June 12 in Pop Culture History

 

June 12 Fun Facts, Trivia and History

June 12 History Highlights

  • 1817 – The earliest form of bicycle, the dandy horse, was driven by Karl von Drais.
  • 1939 – The Baseball Hall of Fame opened in Cooperstown, New York.
  • June 12, 1968 Birthday (fictional) Marty McFly, Back to the Future
  • 1987 – At the Brandenburg Gate, U.S. President Ronald Reagan publicly challenged Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall.
  • If you were born on June 12th,
    You were likely conceived the week of… September 19th (prior year)

Ronal Reagan’s Speech at Brandenburg Gate

“And now, now the Soviets themselves may, in a limited way, becoming to understand the importance of freedom. We hear much from Moscow about a new policy of reform and openness. Some political prisoners have been released. Certain foreign news broadcasts are no longer being jammed. Some economic enterprises have been permitted to operate with greater freedom from state control.
Are these the beginnings of profound changes in the Soviet state? Or are they token gestures intended to raise false hopes in the West, or to strengthen the Soviet system without changing it? We welcome change and openness; for we believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty — the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace.
There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace.
General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate.
Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate.
Mr. Gorbachev – Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”
full speech

June 12 is…

Jerky Day
Peanut Butter Cookie Day
Red Rose Day

June 12 Birthday Quotes

“What is done cannot be undone, but one can prevent it from happening again.”
– Anne Frank

“The American Dream means giving it your all, trying your hardest, accomplishing something. And then I’d add to that, giving something back. No definition of a successful life can do anything but include serving others.”
– George H.W. Bush

“I’ve always been the audience that I wanted to reach, so I write for myself.”
– Len Wein

“The normal person classifies an object and then forgets about it. The creative person, by contrast, is always open to new possibilities.”
– Jordan Peterson

“Dead people receive more flowers than the living ones because the regret is stronger than gratitude.”
– Anne Frank

“Self-confidence goes a long way and is very attractive to others.”
– Adriana Lima

June 12 Birthdays

1916 – Irwin Allen, American director and producer (died in 1991)
1918 – Samuel Z. Arkoff, American film producer (died in 2001)
1924 – George H.W. Bush, American lieutenant and politician, 41st President of the United States (died in 2018)
1928 – Vic Damone, American singer-songwriter and actor (died in 2018)
1929 – Anne Frank, German-Dutch diarist; victim of the Holocaust (died in 1945)
1942 – Len Barry, American singer-songwriter and producer
1948 – Len Wein, American comic book writer and editor (died in 2017)
1962 – Jordan Peterson, Canadian psychologist, professor and cultural critic
1981 – Adriana Lima, Brazilian model
1985 – Kendra Wilkinson, American model
1985 – Chris Young, American singer-songwriter

June 12 History

1790
A ‘Red Globe’ was being reported by many people, flying over France.

1849
A gas mask “inhaler or lung protector” was patented (#X006529) by Lewis Phectic Haslett of Louisville, Ky.

1899
(Tornado) New Richmond, Wisconsin

1906
Sound movies were patented (#823,022) by John Ballance.

1913
John Randolph Bray exhibited the first animated cartoon, a movie called The Artist’s Dream (aka The Dachsund) in which a dog ate sausages until he exploded.

1939
The Baseball Hall of Fame opened in Cooperstown, New York.

1942
Anne Frank received a diary for her thirteenth birthday.

1944
Big Bend National Park: Established on June 12, 1944, in Texas, this park spans 1,252 square miles. Known for its diverse landscape, including the Chisos Mountains, the Rio Grande River, and the Chihuahuan Desert.

1964
Anti-apartheid activist and ANC leader Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life in prison for sabotage in South Africa.

1965
#1 Hit June 12, 1965June 18, 1965: The Supremes – Back In My Arms Again

1967
The US Supreme Court in Loving v. Virginia declared all US state laws which prohibit interracial marriage to be unconstitutional.

1971
#1 Hit June 12, 1971 – June 18, 1971: The Honey Cone – Want Ads

1972
Fast food restaurant chain Popeyes was founded in Arabi, Louisiana.

1979
Cyclist Bryan Allen flew the Gossamer Albatross across the English Channel, powered solely by human power.

1987
“Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” – Ronald Reagan, referring to the Berlin Wall.

1998
Geraldo ended (syndicated show)

1994
Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were murdered outside her Los Angeles, California home.

1997
Queen Elizabeth II reopened the Globe Theatre in London (it had been closed since 1442).

1999
#1 Hit June 12, 1999July 16, 1999: Jennifer Lopez – If You Had My Love

1999
The Style Network made its debut.

2009
Analog television stations (excluding low-powered stations) switched to digital television following the DTV Delay Act.

2018
President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un of North Korea held the first meeting between leaders of their two countries in Singapore,

Today’s Random Trivia and Shower Thoughts

Coca-Cola was first advertised as a coca wine that cured morphine addiction, indigestion, decaying nerves, migraines, and impotence, among a variety of other ailments.

In ancient times a hammer was used as a weapon, to inflict pain on one’s enemies. In modern hammers are used to inflict pain on one’s own thumb. 

The Capital of Sierra Leone is Freetown

There’s a patch of seagrass in the Mediterranean that’s estimated to be 100,000 years old.

In an alternate universe, Rick Astley has given us up, let us down, run around, desert us, made us cry, said goodbye, told a lie, and hurt us.

There are more barrels of bourbon than there are people in Kentucky.

The Seven Deadly Sins #3- Gluttony is the desire to eat or consume more than you require.

Part of your driving test should be backing out of a crowded parking lot with a car full of balloons for a kid’s birthday surprise party.

The biggest film of 2006: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (Action/Adventure) earned ~ $423,000,000

During the Spanish American War, the US captured Guam without bloodshed when the governor had no idea Spain was at war with the US.

Biologically, we all have two parents, four grand-parents, eight great-grandparents, and 32,768 great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents.

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