A Brief History On July 19, 1942, the era of good hunting by German U-boats known as the “Second Happy Time” ended, as American and British anti-submarine measures became effective, forcing the German subs away from American coasts and into the Central Atlantic. Digging Deeper The Battle of the Atlantic, a war of German submarines against ships carrying vital cargo to Britain, was perhaps the most critical of the campaigns to determine which side would win World War II.  Italian ships and aircraft were also involved, as were German surface vessels and aircraft, though the sub war was paramount. The…

A Brief History On July 18, 1992, internet history was made when a photograph of the parody doo wop singing group, Les Horribles Cernettes, was posted on the World Wide Web, definitely the first WWW photo of a musical group and possibly the first photograph ever posted to the Web. Digging Deeper Calling themselves “the one and only High Energy Rock Band,” this female group was made up of employees of CERN, the European physics and nuclear research concern behind the Large Hadron Collider.  The group was active from 1990 to 2012, and then resurrected for 2017 and 2020. As…

A Brief History On July 16, 1935, life for American drivers got just a bit more irritating when the first ever parking meters were installed in Oklahoma City.  While Roger Babson was the first to patent a parking meter, the first usable ones were patented by Carl Magee and separately by Oklahoma State University professors Holger George Thuesen and Gerald A. Hale. Digging Deeper Today, we look at some things we wish were never invented.  What would you include on this list? Computer pop-up ads, the annoying creation of Ethan Zuckerman in the mid 1990s, who at least apologized to…

A Brief History On July 15, 2012, a South Korean rapper with the catchy name of Psy released what would prove to be his first hit song and a viral sensation that would sweep the entire world, “Gangnam Style.” Digging Deeper Not only would this catchy tune rocket to #1 in South Korea, its incredibly popular dancing and singing video on YouTube helped propel the song to #1 in 30 countries, including Russia, though only to #2 in the USA. The theme of the song is based on a K-Pop vision of the lifestyle in the Gangnam neighborhood of the…

A Brief History On July 13, 1973, retired Air Force officer and member of the Nixon Administration revealed the existence of an automatic audio tape system in the Oval Office, helping to bring down President Richard Nixon.  While not immediately, Alexander Butterfield survived his snitching and went on to business success, eventually serving on the boards of several corporations. Digging Deeper In spite of various “whistle blower” programs designed to protect and even reward “snitches,” many people are hesitant to provide inside information to authorities in fear of retaliation.  Some other “snitches” that survived and prospered include: Tim Allen, television…