Browsing: July

A Brief History On July 3, 1890, Idaho was admitted to the Union as the 43rd US State.  Previously, Idaho had been part of the Oregon Country, then the Oregon Territory, and then the Washington Territory before becoming a separate entity known as the Idaho Territory in 1863.  So, where does the name, Idaho, come from?  Probably from the imagination of lobbyist George M. Willing, who probably just made up the name in order to have something that sounded like an Indian name.  In fact, he claimed the name came from the Shoshonean language, variously claiming the word meant “gem…

A Brief History On July 2, 2019, the latest Marvel superhero movie, Spider-Man: Far From Home, makes its debut across the United States.  Having already premiered in Hollywood, the 27th film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe already holds an incredible 91% approval rating on critical aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes.  (Audience scores are not yet available as of the writing of this review.)  Acting performances and directing are all spot on, and of course, the special effects are indeed something special.  Lots of eye candy for fans of bright, colorful eye-popping effects. Digging Deeper Once again starring Tom Holland as the…

A Brief History On July 6, 1947, the Avtomat Kalashnikova went into production by the Soviet Union, hence the name AK-47.  Have you ever wondered why this particular weapon became so popular throughout the world?  The creator, Mikhail Kalashnikov was wounded in the Battle of Bryansk in 1941 and began to design the automatic rifle from his hospital bed. The AK-47 was officially adopted by the Soviets in 1949 as it quickly became standard issue in the Soviet Army. The AK-47 was simple to operate, rugged and reliable and was designed to be easy to mass produce. Digging Deeper There…

A Brief History On July 31, 1965, Joanne Rowling, aka J.K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, was born in Yale, Gloucestershire, England in the United Kingdom. Joanne would become a writer of fiction and pen the most successful book series of all time, the Harry Potter stories. In fact, Rowling has sold as many as 500 million of her books, an astounding number, but NOT the most ever sold by a female author! Digging Deeper The answer to the question asked in the title of the article is Agatha Christie, born Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller on September 15, 1890, in Torquay,…

A Brief History On July 30, 2012, the Tamil Nadu Express train caught fire as passengers lay sleeping at 4:22 am, roasting 32 of them and injuring another 27. Only quick action by a railroad emergency crew prevented further carnage when the flaming sleeping car was detached from the other cars. Some died leaping from the moving train, some died trying to leave through the forward exit, and some died asleep in their beds. Digging Deeper The S-11 sleeping car carried 78 passengers that morning, bound from New Delhi to Chennai. Of those passengers, 72 had reservations to be on…