July 23

Scott Winters July 23, 2025 1 Comment

A quick look at Today in History, check out some Celebrity Birthdays, and find out what Days of the Year to celebrate.

TODAY IN HISTORY:

1715 – The first lighthouse in America was authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island, MA.

1827 – The first swimming school in the United States opened in Boston, MA. Students included John Quincy Adams and James Audubon.

1829 – The first typewriter, called a typographer, was patented by William Austin Burt.

1877 – The first railroad passenger service began in Cincinnati, OH.

1880 – The first U.S. commercial hydro-electric power plant began operation in Grand Rapids, MI on the Grand River.

1903 – The Ford Motor Company sold its first car. It had a price tag of $850. The automobile featured a twin-cylinder combustion engine designed and manufactured by Henry Ford.

1904 – The ice cream cone was invented by Charles E. Menches in St. Louis, MO.

1926 – Fox Films purchased the patents of the Movietone sound system for recording sound onto film.

1938 – In Utah, the first federal game preserve was approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

1958 – Dutch Village in Holland, MI opened for the first time. On their first day they had a total of two customers and made $12.73.

1962 – Telstar relayed the first publicly transmitted, live trans-Atlantic television program, featuring Walter Cronkite.

1967 – In Detroit, MI, one of the worst riots in U.S. history began on 12th Street in the inner city. The riots killed 43 people, injured 342 and burned about 1,400 buildings.

1972 – The U.S. launched Landsat 1 (ERTS-1). It was the first Earth-resources satellite.

1982 – Diet Coke was introduced.

1982 – The movie “The World According to Garp”, starring Robin Williams, premiered in theaters.

1982 – The International Whaling Commission decided to end commercial whaling by 1985-86.

1984 – Vanessa Williams became the first Miss America to resign when she surrendered her crown after nude pictures of her appeared in “Penthouse” magazine.

1985 – Commodore unveiled the personal computer Amiga 1000.

1986 – Britain’s Prince Andrew married Sarah Ferguson at Westminster Abbey in London. (They divorced in 1996.)

1992 – The “New B-93”, 93.7 WBCT-FM in Grand Rapids, MI, hit the airwaves.

1993 – The movie “Coneheads”, starring Dan Aykroyd and Jane Curtin, debuted in theaters.

1995 – The comet Hale-Bopp was discovered. It became visible to the naked eye on Earth nearly a year later.

1997 – Digital Equipment Corporation filed antitrust charges against computer chipmaker Intel.

1998 – U.S. scientists at the University of Hawaii clone more than 50 “carbon-copy” mice.

1999 – The movie “Inspector Gadget: The Movie”, starring Matthew Broderick, premiered in theaters.

2000 – Lance Armstrong won his second Tour de France.

2015 – NASA announced the discovery of Kepler-452b (a planet sometimes quoted to be an “Earth 2.0” or “Earth’s Cousin”) by the Kepler space telescope.

2021 – Major League Baseball’s Cleveland Indians announced it would be re-named the Guardians, after the Guardians of Traffic, eight large Art Deco statues on the Hope Memorial Bridge, located near their playing field.

2022 – The World Health Organization declared Monkey Pox a global health emergency.

BIRTHDAYS:

Ronny Cox – 87 a old (1938) – Actor (“Beverly Hills Cop”)

Edie McClurg – 80 a old (1945) – Actress (” A River Runs Through It”, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”, TV’s “WKRP in Cincinnati”, “Harper Valley PTA”, “The Hogan Family”)

Andy Mackay – 79 a old (1946) – Played oboe and saxophone (Roxy Music)

John Hall – 77 a old (1948) – Singer (Orleans), U.S. Congressman

Blair Thornton – 75 a old (1950) – Guitarist (Bachman-Turner Overdrive)

Martin Gore – 64 a old (1961) – Guitarist, keyboardist (Depeche Mode)

Woody Harrelson – 64 a old (1961) – Actor (TV’s “Cheers”, movies “The People Vs. Larry Flynt”, “The Messenger”, “White Men Can’t Jump”, “Indecent Proposal”, “The Hunger Games”, “Natural Born Killers”, “Kingpin”)

Eriq La Salle – 63 a old (1962) – Actor (“Coming to America”, “One Hour Photo”, TV’s “ER”)

Slash (Saul Hudson) – 60 a old (1965) – Guitarist (Guns N’ Roses)

Charisma Carpenter – 55 a old (1970) – Actress (TV’s “Angel,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”)

Sam Watters – 55 a old (1970) – Singer (Color Me Badd)

Chad Gracey – 54 a old (1971) – Drummer (Live)

Alison Krauss – 54 a old (1971) – Singer, musician

Marlon Wayans – 53 a old (1972) – Actor (“Little Man”, “White Chicks”, “Scary Movie” 1 & 2, TV’s “The Wayans Brothers”, “In Living Color”)

Kathryn Hahn – 52 a old (1973) – Actress (TV’s “Parks and Recreation”, movie “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”)

Monica Lewinsky – 52 a old (1973) – White House Intern who had an “inappropriate relationship” with President Bill Clinton

Michelle Williams – 45 a old (1980) – Singer (Destiny’s Child)

Daniel Radcliffe – 36 a old (1989) – Actor (“Harry Potter” movies)