Today is September 17 2015

- National Apple Dumpling Day: More
Oven baked apple pastry with cinnamon and sugar.

- National Monte Cristo Day: More

• Constitution Day (or Citizenship Day: More
  From Wikipedia: 'Constitution Day (or Citizenship Day) is an American federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the United States Constitution and those who have become U.S. citizens. It is normally observed on September 17, the day in 1787 that delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document in Philadelphia.'
• International Country Music Day: More
  The date chosen is the birthday of Hank Williams.

• Health
  • Blue Monday: More
    In Great Britain. Fun raiser for the Meniere’s Society during Balance Week. Focusing on vestibular disorders. 'The vestibular system includes the parts of the inner ear and brain that help control balance and eye movements'
• Animal and Pets
  • Hummingbird Celebration: More
    Lectures, T-shirts and more.
• Other
  • Teachers' Day in Honduras: More
  • Australian Citizenship Day: More
    In Australia since 2001.

• In 1683, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek writes a letter to the Royal Society describing 'animalcules' (Latin for little animal) the first known description of protozoa. He is known as 'the Father of Microbiology'.
  From Wikipedia: 'Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek: October 24, 1632 – August 26, 1723) was a Dutch tradesman and scientist. He is commonly known as "the Father of Microbiology", and considered to be the first microbiologist. He is best known for his work on the improvement of the microscope and for his contributions towards the establishment of microbiology.
  
  Raised in Delft, Netherlands, Van Leeuwenhoek worked as a draper in his youth, and founded his own shop in 1654. He made a name for himself in municipal politics, and eventually developed an interest in lensmaking. Using his handcrafted microscopes, he was the first to observe and describe microorganisms, which he originally referred to as animalcules (from Latin animalculum = "tiny animal"). Most of the "animalcules" are now referred to as unicellular organisms, though he observed multicellular organisms in pond water. He was also the first to document microscopic observations of muscle fibers, bacteria, spermatozoa, and blood flow in capillaries. Van Leeuwenhoek did not author any books; his discoveries came to light through correspondence with the Royal Society, which published his letters'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1908, The Wright Flyer flown by Orville Wright, with Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge as passenger, crashes, killing Selfridge. He becomes the first airplane fatality.
  From Wikipedia: 'Thomas Etholen Selfridge (February 8, 1882 – September 17, 1908) was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He became the first person to die in a crash of a powered airplane when a passenger on a demonstration flight piloted by Orville Wright.
  
  In August 1908, Selfridge, along with Lieutenants Frank P. Lahm and Benjamin Foulois, was instructed in flying a dirigible purchased by the US Army in July. The dirigible was scheduled to fly from Fort Omaha, Nebraska, to exhibitions at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Missouri, with Foulois and Selfridge as the pilots. However, the Army had also tentatively agreed to purchase an airplane from the Wright Brothers and had scheduled the acceptance trials in September. Selfridge, with an interest in both heavier-than-air and lighter-than-air ships, obtained an appointment and traveled to Fort Myer, Virginia.
  
  When Orville Wright came to Fort Myer to demonstrate the Wright Flyer for the US Army Signal Corps division, Selfridge arranged to be a passenger while Orville piloted the craft. On September 17, 1908, the Wright Flyer circled Fort Myer 4½ times at 150 feet. Halfway through the fifth circuit, at 5:14 in the afternoon, the right propeller broke, losing thrust. This set up a vibration, causing the split propeller to hit a guy wire bracing the rear vertical rudder. The wire tore out of its fastening and shattered the propeller; the rudder swiveled to the horizontal and sent the Flyer into a nose-dive. Orville shut off the engine and managed to glide to about 75 feet, but the Flyer hit the ground nose first.
  
  When the craft hit the ground, both Selfridge and Wright were thrown forward against the remaining wires. Selfridge also struck one of the wooden uprights of the framework, fracturing the base of his skull. He underwent neurosurgery but died three hours after the crash without regaining consciousness. He was 26. Orville suffered severe injuries, including a broken left thigh, several broken ribs and a damaged hip, and was hospitalized for seven weeks. Selfridge was not wearing any headgear, while Wright was only wearing a cap, as two existing photographs taken before the flight prove. If Selfridge had been wearing a helmet of some sort, he most likely would have survived the crash. As a result of Selfridge's death, the US Army's first pilots wore large heavy headgear reminiscent of early football helmets.
  
  Thomas Selfridge was buried not far from the site of the accident, in Section 3, Lot 2158, Grid QR-13/14 of Arlington National Cemetery; the cemetery is adjacent to Fort Myer'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1862, American Civil War: George B. McClellan halts the northward drive of Robert E. Lee's Confederate army in the single-day Battle of Antietam (Antietam Creek, Washington County, near Sharpsburg, Maryland) , the bloodiest day in American military history. A combined tally of dead, wounded, and missing at 22,717 with about 3,600 dead.
  From Wikipedia: 'The Battle of Antietam, also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the South, was fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland and Antietam Creek as part of the Maryland Campaign. It was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Union soil. It is the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with a combined tally of 22,717 dead, wounded, or missing.
  
  McClellan had halted Lee's invasion of Maryland, but Lee was able to withdraw his army back to Virginia without interference from the cautious McClellan. McClellan's refusal to pursue Lee's army led to his removal from command by President Abraham Lincoln in November. Although the battle was tactically inconclusive, the Confederate troops had withdrawn first from the battlefield, making it, in military terms, a Union victory. It was a sufficiently significant victory to give Lincoln the confidence to announce his Emancipation Proclamation, which discouraged the British and French governments from pursuing any potential plans to recognize the Confederacy'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1872, W Pratt patents his automated sprinkler system for extinguishing fires. Before this automated system, overhead perforated water pipes needed to be turned on by an operator.
  From Wikipedia: 'Leonardo da Vinci designed a sprinkler system in the 15th century. Da Vinci automated his patron's kitchen with a super-oven and a system of conveyor belts. In a comedy of errors, everything went wrong during a huge banquet, and a fire broke out. "The sprinkler system worked all too well, causing a flood that washed away all the food and a good part of the kitchen."
  
  Ambrose Godfrey created the first successful automated sprinkler system in 1723. He used gunpowder to release a tank of extinguishing fluid.
  
  The world’s first modern recognizable sprinkler system was installed in the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in the United Kingdom in 1812 by its architect, William Congreve, and was covered by patent No 3606 dated the same year. The apparatus consisted of a cylindrical airtight reservoir of 400 hogsheads (~95,000 litres) fed by a 10-inch (250 mm) water main which branched to all parts of the theatre. A series of smaller pipes fed from the distribution pipe were pierced with a series of 1/2-inch (13 mm) holes which pour water in the event of a fire.
  
  From 1852 to 1885, perforated pipe systems were used in textile mills throughout New England as a means of fire protection. However, they were not automatic systems; a person had to operate the system. Inventors first began experimenting with automatic sprinklers around 1860. The first automatic sprinkler system was patented by Philip W. Pratt of Abington, MA, in 1872.
  
  Henry S. Parmalee of New Haven, Connecticut is considered the inventor of the first automatic sprinkler head. Parmalee improved upon the Pratt patent and created a better sprinkler system. In 1874, he installed his fire sprinkler system into the piano factory that he owned. Frederick Grinnell improved Parmalee's design and in 1881 patented the automatic sprinkler that bears his name. He continued to improve the device and in 1890 invented the glass disc sprinkler, essentially the same as that in use today.
  
  Until the 1940s, sprinklers were installed almost exclusively for the protection of commercial buildings, whose owners were generally able to recoup their expenses with savings in insurance costs. Over the years, fire sprinklers have become mandatory safety equipment in some parts of North America, in certain occupancies, including, but not limited to newly constructed hospitals, schools, hotels and other public buildings, subject to the local building codes and enforcement. However, outside of the US and Canada, sprinklers are rarely mandated by building codes for normal hazard occupancies which do not have large numbers of occupants (e.g. factories, process lines, retail outlets, petrol stations, etc.)'.
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• In 1939, Frank Sinatra recorded 'All or Nothing at All' with the Harry James Orchestra for Columbia Records.
  From Wikipedia: '"All or Nothing at All" is a song composed in 1939 by Arthur Altman, with lyrics by Jack Lawrence.
  
  Frank Sinatra's 1939 recording of the song became a huge hit in 1943, when it was reissued by Columbia Records during the 1942-44 musicians' strike. The record peaked in the Billboard top two'.'
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1955, Capitol Records released 'Magic Melody, Part Two'. The song consisted only of the last two notes of the musical phrase, "Shave and a haircut, two bits." It was the shortest song to ever to be released.
  From Wikipedia: In music, the call ."Shave and a Haircut." and the associated response ."two bits." is a simple, 7-note musical couplet or riff popularly used at the end of a musical performance, usually for comic effect. It is used both melodically and rhythmically, for example as a door knock.
  
  "Two bits" is an archaism in the United States for 25 cents, a quarter. "Six bits" is occasionally used. The final words may also be "get lost.", "drop dead" (in Australia), or some other facetious expression. In England, it was often said as "five bob" (slang for five shillings), although words are now rarely used to accompany the rhythm or the tune.
  
  Les Paul and Mary Ford's Capitol recording of "Magic Melody"concluded with the phrase minus the last two notes ("two bits"). Responding to complaints from disc jockeys, Capitol in 1955 released "Magic Melody Part 2"—consisting solely of the missing notes—on a 45, said to be the shortest tune on record.'
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1961, The Civic Arena in Pittsburgh opens, becoming the world's 1st retractable-dome stadium.
  From Wikipedia: 'Civic Arena (formerly the Civic Auditorium and later Mellon Arena) was an arena located in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Civic Arena primarily served as the home to the Pittsburgh Penguins, the city's National Hockey League (NHL) franchise, from 1967 to 2010. It was the first retractable roof major-sports venue in the world, covering 170,000 sq. feet, constructed with nearly 3,000 tons of Pittsburgh steel and supported solely by a massive 260-foot-long cantilevered arm on the exterior. Even though it was designed and engineered as a retractable-roof dome, the operating cost and repairs to the hydraulic jacks halted all full retractions after 1995, and the roof stayed permanently closed after 2001. The first roof opening was during a July 4, 1962 Carol Burnett show to which she exclaimed "Ladies and Gentlemen...I present the sky!"'.
  - At FamousDaily: More
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• In 1964, 'Bewitched' premieres on ABC TV.
  From Wikipedia: 'Bewitched is an American television sitcom fantasy series, originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964 to March 25, 1972. It was created by Sol Saks under executive director Harry Ackerman, and starred Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York (1964–1969), Agnes Moorehead, and David White. Dick Sargent replaced an ill York for the final three seasons (1969–1972). The show is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man, and vows to lead the life of a typical suburban housewife. Bewitched enjoyed great popularity, finishing as the number two show in America during its debut season, and becoming the longest-running supernatural-themed sitcom of the 1960s–1970s. The show continues to be seen throughout the world in syndication and on recorded media.
  
  In 2002, Bewitched was ranked #50 on "TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time". In 1997, the same magazine ranked the season 2 episode "Divided He Falls" #348 on their list of the "100 Greatest Episodes of All Time"'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1965, The CBS premiere of WWII sitcom, Hogan's Heroes.
  From Wikipedia: 'Hogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom set in a German prisoner of war (POW) camp during World War II. It ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965 to April 4, 1971 on the CBS network. Bob Crane starred as Colonel Robert E. Hogan, coordinating an international crew of Allied prisoners running a Special Operations group from the camp. Werner Klemperer played Colonel Wilhelm Klink, the incompetent commandant of the camp, and John Banner played the bungling sergeant-of-the-guard, Hans Schultz.
  
  The setting is a fictional version of Luft Stalag 13 (Camp 13 in early episodes), a prisoner-of-war camp for captured Allied airmen located north of the town of Hammelburg in the Bad Kissingen woods. It was on the Hammelburg Road (now known as E45), on the way to Hofburgstraße and eventually Düsseldorf. "Anchors Aweigh, Men of Stalag 13" (S1E16) reveals the camp is 60 miles from the North Sea. Another episode places the camp 106 kilometres (66 mi) from Heidelberg in flying miles; it is 199 km (124 mi) by car. The camp has 103 Allied prisoners of war (POWs) during the first season, but becomes larger by the end of the series.
  
  Though the series spans several seasons, it always appears to be winter at Stalag 13; there are ever-present patches of snow on the ground and on buildings, and prisoners regularly gather around a barrel fire or shiver through roll call. However, some episodes do in fact take place in spring or summer (such as the episode dealing with the D-Day invasions)'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1965, 'The Smothers Brothers Show' premiered on CBS-TV. Not to be confused with The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour..
  From Wikipedia: 'The Smothers Brothers Show is an American fantasy sitcom featuring the Smothers Brothers that aired on CBS on Friday nights at 9:30 p.m. ET from September 17, 1965 to April 22, 1966, co-sponsored by Alberto-Culver's VO5 hairdressing products and American Tobacco (Tareyton). It lasted one season, consisting of 32 episodes. It was also the network's last situation comedy filmed in black-and-white; shortly after its final telecast, all CBS prime-time series were transmitted in color'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
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• In 1967, 'Mission Impossible' premieres on CBS-TV.
  From Wikipedia: 'Mission: Impossible is an American television series that was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicles the missions of a team of secret government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force (IMF). In the first season, the team is led by Dan Briggs, played by Steven Hill; Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, takes charge for the remaining seasons. A hallmark of the series shows Briggs or Phelps receiving his instructions on a recording that then self-destructs, followed by the theme music composed by Lalo Schifrin.
  
  The series was filmed and financed by Desilu Productions, and aired on the CBS network from September 1966 to March 1973. The series was reprised in 1988 for two seasons on ABC, retaining only Graves in the cast. It also inspired a series of theatrical motion pictures starring Tom Cruise, beginning in 1996'.
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• In 1972, 'M*A*S*H' premieres on NBC TV.
  From Wikipedia: 'M*A*S*H is an American television series developed by Larry Gelbart, adapted from the 1970 feature film MASH (which was itself based on the 1968 novel MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors, by Richard Hooker). The series, which was produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for CBS, follows a team of doctors and support staff stationed at the "4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital" in Uijeongbu, South Korea during the Korean War. The show's title sequence features an instrumental-only version of "Suicide Is Painless", the theme song from the original film. The show was created after an attempt to film the original book's sequel, M*A*S*H Goes to Maine, failed. The television series is the best-known version of the M*A*S*H works, and one of the highest-rated shows in U.S. television history.
  
  The series premiered in the U.S. on September 17, 1972, and ended on February 28, 1983, with the finale, "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen", becoming the most-watched and highest-rated single television episode in U.S. television history at the time, with a record-breaking 125 million viewers (60.2 rating and 77 share), according to the New York Times. It had struggled in its first season and was at risk of being cancelled. Season two of M*A*S*H placed it in a better time slot (airing after the popular All in the Family); the show became one of the top 10 programs of the year and stayed in the top 20 programs for the rest of its run. It is still broadcast in syndication on various television stations. The series, which depicted events occurring during a three-year military conflict, spanned 256 episodes and lasted 11 seasons. The Korean conflict lasted 1,128 days, meaning each episode of the series would have averaged almost four and a half days of real time. Many of the stories in the early seasons are based on tales told by real MASH surgeons who were interviewed by the production team. Like the movie, the series was as much an allegory about the Vietnam War (still in progress when the show began) as it was about the Korean War.
  
  The episodes "Abyssinia, Henry" and "The Interview" were ranked number 20 and number 80, respectively, on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time in 1997. In 2002, M*A*S*H was ranked number 25 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. In 2013, the Writers Guild of America ranked it as the fifth-best written TV series ever and TV Guide ranked it as the eighth-greatest show of all time'.
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• In 1976, NASA's first space shuttle, Enterprise, is revealed to the public. It's firs flight was on February 18, 1977.
  From Wikipedia: 'The Space Shuttle Enterprise (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-101) was the first orbiter of the Space Shuttle system. Rolled out on September 17, 1976, it was built for NASA as part of the Space Shuttle program to perform atmospheric test flights after being launched from a modified Boeing 747. It was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield, and was therefore not capable of spaceflight.
  
  Originally, Enterprise had been intended to be refitted for orbital flight to become the second space-rated orbiter in service. However, during the construction of Space Shuttle Columbia, details of the final design changed, making it simpler and less costly to build Challenger around a body frame that had been built as a test article. Similarly, Enterprise was considered for refit to replace Challenger after the latter was destroyed, but Endeavour was built from structural spares instead.
  
  Enterprise was restored and placed on display in 2003 at the Smithsonian's new Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia. Following the retirement of the Space Shuttle fleet, Discovery replaced Enterprise at the Udvar-Hazy Center, and Enterprise was transferred to the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York City, where it has been on display since July 2012'.
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• In 1984, 17 years to the day after hitting his first home run, Reggie Jackson blasts his 500th homer.
  From Wikipedia: 'Reginald Martinez "Reggie" Jackson (born May 18, 1946) is an American former professional baseball right fielder who played 21 seasons for the Kansas City / Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and California Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). Jackson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1993.
  
  Jackson was nicknamed "Mr. October" for his clutch hitting in the postseason with the Athletics and the Yankees. He helped Oakland win five consecutive American League West divisional pennants, three consecutive American League pennants and three consecutive World Series titles, from 1971 to 1975. Jackson helped New York win four American League East divisional pennants, three American League pennants and two consecutive World Series titles, from 1977 to 1981. He also helped the California Angels win two AL West divisional pennants in 1982 and 1986. Jackson hit three consecutive home runs at Yankee Stadium in the clinching game 6 of the 1977 World Series.
  
  Jackson hit 563 career home runs and was an American League (AL) All-Star for 14 seasons. He won two Silver Slugger Awards, the AL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in 1973, two World Series MVP Awards, and the Babe Ruth Award in 1977. The Yankees and Athletics retired his team uniform number in 1993 and 2004. Jackson currently serves as a special advisor to the Yankees'.
  - At FamousDaily: More
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• In 1991, The first version of the Linux kernel (0.01) is released to the Internet.
  From Wikipedia: 'Linux is a Unix-like and mostly POSIX-compliant computer operating system (OS) assembled under the model of free and open-source software development and distribution. The defining component of Linux is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. The Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to describe the operating system, which has led to some controversy.
  
  Linux was originally developed as a free operating system for personal computers based on the Intel x86 architecture, but has since been ported to more computer hardware platforms than any other operating system. Because of the dominance of Android on smartphones, Linux has the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating systems. Linux is also the leading operating system on servers and other big iron systems such as mainframe computers and virtually all fastest supercomputers, but is used on only around 2.3% of desktop computers when not including Chrome OS, which has about 5% of the overall and nearly 20% of the sub-$300 notebook sales. Linux also runs on embedded systems, which are devices whose operating system is typically built into the firmware and is highly tailored to the system; this includes smartphones and tablet computers running Android and other Linux derivatives, TiVo and similar DVR devices, network routers, facility automation controls, televisions, video game consoles and smartwatches'.
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• In 2010, The 54 year run of the soap opera As the World Turns, ends as its final episode is broadcast. There were 3,848 episodes from April 2, 1956 - September 17, 2010.
  From Wikipedia: 'As the World Turns (often referred to as ATWT) is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light. Running for 54 years, As the World Turns holds the second-longest continuous run of any daytime network soap opera on American television, surpassed only by Guiding Light. As the World Turns was produced for the first 43 years in Manhattan and in Brooklyn from 2000 until 2010.
  
  Set in the fictional town of Oakdale, Illinois, the show debuted on April 2, 1956, at 1:30 pm EST. Prior to that date, all serials had been fifteen minutes in length. As the World Turns and The Edge of Night, which premiered on the same day at 4:30 pm EST, were the first two to be thirty minutes in length from their premiere. At first, viewers did not respond to the new half-hour serial, but ratings picked up in its second year, eventually reaching the top spot in the daytime Nielsen ratings by fall 1958. In 1959, the show started a streak of weekly ratings wins that would not be interrupted for over twelve years. The show switched to color on August 21, 1967, and expanded from a half-hour in length to one hour starting on December 1, 1975 when The Edge of Night moved to ABC. In the year-to-date ratings, As the World Turns was the most-watched daytime drama from 1958 until 1978, with ten million viewers tuning in each day. At its height, core actors such as Helen Wagner, Don MacLaughlin, Don Hastings, and Eileen Fulton became nationally known. Three of these actors – Wagner, Hastings, and Fulton – are also the three longest serving actors in the history of American soap operas.
  
  The show passed its 10,000th episode on May 12, 1995, and celebrated its 50th anniversary on April 2, 2006. On September 18, 2009, As the World Turns became the last remaining Procter and Gamble produced soap opera for CBS after Guiding Light aired its final episode on the network.
  
  On December 8, 2009, CBS announced that it canceled As the World Turns after almost 54 years due to low ratings. The show taped its final Procter and Gamble scenes for CBS on June 23, 2010, and with a dramatic storyline finale, its final episode on the network aired on September 17, 2010. On October 18, 2010, CBS replaced As the World Turns with a newly debuted talk show The Talk'.
  - At Wikipedia: More
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Tomorrow we have two food holidays:
- 'National Monte Cristo Day'. A fried ham and cheese sandwich.
[The Hankster says] I'm going to make a point to try one.

- 'National Apple Dumpling Day'. Oven baked apple pastry with cinnamon and sugar.
[The Hankster says] Would I leave you without dessert?


Tomorrow is 'Constitution Day (or Citizenship Day'. From Wikipedia: 'Constitution Day (or Citizenship Day) is an American federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the United States Constitution and those who have become U.S. citizens. It is normally observed on September 17, the day in 1787 that delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document in Philadelphia' Citizenship Day was once call 'I am an American Day'.

For you CW people. Tomorrow is 'International Country Music Day'. The date chosen is the birthday of Hank Williams.


Awareness / Observance Days on: September 17
o Health
- 'Blue Monday'. In Great Britain. Fun raiser for the Meniere’s Society during Balance Week. Focusing on vestibular disorders. 'The vestibular system includes the parts of the inner ear and brain that help control balance and eye movements'

o Animal and Pets
- 'Hummingbird Celebration'. Lectures, T-Shirts and more.

o Other
- 'Teachers' Day in Honduras'. Australian Citizenship Day'. In Australia since 2001.


Historical events in the past on: September 17

In 1683, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek writes a letter to the Royal Society describing 'animalcules' (Latin for little animal) the first known description of protozoa. He is known as 'the Father of Microbiology'.

In 1908, The Wright Flyer flown by Orville Wright, with Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge as passenger, crashes, killing Selfridge. He becomes the first airplane fatality.

In 1862, American Civil War: George B. McClellan halts the northward drive of Robert E. Lee's Confederate army in the single-day Battle of Antietam (Antietam Creek, Washington County, near Sharpsburg, Maryland) , the bloodiest day in American military history. A combined tally of dead, wounded, and missing at 22,717 with about 3,600 dead.

In 1872, W Pratt patents his automated sprinkler system for extinguishing fires. Before this automated system, overhead perforated water pipes needed to be turned on by an operator.

In 1961, The Civic Arena in Pittsburgh opens, becoming the world's 1st retractable-dome stadium.

In 1964, 'Bewitched' premieres on ABC TV.

In 1965, The CBS premiere of WWII sitcom, Hogan's Heroes.

In 1967, 'Mission Impossible' premieres on CBS-TV.

In 1972, 'M*A*S*H' premieres on NBC TV.

In 1976, NASA's first space shuttle, Enterprise, is revealed to the public. It's first flight was on February 18, 1977.

In 1984, 17 years to the day after hitting his first home run, Reggie Jackson blasts his 500th homer.

In 1991, The first version of the Linux kernel (0.01) is released to the Internet.

In 2010, The 54 year run of the soap opera As the World Turns, ends as its final episode is broadcast. There were 3,848 episodes from April 2, 1956 - September 17, 2010.

In 2011, 'Occupy Wall Street', a people-powered movement to protest America's increasing wealth gap - is launched in Manhattan's Financial District.

No. 1 song

• Help! - The Beatles: More
  'I Got You Babe' has been displaced by 'Help!', which will hold the no. 1 spot until Sept 18 1965, when 'Like a Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan', takes over.

Top movie

• Once a Thief More
  Having displaced 'Morituri', it will be there until the weekend box office of sept 26 1965 when, 'How to Murder Your Wife', takes over.

• FamousBirthdays.com: September 17 Birthdays More
• FamousDaily.com: September 17 History More
• History.com: Historical Events on 17th September More
• HistoryOrb.com: Famous Deaths on 17th September More
• On-This-day.com history 17th September More
• On-This-day.com music history 17th September More
• Wikipedia.com: History September 17 More

Monthly holiday / awareness days in September

AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Month
All American Breakfast Month
Atrial Fibrillation Month
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Month
Baby Safety Month
Backpack Safety America Month
Be Kind To Editors and Writers Month
Blood Cancer Awareness Month
Bourbon Heritage Month
Childhood Cancer Awareness Month
Childrens' Good Manners Month
Cholesterol Education Month
College Savings Month
Eat Chicken Month
Fall Hat Month
Go Wild During California Wild Rice Month
Great American Low-Cholesterol, Low-fat Pizza Bake Month
Gynecology Cancer Awareness Month
Happy Cat Month
Histiocytosis Awareness Month
Hunger Action Month
Intergeneration Month
International or National Guide Dogs Month
International People Skills Month
International Self-Awareness Month
International Speak Out Month
International Square Dancing Month
International Strategic Thinking Month
ITP Awareness Month
Library Card Sign-up Month
Million Minute Family Challenge
Mold Awareness Month
National Campus Safety Awareness Month
National Chicken Month
National Child Awareness Month
National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month
National Coupon Month
National DNA, Geonomics and Stem Cell Education Month
National Fruit and Veggies Month
National Head Lice Prevention Month
National Hispanic Heritage Month
National Home Furnishings Month
National Honey Month
National Infant Mortality Awareness Month
National ITP Awareness Month
National Mushroom Month
National Organic Harvest Month
National Osteopathic Medicine Month
National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
National Pediculosis (Head Lice) Prevention Month
National Pet Memorial Month
National Piano Month
National Preparedness Month
National Prime Beef Month
National Prosper Where You Are Planted Month
National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
National Recovery Month
National Recovery Month
National Rice Month
National Save A Tiger Month
National Service Dog Month
National Sewing Month
National Shake Month
National Sickle Cell Month
National Skin Care Awareness Month
National Translators Month
National Wilderness Month
One-on-One Month
Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month
Pleasure Your Mate Month
Save The Koala Month
Sea Cadet Month
Self Improvement Month
September Is Healthy Aging Month
Shameless Promotion Month
Sports and Home Eye Health and Safety Month
Subliminal Communications Month
Superior Relationships Month
Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month
Update Your Resume Month
Whole Grains Month
Wild Rice Month
Women's Friendship Month
World Alzheimer's Month
World Animal Remembrance Month
World Leukemia and Lymphoma Awareness Month

September is:

September origin (from Wikipedia): Originally September (Latin septem, "seven") was the seventh of ten months on the oldest known Roman calendar.
September in the Northern Hemisphere is the seasonal equivalent of March in the Southern Hemisphere.
After the calendar reform that added January and February to the beginning of the year, September became the ninth month, but retained its name. It had 29 days until the Julian reform, which added a day.

September 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