Happy Special Day!: Georges Harrison

Showing posts with label Georges Harrison. Show all posts

Monday, 1 June 2009

1 June - Historical Events and Special Celebrations

Gemstone of the Month

Pearl

Flower of the Month: Rose

First of all Nomanda would like to thank all our new readers! We have been getting more and more of you every day and we really appreciate you! If you are enjoying Nomanda’s blog please pass it on to your friends. And if you would like to make a comment or get your own special mention on your own special day just send us the details through the comments section and we’ll make sure we don’t forget you!

Nomanda’s Happy Special Day blog is a celebration of events and anniversaries that have touched our lives. If today is your special day join us in looking at a few other events that have occurred on your day. Enjoy!

Flying achievements are always of interest to Nomanda and today there is a very special case worthy of mention. It was on this day in 1845 that a homing pigeon completed the fantastic trip of 11,000 kms from Namibia to London. It took this intrepid bird just 55 days to complete the trip. I just hope he got a decent meal when he got home! Pigeons were often used to carry messages in the days before snail mail, telephones and the internet, and apparently these particular special pigeons always return to their nest and life long partner. Nice birds!

Everyone with eyes sensitive to bright light will be happy to celebrate today as it was on this day in 1947 that photosensitive glass was first developed. I love those adverts where people emerge from a dark building into bright sunlight, and before you can say boo to a homing pigeon their eyes go black! Well at least their glasses do! Brilliant, or not, depending on what glasses you’re wearing!

Lovers of all things French and long noses will be pleased to celebrate this day as it was on 1st June 1958 that

Charles de Gaulle was elected as president of France. Nomanda wants to call him “King Konk”!

The Beatles were in great voice over the next few years on this day. In 1967 they released their “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” in the US and it went gold. And a few years later in 1973 George Harrison’s “Living in the Material World” also went gold! Great songs!

June 1st seems to have been a very popular birthday for celebrities. The following make the cut for particular tribute today. First up for honours must be the poet laureate

John Masefield (1878 – 1967) who’s opening lines from his poem “Sea Fever” must be known by schoolchildren throughout the world. Don’t know them? Well here they are:

“I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,”

Nomanda’s brother has a touch of sea fever and has just returned in his 90 year old boat from a trip to France made more exciting by the two times failure of one of the boats engines! Chug, chug, cough, cough!

Relying on the sky and flying in it at great speeds was our next celebrity, Frank Whittle (1907 – 1966) the inventor of the jet engine. It’s flying, Frank, but not as we know it!

Next up is the famous band leader of the ‘50’s, Nelson Riddle (1921 – 1985), accompanying such talents as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Nat King Cole to name just a few.

Our next celebrity is the beautiful and tragic Marilyn Monroe (1926 – 1962). Her performances on screen made her an idol of film fans during the ‘50’s and ‘60’s. Her tragic death shocked the world at the time.

Final birthday honours today go to Gerald Scarfe (1936) the talented cartoonist who served his time at “Punch” and “Private Eye” in the early ‘60’s. He was a regular political cartoonist for the “Sunday Times” for many years. Great stuff!

Happy Special Day to one and all!

If you know someone who is celebrating their birthday, anniversary or a special day today or sometime soon why not send them a nice e-card so they get it as soon as they log on! Even better, why not send this page to your friend!
Don’t know what to get for a present? Think about what your special person enjoys doing and the things they like.

For Girls, I know that flowers and chocolates are a bit cliché but nevertheless they always seem to work! Of course, if your budget stretches that far, jewellery, watches, perfume and fashion items are always appreciated!

For Boys, all boys like toys! It’s just as they get older the toys get more expensive. So gadgets and gimmicky things work. Again, if you have the budget then car accessories, sporting equipment and clothes, and man type jewellery like watches and gold chains will go down very well!

And, if all else fails, you could always send them a gift voucher and they can choose whatever they want!

If you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or other special event today I hope you got lots of cards and presents and that there is someone special in your life who will make this day a very happy and special day for you.

Happy celebrations to you from the Happy Special Day Blog!!

Sunday, 10 May 2009

10 May - Historical Events and Special Celebrations

Flower of the Month

Lily of the Valley

Gemstone of the Month: Emerald

Don’t forget it is Mother’s Day today!

No doubt looking for a safe haven and a tax free port it was on this day in 1503 that Christopher Columbus discovered the Cayman Islands. He wanted to call them “Las Tortugas” after the numerous little turtles he found there. However once again nobody listened to him and they have been since repopulated with Fat Cats!

Moving on into the 20th century it was on this day in 1908 that the first Mother’s Day was celebrated. In fact it is Mother’s Day today so if you’ve forgotten about it and Nomanda has reminded you then nip out and grab a bunch of flowers for your mother now!

I don’t know if she was a mother or not but it was on this day in 1922 that Dr Ivy Williams became the first woman to be called to the English Bar. I wonder if she bought anyone a drink!

In an interesting bit of historical nonsense I am reliably informed that it was on this day in 1954 that the Bolshoi Ballet didn’t appear in Paris. Now my guess is that they were expected to appear and didn’t show up for some reason, but I’m pretty sure that a lot of other things didn’t happen in Paris that day, so why mention this particular event!

In a gesture of friendship and generosity it was on this day in 1963 that George Harrison of the Beatles advised Decca to sign up the Rolling Stones. Good on you, Georges! Nomanda doesn’t know if the Rolling Stones are still with Decca, probably not, but one thing is certain, they are still strutting their stuff and long may it continue!

Another thing that keeps rolling on and doing it at incredible speeds is the French TGV (the high speed train). It was strutting its stuff on this day in 1990 when it hit a record speed of 510.6 kph. A couple of years ago they cleared the lines and whizzed a TGV from Boulogne to Cannes in an amazing couple of hours. That’s moving!

Our first birthday celebrity today is Thomas Lipton (1948 – 1931). He was a self made man, and as well as establishing a chain of 300 grocery stores throughout the UK, he is best known for his brand of “Lipton Tea” which is still on sale today. His sporting achievements in challenging for the America’s Cup have been acknowledged by awarding him his own Cup as “Best Challenger”.

Next up for honours is Fred Astaire (1899 – 1987). The actor / dancer whose first audition notes read “Can’t sing, can’t act, can dance a little” went out and proved them wrong. In a career lasting 76 years he made 31 musical films of which just 10 were with his celebrated partner, Ginger Rogers. When describing the Astaire / Rogers partnership one pundit said “He gives her class, and she gives him sex”. Have a look at this clip of the two of them together! Great stuff!

Two musicians sharing their birthday today are Sid Vicious (1957 – 1979) of the Sex Pistols and Bono of U2. Bono (1960) is the lead singer and the lyricist of most of U2’s songs and here is one of Nomanda’s favourites! Bono’s humanitarian works have earned him many accolades including being nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.

Our final Birthday wishes go to the English triple jumper, Jonathan Edwards (1966). An old boy of West Buckland School in North Devon he jumped his amazing world record jump of 18.29 metres in 1995 and the record still holds.

Happy Special Day to one and all!!

If you know someone who is celebrating their birthday, anniversary or a special day today or sometime soon why not send them a nice e-card so they get it as soon as they log on! Even better, why not send this page to your friend!
Don’t know what to get for a present? Think about what your special person enjoys doing and the things they like.

For Girls, I know that flowers and chocolates are a bit cliché but nevertheless they always seem to work! Of course, if your budget stretches that far, jewellery, watches, perfume and fashion items are always appreciated!

For Boys, all boys like toys! It’s just as they get older the toys get more expensive. So gadgets and gimmicky things work. Again, if you have the budget then car accessories, sporting equipment and clothes, and man type jewellery like watches and gold chains will go down very well!

And, if all else fails, you could always send them a gift voucher and they can choose whatever they want!

If you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or other special event today I hope you got lots of cards and presents and that there is someone special in your life who will make this day a very happy and special day for you.

Happy celebrations to you from the Happy Special Day Blog!!

Monday, 27 April 2009

27 April - Historical Events and Special Celebrations

Gemstone of the Month

Diamond

Flower of the Month: Sweet Pea

Today is a very happy day for lovers, lovers of wild animals and high flyers.

It was on this day in 1828 that the Zoological Gardens at Regent’s Park, London was opened. Commonly known as “Regent’s Zoo” it was originally intended to be only used as a place for a collection of animals for scientific study. Happily it was later opened to the public in 1847. Even though some of the larger species like elephants and rhinos have been moved to Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire it still today boasts 704 different species and has 16,807 individuals. Lots of poo to collect there every day!

Talking of poo, it was on this day in 1965 that the hero of young mums all over the world, R C Duncan, patented the disposable nappy (diaper for our American readers) and called it the “Pamper”. So the guy who bought the patent for the safety pin could now see the beginning of the end, so to speak!

It’s difficult to keep the “Beatles” out of the news for long because it was on this day in 1979 that George Harrison released his song “Love Comes to Everyone”. Listening carefully to the words was one of his old mates, Ringo Starr, who on this day in 1981 married the lovely Barbara Bach, the Bond girl from “The Spy Who Loves Me”. So now she can sing “The Beatle Who Loves Me” along with her old man. They are in 7th Heaven!

Not quite getting up to 7th heaven but a high flyer nevertheless the Airbus A380 made its first flight from Toulouse in France on this day in 2005 and made its first commercial flight from Singapore to Sydney a couple of years later in 2007. The statistics of this Super jumbo are staggering. In a normal 3 class configuration it can carry 525 passengers, but if the passengers don’t mind a bit of a squeeze it can carry 853 all economy class. That’s another big heap of potential poo! It has a cruising speed of 900 kph and a range of 15,200 kms. Ok let’s call it 15,000 kms just to be on the safe side! Quite a beast!

Another of our favourites, Michael Fish (1944), the well known BBC weather presenter will be celebrating his birthday today. He had been much maligned by an out of context comment on 15th October 1987, the day of the Great Storm over South East England, when he said, "Earlier on today, apparently, a woman rang the BBC and said she heard there was a hurricane on the way... well, if you're watching, don't worry, there isn't!". There was and he’s never lived it down!

Our final birthday wishes today go to the lovely Schae Harrison born on this day in 1963 and best known for her portrayal of Darla Forrester in “The Bold and the Beautiful”.

Happy Special Day to one and all!!

If you know someone who is celebrating their birthday, anniversary or a special day today or sometime soon why not send them a nice e-card so they get it as soon as they log on! Even better, why not send this page to your friend!
Don’t know what to get for a present? Think about what your special person enjoys doing and the things they like.

For Girls, I know that flowers and chocolates are a bit cliché but nevertheless they always seem to work! Of course, if your budget stretches that far, jewellery, watches, perfume and fashion items are always appreciated!

For Boys, all boys like toys! It’s just as they get older the toys get more expensive. So gadgets and gimmicky things work. Again, if you have the budget then car accessories, sporting equipment and clothes, and man type jewellery like watches and gold chains will go down very well!

And, if all else fails, you could always send them a gift voucher and they can choose whatever they want!

If you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or other special event today I hope you got lots of cards and presents and that there is someone special in your life who will make this day a very happy and special day for you.

Happy celebrations to you from the Happy Special Day Blog!!

Tuesday, 14 April 2009

14 April - Historical Events and Special Celebrations

Flower of the Month

Sweet Pea

Gemstone of the Month: Diamond

So the Masters is over and the happy winner of the title in 2009 is Angel Cabrera.

Other golfing legends that have had their hands on the trophy and the green jackets on their backs over the years on this day are Gary Player (1974), Bernard Langer (1985), Ian Woosnam (1991) and Nick Faldo (1996). All in all a very happy day for the European contenders!

Today also saw the publication of two famous works of fiction from two quite different authors. It was on this day in 1859 that Charles Dickens published “A Tale of Two Cities”, and 80 years later on this day in 1939 John Steinbeck published his novel “The Grapes of Wrath”. Two outstanding classics!

In a case of now you see it and now you don’t, it was on this day in 1948 that a flash of light was observed coming from the Plato crater on the moon. Nomanda is not one to speculate what it may or may not have been but I can imagine the conversation.

“Did you see that?” (Man watching through the telescope)
“No, what?” (Man not watching through the telescope)
“That flash of light.”
“No, what flash of light?”
“There was definitely a flash of light coming from that crater, the Pluto crater? What do you think it was?”
“Dunno. I didn’t see it.”

And so on!

It was a case of sour grapes on this day in 1963 when George Harrison declared himself to be “unimpressed” with the up and coming group “The Rolling Stones”.
Well, Georges, you were wrong then and you’re wrong now because they’re still at it and still rocking!

Birthday wishes today go to Julie Christie (1941) best remembered for her performances in “Doctor Zhivago” and “Far from the Madding Crowd”. Great films!

And sharing the sharing the birthday honours with Julie today is Derek Leckenby (1945 – 1994) rocker and actor, founder of “Herman’s Hermits”, and famous for “I’m Henry VIII, I am” and “Mrs Brown, you’ve got a lovely daughter”. Sadly missed.

Happy Special Day to one and all!!

If you know someone who is celebrating their birthday, anniversary or a special day today or sometime soon why not send them a nice e-card so they get it as soon as they log on! Even better, why not send this page to your friend!
Don’t know what to get for a present? Think about what your special person enjoys doing and the things they like.

For Girls, I know that flowers and chocolates are a bit cliché but nevertheless they always seem to work! Of course, if your budget stretches that far, jewellery, watches, perfume and fashion items are always appreciated!

For Boys, all boys like toys! It’s just as they get older the toys get more expensive. So gadgets and gimmicky things work. Again, if you have the budget then car accessories, sporting equipment and clothes, and man type jewellery like watches and gold chains will go down very well!

And, if all else fails, you could always send them a gift voucher and they can choose whatever they want!

If you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or other special event today I hope you got lots of cards and presents and that there is someone special in your life who will make this day a very happy and special day for you.

Happy celebrations to you from the Happy Special Day Blog!!

Thursday, 27 November 2008

27 November - Historical Events and Special Celebrations

Gemstone of the Month

Topaz

Flower of the Month: Chrysanthemum

Nomanda’s Happy Special Day blog is a celebration of events and anniversaries that have touched our lives. If today is your special day join us in looking at a few other events that have occurred on your day. Enjoy!

It was on this day in 1931 that Donald Bradman turned up to represent his country at the first test match to be played at the “Gabba” in Brisbane. Australia was playing South Africa and the trusty Bradman started the proceedings by scoring 200 runs on the first day. More were to come!

This day is a particularly important day for the Beatles and George Harrison because it was on this day in 1967 that the Beatles released their “Magical Mystery Tour”. Later on the same day in 1970 George Harrison was to release his 3 album set “All Things Must Pass”, and still going strong in 1989 he released “Cheer Down” and “Poor Little Girl”.

The “Clown Prince of Denmark”, Victor Borge was celebrating the end of his show “Comedy with Music” on this day in 1977. He was a very funny man. Have a look at this clip of his “History of the Piano”!

Celebrating the departure of the “Iron Lady” on this day in 1990 the British Conservative Party chose John Major to succeed her as Prime Minister. He’s a nice enough guy and his election was probably a backlash from the rigours of too much Thatcher. Nomanda thinks he would have been far happier spending his time watching his favourite sport, cricket, and pottering around his garden!

The Swede responsible for the invention of the Celsius temperature scale, Anders Celsius (1701 – 1744) is our first birthday celebrity today. His original scale had freezing point at 100°C and boiling point at 0°C. His countryman Carolus Linnaeus reversed the scale to the one we use today a year after Anders died. It makes much more sense that way around!

The other half of the Morecambe and Wise duo, Ernie Wise (1925 – 1999) is our next birthday guest. Together they were a British institution and their unique partnership cannot be better portrayed than their clip making breakfast together!

Jimi Hendrix (1942 – 1970) is our next birthday boy. He was voted by the Rolling Stones as being the best guitarist of all time, and here’s why!

The rocker who wanted to “Turn Back the Clock”, Calvin Hayes (1962) is our final birthday boy. Sadly I cannot find his song so I guess he’ll just have to settle for being one year older today!

Happy Special Day to one and all!!

If you know someone who is celebrating their birthday, anniversary or a special day today or sometime soon why not send them a nice e-card so they get it as soon as they log on! Even better, why not send this page to your friend!
Don’t know what to get for a present? Think about what your special person enjoys doing and the things they like.

For Girls, I know that flowers and chocolates are a bit cliché but nevertheless they always seem to work! Of course, if your budget stretches that far, jewellery, watches, perfume and fashion items are always appreciated!

For Boys, all boys like toys! It’s just as they get older the toys get more expensive. So gadgets and gimmicky things work. Again, if you have the budget then car accessories, sporting equipment and clothes, and man type jewellery like watches and gold chains will go down very well!

And, if all else fails, you could always send them a gift voucher and they can choose whatever they want!

If you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or other special event today I hope you got lots of cards and presents and that there is someone special in your life who will make this day a very happy and special day for you.

Happy celebrations to you from the Happy Special Day Blog!!