ON THIS DAY-APR 12

     1861  The Civil War Begins

The bloodiest four years in American history begin when Confederate shore batteries under General P.G.T. Beauregard open fire on Union-held Fort Sumter in South Carolina's Charleston Bay. During the next 34 hours, 50 Confederate guns and mortars launched more than 4,000 rounds at the poorly supplied fort. On April 13, U.S. Major Robert Anderson surrendered the fort. Two days later, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for 75,000 volunteer soldiers to quell the Southern "insurrection."

 

1633  Galileo Convicted of Heresy

On this day in 1633, chief inquisitor Father Vincenzo Maculano da Firenzuola, appointed by Pope Urban VIII, begins the inquisition of physicist and astronomer Galileo Galilei. Galileo  was ordered to turn himself in to the Holy Office to begin trial for holding the belief that the Earth revolves around the Sun, which was deemed heretical by the Catholic Church. Standard practice demanded that the accused be imprisoned and secluded during the trial.

This was the second time that Galileo was in the hot seat for refusing to accept Church orthodoxy that the Earth was the immovable center of the universe: In 1616, he had been forbidden from holding or defending his beliefs.

 

1922  Fatty Arbuckle Not Guilty

Director Fatty Arbuckle is found not guilty in his third trial for the death of Virginia Rappe. Arbuckle had been accused of causing Rappe's death by crushing her during an alleged sexual assault at a raucous San Francisco party. His earlier trials ended in hung juries.

 

1937  Supreme Court ok's NLRA

On this day in 1937, a somewhat divided Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the controversial National Labor Relations Act.

Along with protecting workers' freedom to strike, boycott and choose their own unions, the Labor Relations Act also laid down a list of employers' "unfair labor practices" that were now deemed punishable offenses. Though President Franklin Roosevelt initially opposed the National Labor Relations Act, Congress still passed the legislation. Roosevelt eventually changed his mind and adopted the National Labor Relations Act as part of the Second New Deal. Looking to keep a clamp on workers' rights, anti-labor forces challenged the bill's constitutionality, and eventually brought their case before the Supreme Court.

 

1945  President Franklin D. Roosevelt Dies

While on a vacation in Warm Springs, Georgia, President Roosevelt suffers a stroke and dies. His death marked a critical turning point in U.S. relations with the Soviet Union, as his successor, Harry S. Truman, decided to take a tougher stance with the Russians.

By April 1945, Roosevelt had been elected president of the United States four times and had served for over 12 years. He had seen the United States through some of its darkest days, from the depths of the Great Depression through the toughest times of World War II.

 

 

 

1954  Haley Records "Rock Around the Clock"

Bill Haley and his band, the Comets, record "Rock Around the Clock" on this day in 1954. The song was released in May and barely made the pop charts, spending one week at No. 23.

Most rock historians feel the tune, featured in the 1955 film Blackboard Jungle, ushered in the era of rock ’n’ roll.

Although rock and roll had been around since the late 1940s, the sound didn't penetrate into the white American mainstream until Haley drew attention to the style, paving the way for future rock and roll artists of all races.

 

1955  The Polio Vaccine of Dr. Jonas Salk was termed “safe, effective and potent” by the University of Michigan Polio Vaccine Evaluation Center.

 

1961  First Man in Space

On April 12, 1961, aboard the spacecraft Vostok 1, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin becomes the first human being to travel into space.

 

1981  First Launching of Space Shuttle

The space shuttle Columbia is launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, becoming the first reusable manned spacecraft to travel into space. Piloted by astronauts Robert L. Crippen and John W. Young, the Columbia undertook a 54-hour space flight of 36 orbits before successfully touching down at California's Edwards Air Force Base on April 14.

On September 17, 1976, NASA publicly unveiled its first space shuttle, the Enterprise, during a ceremony in Palmdale, California. Development of the aircraft-like spacecraft cost almost $10 billion and took nearly a decade. In 1977, the Enterprise became the first space shuttle to fly freely when it was lifted to a height of 25,000 feet by a Boeing 747 airplane and then released, gliding back to Edwards Air Force Base on its own accord.

 

BIRTHDAYS

 

1947  David Letterman TV host & Comedian: Late Night with David Letterman

1950  David Cassidy Actor: The Partridge Family, Spirit of ’76, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; singer: Cherish, I Think I Love You; son of actors: Jack Cassidy, Evelyn Ward

1956  Andy Garcia  Actor: When a Man Loves a Woman, A Show of Force, The Godfather: Part 3, The Untouchables, Blue Skies Again

1957  Vince Gill  Grammy Award-Winning Singer: When Love Finds You [1994], I Still Believe in You [1992], When I Call Your Name [1990]; Groups: Bluegrass Alliance, Sundance, The Cherry Bombs, Pure Prairie League

1971  Shannen Doherty  Actress: Beverly Hills 90210, Our House, Little House on the Prairie, Night Shift, Heathers

1979  Claire Danes  Actress: How to Make an American Quilt, Home for the Holidays, Little Women, My So Called Life, Law & Order, The Mod Squad [1999]

     CHART TOPPERS

1958Tequila - The Champs
He’s Got the Whole World (In His Hands) - Laurie London
Book of Love - The Monotones
Oh Lonesome Me - Don Gibson

1966The Ballad of the Green Berets - SSgt Barry Sadler
(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration - The Righteous Brothers
Daydream - The Lovin’ Spoonful

1974Sunshine on My Shoulders - John Denver
Hooked on a Feeling - Blue Swede
Bennie & The Jets - Elton John
A Very Special Love Song - Charlie Rich

1982I Love Rock ’N Roll - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
We Got the Beat - Go-Go’s
Make a Move on Me - Olivia Newton-John

1990Love Will Lead You Back - Taylor Dayne
I’ll Be Your Everything - Tommy Page
All Around the World - Lisa Stansfield
Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart - Randy Travis

 

 

 

 

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