Author Archives: dcaligari

July 11, 1533 –The Church of England came into being on this date. The story of its origins is shrouded in sex and therefore important. Henry VIII assumed the English throne in 1509, an energetic young man of seventeen. He immediately decided to have a male heir. This became the enduring theme of his reignContinue reading “And ev’ryone was a Henery”

ACME would like to issue this public service announcement concerning Brain Freeze (also known as sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia) – Now to the point at hand – Why bring this up? The date today is 7/11 (at least in this country. Foreigners and other degenerates refer to the day as 11/7 but that’s another story…) The convenienceContinue reading “Attention Please”

July 10, 1856 –Inventor and electromechanical genius Nikola Tesla, the man who invented the 20th Century, was born to Serbian parents in what is now Croatia on this date. Remember, if we could only harness the free floating electricity, we could do away with the electric companies. And so it goes

July 10, 1958 –The first parking meter was installed in London, England on this date in 1958, along with the second through 625th. It took nearly two dozen years for the parking meter to travel across the Atlantic: the first American parking meter had been installed in Oklahoma City on July 16, 1935. It wasContinue reading “Use them as walking sticks”

On the Fourth of July in 1850, President Zachary Taylor snacked on cherries and milk while attending a ceremony at the Washington Monument. It was a hot day, and the heat made him sick. He got sicker and sicker and died on July 9. He remains the only U.S. president to have died from indigestionContinue reading “I guess this is patriotic”

July 9, 1982 –Buena Vista Pictures releases the sci-fi film Tron, directed by Steven Lisberger and starring Jeff Bridges, Bruce Boxleitner, David Warner, Cindy Morgan, and Barnard Hughes, in the U.S. on this date. Many Disney animators refused to work on this movie because they feared that computers would put them out of business. InContinue reading “He fights for the Users.”

July 8th was a Sunday in 1881, so when a hot young man entered Edward Berner’s drugstore in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, and ordered an ice-cream soda, his request was denied. Ice-cream sodas could not be served on the Sabbath owing to the ancient Mosaic injunction against them. The hot young man pleaded his case soContinue reading “You may begin screaming”

July 8, 1964 –Probably Jerry Lewis‘ best directorial effort, The Patsy, premiered on this date. (This was Peter Lorre’s last film; he died four days after completing his role. Lorre hated the experience and death must have seems a welcome release.) In the opening scene when Lewis makes his entrance he’s wearing an English ChelseaContinue reading “Mr. Lewis, you are a complete nut.”

July 7, 1947 –The US Army sends a team of men to a reported crash site near Roswell, New Mexico. This ‘recovery‘ has become the subject of intense speculation, rumor and questioning. There are widely divergent views on what actually happened and passionate debate about what evidence can be believed. The United States military maintainsContinue reading “Keep Watching The Skies”

July 7, 1936 –The first ever television show was broadcast by NBC/RCA on this date. It was seen by only a few hundred people who had access to the new television. The first ever program featured newsreel items, as well as a variety show of sorts, which included female dancers performing a water lily dance,Continue reading “It’s pretty much the beginning”