ON THIS DAY
January 9, 2018
JANUARY 9, 1945
MORE than 256 cases of butter — six tons in total and equal to a week’s ration for 114,688 people — have disappeared from a Ministry of Food cold store in Newcastle. Police believe that it has been systematically removed over a long period, perhaps a year, and has gone on the Black Market.
JANUARY 9, 1965
ELIZABETH TAYLOR (pictured) is to renounce her U.S. citizenship and return to British nationality. John Springer, her business representative in New york, said that after her marriage to richard Burton, Londonborn Miss Taylor had been anxious to resume her British nationality and travel on a passport that is the same as his.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
THE Duchess of Cambridge, 36. Kate is related to George Washington, first President of the U.S. She is an eighth cousin, eight times removed. When William becomes king, she will be the first ever queen to have a degree — a 2:1 in the history of art.
IMELDA STAUNTON, 62. The 5ft-tall english actress, who is married to Downton Abbey star Jim Carter, has starred in two Harry Potter films, playing sinister Dolores Umbridge. Last year, while Staunton was performing in the West end, the theatre asked audiences not to eat during the play. The actress had previously been quoted as saying she did not ‘understand this obsession with having to eat or drink something at every moment’.
BORN ON THIS DAY
GYPSY ROSE Lee (19141970). The charismatic and witty American burlesque entertainer (pictured) became famous for her striptease act — which the New yorker magazine described as ‘a must for those who feel better with their eyebrows raised’. Born rose Hovick in Seattle, her life story was turned into the stage musical Gypsy. She and her sister were never sure of their true birth dates as their mother forged various birth certificates for them — making them older to evade child labour laws and younger for free or reduced train fares.
SUSANNAH YORK (1939-2011). The London-born actress, described as ‘one of the quintessential faces of the Sixties’, won a Bafta for her role in They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? She was also nominated for an Oscar, but said she was offended to be put up for the award without her permission.
ON JANUARY 9 . . .
IN 1768, englishman Philip Astley, who performed tricks while riding a horse, opened the first modern circus in London.
IN 2007, Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, unveiled the iPhone. He demonstrated the gadget by playing The Beatles’ Lovely rita.
WORD WIZARDRY GUESS THE DEFINITION Caruncle (1615)
A) Diagonally across from something else. B) Anything badly formed or out of shape. C)A small pink protuberance (e.g. at the corner of the eye). Answer below
PHRASE EXPLAINED
To chance one’s arm: To take a risk in the hope of gaining something. Of military origin, it refers to anyone who broke the rules and ran the risk of losing a badge on the arm.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
WHEN a man has a birthday, he takes a day off. When a woman has a birthday, she takes at least three years off.
Joan Rivers, comedian (1933-2014)
JOKE OF THE DAY WHAT made the Dark Ages so dark?
All the knights.
Guess The Definition answer: C.