What Happened On
Lisa Nowak, astronaut and mugshot
Lisa Nowak, astronaut and mugshot
Astro-nut
February 5, 2007
NASA astronaut Lisa Nowak is arrested for attempted kidnapping after driving from Houston to Orlando and confronting another female astronaut who was dating her ex-boyfriend. Her travel supplies included adult diapers, a black wig, rubber tubing, gloves, BB-pistol, and plastic bags.
Nowak flew in space aboard Space Shuttle Discovery in July 2006, where she was responsible for operating the robotic arms of the shuttle and the International Space Station.
First Close-Up Pictures of Venus
February 5, 1974
Returned by NASA's Mariner 10.
TV's Biggest Flop
February 5, 1969
The TV show Turn-On, with host Tim Conway, airs on ABC. It was so offensive, that some stations pulled it off the air midway through the first episode and other stations in later time zones refused to air it at all. It was canceled before the next week's episode could be aired. It was a fast-paced sketch comedy show whose jokes and skits focused primarily on sex and politics. It was created by Ed Friendly and George Schlatter, the producers of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, and guest hosted by Tim Conway. Station WEWS, who pulled the show after 15 minutes, sent a letter to ABC stating, "If your naughty little boys have to write dirty words on the walls, please don't use our walls. Turn-On is turned off, as far as WEWS is concerned."
Tim Conway, was also part of some of TV's most successful shows, such McHale's Navy (1962-66) and The Carol Burnett Show (1967-78).
Mk 15 Bomb
Mk 15 Bomb
Have You Seen My Bomb?
February 5, 1958
A nuclear bomb is lost by the U.S. Air Force when a B-47 bomber carrying the bomb collides mid-air with an F-86 fighter. The Mk 15 nuclear bomb was jettisoned near the coast of Savannah, Georgia. Despite a massive search, the bomb was never found.
The B-47 bomber was on a simulated combat mission from Homestead Air Force Base in Florida when it collided with the F-86. The F-86 pilot safely ejected, but the B-47 remained airborne. The crew ejected the bomb to reduce weight and prevent the bomb from exploding during an emergency landing. The B-47 then landed safely at Hunter Air Force Base. At the time, the Air Force claimed that, although the bomb contained 400 pounds (180kg) of high explosives and highly enriched uranium, it was lacking the nuclear capsule needed to initiate the nuclear reaction. But, congressional testimony by then Assistant Secretary of Defense W.J. Howard in 1966 said the bomb was a "complete weapon, a bomb with a nuclear capsule."
World's Largest Gold Nugget
February 5, 1869
The Welcome Stranger, weighing more than 2,520 troy ounces (78 kg, 210 lb), is found in Victoria, Australia. It was only 1.2 inches (3 cm) below the surface.
Noriega Indicted on Bribery Charges
February 5, 1988
Manuel Noriega is indicted by a Miami grand jury on charges of accepting $4,600,000 in bribes from major drug dealers.
Screening of Airline Passengers
February 5, 1972
Screening of airline passengers and luggage becomes mandatory in the U.S.
Russian Orthodox Church
February 5, 1918
Russian Orthodox Church formally separates from Russia following the Bolshevik Revolution.
Push-Key Adding Machine
February 5, 1850
The push-key adding machine is patented, by Du Bois Parmelee.
Gregorian Calendar Adopted by Alsace
February 5, 1682
The Gregorian calendar is adopted by Alsace (part of France at the time). Today's date became February 16.
Roger Williams Arrives in the Colonies
February 5, 1631
Roger Williams arrives in the colonies. He founded Providence, Rhode Island (1636) and established the first Baptist Church in the colonies.
Birthdays
Nolan Bushnell
Born February 5, 1943
American businessman. He founded the Atari (1972) video game company and Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza-Time Theaters.
He is credited with Bushnell's Law: "All the best games are easy to learn and difficult to master."
Hank Aaron (Henry Louis Aaron)
Born February 5, 1934 d. 2021
American Hall of Fame baseball player. Hank Aaron played MLB from 1954-76 and held the major league record of 755 home runs, until it was broken by Barry Bonds (2007).
Invented the Twinkie
James A. Dewar
Born February 5, 1897 d. 1985
Canadian baker. Invented the Twinkie (1930). While working for Continental Baking Company (which later became Hostess) in Schiller Park, Illinois, he needed a substitute for the filling in their strawberry shortcake, as strawberries were seasonal. So he substituted cream for the strawberry filling and the Twinkie was born. He himself ate three a day and lived to the age of 88.
The original Twinkies had a stated shelf life of only 26 days (the newer ones = 45 days), but as we all know, after the Zombie Apocalypse the only thing remaining will be cockroaches and Twinkies.
Roger Staubach
Born February 5, 1942
American Football Hall of Fame quarterback.
Red Buttons (Aaron Chwatt)
Born February 5, 1919 d. 2006
American Oscar-winning actor. Film: Sayonara (1957, Oscar).
William S. Burroughs
Born February 5, 1914 d. 1997
American author. He is credited with being the first to use "heavy metal" to describe something hip. Writings: Naked Lunch (1959).
John Carradine (Richmond Reed Carradine)
Born February 5, 1906 d. 1988
American actor.
1919 Citroën A 8CV Torpedo
Photo Credit: Lars-Göran Lindgren Sweden
1919 Citroën A 8CV TorpedoPhoto Credit: Lars-Göran Lindgren Sweden
Andre Gustave Citroën
Born February 5, 1878 d. 1935
French automaker, industrialist. He brought Henry Ford's mass production of the automobile ideas to the European auto industry. In 1915, during the lead up to WWI, he built a munitions plant that had a capacity of 55,000 shells a day. After the war he converted his munitions plant to produce the small, inexpensive Citroën automobile (1919).
The Female Jesse James
Belle Starr (Myra Belle Shirley)
Born February 5, 1848 d. 1889
American outlaw, horse thief, "The Bandit Queen". She was convicted of horse theft in 1883 and was fatally shot in 1889 while riding in Montana in a case that is still officially unsolved, but her 18-year-old son, Eddie Reed, is believed by some historians to be the one who killed her.
Belle's name was made famous after dime novel and National Police Gazette publisher Richard K. Fox wrote his fictional novel Bella Starr, the Bandit Queen, or the Female Jesse James (1889).
Dunlop on a bicycle with his tires
Dunlop on a bicycle with his tires
John Boyd Dunlop
Born February 5, 1840 d. 1921
Scottish veterinarian and inventor. He patented the pneumatic tire (1888), although he would lose his patent rights when it was discovered the pneumatic tire had already been patented. Dunlop originally developed pneumatic tires for his son's tricycle and soon had them made commercially in Scotland. A cyclist using his tires began winning all his races and drew the attention of Harvey Du Cros, who then went into business with Dunlop.
Sir Robert Peel
Born February 5, 1788 d. 1850
English statesman, founder of the metropolitan police in London (c1829). The term "bobbie" is derived from his first name.
Deaths
Kirk Douglas (Issur Danielovitch)
Died February 5, 2020 b. 1916
American actor. He worked as a professional wrestler before making it in films.
Jean Lafitte
Died February 5, 1823 b. 1780
French pirate, leader of a band of adventurers off the coast of Louisiana. He served with the U.S. in the War of 1812 in which he helped Andrew Jackson defend New Orleans against the British.
Chris Browne (Christopher Kelly Browne)
Died February 5, 2023 b. 1952
American cartoonist. Son of Hägar the Horrible creator Dik Browne. After his father's death in 1989, he became the artist and writer for Hägar the Horrible until 2023.
Photo Credit: Johnmaxmena
Photo Credit: Johnmaxmena
Leon Spinks
Died February 5, 2021 b. 1953
American boxer, world heavyweight champion (1978), and 1976 Olympic gold medal winner.
Christopher Plummer (Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer)
Died February 5, 2021 b. 1929
Canadian Oscar-Tony-Emmy-winning actor. Film: The Sound of Music (1965, Baron Von Trapp) and The Man Who Would Be King (1975, Rudyard Kipling).
Photo Credit: Global Good News
Photo Credit: Global Good News
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (Mahesh Srivastava)
Died February 5, 2008 b. 1918
Indian Guru. Founder of Transcendental Meditation (TM) and claimed he could teach people to actually levitate. He claimed to have trained more than 40,000 TM teachers, teaching TM to more than five million people. He was also guru to celebrities such as The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Doug Henning, among others.
Doug McClure
Died February 5, 1995 b. 1935
American actor. TV: The Virginian (Trampas).
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Died February 5, 1993 b. 1909
American Oscar-winning screenwriter, director. Film: A Letter to Three Wives (1949, Oscar) and All About Eve (1950, Oscar). He coined the phrases "my little chickadee" for W.C. Fields and "Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy night!" for Bette Davis.
Dean Jagger
Died February 5, 1991 b. 1903
American Oscar-winning actor. Film: Twelve O'Clock High (1949, Oscar).
Charles "Chuck" Cooper
Died February 5, 1984 b. 1926
American basketball player. He was the first black drafted by the NBA (1950, Boston Celtics).
George Arliss (George Augustus Andrews)
Died February 5, 1946 b. 1868
British Oscar-winning actor. Film: Disraeli (1929, Oscar).
Charles XIII
Died February 5, 1818 b. 1748
King of Sweden (1809-18) and Norway (1814-18).