A Brief History On August 5, 1901, Irish track and field athlete Peter O’Connor set the official long jump record at 24’ 11 ¾”, recognized by the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) a record for that event in 1912, when the event was first recognized with an official record. Prior to this momentous occasion, the “world record” in the long jump was unofficial, although of course people did keep track of such things. O’Connor’s record stood for an amazing 20 years, and he had previously set unofficial world records before this mighty leap. Here we list 10 of the…
Author: Major Dan
Major Dan
Major Daniel Zar is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.
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A Brief History On August 4, 1821, little Louis Vuitton was born in Anchay (Jura region), France, to a family of tradesmen and farmers. Yet, he would grow up to be the esteemed trunk designer of Empress Eugenie de Montijo, wife of Napoleon III. Digging Deeper Vuitton left home at the age of 13 (his parents had died prior to this move) and took the nearly 300 mile hike to Paris. Homeless, Louis sought work in the industrial revolution he found in Paris, and got a job in a box making factory. Box making then was not the automated assembly…
A Brief History On August 3, 2017, we are happy to report on our screening (last night) of the new major motion picture, The Dark Tower, a film adaptation of the book series (8 novels from 1982 to 2012) by Horror Maven Stephen King. As fans of Stephen King’s books and movies, this film was a must see, and we recommend it for all Stephen King fans and even those unfamiliar with the Dark Tower series. Digging Deeper King is perhaps the best known horror writer in the world today, and the reason for that is because his stories are…
A Brief History On August 3, 1960, the Esch family welcomed baby Eric into the world, little realizing this tiny baby would grow up to be a 425 pound behemoth of boxer, kickboxer, Toughman, MMA fighter, and of course, reality television star. Digging Deeper Born in Georgia and brought up in Michigan, (Esch picked up the nickname “Butterbean” due his large size, overweight even as a child, when he was forced to go on a diet to get under the 400 pound weight limit for Toughman), Esch got strong from hard physical work in construction, Eric was dared to enter…
A Brief History On August 2, 1943, US Navy torpedo boat PT-109 commanded by a young John F. Kennedy was rammed by a Japanese destroyer, cutting the boat in half and sinking it. Lt. Kennedy later became President Kennedy in January of 1961. Although we have pointed out the lily-livered chicken hawks that either dodged the draft or merely failed to enlist in the military, today we honor those politicians that also served in the US Armed Forces. (See our May 22 article 10 Celebrities that Fought in a War and our March 24 article 10 “Patriots” that Dodged the…