Friday April 30th

Today’s Word: The English language was carefully, carefully cobbled together by three blind dudes and a German dictionary.

 

1803

Louisiana Purchase: The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million, more than doubling the size of the young nation.

 

1938

The animated cartoon short Porky's Hare Hunt debuts in movie theaters, introducing Happy Rabbit (a prototype of Bugs Bunny).

 

1987

Brian Mulroney and 10 premiers agree on constitutional draft called the Meech Lake Accord, to enable Quebec to join the constitutional fold by meeting its five conditions, including recognizing Quebec as a distinct society

 

2005

Missing Georgia woman Jennifer Wilbanks, the so-called "runaway bride," turned up in Albuquerque, N.M.

 

2008

Former Swift Current Bronco Nathan Smith is in a little trouble after a streaking incident. Nathan Smith, 26, the Captain of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League, was charged with indecent exposure, according to The Canadian Press, when a police officer saw him running naked down a street early Sunday morning. Also arrested was teammate Ryan Stone, 23, who was charged with public drunkenness.

Smith also faces charges of open lewdness, disorderly conduct, and public drunkenness.  Both players are Alberta natives, as Smith is from Strathcona, and Stone is from Calgary. The Penguins' farm team is preparing to play in the second round of the AHL playoffs.  The team said disciplinary action will be taken against the players. Smith had also read a prepared apology. Big deal, people used to streak through the A&W parking lot all the time.

2009

Chrysler automobile company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

 

National news headlines this morning: The first U.S. women allowed to serve aboard submarines will be reporting for duty by 2012, the Navy said Thursday as the military ordered an end to one of its few remaining gender barriers

 

 

 

Birthdays

 

Tyler Wilkinson born in Belleville, Ontario. –26- The energetic youngster teams with his father, Steve, and older sister, Amanda, to form The Wilkinsons, who enter the national stage with their sentimental ode to mother, "26 Cents"

 

Singer-songwriter Carolyn Dawn Johnson born in Grande Prairie, Alberta. –39- Her 2001 debut yields a hit with "Complicated." She also writes Chely Wright's "Single White Female" and Jo Dee Messina's "Downtime"

 

Bass player Robert Reynolds –48- He's a founding member of The Mavericks, who gain the Country Music Association's vocal group of the year honors for two years in the mid-'90s. He marries Trisha Yearwood for five years

 

Willie Nelson born in Abbott, Texas, -77- though some relatives insist it was the 29th. After writing "Crazy" and "Hello Walls," he becomes a major figure in the '70s outlaw movement, earning a plaque in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1993

 

Johnny Horton born in Los Angeles. –wb 85- Married to Hank Williams' widow, Billie Jean Jones, he finds a niche in the late-1950s and 1960 with historically based singles, including "North To Alaska," "Sink The Bismarck" and "The Battle Of New Orleans"