What Happened On
First Black Woman in Space
September 12, 1992
NASA astronaut Mae Jemison becomes the first black woman in space, aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor. Jemison logged 190 hours, 30 minutes, 23 seconds in space and orbited the earth 127 times.
First Unmanned Spacecraft to Land on the Moon and Return
September 12, 1970
Soviet Luna 16 is launched. It returned to Earth 12 days later with 101 grams of lunar soil.
First Manmade Object to Strike the Moon
September 12, 1959
The Soviet Lunik 2 is launched striking the Moon two days later.
Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon, Pernell Roberts
Bonanza
September 12, 1959
The TV western Bonanza debuts on NBC. It was the first network western series televised entirely in color. But of course, not all local TV stations were capable of broadcasting in color at the time.
Note: The Cisco Kid (1950) was the first TV western filmed in color, but not all episodes were originally broadcast in color, making Bonanza the first network television western to be broadcast completely in color.
First U.S. Policewoman
September 12, 1910
Alice Stebbins Wells of Los Angeles is hired by LAPD, making her the first U.S. policewoman with the power to arrest. Up to that time, woman in police departments worked as matrons and only with female prisoners.
Patent and 1873 model
Patent and 1873 model
First Practical Typewriter
September 12, 1873
First practical typewriter is built Christopher Latham Sholes and Samuel W. Soule. It typed only capital letters and the numbers 2 through 9. It had been patented in 1868.
Photo Credit: Kancelaria Prezydenta RP
Photo Credit: Kancelaria Prezydenta RP
Pope Incites Protests
September 12, 2006
Pope Benedict XVI in a public speech quotes the words of a 15th century Byzantine emperor who characterized the teachings of Islam's founder, the Prophet Mohammad, as "evil and inhuman." The quote stated, "Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached."
Photo Credit: Jericho
Photo Credit: Jericho
Wells Fargo Robbed of $7.1 Million
September 12, 1983
The Puerto Rican terrorist organization Los Macheteros (the machete wielders) uses an inside worker to rob a Wells Fargo depot of $7.1 million. The stated goal of the Macheteros is to obtain the independence of Puerto Rico by armed struggle against the United States government.
Timothy Leary being arrested in 1972
Timothy Leary being arrested in 1972
Timothy Leary Escapes Prison
September 12, 1970
The former educator and LSD advocate Timothy Leary escapes from a California prison and flees to Algeria. He was several months into a ten-year prison sentence for possessing two marijuana "roaches". He escaped by using a telephone line to climb over the prison wall. He was then smuggled out the prison by the Weathermen, who were paid $25,000 by The Brotherhood of Eternal Love for their assistance. He and his wife then hid out in Argentina, fleeing to Switzerland in 1971. He was arrested by the federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs in 1972 while traveling in Afghanistan and sent to Folsom Prison and placed in a cell next to Charles Manson. Leary was released from prison in 1976.
During this time, U.S. President Richard Nixon labeled him "The most dangerous man in America".
Aircraft being blown up in front of press
Aircraft being blown up in front of press
Palestinian Terrorists Blow Up Hijacked Jet
September 12, 1970
Palestinian terrorists blow up a hijacked TWA jet in Jordan, after releasing the passengers and crew.
Legalized Horseracing
September 12, 1964
The first legal horse racing sweepstakes in the U.S. is held; the New Hampshire sweepstakes at Rockingham Park.
"Obey" Removed
September 12, 1922
The word "obey" is removed from the marriage vows of the U.S. Protestant Episcopal Church.
First Long-Running Broadway Musical
September 12, 1866
The Black Crook opens. It also marked the start of girlie shows in the U.S.
Birthdays
One of The Beatles - Well, almost
Thomas Henry "Tommy" Moore
Born September 12, 1931 d. 1981
English drummer. Was a member of the Silver Beetles (1960), which later became The Beatles. He quit because he "had enough of Lennon," and because their bookings interfered with his job as a fork-lift driver.
Moore quit after they returned from a tour where Moore lost his front teeth when the group's van was involved in a minor accident. When the other members tried to talk him into staying in the band, his wife shouted at them, "you can all piss off!"
Drums were taken over by Pete Best who was later replaced by Ringo Starr.
Jesse Owens (James Cleveland Owens)
Born September 12, 1913 d. 1980
American track star. He won four gold medals in the 1936 Olympics. At the 1935 Big Ten meet he set three world records and tied a fourth - all within a span of 45 minutes. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1976).
Charles Dudley Warner
Born September 12, 1829 d. 1900
American newspaperman. Famous for the quote, "While everybody talked about the weather, nobody seemed to do anything about it."
Peter Scolari
Born September 12, 1955 d. 2021
American Emmy-winning actor. TV: Bosom Buddies (1980-82, cross-dresser Henry/Hildegarde), Newhart (1984-90, Michael Harris). and Girls (2012-17, Tad Horvath).
Barry White (Barry Eugene White)
Born September 12, 1944 d. 2003
American singer-songwriter. Music: Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe (1974).
Maria Muldaur (Maria Grazia Rosa Domenica D'Amato)
Born September 12, 1943
American singer. Music: Midnight at the Oasis (1973).
Linda Gray
Born September 12, 1940
American actress. Sue Ellen of TV's Dallas.
Tatiana Troyanos
Born September 12, 1938 d. 1993
American mezzo-soprano singer, known for her roles as Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier and Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro.
Dickie Moore (John Richard Moore Jr.)
Born September 12, 1925 d. 2015
American actor, one of The Little Rascals. He gave Shirley Temple her first screen kiss, in Miss Annie Rooney (1942).
Desmond Llewellyn
Born September 12, 1914 d. 1999
Welsh actor. Film: Q in the James Bond movies.
H.L. Mencken (Henry Louis Mencken)
Born September 12, 1880 d. 1956
American newspaperman, critic for the Baltimore Sun. In 1917, he perpetrated The Great Bathtub Hoax which started myths that the bathtub was banned in parts of the U.S. In 1920, he predicted that if the voters got their wish the White House would eventually be occupied by a moron.
Invented the Gatling Gun
Richard Jordan Gatling
Born September 12, 1818 d. 1903
American physician. Invented the Gatling Gun (1862), the first successful rapid-fire machine gun. Its first combat use was during the American Civil War.
During the Civil War, disease killed more soldiers than gunshot. Gatlin believed his gun would reduce the size of armies and thus reduce the number of deaths by combat and disease.
Richard March Hoe
Born September 12, 1812 d. 1886
American inventor. He created the rotary press (1846), which enabled high-speed printing.
Henry Hudson
Born September 12, 1575 d. 1611
English explorer. He was the first white man to go up the Hudson River (1609).
Deaths
William Boyd
Died September 12, 1972 b. 1895
American actor. He played Hopalong Cassidy in the movies and television. His Hopalong Cassidy character was the first licensed character to appear on a metal lunchbox (1950).
Boyd's charisma and good looks helped make him a matinee idol in the 1920s, earning a salary of over $100,000 a year. In 1935, he was offered the supporting role of Red Connors in the movie Hop-Along Cassidy, but asked for and got the title role. The films were box office hits in the 1930s, but by the late 1940s "B" westerns were being phased out. Boyd mortgaged everything he owned to buy the rights to his films and licensed them to NBC television where they were edited to broadcast length and became an instant hit. In 1949, Hopalong Cassidy became the first network television Western series and the films earned Boyd millions, mostly from merchandising and endorsement deals. In 1950, more than 100 companies manufactured $70 million of Hopalong Cassidy products.
Boyd enlisted in the army during World War I, but was exempt from military service because of a "weak heart".
Film: The Road to Yesterday (1925).
Ray Dolby
Died September 12, 2013 b. 1933
American inventor. He developed the Dolby noise reduction system. He also won an Emmy award for his contribution to the first video recorder (1957).
Claude Chabrol
Died September 12, 2010 b. 1930
French film director. He is credited with starting the "nouvelle vague" (new wave) French film movement, which helped revitalize French Cinema in the 1960s. Film: Les Cousins (1959) and Les Bonnes Femmes (1960).
Johnny Cash (John R. Cash)
Died September 12, 2003 b. 1932
American Country Hall of Fame and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Grammy-winning country music singer, "The Man in Black."
Tom Ewell (Yewell Tompkins)
Died September 12, 1994 b. 1909
American actor. He claimed that due to an inferiority complex he never watched any of his movies. Stage: The Seven Year Itch (1953, Tony Award). Film: The Seven Year Itch (1955). TV: Baretta (Billy Truman).
Raymond Burr (William Stacey Burr)
Died September 12, 1993 b. 1917
Canadian-born American Emmy-winning actor. Film: Godzilla (1954, the American reporter) and Rear Window (1954, the suspected murderer). TV: Perry Mason (1957-66, 1985-93, title role) and Ironside (1967-75, title role). Radio: Fort Laramie (1956, Cavalry Captain Lee Quince).
Harold Innocent (Harold Sydney Harrison)
Died September 12, 1993 b. 1933
English actor. Film: Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991, the corrupt bishop).
Anthony Perkins
Died September 12, 1992 b. 1932
American actor. Film: Psycho (1960, Norman Bates).
Peter Mark Roget
Died September 12, 1869 b. 1779
English lexicographer, physician. He compiled Roget's Thesaurus (1852). The original edition contained 15,000 words. He had been working on it for almost 50 years.
An avid chess player, Roget solved the general open knight's tour problem and designed an inexpensive pocket chessboard.
Afonso VI
Died September 12, 1683 b. 1643
King of Portugal (1656-67). He was deposed by his brother and driven into exile.
Innocent VI
Died September 12, 1362 b. ????
French-born religious leader, 199th Pope (1352-62).