Holidays
Feast Day of Saint Apollonia
Patron saint of dentists and people with toothaches. After having her teeth beaten out for refusing to renounce her faith, she leapt to her death in a fire.
What Happened On
From left: Ringo Starr, George Harrison, Ed Sullivan, John Lennon, Paul McCartney
From left: Ringo Starr, George Harrison, Ed Sullivan, John Lennon, Paul McCartney
The Beatles On Ed Sullivan
February 9, 1964
The Beatles make their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. It was watched by 73.7 million people.
Also appearing on that show was future Monkees' member Davy Jones, who was appearing as part of the cast of the play Oliver!, in which he was playing the Artful Dodger. Jones said of the experience, "I watched the Beatles from the side of the stage, I saw the girls going crazy, and I said to myself, this is it, I want a piece of that."
The Beatles had made their first appearance on U.S. TV on a segment of The Huntley-Brinkley Report the previous November.
Book from the Anti-Opium league
Book from the Anti-Opium league
First U.S. Federal Narcotics Prohibition
February 9, 1909
The importation and smoking of opium is banned by "The Opium Exclusion Act of 1909". It did not ban the use of opium, only the smoking and importation of it. Chinese immigrants were the primary smokers of opium, while opium was a common medicine used by Americans at the time. The previously legal trade of opium was soon taken over by criminal enterprises.
The law went into effect on April 1.
First Major U.S. Railroad Tunnel
February 9, 1875
The Hoosac Tunnel in Massachusetts opens. It was the longest U.S. railroad tunnel until 1927. Construction of the 4.75-mile (7.64 km) began in 1851.
• 193 workers were killed in construction accidents, earning it the name the "Bloody Pit".
• Construction of the tunnel also provided the first practical use of the newly-discovered explosive nitroglycerin.
• "Hoosac" is an Algonquian word meaning "place of stones".
Abraham Lincoln On the $5 Bill
February 9, 1864
U.S. President Abraham Lincoln poses for the picture that now appears on the U.S. $5 bill.
Jackson Wins the Vote, But Loses the Presidency
February 9, 1825
The U.S. House of Representative chooses John Quincy Adams as president, even though Andrew Jackson had defeated Adams in both the electoral and popular vote. In the presidential election Jackson, had won 99 electoral votes and 41.36% of the popular vote versus Adams with 84 electoral votes and 30.92% of the popular vote, with the remaining going to other candidates. However, since Jackson didn't have the required majority, the election was turned over to the House of Representatives as per the 12th Amendment. On February 9, 1825, they chose Adams making him President. This infuriated Jackson supporters since Jackson had won both the electoral vote and popular vote.
Biblical Solar Eclipse
February 9, 784 B.C.
According to the Bible, Amos 8:9 - "And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord Jehovah, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day."
Some scholars believe the date of this event corresponds with the solar eclipse of February 9, 784 B.C., which would have appeared as a total eclipse at 1 p.m. in Jerusalem.
Note: Other scholars put this event as corresponding to the Solar Eclipse of 763 B.C.
Paul McCartney and Wings
February 9, 1972
The ex-Beatle Paul McCartney and his new group make their debut performance at Nottingham University, England.
McCarthyism
February 9, 1950
Sen. Joseph McCarthy launches his anti-Red campaign when he addresses a Republican Women's Club telling them that members of the Communist Party are working in the State Department.
Evolution Banned in Atlanta
February 9, 1926
Teaching of Darwin's theory of evolution in public schools is banned by Atlanta's Board of Education.
U.S. National Weather Service
February 9, 1870
Congress establishes the agency as a division of the U.S. Army.
Civil War
February 9, 1861
Jefferson Davis is unanimously elected provisional president of the Confederate States of America.
American Revolution
February 9, 1775
The British Parliament declares the Massachusetts Colony to be in a state of rebellion.
King William's War
February 9, 1690
French and Indian forces burn Schenectady, New York.
Birthdays
William Henry Harrison
Born February 9, 1773 d. 1841
American politician. 9th U.S. President (Mar. 4 - Apr. 4, 1841). He died of pneumonia 31 days after taking office, making him the first U.S. president to die in office. His inaugural address took almost two hours and is the longest in American history. Three weeks after his inauguration, he became sick with a cold. Harrison's doctors tried several cures, such as opium and leeches, but to no avail. He died nine days later.
Judith Light
Born February 9, 1949
American Emmy-winning actress. TV: One Life to Live (Karen Wolek) and Who's the Boss? (Angela).
Mia Farrow
Born February 9, 1945
American actress. Film: Rosemary's Baby (1968, Rosemary). TV: Peyton Place (Allison MacKenzie).
The Color Purple
Alice Walker
Born February 9, 1944
American Pulitzer-winning author, "womanist." Writings: The Color Purple (Pulitzer).
Joe Pesci
Born February 9, 1943
American actor. Film: Raging Bull (1980), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), and Home Alone (1990), and My Cousin Vinny (1992).
Carole King (Carole Klein)
Born February 9, 1942
American Grammy-winning singer. Music: It's Too Late (1971, #1).
Barry Mann
Born February 9, 1939
American songwriter. Teamed with Cynthia Weil, over 150 million copies of their songs have been sold. Music: On Broadway (Drifters), You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling (Righteous Brothers), and Here You Come Again (Dolly Parton).
Roger Mudd
Born February 9, 1928 d. 2021
American Emmy-winning TV newscaster.
Kathryn Grayson (Zelma Hedrick)
Born February 9, 1922 d. 2010
American actress. Star of many MGM musicals of the 1940s and '50s. Film: Show Boat (1951) and Kiss Me Kate (1953).
Ernest Tubb
Born February 9, 1914 d. 1984
American country music Hall of Famer. Music: I'm Walkin' the Floor Over You (1942) and Goodnight, Irene (1950, #1).
Heather Angel
Born February 9, 1909 d. 1986
British actress. TV: Family Affair (Miss Faversham).
Carmen Miranda - The Brazilian Bombshell
Carmen Miranda (Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha)
Born February 9, 1909 d. 1955
Portuguese-born Brazilian dancer, actress. The "Brazilian Bombshell," known for her fruit-bearing headgear. She was the highest-paid performer of the 40s. She also experienced a famous wardrobe malfunction that exposed her pubic area.
Honorius II (Lamberto Scannabecchi)
Born February 9, 1060 d. 1130
religious leader, 163rd Pope (1124-30).
Deaths
Inventor of the Frisbee
Fred Morrison (Walter Frederick Morrison)
Died February 9, 2010 b. 1920
American inventor. He invented the Frisbee (c1937). He got the idea when someone offered to buy the cake pan he and his future wife were tossing back and forth at the beach. He was also a prisoner of the infamous Stalag 13 during World War II.
Bill Haley
Died February 9, 1981 b. 1925
American rock 'n' roll pioneer. Music: Rock Around the Clock (1954, #1).
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky
Died February 9, 1881 b. 1821
Russian author. Writings: Crime and Punishment (1866) and The Brothers Karamazov (1880).
His 1864 novella Notes from Underground is considered to be one of the first works of existentialist literature.
Quote: "Tolerance will reach such a level that intelligent people will be banned from thinking so as not to offend the imbeciles."
Photo Credit: Nationaal Archief
Photo Credit: Nationaal Archief
Princess Margaret
Died February 9, 2002 b. 1930
Countess of Snowdon and sister of Queen Elizabeth II.
Fred Gehrke
Died February 9, 2002 b. 1918
American NFL football player (1940-50). He designed the first NFL football helmet logo (Los Angeles Rams, 1948). He is also credited with creating the first helmet with a full facemask. This was after having broken his nose three times during the 1946 season.
David Wayne (Wayne James McMeekan)
Died February 9, 1995 b. 1914
American actor. TV: Dallas (1978, Digger Barnes).
Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov
Died February 9, 1984 b. 1914
Soviet leader.
Gabby Hayes (George Hayes)
Died February 9, 1969 b. 1885
American western actor. Film: Hopalong Cassidy films (Windy).
Last Of The Red Hot Mamas
Sophie Tucker (Sonya Kalish-Abuza)
Died February 9, 1966 b. 1887
Ukrainian-born American cabaret singer. Music: I'm The Last Of The Red Hot Mamas (1929, which became her billing for the rest of her life).