ON THIS DAY
September 14, 2016
IT’S DAY 258...
THE world record for most kisses in a minute by a couple is 258, achieved by Americans Paul Fremeau and Alina Evans in California in 2012, who switched from kissing on the lips to the forehead because it was quicker. THE contents of the Los Angeles house where Michael Jackson was living with his children just before he died were estimated at £258,000, but sold at auction for more than double — £646,000 (nearly $1 million). BEN STOKES, 25, achieved the fastest double-century by an England cricketer in Test history earlier this year with a total of
258 runs. He hit his 200 off 163 balls — beating Ian Botham’s record off 220 balls set in 1982.
THERE ARE 108 DAYS LEFT
LONDON’S first Olympics took place 108 years ago. The 1908 Games, planned for Rome, had to be moved following the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 1906, as the Italian government had to fund disaster relief. THE largest tree ever transplanted was a
108ft- wide, 95ft-tall, 750-year-old ginkgo biloba in South Korea. The listed tree, estimated to weigh 250 metric tons, was moved to stop it being submerged by the construction of a dam. WINSTON CHURCHILL entered the Cabinet for the first time, as President of the Board of Trade, 108 years ago — the same year in which he married Clementine. He left the Cabinet table for the final time 47 years later, when he retired as Prime Minister.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
MORTEN HARKET, 57, the lead singer of Norwegian band A-ha!. The band had struggled after moving from Oslo to a mice-infested flat in London, where they had to keep the oven on to keep warm — until their breakthrough hit, Take On Me, which spawned one of the most iconic music videos of the Eighties. ANDREW LINCOLN, 43 (right). Born Andrew Clutterbuck, the star of U.S. zombie series The Walking Dead found fame in the cult mid-Nineties BBC drama This Life. He walked behind the gun carriage that carried Princess Diana’s body to Westminster Abbey for her funeral. He was invited as a graduate of RADA drama school, of which Diana was a patron. DMITRY MEDVEDEV, 51. The Russian prime minister is a massive fan of British hard rock, in particular Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Pink Floyd. He is also a Harry Potter fan, asking author J.K. Rowling for her autograph at a G20 dinner.
BORN ON THIS DAY
AMY WINEHOUSE (1983-2011, pictured). The London-born singer-songwriter died of alcohol poisoning at just 27. A year later, X Factor bosses hoped to create a Winehouse hologram (along with Elvis) to duet with contestants, but the plans fell through. CLAYTON MOORE (1914-1999) The star of Lone Ranger, the first Western series made for TV, had worked as a circus acrobat, then a film stuntman and model. At an interview, producer George W. Trendle said: ‘Mr Moore would you like the role of the Lone Ranger?’ Moore replied: ‘Mr Trendle, I AM The Lone Ranger.’
ON SEPTEMBER 14...
IN 1814, Francis Scott Key started writing the lyrics to The Star Spangled Banner — which would become the American national anthem. The lawyer and amateur poet was inspired by witnessing the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in Maryland during the 1812 war.
IN 1959, Luna 2, a Soviet space probe, became the first man-made object to reach the Moon. It crashed into it at around 7,500 mph.
IN 1982, Princess Grace of Monaco died of injuries sustained in a car crash a day earlier. It is thought a minor stroke caused the former Grace Kelly to lose control of her Rover. She was given a full royal funeral at the Cathedral of St Nicholas in Monte Carlo.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
‘There are two tragedies in life. One is to lose your heart’s desire. The other is to gain it.’ George Bernard Shaw, playwright (1856-1950)
JOKE OF THE DAY
What does a skeleton order at a restaurant? Spare ribs.