Note: The calendar is also a page index. Select a date or other item of interest for more information.

The daily notes for this month are from the The History Channel's Home Page. If you like these notes, you'll love looking at the other notes and birthdays they have recorded for every day of the year.

7 -- Labor Day

21 -- Rosh Hashanah

22 -- Autumn Begins

30 -- Yom Kippur

1 September -- This is "Telephone Operator" Day!

Originally there were no female telephone operators in the young communications industry. However, the callers complained that the operators were rude. And so, the first woman was hired to be the courteous, friendly voice on the other end of the black box and wire.

The first woman telephone operator was Emma M. Nutt, who started work saying "Number pu-leeeeeze" for the Telephone Dispatch Company of Boston, Massachusetts on this day in 1878. She remained in her career choice for 33 years.

We've come a long way, baby... In fact, we've come full circle. Wasn't that last telephone operator's voice, male? Well, at least he was polite.

Word Of The Day: Nullify (NUL uh fai) v. To cancel out; make null or valueless. Your reckless actions could nullify your hunting privileges.

2 September -- This is "Veep" Day!

On this day in 1949, Alben W. Barkley, the Vice-President of the United States under President Harry S Truman, wrote a letter that made reference to his office as "The Veep".

The name stuck. Alben W. Barkley was forever more referred to as The Veep. And ever since, it has been used as the common expression for vice-presidents, whether in government or business.

Barkley, born in Kentucky, was Veep from 1949 until 1953.

Word Of The Day: Unconscionable (un KAHN shuh nuh buhl) adj. Beyond reason, excessive; not guided by conscience. That offer is totally unconscionable.

3 September -- This is "Freedom" Day!

It was on this day in 1838 that Frederick Douglass, a black man, boarded a train in the slave state of Maryland, dressed as a sailor with borrowed ID papers. He rode the train to Wilmington, Delaware. There he caught a steamboat to Philadelphia. Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, was a free city. There he transferred to a train that took him to New York City -- also a free city.

It was in New York that he was helped by the underground railway network to freedom.

Frederick Douglass became one of the nation's strongest abolitionists, fighting for the struggle against slavery and one of America's greatest orators. He published the weekly "North Star" which was later titled, "Frederick Douglass' Paper" to reach the black people. It was mostly through his urging that there were black troops serving in the Civil War.

His autobiography, "Life and Times" is a narrative classic of escape to freedom.

Word Of The Day: Vouchsafe (vauch SAYF) v. To grant or give (as in a favor). I vouchsafe you my undivided attention for five minutes.

4 September -- This is "LA" Day!

This is the birthday of one of the most written-about, talked-about, joked-about cities in the world, Los Angeles, California. Los Angeles was born on this day in 1781. The new city was named, El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula by the Spanish ... L.A. for short.

It was a quiet village at first; but the Gold Rush of 1848 started an expansion that has grown to be the home of more than 8 1/2 million people. Hollywood, movie stars, Disneyland, freeways, Beverly Hills, earthquakes, fires, floods and drive-by shootings have all managed to keep The City of Angels on the map, so to speak.

As have the more than a million visitors a year ... they come to visit and they often come back to stay ... in L.A.

Word Of The Day: Inane (i NAYN) adj. Pointless, lacking sense, silly. How can you be so inane as to believe their story?

5 September -- This is "Red Cross" Day!

The American Red Cross found itself providing the first disaster relief on this day in 1881. The organization was providing relief to the thousands of fire victims left destitute by the Great Fire of 1881 in Michigan.

It had been a long hot summer in the 'thumb-area' of Michigan and small forest fires were burning. A southwest gale fanned the flames into an inferno. The fire raged for three days, scorching over a million acres. Over 125 people died in the blaze.

The American Association for the Relief of Misery on the Battlefields was a result of The International Red Cross and the forerunner of the American Association of the Red Cross. Clara Barton was instrumental in establishing the American chapter in 1881.

Today, over one hundred nations have Red Cross associations. Each national society carries on its own program; however, all are united in their aim to prevent misery in time of war or peace and serve all people, regardless of race, nationality or religion.

The Red Cross flag (white background with a red cross) is the reverse of Switzerland's flag where the first Red Cross was founded in 1863 ... and that's how the organization got its name.

Word Of The Day: Attache (at uh SHAY) n. An advisor assigned to a diplomatic mission. Can we safely dipatch an attache to the region?

6 September -- This is "What's in a Name" Day!

The original name of Russia's second largest city was restored on this day in 1991. The city of St. Petersburg was founded in 1703 by Peter the Great, hence the name, St. Petersburg. But it wasn't always that simple.

In 1914, at the beginning of World War I, Russian leaders felt that Petersburg was too German-sounding. So they changed the name of the city to Petrograd -- to make it more Russian-sounding.

Then, in 1924, the country's Soviet Communist leaders wanted to honor the founder of the Soviet Union, Vladimir I. Lenin. The city of Petrograd became Leningrad and was known as Leningrad until this date in 1991 when the new Russian legislators -- no longer Soviet Communists -- wanted the city to reflect their change of government.

What's in a name? Well, it seems that if it's a city's name, it has a lot to do with the politics of the times. Just think, the Russians could have renamed their city, Yeltsingrad, rather than St. Petersburg. Kinda has a nice ring to it...

Word Of The Day: Dour (daur) adj. Stern, strict; gloomy or grim. His dour expression told me he was displeased.

7 September -- This is "Dagwood & Blondie" Day!

Dagwood and Blondie made their first appearance on this day in 1930, in the comic strips. The cartoon, "Blondie" was created by Chic Young and, over time, the characters were heard on the radio, seen in 28 movies, and on 2 TV series. The strip featured newspaper hero, Dagwood Bumstead, as the playboy son of a railroad tycoon. He dated Blondie Boopadoop, a flapper, or gold digger. They married in February, 1933 and had a nice family; Alexander (Baby Dumpling), their first child, was born in 1934, Cookie arrived later.

The strip is still running. Since Chic Young's death in March, 1973, "Blondie" has been written by his son, Dean. It was drawn, for a time, by Jim Raymond. The strip is now done by Dean Young and Stan Drake. Dagwood continues to be the bungling husband who gets into petty arguments with his neighbor, Herb Woodley; the office worker abused by his boss, Mr. Dithers; and the sleep-in, miss the carpool, lazy friend, husband, employee. In the 1990s, Blondie Bumstead, whose children are no longer babies, became a working woman, with Herb's wife, Tootsie. They have a catering service.

In their honor, make a Dagwood sandwich today.

Word Of The Day: Portend (por TEND) v. To indicate or suggest; predict, seve as a warning. His lack of understanding portends marital tragedy.

8 September -- Today is "Star Trek" Day!

NBC-TV headed into "Space: the final frontier" on this date in 1966. The first episode of "Star Trek", titled, "The Man Trap" was seen on the network.

Although "Star Trek" has become a cult phenomenon, with Trekkie (or the member preferred title, Trekker) conventions held annually, the NBC series did not do well. It was regularly beaten in its time slot, and it placed #52 among all series in 1966-1967, its best season. NBC canceled the show on September 2, 1969. Star Trek did return to NBC in 1973, as a cartoon. The original cast provided the voices: William Shatner played Captain Kirk; Leonard Nimoy was the Vulcan, Spock; DeForest Kelley was Dr. Leonard McCoy. George Takei played Sulu; Nichelle Nichols was Uhura, James Doohan was Scotty and Chekov was played by Walter Koenig.

The crew of the USS Enterprise has done very well in recent years, having made several motion pictures and several TV spin-offs, the latest being "Star Trek: Voyager".

"Beam me up, Scotty" and, for gosh sakes, "live long and prosper."

Word Of The Day: Analogous (uh NAL uh guhs) adj. Similar, comparable. The two sets of test scores are roughly analogous.

9 September -- This is "Pelvis" Day!

On this, a Sunday night in 1956, 54,000,000 viewers -- 82.6 percent of the U.S. television audience -- turned their TV dials to CBS as Ed Sullivan introduced 21-year-old singer, Elvis 'the Pelvis' Presley. Elvis sang "Hound Dog" and "Love me Tender".

Ed Sullivan, watching out for the moral safety of the viewing public (plus a live audience of screaming Elvis fans in the show's New York theatre) demanded that the CBS cameras not venture lower than Elvis' waist! Sullivan felt that Presley's wild gyrations of his pelvis would lead the nation's females into a frenzy of untold proportions. One female, Elvis fan described him as "one big hunk of forbidden fruit."

Elvis got the largest fee to that date for appearing on "Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town" -- $50,000.

Word Of The Day: Exult (eg ZULT) v. To rejoice greatly; glory. Her graduation is cause to exult.

10 September -- This is "Gunsmoke" Day!

Actor, James Arness, brought Marshall Matt Dillon to life on this night in 1955. "Gunsmoke" debuted on CBS-TV and went on to become the longest-running (20 years) series on television. The pioneer in adult westerns also starred Milburn Stone as Doc Adams, Amanda Blake as Miss Kitty Russell, and Dennis Weaver as Chester Goode. Other well-known performers joined the cast throughout the years -- Ken Curtis as Festus Hagan and Burt Reynolds as Quint Asper, the town blacksmith, were two favorites.

"Gunsmoke" had enjoyed a radio run of three years with William Conrad ("Cannon") playing Marshall Dillon before the TV version went on the air. The two ran simultaneously for six more years. An interesting note: CBS' first choice for the role of the resolute, determined Matt Dillon was John Wayne. Wayne did not want to become involved with a weekly TV show at the time and suggested his friend, James Arness. The suggestion was magic -- James Arness, the only cast member other than Milburn Stone to stay in the role for the full twenty years, became Matt Dillon. The casting couldn't have been better. The show was saved from cancellation in the 1960s when its popularity had waned. CBS owner, William S. Paley, a fan of "Gunsmoke", demanded the the western be put on the fall schedule.

Not only was "Gunsmoke" the longest-running series with a regular cast of characters; but when it finally did meet its demise, it was the last of the network westerns to go.

"Oh, Mister Dillon!" (Say it with a twang, please.)

Word Of The Day: Motley (MAHT lee) adj. Varied in elements, color, or kinds; heterogeneous. A motley crowd flocked into the store in a frenzied rush to buy.

11 September -- Today is "Oh! Susanna" Day!

The year was 1847. This night an audience at the Eagle Saloon in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania enjoyed Stephen Foster's rendition of his minstrel song, "Oh! Susanna". Stephen got a bottle of whiskey for his performance.

Foster, born in Pittsburgh, had visited the South one time and from then on, identified himself and his songwriting with the Deep South. "Oh! Susanna" was the first in a long list of enduring sing-alongs composed by Stephen Foster, and made popular by the Christy Minstrels, the most successful troupe to tour America in the mid-1800s.

Other Foster songs performed by Foster, himself, and the Christy Minstrels included "Camptown Races", "Old Folks at Home", "My Old Kentucky Home", "Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair" and "Old Black Joe".

Get out that banjo and start strumming ... "Oh! Susanna, oh don't you cry for me, for I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee..."

Word Of The Day: Elapse (i LAPS) v. To slip by, pass. Only after six tense minutes had elaped did she finally swim to the surface.

12 September -- This is "Monkees" Day!

"Hey, hey we're the Monkees -- and we don't monkey around..." The theme song from the NBC-TV show, "The Monkees", kicked off a fun-filled weekly series this day in 1966.

Some 400 aspiring actors had auditioned for the Columbia Television series by producer Don Kirschner. Davy Jones, a former English horse racing jockey; Michael Nesmith, a session guitarist; Peter Tork, of the Phoenix Singers; and Micky Dolenz, who had appeared in the TV series "Circus Boy" were picked to be America's answer to The Beatles. The four were picked to become the fabricated music group -- not because they could sing, act or play musical instruments -- but because they looked the parts. Dolenz and Jones were actors, Tork and Nesmith had some musical experience.

The Monkees were the first made-for-TV rock group. Ironically -- or maybe not -- "The Monkees" TV show won an Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series of 1967.

Word Of The Day: Servile (SUR vuhl) adj. Slavish; submissive or humble. The Incas bowed in servile reverence to their king.

Pull the little paper sticking out of the foil. That's right ... now carefully unwrap the silver foil. Voila! A milk-chocolate delight; and just one of the many chocolate products produced by the Hershey Chocolate Company.

Milton S. Hershey was born on this day in 1857. By the time he was in his mid-30s he had developed the "Great American Chocolate Bar" -- or Hershey Bar as it is known throughout the world. This bar of solid milk chocolate became the foundation of his company and his fortune; and the foundation of Hershey, Pennsylvania.

Milton Hershey would be proud to know that the sweet cocoa smell of chocolate still permeates his hometown and home of the Hershey Chocolate Factory.

He would also find that some Hershey hotel guest rooms include cocoa butter soap as an amenity. And the street lights are in the shape of chocolate candy kisses.

Word Of The Day: Ignominious (IG nuh MIN ee uhs) adj. Shameful, humiliating. Finally, their ignominious affair came to an end.

As lights went out in bedrooms throughout America, voices were heard repeating the Good night routine performed on this, the first performance of "The Waltons" on CBS-TV in 1972. "Good night, John Boy", "Good night, Jim-Bob", "Good night, Elizabeth" and so on...

Families tuned in every Thursday night to get a TV-view of the life happenings of the Walton family. The Depression years (and, later) story, narrated by its creator, Earl Hamner, Jr., was seen through the eyes of the oldest of 7 children, John Boy, portrayed by Emmy Award-winning actor, Richard Thomas.

Walton's Mountain in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Jefferson County was the locale of all that happened to the Walton family -- and that family included other Emmy Award winners, Michael Learned as Olivia Walton (the brood's mother) and Ellen Corby as Grandma Walton. Veteran performers, Ralph Waite as John Walton and Will Geer as Grandpa Walton along with the bright, young, rising stars -- Mary Ellen (Judy Norton-Taylor), Jim-Bob (David W. Harper), Elizabeth (Kami Cotler), Jason (Jon Walmsley), Erin (Mary Elizabeth McDonough) and Ben (Eric Scott), made the TV series a popular favorite. Executive Producer, Lee Rich and Producer, Robert L. Jacks picked up the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series - Continuing in the very first year of "The Waltons".

Nine years later, the children were grown up, going to college and getting married. Walton's Mountain had changed and we all said "Good night, John Boy" for the last time (unless you're still watching the show in syndication).

Word Of The Day: Cull (kul) v. To select or gather; to pick out from others. She culled through the selection until she found the right size.

"USA Today", a publication of the Gannett media empire, was published for the first time this day in 1982. The paper was called, "The Nation's Newspaper". Critics called the satellite-transmitted, colorful, splashy, somewhat glitzy publication, "News McNugggets", "The Nation's Comic Book" and the winner of the "Pulitzer Prize for Best Investigative Paragraph".

Several books have been written about the newspaper that is now read by millions each day. Two such volumes chronicling the rise of "USA Today" are Gannett Chairman Al Neuharth's "Confessions of an S.O.B.", and "The Making of McPaper".

"USA Today" -- now with editions throughout the world -- has changed the shape of newspapers everywhere. Many have imitated the fast-reading format pioneered by "USA Today" in an attempt to revitalize the suffering newspaper industry.

Word Of The Day: Enigma (i NIG muh) n. A riddle; a baffling matter or person. How a fragil moth can travel that far is a biological enigma.

Do you stick your nose up in the air, and say that your ancestors came over on the "Mayflower"? If so, you of staunchly English pedigree, should know that on this day, in the year 1620, 102 passengers and crew set sail on the ocean blue from Plymouth, England.

Their destination was the New World. And, although they encountered stormy weather and treacherous seas, this hearty group of 41 men, the rest, women and children; half religious dissenters and half entrepreneurs, made it to Provincetown, Massachusetts on November 21, 1620.

A month later, the Plymouth Colony was founded by the passengers of the "Mayflower". Better check that family tree ...

Word Of The Day: Forthwith (forth WITH) adv. Without delay, immediately. You may recieve your check forthwith, if you like.

CBS-TV debuted an oxymoron this night in 1965. "Hogan's Heroes", a comedy, took place in a World War II Nazi POW camp.

For six years the prisoners, under the lead of Colonel Robert Hogan, (played by former KNX Radio air personality, Bob Crane), managed to outwit the incompetent and inept Nazi Colonel Wilhelm Klink (played very competently by Werner Klemperer [2-time Emmy-Award winner for his role]) and Nazi Sgt. Shultz (played quite deftly by John Banner).

The prisoners finagled, cheated and tricked the Germans so they could feed classified information to the Allies, help fugitives escape from Germany, etc. They managed to -- through their conniving -- live in luxury. Robert Clary played the Frenchman, Louis LeBeau, who prepared fine French cuisine for his fellow prisoners. There was a steam room, a barbershop and many other creature comforts to add to the amusement of the viewers.

Those who watched the antics in Stalag 13, will remember the comedy and pathos brought to the small screen by POWs: Sgt. Andrew Carter (played by Larry Hovis); radioman, Sgt. James Kinchloe (played by Ivan Dixon, who now owns a radio station in Hawaii); and Peter Newkirk, the English corporal, (played by Richard Dawson, later of "Family Feud").

Some thought it almost sacrilegious to make light of a POW camp. However, much can be learned through comedy. With tongue in cheek, "Hogan's Heroes" educated and entertained.

Word Of The Day: Ingenuous (in JEN yoo uhs) adj. Straightforward, candid; artless, without sophistication. The ingenuous reply took me by surprise.

The Columbia Broadcasting System was born on this day in 1927, although its rival, NBC, had been on the air for some time. "The Tiffany Network", as CBS was called, broadcast an opera as its first program, "The King's Henchman".

William S. Paley put the network together, purchasing a chain of 16 failing radio stations. The controlling interest cost between $250,000 and $450,000. The following year, young, 27-year-old Paley became President of CBS. It only took one more year for him to profit 2.35 million dollars as the network grew to over 70 stations.

In 1978 Paley received the First Annual ATAS (Academy of Television Arts and Sciences) Governor's Award as Chairman of the Board of CBS.

Word Of The Day: Assay (a SAY) v. To analyze, assess, or evaluate. Assay the situation and come back to me with three possible solutions.

On this day in 1928, Walt Disney debuted his talking, animated cartoon, "Steamboat Willie" at the Colony Theatre in New York. The short film featured a character that had originally been named "Mortimer". Uncle Walt changed the name to ... M-I-C- (see you real soon) K-E-Y (Why? Because we like you) M-O-U-S-E.

"Steamboat Willie" was the first cartoon with synchronized sound. And, for those of you who don't remember, "Steamboat Willie" was in black and white. Disney's first, color cartoon wasn't released for another four years.

The star of the film, has changed somewhat over the years; but Mickey Mouse is still with us -- in full living color -- in cartoons, on TV, in books and even in his own stores. What a great success story -- especially for a mouse!

Word Of The Day: Intrepid (in TREP id) adj. Fearless, dauntless. The World War II aviator had to develop an intrepid attitude.

Yes, it's a jungle out there and author, Upton Sinclair, proved it with his book, "The Jungle", published this day in 1906. "The Jungle" was an expose of Chicago's stockyards and the meat packing industry, in general -- revealing unsanitary conditions and what was really in the meat we were eating -- like rats being swept up and dumped into sausage-making machines.

The book made such bold statements that no publisher would touch it. Sinclair published it himself and "The Jungle" became a best seller.

What became of Upton Sinclair? He became a vegetarian -- used the profits from "The Jungle" to found a cooperative community in New Jersey; wrote about the Teapot Dome scandal in "Oil", the Sacco and Vanzetti case in "Boston" and penned a Pulitzer Prize-winner, "Dragon's Teeth", an antifascist novel in 1943. Sometimes it pays to fight your way out of the jungle.

Word Of The Day: Adverse (ad VURS) adj. Unfavorable, hostile, opposed. I'm adverse to building the dam so close to town.

Boxing fans all over the world held their collective breaths as Archie Moore, the light heavyweight champion, knocked the heavyweight champion, Rocky Marciano, to the floor on this night in 1955. But the champ got up ... just as he had done in every fight before this ... and went on to defeat Moore.

Rocky Marciano was the only world champion at any weight to have won every fight of his professional career (1947 to 1956). 43 of his 49 fights were won either by KO's or because the fight had to be stopped.

Marciano, born Rocco Marchegiano in Brockton, Massachusetts and known as the Brockton Bomber, wanted to be a major-league baseball player. This was never to be. Instead, beating up the resident bully in Army camp, he started on the road to his famous boxing career. Marciano won 42 consecutive fights before he met Jersey Joe Walcott for the heavyweight championship on September 23, 1952. Marciano won with a KO. He retired in 1956 after defending his title six times.

The International Boxing Hall of Famer died in a plane crash in Iowa, August 31, 1969. There has never been a boxer like him. In fact, a 1969 computer simulation of a match between Marciano and Muhammad Ali lasted 13 rounds and Marciano knocked out Ali. It was truly a super fight.

Word Of The Day: Harbinger (HAHR bin juhr) n. A forerunner; advance notice. Her huge vocabulary was a harbinger of her prolific medical skill.

In the tradition of the Broadway stage, the lights lowered, the curtain rose and Zero Mostel stepped into the spotlight as the fiddler played. "Tra-a--a-dition", he sang, as he began the first of 3,242 performances of "Fiddler on the Roof". The musical opened on Broadway this day in 1964.

The story of Tevye -- brilliantly played by Mostel -- a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters, takes place in a small Russian village in the late 1890s. He sings and dances his way through the tragedies and comedies of a father fighting for tradition in a changing world.

"To Life", he sang, as the music of Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick made the stories by Sholem Aleichem come alive. And he brought tears to audiences eyes with the poignant, "Sunrise, Sunset", and laughter, too, with the memorable, "If I were a Rich Man" -- which surely made Zero Mostel a wealthy man.

Word Of The Day: Epitome (i PIT uh mee) n. A person or thing that perfectly represents a whole class; a summary. He's the epitome of what a student should be.

We're not referring to the game of checkers, here. This is about a dog named Checkers. The dog, a cocker spaniel, belonged to former U.S. President Richard M. Nixon. This presidential dog was different than Him and Her, Lyndon Johnson's beagles; Ronald Reagan's two dogs, Lucky and Rex or even George Bush's pet dog, Millie.

You see, Checkers was the subject of a speech given this day in 1952 by Mr. Nixon, then a candidate for vice-president. In the televised speech, he stated that he would not give back a gift -- whether it had political ties or not -- because it was a present for his daughter.

The gift in question was Checkers and the speech was forever referred to as the "Checkers Speech".

Word Of The Day: Choleric (kuh LER ik) adj. Bad-tempered, irritable. She was pleasant, but her choleric husband made for a difficult evening.

There's a fictional neighborhood where some of the residents are named Kermit, Big Bird, Bert & Ernie, Miss Piggy, and Oscar the Grouch. It's called "Sesame Street".

The creator of the life-like characters, Jim Henson, was born on this day in 1936. The puppeteer first named his puppets, Muppets, in 1954 when he was working as a producer of the Washington, D.C. TV show, "Sam and Friends".

Henson moved his Muppets to network TV in 1969. Children of all ages were able to enjoy the Muppets' antics on the educational, yet entertaining Sesame Street. The Muppets then got their own show, "The Muppet Show"; which generated "The Muppet Movie" and other films, like "The Muppets Take Manhattan" and "The Great Muppet Caper".

And Jim Henson got the awards: 18 Emmys, 17 Grammys, 4 Peabody Awards and 5 Ace Awards (National Cable Television Association).

The premier muppeteer, and voice of Kermit the Frog, died suddenly in May 1993. Jim Henson lives on through his Muppets.

Word Of The Day: Dupe (doop) v. To deceive, trick. You won't be able to dupe me like you did before.

Happy Birthday to the woman who can spin circles around just about any other interviewer on television, Barbara Walters, born this day in 1931.

Originally, Walters was mere window dressing for the "Today" show on NBC. She had little to do with the program except for reporting women's features. Eventually she was able to show her prowess in incisive interviews and in-depth features before moving to ABC as a news anchor on "ABC News Tonight" with Harry Reasoner.

It was this move in 1976 that garnered Ms. Walters an annual salary of $1,000,000 -- an unprecedented sum for a woman broadcaster at that time. Reasoner and Walters didn't quite click and Reasoner quit. Walters then put her own brand of interviewing style to work in "Barbara Walters Specials" (which continue today). "Barbara Walters Specials" also presented Barbara with a birthday present on this night in 1983. The show received the Outstanding Informational Series Emmy.

In 1984, Barbara Walters was reunited on "20/20" with her former co-host on the "Today" show, Hugh Downs. She had been promoted from correspondent to co-host. One of her most famous exclusive interviews on "20/20" was with Gulf War hero General Norman Schwarzkopf on March 15, 1991, shortly after the end of Desert Storm. We have also seen Barbara as anchor, taking turns with Diane Sawyer and Forrest Sawyer on the news documentary, "Turning Point" in 1994.

And, many wondered, when she was given the million dollar salary, how someone who couldn't pronounce r's and l's could be so successful in the news biz. Even comedians used Barbara in their material. Ignoring the snide comments, Barbara Walters went on to become a highly respected and talented interviewer and journalist; and was elected to the Television Hall of Fame in 1990. After more than twenty years with ABC-TV, she probably could care less if we call her Baba Wawa.

Word Of The Day: Kibosh (KAI bahsh) n. Something that checks or stops. She put the kibosh on the rumor that she would leave the firm.

Shamu was born this day in 1985 in Orlando, Florida. He was the first killer whale to be born in captivity and survive. His place of birth was Sea World.

Shamu and other killer whales with the same name have entertained millions at Sea World parks and at other ocean-life parks throughout the world. The giant, but seemingly gentle, creatures give rides to their trainers, let children pet them and feed them. Shamu has even been known to give a visitor a sloppy, wet kiss.

As far as we know, the original Shamu is alive and well at the Sea Life park in Texas.

Word Of The Day: Deluge (DEL yooj) v. To flood; overwhelm. We plan to deluge the governor's office with letters of protest.

Remember the children's story about the train that could? It made it to the top of the hill, pulling its load, by will power, courage, strength and thought, "I think I can, I think I can".

Well this story is about another train that could and did. On this day in 1829, a locomotive belonging to England's Stockton and Darlington line, pulled a passenger train down the tracks. It was the first time a train -- not a horse -- had accomplished this.

The locomotive, "The Rocket", was designed by George Stephenson, and was the first truly successful steam locomotive, (The first steam engine locomotive was built by Richard Treithick, also of England, in 1804.)

Critics were a little wary of the iron horse. One said that it would make stay-at-homes into gadabouts; honest men into liars and be the downfall of an intellectual society. Some choo-choo, eh?

Word Of The Day: Hyperbole (hai PUR buh lee) n. Extravagant exaggeration for effect. He described the adventure with comic hyperbole.

The man who created the comic strip, "Li'l Abner", was born on this day in 1909 at New Haven, Connecticut. Alfred Gerald Caplin, better known as Al Capp was responsible for all the happenings in the fictitious hillbilly town of Dogpatch.

From 1934 until 1977, Capp wrote and drew the cartoon, "Li'l Abner" with its cast of wonderful characters, Mammy and Pappy Yokum, their son Abner, the lovely Daisy Mae, Fearless Fosdick and the lovable Schmoos. Al Capp even invented a holiday, Sadie Hawkins Day.

"Li'l Abner" wasn't just a funny strip. It became a Broadway show and a Hollywood movie, too. But above all else, Al Capp used the characters in the Sunday funnies for political satire. It was fairly common to see public figures being lampooned in "Li'l Abner". Capp would have had a field day with today's political antics.

Word Of The Day: Comely (KUM lee) adj. Attrctive, beautiful, or handsome. I've never seen a more comely face.

"My Fair Lady" closed after a run of 6 1/2 years on Broadway on this day in 1962. At the time, it held the record for the longest running musical of all time on Broadway. 3,750,000 people watched the wonderful show and heard tunes like: "Wouldn't it Be Loverly", "Show Me", "Get Me to the Church on Time", "I'm an Ordinary Man", "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" and the Vic Damone/Robert Goulet standard, "On the Street Where You Live".

The team of Frederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner turned George Bernard Shaw's play, "Pygmalion" into a colorful, musical production. They gave a new life to the rough-around-the-edges, cockney, flower girl; the subject of a bet between Professor Higgins ("Just You Wait, 'Enry 'Iggins") and a colleague. The Professor bet that he could turn Eliza Doolittle into a proper lady ("The Rain in Spain"). "With a Little Bit of Luck" he did it. Eliza, looking and acting very much like a princess, sang "I Could Have Danced All Night".

After its Broadway success, "My Fair Lady" was made into a motion picture (1964) and won seven Academy Awards including Best Picture.

Word Of The Day: Feint (faynt) v. To pretend to attack. Rocky feinted with the left jab and then led with the right.

First heard on NBC-Blue Radio this day in 1930, "Death Valley Days" became one of radio's biggest hits. The 30-minute, Western-adventure series starred Tim Daniel Frawley as the Old Ranger, Harvey Hays as the Old Prospector, John White as the Lone Cowboy, Edwin Bruce as Bobby Keen, Robert Haag as Sheriff Mark Chase and Olyn Landick as Cassandra Drinkwater.

The stories heard on "Death Valley Days" were all based on fact and were human interest stories revolving around the borax mining town of Death Valley, California. The show was created by Ruth Woodman, a script writer for a New York ad agency. She had never seen Death Valley; but had found the vehicle to sell 20-Mule-Team Borax. As time went on, Ms. Woodman did make a trip to Death Valley. She went back again and again after that, digging up facts for her scripts. She even met an honest-to-goodness old ranger, Wash Cahill, who knew everyone and everything about the mining town.

"Death Valley Days" was renamed "Death Valley Sheriff" in 1944 and "The Sheriff" in 1945. And Ruth Woodman continued to write the scripts. She even wrote scripts when "Death Valley Days" became a TV show. Buy some 20-Mule-Team Borax in commemoration.

Word Of The Day: Propriety (pruh PRAI uh tee) n. Quality of being proper; correctness. Please observe propriety when meeting with Father O'Mally.

George R. Self
E-mail me at: grself@c2i2.com

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