June 23rd

June 23 is the 175th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. If the ancient Mayans were correct, there are 181 days remaining until the end of time.

930 World's oldest parliament, the Iceland Parliament, is established, and like every other deliberative public body since, it has failed to make any worthwhile decision

1683 William Penn signs friendship treaty with Lenni Lenape indians in Pennsylvania; only treaty "not sworn to, nor broken"

1784 1st US balloon flight by 13 year-old Edward Warren at the desperate but encouraging insistence of his parents. Have you ever lived with a 13 year-old? I rest my case.

1810 PETA Antichrist John Jacob Astor forms the Pacific Fur Company.

1848 Antoine Joseph Sax patents Saxophone. I wouldn’t mind blowing a Sax.

1860 US Secret Service is created

1888 Frederick Douglass is 1st African-American nominated for president. Alas, it is not meant to be.

1926 The College Board administers the first SAT exam.

1972 President Nixon signs act barring sex discrimination in college sports requiring all athletics to be performed co-ed and in the nude

1894 Alfred Kinsey, bisexual US biologist/sexologist  

1912 Alan Turing, gay English mathematician/logician/cryptanalyst/computer scientist who broke Germany's WWII Enigma Code. He was outed, lost his security clearance and his job. To stay out of jail he agreed to chemical castration. He was found dead, a half eaten apple poisoned with cyanide beside his body. The offical cause of death was listed as suicide. The computer I'm using to write this, and the computer you use to read it exist due to Alan Turning. 

1947 Bryan Brown, Australian actor 

1957 Peter Kent, Canadian actor 

1970 Christian Meier, Peruvian actor/model

1972 Louis van Amstel, gay Dutch-born US dancer 

1972 Zinedine Zidane, French soccer icon

1974 Joel Edgerton, Australian actor 

1977 Jason Mraz, US musician 

1978 Matt Austin, maybe gay Canadian actor 

1980 Steve Sandvoss, maybe gay US actor 

1983 Jason Berrent, maybe gay US actor/gymnast/Cirque du Soliel performer 

1995 Jonas Salk, US biologist and physician, can’t be vaccinated against this condition.

2010 Hiromu Naruse, Japanese chief test driver for Toyota Motor Company, identifies another blip in Toyota quality.

2011 Peter Falk, US actor (Columbo, Princess Bride, Roommates), gets washed away by a hatful of rain.