19 May 2016

impresario

[im-pruh-sahr-ee-oh, -sair-]

noun, plural impresarios.
1. a person who organizes or manages public entertainments, especially operas, ballets, or concerts.
2. any manager, director, or the like.

Origin of impresario

1740-1750; < Italian, equivalent to impres (a) impresa + -ario -ary

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for impresario

Contemporary Examples

“Warning to politicians,” Internet impresario Matt Drudge recently tweeted.
Why TV Anchor Jorge Ramos Swam Across The Rio Grande
Lloyd Grove
July 21, 2014

Only a few short months since the death of its founder and impresario, Steve Jobs, Apple appears more dominant than ever.
Boycott Apple? The Moral Dilemma After Abuse Reports From China
Thane Rosenbaum
January 26, 2012

At 28, Schroeder is the same age as Internet impresario Mark Zuckerberg.
Fashion of a Certain Age New Website Halsbrook.com Caters to Mature Shoppers
Robin Givhan
November 3, 2012

Leonard was now the impresario of Delta Blues, music sold to the poorest people in the city.
The Stacks: How Leonard Chess Helped Make Muddy Waters
Alex Belth
August 1, 2014

That autumn she had been introduced to the British producer and impresario Charles Cochran.
Tallulah Bankhead: Gay, Drunk and Liberated in an Era of Excess Art
Judith Mackrell
January 24, 2014

Historical Examples

But the impresario renewed his proposal, and the struggle recommenced.
The Life of Johannes Brahms (Vol 1 of 2)
Florence May

The impresario that provides the opera could not sing nor dance.
A Day’s Ride
Charles James Lever

Anagram

impair roes
air promise

Today’s quote

When we blindly adopt a religion, a political system, a literary dogma, we become automatons. We cease to grow.

– Anais Nin

On this day

19 May 1536 – Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII of England, is beheaded for adultery, incest and treason.

19 May 1568 – Queen Elizabeth I orders the arrest of Mary, Queen of Scots.

19 May 1897 – Oscar Wilde released from Reading Gaol.

19 May 1909 – birth of Sir Nicholas Winton, MBE, British humanitarian who rescued 669 children from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia in 1938, shortly after Kristallnacht. Most of the children were Jewish. He arranged their safe passage to Britain and found homes for them. As war loomed, Winton registered as a conscientious objector and registered for work with the Red Cross. He rescinded his objection in 1940 and served with the Royal Air Force. Winton kept quiet about the rescue of the 669 children, not even telling his wife, Grete. It wasn’t until 1988, when Grete found a scrapbook in their attic that detailed the children, their parents’ names, and the names and addresses of the people they moved in with in Britain. She was able to locate 80 of the children. Later that year, she took Nicholas along to the filming of the BBC-TV show That’s Life. Unexpectedly for Winton, his scrapbook was shown on camera and his exploits detailed. When the host asked if anyone in the audience owed their life to Winton, more than two dozen people stood up, surrounding and applauding him.

19 May 1925 – birth of Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little), also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, African-American Muslim minister and human rights activist. He campaigned for the rights of African-Americans. At the age of 20, while in prison, he joined the ‘Nation of Islam’, a group that preached black supremacy. He eventually became disillusioned with it and its leader, Elijah Muhammad. On 8 March 1964, he publicly announced he had the Nation of Islam. Malcolm X founded Muslim Mosque Inc and the Organisation of Afro-American Unity. He converted to Sunni Islam, revoked black supremacy and preached equal rights. He was assassinated on 21 February 1965 by three members of the Nation of Islam; Talmadge Hayer (also known as Thomas Hagan), Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson. All three were convicted, although Butler and Johnson maintained their innocence.

19 May 1962 – Marilyn Monroe sings a seductive version of ‘Happy Birthday‘ to President John F. Kennedy for his 45th birthday. She was introduced to the stage as the ‘late’ Marilyn Monroe. Less than three months later, Monroe was found dead. The dress Monroe wore was designed by Jean Louis and sold at auction in 1999 for more than $1,200,000. It was a sheer, flesh coloured dress with 2,500 rhinestones.

17 May 2016

factotum

[fak-toh-tuh m]

noun

1. a person, as a handyman or servant, employed to do all kinds of work around the house.
2. any employee or official having many different responsibilities.

Origin of factotum

1560-1570; < Medieval Latin, equivalent to Latin fac make, do (imperative of facere) + tōtum, neuter of tōtus all

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for factotum

Historical Examples

He had a factotum named Charley Breen who was his valet, cook, hostler and assistant surveyor.
Ten years in the ranks, U.S. army
Augustus Meyers

He was her factotum, in whom she had greater faith than in any member of her household.
Chatterbox, 1906
Various

Ted cried, when my father, with some circumlocutionary hesitancy and great delicacy, conveyed his decision to our factotum.
The Record of Nicholas Freydon
A. J. (Alec John) Dawson

Entering the ground, he was confronted by his factotum, the Italian, Silvio.
Mary Louise Solves a Mystery
L. Frank Baum

I hired a Greek servant, whom I intended should serve as interpreter and factotum.
Visits To Monasteries in the Levant
Robert Curzon

Bonhomme Michel was the old watchman and factotum of the monastery.
The Golden Dog
William Kirby

The instant the factotum had closed the door, Valentin addressed the girl with an entirely new earnestness.
The Innocence of Father Brown
G. K. Chesterton

Everything went smoothly when the factotum was not interfered with.
The Ghost Girl
H. De Vere Stacpoole

For many years Baha acted in Bagdad (1852-67) as factotum for Azal, and acknowledged him as supreme.
Bahaism and Its Claims
Samuel Graham Wilson

We found him in his library in consultation with his factotum Jahn.
Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 61, No. 378, April, 1847
Various

Anagram

coma tuft
cut of mat

Today’s quote

Sooner or later you’re going to realize just as I did that there’s a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.

– Morpheus, The Matrix

On this day

17 May – International Day Against Homophobia.

17 May 2000 – Thomas Blanton Jr and Bobby Frank Cherry, former Ku Klux Klan members, are arrested and charged with murder for the 1963 bombing of a church in Alabama which killed four girls. The two men were sentenced to life in prison.

17 May 2012 – Disco singer, Donna Summer dies from lung cancer. She was born on 31 December 1948.

16 May 2016

pecuniary

[pi-kyoo-nee-er-ee]

adjective

1. of or relating to money:
pecuniary difficulties.
2. consisting of or given or exacted in money or monetary payments:
pecuniary tributes.
3. (of a crime, violation, etc.) involving a money penalty or fine.

Origin of pecuniary

Latin

1495-1505; < Latin pecūniārius, derivative of pecūnia property, money ( pecūn-, derivative of pecū flock (see peculiar ), with -ūn- as in tribūna tribune1, fortūna fortune, etc. + -ia -ia ); see -ary

Related forms

pecuniarily [pi-kyoo-nee-air-i-lee] (Show IPA), adverb
nonpecuniary, adjective

Synonyms

1, 2. See financial.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for pecuniary

Contemporary Examples

Yet according to Hamilton, “it was quickly apparent that other than pecuniary consolation would be acceptable.”
Should the U.S. Really Pay a Kim’s Ransom?
Kevin Bleyer
December 20, 2014

Many Democrats have found the pecuniary power of Republican Super PACS highly intimidating.
DIY Swift-Boating: Alexandra Kerry Launches Ad Your Voice 2012
Judith Grey
October 20, 2012

Historical Examples

It must also be stated that Coleridge did not neglect his wife in the pecuniary sense.
Biographia Epistolaris Volume 2
Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Anagram

pay cure in
pay ice run
a icy prune

Today’s quote

Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.

– Pele

On this day

16 May 1920 – Joan of Arc is canonised (declared a saint) by the Catholic Church. In 1431, the Catholic Church accused her of heresy. She was subsequently ex-communicated and burnt at the stake. The church later nullified her ex-communication, declaring her a matyr who was unjustly executed because of a vendetta by the English (who controlled the Inquisitorial Court in occupied France). She was beatified (given the title of Blessed and the ability to intercede on behalf of those who pray to her) in 1909 prior to her canonisation in 1920.

16 May 1990 – death of Jim Henson, American muppeteer (Sesame Street, the Muppet Show). Born 24 September 1936.

16 May 1944 – birth of Danny Trejo, American actor (Desperado, Machete, Con-Air).

16 May 1945 – birth of Nicky Chinn, British songwriter and record producer. In conjunction with Queensland-born Mike Chapman, he wrote hit singles for Sweet, Suzi Quatro, Mud, Racey, Smokie and Tina Turner.

16 May 2010 – death of Ronald James Padavona, otherwise known as Ronny James Dio, heavy metal singer. Dio replaced Ozzy Osbourne as lead singer of Black Sabbath, for two years before leaving after disagreements with other band members. Dio was also associated with Rainbow, Dio, and Elf. Born 12 July 1942.

15 May 2016

ergo

[ur-goh, er-goh]

conjunction, adverb

1. therefore.

Origin of ergo

Latin

1350-1400; < Latin

ergo(1)

1. a combining form meaning “work”:
ergograph.

Also, especially before a vowel, erg-.

Origin

combining form representing Greek érgon

ergo(2)

1. a combining form of ergot :
ergotoxine.

Origin
< French
post hoc, ergo propter hoc
[pohst hohk, er-goh prohp-ter hohk; English pohst hok, ur-goh prop-ter hok er-goh]

Latin.

1. after this, therefore because of it: a formula designating an error in logic that accepts as a cause something that merely occurred earlier in time.
cogito, ergo sum
[koh-gi-toh er-goh soo m; English koj-i-toh ur-goh suhm, er-goh]
Spell Syllables
Latin.
1. I think, therefore I am (stated by Descartes as the first principle in resolving universal doubt).

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for ergo

Contemporary Examples

Danilo Kis is Jewish and Serbian and half-Hungarian and once-Yugoslavian— ergo, European.
Do National Writers Still Exist?
Colum McCann
November 27, 2010

ergo, we should call him Scottie in da club because he is figuratively beaming himself up by smoking a blunt in da club.
R. Kelly’s Craziest Lyrics From ‘Black Panties,’ Analyzed
Chancellor Agard
December 2, 2013

Anagram

gore
ogre

Today’s quote

The voyage of discovery is not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.

– Marcel Proust

On this day

15 May – The Nakba (Day of the Catastrophe), Palestine – commemoration of the displacement of more than 700,000 Palestinians and the depopulation and destruction of at least 400 villages during the establishment of Israel in 1948.

15 May 1970 – At Jackson State University in Mississippi, police open fire on students who were protesting against the Vietnam and Cambodian Wars, killing two and injuring twelve.

14 May 2016

onager

[on-uh-jer]

noun, plural onagri [on-uh-grahy], onagers.

1. a wild ass, Equus hemionus, of southwestern Asia.
2. an ancient and medieval military catapult for throwing stones.

Origin of onager

Middle English Latin Greek

1300-1350; Middle English < Late Latin: machine for throwing projectiles, Latin onager, onagrus wild ass < Greek ónagros (in both senses), alteration of ónos ágrios ass of the fields, wild ass (see acre )

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for onager

Historical Examples

The onager of Mesopotamia is a very beautiful animal, with its grey glossy coat, and its lively and rapid action.
History Of Egypt, Chalda, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, Volume 3 (of 12)
G. Maspero

This is supposed to be of the same pattern which is called an ” onager ” in the Latin books.
Stories of Invention
Edward E. Hale

We then loaded the onager with the acorns, and moved homeward.
The Swiss Family Robinson
Johann David Wyss

The skin that you have laid before me is the skin of an onager.
The Magic Skin
Honore de Balzac

Balista (Latin, onager), an engine for propelling stones, worked by means of strongly-twisted cords.
Annals of a Fortress
E. Viollet-le-Duc

The wild ass and onager roamed in small herds between the Balikh and the Tigris.
History Of Egypt, Chalda, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, Volume 3 (of 12)
G. Maspero

The onager, or wild ass, is not striped like the zebra, and is not near so elegant in figure.
Buffon’s Natural History. Volume V (of 10)
Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon

It has sometimes occurred to me that perhaps the skin was that of Job’s onager.
A History of the French Novel, Vol. 2
George Saintsbury

Anagram

so range
son gear
ran egos

Today’s quote

Don’t let your age control your life… let your life control your age.

– Anthony Douglas Williams

On this day

14 May 1796 – Edward Jenner gives the first smallpox vaccination.

14 May 1879 – the first group of indentured Indians labourers arrive in Fiji aboard the Leonidas.

14 May 1919 – death of Henry John Heinz, founder of Heinz Company, responsible for canned baked beans. Born 11 October 1844.

14 May 1929 – Wilfred Rhodes takes his 4,000th first-class wicket at Leyton, after bowling 9/39. He played 58 test matches for England between 1899 and 1930. He was the first Englishman to complete both 1,000 runs and 100 wickets in Test cricket. He went on to achieve the double of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets in individual first-class seasons a record 16 times. He retired with first-class totals of 4,204 wickets and 39,969 runs. In Tests he retired with 127 wickets and 2,325 runs.

14 May 1939 – Lina Medina (born 27 September 1933 in Peru) becomes the world’s youngest confirmed mother at the age of five. She gave birth by a caesarean section, to a boy, weighing 2.7kg (6.0lb). He was named Gerardo after the doctor who delivered him. He was raised believing Lina was his sister and was told the truth at the age of 10. Gerardo died in 1979, aged 40, of a bone marrow disease. Following Gerardo’s birth, Lina was diagnosed with extreme ‘precocious puberty’, in which puberty occurs at an unusually early age. It was initially reported that she hit puberty by the age of three, however, a further medical report indicated she had commenced puberty by eight months old. Lina never revealed who the father was or the circumstances of her impregnation. Lina later married and had a second child in 1972, when she was 39. She presently lives in Lima, Peru.

14 May 1948 – the modern nation of Israel is established by proclamation of the Jewish Agency headed by David Ben-Gurion, following the United Nations adoption of Resolution 181 on 29 November 1947.

13 May 2016

beatnik

beatnik

[beet-nik]

noun

1. (sometimes initial capital letter) a member of the Beat Generation.
2. a person who rejects or avoids conventional behavior, dress, etc.

Origin of beatnik

1955-1960, Americanism; beat (adj.) (as in Beat Generation ) + -nik

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for beatnik Expand

Contemporary Examples

Guggenheim pulled the confirmed bachelor into her coven of beatnik friends.
Casa de la Torre: The Museum of Mexico’s Liberace
Brandon Presser
March 23, 2014

At an underground party, Joyce introduced Peggy to her friend Abe Drexler (Charlie Hofheimer), a beatnik journalist.
‘Mad Men’ Premiere: Before Season 5, Let’s Remember Season 4
Jace Lacob
March 21, 2012

Historical Examples

He was far, far different than the laughing, beatnik jabbering, youngster he had always seemed.
Black Man’s Burden
Dallas McCord Reynolds

Anagrams

tin beak
tan bike

Today’s quote

We are all alone, born alone, die alone, and—in spite of True Romance magazines—we shall all someday look back on our lives and see that, in spite of our company, we were alone the whole way. I do not say lonely—at least, not all the time—but essentially, and finally, alone. This is what makes your self-respect so important, and I don’t see how you can respect yourself if you must look in the hearts and minds of others for your happiness.

– Hunter S. Thompson

On this day

13 May 1941 – birth of Richard Steven Valenzuela, otherwise known as Richie Valens. 1950s rock and roll star, famous for songs such as, ‘Come On, Let’s Go’, and ‘La Bamba. Died in a plane crash on 3 February 1959 with other musicians, Buddy Holly, J.P. ‘Big Bopper’ Richardson and the pilot, Roger Peterson. Their deaths were immortalised in the Don McLean song, ‘American Pie’, when he sang about the day the music died.

13 May 1981 – Pope John Paul II is injured in front of 2,000 people in St Peter’s Square after being shot by Turkish man, Mehmet Ali Agca.

12 May 2016

brogue(1)

[brohg]

noun

1. an Irish accent in the pronunciation of English.
2. any strong regional accent.

Origin of brogue(1)

1680-1690; perhaps special use of brogue2

Related forms

broguery, noun

brogue(2)

[brohg]

noun

1. a durable, comfortable, low-heeled shoe, often having decorative perforations and a wing tip.
2. a coarse, usually untanned leather shoe once worn in Ireland and Scotland.
3. brogan.

Origin

1580-90; < Irish brōg shoe, Old Irish brōce; cognate with L. brācae trousers < Gaulish; see breech

brogue(3)

[brohg]

noun, Scot.

1. a fraud; trick; prank.

Origin

1530-40; of uncertain origin

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for brogue

Contemporary Examples

Anybody who says, “I wantida go ta da terlit on T’oid Avunya” is mixing a Jewish-immigrant accent with an Irish brogue.
Mel Brooks Is Always Funny and Often Wise in This 1975 Playboy Interview
Alex Belth
February 15, 2014

“My dad freaked out when the tabloid reporter turned up,” Cumming says, in his lilting Scottish brogue.
Alan Cumming: The Truth About My Father
Tim Teeman
October 13, 2014

She chuckled a bit in her confessional Irish brogue, and members of the audience laughed.
Wingnuts Excerpt-Bush Derangement Syndrome
John Avlon
March 31, 2010

Anagram

our beg
rub ego
bug ore

Today’s quote

Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.

– Carl Jung

On this day

12 May 1932 – the body of the Lindbergh baby is found near to the Lindbergh residence. The baby was the son of famous aviator, Charles Lindbergh, and had been kidnapped days earlier. The kidnapper had accidentally killed the baby during the kidnapping and abandoned the body in a nearby forest.

12 May 1937 – King George VI is crowned King of Britain (and it’s colonies) at Westminster Abbey, following the abdication of his brother.

12 May 1980 – death of Bette Nesmith Graham. Bette is the inventor of Liquid Paper. Her son, Mike Nesmith, was a member of 1960s UK/American pop/rock band, The Monkees. Born 23 March 1924 in Dallas, Texas.

12 May 1994 – in response to thousands acts of violence in the USA against abortion clinics and their patients, a bill is submitted to President Clinton making it a federal crime to prevent access to an abortion clinic or to threaten or use force against people attending the clinics. The bill resulted in the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act 1994. Between 1978 and 1993 anti-abortion (or pro-life) activists had been responsible for at least 9 murders, 17 attempted murders, 406 death threats, 179 acts of assault, 5 kidnappings of abortion providers, 41 bombings, 96 attempted bombings or arsons, 692 bomb threats, 1993 incidents of trespassing, 1400 incidents of vandalism and 100 attacks with butyric acid (stink bombs).

11 May 2016

homologous

[huh-mol-uh-guh s, hoh-]

adjective

1. having the same or a similar relation; corresponding, as in relative position or structure.
2. corresponding in structure and in origin, but not necessarily in function:
The wing of a bird and the foreleg of a horse are homologous.
3. having the same alleles or genes in the same order of arrangement:
homologous chromosomes.
4. Chemistry. of the same chemical type, but differing by a fixed increment of an atom or a constant group of atoms:
Methyl and ethyl alcohols are homologous.
5. Immunology. pertaining to an antigen and its specific antibody.

Origin of homologous
Medieval Latin, Greek
1650-1660; < Medieval Latin homologus < Greek homólogos agreeing, equivalent to homo- homo- + -logos proportional, equivalent to log- (stem of lógos proportion; see logos ) + -os -ous

Related forms

nonhomologous, adjective
unhomologous, adjective

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for homologous

Historical Examples

First, correlation of growth: homologous organs tend to vary in the same direction, and together.
Appletons’ Popular Science Monthly, March 1899
Various

homologous reactions are arbitrarily valued as 100 per cent, and heterologous reactions are expressed accordingly.
Myology and Serology of the Avian Family Fringillidae
William B. Stallcup

Anagram

hog soul moo

Today’s quote

The thermometer of success is merely the jealousy of the malcontents.

– Salvador Dali

On this day

11 May – World Keffiyeh Day, in solidarity with Palestine.

11 May 1904 – birth of Salvador Dali, Spanish surrealist painter. Died 23 January 1989.

11 May 1981 – death of Bob Marley, Jamaican reggae singer and musician. Born 6 February 1945.

11 May 1985 – death of Chester Gould, American creator of the cartoon strip, ‘Dick Tracy’. He drew the comic strip from 1931 to 1977. Born 20 November 1900.

10 May 2016

orthography

[awr-thog-ruh-fee]

noun, plural orthographies for 3–5.

1. the art of writing words with the proper letters, according to accepted usage; correct spelling.
2. the part of language study concerned with letters and spelling.
3. a method of spelling, as by the use of an alphabet or other system of symbols; spelling.
4. a system of such symbols:
Missionaries provided the first orthography for the language.
5. an orthographic projection, or an elevation drawn by means of it.

Origin of orthography

late Middle English Latin Greek

1425-1475; late Middle English ortografye < Latin orthographia correct writing, orthogonal projection < Greek orthographía. See ortho-, -graphy

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for orthography

Historical Examples

The orthography of the word cannot be determined, it is spelled “Shiblom” in the passage above, and Shiblon in another.
New Witnesses for God (Volume 2 of 3)
B. H. Roberts

The pillars of state of English orthography at least seemed destined to totter.
Emmy Lou
George Madden Martin

Will they forego the facts of an epoch, for the orthography of a syllable?
The Celtic Magazine, Vol. 1, No. 3, January 1876
Various

The new generation is more proficient in video games than in orthography.
The Civilization of Illiteracy
Mihai Nadin

In the orthography of his native names he was not so successful.
Captain Cook’s Journal During the First Voyage Round the World
James Cook

I may plead precedent for taking a liberty with the orthography of Jem.
A Budget of Paradoxes, Volume II (of II)
Augustus de Morgan

Mr Hale felt the necessity of adopting a peculiar style of orthography to represent the sounds of these words.
The Works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, Volume 3
Hubert Howe Bancroft

The orthography of this language is a most vexed and perplexed affair.
Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 61, No. 380, June, 1847
Various

Names of islands according to the dialect or orthography followed by Prichard.
The Natural History of the Varieties of Man
Robert Gordon Latham

His attainments in orthography, however, are not so surprising as those in arithmetic.
Anecdotes of Dogs
Edward Jesse

Today’s quote

We do not want merely to see beauty, though, God knows, even that is bounty enough. We want something else which can hardly be put into words – to be united with the beauty we see, to pass into it, to receive it into ourselves, to bathe in it, to become part of it.

– C.S. Lewis

On this day

10 May 1837 – the Panic of 1837: New York City banks fail and unemployment reaches record levels.

10 May 1893 – the Supreme Court of the United States rules in Nix v Hedden that a tomato is a vegetable, not a fruit, under the Tariff Act of 1883.

10 May 1908 – Mother’s Day first celebrated. Andrews Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia in the United States becomes the first place in the world to hold the first official Mother’s Day celebration. 407 women were in attendance that day. In 1872 Julie Ward Howe suggested a national holiday to celebrate peace and motherhood. At that time, many local groups held their own celebration of motherhood, but most were religious gatherings. Another influential figure was Anna Jarvis who campaigned for a national holiday following the death of her mother in 1905. Her mother, social activist Ann Jarvis used to hold an annual celebration, Mother’s Friendship Day, to help ease the pain of the US Civil War. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson declared Mother’s Day a national holiday on the second Sunday of May. Anna Jarvis was arrested at a Mother’s Day celebration when she tried to stop the selling of flowers. She stated, ‘I wanted it to be a day of sentiment not of profit‘.

10 May 1924 – Edgard J. Hoover appointed Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. A position he holds until his death in 1972.

10 May 1933 – in Germany, Nazis stage massive public book burnings.

10 May 1941 – Deputy Fuhrer Rudolf Hess, parachutes into Scotland to negotiate a peace settlement between the UK and Germany. Hess was arrested and convicted of crimes against peace and spent the remainder of his life in jail. He died in 1987.

10 May 1954 – Bill Haley and His Comets release Rock Around the Clock, the first rock and roll record to reach number one on the Billboard charts.

10 May 1960 – birth of Bono (Paul David Hewson), activist and Irish singer-songwriter with U2.

10 May 1994 – Nelson Mandela inaugurated as South Africa’s first black president.

10 May 2003 – The Golden Gumboot opens in Tully, North Queensland. It stands 7.9m tall and represents the record annual rainfall of 7900mm that Tully received in1950. Tully is officially Australia’s wettest town.