May 23 in Pop Culture History

May 23 Fun Facts, Trivia and History

May 23 History Highlights

  • 1430 – 1430 – Joan of Arc was captured by the Burgundians
  • 1788 – South Carolina officially became the eighth US state.
  • 1995 – The first version of the Java programming language was released.
  • 1873 – The Canadian Parliament established the North-West Mounted Police, later named the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
  • If you were born on May 23rd,
    You were likely conceived the week of… August 30th (prior year)

May 23 is…

Taffy Day
World Turtle Day

May 23 Birthday Quotes

“We are all stars in this galaxy. All of us. No one’s greater than the other.”
– Scatman Crothers

“Learn how to set goals. That’s the key to everything. That includes designing your own success. You define what the goal is, it’s not somebody else’s goal, it’s yours.”
– Drew Carey

“No matter how great a man is, the size of his funeral usually depends on the weather.”
– Rosemary Clooney

“The problem with beauty is that it’s like being born rich and getting poorer.”
– Joan Collins

“Suffering is everywhere. Don’t ever think it isn’t. So are miracles. Don’t ever think they aren’t.”
– Jewel

“Oh, you hate your job? Why didn’t you say so? There’s a support group for that. It’s called everybody, and they meet at the bar.”
– Drew Carey

May 23 Birthdays

1834 – Carl Bloch, Danish painter and academic (died in 1890)
1910 – Scatman Crothers, American actor and comedian (died in 1986)
1919 – Betty Garrett, American comedic actress, singer, and dancer (died in 2011)
1920 – Helen O’Connell, American singer (died in 1993)
1928 – Rosemary Clooney, American singer and actress (died in 2002)
1933 – Joan Collins, English actress
1958 – Drew Carey, American comedic actor and game show host
1962 – Karen Duffy, American actress
1965 – Melissa McBride, American actress
1974 – Jewel, American singer-songwriter

May 23 History

1701 – Scottish-born sea captain William Kidd was hanged on the banks of the Thames after being found guilty of piracy and murder.

1911 – The New York Public Library was dedicated.

1920 – Pope Benedict XV canonized Joan of Arc.

1922 – Broadway Show – Abie’s Irish Rose (Play) May 23, 1922

1934 – Bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde were killed in a stolen Ford Deluxe near Bienville Parish, Louisiana.

May 23, 1955 Birthday (fictional) John McClane, Die Hard, Film

1960 #1 Hit May 23, 1960 – June 26, 1960: The Everly BrothersCathy’s Clown

1960 (Tsunami) Caused by yesterday’s earthquake off the coast of Chile, a tsunami traveled across the Pacific Ocean and killed 61 people in Hilo, Hawaii.

1994Star Trek: The Next Generation aired its final episode titled “All Good Things.”

1995 – ABC’s Full House came to an end.

1998 #1 Hit May 23, 1998 – June 5, 1998: Mariah CareyMy All

2005 – Tom Cruise famously jumped around on Oprah Winfrey’s couch, proclaiming his love for Katie Holmes

2007 – Jordin Sparks won America Idol season six

2012 – Phillip Phillips won American Idol season eleven

#1 Hit May 23, 2020 – May 29, 2020: Stuck with UAriana Grande and Justin Bieber

Today’s Random Trivia and Shower Thoughts

When I can’t spell a word I just randomly type letters that I think would spell the word and just hope auto-correct saves my.

“Please note that WinRAR is not free software. After a 40 day trial period, you must buy a license or remove it from your computer.” It’s been a long 40 days.

“A recent survey for North American males found 42% were overweight, 34% were critically obese and 8% ate the survey.” – Banksy

A great many problems do not have accurate answers but do have approximate answers, from which sensible decisions can be made.

The Capital of Spain is Madrid

Stephanie Powers – Real Name: Stefania Federkiewicz

We’ve spent so long worrying about the rise of ‘Big Brother’ but in the end with memes and camera-wielding social crusaders, we’ve created it ourselves.

Caterpillar comes from an old French word for “Shaggy Cat”.

TV Quotes… “The truth is out there” (Fox Mulder) on The X-Files

A seed is a small embryonic plant that is enclosed in a seed coat; a nut, on the other hand, is a hard-shelled fruit that contains a single seed.

It’s gonna be interesting watching HGTV in 10 years when the open floor concept goes out of style and these people are gonna be throwing up walls all over the house.

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is basically called Extra-Terrestrial the Extra-Terrestrial.

“Ed Wood himself could have told us what’s wrong with this movie: the makers felt superior to the material.” Roger Ebert reviews Mars Attacks.

More Pop Culture History Resources