This Day in History – January 25, 2012

1533 – Henry VIII of England secretly marries his second wife Anne Boleyn. 1554 – Sir Thomas Wyatt gathers an army in Kent, rebels against Queen Mary 1755 – Moscow University is established on Tatiana Day. 1787 – American Daniel Shays leads a rebellion to seize Federal arsenal to protest debtor’s prisons. 1791 – The British Parliament passes the Constitutional Act of 1791 and splits the old Province of Quebec into Upper and Lower Canada. 1799 – 1st US patent for a seeding machine, Eliakim Spooner, Vermont 1851 – Sojourner Truth addresses 1st Black Women’s Rights Convention (Akron, Ohio) 1858 – The Wedding March by Felix Mendelssohn becomes a popular wedding recessional after it is played on this day at the marriage of Queen Victoria’s daughter, Victoria, and Friedrich of Prussia. 1870 – Soda fountain patented by Gustavus Dows 1877 – Congress determines presidential election between Hayes-Tilden 1881 – Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell form the Oriental Telephone Company. 1890 – National Afro-American League forms in Chicago 1890 – Nellie Bly beats Phileas Fogg’s time around world by 8 days (72 days) 1915 – Alexander Graham Bell inaugurates U.S. transcontinental telephone service, speaking from New York to Thomas Watson in San Francisco. 1919 – The League of Nations is founded. 1937 – The Guiding Light debuts on NBC radio from Chicago. In 1952 it moves to CBS television, where it remains until Sept. 18, 2009. 1939 – Joe Louis KOs John Henry Lewis in 1 for heavyweight boxing title 1949 – At the Hollywood Athletic Club the first Emmy Awards are presented. 1955 – Columbia University scientists develop an atomic clock accurate to within one second in 300 years 1957 – FBI arrests Jack & Myra Sobel, charged with spying for the USSR 1959 – 1st transcontinental commercial jet flight (American) (Los Angeles to New York for $301) 1960 – The National Association of Broadcasters reacts to the Payola scandal by threatening fines for any disc jockeys who accept money for playing particular records. 1961 – In Washington, D.C. John F. Kennedy delivers the first live presidential television news conference. 1961 – Walt Disney’s “101 Dalmations” released 1964 – Beatles 1st US #1, “I Want to Hold your Hand” (Cashbox) 1970 – Robert Altman’s “MASH” premieres in movie theatres.  It will be followed two years later by the much-loved televison series helmed by Alan Alda as Captain Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce. 1971 – Charles Manson and three female “Family” members are found guilty of the 1969 Tate-LaBianca murders. 1971 – Idi Amin leads a coup deposing Milton Obote and becomes Uganda’s president. 1979 – Pope John Paul II’s 1st overseas trip as supreme pontiff 1981 – 52 Americans held hostage by Iran for 444 days arrived back in US 1981 – Super Bowl XV Oakland Raiders beat Philadelphia Eagles, 27-10 in New Orleans; Super Bowl MVP Jim Plunkett, Oakland, Quarterback 1985 – “We are the World” is recorded 1986 – The National Resistance Movement topples the government of Tito Okello in Uganda. 1987 – Super Bowl XXI New York Giants beat Denver Broncos, 39-20 in Pasadena; Super Bowl MVP Phil Simms, New York Giants, Quarterback 1988 – Vice President Bush & Dan Rather clash on “CBS Evening News” as Rather attempts to question Bush about his role in the Iran-Contra affair 1993 – Sears announces it is closing its catalog sales department after 97 years 1994 – Accused of molesting a 13-year-old boy, Michael Jackson settles a civil lawsuit out of court 1996 – Billy Bailey became the last person to be hanged in the United States of America. 1998 – During a historic visit to Cuba, Pope John Paul II demands the release of political prisoners and political reforms while condemning US attempts to isolate the country. 1998 – Super Bowl XXXII Denver Broncos beat Green Bay Packers 31-24 in San Diego; Super Bowl MVP Terrell Davis, Denver, Running Back 2004 – Opportunity rover (MER-B) lands on surface of Mars. 2011 – Egyptian Revolution of 2011 begins in Egypt, with a series of street demonstrations, marches, rallies, acts of civil disobedience, riots, labour strikes, and violent clashes in Cairo, Alexandria, and throughout other cities in Egypt.]]]]> ]]>