I was given a new Diary by the Union at work today. I never use diaries, as I have my phone, but it was free so I took it

 

Anyways, on every day it mentions a little piece of history, and one of them made me smile, because of various conversations I have been having recently ... so I'm going to start from that date and catch up to today.

 

 

 

On the 18th February 1979 - Snow fell in the Sahara Desert.

 

So this means it could technically be possible that it has been snowing in CA ... and that someone isn't just being overly dramatic.

 

On the 19th February 1878 - Thomas Edison patented the phonograph.

 

Is that the phone?

 

and now on to today.

 

On 20th February 1896 - The first film, to be shown to a paying audience, was shown in Britain.

 

It doesn't say if they had popcorn or not - hopefully if they did, there was no butter or salt allowed anywhere near it. The only proper popcorn is sugar popcorn, or toffee.

 

 

Yes ... this is totally an Educational Thread.

 

On the 18th February 1979 - Snow fell in the Sahara Desert.

 

So this means it could technically be possible that it has been snowing in CA ... and that someone isn't just being overly dramatic.

 

 

 

Yes ... this is totally an Educational Thread.

 

....

 

 

-.-

On the 18th February 1979 - Snow fell in the Sahara Desert.

 

So this means it could technically be possible that it has been snowing in CA ... and that someone isn't just being overly dramatic.

 

XD

 

This is one of those defining reasons why we're best friends.

ha! See I am not a drama queen. It really did snow even if it didn't stick and was relatively nice the next day.

 

the phonograph was the first "record player".

 

Fun facts are fun. :D

*with Ithi on the popcorn* Butter and salt....uck!!!

They be furriners Talya. They don't eat right.

 

*nods*

 

 

Oh ...... Was I talking about you Turin? ;)

What was the first movie to a paying audience called?

The first movie I believe was The Great Train Robbery made by Edison, though I'm not sure what the first one for a paying audience was.

My google-fu failed me I'm afraid. Can anyone else find the answer for this?

 

OK - I wasn't at work yesterday, so couldn't update this. I have checked the amazing free diary today though so will do both yesterday and today...

 

On 21st February 1965 - Malcolm X was assassinated in New York City.

 

 

On 22nd February 1886 - The Times newspaper (in the UK) first published its classified personal column.

 

It probably went something like this:

 

Titled Older Man, seeks the Parents of Young Wealthy Future Heiress to help resurrect Family Fortunes and maintain Roof on falling down Mansion - due to previous resident's blatant gambling and womanising causing us to lose everything.

 

 

Poor thing lol

On 23rd February 1885: John Lee survived hanging three times and was then released, in Exeter - UK

 

John Henry George Lee (1864 – c. 19 March 1945), better known as John "Babbacombe" Lee or "The Man They Couldn't Hang", was a British man famous for surviving three attempts to hang him for murder.

 

Lee was born in Abbotskerswell, Devon, served in the Royal Navy, and was a known thief. In 1885, he was convicted of the brutal murder of his employer, Emma Keyse, at her home at Babbacombe Bay near Torquay on 15 November 1884. The evidence was weak and circumstantial, amounting to little more than Lee having been the only male in the house at the time of the murder, his previous criminal record, and being found with an unexplained cut on his arm. Despite this and his constant claim of innocence, he was sentenced to hang.

 

On 23 February 1885, three attempts were made to carry out his execution at Exeter Prison. All ended in failure, as the trapdoor of the scaffold failed to open despite being carefully tested by the executioner, James Berry, beforehand. As a result, Home Secretary Sir William Harcourt commuted the sentence to life imprisonment. Lee continued to petition successive Home Secretaries and was finally released in 1907. The only other man in history known to have survived three hanging attempts was Joseph Samuel.[1]

 

Many theories have been advanced as to the cause of the failure, but Home Office papers show that the official report stated incorrect assembly of the gallows mechanism allowed the trapdoor hinges to rest upon an eighth of an inch of drawbar, preventing them from opening when the doors were weighted. This incident helped to lead to a standard gallows design to prevent a reoccurrence.

 

After his release, Lee seems to have exploited his notoriety, supporting himself through lecturing on his life, even becoming the subject of a silent film. Accounts of his whereabouts after 1916 are somewhat confused, and one researcher even speculated that in later years, there was more than one man claiming to be Lee. It was suspected that he died in the Tavistock workhouse[2] sometime during World War II. However, one recent piece of research concludes that he died in the United States under the name of "James Lee" in 1945.[3] According to the book The Man They Could Not Hang by Mike Holgate and Ian David Waugh, Lee's gravestone was found at Forest Home Cemetery, Milwaukee.

 

 

 

...

 

With regards to the previous interesting stuff, The first public performances of films before a paying audience in Great Britain began at the Polytechnic in Upper Regent Street, central London, on 21 February 1896. Consisting of short films made in France by the Lumière brothers and shown via their Cinématographe equipment, the programme was so successful that it transferred to the Empire music hall in Leicester Square as one of the top items on the bill.

 

:)

Im so slack ... or I'm back at work and don't have as much time these days.

 

Let's catch up again.

 

24th February 1981 - Prince Charles announced his engagement to Lady Diana Spencer

 

We all know how well that ended

 

25th February 1977 - An oil tanker explosion west of Honolulu spills 31 million gallons.

 

 

26th February 1947 - Sandie Shaw, Singer/Songwriter was born.

 

I'm pretty sure she sang 'Puppet on a String' which won? the Eurovision Song Contest for the UK way back when. Nice title though - proves how long Compulsion has been going on for

 

27th February 1964 - Cilla Black had a UK number 1 with 'Anyone who had a Heart'

 

<3

28th February 1912 - World's first parachute jump from a plane, in Missouri USA

 

When were planes invented? It almost feels like we had barely invented aeroplanes when we thought it would be a good idea to go jumping out of them

 

29th February 1940 - 'Gone with the wind' wins 8 Oscars

 

Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.

 

Epic.

When were planes invented? It almost feels like we had barely invented aeroplanes when we thought it would be a good idea to go jumping out of them

 

Perhaps the fact that we had just invented airplanes is precisely the reason we were developing the means to jump out of them (and live).

so .... possibly not a skydiving display team ... is that what you are saying?

Probably not.

28th February 1912 - World's first parachute jump from a plane, in Missouri USA

 

 

Of course ... this was the USA ... not New Zealand.

 

>.>

yeah cause sheep probably dont work very well as parachutes!!

hmmmm

 

I need to update this again.

 

:isterrible: