TELSTAR SATELLITE LAUNCHED INTO ORBIT
The 1st US communications satellite, Telstar, was launched into orbit today from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Telstar, 34.5 inches long & weighing 170 pounds, is the product of AT&T.
The outer surface of the satellite is composed of solar cells which provide 14 watts of electric power.
Telstar will orbit the earth every 2.5 hours & provide 20 minutes of live television transmission across the Atlantic Ocean.
Telstar Communications Satellite
July 10, 1962
JFK THROWS OUT 1st PITCH AT ALL-STAR GAME
President John F. Kennedy, accompanied by his Presidential assistant & avid baseball fan, David Powers, threw out the 1st pitch of the All-Star baseball game at DC Stadium in Washington.
JFK threw a "fast ball" to American League catcher Earl Battey.*
*This surely surprised Republicans who might have expected a "curve".
JFK & David Powers
1962 All-Star Baseball Game
Photo by Cecil Stoughton
JFK Library
July 10, 1962
JFK SIGNS BILL REQUIRING "UHF" FOR TV
President John F. Kennedy signed legislation today that will require new television sets sold in the US to include UHF channel reception capability.*
*In Knoxville in 1962 our black & white TV received only 2 local channels, Channel 6 (NBC) & Channel 10 (CBS). I don't recall when we bought a TV with a UHF antenna but when we did, we added Channel 26 (ABC).
Imagine today's kids ,or adults for that matter, being limited to 2 or 3 black & white TV stations.
July 10, 1962
US PATENT ISSUED FOR 3-POINT SAFETY BELT
Today the US Patent Office issued a patent to Swedish engineer Nils Bohlin for his 3 point automobile safety belt.
This model is designed to replace the 2 point safety belt which fastened only around the waist.
The 3 point belt has 2 straps that join together at the hip. 1 strap goes around the waist, a 2nd strip crosses the shoulder.
This 3 point belt is designed to reduce injury by restraining both the upper & lower body in a crash.
July 10, 1961
SOVIETS DISPLAY SUPERSONIC BOMBER
The Soviet Union displayed their new supersonic bomber in Moscow today while in Washington, D.C., President Kennedy called the pending US mutual security proposal the year's "most vital piece of legislation".
July 10, 1940
BATTLE OF BRITAIN BEGINS
Adolf Hitler's Luftwaffe or German Air Force launched attacks today on Great Britain.
120 Nazi bombers & fighters struck a British Convoy in the English Channel while 70 other German aircraft attacked key installations in South Wales.*
*The Battle of Britain will last more than 3 months.
German Heinke 111 Bombers
July 10, 1939
AMBASSADOR ENTERTAINS AT US EMBASSY
US Ambassador to Great Britain, Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. & his wife, Rose, gave a dinner today at the American Embassy in London.
The dinner, in honor of Queen Mary, was attended by Lord & Lady MacMillan, the Dowager Countess of Airlie, Lord & Lady Cavendish, Mr. & Mrs. William Randolph Hearst & Mrs. Ogden Reed.
July 10, 1925
SCOPES "MONKEY" TRIAL BEGINS IN TENNESSEE
John Thomas Scopes, a high school teacher in Dayton, Tennessee, went on trial today for violating the state's anti-evolution law.
John Thomas Scopes
Photo by Watson Davis
June 1925
The Butler Act, passed by the Tennessee State Legislature in March of this year, makes it unlawful to "teach any theory that denies the story of Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible".
The trial is taking place at the Rhea County Court House.
Rhea County Court House
Dayton, Tennessee
Photo by Calvin Beale (2006)
The small, rural East Tennessee town of Dayton is located just north of Chattanooga.
Coming to Dayton, along with a host of reporters & ordinary citizens, is the 3 time Democratic candidate for President William Jennings Bryan. Mr. Bryan, a religious fundamentalist, will be assisting the prosecution.
Defending Mr. Scopes is the renowned defense attorney Clarence Darrow.*
*The Scopes Trial was actually "set up" by the Dayton town fathers who wanted to take economic advantage of the situation by hosting a "test" of the controversial Butler Act.
July 10, 1921
EUNICE KENNEDY BORN IN BROOKLINE
Mr. & Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. of 51 Abbottsford Road, Brookline, Massachusetts today announced the birth of their 5th child & 3rd daughter.
The baby, named Eunice, was delivered by Kennedy family doctor, Frederick L. Good of 64 Commonwealth Avenue.*
*Eunice Kennedy Shriver died on April 11, 2009.
Eunice with Special Needs Children*
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
By David Lenz (2009)
*Eunice founded the Special Olympics.
