On this day in 1756, for the 14th time since the Norman Conquest, England declared war on France. “Oh, no” the French cried, “Not again!”
On this day in 1803, for the 15th time since the Norman Conquest, England declared war on France. “Come on!” the French people yelled, “What is with you people? Did somebody slip some grumpy pills into your bangers and mash?
On this day in 1804, Napoleon Bonaparte was proclaimed Emperor of France and immediately declared war on England. “What??” shouted the English, “What did we ever do to you??”
On this day in 1830, Edwin Budding of England signed an agreement for manufacture of his invention, the lawn mower, and, just like that, the days of husbands relaxing on Saturdays were over.
On this day in 1927, Grauman’s Chinese Theater opened in Hollywood, California. Many movie stars claimed they had a hand in it.
On this day in 1956, New York Yankees superstar Mickey Mantle hit home runs from both sides of home plate for a record third time. Ah, the good old days when switch hitters were only found in baseball.
On this day in 1965, TV writer Gene Roddenberry pitched an idea for a science fiction series that took place in outer space. He suggested 16 possible names for the captain of the space ship and finally settled on, you guessed it, Captain Robert April, who would command the spaceship S.S. Yorktown (All true!). Oh, and Spock was half Martian. I’m happy, at least, that he didn’t change the name of the Klingons. Way too many good jokes would have been wiped out, but maybe I’ve said too much.
On this day in 1982, Canadian manufacturer Bombardier Inc. won a $1 billion contract to build 825 subway cars for New York; it was the largest-ever export contract for a Canadian manufacturer. New Yorkers were a bit nervous at first, though, when Bombardier got the contract. They said, “Our subway cars aren’t going to look like Ski-Doos, are they?
If your birthday is May 18th, you share it with actor Tina Fey who was born on this day in 1970. I’m not sure if Tina’s a religious person but I would guess she gets down on her hands and knees every day and thanks Sarah Palin, the goddess of good fortune for comedians and bad fortune for John McCain.
Tags: Bob Robertson, bombardier inc. new york, california, cbc radio comedy shows, comedy blog, Double Exposure Radio, edwin budding, england declared war on france, funny, gene roddenberry, grauman's chinese theatre, Hollywood, humour, john mccain, lawn mower, mickey mantle, napoleon bonaparte, new york yankees, norman conquest, parody, sarah palin, satire, ski-doos, subway cars, switch hitter, tina fey, today in History, today in hystery