Happy birthday club

Those folks celebrating birthdays today include this gang:  Benjamin Butler, governor of Massachusetts, and also a Civil War general (he had a lot of political connections, so making him a general seemed like a good way to get their support.  It worked, but it didn't make him competent as a general).  Southernors didn't much care for him, and he was known to them as "Beast" Butler.  He did, however, come up with the idea of classifying runaway slaves as "contrabands", which gave the Union (arguably) legal grounds to keep them.  Why yes, he was in fact a lawyer.

Also born was Will Durant, who wrote "The Story of Philosophy" and later, with his wife Ariel, wrote "the Story of Civilization".  Great works indeed, but he seemed to show a lack of creativity with titles.

Another birthday celebrant was General Sir John Hackett, who, after retiring, wrote  "The Third World War: August 1985", which was a decent read.  During his career, moreover, he showed himself to be what soldiers referred to (in my day at least) as a "stud".  Wounded multiple times, he was captured at Arnhem, where he commanded the 4th Parachute Brigade.  He then escaped, despite being severely wounded, and was hidden for several months by a Dutch family, before he was well enough to get back to Allied lines.  Feeling unimportant yet?


Switching gears, Roy Rogers was also born on this day.  Trigger, Bullet, and Dale Evans were not.  (Or were they...?)  Vivien Leigh however definitely was.  But frankly, my dear...

Tina Turner's ex Ike was born on this date.  It's too bad he was such an a**hole, because he was a great musician.  He played on the song "Rocket 88", which arguably started that whole "rock and roll" fad when it was released in 1951.

Elke Sommer has a birthday today.  Thus far, she's the leader in the "hottest birthday celebrant" contest, informally held here on Historysnark.

Art Garfunkel is 70 today!  Where has the time gone?  He and Paul Simon did some great stuff together.  Admittedly, Art was basically just a passenger, but still...  Did you know he's also a mathematician?  Wonder if he's ever computed the odds of him having such a great music career despite having little to offer, other than a decent voice...?

Gram Parsons was also born on this date.  He was a member of The Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers, which were both mentioned in David Allan Coe's "Willie, Waylon, and Me"; which is a cool song.  Oh, but then he OD'd.  I suspect the reason he's not as well known as many is the fact that he foolishly did it at the age of 26, rather than the more popular and accepted age of 27.

Just a year later, out popped Peter Noone.  Don't recognize his name?  Well some people might decide to sing "I'm 'enery the eighth, I am, 'enery the eighth I am I am" while he blows out the candles.  Or even tell him "Mrs. Noone, you've got a luverrly ahem- son".  Figured it out yet?  Sigh.  Do I have to spell out that he was Herman in Herman and the Hermits?

Bill Walton was born on this date, so I feel comfortable in naming him the winner of the "Historysnark award for tallest birthday celebrant" for today. 

Bryan Adams also has a birthday today.  He used to be cool, at least for a Canadian.  Now, I guess not so much. 

The (almost) original Annie, Andrea McArdle turns- are you ready- 48 today.  Where have the years gone?  So does Tatum O'Neal, but she's probably pretty stoned/drunk whatever, so I doubt she'll even notice.  At least, if the stories about her are true, and I don't know.  It's just a rumor, so don't sue me.

Judy Reyes, aka Carla Espinosa has a birthday too.  Scrubs was awesome, so she gets a big hat tip for helping to make it so.

Self-proclaimed "idiot" Johnny Damon turns 38 today.  However, he didn't really do much when he played for the Tigers, so screw him.

And finally, one of the Jonas Brothers has a birthday today, but I don't know which one, and couldn't really care less anyway.

Finis.