Today's Highlights:
Saturday, April 5, 2008
| Saturday, April 5, 2008 |
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| Bette Davis | |
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Spotlight: Film icon Bette Davis was born 100 years ago today. This year she became the 14th inductee in the Legends of Hollywood stamp series; she was also the first woman to receive the AFI's Lifetime Achievement Award and she was awarded the Distinguished Civilian Service Medal for founding and running the Hollywood Canteen during WWII. But, Davis was also notoriously cantankerous. She was difficult to work with, had notable feuds with other stars and was married four times. Davis said, "I'd marry again if I found a man who had fifteen million dollars, would sign over half to me and guarantee that he'd be dead within a year."
Question of the Day: How did Bette Davis feel about the song 'Bette Davis Eyes'?She liked it! Bette Davis thanked Kim Carnes, who popularized the song, and Donna Weiss and Jackie DeShannon, who wrote it, saying that she appreciated them "making her a part of modern times." More
Word of the day: clowdern. — A group of cats.
Usage: The old woman had put out milk for her kitten, and now a clowder waited daily outside her door.
The old saying goes, "Birds of a feather flock together." But, as a group, are they always called "flocks"? And what about other kinds of animals? Do they always travel in herds and packs? This week's collection of words is about groups of animals — both four-legged and two-legged.
Today's History:
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| Pocahontas Weds John Rolfe |
- Pocahontas: Algonquian princess married English colonist John Rolfe (1614)
- veto: was used by a US president for 1st time — by George Washington; it was another half century before Congress first overrode a presidential veto (1792)
- Helen Keller: breakthrough occurred when tutor Anne Sullivan spelled out "water" in her hand using the manual alphabet (1887)
Today's Birthdays:
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| Spencer Tracy |
- Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679): political philosopher, Leviathan
- Spencer Tracy (1900-1967): multiple Oscar-winning star of Adam's Rib and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner; other actors born on this date include Gregory Peck (1916-2003), Gale Storm (86), Michael Moriarty (67) and Max Gail (65)
- Colin Powell (71): former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and US secretary of state
- Agnetha Fältskog (58): one of the ABBA four; musicians Tommy Cash (68), Mike McCready (42), Troy Gentry (41), Paula Cole (40) and Pharrell Williams (35) were also born on this date
