On this Date in History

Births:

1593 George Herbert English metaphysical poet (5 Mystical Songs)
1783 Washington Irving New York NY, American writer (Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle) (picture on right)
1924 Marlon Brando Omaha NE, actor (Superman, Godfather)
1948 Garrick Ohlsson Bronxville NY, pianist (International Busoni winner 1969)
1958 Alec Baldwin Amityville NY, actor (Joshua-Knots Landing, Beetlejuice)
1959 David Hyde Pierce Saratoga Springs NY, actor (Niles Crane-Fraiser)
1961 Eddie Murphy Brooklyn NY, actor (Saturday Night Live, 48 Hours, Beverly Hills Cop, Raw)
1961 Melissa Etheridge rock guitarist/vocalist (Come to My Window)
1971 Picabo Street skier (Olympics-gold-94)

Deaths:


0033 Christ crucified (according to astronomer Humphreys & Waddington)
1897 Johannes Brahms German composer/conductor (Hung Dances), dies at 63 (picture on right)
1986 Peter Pears English tenor (Death in Venice), dies at 75
1990 Sarah Vaughan jazz singer, dies of lung cancer at 66
1996 Carl Stokes 1st black mayor of a major US city (Cleveland OH), dies


Events:

1776 Washington receives honorary Ll.D. degree from Harvard College
1790 Revenue Marine Service (US Coast Guard), created
1860 Pony Express began between St Joseph MO & Sacramento CA
1868 An Hawaiian surfs on highest wave ever, he rides a 50' tidal wave
1926 1st performance of Jean Sibelius' 7th Symphony in C
1933 1st airplane flight over Mount Everest
1948 1st US figure skating championships held



Check sidebar under references for more on this date in history.


You can listen to my recording of Brahms' Intermezzo Op118 No2 here. Scroll down to find it.


Correction from an email today:

In the section On This Date in History, your blog listed the first US figure skating championships as being held in 1948. That date is off by 34 years.

The first US figure skating championships were held in 1914. The winner for ladies was Teresa Weld. The winner for men was Norman Scott. There were also awards for pairs (Jeanne Chevalier and Norman Scott) and dance (Teresa Weld and Nathaniel Niles).

I have no idea what the calendar date was. I only know the year. This data is from the annual directory published by US Figure Skating that is made available to skating officials.

I hope this information is of interest to you.

So I looked and found this:

Jackson Haines, the father of figure skating, originated the type of figure skating you see on TV today. In the 1860s he brought ballet style and techniques to the sport. Although he won the U.S. men's championship, his expressive style did not yet catch on in the U.S.

Haines went to Europe in 1865 and became a popular success but died before his style of skating caught on. Called the "International Style," Haines's form of skating eventually overcame resistance in the U.S., and on March 20, 1914, the first national figure skating championships in the "International Style" were held at New Haven, Connecticut.

Thanks for your email A.S.