WTF Happened on This Day???

In Movies
1968 – With “Night of the Living Dead“, the Zombie genre is born with George Romero‘s horror classic. “They’re coming to get you Barbara” became the first official “I’ll be right back” of horror, as poor Judith O’Dea has to flee a cemetery because the dead have inexplicably come back to life and started walking the Earth in search of human flesh.

Shot with basically a no name cast, the “Zombocalypse” genre began and today is still enduring. From the “Resident Evil” franchise to “I am Legend” to “28 Weeks Later” to “Zombieland“. One historical point in the film is the main characters being of different race and having to work together to survive. Strong subliminal but key point for the cultural times the country was dealing with. But no one was immune as Romero had all races screaming in the theaters together.

With this one film, Romero was able to tap into everything we’re afraid of: death, desecration of the flesh, cannibalism, brainwashing, disease and hopelessness. There’s also a stinging underlying social message about racism, media and paranoia where viewers got to learn, for the first time, that they could be just as dangerous and cruel as the mindless hordes of undead they were hiding from.

Classic Film Moment: The scene when the mother discovers her little daughter, Karen, down in the basement, eating her own father for lunch.

In Music
1982 – John Cougar Mellencamp went to No.1 on both the US album and singles chart with the album ‘American Fool’ and the single ‘Jack And Diane’.

This was the anthem for all nationalities in 1982.  Till this day the famous intro is blared throughout stadiums in this country. “Oh Yeah, Life Goes On”….

2007 – The Spice Girls London reunion concert sold out in 38 seconds after fans were notified tickets had gone on sale. More than one million people in the UK registered for the concert, on 15 December 2007 at the O2 arena, tickets cost £55-75. Three more London dates were added to the world tour which was kicking off in Vancouver on 2nd Dec.

1945 – Donny Hathaway was born. This classic soul singer was most famous for his 1972 single with Roberta Flack ‘Where Is The Love’ & 1978 single ‘The Closer I Get to You’ as well as the Christmas Anthem, 1970′s ‘This Christmas’.

1st World Series program

In Sports
1903 – The 1st World Series was played between the Boston Americansvs Pittsburgh Pirates. The Boston Americans won 5 games to 3. That franchise would eventually become the Boston Red Sox.  Hall of Famers Honus Wagner, Cy Young & Jimmy Collins played in that historical game

Classic Quote – “I thought I had to show all my stuff and I almost tore the boards off the grandstand with my fastball.” – Hall of Famer (and winner of two of the three games he started in the 1903 World Series) Cy Young

1975 – “The Thriller in Manila” – Muhammad Ali‘s third fight against his arch rival Joe Frazier was a spectacular ending to the two Heavyweights who faced each other for a total of 132 minutes in the ring. The “Thrilla in Manila” is considered one of the most brutal and bitter bouts in the history of boxing; it was the only time an Ali – Frazier bout did not last for the scheduled time.

Ali and Frazier fought to their absolute limit and beyond. Joe’s eyes were still shut hours after the fight. Ali’s body showed conspicuous signs of the battle, with hematomas and bruises and swellings everywhere, as a result of “punches that would have knocked down a house” as Joe later put it. Ali is supposed to have told Angelo Dundee yet during the fight that this was “the closest to dying” he had ever been.

Friends and fans of the champion hoped Ali would finally retire after this slaughter in the ring. He was 33 at the time. However, six more years would pass until this wish became reality. In the last ten bouts of his career, following the “Thrilla in Manila”, Ali would never again be as good as he was in Manila on the morning of October 1.

1945 – Rod Carew, Hall of Fame 1st basemen was born(AL Rookie of Year 1967). Known for his exceptional spray hitting ability while playing mainly for the Minnesota Twins and California Angels

1963 – Mark McGwire,  steroid plagued 1st baseman was born (AL rookie of year 1988) Known for hitting some of the most monumental home runs in history (while playing for the Oakland A’s & St. Louis Cardinals) and “resurrecting baseball” with Sammy Sosa etc. after the strike.  He was on the fast track to the Hall of Fame before it was discovered he was taking performance enhancing drugs.  This has basically killed his changes of making the hallowed wall at this point.

In History
1890 – Yosemite National Park forms
1896 – Yosemite becomes a National Park
1955 – Classic TV sitcom the “Honeymooners” premieres

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