This Day in History Class

06/03/2024

On this day in 1836, the Mexican army defeated a group of Texas rebels at the Battle of the Alamo.

After the remaining defenders surrendered, which included frontiersman Davy Crockett, Mexico President General Santa Anna ordered that all surviving Texans be executed.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

28/02/2024

On this day in 1995, the Denver International Airport officially opened to the public.

With peaked roofing structures, strange stone gargoyles, a red-eyed horse sculpture that killed it's creator, and sinister murals, the airport has been implicated in a multitude of conspiracy theories.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

27/02/2024

On this day in 1964, the Italian government began accepting proposals for how to save the Leaning Tower of Pisa from collapsing.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

26/02/2024

For a quick tidbit from today's events in history, check out my podcast, "This Day in History Class" on Spotify, Apple Podasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Listen to This Day in History Class on Spotify. From the desk of “Stuff You Missed in History Class,” “This Day in History Class” quickly recounts a tidbit from today’s events in history.

26/02/2024

On this day in 1928, legendary musician Antoine "Fats" Domino Jr. was born in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Fats Domino's piano-heavy rock&roll inspired many artists of the 1960's British invasion. His hit single "Ain't That A Shame" was the first song John Lennon learned on guitar, and Lennon later said, "There wouldn't have been a Beatles without Fats Domino." Paul McCartney also wrote the piano-heavy song "Lady Madonna" as a tribute to Domino.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

21/02/2024

On this day in 1986, the original "Legend of Zelda" video game was released in Japan for the Famicom Disk System.

1) The game received highly positive reviews from critics, and upon release in Japan, it sold 1 million copies on its first day.

2) The Legend of Zelda is considered a spiritual forerunner of the modern action role-playing game, or RPG.

3) The game exchanged the common side-scrolling point of view with an innovative top-down perspective.

4) In August 1987, a gold-colored cartridge, using battery-backed memory, was released for the NES in the United States. It was highly anticipated and sold more than 2 million cartridges by 1988.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

15/02/2024

On this day in 1943, the now-famous “We Can Do It!” poster, featuring Rosie the Riveter, was first displayed in several Westinghouse factories.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

13/02/2024

On this day in 1923, the New York Renaissance was formed in Harlem. The Rens were the first Black-owned, all-Black, fully professional basketball team in history.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

07/02/2024

On this day in 1976, “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" by Paul Simon claimed the top spot on the U.S. singles chart.

1) From the album "Still Crazy After All These Years," the song is Simon's only number-one hit to date.

2) In 1975, Simon and his first wife Peggy Harper had split up after six years of marriage, and he ended up writing "50 Ways..." as a sort of kids’ game. One day, Simon was teaching his 3-year-old son Harper how to rhyme, and that’s how the chorus was written.

3) "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" has one of the most recognizable drumbeats in pop music history, played by the talented studio drummer Steve Gadd.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

06/02/2024

On this day in 1938, it appeared a typical summer’s day on Australia’s Bondi Beach. The crowd of 35,000 enjoyed the surf and sand, and waves were breaking evenly about 100 feet off shore.

Suddenly, three tremendous waves rolled onto the beach in such quick succession that the water could not recede. The massive backwash was phenomenal. Swimmers were swept into a deep channel and out to sea. There was instant panic. Men, women and children fighting for their lives.

Lifesavers leapt into action, panic swept those loved ones still on the beach, and the hastily summoned local police could not cope and called for reinforcements, doctors and ambulances.

Approximately 250 bathers required assistance; 150 were rescued unharmed; 60 were suffering from immersion; 35 were rescued unconscious and revived; and five people were dead.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

05/02/2024

On this day in 1945, U.S. forces began a secret operation to distribute Allied propaganda through Germany’s own postal service.

The goal was to influence German citizens by sending them envelopes stuffed with anti-Nazi literature. Among the contents was a now highly sought-after "Hi**er Skull Stamp," a riff on the standard Nazi-era “Deutsches Reich” (“German Empire”) stamp. Instead of a regal profile of Hi**er, the illegal stamp depicted Hi**er’s head as a sinister skull. Underneath, the words read “Futsches Reich,” or “Lost Empire.”

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.

02/02/2024

On this day in 1913, New York City’s Grand Central Terminal was officially opened to the public.

1) More than 150,000 people from all over the city visited the landmark on its opening day.

2) Excavation for the construction of Grand Central Terminal in 1908.

3) Incline from subway to suburban concourse, Grand Central Terminal, ca 1912.

4) The interior of Grand Central Terminal.

To learn more, listen to the episode on This Day In History Class. Link in bio.