On this day in history: Maiden flight of Boeing 747, 1969

With long-distance commercial air travel becoming more popular the President of Pan American World Airways (Pan Am), Juan Trippe, urged Boeing to build a much larger passenger aircraft to replace the successful 707 and alleviate traffic congestion at airports. In 1965 Boeing engineer Joe Sutter took control of a development team, which liaised with Pan Am and other airlines to design an aircraft that would meet their requirements. The result was the 747, an aircraft that could be easily adapted to become a freight carrier when the expected supersonic air travel revolution took place.

In April 1966, Pan Am became the first of twenty-six airlines to pre-order 747s, which Boeing undertook to start delivering be the end of the decade. Pan Am again partnered Boeing along with Pratt and Whitney in the design of a new turbofan engine that would produce enough power for the enormous airliner. In spite of the limited development time, the first prototype 747 rolled out of Boeing's purpose-built assembly plant at Paine Field near Everett, Washington, on 30th September 1968.

On 9th February 1969, the first air-worthy prototype called City of Everett made its maiden flight. The flight crew comprised test pilots Jack Waddell and Brien Wygle, and flight engineer Jess Wallick. Apart from a minor fault with one of the flaps the crew reported that the aircraft handled extremely well in flight.

Flight tests continued for the next few months during which time the engineers ironed out any problems, particularly with the engines. On 15th January 1970 Pan Am took possession of the first production 747s that entered service between New York and London a week later. Over the next forty years development continued on the 747 with Boeing manufacturing a number of variants for carrying cargo as well as passengers, including the President of the United States, and even giving a piggy-back to the prototype Space Shuttle.

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First Zeppelin flight: 2nd July 1900
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On this day in history: Disney`s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs released, 1938

In June 1934, Walt Disney announced the production of his studio's first feature length animation: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Previously the Disney studio had released short films such as those in the Mickey Mouse series. Disney's family tried to dissuade him from the venture, while other industry insiders referred to the moving picture as "Disney's Folly."

Production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs had begun earlier that year with a team of writers adapting the original story written by the Brothers Grimm. Frank Churchill (music) and Larry Morey (lyrics) wrote the songs for the movie, while Paul J. Smith and Leigh Harline scored the incidental music. David Hand headed the directorial team having worked for Disney studios since 1930, first as an animator and later as animation director.

Disney chose Adriana Caselotti to play the role of Snow White, then later blacklisted the singer from appearing elsewhere so as not to spoil the magic of Snow White. Lucille La Verne voiced the Queen, eventually doing so without her false teeth to get the voice just right. The voice of Goofy, Pinto Colvig, provided the voices of two of the dwarfs: Grumpy and Sleepy.

Production took three years with costs spiralling from Disney's original budget of $250,000 (ten times more than his animated shorts cost) to nigh on $1,500,000. To continue funding production Disney had to mortgage his own home. Eventually, on 21st December 21 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs premièred at the Carthay Circle Theater, Los Angeles to a rapturous reception.

On 4th February 1938 the movie went on general release grossing $66,596,803, a record amount. Snow White was the first full length animated feature requiring the development of many new techniques for which the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded Disney with a special Oscar (and seven smaller ones). Snow White was also the first American movie to have a soundtrack album released simultaneously.

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On this day in history: First banknotes issued in America, 1690

On 3rd February 1690, the Massachusetts Bay Colony legislature issued $40,000 worth of Bills of Credit. The British King authorised the Massachusetts General Court to issue these promissory notes to pay the army it had raised to fight against the French in Canada during King William's War, since it was short of official coinage at that time. Recipients of the notes could later redeem them for coins to the value of the issued note.

Each note read:

This indented Bill of [...] Shillings due from the Massachusetts Colony to the Possessor shall be in value equal to money and shall be accordingly accepted by the Treasurer and Receiver Subordinates to him in all Public payments and for any stock at any time in the Treasury - New England, February the third, 1690. By order of the General Court.

The notes proved a great success, soon entering general circulation.

The legislators spotted the potential of paper money and started issuing more notes not only during emergencies but also to cover the cost of general administration. The other New England colonies soon followed suit, issuing their own banknotes with mixed results. A shortage of gold and silver meant that the notes were rarely redeemed; yet, the authorities continued to print more notes resulting in their devaluation.

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First European banknotes: 16th July 1661
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On this day in history: Paris Peace Accords ended U.S. military action in Vietnam, 1973

At the end of the Second World War, France reoccupied the territories known as French Indochina that had been captured by the Japanese. The French forces quickly came into conflict with the Việt Minh, a communist national liberation movement, which had fought against the Japanese occupation. This First Indochina War resulted in the defeat of France and the provisional partition of the country into communist North Vietnam and non-communist South Vietnam in 1954.

The partition did not satisfy the communists, particularly those in the South, who started an insurgency there in 1959. The actions of the insurgents, known as the National Liberation Front (NLF) or Việt Cộng, escalated into war between the two states, in which the other countries soon became embroiled, particularly the United States. Successive U.S. administrations escalated military operations in Vietnam in order to curb the spread of communism.

During the 1960s, opposition to the war in the United States grew, culminating in the relative success of Eugene McCarthy's 1968 presidential campaign on an anti-war ticket. In May of that year, the belligerent parties met in Paris to begin peace talks. These talks stalled as soon as they began with arguments about the shape of the conference table, and NLF refusal to recognise the legitimacy of the South Vietnam government, who in turn refused to accept the presence of NLF negotiators.

The table problem was solved by delegates from the North and South sitting at a round table, while all other parties sat at square tables around them, and the issue of NLF and South Vietnamese negotiators was solved by them joining the North Vietnamese and U.S. delegations respectively. Nevertheless, no agreement was reached and the war continued.

While negotiations rumbled on in Paris, in 1969, secret negotiations began between the U.S. National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger and North Vietnam's chief negotiator Lê Ðức Thọ, who insisted that the U.S. remove the South Vietnamese President, Nguyễn Văn Thiệu, from power. This remained a stumbling block to negotiations until 1972 when North Vietnamese concerns about their lack of military success and the détente that President Nixon had achieved with the U.S.S.R and the People's Republic of China forced them to compromise. Within days both parties drew up a draft agreement of a final settlement.

When informed of the secret negotiations, Nguyễn Văn Thiệu responded angrily to Kissinger and Nixon, refusing to agree to the settlement unless significant changes were made. The U.S. wanted a speedy withdrawal of American forces and applied substantial diplomatic pressure to the South Vietnamese, who had little choice but to accede. The agreement resulted in the suspension of U.S. offensive military action in Vietnam.

On 27th January 1973, the leaders of the official delegations met at the Majestic Hotel in Paris to sign the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam. Later that year Kissinger and Thọ jointly received the Nobel Peace Prize for their roles in bringing peace to the region. In spite of the agreement, both sides violated the peace accord and within two years the North Vietnamese captured the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon.

The text of the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam is available at WikiSource.

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On this day in history: Apple Macintosh went on sale, 1984

In April 1976 Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne founded Apple to market their first personal computer, the Apple I, in kit form. A little after a year later Wozniak and Jobs introduced the ground-breaking Apple II, Wayne having sold his stake to his co-founders when they incorporated the company. In 1980, the Apple III went on sale, but it was not a great commercial success.

By that time, an Apple employee called Jeff Raskin had begun developing a cheap personal computer called the Macintosh (named after his favourite apple, the McIntosh). In 1979, a number of Apple employees including Raskin and Jobs visited Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center, where they saw a Xerox Alto computer. The Alto ran an innovative graphical user interface (GUI) controlled by a new device called a mouse, alongside the traditional keyboard.

Apple began developing their own GUI to run not only on the Macintosh, but also on a business machine that they had in development called the Lisa. Jobs initially headed up the Lisa project, but soon realised that the Macintosh was a better commercial prospect. In 1981, a personality conflict between Raskin and Jobs resulted in Raskin departing the Macintosh project team, which was taken over in 1982 by Jobs following him being forced out of the Lisa team.

On 24th January 1984, the Apple Macintosh went on sale for $2,495. It had a 8Mhz Motorola 68000 processor and 128KB of RAM (boosted by a 64KB ROM chip). The built in 9-inch black and white screen had a resolution of 512x342 pixels. A 3.5-inch floppy drive was included with which software was loaded and files could be saved.

Two days prior to the Macintosh going on sale, an Orwellian themed advertisement for the Macintosh was shown during Super Bowl XVIII. This now famous advert was directed by Ridley Scott and cost in the region of $1.5 million. Whether due to this advertisement or not, the Macintosh proved an immediate success, selling over 70,000 units within four months.

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On this day in history: John F. Kennedy inaugurated as President, 1961

During the night before the inauguration of the thirty-fifth President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, heavy snow fell on Washington D.C. Nevertheless, on the morning of 20th January 1961, snow ploughs and gangs of workers cleared the processional route so that the ceremony could go ahead. Meanwhile, Kennedy attended Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Georgetown before joining President Eisenhower to travel in procession to the Capitol.

Hundreds of thousands of people watched as Cardinal Cushing of Boston delivered the Invocation prayer, the first time a Roman Catholic had done so. The eighty-six year old poet Robert Frost intended to read a poem he had written for especially for the occasion called Dedication, but the glare of the sun prevented him from doing so. Instead he recited another of his poems, The Gift Outright, from memory.

Following the swearing in of Vice President Johnson by Speaker of the House Sam Rayburn, Chief Justice Earl Warren administered the presidential oath of office to Kennedy. The youngest ever President of the United States then delivered his inaugural address. After giving his address, Kennedy processed to the White House where he witnessed a parade, which had peace as its central motif.

Newsreel footage of Kennedy's inauguration

The full text of John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address is available on Wikisource.

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On this day in history: Cold Sunday, 1982

On 17th January 1982 much of the United States experienced the coldest temperatures since records began. A high pressure system of Arctic proportions formed over the Canadian province of Saskatchewan where recent snowfall had left the land with no way to retain its heat. Consequently temperatures plummeted creating a mass of cold air that moved south across the US on what became known as "Cold Sunday."

Meteorologists measured record low temperatures the length of the country. These included temperatures of −27°F (−33°C) in Chicago, −26°F (−32°C) in Milwaukee, −5°F (−21°C) in Washington, DC and −2°F (−19°C) in Birmingham, Alabama. The lowest temperature of −52°F (−47°C) was recorded near Tower, Minnesota.

US National Weather Service: High and Low temperature map (Fahrenheit)

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On this day in history: The Human Be-In, 1967

During the afternoon and evening of 14th January 1967, over 20,000 people gathered at the Polo Fields in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco in the largest expression of counter-cultural values yet seen. This "Gathering of the Tribes for a Human Be-In" was the brainchild of the artist Michael Bowen as an attempt to bring together the hippies of the Haight-Ashbury district of the city with the anti-war and free-speech movements emanating from the Berkeley campus of the University of California.

Bowen was the co-founder of the San Francisco Oracle underground newspaper along with Allen Cohen. They had previously organised the Love Pageant Rally to protest a new law banning LSD, which also provided the central theme for the Human Be-In. The pair contacted Berkeley radicals such as Jerry Rubin and Max Scheer, as well as a number of rock bands, beat poets and other counter-cultural figures.

The event itself provided worldwide media exposure to the emerging hippie movement. Connections to the earlier "Beat Generation" were provided by the poets Allen Ginsberg and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. The Hells Angels provided security and a group called the Diggers handed out food. The psychologist, Dr Timothy Leary, suggested that everyone "Turn on, tune in, drop out"; while, Owsley Stanley distributed his "White Lightning" LSD. Music was provided by Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, and Quicksilver Messenger Service.

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On this day in history: Colored National Labor Union founded, 1869

The end of the American Civil War and the resultant emancipation of slaves produced economic changes, which brought about a growth in interest in trade unions. In 1866 Andrew Cameron founded the National Labor Union (NLU) to provide a national organisation for local worker associations. The NLU proved ineffective when it came to defending the rights of black workers, who were not even permitted to attend NLU conferences.

On 13th January 1869, 214 African Americans assembled in Washington D.C. where they founded their own workers' association, the Colored National Labor Union (CNLU), in pursuit of equal representation in the workplace. The foundation of the CNLU soon had an effect: the NLU invited its first president, Isaac Myers, to speak at their conference later that year, which was also attended by eight other black delegates. Under Myers the CNLU also successively petitioned Congress to give some southern public lands to African Americans.

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On this day in history: Balloonmania reached the United States, 1793

In the years following the Montgolfier brothers' first successful balloon flights in 1783 'balloonmania' swept across Europe. One of the greatest promoters of this new form of transport was the Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard. He made his first successful flight at Paris using a hydrogen filled balloon in March 1784. He then travelled around Europe demonstrating his balloons becoming the first to fly a balloon across the English Channel (accompanied by Dr. John Jeffries), as well the first to fly such devices in Belgium, Germany, Holland and Poland.

Blanchard then crossed the Atlantic and on 9th January 1793 he added to his records by making the first balloon flight in the United States. President George Washington observed Blanchard take to the air at around 10:10am from Philadelphia in Pennsylvania after having given the Frenchman a letter under his seal requiring that no US citizen hinder him. Also watching the launch were the future presidents John Adams, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe. At 10:56am, Blanchard landed at Deptford in Gloucester County, New Jersey, where he soon attracted a crowd of bemused onlookers who were not only impressed by the manner of his arrival, but also by the President's letter.

Blanchard's Journal of my forty-fifth ascension, being the first performed in America, on the ninth of January, 1793 is available in a number of file formats on the Internet Archive site.

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On this day in history: First transatlantic telephone service, 1927

The earliest attempt at transatlantic telephony was in 1915 when the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (later known as AT&T) managed to transmit one-way voice signal between the Naval Wireless Station in Arlington, Virginia and the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The limits of available technology and then the First World War brought an end to the experiments. Eight years later AT&T again demonstrated the feasibility of telephone calls between Europe and the United States by sending a speech signal from New York to New Southgate in London.

At that time the General Post Office (GPO) managed the British telephone system and its head, the Postmaster-General, was so impressed with the demonstration that he decided to cooperate with AT&T and the Western Electric Company to create a commercial transatlantic telephone service using radio signals. The GPO built a 200 kilowatt transmitter at the Post Office Station at Rugby and experiments began to improve transmission to such a point that it was commercially viable. Furthermore the telephone network infrastructure in Britain and the United States required substantial development.

In February 1926, the engineers achieved two-way voice communication between the two radio stations and a month later journalists gathered at the trunk exchanges in London and New York to take part in a demonstration of two-way voice communication. Finally, on 7th January 1927, the service opened with a call between Sir Evelyn Murray, the Secretary of the GPO and Walter S. Gifford, the president of AT&T, followed by calls between those subscribers who had booked calls for that day.

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On this day in history: Voyager completed record flight, 1986

In 1980, a former United States Air Force pilot called Dick Rutan met fellow pilot Jeana Yeager (no relation of Chuck Yeager) at an airshow in Chino, California. Romance blossomed between the two, and Yeager became a test pilot at Rutan's aircraft company, which he ran with his aerospace designer brother, Burt. Over lunch one day at the Mojave Inn in 1981, the three of them discussed making an aircraft capable of being the first aircraft to circumnavigate the World without landing or refuelling.

Over the next five year's they refined the initial design that Burt sketched on a napkin to create Voyager. The aircraft had a lightweight fuselage made from carbon fibre, fibreglass and Kevlar. Engines powered propellers at the front and rear, with the front only used to provide the extra power for take-off and the early part of the flight.

At 8.01am local time on 14th December 1986, Dick and Jeanna lifted off from the runway at Edwards' Air Force Base, California, to embark on their record-breaking flight attempt. Despite a tricky take-off, in which Voyager's wing-tips sustained damaged, and course changes necessitated by the weather and a lack of permission to fly in Libyan airspace, over the next five days the pair flew their westward course around the World. Approaching California one of the fuel pumps failed; nevertheless, they successfully landed back at Edwards' on 23rd December, having flown 26,366 miles (42,432 km) in nine days, 3 minutes and 44 seconds.

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Montgolfier Brothers first public balloon flight: 4th June 1783
First Zeppelin flight: 2nd July 1900
First successful powered aeroplane flight: 17th December 1903
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On this day in history: First gorilla born in captivity, 1956

In January 1951, a hunter called Bill Said brought three gorillas to Columbus Zoo in Ohio. Two of the apes, Millie Christina and Baron Macombo, stayed at the zoo as a mated pair. On 22nd December 1956, a female gorilla was born to them, the first gorilla to be born in captivity.

That morning, a young veterinary student and zoo-keeper called Warren Thomas noticed a change in Millie's usual behaviour, investigating further he found a baby gorilla still in the amniotic sac. He took the baby to the kitchen where broke open the sac to find the infant struggling to breathe. Thomas cleared the mucous from the baby's mouth and engaged in mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Even though the zoo staff overcame the initial crisis the baby still needed round-the-clock attention, spending time in an incubator. While she spent her time growing in strength zoo and city administrators decided to hold a competition to find a name for the infant gorilla. Their initial prize of $50 was boosted by a $100 donation from the actor Clark Gable. Nineteen people submitted the winning entry, Colo, derived from Columbus, Ohio.

Colo is now the oldest captive gorilla in the World, becoming a great-great-grandmother in 2003.

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On this day in history: Electricity generated by nuclear power for the first time, 1951

In 1934 the Italian physicist Enrico Fermi produced nuclear fission for the first time for which he received the Nobel Prize for Physics four years later. After receiving his prize, Fermi emigrated to the United States with his Jewish wife, Laura, to escape Mussolini's increasingly anti-semitic fascist regime in his homeland. He worked at Columbia University where he continued experimenting on nuclear fission before joining the project at the University of Chicago constructing the world's first nuclear reactor.

Following America's entry into the Second World War, the experimental work conducted on Chicago Pile-1 became part of the Manhattan Project, which was engaged in creating nuclear weapons. Following the end of the war, development began on more peaceful applications of reactor research, including the generation of electricity. To this end the United States government established the National Reactor Testing Station (NRTS) - now called the Idaho National Laboratory - in the Idaho desert in 1949.

That year construction work began on the Experimental Breeder Reactor 1 (EBR-1) at NRTS. Walter Zinn, who had also worked on the Manhattan Project, and his team at the Argonne National Laboratory designed EBR-1 as an attempt to prove that it was possible to create a breeder reactor rather than to become a working power plant. A breeder reactor is one that creates nuclear fuel at a rate that is greater than it can consume it.

On 24th August 1951 the reactor went critical for the first time. At 1:50pm on 20th December 1951, the power station produced electricity for the first time. It generated enough electricity to illuminate four 200watt light bulbs. The next day the scientists repeated the experiment, producing enough electricity for the EBR-1 building.

Two years later, it successfully began producing fuel as a breeder reactor. Experiments continued on the EBR-1, even after the reactor suffered a partial meltdown in November 1955, until it was deactivated in 1964. The following year EBR-1 became a National Historic Landmark.

To learn more about the reactor see the Experimental Breeder Reactor 1 fact-sheet available as a pdf file from the Idaho National Laboratory site.

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On this day in history: First successful powered airplane flight, 1903

At the dawn of the twentieth-century, the brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright left their cycle manufacturing business in Dayton, Ohio and travelled to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina to undertake experiments with flying machines. Over the next few years they made their annual pilgrimage to the sands of Kitty Hawk to refine the design of their manned gliders. Following successful test flights in the 1902 Glider, the brothers added an engine designed and built by one of their employees, Charlie Taylor, to their next model: the Wright Flyer I.

In December 1903, the brothers returned to North Carolina and assembled the Flyer while performing flight tests with the 1902 Glider. On the 14th, the brothers tossed a coin to decide which of them should pilot the Flyer for its maiden flight. Wilbur won, but he stalled the plane after pulling up too sharply.

Fortunately the aircraft did not suffer any major damage and was ready for another test flight within days. On 17th December 1903, Orville took his chance to make history. The flight lasted for twelve seconds in which time he covered a distance of 36.5m (120 feet). According to the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale this was the World's first "sustained and controlled heavier-than-air powered flight."

The Smithsonian Institution refused to recognise the Wright's flight, preferring to give the accolade to one of their former secretaries, Samuel Pierpont Langley. Following Orville's unsuccessful attempt blackmail the Smithsonian into recognising the Wright's achievement by threatening to allow another museum to have the Flyer, the aircraft become an exhibit at the Science Museum in London, in 1928. Fifteen years later, Orville allowed the aircraft to be relocated to the Smithsonian after he received assurances that no other successful flight will be recognised by the Institution on a date prior to that of the brothers.

To learn more about these pioneering aeronauts and their aircraft, see the Wright Experience site.

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Montgolfier Brothers first public balloon flight: 4th June 1783
First Zeppelin flight: 2nd July 1900
First flight around the world: 28th September 1924
Charles Lindbergh arrived in Paris: 21st May 1927
Maiden flight of Boeing 747: 9th February 1969
Last commercial Concorde flights: 24th October 2003

On this day in history: Fats Waller died, 1943

Thomas Wright Waller was born in New York City on 21st May 1904. His mother, Adeline, taught him to play the reed organ with which he later accompanied his father, the Reverend Edward Waller, an Abyssinian Baptist Church lay preacher. At school he played piano and at the age of 15 he started work as the organist at the Lincoln Theatre on 135th Street, in Harlem.

When his mother died in 1920, Waller moved in with pianist Russell B. T. Brooks and his family. Waller developed under the tutelage of James P. Johnson, who also recommended him for a vacancy at Leroy's nightclub, where he became an all-round entertainer. In 1922, Johnson took Waller to QRS ("Quality Reigns Supreme") to record piano rolls. On these rolls, Waller developed ragtime into what became known as stride piano.

That same year, the eighteen year old Waller started his audio recording career with Okeh, recording two solos: "Muscle Shoals Blues" and "Birmingham Blues". He also recorded as an accompanist for a number of blues artists. He became a huge success not only through his piano playing and song-writing on numbers such as "Squeeze Me", "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Honeysuckle Rose", but also because of his stage personality as a loveable rogue.

While touring in Chicago in 1926, Waller was kidnapped and taken to the Hawthorne Inn, owned by Al Capone. There he found a party in full swing: it was Capone's birthday party and he was the surprise performer. Forced to play piano at gunpoint he later left the party, drunk and thousands of dollars better off, having received tips from Capone and other party-goers.

In the mid-1930s, while working on the West Coast, Waller appeared in two movies: Hooray for Love! (1935) and King of Burlesque (1936). He continued to tour, taking his band to Europe in 1938 and again in 1939; although, the outbreak of war cut the tour short. While in Britain he recorded his London Suite, six thematically linked solo piano pieces that demonstrated his aspirations as a serious composer.

He continued to tour extensively and returned to Hollywood to lead an all-star band in Stormy Weather in 1943. By that time his touring regime, his overeating and heavy drinking were taking a toll on Waller. He died of pneumonia on 15th December 1943, aged 39, while on a train near Kansas City, Missouri.


A 1941 promotional film of "Your Feet's Too Big"

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On this day in history: John Sinclair released from prison, 1971

Born in Flint, Michigan, in 1941, John Sinclair became a major figure in the late 1960s counter-culture movement. He wrote for the underground press, organised free festivals and managed the garage rock band MC5. In 1968 he co-founded the White Panther Party with Lawrence Plamondon and his partner Leni Arndt, in response to an interview in which the co-founder of the Black Panther Party, Huey P. Newton, asked what white people could do to support the Panther's cause.

In July 1969, Sinclair was convicted of giving two marijuana joints to an undercover policeman. The presiding judge, Robert Colombo, sentenced him to between nine-and-a-half and ten years in prison. While incarcerated he wrote books, continued to direct activities of the White Panther Party, and engaged in an appeal against his conviction, questioning the constitutionality of Michigan's draconian marijuana laws.

His cause attracted widespread support, culminating on on 10th December 1971 with the "Free John Now Rally" at the Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor. The event was opened by the beat port Allen Ginsberg and featured music from John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, Stevie Wonder, Phil Ochs and Bob Seger. Abbie Hoffman (co-founder of the Youth International Party), Jerry Rubin (social activist), Bobby Seale (chairman of the Black Panthers) all made speeches, as did Sinclair himself, via a remote hookup.

The day before the event, the Michigan Senate had approved a bill to cut the maximum penalty for marijuana from ten years to ninety days. As a consequence the 15,000 who attending the eight hour concert were confident that Sinclair would soon be released. Indeed, on 13th December 1971, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled in favour of Sinclair and he was released from prison.

The Bentley Historical Library of the University of Michigan houses the John and Leni Sinclair Papers, and hosts a biography of John Sinclair on its website.

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On this day in history: First trans-oceanic yacht race, 1866

At 1pm on 11th December 1866, three schooners sailed from Sandy Hook, Connecticut, their destination was the Needles, near Cowes in the Isle of Wight. The three yachts taking part in 'The Great Atlantic Yacht Race' were the Henrietta, owned by New York Herald publisher James Gordon Bennett, Jr., George A. Osgood's Fleetwing, and the Vesta, owned by the tobacco manufacturer, Pierre Lorillard. Each owner wagered $30,000 on what was the first ever trans-oceanic yacht race, and while Osgood and Lorillard remained in New York, Bennett set sail with his crew.

A flotilla of sailing craft escorted the three yachts from New York to the docks at Sandy Hook, which were lined with a cheering throng. One day into the race, the Henrietta opened a lead on the other two craft and later the Vesta, under the command of Captain Dayton, parted company with the Fleetwing commanded by Captain Thomas. The trailing yacht ran into trouble on the eighth day of the race when she encountered a heavy gale that caused six men to be washed overboard, all of whom were lost along with the yacht's jibboom.

The Henrietta won the race and the $90,000 prize (more than $2 million in today's money), taking 13 days, 21 hours and 55 minutes to complete the crossing. In spite of her earlier tragedy, the Fleetwing came second due to a navigational mistake by the pilot who joined the crew to guide them safely to their goal. Due to misty conditions, he mistook the lighthouse at St. Katherine for the one at the Needles.

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On this day in history: Elvis` comeback special aired on TV, 1968

Elvis Presley had enjoyed unprecedented success in the late 1950s and early 1960s, but by 1968 his career was on the wane. He had released his last studio album in 1962 and since then he had concentrated on movie soundtracks; however, sales of these were also declining: the soundtrack for Speedway only reached number 82 in the US album charts. He had also not topped the Billboard Singles Chart since "Good Luck Charm" in 1962.

Elvis' manager, "Colonel" Parker, signed a deal with NBC for one of television special. Parker intended that the show have a Christmas theme with Elvis singing carols; however, the show's director and co-producer, Steve Binder, had other ideas. Binder proposed that the show involve extravagant choreographed versions of Elvis' hits. The singer agreed and filming of the big production numbers took place between June 20th and 23rd at Western Recorders in Hollywood.

After filming the staged songs, Elvis and his band would wind down with improvised performances of old blues and rock'n'roll songs. Seeing this, Binder suggested that they include intimate live footage in the special. Elvis was a nervous about this at first (he had not performed live since 1961) but with Binder's support and encouragement he performed four shows to small audiences on June 27th and 29th at NBC's Burbank studios accompanied by musicians including the surviving members of his original backing band.

The finished show, simply called Elvis, aired on the NBC network on 3rd December 1968 attracting 42% of the viewing audience. It received favourable reviews and resulted in a number 12 hit single "If I had a dream", which was specially written for the show, and the soundtrack of the show peaked at number 8 in the album charts. Buoyed by the success of the special, over the next few years, Elvis returned to the studio to record a series of acclaimed albums and resumed performing live, including a four week stint at the new International Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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On this day in history: Oldest surviving synagogue in North America dedicated, 1763

In May 1492, the joint monarchs of Spain, Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon, made the Alhambra Decree, by which all Jews in Spanish territories had to either convert to Catholicism or go into exile. Many Jewish families fled the Iberian peninsular and settled in the Caribbean only to have to move on when they were found by the Inquisition. So it was that a group of fifteen Jewish families arrived at Newport, Rhode Island, in 1658 to enjoy the religious tolerance afforded there.

Over the next century their community grew large enough to form a congregation called Nefutse Yisrael ("the Scattered of Israel") and undertook to raise the funds to build a synagogue. Construction of the building, designed by Peter Harrison, began in 1759. The following year the congregation elected their first religious leader, the Dutch born Isaac de Abraham Touro. On 2nd December 1763, he dedicated the synagogue, which bears his name.

The academic and Congregationalist minister Ezra Stiles recorded the dedication ceremony, which he attended:

In the Afternoon was the dedication of the new Synagogue in this Town. It began by a handsome procession in which were carried the Books of the Law, to be deposited in the Ark. Several Portions of Scripture, & of their Service with a Prayer for the Royal Family, were read and finely sung by the priest [Chazzan Touro] & People. There were present many Gentlemen & Ladies. The Order and Decorum, the Harmony & Solemnity of the Musick, together with a handsome Assembly of People, in a Edifice the most perfect of the Temple kind perhaps in America, & splendidly illuminated, could not but raise in the Mind a faint Idea of the Majesty & Grandeur of the Ancient Jewish Worship mentioned in Scripture.

Dr. Isaac de Abraham Touro performed the Service. The Synagogue is about perhaps fourty foot long & 30 wide, of Brick on a Foundation of free Stone: it was begun about two years ago, & is now finished except the Porch & the Capitals of the Pillars. The Front representation of the holy of holies or its Partition Veil, consists only of wainscoted Breast Work on the East End, in the lower part of which four long Doors cover an upright Square Closet the depth of which is about a foot or the thickness of the Wall, & in this Apartment (vulgarly called the Ark) were deposited three Copies & Rolls of the Pentateuch, written on Vellum or rather tanned Calf Skin; one of these Rolls I was told by Dr. Touro was presented from Amsterdam & is Two Hundred years old; the Letters have the Rabbinical Flourishes.

A Gallery for the Women runs round the whole Inside, except the East End supported by Columns of Ionic order, over which are placed correspondent Columns of the Corinthian order supporting the Cieling of the Roof. The Depth of the Corinthian Pedestal is the height of the Balustrade which runs round the Gallery. The Pulpit for Reading the Law, is a raised Pew with an extended front table; this placed about the center of the Synagogue or nearer the West End, being a Square embalustraded Comporting with the Length of the indented Chancel before & at the Foot of the Ark.

On the middle of the North Side & affixed to the ·Wall is a raised Seat for the Parnas or Ruler, & for the Elders; the Breast and Back interlaid with Chinese Mosaic Work. A Wainscotted Seat runs round the Sides of the Synagogue below, & another in the Gallery. There are no other Seats or pews. There may be Eighty Souls of Jews or 15 families now in Town. The Synagogue has already cost Fifteen Hundred Pounds Sterling. There are to be five Lamps pendant from a lofty Ceiling.
G. A. Kohut & P. Cowen, Ezra Stiles and the Jews, Selected Passages from his Literary Diary Concerning Jews and Judaism with Critical and Explanatory Notes (New York, 1902), pp. 58-9.

The Touro Synagogue website offers more information about the history of the Jewish community in Newport and their place of worship.

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