July 5, Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1687 Isaac Newton‘s great work Principia published by Royal Society in England, outlining his laws of motion and universal gravitation

1811 Venezuelan Declaration of Independence: 7 provinces declare themselves independent of Spain

1852 Frederick Douglass, fugitive slave, delivers his ‘What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?’ speech to the Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester, condemns the celebration as hypocritical sham

1865 US Secret Service begins operating under the Treasury Department

1994 Amazon.com founded in Bellevue, Washington by Jeff Bezos

2004 First Indonesian presidential election by the people – first round (eventually won by Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono)

Today’s Historical Events

649 St Martin I begins his reign as Catholic Pope

767 Duke of Nepi names his brother (leek) Pope Constantine II

1166 Austrian town of Bad Kleinkirchheim is first mentioned, in an ecclesiastical document

1294 Pietro del Murrone elected as Pope Coelestinus V

1295 Scotland and France form an alliance, the beginnings of the Auld Alliance, against England

1436 German emperor Sigismund signs peace with Hussieten

1450 Pope Nicolas V names Walraven van Meurs bishop of Munster

1596 English fleet under Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, captures Cadiz

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1953 WANC TV channel 21 in Asheville, NC (IND) begins broadcasting

1954 The BBC broadcasts its first television news bulletin

1961 KUSD TV channel 2 in Vermillion, SD (PBS) begins broadcasting

1970 20th Berlin International Film Festival cancelled due to controversy surrounding the participation of Michael Verhoeven’s anti-war film “o.k.”

1989 “Seinfield” (originally titled The Seinfeld Chronicles” screens its pilot episode starring Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Michael Richards on NBC

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1942 1st performance of Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Chôros 6/9/11

1947 “Barefoot Boy with Cheek” closes at Martin Beck NYC after 108 performances

1954 Singer Elvis Presley‘s 1st professional recording session (with guitarist Scotty Moore & bass player Bill Black) takes place at Sam Phillips’ Memphis Recording Service in Memphis, Tennessee. The trio record four songs including their historic cover of Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup’s song “That’s All Right”. [1]

1963 1st Beatles’ tune to hit US charts, Del Shannon’s cover of “From Me to You” at no. 87

1965 Greek-American soprano Maria Callas makes her final opera stage appearance in the title role of Giacomo Puccini‘s “Tosca” at Convent Garden, London, England

1968 John Lennon sells his psychedelic painted Rolls-Royce

1969 Rolling Stones play a free concert in London’s Hyde Park

1975 At Knebworth Festival in England, Pink Floyd debut their album “Wish You Were Here” with pyrotechnics and an exploding plane which flies into the stage

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1898 Lizzie Arlington becomes first woman to play professional men’s baseball when she pitches 9th inning for the Reading Coal Heavers against the Allentown Peanuts; allows 2 hits and walks a batter but preserves 5-0 win

1902 All-rounder Monty Noble takes 6 for 52 as Australia wins the one and only cricket Test played at Sheffield’s Bramall Lane, England

1904 NY Giants 18-game winning streak ends as Phillies win 6-5 in 10 innings at Huntington Park

1906 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Dorothea Chambers beats May Sutton 6-3, 9-7 for her 3rd of 7 Wimbledon singles titles

1907 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: American May Sutton avenges previous year’s defeat, beating Dorothea Chambers 6-1, 6-4

1912 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: English badminton champion Ethel Larcombe wins her first and only major tennis title beating Charlotte Cooper 6-3, 6-1

1914 MLB Boston Braves (26-40) are 15 games back in NL, go on to win World Series 4-0 vs Philadelphia A’s

1919 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Suzanne Lenglen of France beats Dorothea Chambers 10-8, 4-6, 9-7 for the first of 6 Wimbledon singles titles