Happy birthday to Samuel Hood, aka 1st Viscount Hood, or also aka Admiral Hood. He has a long and distinguished career as a British naval officer, which results in them naming a battlecruiser after him. Alas, come 1941 things don't end well for the Ship: It gets into a fight with the German Battleship Bismarck... And the fight lasts about as long as it takes the Germans to fire at the Brits. A shot hits the Hood, and apparently wanders around inside the ship looking for a good place to explode. When it finds a powder magazine, it decides that it's found the right spot. Unfortunately, only 3 men manage to survive, out of more than 1400. But hey, that has nothing to do with Hood himself.
Happy birthday also to John Jay, born in 1745. He became the first Supreme Court Justice in the US. Yay him!
Speaking of German generals (not that we were), happy birthday to Gerd von Runstedt, who was a field marshal in the Wehrmacht. He commanded German army groups in most of the major campaigns, except the ones where he commanded an entire front- which was pretty much everything from about 1942 on. He was one of the few generals that Hitler couldn't bully- Runstedt was old enough and experienced enough, as well as possessing a Prussian dignity many lacked, that Hitler could only treat him with complete respect. He was fired a couple times during the War, once because when a member of the General Staff whined "what shall we do?" over the phone at him; he replied "Make peace, you fools!". Adolph didn't really like that answer. He commanded the Western Front in 1944, so he was over Rommel (who he considered to be sort of a child marshal) when D-Day occurred. They disagreed over whether to meet the invasion on the beach or to have a flexible defense. Probably, neither one would have worked. He was pushed into retirement, and then emerged again to command the Germans in The Battle of the Bulge, when there was pretty much no chance of winning anyway. But he did survive the War, since his sense of honor made him ignore some of Hitler's crazier notions.
Also born today? Sammy Davis Sr, not to be confused with Sammy Davis Jr. Can you guess their relationship? Sr. was born in 1900 and died in 1988. Junior was born in 1925 and died in 1990; almost 2 years to the day after Dad. Which kinda sucks. At any rate, Sr was also a dancer, and taught Jr everything he knew.
Hmm. Here's some irony. What was the name of the informal group that Sammy Davis Jr belonged to in Hollywood? The Rat Pack. And who was the leader of the Rat Pack? Frank Sinatra of course! And who was also born on this date? Frank Sinatra! There's some irony!
Also born today, Bob Barker. When I was a lad, he hosted Truth or Consequences, then went on to a little show called The Price is Right. Now he's retired, but still spaying and neutering pets. Everyone needs a hobby, I guess.
Are you walking tall? You should be. And if you do, you'll be following in the footsteps of Buford Pusser of Tennessee. He was born on this date in 1937, and died in 1974. If you ever want to see a movie about him, look for the original one done in the 70s with Joe Don Baker (I think) as Pusser. Not strictly accurate, of course- there was no big stick- but better than the later one with The Rock. Oh, and while sheriff, Pusser apparently harassed a young musician named Jimmy Buffett, at least according to the latter. No real details available.
Also born on this date, in 1940 was Dionne Warwick. But if you believe in psychics, you knew that. She's also a cousin of Whitney Houston. During the 60s and 70s, Warwick did some really cool stuff, thanks to Bacharach and David.
Also born today, Carrie Westcott. She was in Playboy back in the days. She's hot- or was way back when. Haven't seen a pic of her in years. Yummy.
Sadly for her, Carrie doesn't win the award for Hottest birthday girl. Normally she would have won in a walk, but a mere two years after her birth, along came Jennifer Connelly. Ain't many women gonna beat her in a hotness contest. And if you've ever seen her ride the horsy in "Career Opportunities" you'd know that winning an Oscar was not the high point of her acting career.
If you're into that point where neuroscience and comedy meet- and who isn't, really- then you'll be a big fan of Mayim Bialik. She's in The Big Bang Theory, where she's pretty darned funny. And she really does have a PhD in neuroscience. Apparently.
And that's the end of the interesting list. For today, at least.
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