Friday, April 13th

April 13 is the 104th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. If the ancient Mayans were correct, there are 252 days remaining until the end of time.

1180 Republic day of Gelnhausen and our brave fighting warriors stand guard 800 years later. Photo with at least 2 gay guys actually taken in Gelnhausen!

1796 1st elephant arrives in US from India the hard way

1808 William Henry Lane ("Master Juba") perfects the art of tap dancing

1860 1st Pony Express reaches Sacramento, California, and our intrepid rider gets his bonus

1865 Sherman's march through Georgia begins. I thought it would be more impressive than this!  So much for "Shock and Awe."

1883 Alfred Packer, US cannibal, says; "The breasts of man...are the sweetest meat I ever tasted."

1926 Bicyclists without bicycle-tax-stamp rounded up in Amsterdam

1958 During the Cold War, gay US penist Van Cliburn wins the inaugural International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow.

1963 At the Academy Awards, Sidney Poitier becomes the first African-American male to lovingly stroke a naked man in public.

1970 An oxygen tank aboard Apollo 13 explodes, putting the crew in great danger and causing major damage to the spacecraft while en route to the moon.  Will probably make a pretty good movie someday.

1743 Thomas Jefferson, 3rd US president/principal writer of Declaration of Independence/5¢  

1866 Butch Cassidy, US outlaw 

1935 Lyle Waggoner, US actor/Kirkwood (MO) High School Alumnus 

1937 Edward Fox, English actor 

1949 Christopher Hitchens, English-US critic/pundit

1950 William Sadler, US actor 

1960 Michael Leon, US actor 

1962 Hillel Slovak, Israeli-US musician/Red Hot Chili Peppers 

1970 Rick Schroder, US actor 

1973 Bokeem Woodbine, US actor 

n.d.  Sky Thompson, porn star 

1986 Stephen Stucker, American actor (Airplane!), succumbs to AIDS at 38.

2005 Philippe Volter, Belgian actor (Trois couleurs: Bleu), turns blue