Text size Background

Today is October 26 2016

About     Other days


   I.
Today's Holidays and Historical Events (updated daily)
Today's Food Holiday
  • National Mincemeat Day: More
    - From Wikipedia (Mincemeat): 'Mincemeat is a mixture of chopped dried fruit, distilled spirits and spices, and sometimes beef suet, beef, or venison. Originally, mincemeat always contained meat. Many modern recipes contain beef suet, though vegetable shortening is sometimes used in its place. Variants of mincemeat are found in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, northern Europe, Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. In other contexts mincemeat refers to minced or ground meat.

    English recipes from the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries describe a mixture of meat and fruit used as a pie filling. These early recipes included vinegars and wines, but by the 18th century, distilled spirits, frequently brandy, were being used instead. The use of spices like clove, nutmeg, mace and cinnamon was common in late medieval and renaissance meat dishes. The increase of sweetness from added sugars, and those produced from fermentation, made mincemeat less a savoury dinner course and helped to direct its use toward desserts'.
  • National Pumpkin Day: More
    - From Wikipedia (Pumpkin): 'A pumpkin is a cultivar of a squash plant, most commonly of Cucurbita pepo, that is round, with smooth, slightly ribbed skin, and deep yellow to orange coloration. The thick shell contains the seeds and pulp. Some exceptionally large cultivars of squash with similar appearance have also been derived from Cucurbita maxima. Specific cultivars of winter squash derived from other species, including C. argyrosperma, and C. moschata, are also sometimes called "pumpkin". In New Zealand and Australian English, the term pumpkin generally refers to the broader category called winter squash elsewhere.

    Native to North America, pumpkins are widely grown for commercial use and are used both in food and recreation. Pumpkin pie, for instance, is a traditional part of Thanksgiving meals in Canada and the United States, although commercially canned pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie fillings are usually made from different kinds of winter squash than the pumpkins frequently carved as jack-o'-lanterns for decoration around Halloween.

    Pumpkins, like other squash, are thought to have originated in North America. The oldest evidence, pumpkin-related seeds dating between 7000 and 5500 BC, was found in Mexico.

    Since some squash share the same botanical classifications as pumpkins, the names are frequently used interchangeably. One often-used botanical classification relies on the characteristics of the stems: pumpkin stems are more rigid, prickly, and angular (with an approximate five-degree angle) than squash stems, which are generally softer, more rounded, and more flared where joined to the fruit. Male (top) and female (bottom) pumpkin flowers

    Traditional C. pepo pumpkins generally weigh between 6 and 18 pounds (2.7 and 8.2 kg), though the largest cultivars (of the species C. maxima) regularly reach weights of over 75 pounds (34 kg).

    The color of pumpkins derives from orange carotenoid pigments, including beta-cryptoxanthin, alpha and beta carotene, all of which are provitamin A compounds converted to vitamin A in the body'.
Other celebrations/observances today:
  • (National) Day of the Deployed: More
    Honors the deployed US servicemen and servicewomen and their families. It orginaled as a holiday in North Dakita in 2006.
Awareness / Observance Days on: October 26
  • Animal and Pet
    • Mule Day: More
      A mule is the offspring of a male donkey (jack) and a female horse (mare). Honors the Spanish Jacks sent to the US which were a gift from King Charles III of Spain delivered October 26, 1785 in Boston, at the request of George Washington.
      - From Wikipedia (Mule Day): 'Mule Day, an annual celebration of all things related to mules, is held in Columbia, Tennessee, the self-proclaimed "Mule Capital" of the world. Begun in 1840 as "Breeder's Day", a meeting for mule breeders, it now attracts over 200,000 people and takes place over four days. In addition to mules, traditional Appalachian food, music, dancing, and crafts are featured.

      "Mule Day" has been a popular Columbia tradition for nearly 170 years, since the 1840s. It began as "Breeder's Day", a single day livestock show and mule market event held on the first Monday in May. Over time, "Mule Day" evolved from a single day event into a multi-day festival, attracting thousands of attendees, lasting almost a week. According to its official website, the heavy involvement of Maury County in the mule industry caused the event to grow for a time into "one of the largest livestock markets in the world."

      In 1933, Thomas Marion Brown had the idea for a Mule Day Parade and Celebration as a way to bring in money to the community. He approached W.D. Hastings of the Daily Herald and J.J. Johnson to bring this event to life. They went to the Chamber of Commerce and in 1934 the First Mule Day Parade was a reality. Tom designed the Mule Day Crown which is on display in the Maury County Public Library. He was the first Grand Marshal and led the parade for about 7 years.

      Mule Day suddenly gained wider notice in 2006 when the Mule Day Parade listing in the National Asset Database, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) list of potential terrorism targets, was featured in a New York Times article'.
    • Howl At The Moon Day: More
      Wolf conservation effort by 'Wolf Conservation' and other organizations.
  • Other
    • Universal Children's Day in Australia: More
      Fourth Wednesday in October. A focus on children's rights.
      - From Wikipedia (Children's Day) A Australis: 'Children's Week is an annual event celebrated in Australia during the fourth week in October, from the Saturday before Universal Children's Day to the following Sunday. Until 1977 Child Care Week was held in various Australian states and territories focusing on children in care or those in institutions. It was held at different times. In 1985 it was decided to coordinate a national week to include all children'.
Events in the past on: October 26
  • In 1825, The Erie Canal opens.
    From Wikipedia: 'The Erie Canal is a canal in New York that is part of the east-west, cross-state route of the New York State Canal System (After a later conversion, became known as the New York State Barge Canal). Originally, it ran about 363 miles (584 km) from Albany, on the Hudson River, to Buffalo, at Lake Erie. It was built to create a navigable water route from New York City and the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes.

    First proposed in the 1780s, re-proposed in 1807, a survey was authorized, funded, and executed in 1808. Proponents of the project gradually wore down opponents; its construction began in 1817. The canal has 36 locks and an elevation differential of about 565 feet (172 m). It opened on October 26, 1825.

    In a time when bulk goods were limited to pack animals (an eighth-ton maximum), and there were no railways, water was the most cost-effective way to ship bulk goods.

    The canal, denigrated by its political opponents as Clinton's Folly or Clinton's Big Ditch, was the first transportation system between the eastern seaboard (New York City) and the western interior (Great Lakes) of the United States that did not require portage.

    It was faster than carts pulled by draft animals, and cut transport costs by about 95%. The canal fostered a population surge in western New York and opened regions farther west to settlement. It was enlarged between 1834 and 1862. The canal's peak year was 1855, when 33,000 commercial shipments took place. In 1918, the western part of the canal was enlarged to become part of the New York State Barge Canal, which ran parallel to the eastern half and extended to the Hudson River.

    In 2000, the United States Congress designated the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor to recognize the national significance of the canal system as the most successful and influential human-built waterway and one of the most important works of civil engineering and construction in North America. Mainly used by recreational watercraft since the retirement of the last large commercial ship (rather than boat), the Day Peckinpaugh in 1994, the canal saw a recovery in commercial traffic in 2008'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1858, Hamilton Smith patents the rotary washing machine.
    From Wikipedia: 'Clothes washer technology developed as a way to reduce the manual labor spent, providing an open basin or sealed container with paddles or fingers to automatically agitate the clothing. The earliest machines were hand-operated and constructed from wood, while later machines made of metal permitted a fire to burn below the washtub, keeping the water warm throughout the day's washing.

    The earliest special-purpose mechanical washing device was the washboard, invented in 1797 by Nathaniel Briggs of New Hampshire.

    By the mid-1850s steam-driven commercial laundry machinery were on sale in the UK and US. Technological advances in machinery for commercial and institutional washers proceeded faster than domestic washer design for several decades, especially in the UK. In the United States there was more emphasis on developing machines for washing at home, though machines for commercial laundry services were widely used in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The rotary washing machine was patented by Hamilton Smith in 1858. As electricity was not commonly available until at least 1930, some early washing machines were operated by a low-speed, single-cylinder hit-and-miss gasoline engine'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1861, The Pony Express, begun on April 3, 1861, ceases operations.
    From Wikipedia: 'The Pony Express was a mail service delivering messages, newspapers, mail, and small packages from St. Joseph, Missouri, across the Great Plains, over the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada to Sacramento, California, by horseback, using a series of relay stations.

    Officially operating as the Leavenworth and Pike's Peak Express Company of 1859, in 1860 it became the Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company; this firm was founded by William H. Russell, Alexander Majors, and William B. Waddell, all of whom were notable in the freighting business.

    During its 19 months of operation, it reduced the time for messages to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to about 10 days. From April 3, 1860 to October 1861, it became the West's most direct means of east–west communication before the telegraph was established and was vital for tying the new state of California with the rest of the United States'.
    - At FamousDaily: More
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1881, The (30 second) Gunfight at the O.K. Corral takes place at Tombstone, Arizona.
    From Wikipedia: 'The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a 30-second shootout between lawmen and members of a loosely organized group of outlaws called the Cowboys that took place at about 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 26, 1881, in Tombstone, Arizona Territory. It is generally regarded as the most famous shootout in the history of the American Wild West. The gunfight was the result of a long-simmering feud, with Cowboys Billy Claiborne, Ike and Billy Clanton, and Tom and Frank McLaury on one side and town Marshal Virgil Earp, Special Policeman Morgan Earp, Special Policeman Wyatt Earp and temporary policeman Doc Holliday on the other side. All three Earp brothers had been the target of repeated death threats made by the Cowboys, who were upset by the Earps' interference in their illegal activities. Billy Clanton and both McLaury brothers were killed. Ike Clanton claimed he was unarmed and ran from the fight, along with Billy Claiborne. Virgil, Morgan, and Doc Holliday were wounded, but Wyatt Earp was unharmed. The shootout has come to represent a period of the American Old West when the frontier was virtually an open range for outlaws, largely unopposed by law enforcement officers, who were spread thin over vast territories.

    The gunfight was not well-known to the American public until 1931, when Stuart Lake published an initially well-received biography, Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal, two years after Earp's death. The book was the basis for the 1946 film My Darling Clementine, directed by John Ford, and the 1957 film Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, after which the shootout became known by that name. Since then, the conflict has been portrayed with varying degrees of accuracy in numerous Western films and books, and has become an archetype for much of the popular imagery associated with the Old West.

    Despite its name, the historic gunfight did not take place within or next to the O.K. Corral, which fronted on Allen Street and had a rear entrance lined with stalls on Fremont Street. The shootout actually took place in a narrow lot on the side of C. S. Fly's Photographic Studio on Fremont Street, six doors west of the O.K. Corral's rear entrance. Some members of the two opposing parties were initially only about 6 feet (1.8 m) apart. About 30 shots were fired in 30 seconds. Ike Clanton, whose brother Billy had been killed, filed murder charges against the Earps and Doc Holliday. The lawmen were eventually exonerated by a local justice of the peace after a 30-day preliminary hearing and then by a local grand jury.

    The gunfight was not the end of the conflict. On December 28, 1881, Virgil Earp was ambushed and maimed in a murder attempt by the Cowboys. On March 18, 1882, Cowboys fired from a dark alley through the glass door of a saloon, killing Morgan Earp. The suspects in both incidents furnished alibis supplied by other Cowboys and were not indicted. Wyatt Earp, newly appointed as Deputy U.S. Marshal in Cochise County, then took matters into his own hands in a personal vendetta. He was pursued by county sheriff Johnny Behan, who had received a warrant from Tucson for Wyatt's shooting of Frank Stilwell'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1940, The P-51 Mustang makes its maiden flight. It provided long distance fighter coverage for the US daylight bombing missions of WWII.
    From Wikipedia: 'The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by North American Aviation (NAA) in response to a requirement of the British Purchasing Commission. The Purchasing Commission approached North American Aviation to build under license Curtiss P-40 fighters. Rather than build an old design from another company, North American Aviation designed a new plane. The prototype NA-73X airframe was rolled out on 9 September 1940, 102 days after the contract was signed, and first flew on 26 October.

    The Mustang was originally designed to use the Allison V-1710 engine, which, in its earlier variants, had limited high-altitude performance. It was first flown operationally by the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a tactical-reconnaissance aircraft and fighter-bomber (Mustang Mk I). The addition of the Rolls-Royce Merlin to the P-51B/C model transformed the Mustang's performance at altitudes above 15,000 ft, allowing the aircraft to compete with Luftwaffe's fighters. The definitive version, the P-51D, was powered by the Packard V-1650-7, a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Merlin 66 two-stage two-speed supercharged engine, and was armed with six .50 caliber (12.7 mm) M2/AN Browning machine guns.

    From late 1943, P-51Bs (supplemented by P-51Ds from mid-1944) were used by the USAAF's Eighth Air Force to escort bombers in raids over Germany, while the RAF's 2 TAF and the USAAF's Ninth Air Force used the Merlin-powered Mustangs as fighter-bombers, roles in which the Mustang helped ensure Allied air superiority in 1944. The P-51 was also used by Allied air forces in the North African, Mediterranean, Italian and Pacific theaters. During World War II, Mustang pilots claimed to have destroyed 4,950 enemy aircraft.

    At the start of the Korean War, the Mustang was the main fighter of the United Nations until jet fighters, including the F-86, took over this role; the Mustang then became a specialized fighter-bomber. Despite the advent of jet fighters, the Mustang remained in service with some air forces until the early 1980s. After the Korean War, Mustangs became popular civilian warbird and air racing aircraft'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1954, Walt Disney's first television program, 'Disneyland', premieres.
    From Wikipedia: Walt Disney Productions (later The Walt Disney Company) has produced an anthology television series under several different titles since 1954:

    'Although Walt Disney was the first major film producer to venture into television, there were two established independent film producers that successfully ventured into television production before Disney, Hal Roach and Jerry Fairbanks. Disney wanted to produce a television program in order to finance the development of the Disneyland amusement park. After being turned down by both CBS and NBC, Disney eventually signed a deal with ABC (which had merged with United Paramount Theaters in 1953) on March 29, 1954. The show contained teasers for Walt's park, as well as episodes representing life in one of the park's main sections: Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland and Frontierland, with the opening titles used from its inception until the show's move to NBC in 1961, showing the entrance to Disneyland itself, as well as the four aforementioned lands, which were then identified as the main feature of that evening's program.

    Consequently, "Davy Crockett" and other pioneers of the Old West, and American history in general appeared in "Frontier Land". Similarly, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea might be the focus of an evening spent in "Adventure Land", although a documentary on the film could also be possibly presented as a topic for such episodes, including clips from the actual film. Topics for "Fantasy Land" would include either actual cartoons, and animated films, as well as documentaries on "The Making of ..." (such as behind-the-scenes presentation of Peggy Lee singing the duet of the wicked Siamese cats in Lady and the Tramp, or the barbershop quartet of lost dogs in the municipal Dog Pound); excerpts from a True-Life Adventure documentary may also be included (for example, one on the life and works of beavers and their dam-building) or those using stroboscopic stop-action photography (such as investigating what really happened when a rain-drop fell in a puddle, as part of a "Fantasy Land" episode), explaining the techniques of cartoon animation. The multi-plane camera used to create the three-dimensional effects of Bambi was also as a topic for a "Fantasy Land"-set telecast. In one episode, four different artists were given the task of drawing the same tree, with each artist using his own preferred ways of drawing and imagining a tree; this led to cartoon examples of differently animated trees, as in some of the early Silly Symphonies shorts, and later full-length animated films. "Tomorrow Land" was an opportunity for the Disney studio staff to present cutting-edge science and technology, and to predict possible futures, such as futuristic automobiles, and highways. This format remained basically unchanged through the 1980s, though new material was scarce in later years. Other episodes were segments from Disney films such as (Seal Island and Alice in Wonderland), or cartoons of Donald Duck and other Disney standbys.

    The program spawned the Davy Crockett craze of 1955 with the airing of a three-episode series (not shown over the course of consecutive weeks) about the historical American frontiersman, starring Fess Parker in the title role. Millions of dollars of merchandise relating to the title character were sold, and the theme song, "The Ballad of Davy Crockett", became a hit record that year. Three historically based hour-long programs aired during late 1954/early 1955, and were followed up by two dramatized installments the following year. The TV episodes were later edited into two theatrical films. On July 17, 1955, the opening of Disneyland was covered on a live television special, Dateline: Disneyland, which is not technically considered to be part of the series. It was hosted by Walt along with Bob Cummings, Art Linkletter and Ronald Reagan, and featured various other guests'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1970, The comic strip, Doonesbury, by Gary Trudeau, premiered in 28 newspapers across the U.S.
    From Wikipedia: 'Doonesbury is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States to the title character, Michael Doonesbury, who has progressed from a college student to a youthful senior citizen over the decades.

    Created in "the throes of '60s and '70s counterculture," and frequently political in nature, Doonesbury features characters representing a range of affiliations, but the cartoon is noted for a liberal viewpoint. The name "Doonesbury" is a combination of the word doone (prep school slang for someone who is clueless, inattentive, or careless) and the surname of Charles Pillsbury, Trudeau's roommate at Yale University.

    Doonesbury is written and pencilled by Garry Trudeau, then inked and lettered by an assistant: Don Carlton then Todd Pound. Sunday strips are colored in by George Corsillo. A daily strip through most of its existence, since February 2014, Doonesbury has run repeat strips Monday through Saturday, and new strips on Sunday'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 1977, Ali Maow Maalin, develops the last case of natural smallpox, in Merca district, Somalia. The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider this date the anniversary of the eradication of smallpox, the most spectacular success of vaccination.
    From Wikipedia: Smallpox vaccine, the first successful vaccine to be developed, was introduced by Edward Jenner in 1796. He followed up his observation that milkmaids who had previously caught cowpox did not later catch smallpox by showing that inoculated cowpox protected against inoculated smallpox. The word "vaccine" is derived from Variolae vaccinae (i.e. smallpox of the cow), the term devised by Jenner to denote cowpox and used in the long title of his An enquiry into the causes and effects of Variolae vaccinae, known by the name of cow pox. Vaccination, the term which soon replaced cowpox inoculation and vaccine inoculation, was first used in print by Jenner's friend, Richard Dunning in 1800. Initially, the terms vaccine/vaccination referred only to smallpox, but in 1881 Louis Pasteur proposed that to honour Jenner the terms be widened to cover the new protective inoculations being introduced.

    'Smallpox was eradicated by a massive international search for outbreaks, backed up with a vaccination program, starting in 1967. It was organised and co-ordinated by a World Health Organization (WHO) unit, set up and headed by Donald Henderson. The last case in the Americas occurred in 1971 (Brazil), south-east Asia (Indonesia) in 1972, and on the Indian subcontinent in 1975 (Bangladesh). After two years of intensive searches, what proved to be the last endemic case anywhere in the world occurred in Somalia, in October 1977. A Global Commission for the Certification of Smallpox Eradication chaired by Frank Fenner examined the evidence from, and visited where necessary, all countries where smallpox had been endemic. In December 1979 they concluded that smallpox had been eradicated; a conclusion endorsed by the WHO General Assembly in May 1980. However, even as the disease was being eradicated there still remained stocks of smallpox virus in many laboratories. Accelerated by two cases of smallpox in 1978, one fatal (Janet Parker), caused by an accidental and unexplained containment breach at a laboratory at the University of Birmingham Medical School, the WHO ensured that known stocks of smallpox virus were either destroyed or moved to safer laboratories. By 1979 only four laboratories were known to have smallpox virus. All English stocks held at St Mary's Hospital, London were transferred to more secure facilities at Porton Down and then to the US at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia in 1982, and all South African stocks were destroyed in 1983. By 1984 the only known stocks were kept at the CDC in the US and the State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology (VECTOR) in Koltsovo, Russia. These states report that their repositories are for possible antibioweaponry research and insurance if some obscure reservoir of natural smallpox is discovered in the future'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 2001, The United States passes the USA PATRIOT Act into law. In 2011, three provisions were extended.
    From Wikipedia: 'The PATRIOT Act is an Act of Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001. With its ten-letter abbreviation (USA PATRIOT) expanded, the full title is "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001".

    On May 26, 2011, President Barack Obama signed the PATRIOT Sunsets Extension Act of 2011, a four-year extension of three key provisions in the USA PATRIOT Act: roving wiretaps, searches of business records, and conducting surveillance of "lone wolves"—individuals suspected of terrorist-related activities not linked to terrorist groups.

    Following a lack of Congressional approval, parts of the Patriot Act expired on June 1, 2015. With the passage of the USA Freedom Act on June 2, 2015, the expired parts were restored and renewed through 2019. However, Section 215 of the law was amended to stop the National Security Agency from continuing its mass phone data collection program. Instead, phone companies will retain the data and the NSA can obtain information about targeted individuals with permission from a federal court.

    From broad concern felt among Americans from both the September 11 attacks and the 2001 anthrax attacks, Congress rushed to pass legislation to strengthen security controls. On October 23, 2001, Republican Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner introduced H.R. 3162 incorporating provisions from a previously sponsored House bill and a Senate bill also introduced earlier in the month. The next day, the Act passed the House 357 to 66, with Democrats comprising the overwhelming portion of dissent. The three Republicans voting 'no' were Robert Ney of Ohio, Butch Otter of Idaho and Ron Paul of Texas. On October 25, the Act passed the Senate by 98 to 1.

    Opponents of the law have criticized its authorization of indefinite detentions of immigrants; the permission given law enforcement officers to search a home or business without the owner's or the occupant's consent or knowledge; the expanded use of National Security Letters, which allows the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to search telephone, e-mail, and financial records without a court order; and the expanded access of law enforcement agencies to business records, including library and financial records. Since its passage, several legal challenges have been brought against the act, and federal courts have ruled that a number of provisions are unconstitutional.

    Many provisions of the act were to sunset beginning December 31, 2005, approximately four years after its passage. In the months preceding the sunset date, supporters of the act pushed to make its sun-setting provisions permanent, while critics sought to revise various sections to enhance civil liberty protections. In July 2005, the U.S. Senate passed a reauthorization bill with substantial changes to several sections of the act, while the House reauthorization bill kept most of the act's original language. The two bills were then reconciled in a conference committee that was criticized by Senators from both the Republican and Democratic parties for ignoring civil liberty concerns.

    The bill, which removed most of the changes from the Senate version, passed Congress on March 2, 2006, and was signed into law by President George W. Bush on March 9 and 10, 2006'.
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  • In 2010, Sony takes the Walkman cassette player off the market.
    From Wikipedia: 'Walkman is a Sony brand tradename originally used for portable audio cassette/tape players in the late 1970s. In the 2010s, it was used to market Sony's portable audio and video players as well as a line of former Sony Ericsson mobile phones. The original Walkman actually introduced a change in music listening habits by allowing people to carry recorded music with them and listen to music through lightweight headphones. Owners of the Walkman were able to take back their "lost" time, commuting for example, and turn it into a pleasurable experience, or add a soundtrack to their urban surroundings. It was the privatization and personalization offered by the Walkman that led to its success.

    The prototype was built in 1978 by audio-division engineer Nobutoshi Kihara for Sony co-founder Masaru Ibuka. Ibuka wanted to be able to listen to operas during his frequent trans-Pacific plane trips, and presented the idea to Kihara. The original idea for a portable stereo is credited to Brazilian-German inventor Andreas Pavel. The first Walkman was marketed in 1979 in Japan, using the name Walkman. From 1980, it was known as the Soundabout in many other countries including the US, Freestyle in Sweden, and the Stowaway in the UK. Advertising, despite all the foreign languages, still attracted thousands of buyers in the US specifically. Sony President and co-founder Akio Morita hated the name "Walkman" and asked that it be changed, but relented after being told by junior executives that a promotion campaign had already begun using the brand name and that it would be too expensive to change.

    The names "Walkman", "Pressman", "Watchman", "Scoopman", "Discman", and "Talkman" are trademarks of Sony, and have been applied to a wide range of portable entertainment devices manufactured by the company. The name "Walkman" was based on its precursor, the Pressman tape recorder. An initial prototype of the Walkman was in fact made by replacing the monophonic recording circuit, head and speaker from the Pressman with a stereo playback-only head and amplifier. Sony continues to use the "Walkman" brand name for most of their portable audio devices, after the "Discman" name for CD players was dropped in the late 1990s'.
    - At FamousDaily: More
    - At Wikipedia: More
    - On YouTube: More
  II.
Henry's Heads Up! - previous days social media post (updated daily)

<> Tomorrow's food holidays(s):


* 'National Mincemeat Day'. - From Wikipedia (Mincemeat): 'Mincemeat is a mixture of chopped dried fruit, distilled spirits and spices, and sometimes beef suet, beef, or venison. Originally, mincemeat always contained meat. Many modern recipes contain beef suet, though vegetable shortening is sometimes used in its place. Variants of mincemeat are found in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, northern Europe, Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. In other contexts mincemeat refers to minced or ground meat.

English recipes from the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries describe a mixture of meat and fruit used as a pie filling. These early recipes included vinegars and wines, but by the 18th century, distilled spirits, frequently brandy, were being used instead. The use of spices like clove, nutmeg, mace and cinnamon was common in late medieval and renaissance meat dishes. The increase of sweetness from added sugars, and those produced from fermentation, made mincemeat less a savoury dinner course and helped to direct its use toward desserts'.
[The Hankster says] Good, but a very small piece goes a long way.


* 'National Pumpkin Day'. - From Wikipedia (Pumpkin): 'A pumpkin is a cultivar of a squash plant, most commonly of Cucurbita pepo, that is round, with smooth, slightly ribbed skin, and deep yellow to orange coloration. The thick shell contains the seeds and pulp. Some exceptionally large cultivars of squash with similar appearance have also been derived from Cucurbita maxima. Specific cultivars of winter squash derived from other species, including C. argyrosperma, and C. moschata, are also sometimes called pumpkin In New Zealand and Australian English, the term pumpkin generally refers to the broader category called winter squash elsewhere.

Native to North America, pumpkins are widely grown for commercial use and are used both in food and recreation. Pumpkin pie, for instance, is a traditional part of Thanksgiving meals in Canada and the United States, although commercially canned pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie fillings are usually made from different kinds of winter squash than the pumpkins frequently carved as jack-o'-lanterns for decoration around Halloween.

Pumpkins, like other squash, are thought to have originated in North America. The oldest evidence, pumpkin-related seeds dating between 7000 and 5500 BC, was found in Mexico.

Since some squash share the same botanical classifications as pumpkins, the names are frequently used interchangeably. One often-used botanical classification relies on the characteristics of the stems: pumpkin stems are more rigid, prickly, and angular (with an approximate five-degree angle) than squash stems, which are generally softer, more rounded, and more flared where joined to the fruit. Male (top) and female (bottom) pumpkin flowers

Traditional C. pepo pumpkins generally weigh between 6 and 18 pounds (2.7 and 8.2 kg), though the largest cultivars (of the species C. maxima) regularly reach weights of over 75 pounds (34 kg).

The color of pumpkins derives from orange carotenoid pigments, including beta-cryptoxanthin, alpha and beta carotene, all of which are provitamin A compounds converted to vitamin A in the body'.
[The Hankster says] You can carve 'um. But, I'll eat 'um in a pie.


<> Other holidays / celebrations


* '(National) Day of the Deployed'. Honors the deployed US servicemen and servicewomen and their families. It orginaled as a holiday in North Dakita in 2006.
[The Hankster says] Thank you for the dedication and patriotism.


<> Awareness / Observances:

o Animal and Pet:
* 'Mule Day'. A mule is the offspring of a male donkey (jack) and a female horse (mare). Honors the Spanish Jacks sent to the US which were a gift from King Charles III of Spain delivered October 26, 1785 in Boston, at the request of George Washington. . - From Wikipedia (Mule Day): 'Mule Day, an annual celebration of all things related to mules, is held in Columbia, Tennessee, the self-proclaimed Mule Capital of the world. Begun in 1840 as Breeder's Day, a meeting for mule breeders, it now attracts over 200,000 people and takes place over four days. In addition to mules, traditional Appalachian food, music, dancing, and crafts are featured.

Mule Day has been a popular Columbia tradition for nearly 170 years, since the 1840s. It began as Breeder's Day, a single day livestock show and mule market event held on the first Monday in May. Over time, Mule Day evolved from a single day event into a multi-day festival, attracting thousands of attendees, lasting almost a week. According to its official website, the heavy involvement of Maury County in the mule industry caused the event to grow for a time into one of the largest livestock markets in the world.

In 1933, Thomas Marion Brown had the idea for a Mule Day Parade and Celebration as a way to bring in money to the community. He approached W.D. Hastings of the Daily Herald and J.J. Johnson to bring this event to life. They went to the Chamber of Commerce and in 1934 the First Mule Day Parade was a reality. Tom designed the Mule Day Crown which is on display in the Maury County Public Library. He was the first Grand Marshal and led the parade for about 7 years.

Mule Day suddenly gained wider notice in 2006 when the Mule Day Parade listing in the National Asset Database, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) list of potential terrorism targets, was featured in a New York Times article'.


* 'Howl At The Moon Day'. Wolf conservation effort by 'Wolf Conservation' and other organizations.

o Other:
* 'Universal Children's Day in Australia'. Fourth Wednesday in October. A focus on children's rights. - From Wikipedia (Children's Day) A Australis: 'Children's Week is an annual event celebrated in Australia during the fourth week in October, from the Saturday before Universal Children's Day to the following Sunday. Until 1977 Child Care Week was held in various Australian states and territories focusing on children in care or those in institutions. It was held at different times. In 1985 it was decided to coordinate a national week to include all children'.


<> Historical events on October 26


* 'In 1825, The Erie Canal opens. - From Wikipedia: 'The Erie Canal is a canal in New York that is part of the east-west, cross-state route of the New York State Canal System (After a later conversion, became known as the New York State Barge Canal). Originally, it ran about 363 miles (584 km) from Albany, on the Hudson River, to Buffalo, at Lake Erie. It was built to create a navigable water route from New York City and the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes.

First proposed in the 1780s, re-proposed in 1807, a survey was authorized, funded, and executed in 1808. Proponents of the project gradually wore down opponents its construction began in 1817. The canal has 36 locks and an elevation differential of about 565 feet (172 m). It opened on October 26, 1825.

In a time when bulk goods were limited to pack animals (an eighth-ton maximum), and there were no railways, water was the most cost-effective way to ship bulk goods.

The canal, denigrated by its political opponents as Clinton's Folly or Clinton's Big Ditch, was the first transportation system between the eastern seaboard (New York City) and the western interior (Great Lakes) of the United States that did not require portage.

It was faster than carts pulled by draft animals, and cut transport costs by about 95%. The canal fostered a population surge in western New York and opened regions farther west to settlement. It was enlarged between 1834 and 1862. The canal's peak year was 1855, when 33,000 commercial shipments took place. In 1918, the western part of the canal was enlarged to become part of the New York State Barge Canal, which ran parallel to the eastern half and extended to the Hudson River.

In 2000, the United States Congress designated the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor to recognize the national significance of the canal system as the most successful and influential human-built waterway and one of the most important works of civil engineering and construction in North America. Mainly used by recreational watercraft since the retirement of the last large commercial ship (rather than boat), the Day Peckinpaugh in 1994, the canal saw a recovery in commercial traffic in 2008'.


* 'In 1858, Hamilton Smith patents the rotary washing machine. - From Wikipedia: 'Clothes washer technology developed as a way to reduce the manual labor spent, providing an open basin or sealed container with paddles or fingers to automatically agitate the clothing. The earliest machines were hand-operated and constructed from wood, while later machines made of metal permitted a fire to burn below the washtub, keeping the water warm throughout the day's washing.

The earliest special-purpose mechanical washing device was the washboard, invented in 1797 by Nathaniel Briggs of New Hampshire.

By the mid-1850s steam-driven commercial laundry machinery were on sale in the UK and US. Technological advances in machinery for commercial and institutional washers proceeded faster than domestic washer design for several decades, especially in the UK. In the United States there was more emphasis on developing machines for washing at home, though machines for commercial laundry services were widely used in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The rotary washing machine was patented by Hamilton Smith in 1858. As electricity was not commonly available until at least 1930, some early washing machines were operated by a low-speed, single-cylinder hit-and-miss gasoline engine'.


* 'In 1861, The Pony Express, begun on April 3, 1861, ceases operations. - From Wikipedia: 'The Pony Express was a mail service delivering messages, newspapers, mail, and small packages from St. Joseph, Missouri, across the Great Plains, over the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada to Sacramento, California, by horseback, using a series of relay stations.

Officially operating as the Leavenworth and Pike's Peak Express Company of 1859, in 1860 it became the Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company this firm was founded by William H. Russell, Alexander Majors, and William B. Waddell, all of whom were notable in the freighting business.

During its 19 months of operation, it reduced the time for messages to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to about 10 days. From April 3, 1860 to October 1861, it became the West's most direct means of east–west communication before the telegraph was established and was vital for tying the new state of California with the rest of the United States'.


* 'In 1881, The (30 second) Gunfight at the O.K. Corral takes place at Tombstone, Arizona. - From Wikipedia: 'The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a 30-second shootout between lawmen and members of a loosely organized group of outlaws called the Cowboys that took place at about 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 26, 1881, in Tombstone, Arizona Territory. It is generally regarded as the most famous shootout in the history of the American Wild West. The gunfight was the result of a long-simmering feud, with Cowboys Billy Claiborne, Ike and Billy Clanton, and Tom and Frank McLaury on one side and town Marshal Virgil Earp, Special Policeman Morgan Earp, Special Policeman Wyatt Earp and temporary policeman Doc Holliday on the other side. All three Earp brothers had been the target of repeated death threats made by the Cowboys, who were upset by the Earps' interference in their illegal activities. Billy Clanton and both McLaury brothers were killed. Ike Clanton claimed he was unarmed and ran from the fight, along with Billy Claiborne. Virgil, Morgan, and Doc Holliday were wounded, but Wyatt Earp was unharmed. The shootout has come to represent a period of the American Old West when the frontier was virtually an open range for outlaws, largely unopposed by law enforcement officers, who were spread thin over vast territories.

The gunfight was not well-known to the American public until 1931, when Stuart Lake published an initially well-received biography, Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal, two years after Earp's death. The book was the basis for the 1946 film My Darling Clementine, directed by John Ford, and the 1957 film Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, after which the shootout became known by that name. Since then, the conflict has been portrayed with varying degrees of accuracy in numerous Western films and books, and has become an archetype for much of the popular imagery associated with the Old West.

Despite its name, the historic gunfight did not take place within or next to the O.K. Corral, which fronted on Allen Street and had a rear entrance lined with stalls on Fremont Street. The shootout actually took place in a narrow lot on the side of C. S. Fly's Photographic Studio on Fremont Street, six doors west of the O.K. Corral's rear entrance. Some members of the two opposing parties were initially only about 6 feet (1.8 m) apart. About 30 shots were fired in 30 seconds. Ike Clanton, whose brother Billy had been killed, filed murder charges against the Earps and Doc Holliday. The lawmen were eventually exonerated by a local justice of the peace after a 30-day preliminary hearing and then by a local grand jury.

The gunfight was not the end of the conflict. On December 28, 1881, Virgil Earp was ambushed and maimed in a murder attempt by the Cowboys. On March 18, 1882, Cowboys fired from a dark alley through the glass door of a saloon, killing Morgan Earp. The suspects in both incidents furnished alibis supplied by other Cowboys and were not indicted. Wyatt Earp, newly appointed as Deputy U.S. Marshal in Cochise County, then took matters into his own hands in a personal vendetta. He was pursued by county sheriff Johnny Behan, who had received a warrant from Tucson for Wyatt's shooting of Frank Stilwell'.


* 'In 1940, The P-51 Mustang makes its maiden flight. It provided long distance fighter coverage for the US daylight bombing missions of WWII. - From Wikipedia: 'The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by North American Aviation (NAA) in response to a requirement of the British Purchasing Commission. The Purchasing Commission approached North American Aviation to build under license Curtiss P-40 fighters. Rather than build an old design from another company, North American Aviation designed a new plane. The prototype NA-73X airframe was rolled out on 9 September 1940, 102 days after the contract was signed, and first flew on 26 October.

The Mustang was originally designed to use the Allison V-1710 engine, which, in its earlier variants, had limited high-altitude performance. It was first flown operationally by the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a tactical-reconnaissance aircraft and fighter-bomber (Mustang Mk I). The addition of the Rolls-Royce Merlin to the P-51B/C model transformed the Mustang's performance at altitudes above 15,000 ft, allowing the aircraft to compete with Luftwaffe's fighters. The definitive version, the P-51D, was powered by the Packard V-1650-7, a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Merlin 66 two-stage two-speed supercharged engine, and was armed with six .50 caliber (12.7 mm) M2/AN Browning machine guns.

From late 1943, P-51Bs (supplemented by P-51Ds from mid-1944) were used by the USAAF's Eighth Air Force to escort bombers in raids over Germany, while the RAF's 2 TAF and the USAAF's Ninth Air Force used the Merlin-powered Mustangs as fighter-bombers, roles in which the Mustang helped ensure Allied air superiority in 1944. The P-51 was also used by Allied air forces in the North African, Mediterranean, Italian and Pacific theaters. During World War II, Mustang pilots claimed to have destroyed 4,950 enemy aircraft.

At the start of the Korean War, the Mustang was the main fighter of the United Nations until jet fighters, including the F-86, took over this role the Mustang then became a specialized fighter-bomber. Despite the advent of jet fighters, the Mustang remained in service with some air forces until the early 1980s. After the Korean War, Mustangs became popular civilian warbird and air racing aircraft'.


* 'In 1954, Walt Disney's first television program, 'Disneyland', premieres. - From Wikipedia: Walt Disney Productions (later The Walt Disney Company) has produced an anthology television series under several different titles since 1954:

'Although Walt Disney was the first major film producer to venture into television, there were two established independent film producers that successfully ventured into television production before Disney, Hal Roach and Jerry Fairbanks. Disney wanted to produce a television program in order to finance the development of the Disneyland amusement park. After being turned down by both CBS and NBC, Disney eventually signed a deal with ABC (which had merged with United Paramount Theaters in 1953) on March 29, 1954. The show contained teasers for Walt's park, as well as episodes representing life in one of the park's main sections: Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland and Frontierland, with the opening titles used from its inception until the show's move to NBC in 1961, showing the entrance to Disneyland itself, as well as the four aforementioned lands, which were then identified as the main feature of that evening's program.

Consequently, Davy Crockett and other pioneers of the Old West, and American history in general appeared in Frontier Land Similarly, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea might be the focus of an evening spent in Adventure Land, although a documentary on the film could also be possibly presented as a topic for such episodes, including clips from the actual film. Topics for Fantasy Land would include either actual cartoons, and animated films, as well as documentaries on The Making of ... (such as behind-the-scenes presentation of Peggy Lee singing the duet of the wicked Siamese cats in Lady and the Tramp, or the barbershop quartet of lost dogs in the municipal Dog Pound) excerpts from a True-Life Adventure documentary may also be included (for example, one on the life and works of beavers and their dam-building) or those using stroboscopic stop-action photography (such as investigating what really happened when a rain-drop fell in a puddle, as part of a Fantasy Land episode), explaining the techniques of cartoon animation. The multi-plane camera used to create the three-dimensional effects of Bambi was also as a topic for a Fantasy Land-set telecast. In one episode, four different artists were given the task of drawing the same tree, with each artist using his own preferred ways of drawing and imagining a tree this led to cartoon examples of differently animated trees, as in some of the early Silly Symphonies shorts, and later full-length animated films. Tomorrow Land was an opportunity for the Disney studio staff to present cutting-edge science and technology, and to predict possible futures, such as futuristic automobiles, and highways. This format remained basically unchanged through the 1980s, though new material was scarce in later years. Other episodes were segments from Disney films such as (Seal Island and Alice in Wonderland), or cartoons of Donald Duck and other Disney standbys.

The program spawned the Davy Crockett craze of 1955 with the airing of a three-episode series (not shown over the course of consecutive weeks) about the historical American frontiersman, starring Fess Parker in the title role. Millions of dollars of merchandise relating to the title character were sold, and the theme song, The Ballad of Davy Crockett, became a hit record that year. Three historically based hour-long programs aired during late 1954/early 1955, and were followed up by two dramatized installments the following year. The TV episodes were later edited into two theatrical films. On July 17, 1955, the opening of Disneyland was covered on a live television special, Dateline: Disneyland, which is not technically considered to be part of the series. It was hosted by Walt along with Bob Cummings, Art Linkletter and Ronald Reagan, and featured various other guests'.


* 'In 1970, The comic strip, Doonesbury, by Gary Trudeau, premiered in 28 newspapers across the U.S. - From Wikipedia: 'Doonesbury is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States to the title character, Michael Doonesbury, who has progressed from a college student to a youthful senior citizen over the decades.

Created in the throes of '60s and '70s counterculture, and frequently political in nature, Doonesbury features characters representing a range of affiliations, but the cartoon is noted for a liberal viewpoint. The name Doonesbury is a combination of the word doone (prep school slang for someone who is clueless, inattentive, or careless) and the surname of Charles Pillsbury, Trudeau's roommate at Yale University.

Doonesbury is written and pencilled by Garry Trudeau, then inked and lettered by an assistant: Don Carlton then Todd Pound. Sunday strips are colored in by George Corsillo. A daily strip through most of its existence, since February 2014, Doonesbury has run repeat strips Monday through Saturday, and new strips on Sunday'.


* 'In 1977, Ali Maow Maalin, develops the last case of natural smallpox, in Merca district, Somalia. The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider this date the anniversary of the eradication of smallpox, the most spectacular success of vaccination. - From Wikipedia: Smallpox vaccine, the first successful vaccine to be developed, was introduced by Edward Jenner in 1796. He followed up his observation that milkmaids who had previously caught cowpox did not later catch smallpox by showing that inoculated cowpox protected against inoculated smallpox. The word vaccine is derived from Variolae vaccinae (i.e. smallpox of the cow), the term devised by Jenner to denote cowpox and used in the long title of his An enquiry into the causes and effects of Variolae vaccinae, known by the name of cow pox. Vaccination, the term which soon replaced cowpox inoculation and vaccine inoculation, was first used in print by Jenner's friend, Richard Dunning in 1800. Initially, the terms vaccine/vaccination referred only to smallpox, but in 1881 Louis Pasteur proposed that to honour Jenner the terms be widened to cover the new protective inoculations being introduced.

'Smallpox was eradicated by a massive international search for outbreaks, backed up with a vaccination program, starting in 1967. It was organised and co-ordinated by a World Health Organization (WHO) unit, set up and headed by Donald Henderson. The last case in the Americas occurred in 1971 (Brazil), south-east Asia (Indonesia) in 1972, and on the Indian subcontinent in 1975 (Bangladesh). After two years of intensive searches, what proved to be the last endemic case anywhere in the world occurred in Somalia, in October 1977. A Global Commission for the Certification of Smallpox Eradication chaired by Frank Fenner examined the evidence from, and visited where necessary, all countries where smallpox had been endemic. In December 1979 they concluded that smallpox had been eradicated a conclusion endorsed by the WHO General Assembly in May 1980. However, even as the disease was being eradicated there still remained stocks of smallpox virus in many laboratories. Accelerated by two cases of smallpox in 1978, one fatal (Janet Parker), caused by an accidental and unexplained containment breach at a laboratory at the University of Birmingham Medical School, the WHO ensured that known stocks of smallpox virus were either destroyed or moved to safer laboratories. By 1979 only four laboratories were known to have smallpox virus. All English stocks held at St Mary's Hospital, London were transferred to more secure facilities at Porton Down and then to the US at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia in 1982, and all South African stocks were destroyed in 1983. By 1984 the only known stocks were kept at the CDC in the US and the State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology (VECTOR) in Koltsovo, Russia. These states report that their repositories are for possible antibioweaponry research and insurance if some obscure reservoir of natural smallpox is discovered in the future'.


* 'In 2001, The United States passes the USA PATRIOT Act into law. In 2011, three provisions were extended. - From Wikipedia: 'The PATRIOT Act is an Act of Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001. With its ten-letter abbreviation (USA PATRIOT) expanded, the full title is Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001

On May 26, 2011, President Barack Obama signed the PATRIOT Sunsets Extension Act of 2011, a four-year extension of three key provisions in the USA PATRIOT Act: roving wiretaps, searches of business records, and conducting surveillance of lone wolves—individuals suspected of terrorist-related activities not linked to terrorist groups.

Following a lack of Congressional approval, parts of the Patriot Act expired on June 1, 2015. With the passage of the USA Freedom Act on June 2, 2015, the expired parts were restored and renewed through 2019. However, Section 215 of the law was amended to stop the National Security Agency from continuing its mass phone data collection program. Instead, phone companies will retain the data and the NSA can obtain information about targeted individuals with permission from a federal court.

From broad concern felt among Americans from both the September 11 attacks and the 2001 anthrax attacks, Congress rushed to pass legislation to strengthen security controls. On October 23, 2001, Republican Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner introduced H.R. 3162 incorporating provisions from a previously sponsored House bill and a Senate bill also introduced earlier in the month. The next day, the Act passed the House 357 to 66, with Democrats comprising the overwhelming portion of dissent. The three Republicans voting 'no' were Robert Ney of Ohio, Butch Otter of Idaho and Ron Paul of Texas. On October 25, the Act passed the Senate by 98 to 1.

Opponents of the law have criticized its authorization of indefinite detentions of immigrants the permission given law enforcement officers to search a home or business without the owner's or the occupant's consent or knowledge the expanded use of National Security Letters, which allows the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to search telephone, e-mail, and financial records without a court order and the expanded access of law enforcement agencies to business records, including library and financial records. Since its passage, several legal challenges have been brought against the act, and federal courts have ruled that a number of provisions are unconstitutional.

Many provisions of the act were to sunset beginning December 31, 2005, approximately four years after its passage. In the months preceding the sunset date, supporters of the act pushed to make its sun-setting provisions permanent, while critics sought to revise various sections to enhance civil liberty protections. In July 2005, the U.S. Senate passed a reauthorization bill with substantial changes to several sections of the act, while the House reauthorization bill kept most of the act's original language. The two bills were then reconciled in a conference committee that was criticized by Senators from both the Republican and Democratic parties for ignoring civil liberty concerns.

The bill, which removed most of the changes from the Senate version, passed Congress on March 2, 2006, and was signed into law by President George W. Bush on March 9 and 10, 2006'.


* 'In 2010, Sony takes the Walkman cassette player off the market. . - From Wikipedia: 'Walkman is a Sony brand tradename originally used for portable audio cassette/tape players in the late 1970s. In the 2010s, it was used to market Sony's portable audio and video players as well as a line of former Sony Ericsson mobile phones. The original Walkman actually introduced a change in music listening habits by allowing people to carry recorded music with them and listen to music through lightweight headphones. Owners of the Walkman were able to take back their lost time, commuting for example, and turn it into a pleasurable experience, or add a soundtrack to their urban surroundings. It was the privatization and personalization offered by the Walkman that led to its success.

The prototype was built in 1978 by audio-division engineer Nobutoshi Kihara for Sony co-founder Masaru Ibuka. Ibuka wanted to be able to listen to operas during his frequent trans-Pacific plane trips, and presented the idea to Kihara. The original idea for a portable stereo is credited to Brazilian-German inventor Andreas Pavel. The first Walkman was marketed in 1979 in Japan, using the name Walkman. From 1980, it was known as the Soundabout in many other countries including the US, Freestyle in Sweden, and the Stowaway in the UK. Advertising, despite all the foreign languages, still attracted thousands of buyers in the US specifically. Sony President and co-founder Akio Morita hated the name Walkman and asked that it be changed, but relented after being told by junior executives that a promotion campaign had already begun using the brand name and that it would be too expensive to change.

The names Walkman, Pressman, Watchman, Scoopman, Discman, and Talkman are trademarks of Sony, and have been applied to a wide range of portable entertainment devices manufactured by the company. The name Walkman was based on its precursor, the Pressman tape recorder. An initial prototype of the Walkman was in fact made by replacing the monophonic recording circuit, head and speaker from the Pressman with a stereo playback-only head and amplifier. Sony continues to use the Walkman brand name for most of their portable audio devices, after the Discman name for CD players was dropped in the late 1990s'.

 III.
Top Song & Movie 50 years ago today (last updated Oct 23 2016 next Oct 30 2016

No. 1 song

  • 96 Tears - Question Mark and the Mysterianbs
    - On YouTube: More
    - At Wikipedia: More
    'Reach Out I'll Be There' has been displaced by '96 Tears', which will hold the no. 1 spot until Oct 29 1966, when 'Last Train to Clarksville - The Mokkeys', takes over.- From Wikipedia: '"96 Tears" is a song recorded by the American garage rock band, Question Mark and the Mysterians (also known as "? and the Mysterians"), in 1966. In October of that year, it was number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. and on the RPM 100 in Canada. Billboard ranked the record as the number five song for the year 1966. It is ranked number 213 on the Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. On November 11, 1966 the single was certified as gold by the RIAA.

    The song was written by Question Mark (Rudy Martinez) in 1962 in his manager's living room, under the name "Too Many Teardrops" and then "69 Tears". Upon changing the title (fearing that radio stations wouldn't play the song), it was recorded in Bay City, Michigan. At first, Question Mark had to insist that "96 Tears" be the A-side over "Midnight Hour". Once the issue was settled, the band recorded the single for the small Pa-Go-Go label, owned by Lilly Gonzalez. She backed the band financially, and allowed access to her personal studio in her basement. When it began doing well locally, the band took a recording to Bob Dell, the radio director in Flint, Michigan. The song became the most requested, and wider radio play spread into Canada where it was picked up by Cameo Records for national distribution.

    Known for its signature organ licks and bare-bones lyrics, "96 Tears" is recognized as one of the first garage band hits, and has even been given credit for starting the punk rock movement.

    The song appeared on the band's album, 96 Tears. The follow-up song, "I Need Somebody", peaked at number 22 later that year, but no other U.S. Top 40 singles followed'.

Top movie

  • Spinout
    - At Wikipedia:  More
    - On IMDb: More
    - On YouTube (trailer): More
    Having displaced 'Hawaii', it will be there until the weekend box office of Oct 30 1966 when, 'Way...Way Out', takes over.- From Wikipedia: 'Spinout is a 1966 American musical film and comedy starring Elvis Presley as the lead singer of a band and part-time race car driver. The film was #57 on the year-end list of the top-grossing films of 1966.

    Mike McCoy (Elvis), the lead singer for a traveling band who is also a part-time race car driver, enjoys his carefree single life, which is threatened by three different women who seek to marry him. Enter Cynthia Foxhugh (Shelley Fabares), a spoiled heiress and "daddy's girl", who is determined to get what she wants, no matter the cost. Such as was the case when Cynthia's millionaire father Howard (Carl Betz) tricks Mike and his band into interrupting their gig tour to serenade Cynthia with "Am I Ready" for her birthday. Cynthia becomes first of the three women who want to marry Mike. Also, apparently knowing about Mike's racing skills, Howard is determined to hire Mike to drive Howard's Fox Five car in an upcoming road race, but Mike prefers to race his own car, a Cobra 427 sports car, which is towed around the country by a 1929 Model J Duesenberg.

    Meanwhile, Mike is stalked and spied upon by Diana St. Clair (Diane McBain), an author of books for women about men. Diana is in the process of writing her new book, The Perfect American Male, and uses Mike as one of her subjects. Actually, she later reveals to Mike that he is the "perfect American male", thereby planning on Mike to marry her—to the point of already making wedding arrangements.

    The female drummer of Mike's band, Les (Deborah Walley), is looked upon by Mike and the other band members as a tomboy, and becomes fed up with such treatment. Mike and his other band members are taken aback when at a party, Les picks her moment and reveals her true feminine side, walking back out from a room dressed up in an evening dress. She reveals herself as the third woman who wishes to marry Mike.

    Faced with this predicament, Mike must decide which of the three women he will marry—after the race (which Mike wins in a car he does not even own). So, he decides to marry all three of them—to other men. Mike marries Cynthia to Phillip (Warren Berlinger), a nervous employee of Howard's who is prone to fainting (he had a secret crush on Cynthia since he has known her, which he finally picks up the nerve to tell her). Next, Mike marries Diana to Howard, who fell in love with each other after they met at one of Mike's parties. And finally, Mike marries Les to Lt. Tracy Richards (Will Hutchins), a police officer whom Les won her way to his heart through his stomach (he likes her gourmet cooking). This allows Mike to reclaim his single and carefree life, which he dearly enjoys'.
  IV.
Today in the Past (reference sites): October 26
   V.
This month October 2016 (updated once a month - last updated - Oct 26 2016)

Monthly holiday / awareness days in October

Food
American Cheese Month
Apple Month
Corn Month
Go Hog Wild - Eat Country Ham
National Bake and Decorate Month
National Caramel Month
National Cookbook Month
National Popcorn Poppin' Month
National Pork Month
Pizza Month
Sausage Month
Spinach Lovers Month
Vegetarian Month

Health
AIDS Awareness Month
American Pharmacists Month
Antidepressant Death Awareness Month
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Bullying Prevention Month
World Blindness Awareness Month
Caffeine Addiction Recovery Month
Celiac Disease Awareness Month
Christmas Seal Campaign
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Down Syndrome Awareness Month
Dyslexia Awareness Month
Emotional Intelligence Awareness Month
Emotional Wellness Month
Eye Injury Prevention Month
Global ADHD Awareness Month
Global Diversity Awareness Month
Health Literacy Month
Home Eye Safety Month
Long Term Care Planning Month
National AIDS Awareness Month
National Audiology/Protect Your Hearing Month
National Critical Illness Awareness Month
National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month
National Dental Hygiene Month
National Disability Employment Awareness Month
National Depression Education and Awareness Month
National Disability Employment Awareness Month
National Domestic Violence Awareness Month
National Down Syndrome Month
National Liver Awareness Month
National Medical Librarian Month
National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month
National Orthodontic Health Month
National Physical Therapy Month
National Protect Your Hearing Month
National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month
National Spina Bifida Awareness Month
National Stop Bullying Month
National Substance Abuse Prevention Month
Rett Syndrome Awareness Month
Organize Your Medical Information Month
Talk About Prescriptions Month
World Menopause Month

Animal and Pet
Adopt A Dog Month
Adopt A Shelter Dog Month
Bat Appreciation Month
National Animal Safety and Protection Month
Wishbones for Pets Month

Other
Celebrating The Bilingual Child Month
Children's Magazine Month
Class Reunion Month
Country Music Month
Employee Ownership Month
Energy Management is a Family Affair
Fair Trade Month
Financial Planning Month
German-American Heritage Month
Halloween Safety Month
Head Start Awareness Month
Italian-American Heritage Month
International Strategic Planning Month
International Walk To School Month
Intergeneration Month
Learn To Bowl Month
National Arts and Humanities Month
National Chili Month
National Crime Prevention Month
National Cyber Security Awareness Month
National Ergonomics Month
National Field Trip Month
National Kitchen and Bath Month
National Reading Group Month
National Roller Skating Month
National Stamp Collecting Month
National Work and Family Month
Photographer Appreciation Month
Polish American Heritage Month
Self-Promotion Month


October is:

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

October at Wikipedia: More

  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
Contact: If you wish to make comment, please do so by writing to this: Email address