**Events - January 13 1906 - Hugh Gernsback of the Electro Importing Company advertised radio receivers for sale for the low, low price of just $7.50 in Scientific American magazine. The first ad selling the gizmos guaranteed reception of about one mile. We’ve worked at powerhouse radio stations that used to go that far... and less! 1910 - Enrico Caruso and Emmy Destinn were heard via a telephone transmitter; rigged by DeForest Radio-Telephone Company to broadcast from the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. 1933 - Babe (Mildred) Didrikson made her first appearance in professional basketball as the Brooklyn Yankees beat the stew out of the Long Island Ducklings. 1938 - Singer Allan Jones recorded The Donkey Serenade for Victor Records. The song became the one most often associated with the singer. Allan sang and acted in several Marx Brothers films: A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races; but the film that catapulted him to stardom was the operetta, Firefly, with Jeanette MacDonald. Singer Jack Jones is the son of Allan and wife, actress, Irene Hervey (The Count of Monte Cristo, Play Misty for Me). 1939 - Monty Stratton was listed along with 31 other players on the roster of the Chicago White Sox. Stratton stated that his determination to play ball allowed him to continue pitching even though he used an artificial leg (the result of a hunting mishap). 1941 - The four Modernaires joined to sing with the Glenn Miller Band on a permanent basis beginning this day. They had a ‘solo’ hit in 1946 with To Each His Own. 1942 - Henry Ford patented the plastic automobile which, allowed for a 30% decrease in car weight. Of course, it didn’t cost any less to buy a plastic car. Just ask Corvette owners... 1957 - Elvis Presley recorded All Shook Up and That’s When Your Heartaches Begin for Victor Records in Hollywood. The former tune became Elvis’ ninth consecutive gold record. 1955 - Chase National Bank (founded in 1877) and the Bank of Manhattan Company (founded in 1799 as a water company) agreed to merge, becoming the second largest bank in the U.S. 1957 - The Wham-O Company developed the first plastic Frisbee. The most popular theory as to how this flying disc came to be dates back to the 1920s when Yale students invented a game of catch by tossing around metal pie tins from the Frisbee Baking Company in nearby Bridgeport, Connecticut. They would frequently shout “Frisbieeeee” to warn passersby of the oncoming pie plate. Building inspector Fred Morrison puttered with and refined a plastic flying disc that he sold to WHAM-O (for $1 million) on this day in 1955. The disc was introduced to the consumer market in 1957 as the Pluto Platter (the name inspired by the U.S. obsession with UFOs). Wham-O changed the name to Frisbee in 1958, upon hearing the Yale pie-tin story. (Mattel now owns the rights to Frisbee, which has become an American icon.) 1966 - Elizabeth Montgomery’s character, Samantha, on Bewitched, had a baby. Tabitha was the name given to the witch’s daughter. She could wriggle her nose and cause all kinds of problems for daddy, just like her mom. 1973 - Carly Simon’s No Secrets was the #1 album in the U.S. for the first of five weeks. The tracks: The Right Thing to Do, The Carter Family, You’re So Vain, His Friends are More Than Fond of Robin, (We Have) No Secrets, Embrace Me You Child, Waited So Long, It Was So Easy, Night Owl and When You Close Your Eyes. 1974 - Super Bowl VIII (at Houston): Miami Dolphins 24, Minnesota Vikings 7. The Dolphins win their second straight Super Bowl. Fran Tarkenton and the Vikings are the victims. MVP: Dolphins’ RB Larry Csonka. Tickets: $15.00. 1982 - Air Florida Flight 90, a boeing 737, attempted to take off from Washington’s National Airport in one of the worst blizzards in history. Ice had built up on the wings of the jetliner as it waited its turn to take off, preventing it from gaining altitude. After crashing into the 14th Street Bridge, the plane fell into the Potomac River. 74 of the 79 people on the aircraft were killed in the accident. Four people on the bridge were killed. 1984 - Wayne Gretzky extended his consecutive scoring streak to 45 games, but the Edmonton Oilers winning streak ended at an unlucky 13 when Gretzky and company lost to the Buffalo Sabres 3-1. 1986 - The NCAA adopted the controversial Proposal 48, which set standards for Division 1 freshman eligibility. All who are thrilled that we included this nugget, please raise your hands. Thank you. No stone left unturned, here, to be sure. 2000 - Microsoft chairman Bill Gates announced that he would be stepping down as Microsoft chief executive and handing over the reins to longtime friend and company president Steve Ballmer. Gates assumed the title of ‘chief software architect’..
Posted on: Tue, 13 Jan 2015 13:49:38 +0000
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