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Today is September 12 2016

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Today's Holidays and Historical Events (updated daily)
Today's Food Holiday
  • National Chocolate Milkshake Day: More
    - From Wikipedia (Milkshake): 'A milkshake is a sweet, cold beverage which is usually made from milk, ice cream, or iced milk, and flavorings or sweeteners such as butterscotch, caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, or fruit syrup. Outside the United States, milkshakes using ice cream or iced milk are sometimes called a thick milkshake or thick shake; in New England, the term frappe may be used to differentiate it from thinner forms of flavored milk.

    Full-service restaurants, soda fountains, and diners usually prepare and mix the shake "by hand" from scoops of ice cream and milk in a blender or drink mixer using a stainless steel cup. Many fast food outlets do not make shakes by hand with ice cream. Instead, they make shakes in automatic milkshake machines which freeze and serve a premade milkshake mixture consisting of milk, a sweetened flavoring agent, and a thickening agent. However, some fast food outlets still follow the traditional method, and some serve milkshakes which are prepared by blending soft-serve ice cream (or ice milk) with flavoring or syrups.

    A milkshake can also be made by adding powder into fresh milk and stirring the powder into the milk. Milkshakes made in this way can come in a variety of flavors, including chocolate, caramel, strawberry, and banana.

    Hand-blended milkshakes are traditionally made from any flavor of ice cream; additional flavorings, such as chocolate syrup and/or malt syrup or malt powder, can be added prior to mixing. This allows a greater variety than is available in machine-made shakes. Some unusual milkshake recipes exclude ice cream.

    Milkshake-like recipes which use a high proportion of fruit and no ice cream are usually called smoothies. When malted milk is added, a milkshake is called a malted milkshake, a malt shake (or maltshake), a malted, or simply a malt. An ice cream-based milkshake may be called a thick milkshake or thick shake in the United Kingdom or a frappe in parts of New England and Canada. In Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts, coffee syrup or coffee-flavored ice cream is used to make the local "coffee frappe" shake. Milkshakes with added fruit called batido are popular in Latin America and in Miami's Cuban expatriate community. In Nicaragua, milkshakes are called leche malteada.

    Some U.S. restaurants serve milkshakes with crumbled cookies, candy bar pieces, or alcoholic beverages. The grasshopper milkshake, for example, includes crumbled chocolate cookies, creme de menthe liqueur, and chocolate mint ice cream'.
Other celebrations/observances today:
  • National Video Games Day: More
  • National Day of Encouragement: More
    Started in 2007 by the Encouragement Foundation at Harding University,
    - From Wikipedia (National Day of Encouragement): 'The National Day of Encouragement in the United States was announced in 2007 and occurs each year on September 12.

    The Encouragement Foundation at Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas launched an effort to get Americans to participate in this Day of Encouragement. The first proclamation for the Day of Encouragement was made by Mayor Belinda LaForce of Searcy, Arkansas on August 22, 2007. In September Mike Beebe, the Governor of Arkansas, signed a proclamation making September 12, 2007 the "State Day of Encouragement" for Arkansas.

    Later, President George W. Bush also signed a message making September 12 the official "National Day of Encouragement." The Encouragement Foundation is making plans to get more states involved in the National Day of Encouragement in the future'.
  • Defenders Day: More
    A state holiday in Maryland. It commemorates the defense of Baltimore on September 12, 1814 from the British during the War of 1812,
    - From Wikipedia (Defenders Day): 'Defenders Day is a legal holiday in the U.S. state of Maryland It commemorates the successful defense of the city of Baltimore on September 12, 1814 from an invading British force during the War of 1812, an event which would lead to the writing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem of the United States.

    In 1814, following the burning of Washington, a British force commanded by Major General Robert Ross landed near present-day Fort Howard, Maryland and began an advance on the city. He was met almost immediately by a detachment from the Baltimore garrison led by American General John Stricker, commencing the Battle of North Point. The resulting halt of the larger British force allowed Baltimore to organize its defenses against a later attempted naval invasion. It was during this conflict, the Battle of Baltimore, that Fort McHenry was shelled by the British but refused to surrender, and an inspired Maryland lawyer named Francis Scott Key composed the words to what would later become "The Star-Spangled Banner", eventually proclaimed the national anthem of the United States'.
  • National Police Woman Day:: More
    In 1910, Alice Stebbins Wells, became the first US woman police officer ever (Los Angeles), with powers to arrest.
  • National Boss/Employee Exchange Day: More
    Monday after Labor Day.
  • Programmers' Day: More
    On the 256th (a significantt number in computing) day of the year.
    - From Wikipedia (256 (number)): 'In computing: One octet (and in the most case one byte) is equal to eight bits and has 28 or 256 possible values, counting from 0 to 255. The number 256 often appears in computer applications (especially on 8-bit systems) such as:
    The typical number of different values in each color channel of a digital color image (256 values for red, 256 values for green, and 256 values for blue used for 24-bit color).
    The number of colors available in a GIF or a 256-color (8-bit) bitmap.
    The number of characters in extended ASCII and Latin-1.
    The number of columns available in a Microsoft Excel worksheet until Excel 2007.
    The split-screen level in Pacman, which results from the use of a single byte to store the internal level counter.
    A 256-bit integer can represent up to 1.1579209e+77 values.
    Number of bits in the SHA-256 cryptographic hash.
    The branding number of nVidia's GeForce 256'.
Awareness / Observance Days on: September 12
  • Health
    • Erdheim-Chester Disease Awareness Week: More
      September 12-17 in the U.S.A. By http://erdheim-chester.org/news/2016-ecd-awareness-week/.
      - From Wikipedia (Erdheim–Chester disease): 'Erdheim–Chester disease (also known as Erdheim–Chester syndrome or polyostotic sclerosing histiocytosis) is a rare disease characterized by the abnormal multiplication of a specific type of white blood cells called histiocytes, or tissue macrophages (technically, this disease is termed a non-Langerhans-cell histiocytosis). Usually, onset is in middle age. The disease involves an infiltration of lipid-laden macrophages, multinucleated giant cells, an inflammatory infiltrate of lymphocytes and histiocytes in the bone marrow, and a generalized sclerosis of the long bones.

      All current treatments have had varying degrees of success.

      The vinca alkaloids and anthracyclines have been used most commonly in ECD treatment'.
    • Balance Awareness Week: More
      September 12-18 in Great Britain. It concerns vestibular disorders.
      - From Wikipedia (Balance disorder): 'A balance disorder is a disturbance that causes an individual to feel unsteady, for example when standing or walking. It may be accompanied by feelings of giddiness, or wooziness, or having a sensation of movement, spinning, or floating. Balance is the result of several body systems working together: the visual system (eyes), vestibular system (ears) and proprioception (the body's sense of where it is in space). Degeneration or loss of function in any of these systems can lead to balance deficits.

      Problems with balance can occur when there is a disruption in any of the vestibular, visual, or proprioceptive systems. Abnormalities in balance function may indicate a wide range of pathologies from causes like inner ear disorders, low blood pressure, brain tumors, and brain injury including stroke.

      Many different terms are often used for dizziness, including lightheaded, floating, woozy, giddy, confused, helpless, or fuzzy. Vertigo, Disequilibrium and pre-syncope are the terms in use by most physicians and have more precise definitions'.
    • Know Your Numbers! Week: More
      September 12-18 in Great Britain.
      - From Wikipedia (Blood pressure): 'Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure in the systemic circulation. Blood pressure is usually expressed in terms of the systolic (maximum) pressure over diastolic (minimum) pressure and is measured in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). It is one of the vital signs along with respiratory rate, heart rate, oxygen saturation, and body temperature. Normal resting systolic (diastolic) blood pressure in an adult is approximately 120 mm Hg (80 mm Hg), abbreviated "120/80 mm Hg".

      Blood pressure varies depending on situation, activity, and disease states. It is regulated by the nervous and endocrine systems. Blood pressure that is low due to a disease state is called hypotension, and pressure that is consistently high is hypertension. Both have many causes which can range from mild to severe. Both may be of sudden onset or of long duration. Long term hypertension is a risk factor for many diseases, including heart disease, stroke and kidney failure. Long term hypertension is more common than long term hypotension in Western countries. Long term hypertension often goes undetected because of infrequent monitoring and the absence of symptoms'.
    • Lymphatic Cancer Awareness Week: More
      By the Lymphoma Association. This years theme is What Is Your type?
      - From Wikipedia 9Lymphoma): 'Lymphoma is a group of blood cell tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). The name often refers to just the cancerous ones rather than all such tumors. Signs and symptoms may include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, drenching sweats, unintended weight loss, itching, and feeling tired. The enlarged lymph nodes are usually painless. The sweats are most common at night.

      There are dozens of subtypes of lymphomas. The two main categories of lymphomas are Hodgkin lymphomas (HL) and the non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL). The World Health Organization (WHO) includes two other categories as types of lymphoma: multiple myeloma and immunoproliferative diseases. About 90% of lymphomas are non-Hodgkin lymphomas. Lymphomas and leukemias are a part of the broader group of tumors of the hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues.

      Risk factors for Hodgkin lymphoma include infection with Epstein–Barr virus and a history of the disease in the family. Risk factors for common types of non-Hodgkin lymphomas include autoimmune diseases, HIV/AIDS, infection with human T-lymphotropic virus, immunosuppressant medications, and some pesticides. Eating large amounts of red meat may also increase the risk. Diagnosis, if enlarged lymph nodes are present, is usually by lymph node biopsy. Blood, urine, and bone marrow testing may also be useful in the diagnosis. Medical imaging may then be done to determine if and where the cancer has spread. Lymphoma most often spreads to the lungs, liver, and/or brain.

      Treatment may involve one or more of the following: chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted therapy, and surgery. In some non-Hodgkin lymphomas, an increased amount of protein produced by the lymphoma cells causes the blood to become so thick that plasmapheresis is performed to remove the protein. Watchful waiting may be appropriate for certain types. The outcome depends on the subtype with some being curable and treatment prolonging survival in most. The five-year survival rate in the United States for all Hodgkin lymphoma subtypes is 85%, while that for non-Hodgkin lymphomas is 69%. Worldwide, lymphomas developed in 566,000 people in 2012 and caused 305,000 deaths. They make up 3–4% of all cancers, making them as a group the seventh-most common form. In children, they are the third-most common cancer. They occur more often in the developed world than the developing world'.
    • National Stroke Week: More
      September 12-18 in Australia.
      - From Wikipedia (Stroke): 'Stroke is when poor blood flow to the brain results in cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. They result in part of the brain not functioning properly. Signs and symptoms of a stroke may include an inability to move or feel on one side of the body, problems understanding or speaking, feeling like the world is spinning, or loss of vision to one side among others. Signs and symptoms often appear soon after the stroke has occurred. If symptoms last less than one or two hours it is known as a transient ischemic attack (TIA). Hemorrhagic strokes may also be associated with a severe headache. The symptoms of a stroke can be permanent. Long term complications may include pneumonia or loss of bladder control.

      The main risk factor for stroke is high blood pressure. Other risk factors include tobacco smoking, obesity, high blood cholesterol, diabetes mellitus, previous TIA, and atrial fibrillation. An ischemic stroke is typically caused by blockage of a blood vessel. A hemorrhagic stroke is caused by bleeding either directly into the brain or into the space surrounding the brain. Bleeding may occur due to a brain aneurysm. Diagnosis is typically with medical imaging such as a computerized axial tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan along with a physical exam. Other tests such as an electrocardiogram (ECG) and blood tests are done to determine risk factors and rule out other possible causes. Low blood sugar may cause similar symptoms.

      Prevention includes decreasing risk factors as well as possibly aspirin, statins, surgery to open up the arteries to the brain in those with problematic narrowing, and warfarin in those with atrial fibrillation. A stroke often requires emergency care. An ischemic stroke, if detected within three to four and half hours, may be treatable with a medication that can break down the clot. Aspirin should be used. Some hemorrhagic strokes benefit from surgery. Treatment to try recover lost function is called stroke rehabilitation and ideally takes place in a stroke unit; however, these are not available in much of the world.

      In 2013 approximately 6.9 million people had an ischemic stroke and 3.4 million people had a hemorrhagic stroke. In 2010 there were about 33 million people who had previously had a stroke and were still alive. Between 1990 and 2010 the number of strokes which occurred each year decreased by approximately 10% in the developed world and increased by 10% in the developing world. In 2013, stroke was the second most frequent cause of death after coronary artery disease, accounting for 6.4 million deaths (12% of the total). About 3.3 million deaths resulted from ischemic stroke while 3.2 million deaths resulted from hemorrhagic stroke. About half of people who have had a stroke live less than one year. Overall, two thirds of strokes occurred in those over 65 years old'.
    • Sexual Health Week: More
      September 12-18 in Great Britain.
  • Other
    • United Nations Day for South-South: More
      It promotes cooperation between the countries of Africa, Latin America and Asia.
Events in the past on: September 12
  • In 1940, In Lascaux, France, prehistoric cave paintings are discovered by boys out playing with their dog. The cave is 66 feet long by 16 feet wide with paintings of animals.
    From Wikipedia: 'Lascaux (Lascaux Caves) is the setting of a complex of caves in southwestern France famous for its Paleolithic cave paintings. The original caves are located near the village of Montignac, in the department of Dordogne. They contain some of the best-known Upper Paleolithic art. These paintings are estimated to be circa 17,300 years old. They primarily consist of images of large animals, most of which are known from fossil evidence to have lived in the area at the time. In 1979, Lascaux was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list along with other prehistoric sites in the Vézère valley.

    On September 12, 1940, the entrance to Lascaux Cave was discovered by 18-year-old Marcel Ravidat. Ravidat returned to the scene with three friends, Jacques Marsal, Georges Agnel, and Simon Coencas, and entered the cave via a long shaft. The teenagers discovered that the cave walls were covered with depictions of animals. The cave complex was opened to the public in 1948. By 1955, the carbon dioxide, heat, humidity, and other contaminants produced by 1,200 visitors per day had visibly damaged the paintings and introduced lichen on the walls. The cave was closed to the public in 1963 to preserve the art. After the cave was closed, the paintings were restored to their original state and were monitored daily. Rooms in the cave include the Hall of the Bulls, the Passageway, the Shaft, the Nave, the Apse, and the Chamber of Felines'.
    - At FamousDaily: More
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  • In 1954, 'Lassie' made its television debut on CBS. The last show aired on September 12, 1971.
    From Wikipedia: 'Lassie is an American television series that follows the adventures of a female Rough Collie dog named Lassie and her companions, both human and animal. The show was the creation of producer Robert Maxwell and animal trainer Rudd Weatherwax and was televised from September 12, 1954, to March 25, 1973. The fourth longest-running U.S. primetime television series after The Simpsons, Gunsmoke, and Law and Order, the show chalked up 17 seasons on CBS before entering first-run syndication for its final two seasons. Initially filmed in black and white, the show transitioned to color in 1965.

    The show's first 10 seasons follow Lassie's adventures in a small farming community. Fictional eleven-year-old Jeff Miller, his mother, and his grandfather are Lassie's first human companions until seven-year-old Timmy Martin and his adoptive parents take over in the fourth season. When Lassie's exploits on the farm end in the eleventh season, she finds new adventures in the wilderness alongside United States Forest Service Rangers. After traveling on her own for a year, Lassie finally settles at a children's home for her final two syndicated seasons.

    Lassie received critical favor at its debut and won two Emmy Awards in its first years. Stars Jan Clayton and June Lockhart were nominated for Emmys. Merchandise produced during the show's run included books, a Halloween costume, clothing, toys, and other items. Campbell's Soup, the show's lifelong sponsor, offered two premiums (a ring and a wallet), and distributed thousands to fans. A multi-part episode was edited into the feature film Lassie's Great Adventure and released in August 1963. Selected episodes have been released to DVD'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
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  • In 1959, 'Bonanza' premieres on NBC-TV.
    From Wikipedia: 'Bonanza was a NBC television western series that ran from 1959 to 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 431 episodes, Bonanza is NBC's longest-running western, and ranks overall as the second-longest-running western series on U.S. network television (behind CBS's Gunsmoke), and within the top 10 longest-running, live-action American series. The show continues to air in syndication.

    The show is set around the 1860s and it centers on the wealthy Cartwright family, who live in the area of Virginia City, Nevada, bordering Lake Tahoe. The series stars Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon, Pernell Roberts (who left after six seasons), and later David Canary and Mitch Vogel.

    The title "Bonanza" is a term used by miners in regard to a large vein or deposit of ore, and commonly refers to the 1859 revelation of the Comstock Lode discovery, not far from the fictional Ponderosa Ranch that the Cartwright family operated.

    In 2002, Bonanza was ranked No. 43 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time, and in 2013 TV Guide included it in its list of The 60 Greatest Dramas of All Time. The time period for the television series is roughly between 1861 (Season 1) to 1867 (Season 13) during and shortly after the American Civil War.

    During the summer of 1972, NBC aired reruns of episodes from the 1967–1970 period in prime time on Tuesday evening under the title Ponderosa'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
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  • In 1959, Luna 2 is launched by the USSR. It is the first spacecraft to impact on the Moon. It crashed landed on the moon on September 14th.
    From Wikipedia: 'Once Luna 2 was split from its upper stage it started transmitting information back to earth using three different transmitters. These transmitters were providing precise information on its course allowing scientist to calculate that Luna 2 would hit its mark on the moon around 0005 on September 14. In order to be able to get a visual of Luna 2 from Earth on September 13 it released a vapor cloud that would expand into a 650 km diameter that would be seen by observatories in Alma Ata, Byurakan, Abastuma, Tbilisi, and Stalinabad. This vapor cloud also acted as an experiment to see how the sodium gas would act in a vacuum and zero gravity.

    Launch was scheduled for September 9, but the Blok I core stage was shut down after it failed to reach full thrust at ignition. The booster was removed from the pad and replaced by a different vehicle, delaying the flight by three days. Luna 2, like Luna 1, took a direct path to the Moon, a journey of around 36 hours. The Earth-Moon gravitational system forced it to follow a curved trajectory, and launch had to occur from the side of the Earth opposite the Moon. Luna 2 hit the Moon about 800 kilometres from the centre of the visible disk on 1959 September 14 at 21:02:24.

    Luna 2 was similar in design to Luna 1, a spherical spacecraft with protruding antennas and instrument parts. The instrumentation was also similar to Luna 1, including scintillation counters, geiger counters, a magnetometer, Cherenkov detectors, and micrometeorite detectors. There were no propulsion systems on Luna 2 itself.

    The last stage of the rocket that carried Luna 2 did not carry any type of tracking device so there was uncertainty as to where it landed, but it did hit the Moon surface about 30 minutes after Luna 2 hit'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
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  • In 1964, Canyonlands National Park in southeastern Utah, is designated as a National Park. Prehistoric man lived there 7,000 – 9,000 B.C.
    From Wikipedia: 'Canyonlands National Park is a U.S. National Park located in southeastern Utah near the town of Moab. It preserves a colorful landscape eroded into countless canyons, mesas, and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. Legislation creating the park was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on September 12, 1964.

    The park is divided into four districts: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, the Maze, and the combined rivers—the Green and Colorado—which carved two large canyons into the Colorado Plateau. While these areas share a primitive desert atmosphere, each retains its own character. Author Edward Abbey, a frequent visitor, described the Canyonlands as "the most weird, wonderful, magical place on earth—there is nothing else like it anywhere."'
    - At FamousDaily: More
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  • In 1966, Gemini 11, the penultimate mission of NASA's Gemini program, and the current human altitude record holder (except for the Apollo lunar missions).
    From Wikipedia: 'Gemini 11 (officially Gemini XI)) was the ninth manned spaceflight mission of NASA's Project Gemini, which flew from September 12 to 15, 1966. It was the 17th manned American flight and the 25th spaceflight to that time (includes X-15 flights over 100 kilometers (54 nmi)). Astronauts Charles "Pete" Conrad, Jr. and Richard F. Gordon, Jr. performed the first-ever direct-ascent (first orbit) rendezvous with an Agena Target Vehicle, docking with it one hour and thirty-four minutes after launch; used the Agena rocket engine to achieve a world record high-apogee earth orbit; and created a small amount of artificial gravity by spinning the two spacecraft connected by a tether. Gordon also performed two extra-vehicular activities for a total of 2 hours and 41 minutes'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
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  • In 1966, 'The Monkees' premieres on NBC-TV.
    From Wikipedia: 'The Monkees is an American situation comedy that aired on NBC from September 12, 1966 to March 25, 1968. The series follows the adventures of four young men (the Monkees) trying to make a name for themselves as rock 'n roll singers. The show introduced a number of innovative new-wave film techniques to series television and won two Emmy Awards in 1967. The program ended on Labor Day 1968 at the finish of its second season and has received a long afterlife in Saturday morning repeats (CBS and ABC) and syndication, as well as overseas broadcasts.
    The series centered on the adventures of The Monkees, a struggling rock band from Los Angeles, California consisting of Micky, Davy, Michael, and Peter. The comic elements of the storyline were provided by the strange encounters that the band would have while searching for their big break.

    On September 8, 1965, trade publications Daily Variety and The Hollywood Reporter ran an ad seeking "Folk and Roll Musicians-Singers for acting roles in new TV series." As many as 400 hopefuls showed up to be considered as one of "4 insane boys." Fourteen actors from the audition pool were brought back for screen tests, and after audience research, Raybert chose their final four.

    Micky Dolenz, son of screen actor George Dolenz, had prior screen experience (under the name "Mickey Braddock") as the 10-year-old star of the Circus Boy series in the 1950s. He was actively auditioning for pilots at the time and was told about the Raybert project by his agent.

    Englishman Davy Jones was a former jockey who had achieved some initial success on the musical stage (appearing with the cast of Oliver! on The Ed Sullivan Show the night of the Beatles' live American debut). Already appearing in Columbia Pictures productions and recording for the Colpix record label, he had been identified in advance as a potential star for the series.

    Texan Michael Nesmith, whose mother Bette Nesmith Graham had invented a correction fluid and founded the company that would become Liquid Paper, had served a brief stint in the U.S. Air Force and had also recorded for Colpix under the name "Michael Blessing." Nesmith was the only one of The Monkees who had come in based on seeing the trade magazine ad. He showed up to the audition with his laundry and impressed Rafelson and Schneider with his laid-back style and droll sense of humor. Nesmith also wore a woolen hat to keep his hair out of his eyes when he rode his motorcycle, leading to early promotional materials which nicknamed him "Wool Hat." The hat remained part of Nesmith's wardrobe, but the name was dropped after the pilot.

    Peter Tork was recommended to Rafelson and Schneider by friend Stephen Stills at his own audition. Tork, a skilled multi-instrumentalist, had performed at various Greenwich Village folk clubs before moving west, where he worked as a busboy'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
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  • In 1966, 'Family Affair' premiered on CBS television.
    From Wikipedia: 'Family Affair is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to March 4, 1971 (Repeats were broadcast through September 9.) The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Brian Keith) as he attempted to raise his brother's orphaned children in his luxury New York City apartment. Davis' traditional English gentleman's gentleman, Mr. Giles French (Sebastian Cabot), also had adjustments to make as he became saddled with the responsibility of caring for 15-year-old Cissy (Kathy Garver) and the 6-year-old twins, Jody (Johnny Whitaker) and Buffy (Anissa Jones).

    Family Affair ran for 138 episodes in five seasons. The show was created and produced by Edmund Hartmann and Don Fedderson, also known for My Three Sons and The Millionaire'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
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  • In 1970, Luna 16 Launch by the Soviets. It returns (Moon samples to Earth.
    From Wikipedia: 'Luna 16 was an unmanned space mission, part of the Soviet Luna program.

    Luna 16 was the first robotic probe to land on the Moon and return a sample of lunar soil to Earth after five unsuccessful similar attempts. The sample was returned from Mare Fecunditatis. It represented the first lunar sample return mission by the Soviet Union and was the third lunar sample return mission overall, following the Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 missions.

    The spacecraft consisted of two attached stages, an ascent stage mounted on top of a descent stage. The descent stage was a cylindrical body with four protruding landing legs, fuel tanks, a landing radar, and a dual descent engine complex.

    A main descent engine was used to slow the craft until it reached a cutoff point which was determined by the on-board computer based on altitude and velocity. After cutoff a bank of lower thrust jets was used for the final landing. The descent stage also acted as a launch pad for the ascent stage.

    The ascent stage was a smaller cylinder with a rounded top. It carried a cylindrical hermetically sealed soil sample container inside a re-entry capsule.

    The spacecraft descent stage was equipped with a television camera, radiation and temperature monitors, telecommunications equipment, and an extendable arm with a drilling rig for the collection of a lunar soil sample'.
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  • In 1978, Situation comedy 'Taxi' premieres on ABC television.
    From Wikipedia: 'Taxi is an American sitcom that originally aired from 1978 to 1982 on ABC and from 1982 to 1983 on NBC. The series—which won 18 Emmy Awards, including three for Outstanding Comedy Series—focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxi drivers and their abusive dispatcher. Taxi was produced by the John Charles Walters Company, in association with Paramount Network Television, and was created by James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels, David Davis, and Ed Weinberger.

    The show focuses on the employees of the fictional Sunshine Cab Company, and its principal setting is the company's fleet garage in Manhattan. Among the drivers, only Alex Rieger, who is disillusioned with life, considers cab driving his profession. The others view it as a temporary job. Elaine Nardo is a single mother working as a receptionist at an art gallery. Tony Banta is a boxer with a losing record. Bobby Wheeler is a struggling actor. John Burns (written out of the show after the first season) is working his way through college. All take pity on "Reverend Jim" Ignatowski, an aging hippie minister, who is burnt out from drugs, so they help him become a cabbie. The characters also included Latka Gravas, their innocent, wide-eyed mechanic from an unnamed foreign country, and Louie De Palma, the despotic dispatcher.

    A number of episodes involve a character having an opportunity to realize his or her dream to move up in the world, only to see it yanked away. Otherwise, the cabbies deal on a daily basis with their unsatisfying lives and with Louie DePalma's abusive behavior and contempt (despite being a former cab driver himself). Louie's assistant, Jeff Bennett, is rarely heard from at first, but his role increases in later seasons.

    Despite the zany humor of the show, Taxi often tackled such dramatic issues as racism, drug addiction, single parenthood, blindness, obesity, animal abuse, bisexuality, teenage runaways, divorce, nuclear war, sexual harassment, premenstrual mood disorders, gambling addiction, and the loss of a loved one'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
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  • In 2011, The 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York City opens to the public.
    From Wikipedia: 'The National September 11 Memorial and Museum (known separately as the 9/11 Memorial and 9/11 Memorial Museum) are the principal memorial and museum, respectively. They commemorate the September 11, 2001 attacks, which killed 2,977 victims, and the World Trade Center bombing of 1993, which killed six. The memorial is located at the World Trade Center site, the former location of the Twin Towers, which were destroyed during the September 11 attacks. It is operated by a non-profit corporation whose mission is to raise funds for, program, own, and operate the memorial and museum at the World Trade Center site.

    A memorial was planned in the immediate aftermath of the attacks and destruction of the World Trade Center for the victims including those involved in rescue operations. The winner of the World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition was Israeli architect Michael Arad of Handel Architects, a New York- and San Francisco-based firm. Arad worked with landscape-architecture firm Peter Walker and Partners on the design, a forest of trees with two square pools in the center where the Twin Towers stood. In August 2006, the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey began heavy construction on the memorial and museum. The design is consistent with the original Daniel Libeskind master plan, which called for the memorial to be 30 feet (9.1 m) below street level—originally 70 feet (21 m)—in a plaza, and was the only finalist to disregard Libeskind's requirement that the buildings overhang the footprints of the Twin Towers. The World Trade Center Memorial Foundation was renamed the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in 2007.

    On September 11, 2011, a dedication ceremony commemorating the tenth anniversary of the attacks was held at the memorial. It opened to the public the following day; the museum was dedicated on May 15, 2014 and opened on May 21. Three months after its opening, the memorial had been visited by over a million people. In 2012 the 9/11 Tribute Center collaborated with the 9/11 Memorial to offer private tours, which are hosted by family members of victims, first responders, and survivors'.
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  II.
Henry's Heads Up! - previous days social media post (updated daily)

<> Tomorrow's food holidays(s):


* 'National Chocolate Milkshake Day'. - From Wikipedia (Milkshake): 'A milkshake is a sweet, cold beverage which is usually made from milk, ice cream, or iced milk, and flavorings or sweeteners such as butterscotch, caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, or fruit syrup. Outside the United States, milkshakes using ice cream or iced milk are sometimes called a thick milkshake or thick shake in New England, the term frappe may be used to differentiate it from thinner forms of flavored milk.

Full-service restaurants, soda fountains, and diners usually prepare and mix the shake by hand from scoops of ice cream and milk in a blender or drink mixer using a stainless steel cup. Many fast food outlets do not make shakes by hand with ice cream. Instead, they make shakes in automatic milkshake machines which freeze and serve a premade milkshake mixture consisting of milk, a sweetened flavoring agent, and a thickening agent. However, some fast food outlets still follow the traditional method, and some serve milkshakes which are prepared by blending soft-serve ice cream (or ice milk) with flavoring or syrups.

A milkshake can also be made by adding powder into fresh milk and stirring the powder into the milk. Milkshakes made in this way can come in a variety of flavors, including chocolate, caramel, strawberry, and banana.

Hand-blended milkshakes are traditionally made from any flavor of ice cream additional flavorings, such as chocolate syrup and/or malt syrup or malt powder, can be added prior to mixing. This allows a greater variety than is available in machine-made shakes. Some unusual milkshake recipes exclude ice cream.

Milkshake-like recipes which use a high proportion of fruit and no ice cream are usually called smoothies. When malted milk is added, a milkshake is called a malted milkshake, a malt shake (or maltshake), a malted, or simply a malt. An ice cream-based milkshake may be called a thick milkshake or thick shake in the United Kingdom or a frappe in parts of New England and Canada. In Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts, coffee syrup or coffee-flavored ice cream is used to make the local coffee frappe shake. Milkshakes with added fruit called batido are popular in Latin America and in Miami's Cuban expatriate community. In Nicaragua, milkshakes are called leche malteada.

Some U.S. restaurants serve milkshakes with crumbled cookies, candy bar pieces, or alcoholic beverages. The grasshopper milkshake, for example, includes crumbled chocolate cookies, creme de menthe liqueur, and chocolate mint ice cream'.
[The Hankster says] Loved them as a kid. Now I feel they are too sweet. Maybe if I add a little coffee flavor or licorice.


<> Other holidays / celebrations


* 'National Video Games Day'.
[The Hankster says] Never have been good at video games. Especially now-a-days, since I can't find the place to put the quarter, in my PC. No, that pop out tray with the big hole in it is for a travel mug, right?


* 'National Day of Encouragement'. Started in 2007 by the Encouragement Foundation at Harding University, - From Wikipedia (National Day of Encouragement): 'The National Day of Encouragement in the United States was announced in 2007 and occurs each year on September 12.

The Encouragement Foundation at Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas launched an effort to get Americans to participate in this Day of Encouragement. The first proclamation for the Day of Encouragement was made by Mayor Belinda LaForce of Searcy, Arkansas on August 22, 2007. In September Mike Beebe, the Governor of Arkansas, signed a proclamation making September 12, 2007 the State Day of Encouragement for Arkansas.

Later, President George W. Bush also signed a message making September 12 the official National Day of Encouragement. The Encouragement Foundation is making plans to get more states involved in the National Day of Encouragement in the future'.


* 'Defenders Day'. A state holiday in Maryland. It commemorates the defense of Baltimore on September 12, 1814 from the British during the War of 1812, - From Wikipedia (Defenders Day): 'Defenders Day is a legal holiday in the U.S. state of Maryland It commemorates the successful defense of the city of Baltimore on September 12, 1814 from an invading British force during the War of 1812, an event which would lead to the writing of The Star-Spangled Banner as the national anthem of the United States.

In 1814, following the burning of Washington, a British force commanded by Major General Robert Ross landed near present-day Fort Howard, Maryland and began an advance on the city. He was met almost immediately by a detachment from the Baltimore garrison led by American General John Stricker, commencing the Battle of North Point. The resulting halt of the larger British force allowed Baltimore to organize its defenses against a later attempted naval invasion. It was during this conflict, the Battle of Baltimore, that Fort McHenry was shelled by the British but refused to surrender, and an inspired Maryland lawyer named Francis Scott Key composed the words to what would later become The Star-Spangled Banner, eventually proclaimed the national anthem of the United States'.


* 'National Police Woman Day:'. In 1910, Alice Stebbins Wells, became the first US woman police officer ever (Los Angeles), with powers to arrest.


* 'National Boss/Employee Exchange Day'. Monday after Labor Day.
[The Hankster says] It must be an exchange of ideas. An exchange of position would mean the boss would get fired before things could be put back again.


* 'Programmers' Day'. On the 256th (a significant number in computing) day of the year. - From Wikipedia (256 (number)): 'In computing: One octet (and in the most case one byte) is equal to eight bits and has 28 or 256 possible values, counting from 0 to 255. The number 256 often appears in computer applications (especially on 8-bit systems) such as: The typical number of different values in each color channel of a digital color image (256 values for red, 256 values for green, and 256 values for blue used for 24-bit color). The number of colors available in a GIF or a 256-color (8-bit) bitmap. The number of characters in extended ASCII and Latin-1. The number of columns available in a Microsoft Excel worksheet until Excel 2007. The split-screen level in Pacman, which results from the use of a single byte to store the internal level counter. A 256-bit integer can represent up to 1.1579209e+77 values. Number of bits in the SHA-256 cryptographic hash. The branding number of nVidia's GeForce 256'.
[The Hankster says] Treat your programmers right. Remember what happened in Jurassic Park.


<> Awareness / Observances:

o Health
* 'Erdheim-Chester Disease Awareness Week'. - From Wikipedia (Erdheim–Chester disease): 'Erdheim–Chester disease (also known as Erdheim–Chester syndrome or polyostotic sclerosing histiocytosis) is a rare disease characterized by the abnormal multiplication of a specific type of white blood cells called histiocytes, or tissue macrophages (technically, this disease is termed a non-Langerhans-cell histiocytosis). Usually, onset is in middle age. The disease involves an infiltration of lipid-laden macrophages, multinucleated giant cells, an inflammatory infiltrate of lymphocytes and histiocytes in the bone marrow, and a generalized sclerosis of the long bones.

All current treatments have had varying degrees of success.

The vinca alkaloids and anthracyclines have been used most commonly in ECD treatment'.


* 'Balance Awareness Week'. September 12-18 in Great Britain. It concerns vestibular disorders. - From Wikipedia (Balance disorder): 'A balance disorder is a disturbance that causes an individual to feel unsteady, for example when standing or walking. It may be accompanied by feelings of giddiness, or wooziness, or having a sensation of movement, spinning, or floating. Balance is the result of several body systems working together: the visual system (eyes), vestibular system (ears) and proprioception (the body's sense of where it is in space). Degeneration or loss of function in any of these systems can lead to balance deficits.

Problems with balance can occur when there is a disruption in any of the vestibular, visual, or proprioceptive systems. Abnormalities in balance function may indicate a wide range of pathologies from causes like inner ear disorders, low blood pressure, brain tumors, and brain injury including stroke.

Many different terms are often used for dizziness, including lightheaded, floating, woozy, giddy, confused, helpless, or fuzzy. Vertigo, Disequilibrium and pre-syncope are the terms in use by most physicians and have more precise definitions'.


* 'Know Your Numbers! Week'. September 12-18 in Great Britain. - From Wikipedia (Blood pressure): 'Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels. When used without further specification, blood pressure usually refers to the arterial pressure in the systemic circulation. Blood pressure is usually expressed in terms of the systolic (maximum) pressure over diastolic (minimum) pressure and is measured in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). It is one of the vital signs along with respiratory rate, heart rate, oxygen saturation, and body temperature. Normal resting systolic (diastolic) blood pressure in an adult is approximately 120 mm Hg (80 mm Hg), abbreviated 120/80 mm Hg

Blood pressure varies depending on situation, activity, and disease states. It is regulated by the nervous and endocrine systems. Blood pressure that is low due to a disease state is called hypotension, and pressure that is consistently high is hypertension. Both have many causes which can range from mild to severe. Both may be of sudden onset or of long duration. Long term hypertension is a risk factor for many diseases, including heart disease, stroke and kidney failure. Long term hypertension is more common than long term hypotension in Western countries. Long term hypertension often goes undetected because of infrequent monitoring and the absence of symptoms'.


* 'Lymphatic Cancer Awareness Week'. By the Lymphoma Association. This years theme is What Is Your type? - From Wikipedia 9Lymphoma): 'Lymphoma is a group of blood cell tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). The name often refers to just the cancerous ones rather than all such tumors. Signs and symptoms may include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, drenching sweats, unintended weight loss, itching, and feeling tired. The enlarged lymph nodes are usually painless. The sweats are most common at night.

There are dozens of subtypes of lymphomas. The two main categories of lymphomas are Hodgkin lymphomas (HL) and the non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL). The World Health Organization (WHO) includes two other categories as types of lymphoma: multiple myeloma and immunoproliferative diseases. About 90% of lymphomas are non-Hodgkin lymphomas. Lymphomas and leukemias are a part of the broader group of tumors of the hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues.

Risk factors for Hodgkin lymphoma include infection with Epstein–Barr virus and a history of the disease in the family. Risk factors for common types of non-Hodgkin lymphomas include autoimmune diseases, HIV/AIDS, infection with human T-lymphotropic virus, immunosuppressant medications, and some pesticides. Eating large amounts of red meat may also increase the risk. Diagnosis, if enlarged lymph nodes are present, is usually by lymph node biopsy. Blood, urine, and bone marrow testing may also be useful in the diagnosis. Medical imaging may then be done to determine if and where the cancer has spread. Lymphoma most often spreads to the lungs, liver, and/or brain.

Treatment may involve one or more of the following: chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted therapy, and surgery. In some non-Hodgkin lymphomas, an increased amount of protein produced by the lymphoma cells causes the blood to become so thick that plasmapheresis is performed to remove the protein. Watchful waiting may be appropriate for certain types. The outcome depends on the subtype with some being curable and treatment prolonging survival in most. The five-year survival rate in the United States for all Hodgkin lymphoma subtypes is 85%, while that for non-Hodgkin lymphomas is 69%. Worldwide, lymphomas developed in 566,000 people in 2012 and caused 305,000 deaths. They make up 3–4% of all cancers, making them as a group the seventh-most common form. In children, they are the third-most common cancer. They occur more often in the developed world than the developing world'.


* 'National Stroke Week'. September 12-18 in Australia. - From Wikipedia (Stroke): 'Stroke is when poor blood flow to the brain results in cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. They result in part of the brain not functioning properly. Signs and symptoms of a stroke may include an inability to move or feel on one side of the body, problems understanding or speaking, feeling like the world is spinning, or loss of vision to one side among others. Signs and symptoms often appear soon after the stroke has occurred. If symptoms last less than one or two hours it is known as a transient ischemic attack (TIA). Hemorrhagic strokes may also be associated with a severe headache. The symptoms of a stroke can be permanent. Long term complications may include pneumonia or loss of bladder control.

The main risk factor for stroke is high blood pressure. Other risk factors include tobacco smoking, obesity, high blood cholesterol, diabetes mellitus, previous TIA, and atrial fibrillation. An ischemic stroke is typically caused by blockage of a blood vessel. A hemorrhagic stroke is caused by bleeding either directly into the brain or into the space surrounding the brain. Bleeding may occur due to a brain aneurysm. Diagnosis is typically with medical imaging such as a computerized axial tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan along with a physical exam. Other tests such as an electrocardiogram (ECG) and blood tests are done to determine risk factors and rule out other possible causes. Low blood sugar may cause similar symptoms.

Prevention includes decreasing risk factors as well as possibly aspirin, statins, surgery to open up the arteries to the brain in those with problematic narrowing, and warfarin in those with atrial fibrillation. A stroke often requires emergency care. An ischemic stroke, if detected within three to four and half hours, may be treatable with a medication that can break down the clot. Aspirin should be used. Some hemorrhagic strokes benefit from surgery. Treatment to try recover lost function is called stroke rehabilitation and ideally takes place in a stroke unit however, these are not available in much of the world.

In 2013 approximately 6.9 million people had an ischemic stroke and 3.4 million people had a hemorrhagic stroke. In 2010 there were about 33 million people who had previously had a stroke and were still alive. Between 1990 and 2010 the number of strokes which occurred each year decreased by approximately 10% in the developed world and increased by 10% in the developing world. In 2013, stroke was the second most frequent cause of death after coronary artery disease, accounting for 6.4 million deaths (12% of the total). About 3.3 million deaths resulted from ischemic stroke while 3.2 million deaths resulted from hemorrhagic stroke. About half of people who have had a stroke live less than one year. Overall, two thirds of strokes occurred in those over 65 years old'.


* 'Sexual Health Week'. September 12-18 in Great Britain.

o Other:
* 'United Nations Day for South-South'. It promotes cooperation between the countries of Africa, Latin America and Asia.


<> Historical events on September 12


* 'In 1940, In Lascaux, France, prehistoric cave paintings are discovered by boys out playing with their dog. The cave is 66 feet long by 16 feet wide with paintings of animals. . - From Wikipedia: 'Lascaux (Lascaux Caves) is the setting of a complex of caves in southwestern France famous for its Paleolithic cave paintings. The original caves are located near the village of Montignac, in the department of Dordogne. They contain some of the best-known Upper Paleolithic art. These paintings are estimated to be circa 17,300 years old. They primarily consist of images of large animals, most of which are known from fossil evidence to have lived in the area at the time. In 1979, Lascaux was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list along with other prehistoric sites in the Vézère valley.

On September 12, 1940, the entrance to Lascaux Cave was discovered by 18-year-old Marcel Ravidat. Ravidat returned to the scene with three friends, Jacques Marsal, Georges Agnel, and Simon Coencas, and entered the cave via a long shaft. The teenagers discovered that the cave walls were covered with depictions of animals. The cave complex was opened to the public in 1948. By 1955, the carbon dioxide, heat, humidity, and other contaminants produced by 1,200 visitors per day had visibly damaged the paintings and introduced lichen on the walls. The cave was closed to the public in 1963 to preserve the art. After the cave was closed, the paintings were restored to their original state and were monitored daily. Rooms in the cave include the Hall of the Bulls, the Passageway, the Shaft, the Nave, the Apse, and the Chamber of Felines'.


* 'In 1954, 'Lassie' made its television debut on CBS. The last show aired on September 12, 1971. . - From Wikipedia: 'Lassie is an American television series that follows the adventures of a female Rough Collie dog named Lassie and her companions, both human and animal. The show was the creation of producer Robert Maxwell and animal trainer Rudd Weatherwax and was televised from September 12, 1954, to March 25, 1973. The fourth longest-running U.S. primetime television series after The Simpsons, Gunsmoke, and Law and Order, the show chalked up 17 seasons on CBS before entering first-run syndication for its final two seasons. Initially filmed in black and white, the show transitioned to color in 1965.

The show's first 10 seasons follow Lassie's adventures in a small farming community. Fictional eleven-year-old Jeff Miller, his mother, and his grandfather are Lassie's first human companions until seven-year-old Timmy Martin and his adoptive parents take over in the fourth season. When Lassie's exploits on the farm end in the eleventh season, she finds new adventures in the wilderness alongside United States Forest Service Rangers. After traveling on her own for a year, Lassie finally settles at a children's home for her final two syndicated seasons.

Lassie received critical favor at its debut and won two Emmy Awards in its first years. Stars Jan Clayton and June Lockhart were nominated for Emmys. Merchandise produced during the show's run included books, a Halloween costume, clothing, toys, and other items. Campbell's Soup, the show's lifelong sponsor, offered two premiums (a ring and a wallet), and distributed thousands to fans. A multi-part episode was edited into the feature film Lassie's Great Adventure and released in August 1963. Selected episodes have been released to DVD'.


* 'In 1959, 'Bonanza' premieres on NBC-TV. . - From Wikipedia: 'Bonanza was a NBC television western series that ran from 1959 to 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 431 episodes, Bonanza is NBC's longest-running western, and ranks overall as the second-longest-running western series on U.S. network television (behind CBS's Gunsmoke), and within the top 10 longest-running, live-action American series. The show continues to air in syndication.

The show is set around the 1860s and it centers on the wealthy Cartwright family, who live in the area of Virginia City, Nevada, bordering Lake Tahoe. The series stars Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon, Pernell Roberts (who left after six seasons), and later David Canary and Mitch Vogel.

The title Bonanza is a term used by miners in regard to a large vein or deposit of ore, and commonly refers to the 1859 revelation of the Comstock Lode discovery, not far from the fictional Ponderosa Ranch that the Cartwright family operated.

In 2002, Bonanza was ranked No. 43 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time, and in 2013 TV Guide included it in its list of The 60 Greatest Dramas of All Time. The time period for the television series is roughly between 1861 (Season 1) to 1867 (Season 13) during and shortly after the American Civil War.

During the summer of 1972, NBC aired reruns of episodes from the 1967–1970 period in prime time on Tuesday evening under the title Ponderosa'.


* 'In 1959, Luna 2 is launched by the USSR. It is the first spacecraft to impact on the Moon. It crashed landed on the moon on September 14th. . - From Wikipedia: 'Once Luna 2 was split from its upper stage it started transmitting information back to earth using three different transmitters. These transmitters were providing precise information on its course allowing scientist to calculate that Luna 2 would hit its mark on the moon around 0005 on September 14. In order to be able to get a visual of Luna 2 from Earth on September 13 it released a vapor cloud that would expand into a 650 km diameter that would be seen by observatories in Alma Ata, Byurakan, Abastuma, Tbilisi, and Stalinabad. This vapor cloud also acted as an experiment to see how the sodium gas would act in a vacuum and zero gravity.

Launch was scheduled for September 9, but the Blok I core stage was shut down after it failed to reach full thrust at ignition. The booster was removed from the pad and replaced by a different vehicle, delaying the flight by three days. Luna 2, like Luna 1, took a direct path to the Moon, a journey of around 36 hours. The Earth-Moon gravitational system forced it to follow a curved trajectory, and launch had to occur from the side of the Earth opposite the Moon. Luna 2 hit the Moon about 800 kilometres from the centre of the visible disk on 1959 September 14 at 21:02:24.

Luna 2 was similar in design to Luna 1, a spherical spacecraft with protruding antennas and instrument parts. The instrumentation was also similar to Luna 1, including scintillation counters, geiger counters, a magnetometer, Cherenkov detectors, and micrometeorite detectors. There were no propulsion systems on Luna 2 itself.

The last stage of the rocket that carried Luna 2 did not carry any type of tracking device so there was uncertainty as to where it landed, but it did hit the Moon surface about 30 minutes after Luna 2 hit'.


* 'In 1964, Canyonlands National Park in southeastern Utah, is designated as a National Park. Prehistoric man lived there 7,000 – 9,000 B.C. . - From Wikipedia: 'Canyonlands National Park is a U.S. National Park located in southeastern Utah near the town of Moab. It preserves a colorful landscape eroded into countless canyons, mesas, and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. Legislation creating the park was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on September 12, 1964.

The park is divided into four districts: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, the Maze, and the combined rivers—the Green and Colorado—which carved two large canyons into the Colorado Plateau. While these areas share a primitive desert atmosphere, each retains its own character. Author Edward Abbey, a frequent visitor, described the Canyonlands as the most weird, wonderful, magical place on earth—there is nothing else like it anywhere.'


* 'In 1966, Gemini 11, the penultimate mission of NASA's Gemini program, and the current human altitude record holder (except for the Apollo lunar missions). . - From Wikipedia: 'Gemini 11 (officially Gemini XI)) was the ninth manned spaceflight mission of NASA's Project Gemini, which flew from September 12 to 15, 1966. It was the 17th manned American flight and the 25th spaceflight to that time (includes X-15 flights over 100 kilometers (54 nmi)). Astronauts Charles Pete Conrad, Jr. and Richard F. Gordon, Jr. performed the first-ever direct-ascent (first orbit) rendezvous with an Agena Target Vehicle, docking with it one hour and thirty-four minutes after launch used the Agena rocket engine to achieve a world record high-apogee earth orbit and created a small amount of artificial gravity by spinning the two spacecraft connected by a tether. Gordon also performed two extra-vehicular activities for a total of 2 hours and 41 minutes'.


* 'In 1966, 'The Monkees' premieres on NBC-TV. . - From Wikipedia: 'The Monkees is an American situation comedy that aired on NBC from September 12, 1966 to March 25, 1968. The series follows the adventures of four young men (the Monkees) trying to make a name for themselves as rock 'n roll singers. The show introduced a number of innovative new-wave film techniques to series television and won two Emmy Awards in 1967. The program ended on Labor Day 1968 at the finish of its second season and has received a long afterlife in Saturday morning repeats (CBS and ABC) and syndication, as well as overseas broadcasts. The series centered on the adventures of The Monkees, a struggling rock band from Los Angeles, California consisting of Micky, Davy, Michael, and Peter. The comic elements of the storyline were provided by the strange encounters that the band would have while searching for their big break.

On September 8, 1965, trade publications Daily Variety and The Hollywood Reporter ran an ad seeking Folk and Roll Musicians-Singers for acting roles in new TV series. As many as 400 hopefuls showed up to be considered as one of 4 insane boys. Fourteen actors from the audition pool were brought back for screen tests, and after audience research, Raybert chose their final four.

Micky Dolenz, son of screen actor George Dolenz, had prior screen experience (under the name Mickey Braddock) as the 10-year-old star of the Circus Boy series in the 1950s. He was actively auditioning for pilots at the time and was told about the Raybert project by his agent.

Englishman Davy Jones was a former jockey who had achieved some initial success on the musical stage (appearing with the cast of Oliver! on The Ed Sullivan Show the night of the Beatles' live American debut). Already appearing in Columbia Pictures productions and recording for the Colpix record label, he had been identified in advance as a potential star for the series.

Texan Michael Nesmith, whose mother Bette Nesmith Graham had invented a correction fluid and founded the company that would become Liquid Paper, had served a brief stint in the U.S. Air Force and had also recorded for Colpix under the name Michael Blessing. Nesmith was the only one of The Monkees who had come in based on seeing the trade magazine ad. He showed up to the audition with his laundry and impressed Rafelson and Schneider with his laid-back style and droll sense of humor. Nesmith also wore a woolen hat to keep his hair out of his eyes when he rode his motorcycle, leading to early promotional materials which nicknamed him Wool Hat. The hat remained part of Nesmith's wardrobe, but the name was dropped after the pilot.

Peter Tork was recommended to Rafelson and Schneider by friend Stephen Stills at his own audition. Tork, a skilled multi-instrumentalist, had performed at various Greenwich Village folk clubs before moving west, where he worked as a busboy'.


* 'In 1966, 'Family Affair' premiered on CBS television. . - From Wikipedia: 'Family Affair is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to March 4, 1971 (Repeats were broadcast through September 9.) The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Brian Keith) as he attempted to raise his brother's orphaned children in his luxury New York City apartment. Davis' traditional English gentleman's gentleman, Mr. Giles French (Sebastian Cabot), also had adjustments to make as he became saddled with the responsibility of caring for 15-year-old Cissy (Kathy Garver) and the 6-year-old twins, Jody (Johnny Whitaker) and Buffy (Anissa Jones).

Family Affair ran for 138 episodes in five seasons. The show was created and produced by Edmund Hartmann and Don Fedderson, also known for My Three Sons and The Millionaire'.


* 'In 1970, Luna 16 Launch by the Soviets. It returns (Moon samples to Earth. - From Wikipedia: 'Luna 16 was an unmanned space mission, part of the Soviet Luna program.

Luna 16 was the first robotic probe to land on the Moon and return a sample of lunar soil to Earth after five unsuccessful similar attempts. The sample was returned from Mare Fecunditatis. It represented the first lunar sample return mission by the Soviet Union and was the third lunar sample return mission overall, following the Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 missions.

The spacecraft consisted of two attached stages, an ascent stage mounted on top of a descent stage. The descent stage was a cylindrical body with four protruding landing legs, fuel tanks, a landing radar, and a dual descent engine complex.

A main descent engine was used to slow the craft until it reached a cutoff point which was determined by the on-board computer based on altitude and velocity. After cutoff a bank of lower thrust jets was used for the final landing. The descent stage also acted as a launch pad for the ascent stage.

The ascent stage was a smaller cylinder with a rounded top. It carried a cylindrical hermetically sealed soil sample container inside a re-entry capsule.

The spacecraft descent stage was equipped with a television camera, radiation and temperature monitors, telecommunications equipment, and an extendable arm with a drilling rig for the collection of a lunar soil sample'.


* 'In 1978, Situation comedy 'Taxi' premieres on ABC television. . - From Wikipedia: 'Taxi is an American sitcom that originally aired from 1978 to 1982 on ABC and from 1982 to 1983 on NBC. The series—which won 18 Emmy Awards, including three for Outstanding Comedy Series—focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxi drivers and their abusive dispatcher. Taxi was produced by the John Charles Walters Company, in association with Paramount Network Television, and was created by James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels, David Davis, and Ed Weinberger.

The show focuses on the employees of the fictional Sunshine Cab Company, and its principal setting is the company's fleet garage in Manhattan. Among the drivers, only Alex Rieger, who is disillusioned with life, considers cab driving his profession. The others view it as a temporary job. Elaine Nardo is a single mother working as a receptionist at an art gallery. Tony Banta is a boxer with a losing record. Bobby Wheeler is a struggling actor. John Burns (written out of the show after the first season) is working his way through college. All take pity on Reverend Jim Ignatowski, an aging hippie minister, who is burnt out from drugs, so they help him become a cabbie. The characters also included Latka Gravas, their innocent, wide-eyed mechanic from an unnamed foreign country, and Louie De Palma, the despotic dispatcher.

A number of episodes involve a character having an opportunity to realize his or her dream to move up in the world, only to see it yanked away. Otherwise, the cabbies deal on a daily basis with their unsatisfying lives and with Louie DePalma's abusive behavior and contempt (despite being a former cab driver himself). Louie's assistant, Jeff Bennett, is rarely heard from at first, but his role increases in later seasons.

Despite the zany humor of the show, Taxi often tackled such dramatic issues as racism, drug addiction, single parenthood, blindness, obesity, animal abuse, bisexuality, teenage runaways, divorce, nuclear war, sexual harassment, premenstrual mood disorders, gambling addiction, and the loss of a loved one'.


* 'In 2011, The 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York City opens to the public. - From Wikipedia: 'The National September 11 Memorial and Museum (known separately as the 9/11 Memorial and 9/11 Memorial Museum) are the principal memorial and museum, respectively. They commemorate the September 11, 2001 attacks, which killed 2,977 victims, and the World Trade Center bombing of 1993, which killed six. The memorial is located at the World Trade Center site, the former location of the Twin Towers, which were destroyed during the September 11 attacks. It is operated by a non-profit corporation whose mission is to raise funds for, program, own, and operate the memorial and museum at the World Trade Center site.

A memorial was planned in the immediate aftermath of the attacks and destruction of the World Trade Center for the victims including those involved in rescue operations. The winner of the World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition was Israeli architect Michael Arad of Handel Architects, a New York- and San Francisco-based firm. Arad worked with landscape-architecture firm Peter Walker and Partners on the design, a forest of trees with two square pools in the center where the Twin Towers stood. In August 2006, the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey began heavy construction on the memorial and museum. The design is consistent with the original Daniel Libeskind master plan, which called for the memorial to be 30 feet (9.1 m) below street level—originally 70 feet (21 m)—in a plaza, and was the only finalist to disregard Libeskind's requirement that the buildings overhang the footprints of the Twin Towers. The World Trade Center Memorial Foundation was renamed the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in 2007.

On September 11, 2011, a dedication ceremony commemorating the tenth anniversary of the attacks was held at the memorial. It opened to the public the following day the museum was dedicated on May 15, 2014 and opened on May 21. Three months after its opening, the memorial had been visited by over a million people. In 2012 the 9/11 Tribute Center collaborated with the 9/11 Memorial to offer private tours, which are hosted by family members of victims, first responders, and survivors'.

 III.
Top Song & Movie 50 years ago today (last updated Sep 10 2016 next Sep 17 2016

No. 1 song

  • Yellow Submarine - The Beatles
    - On YouTube: More
    - At Wikipedia: More
    'Sunshine Superman' has been displaced by 'Yellow Submarine', which will hold the no. 1 spot until Sep 17 1966, when 'You Can't Hurry Love - The Supremes', takes over.- From Wikipedia: '"Yellow Submarine" is a 1966 song by the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney (credited to Lennon–McCartney), with lead vocals by Ringo Starr. It was included on the Revolver (1966) album and issued as a single, coupled with "Eleanor Rigby". The single went to number one on every major British chart, remained at number one for four weeks, and charted for 13 weeks. It won an Ivor Novello Award "for the highest certified sales of any single issued in the UK in 1966". In the US, the song peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and became the most successful Beatles song to feature Starr as lead vocalist.

    It became the title song of the animated United Artists film, also called Yellow Submarine (1968), and the soundtrack album to the film, released as part of the Beatles' music catalogue. Although intended as a nonsense song for children, "Yellow Submarine" received various social and political interpretations at the time. "'.

Top movie

  • Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (returns)
    - At Wikipedia:  More
    - On IMDb: More
    - On YouTube (trailer): More
    Having displaced 'Fantastic Voyage', it will be there until the weekend box office of Oct 2 1966 when, 'The Bible: In the Beginning', takes over.- From Wikipedia: 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a 1966 American black comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols. The screenplay by Ernest Lehman is an adaptation of the play of the same title by Edward Albee. The film stars Elizabeth Taylor as Martha and Richard Burton as George, with George Segal as Nick and Sandy Dennis as Honey.

    The film was nominated for thirteen Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Mike Nichols, and is one of only two films to be nominated in every eligible category at the Academy Awards (the other being Cimarron). All of the film's four main actors were nominated in their respective acting categories.

    The film won five awards, including a second Academy Award for Best Actress for Elizabeth Taylor and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Sandy Dennis. However, the film lost to A Man for All Seasons for the Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay awards, and both Richard Burton and George Segal failed to win in their categories.

    In 2013, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"'.
  IV.
Today in the Past (reference sites): September 12
   V.
This month September 2016 (updated once a month - last updated - Sep 12 2016)

Monthly holiday / awareness days in September

Food
All American Breakfast Month
Go Wild During California Wild Rice Month
Histiocytosis Awareness Month
Hunger Action Month
National Honey Month
National Mushroom Month
National Organic Harvest Month
National Prime Beef Month
kNational Rice Month
National Shake Month
Whole Grains Month
Wild Rice Month

Health
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Month
Atrial Fibrillation Month
888222707Baby Safety Month
Backpack Safety America Month
Blood Cancer Awareness Month
Childhood Cancer Awareness Month
Cholesterol Education Month
Great American Low-Cholesterol, Low-fat Pizza Bake Month
Gynecology Cancer Awareness Month
ITP Awareness Month
World Leukemia and Lymphoma Awareness Month
Mold Awareness Month
National Campus Safety Awareness Month
National Chicken Month
National Child Awareness Month
National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month
National DNA, Geonomics and Stem Cell Education Month
National Head Lice Prevention Month
National Infant Mortality Awareness Month
National ITP Awareness Month
National Osteopathic Medicine Month
National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
National Sickle Cell Month
National Pediculosis Prevention Month
National Skin Care Awareness Month
Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
Pain Awareness Month
Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month
Self Improvement Month
September Is Healthy Aging Month
Sports and Home Eye Health and Safety Month
Superior Relationships Month
Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month
World Alzheimer's Month

Animal / Pets
AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Month
Happy Cat Month
International/National Guide Dogs Month
National Pet Memorial Month
National Save A Tiger Month
National Service Dog Month
Save The Koala Month
World Animal Remembrance Month

Other
Be Kind To Editors and Writers Month
Childrens' Good Manners Month
College Savings Month
Fall Hat Month
International People Skills Month
International Self-Awareness Month
International Speak Out Month
International Strategic Thinking Month
International Square Dancing Month
International Women's Friendship Month
Library Card Sign-up Month
National Coupon Month
National Home Furnishings Month
National Passport Awareness Month
National Sewing Month
National Translators Month
National Piano Month
National Wilderness Month
Shameless Promotion Month
Update Your Resume Month
National Hispanic Heritage 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

  VI.
TV fifty years ago 1966 (updated yearly - last updated Jan. 1 2016)

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

 VII.
Best selling books fifty years ago (updated yearly - last updated Jan. 1 2016)

Best selling books of 1966 More

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

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

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

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


US Government Holidays

  • 2016 Postal Holidays More
  • 2016 Official Federal Holidays More

Holidays Worldwide

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