Saturday, September 4, 2010

Answer of the Day
With e-readers and the Internet, do people still go to the library? They sure do. Check it out. Some two thirds of Americans have a library card. The American Library Association calls it "the most important school supply of all." September is National Library Card Sign-up Month. In most cases, borrowing privileges start as soon as you sign up for a card in your neighborhood library. And libraries aren't just about books: most also loan audio- and videotapes, computer software, DVDs, CDs, toys, games and puzzles.

Quote
"The library is the temple of learning, and learning has liberated more people than all the wars in history." — Carl T. Rowan

Word of the day

(© )

Today's History

An Edsel

• Roman Empire: came to an end — or at least the Western part did — when emperor Romulus Augustus was deposed (476)
• Los Angeles: the US's No. 2 city, the City of Angels, was founded by Spanish governor Felipe de Neve (1781)
• Geronimo: Apache chief became the last Native American warrior to surrender to US troops (1886)
• Edsel: the most famous American automotive lemon was introduced by Ford; it was named for Henry Ford's son, Edsel (1957)
• Mark Spitz: swimmer won his seventh gold medal (1972); this record for the most golds at a single Olympics stood until it was broken by Michael Phelps in August 2008
• Google: the Internet's foremost search engine was introduced by Larry Page and Sergey Brin (1998)

Today's Birthdays

Richard Wright

• Lewis Latimer (1848-1928): inventor, made improvements to the lightbulb
• Edward Dmytryk (1908-1999): film director who was one of the Hollywood Ten
• Richard Wright (1908-1960): author, Native Son; writers François René Chateaubriand (1768-1848), Antonin Artaud (1896-1948) and Mary Renault (1905-1983) were also born on this date
• Dr. Drew Pinsky (52): Loveline and Celebrity Rehab host; plus, radio commentator Paul Harvey (1918-2009)
• Tom Watson (61): champion golfer; also, colleague Ray Floyd (68)
• Beyoncé Knowles (29): singer/actor; also, entertainers Mitzi Gaynor (79), Merald "Bubba" Knight (68), Jennifer Salt (66), Martin Chambers and Judith Ivey (both 59), Khandi Alexander (53), Damon Wayans (50), Noah Taylor (41), Ione Skye (39) and Wes Bentley (32)