OCTOBER 6 — Love you Reese!; 1886 Reno Bros. 1st train robbery; 1996 Tim McGraw and Faith Hill tie the knot; history of the surfboard
OCTOBER 6
1999 – HB Reese. He’s my son. Love you young man!
1886 – The Reno Brothers hit the first train robbery in the U.S. Stick em up!
…During the Civil War, train robberies were not uncommon, but when they were robbed it was for military reasons. There was no such thing as a gang of thugs who robbed trains for personal reasons. Until the Reno brothers. .The nation was going through high unemployment because of the Civil War, and therefore lawlessness, which led to gangs in the Old West, starting with Frank, John, Simon, and William Reno from a town near Seymour, Indiana.
The first three were bounty jumpers who enlisted into the Union Army, grabbed their bounty and split town. The boys robbed a few post offices in 1864, as well as some retail outlets. They were arrested but got off when the only witness willing to testify for these guys was shot. Talks of lynching them started showing up at town meetings and in the press in Indiana, and the Reno brothers had gained national attention. The Reno brothers made their headquarters at a hotel in Seymour, called the Radar House, and stole everything from pretty much everyone who stayed there.
On October 6, 1866, John and Simeon and one of their gangsters put on masks, boarded the Ohio-Mississippi train, held a gun to the messenger, grabbed $12,00, pulled the bell stop, and when the train slowed down, they took off in the night. America’s first recorded train robbery. They committed several more, but eventually were captured and sent to jail. They would be met with a gang of vigilantes who broke into the jail and lynched them all.
1996 – Tim McGraw and Faith Hill tie the knot.
…Quite possibly the most romantic celebrity weddings ever. Here’s why, ranker.com lists the top celebrity weddings and this doesn’t even make the list. Here’s what did make the list.
Princess Diana and Prince Charles. She had a 20 foot wedding gown with 10,000 pearls made by hand. So what, the marriage was a failure. Jennifer Anniston and Brad Pitt. They got married at an estate that was decorated to be a Zen garden. Victoria Adams and David Beckham. She was a Spice girl and he plays soccer, so no cares. Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier of Monaco, ok that was a good one. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. Divorced. Jackie Kennedy and JFK. He cheated on her. Jay-Z and Beyonce also didn’t make this list for some reason. And What about Kanye and Kim? Look Tim McGraw’s and Faith Hill are still together and allegedly have never spent more than three days apart. My point is, it’s one thing to have a romantic wedding, but if the marriage itself doesn’t last, no one really cares. According to gossip columns, they are having major issues.
1893 – Nabisco invents Cream of Wheat,
…says historyorb.com, although they weren’t called Nabisco until 1898. Nabisco, which is short for the National Biscuit Company began as the product of merging bakery companies since 1792 with the Pearson & Sons Bakery in Massachusetts, where the word cracker was made to describe a crunchy biscuit, then with the New York Biscuit Company, the Richmond Steam Bakery, and others. And so many amazing snacks have been delicious ever since, such as Wheat Thins, Chips Ahoy!, Ritz crackers, Tricots, and the Oreo Cookie. I know it’s hard to do because we just want to eat the cookie, but have you ever actually looked at an Oreo’s design?
Pretty cool.
1783 Benjamin Hanks patents the self-winding clock. Otherwise known as America’s father of bronze cannons and church bells, Hanks was a master businessman and foundry owner. His first self-winding clock was placed in The Old Dutch Church in New York City, and used air to self-wind.
As far as sports go on this show, I know I cover plenty of ground with baseball, basketball and football, along with some golf and hockey mixed in from time to time, but one sport I never talk about is surfing. Now, since it is my son’s birthday and that is his thing just wanted to touch on the history of the surfboard real quick. I’ve never been a surfer myself, but I looked into the subject and was fascinated by some of the ways the surfboard has been reengineered throughout the years, namely in design.
Ancient Hawaiian surfboards were used in physical training as well as spiritual events, often with a ritual being performed as the surfboard was made. I’m pretty sure my son will do the same thing when his next surfboard is being made. In 1926, Tom Blake redesigned the surfboard and made it hollow inside. At first the local Hawaiians scoffed at it. It was built from redwood and had tiny holes drilled all over it and a thin piece of redwood on top. It was about 15”, four inches thick, a foot and a half wide, and weighed 100 pounds. But it was better, faster and stronger than the surfboards of the aborigines, you’re welcome Hawaii, and the first to be mass-produced.
Five years later Blake put a fin in the back to help guide the board around the waves. In the 30s, the tail size was slightly altered, making this new designed of hot curl surfboards easier to curl the waves. Balsa wood would replace redwood later on, and then the outbreak of WWII led to many technological advances that changed the surfboard forever, with the creations of fiberglass, certain plastics, and Styrofoam. In the 50s, polyurethane foam was introduced to the design, around the same time a Californian named Dale Velzy opened one of the first real surf shops. Since then, new designs in the surfboard include the shortboard, twin fins, the surf leash, three fin thrusters, pop-out boards, and more. Since the 80’s, aside from the artwork, the surfboards haven’t changed too much.