HISTORY INA NUTSHELL~MAY 7

     1789  George Washington Attends First Enaugural Ball

 

On this day in 1789, President George Washington attends a ball in his honor. The event provided a model for the first official inaugural ball, held to celebrate James Madison’s ascension to the office ten years later, which then became an annual tradition.

 

 

1915  German Submarine Sinks Lusitania

 

The Lusitania was carrying a cargo of ammunition from the U.S. to Great Britain. This was Germany’s reason for the attack even though the ship was carrying over 2,000 civilian men, women and children. 1,198 lives were lost.  This even triggered the U.S. involvement in WWI.

 

1945  Germany Surrenders Unconditionally To the Allies at Reims

Nazi Colonel General Alfred Jodl, representing the German government, entered the headquarters of the Allied forces early this day. He was in a red school building in Reims, France for one purpose only ... signing the terms of unconditional surrender. Eisenhower’s Chief of Staff, Lt. General Walter B. Smith signed for the Allies.

 

1954  French Fall To Viet Minh At Dien Bien Phu

The battle of Dien Bien Phu marked the end of the French involvement in Southeast Asia. France had lost more than 35,000 men and 48,000 had been wounded in a war that was considered financially and militarily humiliating. The shock of the defeat at Dien Bien Phu led the French government, already plagued by public opposition to the war, to agree to the independence of Vietnam at the Geneva Conference in 1954.

 

1966  First Hit By A Coed Group

"Monday, Monday," by the Mamas and the Papas, hits the top of the charts. This was the first musical quartet to include two men and two women. Almost all previous groups that topped the charts were single-sex groups, like the Supremes and the Chiffons, or the Beatles and the Beach Boys. A few male groups sported a token woman singer (like Ruby and the Romantics), but the Mamas and the Papas were the first group to feature fully balanced co-ed vocals.

 

1994  Munch's The Scream Recovered

On May 7, 1994, Norway's most famous painting, "The Scream" by Edvard Munch, was recovered almost three months after it was stolen from a museum in Oslo. The fragile painting was recovered undamaged at a hotel in Asgardstrand, about 40 miles south of Oslo, police said.

The iconic 1893 painting of a waiflike figure on a bridge was stolen in only 50 seconds during a break-in on February 12, the opening day of the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. Two thieves broke through a window of the National Gallery, cut a wire holding the painting to the wall and left a note reading "Thousand thanks for the bad security!"

 

 

     BIRTHDAYS

1812  Robert Browning Is Born

Poet Robert Browning is born on this day in 1812 in Camberwell, outside London.

The son of a bank clerk and a musical, religious mother, Robert Browning attended boarding school and studied briefly at the University of London before returning to his parents' home to continue his education with tutors. He read extensively, learned foreign languages as well as boxing and horsemanship, and began writing poetry. However, his early poetry, based on Shelley's confessional style, was harshly criticized, and he abandoned poetry for drama.

1901  Gary Cooper Born

On this day, film star Gary Cooper is born in Helena, Montana. Cooper grew up on a ranch but was educated in England. Later, back in the States, Cooper aspired to become a cartoonist but supported himself playing extras in western films. He landed his first starring role in The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926) and became a leading star, known for his many off-screen romances with actresses, including Clara Bow, Marlene Dietrich, and Patricia Neal.

 

 

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