Chimp Beats Brokers

September 3, 1993

After a month long contest in which a Swedish newspaper pitted a chimpanzee against five stock analysts to see who could earn the most on a $1,250 investment, the chimp had earned $190, as compared the stockbrokers best of $130. The chimp picked his stocks by throwing darts.

Australia's Naughtiest Home Videos

September 3, 1992

The TV show Australia's Naughtiest Home Videos debuts. It featured home videos that included genitalia, people having sex, and animals having sex. It was canceled by the head of the network after 34 minutes. He later fired many of the people involved in creating it and banned the program's host from the station headquarters for life.

Mark Spitz

September 3, 1972

Swimmer Mark Spitz wins his sixth 1972 Olympic gold medal, the record for any one Olympiad. He went on to win a seventh. Seven was the most Olympic gold medals ever won by a single athlete in a single Olympiad up to that time. That record was broken by Michael Phelps in 2008.

Right-Hand Drive

September 3, 1967

At 6:00 a.m., Swedish drivers stop driving on the left-hand side of the road and begin driving on the right.

Youngest Person to Swim the English Channel

September 3, 1964

Fourteen-year-old Lenore Modell from the U.S. becomes the youngest person to swim the English Channel.

First Professional Football Game

September 3, 1895

The first professional football game is played in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. The Latrobe Athletic Association beats the Jeannette Athletic Club 12-0.

New York Sun

September 3, 1833

The first issue of New York's first penny paper is published.

Uncle Sam

September 3, 1813

The first known use of the term in print referring to the U.S. government is used in a Troy, New York newspaper.

Charlie Sheen (Carlos Irwin Estévez)

Born September 3, 1965

American actor. An advocate of the "9/11 Truth Movement," he has publicly questioned the truth of the government's account of the 9/11 Attacks. Film: Platoon (1986) and Wall Street (1987). TV: Spin City (2000-02, Charlie Crawford) and Two and a Half Men (2003-11, Charlie Harper for which he was paid over $1 million per episode).

Valerie Perrine

Born September 3, 1943

American actress. Film: Slaughterhouse Five (1972) and Lenny (1974, Lenny's wife).

Al Jardine

Born September 3, 1942

American singer, with The Beach Boys. Music: Surfin' USA (1963), I Get Around (1964, #1), Help Me Rhonda, (1965, #1), and Good Vibrations (1966, #1).

Eileen Brennan

Born September 3, 1932 d. 2013

American Emmy-winning actress. TV: Private Benjamin (1981-83, and film version 1980, Capt. Doreen Lewis).

Boston Strangler

Albert DeSalvo

Born September 3, 1931 d. 1973

American criminal. He confessed to being the "Boston Strangler" and murdering 13 women in the Boston area from 1962-64, although he was never tried due to lack of evidence, with many doubting his confessions. He was convicted on rape charges unrelated to the murders and sentenced to life imprisonment, and was stabbed to death in prison. However, in 2013, 40 years after his death, DNA evidence linked DeSalvo to the 1964 rape and the murder 19-year-old Mary Sullivan, who was the last-known victim of the Boston Strangler.

Wally Albright (Walton Algernon Albright, Jr.)

Born September 3, 1925 d. 1999

American actor, one of the Little Rascals, appeared in six Our Gang films (1934, Wally). Won the Men's National Track and Ski Championship (1957).

Mort Walker (Addison Morton Walker)

Born September 3, 1923 d. 2018

American cartoonist. Creator of Beetle Bailey (1950) and Hi and Lois (1954).

Alan Ladd

Born September 3, 1913 d. 1964

American actor. Film: This Gun for Hire (1942), The Great Gatsby (1949), and Shane (1953).

Kitty Carlisle (Catherine Conn)

Born September 3, 1910 d. 2007

American actress, singer. TV: To Tell the Truth (panelist). Film: A Night at the Opera (1935) and Six Degrees of Separation (1992).

Carl David Anderson

Born September 3, 1905 d. 1991

American physicist. He discovered the positron (1932) for which he shared the 1936 Nobel Prize. He and his graduate student, Seth Neddermeyer, discovered the muon (1936, originally called mu-meson).

Mantan Moreland

Born September 3, 1902 d. 1973

American actor. Film: The Charlie Chan movies (Chan's chauffeur Birmingham Brown).

Louis Henri Sullivan

Born September 3, 1856 d. 1924

American architect. Creator of the skyscraper.

Eugene Field

Born September 3, 1850 d. 1895

American author. Poems: Wynken, Blynken, and Nod (1888) and Little Boy Blue (1888).

Chandra Bahadur Dangi

Died September 3, 2015 b. 1939

Napali little person. Measuring 54.6 cm (1 ft 9½ in) tall, he is the shortest man for whom there is irrefutable evidence. Dangi was a primordial dwarf. Source: Guinness World Records.

Johnny Marks

Died September 3, 1985 b. 1909

American Hall of Fame songwriter. Specialized in Christmas songs, even though he was Jewish.
Marks was the brother-in-law of Robert L. May, who created Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. May convinced Marks to write the song for his poem about Rudolph and the song become a hit for singing cowboy Gene Autry (1949, #1). The song was covered by many other artists and is the second-best selling Christmas song of all time (behind White Christmas). After Rudolph became a hit, the Jewish Marks went on to write a number of famous Christmas-themed songs.

Vince Lombardi (Vincent Thomas Lombardi)

Died September 3, 1970 b. 1913

American Hall of Fame football coach. He won the first two Super Bowls and led Greenbay to five NFL championships. The Super Bowl trophy is named in his honor. He is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history.

Carol Lynley (Carole Ann Jones)

Died September 3, 2019 b. 1942

American actress, child model. Film: Return to Peyton Place (1961, Allison MacKenzie) and The Poseidon Adventure (1972, the ship's singer. Her character performed the Oscar-winning song "The Morning After", however, it was dubbed by Renee Armand).
At age 15, she appeared on the cover of Life magazine.

"Sock It To Me" Girl

Judy Carne (Joyce Botterill)

Died September 3, 2015 b. 1939

English actress. TV: Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967-71, the "Sock it to me" girl). She was briefly married to Burt Reynolds (1963-65).

Sun Myung Moon

Died September 3, 2012 b. 1920

Korean evangelist. Founder of the Unification Church, whose members are known as "moonies." He claims that on Easter morning 1935 Jesus appeared to him and asked him to complete the task of establishing God's kingdom on earth and bringing peace to humankind.

Alan Dugan

Died September 3, 2003 b. 1923

American Pulitzer-winning poet (1962).

Frank Capra

Died September 3, 1991 b. 1897

Sicilian-born American Oscar-winning director. Film: It Happened One Night (1934) and It's a Wonderful Life (1946, although originally a box office flop, it has become a holiday classic). Quote: "Behind every successful man there stands an astonished woman."

First Health-Care Provider to Infect a Patient with AIDS

David Acer

Died September 3, 1990 b. 1949

American dentist. He is the first known health-care provider to infect a patient with AIDS. He is accused of infecting six people, including Kimberly Bergalis. Acer believed he had contracted HIV in 1986 through sexual contact, but didn't show symptoms until 1987. Bergalis won a $1,000,000 settlement from his insurer shortly before her death.

e.e. cummings (Edward Estlin Cummings)

Died September 3, 1962 b. 1894

American poet. Writings: The Enormous Room (1922) describing his imprisonment by the French after being mistaken for a spy.

Adam Willis Wagnalls

Died September 3, 1924 b. 1843

American publisher, co-founder of Funk & Wagnalls Company (1891), who first published their famous dictionary in 1912.

Oliver Cromwell

Died September 3, 1658 b. 1599

Lord Protector of England. He led "the curse of Cromwell," in which he massacred the Irish during an extensive expropriation of their land. He also outlawed Christmas celebrations in England, calling them an extreme forgetfulness to Christ.