(Saturday, August 12, 1939) — “Moon Love” by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra (Ray Eberle, vocal) peaked at #1 on today’s Your Hit Parade weekly music chart for four consecutive weeks (Aug. 12/19/26, Sep. 2, 1939). Continue reading ‘Moon Love’ by Glenn Miller peaks at #1 in USA 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Aug 12 1939)
Category Archives: 1930s
FDR signs Hatch Act restricting political activities of federal workers 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Aug 2 1939)
Video: 'The Hatch Act Explained'
(Wednesday, August 2, 1939) — President Franklin D. Roosevelt today signed the Hatch Act of 1939, a United States federal law whose main provision prohibits employees in the executive branch of the federal government, except the president, vice-president, and certain designated high-level officials, from engaging in some forms of political activity. Continue reading FDR signs Hatch Act restricting political activities of federal workers 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Aug 2 1939)
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Einstein signs letter urging FDR to build nuclear weapons 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Aug 2 1939)
Video: 'Energie atomique : Albert Einstein; Dr. Leo Szilard'
(Wednesday, August 2, 1939) — German-born theoretical physicist Albert Einstein signed a letter today written by Hungarian-German-American physicist and inventor Leo Szilard and addressed to U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, warning that Nazi Germany might develop an atomic weapon and suggesting that the United States should start its own nuclear program. Continue reading Einstein signs letter urging FDR to build nuclear weapons 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Aug 2 1939)
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‘Stairway to the Stars’ by Glenn Miller peaks at #1 in USA 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 15 1939)
(Saturday, July 15, 1939) — “Stairway to the Stars” by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra (Ray Eberle, vocal) peaked at #1 on today’s Your Hit Parade weekly music chart for four consecutive weeks (July 15/22/29, Aug. 5, 1939). Continue reading ‘Stairway to the Stars’ by Glenn Miller peaks at #1 in USA 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 15 1939)
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Frank Sinatra makes first commercial recording 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 13 1939)
Video: 'From The Bottom Of My Heart'
(Thursday, July 13, 1939) — Singer Frank Sinatra, 23, made his first commercial recording, “From the Bottom of My Heart” and “Melancholy Mood,” with Harry James and his Orchestra today in New York for the Brunswick label. Continue reading Frank Sinatra makes first commercial recording 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 13 1939)
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Lou Gehrig delivers ‘Luckiest Man’ speech at Yankee Stadium 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 4 1939)
Video: 'Lou Gehrig's Toughest Day in Yankee Stadium'
(Tuesday, July 4, 1939, mid-afternoon EDT) — Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees, diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a debilitating motor neuron disease, delivered his famous farewell speech today at Yankee Stadium in which he called himself “the luckiest man on the face of the earth” Continue reading Lou Gehrig delivers ‘Luckiest Man’ speech at Yankee Stadium 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 4 1939)
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‘Wishing (Will Make It So)’ by Glenn Miller peaks at #1 in USA 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 17 1939)
(Saturday, June 17, 1939) — “Wishing (Will Make It So)” by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra (Ray Eberle, vocal) peaked at #1 on today’s Your Hit Parade weekly music chart for four consecutive weeks (May 20/27, June 3/10, 1939). Continue reading ‘Wishing (Will Make It So)’ by Glenn Miller peaks at #1 in USA 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 17 1939)
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National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum dedicated in Cooperstown 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 12 1939)
Video: 'Opening of the Baseball Hall of Fame with Babe Ruth and Cy Young'
(Monday, June 12, 1939, 12:15 p.m. EDT) — The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, an American history museum and hall of fame that serves as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, was dedicated today in Cooperstown, New York. Continue reading National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum dedicated in Cooperstown 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 12 1939)
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FDR welcomes Britain’s King George and Queen Elizabeth to Washington 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 8 1939)
Video: 'King George VI And Queen Elizabeth In Washington (1939)'
(Thursday, June 8, 1939, 11:00 a.m. EDT) — With war clouds looming on the European continent, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his wife, Eleanor, welcomed Britain’s King George VI and his wife, Queen Elizabeth, today at Union Station in Washington, D.C. Continue reading FDR welcomes Britain’s King George and Queen Elizabeth to Washington 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 8 1939)
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907 Jewish refugees from Germany aboard MS St. Louis off Florida coast denied U.S. entry 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 4 1939)
Video: 'The Doomed Voyage of the St Louis Documentary'
(Sunday, June 4, 1939) — “Sailing so close to Florida that they could see the lights of Miami,” 907 passengers aboard MS St. Louis, most of them Jewish refugees seeking asylum from Nazi persecution of Jews in Germany, arrived off the American coast today, only to be denied entry into the United States. Continue reading 907 Jewish refugees from Germany aboard MS St. Louis off Florida coast denied U.S. entry 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 4 1939)
