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A New Abbreviated Tuesday Show!
We’ll start off with a random trivia question: What is the largest city named after a U.S. President? Today is International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, International Color Day, International Day of Forests, World Down Syndrome Day, World Poetry Day and World Puppetry Day. It’s Independence Day in Namibia, and Human Rights Day…
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Iditarod: Racing Across Alaska
On this date in 1985, Libby Riddles became the first woman to win the Iditarod Trail sled dog race. Here are some things you might not have known about the annual tradition. The Iditarod is run in honor of the 1925 serum run, which was a sled dog relay to deliver a diphtheria antitoxin to…
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St. Patrick’s Day: Common Misconceptions
Today is St. Patrick’s Day. Here are some things you should know. While a four-leaf clover may be lucky, it’s not a shamrock. Shamrocks have three leaves and are more common than their quad-leaved brethren. It’s said that St. Patrick used the three leaves of the shamrock to help explain the Christian Holy Trinity to…
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March 16, 2017: An Abbreviated Thursday Show
Today is Day of the Book Smugglers in Lithuania, and Latvian Legion Day. It’s unofficially National artichoke heart day, national orange and lemon day, freedom of information day, and black press day. It’s the birthday of former US President James Madison, I was born in 1751; actor and comedian Jerry Lewis, who is 91; and…
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1820: Maine, America’s Vacationland
On this date in 1820, Maine was admitted to the Union. Here are some things you may not have known about the 23rd state. The first inhabitants of what would become Maine was a loose confederacy of Algonquin-speaking people, called the Wabanaki. The first European contact came about 800 years ago when Norwegians arrived on…
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March 14, 2017: A Tuesday Short Show
For the foreseeable future, we’ll be scaling back our episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We’ll still bring you all the features that usually run in the second half of the show. Today is Pi Day, in celebration of the mathematical constant pi, the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. In several Asian countries,…
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1930: Pluto Discovered, Controversy Ensues
On this date in 1930, the dwarf planet Pluto was discovered. Here are some things you may not have known about what was once considered the ninth planet in the solar system. Although it wasn’t discovered until 1930, astronomers had predicted in the late 19th century that something besides the newly discovered Neptune was disturbing…
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1926: Book of the Month Club Starts Delivering
On this date in 1926, the first Book of the Month Club selection was published. Here are some things you might not have known about it. The Book of the Month Club was founded by Harry Scherman in New York. Scherman had earlier success selling a collection of 30 leather-bound books for just under $3.…
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An Abbreviated Thursday Show
Today is Teachers’ Day in Lebanon. It’s unofficially False Teeth Day, Barbie Day, and National Meatball Day. It’s the birthday of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who was born in 1934; actor Raul Julia, who was born in 1940; and actress Juliette Binoche, who is 53. This week in 1967, the top song in the U.S. was…
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An Abbreviated Wednesday Show
Today is International Women’s Day. It’s unofficially National Proofreading Day, National Peanut Cluster Day, and Registered Dietitian Day. It’s the birthday of actor and musician Mickey Dolenz, who is 72; actor Freddie Prinze Jr., who is 41; and football player Hines Ward, who is also 41. We’ll spin the wheel to pick a year at…