Today in History.....

[brmstn69]

In 2006, Robert Altman, one of the most adventurous and influential American directors of the late 20th century, died in Los Angeles. He was 81. Altman has been nominated for five best-director Oscars (M-A-S-H, Nashville, The Player, Short Cuts and Gosford Park) but has never won. In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized his body of work with an Academy Honorary Award. ''He was the last great American director in the tradition of John Ford,'' M-A-S-H star Elliot Gould said.

Little known fact, Altman tasked his 14 year old son, Mike with writing lyrics to accompany Johnny Mandel's music for "Suicide Is Painless" in the M-A-S-H movie.

Altman made $70,000 for directing M-A-S-H, while his son has earned millions in royalties for the song...

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 23rd November

In 1963, at 6:15 on a cold, wet night, the BBC premieres its new family science fiction show, Doctor Who, with its first episode, “An Unearthly Child.” The series will become a legendary part of modern British folklore and the longest-running sci-fi series on TV.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 24th November

In 1859, Charles Darwin, an English naturalist and geologist, published ''On the Origin of Species'', which immediately sold out its initial print run. His book, certainly the most important biological book ever written, laid the groundwork for modern botany, cellular biology, and genetics. By 1872, the book had run through six editions, and it became one of the most influential books of modern times. The book was translated in Darwin's lifetime into Danish, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbian, Spanish and Swedish, and has appeared in a further eighteen languages since. This total of twenty-nine is higher than any other scientific work, except for the first books of Euclid.

 

[gorgik9]

In 1859, Charles Darwin, an English naturalist and geologist, published ''On the Origin of Species'', which immediately sold out its initial print run. His book, certainly the most important biological book ever written, laid the groundwork for modern botany, cellular biology, and genetics. By 1872, the book had run through six editions, and it became one of the most influential books of modern times. The book was translated in Darwin's lifetime into Danish, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbian, Spanish and Swedish, and has appeared in a further eighteen languages since. This total of twenty-nine is higher than any other scientific work, except for the first books of Euclid.

Ahrrrrmmm...Well Darwin is of course one of the biggest scientific fishes of all times, but - please! - don't give him credit for Gregor Mendel and mendelian genetics...

Darwin's theories on heredity was as erronous and barking up the wrong tree as everybody else's, but at the same time - in the 1860 - the austrian Augustine monk Gregor Mendel made his pathbreaking experiments, which almost nobody knew about.

Mendel's work wasn't rediscovered until 1900 and it's consequence became the deepest crisis in evolutionary biology ever. Not until the early 1930s could a group of scientists - among them Ronald Fisher, Sewall Wright & JBS Haldane - (the neo-darwinists) manage to prove the modern fundamental synthesis of Darwinian evolutionary biology and Mendelian genetics.

So please don't credit Darwin for Mendelian genetics:no:

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 25th November

In 1984, the cream of the British pop world gathered at at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London to record the historic 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' The single, which was written by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, featured Paul Young, Bono, Boy George, Sting and George Michael. It went on to sell over three million copies in the UK, becoming one of the bestselling record ever, and raised over £8 million ($13.6 million) worldwide.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 26th November

In 1929, Slavko Avsenik, a Slovenian composer and musician, was born in Begunje near Bled, Slovenia. In 1953, Slavko and his brother Vilko formed the Avsenik Quintett, a band that would have a profound influence on the music of Slovenia and German-speaking countries for decades to come. Selling over 30 million records, Avsenik has earned 31 Gold, 2 Diamond, and 1 Platinum record. The group has won countless awards including eighteen as Germany's most popular band, the recording industry's "European Oscar" in 1975 and the "Hermann Löns" award from the German Minister of Culture. The most popular song of Avsenik's band is the polka titled "Na Golici" in Slovenian, or "Trompetenecho" in German, "Trumpet Echoes" in English, which is the most played instrumental song in the world.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 27th November

In 1942, guitar legend Jimi Hendrix was born at Seattle's King County Hospital. Widely recognized as one of the most creative and influential musicians of the 20th century, he pioneered the explosive possibilities of the electric guitar. Hendrix, one of the most innovative guitar players of the rock era died in London in September 1970, following a drug overdose. He was 27.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 28th November

In 1994, Norway's voters reject joining European Union for the second time. With 94% of the vote counted, Norwegians were saying "no" by a slim 52.6% to 47.4%.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 30th November

In 1835, Samuel Clemens (later known as Mark Twain), an American author and humorist, was born in Florida, Missouri. He is best known for his novels set in his boyhood world on the Mississippi River. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, published in 1876, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, published in 1884, are considered classics today. Twain is also known for his comments about life and human nature, such as this one, "To succeed in life, you need two things: ignorance and confidence."

 

[gorgik9]

And as Joe, the black slaveboy, said to Huck Finn when he had fallen into the water of mighty Mississippi: "- Git up on the raft agin, Huck honey!"

Every other year, there are new members of that vast community called American Puritanism, who will argue that Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer should be banned in schools.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 1st December

In 1945, Bette Midler, an American comedienne, singer and actress, was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Divine Miss M first appeared on Broadway in Fiddler on the Roof (1966–1969), then created a popular nightclub act with ''an unknown'' Barry Manilow as her pianist. Greater stage and screen success followed, with movie roles in The Rose and For the Boys earning her Oscar nominations. Her song "Wind Beneath My Wings" from the movie Beaches became a huge hit in 1988.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 2nd December

In 1939, New York Municipal Airport-LaGuardia Field was opened to commercial traffic. It soon boasted that it was the first airport to have a florist shop, beauty salon, bank, jewelry shop, and brokerage office. The airport also had a Sky Bar and an outdoor Observation Deck. Admission: 5 cents!

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 3rd December

In 1800, France Presern, a Slovene Romantic poet, was born. He is not only Slovenia's national poet, but also arguably its most important cultural figure - with the nation's highest cultural awards bearing his name, as well as countless squares, streets and parks in virtually every town from the Adriatic Sea to the Hungarian border. And in a somewhat macabre twist, Slovenia also celebrates its national day of culture on the day of his death, 8 February - a work-free state holiday when most cultural institutions offer free admission.



He is best known for his poem “Zdravljica” (A Toast), written in 1844. Since 27 September 1989, its 7th stanza has been the national anthem of Slovenia. Zdravljica is a drinking song. In it, the poet declares his belief in a free-thinking Slovene and Slavic political awareness, promoting the idea of a unified Slovenia, which the March Revolution in 1848 elevated into a national political programme.

 

[gorgik9]

Hello haiducii!!!

I thought to ask you something I've been thinking about some time: Is Slovenia identical to the province of the old Habsburg empire called "Krain" ?

 

[haiducii]

Hello gorgik!

Is Slovenia identical to the province of the old Habsburg empire called "Krain" ?

You are partially right.

In 1278 the Slovenian lands: Carinthia (German: Kärnten, Slovene: Koroska, The capital: Klagenfurt aka Celovec), Carniola (German: Krain, Slovene: Kranjska, The capital: Laibach aka Ljubljana), and Styria (German: Steiermark, Slovene: Stajerska, The capital: Graz aka Gradec) fell to the Austrian Habsburgs, who controlled them until 1918.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 5th December

In 1974, the final episode (Party Political Broadcast) of Monty Python's Flying Circus aired on the BBC after the production of 45 installments. The first 39 were titled Monty Python's Flying Circus. The final six episodes, all created without Cleese who had tired of the show, were called Monty Python.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 6th December

In 2011, Belgium swears in a new government after a record-breaking 541 days of political deadlock. Elio Di Rupo became the Prime Minister and was sworn in by King Albert II (PIC). Di Rupo became Belgiums first Socialist prime minister since 1974 and the first French-speaking prime minister in thirty years.

 

[Shelter]

Thanks Haiducii for the Slovenian National Anthem. It sounds great and proud! I've never heard this anthem before. And I must say I love Anthems.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 8th December

In 1980, the Beatles' musician John Lennon was shot five times by 25-year-old Mark David Chapman outside The Dakota, the apartment building in New York City where John and Yoko Ono lived.

 

[haiducii]

On this day: 9th December

In 2013, Russian President Vladimir Putin closed the state-run news organization, RIA Novosti, in a surprise decree. He declared that it would be replaced by a new organization called "Russia Today," to be run by Putin supporter Dmitry Kiselev.