Fun Facts for Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Fun Facts for Tuesday, January 6, 2015

The 6 day of the year

359 days left to go 

THIS WEEK IS

• Home Office Safety and Security Week
• National Folic Acid Awareness Week
• National Lose Weight/Feel Great Week
• Universal Letter Writing Week

TODAY IS

• Epiphany or Twelfth Night
• Three Kings Day
• Bean Day
• National Shortbread Day

ON THIS DATE...

1540: England's King Henry VIII married his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves -- which lasted 6 months.

1759: George Washington and Martha Dandridge Custis were married.
1838: Samuel Morse first publicly demonstrated his telegraph, in Morristown, New Jersey.
1912: New Mexico became the 47th state.

1919: President Theodore Roosevelt died at the age of 60. (read about his life)


1930: the first diesel engine automobile trip was completed.  The vehicle traveled 1300 miles from Indianapolis to New York City.  The cost of gasoline for the trip was one dollar and 38 cents. 
1942: Pan American Airlines completed the first, commercial, around the world flight. 
1952: the comic strip "Peanuts" debuted in newspapers across the country.  

1973: the "Schoolhouse Rock" animated lesson series debuted on ABC. (Show Opening)



1974: the first broadcast of "Radio Mystery Theatre" was heard on CBS Radio. (Hear classic episodes)

1975: "Wheel of Fortune" debuted on NBC. (Early Show Opening)



1976: Ted Turner purchased the Atlanta Braves baseball club for a reported 12-million dollars. 
1987: the Ford Thunderbird was named Motor Trend Car of the Year.  It marked the first time there was a repeat winner.  The T-Bird first won the award 29 years prior. 
1994: figure skater Nancy Kerrigan was attacked and wounded in the knee following a practice session for the National Figure Skating Championships in Detroit, Michigan.  It was later discovered the attack was part of a plot devised by the husband of Kerrigan's skating rival, Tonya Harding.  

1997: Matt Lauer replaced Bryant Gumbel as co-host of NBC's "Today Show." Gumbel had hosted the show for 15 years.  

1998: the head of Copenhagen's Little Mermaid statue was sawed off by vandals.  It was the second time in 33 years that the bronze statue had been decapitated.  

1999: Buckingham Palace announced that Prince Edward would marry his longtime girlfriend Sophie Rhys-Jones later in the year.  Edward is the youngest son of Queen Elizabeth the Second.  

1999: actor-comedian Bob Newhart was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. His was the two-thousand-127th star to be dedicated on the famous walkway. 
2001: the U.S. Congress formally certified George W. Bush the winner of the bitterly contested 2000 presidential election over Vice President Al Gore.  




HISTORY SPOTLIGHT

Skater Nancy Kerrigan attacked (Source)   (Video)

Olympic hopeful Nancy Kerrigan is attacked at a Detroit ice rink following a practice session two days before the Olympic trials. A man hit Kerrigan with a club on the back of her knee, causing the figure skater to cry out in pain and bewilderment. When the full story emerged a week later, the nation became caught up in a real-life soap opera.

One of Kerrigan's chief rivals for a place on the U.S. Figure Skating Team was Tonya Harding. In mid-December 1993, Harding's ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, approached Shawn Eckardt about somehow eliminating Kerrigan from the competition. Eckardt set up a meeting with Derrick Smith and Shane Stant, who agreed to injure Kerrigan for a fee.



QUICK TRIVIA 

The comic strip "Peanuts" debuted in newspapers across the country on this date.  (Source) 

WORD OF THE DAY

Pandemonium
[pan-duh-moh-nee-uhm] Noun

wild uproar or unrestrained disorder; tumult or chaos

"At the sleepover, pandemonium erupted as it dawned on the boys that there was 4 of them and only 3 pieces of pizza left"




INTRIGUING BIBLE FACT

Paul and Barnabas are considered to be the first missionaries sent out by a church 

"Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off"  (Acts 13:1-3).




WORD FROM THE WORD 

[Jesus] touched his ear and healed him. —Luke 22:51



Read today's "Our Daily Bread"