Today is April 8 2015

National Empanada Day: More

• National All is Ours Day: More
  
• National Zoo Lovers Day: More
• International Feng Shui Awareness Day: More
  The 3,000 year old Chinese philosophy ofr balance in the home.
• Draw a Picture of a Bird Day: More
• International Roma Day: More
• National Dog Fighting Awareness Day: More
  ASPCA anti dog fighting awareness.

• In 1820, The Venus de Milo is discovered on the Aegean island of Melos.
  From Wikipedia: 'Aphrodite of Milos (Aphroditi tis Milou), better known as the Venus de Milo, is an ancient Greek statue and one of the most famous works of ancient Greek sculpture. Created sometime between 130 and 100 BC, it is believed to depict Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty (Venus to the Romans). It is a marble sculpture, slightly larger than life size at 203 cm (6 ft 8 in) high. The arms and original plinth were lost following its discovery. From an inscription that was on its plinth, it is thought to be the work of Alexandros of Antioch; earlier, it was mistakenly attributed to the master sculptor Praxiteles. It is currently on permanent display at the Louvre Museum in Paris. The statue is named after the Greek island of Milos, where it was discovered.'
  
  'The Aphrodite of Milos was discovered on 8 April 1820 by a peasant named Yorgos Kentrotas, inside a buried niche within the ancient city ruins of Milos, the current village of Tripiti, on the island of Milos (also Melos, or Milo) in the Aegean, which was then a part of the Ottoman Empire. Elsewhere the discoverers are identified as Yorgos Bottonis and his son Antonio. Carus gave the site of discovery as "the ruins of an ancient theater in the vicinity of Castro, the capital of the island", adding that Bottonis and his son "came accidentally across a small underground cave, carefully covered with a heavy slab and concealed, which contained a fine marble statue in two pieces, together with several other marble fragments. This happened in February, 1820". He apparently based these assertions on an article he had come across in the Century Magazine, 1881, Vol. I, p. 99. Notwithstanding these anomalies the consensus is that the statue was found in two large pieces (the upper torso and the lower draped legs) along with several herms (pillars topped with heads), fragments of the upper left arm and left hand holding an apple, and an inscribed plinth. Olivier Voutier, a French naval officer, was exploring the island. With the help of the young farmer, Voutier began to dig around what were clearly ancient ruins. Within a few hours Voutier had uncovered Venus de Milo. About ten days later, another French naval officer, Jules Dumont d'Urville, recognized its significance and arranged for a purchase by the French ambassador to Turkey, Charles-François de Riffardeau, marquis, later duc de Rivière.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1879, Milk was sold in glass bottles for 1st time in the U.S.
  -At Wired: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1911, Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes discovers superconductivity.
  From Wikipedia: 'Superconductivity is a phenomenon of exactly zero electrical resistance and expulsion of magnetic fields occurring in certain materials when cooled below a characteristic critical temperature. It was discovered by Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes on April 8, 1911 in Leiden. Like ferromagnetism and atomic spectral lines, superconductivity is a quantum mechanical phenomenon. It is characterized by the Meissner effect, the complete ejection of magnetic field lines from the interior of the superconductor as it transitions into the superconducting state. The occurrence of the Meissner effect indicates that superconductivity cannot be understood simply as the idealization of perfect conductivity in classical physics.'
  
  The electrical resistivity of a metallic conductor decreases gradually as temperature is lowered. In ordinary conductors, such as copper or silver, this decrease is limited by impurities and other defects. Even near absolute zero, a real sample of a normal conductor shows some resistance. In a superconductor, the resistance drops abruptly to zero when the material is cooled below its critical temperature. An electric current flowing through a loop of superconducting wire can persist indefinitely with no power source.'
  
  'Superconducting magnets are some of the most powerful electromagnets known. They are used in MRI/NMR machines, mass spectrometers, and the beam-steering magnets used in particle accelerators. They can also be used for magnetic separation, where weakly magnetic particles are extracted from a background of less or non-magnetic particles, as in the pigment industries'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1904, Longacre Square in Midtown Manhattan is renamed Times Square after 'The New York Times'.
  From Wikipedia: 'Times Square is a major commercial intersection and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue, and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets'.
  
  'In 1904, New York Times publisher Adolph S. Ochs moved the newspaper's operations to a new skyscraper on 42nd Street at Longacre Square, on the site of the former Pabst Hotel, which had existed on the site for less than a decade. Ochs persuaded Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr. to construct a subway station there, and the area was renamed "Times Square" on April 8, 1904. Just three weeks later, the first electrified advertisement appeared on the side of a bank at the corner of 46th Street and Broadway. The north end later became Duffy Square, and the former Horse Exchange became the Winter Garden Theatre.
  
  The New York Times, according to Nolan, moved to more spacious offices west of the square in 1913. The old Times Building was later named the Allied Chemical Building. Now known simply as One Times Square, it is famed for the Times Square Ball drop on its roof every New Year's Eve.
  
  In 1913, the Lincoln Highway Association, headed by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, chose the intersection of 42nd Street and Broadway, at the southeast corner of Times Square, to be the Eastern Terminus of the Lincoln Highway, the first road across the United States, which originally spanned 3,389 miles (5,454 km) coast-to-coast through 13 states to its western end in Lincoln Park in San Francisco, California.
  
  Times Square grew dramatically after World War I. It became a cultural hub full of theatres, music halls, and upscale hotels'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1913, The 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution, requiring direct election of Senators, becomes law.
  From Wikipedia: 'The Seventeenth Amendment (Amendment XVII) to the United States Constitution established the popular election of United States Senators by the people of the states. The amendment supersedes Article I, §3, Clauses 1 and 2 of the Constitution, under which senators were elected by state legislatures. It also alters the procedure for filling vacancies i the Senate, allowing for state legislatures to permit their governors to make temporary appointments until a special election can be held'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1963, At the 35th Academy Awards:
  From Wikipedia: More
  Best Picture is, Lawrence of Arabia
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
  -- On YouTube: More
  Best Actor is Gregory Peck for 'To Kill a Mockingbird'
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
  -- On YouTube: More
  Best Actress is Anne Bancroft for 'The Miracle Worker'
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
  -- On YouTube: More
  Best Supporting Actor is Ed Begley for 'Sweet Bird of Youth'
  Best Supporting Actress is Patty Duke for 'The Miracle Worker'
  Best Song is Days of Wine and Roses from 'Days of Wine and Roses'
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- On YouTube: More
• In 1964, The Supremes recorded 'Where Did Our Love Go'. The song was their first No. 1 single.
  From Wikipedia: '"Where Did Our Love Go" is a 1964 song recorded by American music group the Supremes for the Motown label.
  
  Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, "Where Did Our Love Go" was the first single by the Supremes to go to the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart in the United States, a position it held for two weeks, from August 16 to August 29, 1964. It was also the first of five Supremes songs in a row to reach number one (the others being "Baby Love", "Come See About Me", "Stop! In the Name of Love", and "Back in My Arms Again"). The song also reached number one on the Cash Box R and B singles chart.
  
  The Supremes' version is ranked #475 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry in 2016 due to its "cultural, historic, or artistic significance"'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - On YouTube: More
• In 1968, BOAC Flight 712 catches fire shortly after take off. As a result of her actions in the accident, Barbara Jane Harrison is awarded a posthumous George Cross, the only GC awarded to a woman in peacetime.
  From Wikipedia: 'Barbara Jane Harrison GC (24 May 1945 – 8 April 1968), typically known as Jane Harrison, was a British air stewardess. She is one of four women to have been awarded the George Cross for heroism, and is the only woman to be awarded the medal for gallantry in peacetime (the other three female George Cross recipients served with the Special Operations Executive in occupied France during the Second World War).'
  
  'At 16.27 BST (15.27 GMT), twelve minutes late, on 8 April 1968, BOAC Flight 712 left Heathrow Airport, bound indirectly for Sydney. Soon after take-off, the Boeing 707's number two engine caught fire and, after about a minute in the air, fell from the plane's port wing. The aircraft managed to land two-and-a-half minutes later, after three minutes t=hirty-two seconds of flight, but fire continued to engulf the wing and had spread to the fuselage. Harrison and second steward Bryan Taylor inflated the starboard escape chute at the aft of the plane but it became entangled and Taylor, who was responsible for opening the door and deploying the chute, had to climb down to free it for use and was unable to return.
  
  Harrison stayed at her station and helped passengers to escape as fire consumed the plane, encouraging them to jump and in some cases simply pushing them out to safety. As the fire spread, escape from the over-wing starboard exit of the aircraft became impossible and she led the remaining passengers towards the rear. Here she helped passengers to escape, firstly by them descending down the chute, and then, when it had burnt away, by pushing them out of the starboard rear door, continuing to do so with "flames and smoke licking around her face".
  
  Harrison was seen by survivors and observers on the ground at the exit seemingly preparing to jump, but then, with flames at the door and billowing black smoke all around, she turned back into the burning fuselage. There then occurred another explosion and she was not seen again. It is unknown why exactly Harrison, on the verge of safety, returned to the cabin, although a BAA Fire Officer who entered the burned out aircraft believed it was to assist a severely disabled Israeli woman, Esther Cohen, and several others. Harrison attempted to help her despite the extreme risks involved, and in so doing bravely died at her post in the service of others. The following day, Jane Harrison's body was found in the debris huddled together with four others near the rear door: Mrs Cohen, a widow, Mary Smith, a young Australian teacher, Catherine Shearer and Jacqueline Cooper, an eight-year-old girl on her way with her parents and two brothers to emigrate to Perth in Australia. All had died from "Asphyxia due to Inhalation of Fire Fumes".
  
  Jane Harrison was aged twenty-two when she died. She is buried in Fulford Cemetery in York.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  Nothing at YouTube
• In 1975, At the 47th Academy Awards:
  From Wikipedia: More
  Best Picture is, The Godfather Part II
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
  -- On YouTube: More
  Best Actor is Art Carney for 'Harry and Tonto'
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
  -- On YouTube: More
  Best Actress is Ellen Burstyn for 'Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore'
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- At Internet Movie Database IMDb: More
  -- On YouTube: More
  Best Supporting Actor is Robert De Niro for 'The Godfather Part II'
  Best Supporting Actress is Ingrid Bergman for 'Murder on the Orient Express'
  Best Song is We May Never Love Like This Again from 'The Towering Inferno'
  -- At Wikipedia: More
  -- On YouTube: More
• In 1979, 204th and final episode of 'All in the Family'. It ran from January 12, 1971 to April 8, 1979.
  From Wikipedia: 'All in the Family is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. In September 1979, a new show, Archie Bunker's Place, picked up where All in the Family had ended. That sitcom lasted another four years, ending its run in 1983.
  
  Produced by Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin and starring Carroll O'Connor, Jean Stapleton, Rob Reiner, and Sally Struthers, All in the Family revolves around the life of a working-class bigot and his family. The show broke ground in its depiction of issues previously considered unsuitable for U.S. network television comedy, such as racism, homosexuality, women's liberation, rape, religion, miscarriage, abortion, breast cancer, the Vietnam War, menopause, and impotence. Through depicting these controversial issues, the series became arguably one of television's most influential comedic programs, as it injected the sitcom format with more realistic and topical conflict'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
  - O YouTube: More

Tomorrow's food holiday will be 'National Empanada Day'.
[The Hankster says] I have a question. Is the Enpanada a Burrito or is the Burrito an Emppanada?

Tomorrow is 'National All is Ours Day'. A day to appreciate what we have and to share with others.

Speaking of sharing. Tomorrow is 'National Zoo Lovers Day'.
[The Hankster says ] Go share a good time with others. The animals need something to laugh at.

When you come back from the zoo, why not spring a pop quiz on the kids. It will be 'Draw a Picture of a Bird Day'.

Awareness days:
- 'National Dog Fighting Awareness Day'. ASPCA anti dog fighting awareness day.
- 'International Roma Day'. From Wikipedia: 'The Romani (also spelled Romany), or Roma, are a traditionally itinerant ethnicity living mostly in Europe and the Americas.[24][25] Ultimately of Northern Indian origin, the Romani are widely known among English-speaking people by the exonym "Gypsies" (or Gipsies).'
- Tomorrow is 'International Feng Shui Awareness Day'. The 3,000 year old Chinese philosophy of balance in the home.

William Shakespeare once said 'All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.'
[The Hankster says] Then history must be the longest running play. Let us see who made their entrance, played their part, took a bow and exited. Let's be the critic on April 8 in the past. Our critique won't influence the past, but it may get us thinking about the future.

In 1820, The Venus de Milo is discovered on the Aegean island of Melos.

In 1867, The largest of the World's Fairs, France's 'Exposition Universelle', opens in Paris.

In 1879, Milk was sold in glass bottles for the first time in the U.S.

In 1911, Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes discovers superconductivity.

In 1904, Longacre Square in Midtown Manhattan is renamed Times Square after 'The New York Times'.

In 1913, The 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution, requiring direct election of Senators, becomes law.

In 1963, At the 35th Academy Awards,
- Best Picture is 'Lawrence of Arabia'.
- Best Actor is Gregory Peck for 'To Kill a Mockingbird'.
- Best Actress is Anne Bancroft for 'The Miracle Worker'.
- Best Supporting Actor is Ed Begley for 'Sweet Bird of Youth'.
- Best Supporting Actress is Patty Duke for 'The Miracle Worker'.
- Best Original Song is 'Days of Wine and Roses' from 'Days of Wine and Roses'.

In 1964, The Supremes recorded 'Where Did Our Love Go'. The song was their first No. 1 single.

In 1968, BOAC Flight 712 catches fire shortly after take off. As a result of her actions in the accident, Barbara Jane Harrison is awarded a posthumous George Cross, the only GC awarded to a woman in peacetime.
[The Hankster says] You should read about her on Wikipedia. I will have a link tomorrow.

In 1975, At the 47th Academy Awards,
- Best Picture is 'The Godfather Part II'.
- Best Actor is Art Carney for 'Harry and Tonto'.
- Best Actress is Ellen Burstyn for 'Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore'.
- Best Supporting Actor is Robert De Niro for 'The Godfather Part II'.
- Best Supporting Actress is Ingrid Bergman for 'Murder on the Orient Express'.
- Best Original Song is 'We May Never Love Like This Again' from 'The Towering Inferno'.

In 1979 - 204th and final episode of 'All in the Family'. It ran from January 12, 1971 to April 8, 1979.

In 1984, At the 4th Golden Raspberry Awards,
- Worst Picture is 'The Lonely Lady'.
- Worst Actor is Christopher Atkins in 'A Night in Heaven'.
- Worst Actrss is Pia Zadora in 'The Lonely Lady'.
- Worst Song is 'The Way You Do It' from 'The Lonely Lady'.

In 1990, 'Twin Peaks' with Peggy Lipton premieres on ABC-TV.

In 1994, The RIAA announced that Pink Floyd's 1973 album 'Dark Side of the Moon' had become the fourth biggest-selling album in U.S. history. It had passed the 13 million mark in sales.

No. 1 song

• Can't You Hear My Heartbeat - Herman's Hermits: More
  'Stop! In the Name of Love' has been displaced by 'Can't You Hear My Heartbeat', which will hold the no. 1 spot until Apr 10 1965, when 'I'm Telling You Now', takes over.

Top movie

• The Sound of Music More
  Having displaced 'The Greatest Story Ever Told', it will be there until the weekend box office of April 11 1965 when, 'https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VadngOGKlP0', takes over.

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

Food Holiday:
Brussels Sprouts and Cabbage Month
Cranberries and Gooseberries Month
Fresh Florida Tomato Month
National BLT Sandwich Month
National Florida Tomato Month
National Food Month
National Garlic Month
National Grilled Cheese Month
National Pecan Month
National Soft Pretzel Month
National Soy Foods Month

Other:
Alcohol Awareness Month
Arab American Heritage Month
Celebrate Diversity Month
Community Spirit Days
Counseling Awareness Month
Defeat Diabetes Month
Emotional Overeating Awareness Month
Fair Housing Month
Genocide and Human Rights Awareness Month
Global Child Nutrition Month
Informed Woman Month
International Amateur Radio Month
International Customer Loyalty Month
International Guitar Month
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Awareness Month
Jazz Appreciation Month
Keep America Beautiful Month
Library Snapshot Month
Listening Awareness Month
Mathematics Education Month
Month of the Military Child
Month of the Young Child
Multicultural Communication Month
National African American Women's Fitness Month
National Anxiety Month
National Autism Awareness Month
National Cancer Control Month
National Card and Letter Writing Month
National Child Abuse Prevention Month
National Decorating Month
National Distracted Driving Awareness Month
National Donate Life Month
National Facial Protection Month
National Frog Month
National Garden Month
National Greyhound Adoption Month
National Heartworm Awareness Month
National Humor Month
National Knuckles Down Month
National Landscape Architecture Month
National Minority Health Month
National Multiple Birth Awareness Month
National Occupational Therapy Month
National Parkinson's Awareness Month
National Pest Management Month
National Pet First Aid Awareness Month
National Poetry Month
National Rebuilding Month
National Safe Digging Month
National Sarcoidosis Awareness Month
National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month
National Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD)'s Education and Awareness Month
National Sjogren's Syndrome Awareness Month
National Welding Month
National Youth Sports Safety Month
Occupational Therapy Month
Parliamentary Law Month
Pharmacists War on Diabetes Month
Physical Wellness Month
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month
Prevention of Lyme Disease in Dogs Month
Rosacea Awareness Month
School Library Media Month
Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month
Sexual Assault Awareness Month of Action
Sports Eye Safety Awareness Month
Stress Awareness Month
Testicular Cancer Awareness Month
Tomatillo and Asian Pear Month
Women's Eye Health and Safety Month
Workplace Conflict Awareness Month
World Habitat Awareness Month
Worldwide Bereaved Spouses Awareness Month

April is:

April origin (from Wikipedia):
'The Romans gave this month the Latin name Aprilis but the derivation of this name is uncertain. The traditional etymology is from the verb aperire, 'to open', in allusion to its being the season when trees and flowers begin to 'open', which is supported by comparison with the modern Greek use of (anoixis) (opening) for spring. Since some of the Roman months were named in honor of divinities, and as April was sacred to the goddess Venus, her Veneralia being held on the first day, it has been suggested that April was the second month of the earliest Roman calendar, before Ianuarius and Februarius were added by King Numa Pompilius about 700 BC. It became the fourth month of the calendar year (the year when twelve months are displayed in order) during the time of the decemvirs about 450 BC, when it also was given 29 days. The 30th day was added during the reform of the calendar undertaken by Julius Caesar in the mid-40s BC, which produced the Julian calendar.'

April 'is commonly associated with the season of spring in parts of the Northern Hemisphere and autumn in parts of the Southern Hemisphere, where it is the seasonal equivalent to October in the Northern Hemisphere and vice versa.'

April 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 1965 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

• 2015 Postal Holidays More
• 2015 Official Federal Holidays More

Holidays Worldwide

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