire occurred. Actually there were four fires in total on October 8th. On the shores of Lake Michigan, there were fires at: Chicago, Peshtigo, Wisconsin, Holland, Michigan, and Manistee, Michigan including the Great Chicago Fire.

In 1921, KDKA at Pittsburgh's Forbes Field, conducts the first live broadcast of a football game.

In 1944, World War II: The Battle of Crucifix Hill occurs on Crucifix Hill just outside Aachen. Capt. Bobbie Brown receives a Medal of Honor for his heroics in this battle.

In 1955 - The worlds most powerful aircraft carrier, the Saratoga (US), is launched. It is the forth ship to bare that name.

In 1981 - The TV show 'Cagney and Lacey' premiers.

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

• Cheyenne Autumn More
  Having displaced 'Mary Poppins', it will be there until the weekend box office of October 11 1964 when, 'Fail-Safe', takes over.

• FamousBirthdays.com: October 8 Birthdays More
• FamousDaily.com: October 8 History More
• History.com: Historical Events on 8th October More
• HistoryOrb.com: Famous Deaths on 8th October More
• On-This-day.com history 8th October More
• On-This-day.com music history 8th October More
• Wikipedia.com: History October 8 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