February 4, 2022 ON THIS DAY
FROM THE DAILY MAIL ARCHIVE FEBRUARY 4, 1966
RUSSIA’S space station Luna-9 made history last night by achieving a ‘soft’ landing on the Moon. It then began sending pictures and radio signals to Earth. Four previous attempts with similar unmanned craft had ended in failure. The first American attempt is not expected before May. The landing is a fantastic technical triumph and a milestone on the way to putting a manned spacecraft on the Moon.
FEBRUARY 4, 1999
BONNIE the Blue Peter dog is hanging up her lead and retiring after 13 years. Now 91 in dog years, the golden retriever is the BBC programme’s second longest-serving pet after 1960s favourite Petra. Bonnie has appeared on 1,150 programmes.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
DAN QUAYLE, 75. The 44th vice president of the u.S. (right), who served under George Bush Sr, has been described as ‘one of the least successful vicepresidents in the history of the u.S., who became a
figure of ridicule’. He famously misspelled the word ‘potato’ while visiting an elementary school. His press secretary said: ‘I remember one domestic visit ... the headline of the newspaper was “Quayle fails to make gaffe”.’
PATRICK BERGIN, 71. The actor from Dublin starred opposite Julia Roberts in 1991’s Sleeping With The Enemy and Harrison Ford in Patriot Games in 1992. But he was soon unimpressed with the offers he received, telling his agent he’d ‘rather sweep the streets’. In 2017, he joined East-Enders to play villain Aidan Maguire.
BORN ON THIS DAY
HYLDA BAKER (19051986). The 4 ft 10 in Lancashire-born actress and music hall comedienne (right) has been described as ‘British TV’s first female comedy star’ and the ‘halfremembered queen of the vibrato double entendre’. Baker starred in ITV sitcom Nearest And Dearest and the film up The Junction.
CHARLES LINDBERGH (1902-1974). The u.S. aviator, was the first person to fly solo non-stop across the Atlantic in 1927. During the 33½-hour journey, he would sometimes hit the surface of the ocean so that the sea spray might keep him awake. The son of a u.S. Congressman, he was known for his anti-Semitism and support for u.S. isolationism in the run-up to World War II.
ON FEBRUARY 4…
IN 1945, Allied leaders Roosevelt, Stalin and Churchill met at Black Sea resort Yalta to discuss the shape of post-war Europe. IN 1995, Celine Dion achieved her first uk No.1, with Think Twice. It would stay at the top of the charts for seven weeks.
WORD WIZARDRY
GUESS THE DEFINITION: Carious (coined 1520s) A) Needy, dependent. B) Cautious.
C) Decayed (of teeth). Answer below. PHRASE EXPLAINED To appeal to Caesar: meaning to appeal to the highest possible authority; it alludes to the demand of apostle Paul (‘I appeal unto Caesar’) to have his case heard in Rome — his right as a Roman citizen.
QUOTE FOR TODAY
Actors are cattle.
Sir Alfred Hitchcock, British film director (1899-1980)
JOKE OF THE DAY
What has four legs and goes boo? A cow with a cold. Guess The Definition answer: C