What Happened On
Taxi Driver
February 8, 1976
Martin Scorsese's psychological thriller starring Robert De Niro and Jodie Foster opens. It's about a lonely veteran (De Niro) working as a taxi driver, who descends into insanity as he plots to assassinate a presidential candidate. John Hinckley, Jr. would become obsessed with this movie and Jodie Foster, prompting him to attempt to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan in order to impress Foster. Hinckley's defense played the movie at his trial.
De Niro improvised the line "You talkin' to me?", which has become part of the pop culture lexicon.
Hollywood Walk of Fame
February 8, 1960
Official groundbreaking ceremonies are held for the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Previously, in August of 1958, eight stars were chosen at random from the initial list of 1,558 to be temporarily installed on the northwest corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue to demonstrate how the stars would look. Joanne Woodward was one of these eight and is often credited as the first star installed. However, there was no official first, but she was the first to pose for photographers with her star. The first permanent star was that of director Stanley Kramer, installed the next month.
First Gas-Chamber Execution
February 8, 1924
Convicted murderer Gee Jon is executed in Nevada, becoming the first person in the United States to be executed by lethal gas.
Gee Jon, a Chinese immigrant, had been convicted of killing the Chinese owner of a laundromat in a gang-related execution-style murder.
The Stars and Stripes
February 8, 1918
The first issue of The Stars and Stripes is published. It was the first U.S. Army newspaper, and was originally published for the troops during World War I.
The Birth of a Nation
February 8, 1915
D.W. Griffith's landmark film is released. Controversial for its portrayal of blacks as unintelligent and sexually aggressive towards white women, and the portrayal of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) as a heroic force. It has been called both "the most controversial film ever made in the United States" and "the most reprehensibly racist film in Hollywood history". The film is also credited with helping revitalize the KKK in the months following the film.
It was a huge commercial success, made on a budget of $110,000, it grossed between $50-100 million at the box office.
It was also the first motion picture to be screened in the White House, viewed by President Woodrow Wilson, his family, and members of his cabinet.
The film was innovative and groundbreaking in its theatrical techniques that included dramatic close-ups, tracking shots, parallel action sequences, and crosscutting.
Boy Scouts of America
February 8, 1910
The Boys Scouts of America is founded, by William D. Boyce. Boyce had been lost in the fog while visiting London and encountered a boy who guided him to his destination. The boy refused Boyce's tip, explaining that he was a Boy Scout and was merely doing his daily good deed. Intrigued, Boyce met with the Boy Scouts headquarters and upon his return to the U.S. he incorporated the Boy Scouts of America. Former U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt, who had long complained of the decline in American manhood, became an ardent supporter.
Mary Queen of Scots is Executed
February 8, 1587
Mary Queen of Scots, the former queen of Scotland (1542-67), is beheaded for her participation in a plot to kill Queen Elizabeth I.
Hustler
February 8, 1977
Publisher of Hustler magazine Larry Flynt is convicted of promoting obscenity and participating in organized crime.
Saturday Evening Post
February 8, 1969
Saturday Evening Post publishes its last issue.
First Airplane Flight Across the U.S. from West to East
February 8, 1912
Robert Grant Fowler arrives in Jacksonville, Florida. He had departed Los Angeles, on October 19th.
His first attempt the previous September ended after engine failure caused him to crash his Wright Brothers B plane. He then made this successful attempt in a Wright Cole Flier biplane.
First U.S. Woman to Buy Life Insurance
February 8, 1843
Isabella Chambers of New York becomes the first woman in the U.S. to buy life insurance.
First Opera Performed in America
February 8, 1735
Flora; or Hob in the Well. The play appeared in the book The Dramatic Works of Colley Cibber, Esq., but is attributed to Thomas Doggett and John Hippisley.
Wren building c. 1859
Wren building c. 1859
College of William and Mary
February 8, 1693
The College of William and Mary is granted its charter by King William III and Queen Mary II. It is the second oldest college in the U.S.
Birthdays
Ted Koppel (Edward James Martin Koppel)
Born February 8, 1940
British-born American Emmy-winning journalist. TV: Nightline (1980-2005, anchor).
James Dean
Born February 8, 1931 d. 1955
American actor. He starred in only three films, of which only East of Eden (1955) was released before his death. His other films were Rebel Without a Cause (1955) and Giant (1956). His first job in TV (1952) was testing stunts for Beat the Clock. He died at age 24 in a car crash, just a month before Rebel Without a Cause was released.
Lana Turner (Julia Turner)
Born February 8, 1921 d. 1995
American actress. In 1958, her daughter stabbed Lana's gangster boyfriend Johnny Stompanato, Jr. to death. Stompanato was beating Lana Turner when her 14-year-old daughter came in a stabbed him with a knife. The coroner ruled the daughter acted in self defense. Film: The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) and Peyton Place (1957).
First Xerox copy
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Xerox
First Xerox copyPhoto Credit: Courtesy of Xerox
Invented Xerox Copying
Chester F. Carlson
Born February 8, 1906 d. 1968
American physicist, inventor of the Xerox copying (1938). Carlson approached IBM with his invention, but they turned it down. In 1947, Carlson sold the rights to the Haloid Company (later renamed Xerox), who used the technology to create the Xerox 914 in 1959. It was the first plain paper photocopier, and has been called the "most successful product of all time."
Mendeleev's 1871 periodic table
Mendeleev's 1871 periodic table
Dmitri Mendeleev
Born February 8, 1834 d. 1907
Russian chemist. He created the periodic table of elements (1869).
War is Hell
William Tecumseh Sherman
Born February 8, 1820 d. 1891
American Civil War general (Union). He is known for his destruction of Georgia and his statement "War is hell."
Gary Coleman
Born February 8, 1968 d. 2010
American actor, "What you talkin' 'bout, Willis?" His short 4 foot 8 inch (142.24 cm) stature was due to congenital kidney disease and its treatment. TV: Diff'rent Strokes (1978-86).
John Grisham
Born February 8, 1955
American author. His first book, A Time To Kill (1989), was rejected by a dozen publishers. Writings: The Firm (1991), The Pelican Brief (1992), The Client (1993).
Robert Klein
Born February 8, 1942
American comedian.
Nick Nolte
Born February 8, 1941
American actor. Film: 48 Hours (1982) and Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986). TV: Rich Man, Poor Man (1976).
John Williams (John Towner Williams)
Born February 8, 1932
American Emmy-Grammy-Oscar-winning movie composer and conductor of the Boston Pops (1979-83). Film: The Poseidon Adventure (1972), Jaws (1975), Star Wars (1977), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982, Oscar), and Jurassic Park (1993).
Jack Lemmon (John Uhler Lemmon III)
Born February 8, 1925 d. 2001
American Oscar-Emmy-winning actor. Film: Mister Roberts (1955, Oscar, Ensign Pulver), The Odd Couple (1968), Save the Tiger (1974, Oscar), and Grumpy Old Men (1993).
Audrey Meadows (Audrey Cotter)
Born February 8, 1922 d. 1996
American actress. TV: The Honeymooners (1955-56, Alice Kramden).
Jules Verne
Born February 8, 1828 d. 1905
French science fiction author. His writings foreshadowed many things that were to come, such as air conditioning, gas-powered automobiles, and television. Writings: A Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873).
Proclus
Born February 8, 412 d. 485
Greek mathematician. He discovered that with a given point only one line can be drawn which is parallel to another given line.
Deaths
Mary Wilson
Died February 8, 2021 b. 1944
American Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer. Founding member of the Supremes, the most successful Motown act of the 1960s and the best-charting female group in U.S. history. Music: Where Did Our Love Go (1964, #1) and Stop! In the Name of Love (1965, #1).
Writings: Dreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme (1986).
Anna Nicole Smith (Vickie Lynn Hogan)
Died February 8, 2007 b. 1967
American actress, model, Playmate of the Year (1993). At age 26, she married 89-year-old billionaire J. Howard Marshall. She died of an accidental overdose from a combination of drugs she was taking to fight a stomach flu.
Quote: "I'm sick of being accused of gold-digging. It just so happens I get turned on by liver spots."
Del Shannon (Charles Weedon Westover)
Died February 8, 1990 b. 1934
American Hall of Fame singer. Music: Runaway (1961, #1).
Shannon committed suicide 15 days after he started taking the antidepressant Prozac to help him deal with stress of upcoming concerts and trying to finish a record album.
Fritz Zwicky
Died February 8, 1974 b. 1898
Swiss Astronomer. He coined the terms "supernova" (1934) describing the transition of stars into neutron stars, and "dark matter" (1993, dunkie materie) to explain why the gravitational mass of galaxies was at least 400 times greater than expected from their luminosity.
He also said rockets could not operate in space as they required the atmosphere to push against to provide thrust, later admitting he was wrong.
First Native American U.S. Vice-President
Charles Curtis
Died February 8, 1936 b. 1860
31st U.S. Vice-President (1929-33). As a member of the Kaw Nation born in the Kansas Territory, Curtis was the first person of significant Native American ancestry to serve as vice president, and is still the highest-ranking enrolled Native American ever to serve in the federal government. As a child, he was raised on the Kaw reservation with his maternal grandparents. His mother was Native American of mixed Kaw, Osage, and French ancestry. His father was of English, Scots, and Welsh ancestry.
He is also the last Executive Branch officer born in a territory rather than a state, having been born in the Kansas Territory a year before it became a state.
Curtis is also the last vice president who was unmarried during his entire time in office.
Mary Queen of Scots
Died February 8, 1587 b. 1542
Queen of Scotland (1542-67). She ascended to the throne when she was only six days old. She was beheaded for her participation in a plot to kill Queen Elizabeth I.
Burt Bacharach
Died February 8, 2023 b. 1928
American Oscar-winning composer. Music: Magic Moments (1958), What's New Pussycat? (1965), Do You Know the Way to San Jose? (1968), Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head (1969, Oscar, Grammy), Close To You (1970), and Arthur's Theme (1981, Oscar).
Robert Conrad (Conrad Robert Falk)
Died February 8, 2020 b. 1935
American actor. TV: The Wild Wild West (1965-69, secret agent Jim West) and Baa Baa Black Sheep (1976-78, Pappy Boyington).
Conrad had an undefeated professional boxing record of 4-0-1 and was inducted into the Stuntman's Hall of Fame for his stunt work on The Wild Wild West.