The Year 1969, in 5 Facts

Nixon’s televised speech

Back in 1969, the global population was a comfortable 3.6 billion — a long way from today’s 8.1 billion. In the United States, 202 million people (versus some 341 million today) were going about their business. Glue sticks had just been invented and Nutter Butter was first put on sale. “Michael” and “Lisa” were the most popular baby names, the movie Oliver! won Best Picture at the 41st Academy Awards, and the New York Mets provided one of baseball’s greatest upsets when they won the World Series four games to one against the Baltimore Orioles.

That all sounds reasonably relaxing, but don’t let 1969 fool you — it was a transformative and tumultuous year in America. These five facts offer a snapshot of the final 12 months of the decade, from music to politics to a trip to the moon (but, alas, no aliens).

Some 650 Million People Watched the Moon Landing

In July 1969, astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins traveled to space on the first crewed mission to land on the moon. Back on Earth, meanwhile, an estimated 650 million people worldwide — about a fifth of the global population — were glued to their television sets to watch events unfold. The moon landing itself was broadcast live to the world on July 21 as the images were beamed back to Earth. Engineers at three tracking stations — one in the U.S. and two in Australia — busily converted the raw feed into a format compatible with terrestrial broadcasts, providing arguably the most historic TV broadcast in history.

The Beatles’ Final Performance Was the Same Year as Woodstock

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The Beatles played their last official live concert on August 29, 1966, at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, but it wasn’t their final public performance. That came in January 1969, when the Fab Four played their now-iconic rooftop concert on top of Apple Studios in London. The impromptu gig was the last show of their career, and later that year they released their 11th and final studio album, Abbey Road. While one era was coming to an end, across the pond a plethora of bands were either breaking into the big time or solidifying their star status at one of the most famous music festivals in history: Woodstock. More than 400,000 people showed up to the event, many without tickets, and the whole thing looked destined to descend into chaos, especially with a lack of security in place and heavy rainfall that turned the festival site into mud. The audience didn’t seem to mind, however, and they ended up witnessing now-legendary performances from the likes of Jimi Hendrix, The Who, the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, and Jefferson Airplane.

Nixon Made His Famous “Silent Majority” Speech About the Vietnam War

By the end of 1969, about 45,000 Americans had been killed in action in Vietnam. Criticism of the war was growing stronger, culminating in the Moratorium to End the War in Vietnam, a massive nationwide demonstration that took place on October 15. With an estimated 2 million participants, it remains one of the largest protests in American history. In response, President Richard Nixon addressed the nation on November 3. He called for national solidarity for the war effort, famously asking the “great silent majority” of the American people for their support as he worked for “peace with honor” in Vietnam. He also outlined a program of “Vietnamization” that would see a gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops and hand over operations to South Vietnamese forces. Despite widespread anti-war feelings, polls taken after the speech found that 77% of the American public was in support of Nixon’s policy in Vietnam. A month after the speech, the U.S. conducted its first draft lottery to determine who would be called up for military service in Vietnam.

The Age of the Jumbo Jet Began With the First Boeing 747 Flight

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On February 9, 1969, the Boeing 747 made its first flight, heralding a new age of the wide-body jet. After almost a year of further testing, the 747 flew its first commercial flight on January 22, 1970, carrying 335 passengers and 20 crew members from New York’s Kennedy Airport to Heathrow Airport in London. The commercial jet opened up the airways to middle-class passengers, and soon airports around the world were adapting and growing in size to accommodate the 747 and the hordes of passengers each flight could carry. Airport boarding lounges, customs and immigration areas, and ground crews all had to be expanded and upgraded to facilitate the dawn of the jumbo jet.

Project Blue Book Left 701 UFO Cases as “Unidentified”

In the 1940s, a spate of UFO sightings across the U.S. — many of which are now considered the archetypes of alien encounters — resulted in a U.S. Air Force investigation called Operation Sign in 1948. This operation expanded and, in 1952, Project Blue Book was born. It went on to become the federal government’s longest-running UFO investigation, with reports compiled on 12,618 UFO sightings. When Project Blue Book came to an end in 1969, the vast majority of these strange events were officially marked as “identified,” and their causes attributed to known astronomical, atmospheric, or artificial (human-made) phenomena. Not everything was neatly cleared away, however, as 701 sightings remained officially “unidentified,” providing plenty of fodder for ufologists and budding Fox Mulders.

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Life in 1960s America, By the Numbers

American couple, 1960s

The 1960s were some of the most significant years in American history. The decade saw the Civil Rights Movement and a rising counterculture that reimagined the shape of the American social fabric. Pop music exploded like never before with the British Invasion led by the Beatles and Rolling Stones, but the ’60s were also an intense era of war and political violence.

The decade’s most monumental moments tend to be widely covered, and the sheer number of historic events during this time almost create the impression that every moment was imbued with turbulence. But while the tumult of the decade played out on the evening news in homes across America, many people were still living normal everyday lives — albeit lives that looked quite different from our modern lifestyle. The following numbers offer a snapshot of day-to-day life in 1960s America.

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42% of Adults Were Smokers

Smoking was still widespread in the middle of the 20th century. The smoking rate in the U.S. reached a peak of 47% of adults (including 50% of doctors!) by the end of 1952. Though cigarette sales declined somewhat in 1953 and 1954 amid growing health concerns, the introduction of the filtered cigarette created a rebound. Through the early years of the 1960s, the smoking rate held steady at 42% of adults. On January 11, 1964, Surgeon General Luther L. Terry published the first report of the Surgeon General’s Advisory Committee on Smoking and Health, a landmark event that brought the link between smoking and disease front and center in the American consciousness. Smoking has been on an overall downward trend ever since: As of 2021, smoking has declined to 11.5% of adults.

The Average Price of a Haircut Was $2.05

In 1966, the national average for the price of a men’s haircut was $1.95 ($19.03 in today’s currency). For women, it was $2.16 ($20.79 today) — unless an extravagant “permanent wave” was desired, which cost an average of $12.15 ($118.57 today). The permanent wave (or “perm”) was a multi-step process to make long-lasting curls, which required additional materials and could take between six to eight hours to complete, hence the premium cost. Chicago was the most expensive city for men to get a haircut in; the average price there was $2.48 ($24.20 today), while Dallas was the least expensive at $1.79 ($17.47 today). But interestingly, Chicago was the cheapest city for women’s haircuts — $2.08 ($20.30 today) for a conventional cut, and $11.27 ($109.98) for the permanent wave. The most expensive city for women was Washington, D.C., at $3.31 and $18.19 ($32.30 and $177.51, respectively).

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72% of Adults Were Married

At the beginning of the 1960s, marriage was still a fairly unquestioned rite of passage into adulthood. The median age for brides in 1960 was 20.1, while the median age for grooms was 24.2, and the percentage of adults who were married was a large majority: 72% in 1960. But the decade brought about sweeping social changes in attitudes toward divorce, sexuality, and parenthood, creating a downward trend in marriage that persisted into the 21st century. Data collected in 2023 shows that the current median age at first marriage is 28 for women and 30 for men, and 53% of American adults are married.

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The Average Price for Most Groceries Was Under $1

A single dollar bill had a lot of buying power throughout most of the 20th century. The national average price for most grocery staples in the ’60s was less than a buck: A 5-pound bag of flour was 61 cents; a dozen eggs cost 66 cents; a pound of ground beef (which was broadly referred to as “hamburger” even when not formed into a patty) was 55 cents; and a box of generic corn flakes was 32 cents. In today’s dollars, these prices equate to $5.95, $6.44, $5.37, and $3.12, respectively. With the notable exception of eggs (which have infamously inflated in cost since 2020), these equivalent prices are right in line with what we’d expect to see at a grocery store today.

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A Three-Minute Phone Call to Someone Across the Country Cost $2

Though many aspects of daily life are more expensive today than they were in the past, phone service is one item that’s actually more affordable today than it was in the 1960s. During most of the landline era, phone calls to different regions incurred long-distance charges, based on the duration and distance of the call. In 1960, the cost for a three-minute call from New York to San Francisco was $2.25; it dropped to $1.75 by the end of 1967. With inflation, the $2 average for that three-minute call would be the equivalent of $19.89 today. A lengthier conversation could easily incur enough long-distance charges to surpass the cost of an entire month of cellphone service today.

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75% of Typewriters Sold Were IBM Selectrics

For most of the 20th century, the typewriter was the quintessential office item. In 1946, leading manufacturer IBM set out to improve the typewriter design that had been standard since the late 19th century. IBM engineer Horace “Bud” Beattie developed a mushroom-shaped type element to replace the basket of individual typebars that manual typewriters were equipped with; it solved the problem of typebars jamming if keys were pressed in too rapid succession. Beattie and a team of engineers refined the “mushroom printer” to a spherical shape about the size of a golf ball, which allowed for a pivoting motion that made the page more stable and less prone to small shifts that could result in unwanted slanted text.

In 1954, the team at IBM developed a prototype of the new design. The type sphere was designed to be easily replaceable, allowing for switching out typefaces, thus giving the machine its name: Selectric. The Selectric was capable of printing 186 words per minute and accommodating keystrokes as quick as 20 milliseconds apart with no risk of jamming. It included ergonomic keys, and was available in eight color combinations. It took seven years from the completion of the prototype for the product to go to market, but when the Selectric went on sale on July 31, 1961, the buzz around it was instant. First-year sales hit 80,000, topping projections by 400%. For the rest of the decade and beyond, it became the new standard in offices, comprising 75% of all typewriters sold, and eventually a 94% market share for electric typewriters.

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6 Notorious Outlaws of the Wild West

Buffalo Bill on horseback

The myth of the Wild West is one of the most persistent and influential myths in American culture. From quick-draw gun duels and cowboy hats to notorious outlaws such as Jesse James and Billy the Kid, the Old West is full of legends and lore, many of them popularized by dime novels and, later, Western movies. Sorting truth from fiction can be a tricky process when it comes to the American frontier. Here are six facts about some of the most infamous outlaws from the Wild West.

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Billy the Kid Was Just 21 Years Old When He Died

Henry McCarty, alias William H. Bonney, and best known as Billy the Kid, was only 21 years old when he was killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett in 1881. McCarty packed a lot into his short and violent life. He was orphaned at 15, committed his first crime shortly after, joined a band of rustlers, and quickly became involved in the brutal Lincoln County War between rival factions, which featured famous names from the Old West, such as Sheriff William J. Brady and John Chisum. Despite his early demise, Billy the Kid became one of the most notorious gunfighters of the American West. According to his own count, he killed 21 men, although the actual number is probably fewer than 10.

Jesse James Was Shot in the Chest Twice Before He Was Even 18

Jesse James was an outlaw, guerrilla fighter, and leader of the famous James-Younger Gang that pulled off a series of daring and often vicious robberies of banks, trains, and stagecoaches. He was a notorious celebrity during his lifetime, and became one of the most legendary figures of the Wild West. Things could have been a lot different, however, as James was lucky to have made it out of his teens alive. Before he was even 18, he had been shot twice in the chest. The first shooting happened in 1864 during the American Civil War, when James was fighting alongside a group of pro-Confederate guerrillas known as Quantrill's Raiders. Despite the chest wound, James was ready to ride again in a matter of weeks — but he carried the bullet in his body for the rest of his life. The following year, James was once again shot in the chest, this time while trying to surrender to a Union cavalry patrol. It was a serious wound, but he was slowly nursed back to health by his cousin Zee Mimms, whom he married nine years later.

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Butch Cassidy Had a Strong Aversion to Killing

All humans should have an aversion to killing others, but for the leader of a gang of criminal outlaws in the Wild West, it was quite unique. For all his notoriety, it’s possible that Butch Cassidy never killed a soul. He was known as something of a gentleman who abstained from actually using his gun, and he tried to keep his gang, the Wild Bunch, from unnecessary violence during robberies. That said, gang members such as Kid Curry, George Curry, and Will Carver certainly did claim their fair share of victims. Butch, however, tried his best to keep people safe. According to Richard Patterson, author of Butch Cassidy: A Biography, “The closest Butch ever came to harming a robbery victim was when he used explosives to force his way into an express car.”

The Sundance Kid Took His Name From the Town Where He Was Arrested

Harry Alonzo Longabaugh was arrested only once during his lifetime, but the arrest gave rise to one of the most famous names in the history of the Wild West: the Sundance Kid. Longabaugh left home when he was just 15 years old. A couple of years later, in 1887, he stole a gun, a horse, and a saddle from a cowboy while traveling across Wyoming. He was captured and arrested in Miles City, Montana, and sentenced to 18 months in the Sundance, Wyoming, jail. While incarcerated, he adopted the nickname “the Sundance Kid.” Upon his release in 1889, he tried to make an honest life for himself as a cowboy, but it didn’t go as planned. He soon became an integral part of the Wild Bunch, and was known as the gang’s fastest gunslinger — although it’s possible he never killed anyone during the gang’s various heists and robberies.

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Buffalo Bill Was a Vocal Supporter of Women’s Rights

William “Buffalo Bill” Cody was one of the most colorful figures of the Old West. A buffalo hunter, U.S. Army scout, Pony Express rider, showman, actor, and all-around celebrity, he helped create the myth of the American West with his Wild West show, which made him one of the world’s first global celebrities. Having spent years in the company of famed frontier women such as Annie Oakley and Calamity Jane, Buffalo Bill became a strong supporter of the rights of women. When asked by a reporter if he supported women’s suffrage, his response was unequivocal: “I do. Set that down in great big black type that Buffalo Bill favors woman suffrage… If a woman can do the same work that a man can do and do it just as well, she should have the same pay.” It was a bold response for its day, especially coming from a hardened frontiersman.

Belle Starr Was Dubbed the "Bandit Queen"

It’s certainly true that Belle Starr associated with a rogue’s gallery of Wild West figures, including Frank James and Jesse James. It’s also true that she was a crack shot, rode sidesaddle while dressed in a black velvet riding habit, carried two pistols, and had cartridge belts strung across her hips. It is highly unlikely, however, that Starr was the criminal mastermind of a gang that preyed on travelers, ranchers, and cowboys, as the myth surrounding her might suggest. It was only a few months after her death in 1889 that a purported biography, Bella Starr, the Bandit Queen; or, The Female Jesse James, was published by the king of dime novels, Richard K. Knox. Supposedly written by Starr, it was most likely a fabrication, and it helped cement the myth surrounding this Old West outlaw.

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Famous Historical Figures You Didn’t Know Were Related

Robert E. Lee & George Washington

Some family trees seem primed for the history books, from the Medicis and Habsburgs to the Rockefellers and Kennedys. These historical relations prove that family does indeed matter. Take for instance the two father-son duos that became U.S. Presidents: John Adams and John Quincy Adams, and George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. There’s also Queen Victoria of England’s many grandchildren to consider. These famous cousins — among them King George V of Britain, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia (by marriage to Victoria’s granddaughter Alexandra) — went on to rule much of Europe.

Other famous family connections aren’t as obvious, such as the relationship between the real-life inspiration for Dracula and Queen Elizabeth II, or the distant connection between two trailblazing women, Amelia Earhart and Laura Ingalls Wilder. Here are five of the most surprising family ties in history.

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Queen Elizabeth II and Dracula (Vlad the Impaler)

One of Europe’s most mild-tempered monarchs was distantly related to none other than Vlad III, more commonly known as Vlad the Impaler, a ruthless 15th-century Romanian prince who likely inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The relation comes from Queen Elizabeth II’s grandmother Mary of Teck (a princess from Germany’s Württemberg dynasty), who was the wife of England’s King George V. Mary of Teck was a descendant of the merciless Romanian ruler, who had a reputation for executing many of his subjects. The surprising connection between Vlad III and the British royal family has also been acknowledged by Queen Elizabeth II’s son King Charles III, who owns a home in Transylvania (where Vlad once ruled) and is involved in conservation efforts to save the region’s forests.

Robert E. Lee and George Washington

These two Americans were born in Virginia’s Westmoreland County 75 years apart (in 1732 and 1807, respectively), and served as senior generals in two of America’s most influential wars — the Revolutionary War and Civil War. Confederate General Robert E. Lee married Mary Anna Randolph Custis, the daughter of Martha Washington’s grandson (from her first marriage). This means he was also related, by marriage, to the first President of the United States, George Washington. And the unlikely connection between the two figures doesn’t stop there. After the Civil War, Lee became president of Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, which was named after both men.

Amelia Earhart and Laura Ingalls Wilder

Aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart and acclaimed author Laura Ingalls Wilder are both renowned figures of the 20th century. They’re also distant relatives. Amelia Earhart is remembered as the first female pilot to complete a solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean. Further proving that adventure runs in her bloodline, Earhart is a descendant of Mayflower passenger Richard Warren, and Wilder is descended from the same man. Though the relation is distant (possibly eighth cousins once removed), there are some undeniable similarities between the two women. Both are from Kansas, the setting of part of Wilder’s most famous book, Little House on the Prairie, and Wilder published her first book, Little House in the Big Woods, in 1932, the same year that Earhart made her famous transatlantic flight.

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Queen Elizabeth I and Mary, Queen of Scots

Two of the most famous female monarchs in history were first cousins once removed — despite the fact that they never met, and one ordered to have the other executed. Mary, Queen of Scots, was the daughter of King James V of Scotland and his French wife, Mary of Guise. Her great-uncle was King Henry VIII of England, the father of Queen Elizabeth I (whose mother was Anne Boleyn). Mary and Elizabeth shared the same royal grandparents, King Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, but the cousins were forced to be enemies due to years of violent wars over the English and Scottish thrones. After decades of keeping Mary imprisoned for fear that she would overtake England, Elizabeth ordered the execution of her cousin at Fotheringhay Castle in 1587.

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Presidents James Madison and Zachary Taylor

The fourth President of the United States, James Madison, and the 12th President, Zachary Taylor, were second cousins. They share a great-grandfather, Colonel James Taylor of Virginia. The two politicians were alive at the same time and were known to correspond occasionally. Madison, one of the Founding Fathers, created the framework for the U.S. Constitution and also had a hand in initiating the War of 1812 against Great Britain. Taylor was a member of the Whig Party and died 16 months into office in 1850. He was a soldier in the Confederate Army during the Civil War and later became one of the top generals in the Mexican-American War. In 1849, while serving as President, Taylor held a funeral in Washington, D.C., to honor his late cousin’s wife, Dolley Madison.

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Conquistadors Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro

Francisco Pizarro and Hernán Cortés were 16th-century Spanish conquistadors known for colonizing much of Peru and Mexico, respectively. They were also distant cousins. The family connection was through Cortés’ maternal grandmother, Leonor Pizarro, who was related to Pizarro’s ancestors. The duo didn’t work together but traveled to Central and South America around the same time. Pizarro conquered the Inca Empire and founded the city of Lima, Peru, while Cortés overthrew the Aztec Empire and took control of Mexico for the Spanish crown. Pizarro was killed in his palace in Lima in 1541 by rival conquistador Diego de Almagro. Cortés wished to return to Mexico before his death, but he died in 1547 in Seville, Spain, disgraced after being accused of poisoning the colonial governor, Luis Ponce de León.

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Writers Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley

This talented mother-daughter duo is credited with writing some of the most celebrated works in English literature, though their styles and subjects are very different. Mary Wollstonecraft was an early feminist who penned 1792’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, a scathing review of gender inequalities, which argued that young girls should receive the same education as boys. It is among the first prominent feminist works, and Wollstonecraft is regarded as one of the founders of feminist philosophy. Her daughter, who was also named Mary Wollstonecraft and became Mary Shelley upon her marriage to poet Percy Shelley, became a famous writer in her own right. But Shelley took a different path than her mother, gravitating toward fiction. She published her most famous novel, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, in 1818. Like her mother, Shelley was considered a trailblazer in her writing discipline, and Frankenstein is regarded as one of the first science fiction novels.

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Surprising Dating Etiquette From the 1950s

Couple sharing a soda pop

The world of dating has undergone significant changes throughout history, from arranged couplings in ancient Egypt to medieval courtship to the modern-day use of technology to find a partner. In the 1950s, dating was governed by a set of traditions and rules that reflected a postwar society that emphasized stability and conformity, and was largely influenced by the era’s adherence to traditional gender roles. Men were expected to take the lead, covering the bills and demonstrating chivalry, while women were held to standards of modesty and femininity.

Though they may feel antiquated compared to more recent moves toward gender equality, independence, and a rejection of rigid cultural norms, the conventions that defined dating in the ’50s are fascinating to look back on. Here are some of the rules that defined dating etiquette in the 1950s.

Women Didn’t Order for Themselves

The dynamics of a dinner date were markedly different in the 1950s. In a recovered ’50s article from British magazine Woman’s Own, a guide titled “How To Behave in a Restaurant” outlined a number of rules that applied to all male-female relationships, “whether he is your father, brother or boyfriend.” Women were expected to be demure and reserved, telling their male counterparts — the protectors and providers — what they wanted and allowing the man to place the order with the wait staff on their behalf.

Going out for dinner, while it did happen, wasn’t the default date at the time, especially for younger people: Group dates at sporting events, dances, or movies were the preferred way to get acquainted without spending too much time in private or spending too much money.

Men Were Expected To Pick Up the Check

Given various advancements in gender and socioeconomic equality throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, it’s no longer assumed that a man will pay for everything on a date. And while some old-fashioned opinions on the matter linger today, in the 1950s, it wasn’t even a discussion — the man was expected to foot the bill.

Men were seen as the primary breadwinners, as far fewer women were employed outside the home. The act of paying for a date symbolized their role as providers and proved their financial stability, and it was considered the gentlemanly thing to do. In her 1989 dating history book From Front Porch to Back Seat: Courtship in 20th-Century America, author Beth L. Bailey concluded that for young girls at the time, a date “was not the event, was not the companionship, was not even being seen with the boy. A date meant being paid for.”

Family Approval Was of the Utmost Importance

In modern dating, seeking approval from friends and family doesn’t usually happen until things begin to transition from the “casual” stage to the “exclusive” stage. But 1950s dating was less of a private affair; it was a social event that often involved spending time with friends, and, most importantly, introducing a date to the girl's family.
Familial approval was imperative at the time; as Marion S. Barclay's 1950s Teen Guide to Homemakingstated, “It is a good idea to have your family meet and approve of the people you know.” The guide also stated that a potential date should be “punctual,” typically coming to the home and ringing the doorbell before departing on a date. Consistent with the etiquette of the time, this common ritual added a layer of formality to dating — one that contrasts sharply with contemporary practices.

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Women Were Discouraged From Eating Certain Foods

The arbitrary gendered ideals men and women were expected to uphold during 1950s courtship extended even to what women should and shouldn’t eat. If a date took place at a restaurant, women were encouraged to eat foods that wouldn’t make a scene.

"Fruits cause some embarrassment in restaurants,” read a ’50s dating guide from Woman's Own. “Cherries should be put in the mouth whole, and the stones carefully placed on to a spoon. Plums and other large fruits with stones should be dissected in the dish and the stone placed at the side."

Other potentially problematic foods, such as celery and cheese, could be eaten by hand as long as they were cut into small pieces first. These prescriptive recommendations reflected the broader cultural idea of a refined woman and served to reinforce the gender norms that characterized the era.

“Going Steady” Was the Ultimate Goal

“Going steady” was a hallmark of 1950s dating. This term meant that a couple had agreed to date each other exclusively, taking a major step toward a more serious relationship — often with the intent to marry. Couples abided by specific rituals to symbolize their commitment, often exchanging class rings or letterman jackets if of school or college age.

Despite the era’s formalities, the concept of going steady wasn’t exactly beloved by all: Parents often worried their teenagers weren’t dating around enough and were settling down too quickly by committing to one person exclusively. They also feared that going steady would cause teenagers to become physically intimate more quickly than if they were going on one-off casual dates. As average marriage ages gradually rose and attitudes toward sex and dating shifted throughout the 1960s and 1970s, “going steady,” like many of the decade’s dating rules, began to fall out of favor.

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5 Historical Coincidences That Blow Our Minds

Abe Lincoln and JFK

Call coincidence what you’d like: luck, karma, fate, or just random happenstance. In any case, when similar events occur, it’s fascinating and, sometimes, downright eerie. Some coincidences have so many layers that they take on a second role in the form of conspiracy theory or prophecy. Coincidences, by nature, require zero planning; all we need to do is wait for them to happen. Here’s a look back at five strange coincidences throughout history.

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John Adams and Thomas Jefferson Died on the Exact Same Day

It’s unlikely enough that two of America’s Founding Fathers would die on the very same day, but this story gets even stranger. First, these two political rivals died within hours of each other. Even weirder? The date of their passing was July 4, 1826 — 50 years to the day after the Declaration of Independence was adopted. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson weren’t the same age when they died, though — Adams was 90 and Jefferson was 83. There are multiple theories on why this happened, and sheer coincidence is certainly one. To add another eerie layer, founding father James Monroe also died on the Fourth of July, five years later.

Halley's Comet Marked Mark Twain’s Birth and Death

Some coincidences have an interstellar twist. American author and humorist Mark Twain was born on November 30, 1835, the same year Halley’s comet passed within sight of the Earth during its 76-year journey around the sun. Twain, who was a unique figure in his own right, was aware of this fact and found it amusing to hitch his wagon to the rare cosmic occurrence. As he wrote in 1909, "I came in with Halley's comet in 1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it. It will be the greatest disappointment of my life if I don't go out with Halley's comet. The Almighty said, no doubt: 'Now here are these two unaccountable freaks; they came in together, they must go out together.'" Twain’s wish came to fruition: He passed away on April 21, 1910, as Halley’s comet was passing Earth.

A Man Was Hit by a Baby Falling Out of a Building — Twice

In 1937, Joseph Figlock, a public works street sweeper, was cleaning up an alley in midtown Detroit when an infant plummeted from a fourth-story window and landed on Figlock’s head. Miraculously, the baby survived. While working less than a year later, Figlock was struck from above by another baby that fell from another fourth-floor window. Once more, Figlock’s head saved the life of the infant in peril. Figlock himself was uninjured in both incidents.

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One Man Hosted the Beginning and End of the Civil War

Behold the peculiar story of Wilmer McLean, who has the distinction of witnessing both the first land battle of the Civil War in 1861 and General Robert E. Lee’s surrender to General Ulysses S. Grant in 1865, which effectively ended the conflict. At the start of the war, McLean’s home in Manassas, Virginia, was commandeered as the headquarters of Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard. The home took damage from Union shelling, and McLean moved his family 100 miles south to avoid the violence of war. Ironically, the family’s new home was in the small town of Appomattox Court House in Virginia, the site of Lee’s surrender. Grant and Lee spoke for about a half-hour at the McLean home before Lee signed the surrender document. McLean is said to have later remarked, “The war began in my front yard and ended in my front parlor.”

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Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy are widely considered two of the greatest Presidents in U.S. history, and the coincidences surrounding their assassinations further link the two leaders. In fact, books have been written about them, and members of Congress have even discussed the topic. Both Presidents were killed on a Friday with their wives by their sides. Both were succeeded by men whose last name was Johnson (Andrew Johnson and Lyndon B. Johnson). There are also some parallels in the assassins: John Wilkes Booth shot Lincoln in a theater and was caught in a warehouse; Lee Harvey Oswald shot Kennedy from a window in a book warehouse and was apprehended in a movie theater. What’s more, both Booth and Oswald were themselves killed before they could face justice. Not everyone agrees as to whether these similarities have a deeper meaning or no meaning at all, but at the end of the day, the sheer number of coincidences is quite surprising.

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How the Brill Building Changed Pop Music

Brill Building at 1619 Broadway

The Brill Building isn’t just an art deco structure in midtown Manhattan — it’s also the name of a musical genre. Throughout the early and mid-1960s, the “Brill Building sound” became synonymous with groundbreaking pop music. The heyday of the Brill Building era was short-lived, but in one six-year span, the songwriters, arrangers, musicians, and producers behind this sound contributed to hundreds of Billboard Hot 100 hits, including “Stand By Me” (Ben E. King, 1962), “One Fine Day” (the Chiffons, 1963), and “Be My Baby” (the Ronettes, 1963).

Located at 1619 Broadway in New York City, the Brill Building was a hub of songwriters, record labels, and recording studios, all under one roof. It built on the tradition of the “Tin Pan Alley” district before it — a concentration of music publishers and studios in a strip of Manhattan that dominated the music industry in the big-band era. But while their downtown predecessors were mainly concerned with the profits produced by pumping out sheet music for radio hits, the writers and producers at the Brill Building were also on a mission of artistic idealism. Their compositions drew inspiration from classical music, Latin music, traditional Black gospel, and rhythm and blues to create songs that appealed to an audience already hungry for the new sound of rock ’n’ roll. The assembled talent was a once-in-a-generation roster of songwriters, including Burt Bacharach and Hal David, Gerry Goffin and Carole King, and Neil Diamond. Together, they produced sophisticated songs that were directly aimed at a new, youthful generation and a powerful rising subculture: teenagers.

By the mid-’60s, an increasing number of artists — such as the Beatles and Bob Dylan — began composing and playing their own material, making the songwriter-for-hire less of a necessity. As Dylan wrote in 1985, “Tin Pan Alley is gone. I put an end to it. People can record their own songs now.” This may be true, but the creators behind the Brill Building sound helped make the ascent of these singer-songwriters possible. Here are five ways the Brill Building shaped popular music in the 20th century.

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It Pioneered “Assembly-Line Pop”

The Brill Building employed a model of vertical integration that supervised every phase of a song’s life cycle, from production to distribution, all under one roof. The 11 floors of 1619 Broadway and a few surrounding buildings became a one-stop shop where a songwriter could pen a would-be hit, sell it to a publisher, find a band, and cut a demo. Songs could even be played for radio promoters in the building to garner airplay. This new type of streamlined hitmaking — often called “assembly line pop” — gave publishers and producers a huge pool of material to choose from and encouraged creative collaboration, merging art and commerce in a new way.

It Created Sophisticated Music

At the Brill Building, songcraft mattered. Some of the most interesting and popular songs of the era were written at Aldon Music, one of the music publishing companies in the building. Its founders, Al Nevins and Don Kirshner (“Al” and “Don”), had a plan: to take the spirit of classic Tin Pan Alley songwriting (catchy melodies with commercial appeal) and create well-crafted songs aimed at young people, an increasingly lucrative market. Kirshner had already enjoyed some success writing jingles with his high-school friend Bobby Darin, and after acquiring the talents of the experienced songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller (the writers behind “Hound Dog” and “Jailhouse Rock”), he convinced the more experienced Nevins to partner with him.

The music may have been aimed at the youth market, but Aldon’s songwriters employed lyrics that addressed bleak social conditions (“We Gotta Get Out of This Place”) and tragedy (“Leader of the Pack”). The arrangements and production were innovative as well. Songs such as the echo-drenched Phil Spector-produced “River Deep, Mountain High” (performed by Tina Turner) showcased new directions in arrangements and production techniques.

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It Showcased Young Talent

The Brill Building sound was created for young people, by young people. In 1962, the oldest of Aldon’s songwriters was just 26 years old. Many of the Brill Building songwriters were only slightly older than their songs’ subjects, making their perspective especially accessible to young audiences. At the age of 20, Carole King wrote the No. 1 hit “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” — recorded and released by the Shirelles in 1960 — with her husband Gerry Goffin. Little Eva, their babysitter, sang the smash hit “The Loco-Motion” (which King and Goffin also wrote) when she was just 17.

It Boosted Women Songwriters

Before the Brill Building era, popular songwriting was basically a boys’ club. This changed with the arrival of female songwriters such as Carole King, Ellie Greenwich (“Then He Kissed Me,” 1963), and Cynthia Weil (“You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” 1964), although their husbands were named first in the songwriting credits. In addition to writing dozens of hits, these women proved that they were equally capable in the recording studio as arrangers and producers.

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It Helped Integrate Popular Music

The Brill Building songwriters made rock ’n’ roll popular with mainstream teenage America. Although the majority of writers were white, they all had been influenced by the melting pot of musical styles they heard on the fire escapes and in the clubs of New York City. The result was a hybrid sound that blended genres and often had crossover appeal, finding success on both pop and R&B charts. Songwriters often specifically wrote for Black female artists such as Dionne Warwick, the Ronettes, and the Crystals, using arrangements that gave their music mainstream appeal. This unique musical style united listeners from different backgrounds and opened people’s eyes to the possibility of a biracial popular culture.

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Historical Figures You Didn’t Realize Were Friends

JFK with Frank Sinatra

Muhammad Ali once said, “Friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It’s not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.” Like Ali and his own best pal, photographer Howard Bingham, some friendships in history have been formed by figures with wildly different backgrounds and career choices. The following friendships are as surprising as they were genuine — though they were not all long-lasting. From Mark Twain and Nikola Tesla to Hunter S. Thompson and Pat Buchanan, here are five unlikely bonds between notable figures you never knew were friends.

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Mark Twain and Nikola Tesla

A friendship between the famed writer Mark Twain and inventor Nikola Tesla might, on the surface, seem unlikely. And yet, before the two met, they already shared some significant interests. Tesla had once been bedridden for nine months with a severe bout of cholera, during which time he read some of Twain’s earlier works. He later described them as “unlike anything I had ever read before and so captivating as to make me utterly forget my hopeless state.” Twain, meanwhile, was fascinated by technological innovations and, in particular, electricity. When the two men eventually met in the 1890s, they became friends and spent a lot of time together in Tesla’s lab and elsewhere. One famous account tells of Twain’s participation in an experiment involving an electromechanical oscillator, which Tesla believed might be therapeutic. But when Twain sat on the vibrating plate, it served as something of a laxative, forcing the acclaimed author to run for the bathroom.

Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini

The story of Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini is one of both friendship and rivalry. The celebrated mystery author (and creator of Sherlock Holmes) and the famous illusionist first met in 1920, during the magician’s tour of England. Their shared interest in spiritualism — and the use of séances to contact the dead — initially brought them together. But the two men took fundamentally different paths thereafter. Conan Doyle (in stark contrast to his highly rational and analytical Holmes) became increasingly obsessed with and convinced by the existence of spiritual powers. Houdini, on the other hand, began exposing fraudulent mediums and decried spiritualism as "nothing more or less than mental intoxication.” After Conan Doyle’s wife, Jean, supposedly contacted Houdini’s mother during a seance in 1922, Houdini publicly announced that he did not believe the message came from beyond the grave. This is partly because the message consisted of 15 pages of handwritten, English-language notes, and his mother didn’t speak English. Not long after the séance, the friendship began to break apart.

Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe

Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe struck up a friendship in the 1950s. Hollywood’s favorite blond bombshell was a huge fan of Fitzgerald’s music, and went to see her perform in Los Angeles in 1954. The two met in person, and soon formed a tight bond. Monroe famously helped Fitzgerald land a gig at L.A.’s renowned Mocambo nightclub, which had previously rejected Fitzgerald due to what they saw as her lack of sex appeal (not because of her race, as the story often goes). Monroe ensured that numerous A-list celebrities attended each performance, drawing plenty of media attention. The gigs were a turning point in the career of the “First Lady of Song.” When asked about their relationship, Monroe said, “Well, my very favorite person, and I love her as a person as well as a singer, I think she’s the greatest, and that’s Ella Fitzgerald.” The two women remained friends until Monroe’s death at the age of 36.

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John F. Kennedy and Frank Sinatra

It’s not known precisely when John F. Kennedy and Frank Sinatra first met, but by the end of the 1950s they were well acquainted. The politician and crooner notoriously shared a love of nightlife and women, so it’s perhaps no surprise they got along. But beyond their mutual admiration, their relationship was beneficial to both men. Sinatra gained access to the corridors of power, while Kennedy counted on Sinatra’s star power to win him votes in the 1960 presidential election. When Kennedy won, the President-elect publicly thanked Sinatra for his efforts in the campaign. But the friendship collapsed after JFK entered the White House, partly because First Lady Jackie Kennedy reportedly disliked the singer, and also due to Sinatra’s alleged connections with organized crime.

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Hunter S. Thompson and Pat Buchanan

The “gonzo” journalist Hunter S. Thompson made no secret of his intense hatred of Richard Nixon, who he said represented “that dark, venal, and incurably violent side of the American character.” It’s something of a surprise, then, that Thompson ended up being good friends with the conservative politician Pat Buchanan — who was once one of the most trusted advisers to none other than President Nixon. Thompson, most famous for his counterculture magnum opus Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1972), met Buchanan during Nixon’s presidential 1972 campaign. He later said of their friendship, “We're still friends. Patrick is a libertarian, or at least in that direction. I think of politics as a circle, not a spectrum of one line, not just right and left. Patrick and I are often pretty close. Patrick's an honest person.” The two remained friends until Thompson’s death in 2005.

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The Difference Between St. Valentine and Cupid

Valentine’s Day card

Each year on February 14, romantic partners exchange affectionate cards and sugary-sweet chocolates, all in the name of St. Valentine — and all while the iconic image of Cupid takes center stage. But who are these figures, and how did they converge for this sentimental holiday? From Cupid’s roots in Greek mythology to St. Valentine’s Christian symbolism, here’s how these two figures became the unlikely faces of love and Valentine’s Day.

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Who Is St. Valentine?

The exact origin of the saintly namesake of Valentine’s Day is murky. According to one belief, St. Valentine was a third-century Roman priest who defied the Roman Empire’s stance against men marrying at a young age (it was thought that they should instead serve as soldiers). Valentine continued to perform marriages in secret, leading to his execution on February 14. Another belief portrays St. Valentine as a compassionate man who helped free persecuted Christians in ancient Rome. According to legend, he healed the local jailer’s blind daughter and, before his death, sent her a note signed, “from your Valentine.” Whether these were two separate figures or just one isn’t entirely clear, nor is whether they were actually historical characters and events or just myths. In records from the medieval era, for instance, there is no connection between St. Valentine and love or marriage. But regardless of how the figure became linked with romance, the association between St. Valentine and love has remained strong.

Who Is Cupid?

Today, we think of Cupid as a surreal cherubic figure, adorned with wings and armed with a bow and arrows. This iconic imagery is rooted in depictions of Eros, the Greek god of love. Initially depicted as a handsome youth, Eros underwent a transformation during the Hellenistic period (around 323 BCE to 31 BCE), evolving into the cherubic, winged child we recognize today. When the Romans adopted the deity, he became Cupid, a name derived from the Latin word for “desire.” The new likeness remained, as did Eros’ mischievous use of his arrows to arouse love or extreme passion in whomever happened to be struck by one.

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How Did Valentine’s Day Start?

While there is no single backstory for our modern celebration of Valentine’s Day, the holiday is often linked to the ancient Roman fertility festival of Lupercalia, which took place on February 15 and dates back to the sixth century BCE. In the fifth century CE, Pope Gelasius I abolished the pagan observance of Lupercalia and instead declared February 14 as a commemorative day for the martyrdom of St. Valentine — with no explicit mention of love, however. In fact, it wasn’t until several centuries later that Valentine’s Day’s romantic connotations emerged, sometime in the late 1300s, when English poet Geoffrey Chaucer wrote about the mating rituals of birds in his epic poem "Parlement of Foules." He wrote of “Seynt Valentynes day” as the day “whan every foul cometh ther to chese his make” — or when birds choose their mates.

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How Did Cupid Become the Face of a Day for St. Valentine?

Chaucer’s prose is believed to be the first mention of Valentine’s Day as a romantic holiday; from there, the association gained more traction. In the 1470s, an English woman named Margery Brews wrote to her fiancé John Paston and referred to him as “My right well-beloved Valentine” — a letter believed to be the oldest English-language valentine. The concept of Valentine's as a day for love was helped along not only by Chaucer, but by William Shakespeare, whose use of both Valentine’s Day and Cupid as romantic symbols further bolstered the idea in Britain. Shakespeare also considered Valentine’s Day a day for lovers, and associated Cupid with love. By the 16th century, Valentine’s Day and Cupid were established cultural symbols of love, and they eventually coalesced on greeting cards. At this time, cards were enormously popular across Europe, Valentine’s cards chief among them. By the mid-1800s, many Valentine’s Day cards featured imagery not far off from Chaucer’s whimsical vision of the day — birds and flowers in springtime — as well as frequent portrayals of the familiar winged, curly-haired Cupid.

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A Day in the Life of a Settler in Colonial America

Colonial settlers, 1760

There was no one typical day in colonial America — the experiences of colonial families differed based on their location, economic status, and individual circumstances. The colonial era not only spanned a large period of time — from the early 17th century to the late 18th century, before the United States became an independent nation — but it also covered a large and varied landscape. The 13 original American colonies stretched from Massachusetts to Georgia, and were populated by settlers from different parts of Europe whose beliefs, traditions, and lifestyles varied greatly.

Colonial settlements ranged from the growing urban centers of the Northeast to the rural agrarian communities of the Southern colonies, and the daily routines of families were impacted by their environment, which included the influence of Indigenous populations. Colonists often adopted or adapted aspects of Native American culture, including agricultural practices and culinary techniques, in order to survive. Weather conditions, seasons, and the availability of resources also played significant roles in shaping daily life in the colonies. But whether you were a farmer, a merchant, a tradesman, or a wife and mother, day-to-day life in the colonies consisted of long days, hard work, and community connections.

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The Workday Started Before Dawn

The workday in colonial America typically began before dawn and lasted until the sun went down, and throughout the day, families dedicated themselves to tasks essential for their survival. The morning started with a modest breakfast of bread and milk, porridge, or cornmeal mush with cider or beer before the work began. This sustenance was much-needed: Depending on the time of year, weather, and season, the typical workday could be up to 12 hours long, six days a week.

Men were expected to provide for their family, and while farming was the primary occupation throughout the colonies, there were a variety of other jobs to be filled, particularly as towns started to grow. Men worked as blacksmiths, carpenters, silversmiths, and in other skilled trades and crafts that contributed to the local economy. Women typically worked in the home, managing all aspects of the household and childcare, including meal preparation and basic education of the children. In addition, married women in non-farming families often worked alongside their husbands in shops or trades, and unmarried or widowed women took jobs as seamstresses, midwives, or tavern keepers. Children often assisted their parents in their work, learning valuable skills for their future roles in the community.

“Dinner” Was at Lunchtime

In the colonial era, the midday meal was called “dinner,” and it was the biggest, heartiest meal of the day. Those who worked in town in trades and shops could go to a common hall for a meal of stew made from pork or poultry, and seasonal vegetables such as corn and cabbage. The midday break provided a short period of rest from work, allowing families to connect with neighbors and strengthen social bonds.

For many colonial settlements, the local economy also relied heavily on indentured and enslaved labor. Indentured servants brought from Europe and enslaved individuals, predominantly of African descent, played essential roles in supporting colonial households. Their contributions, though often overlooked, were integral to the success of farms and trades and the day-to-day functioning of many households. Farm laborers, including enslaved workers, would have their dinner brought to them where they worked in the fields.

The Seasons Had a Big Impact on Daily Life

During peak agricultural seasons, such as planting in springtime and harvesting in the fall, the workday for farming families was extended, as all members of the family dedicated themselves to essential tasks on the farm. The demanding nature of these seasons required longer hours to ensure a successful harvest and sustained livelihood. On the other hand, in the winter months or during inclement weather, when outdoor activities were limited, the workday might be shorter. Families would then focus on indoor tasks and household chores, such as preparing food for storage, or weaving and mending clothing.

Clothes were generally made from locally sourced materials, particularly sheep’s wool and cultivated cotton and flax, and families produced their own textiles through spinning and weaving. Everyday clothing was modest and simple, reflecting the practical needs of daily life. Men typically wore shirts, waistcoats, and breeches, while women donned dresses with full skirts covered by long aprons. Both men and women also wore leather shoes or boots, as well as hats made of felt or animal pelts.

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Not unlike today, evenings were a time for more leisurely activities at home or in town. Large families were common in colonial America, and homes were generally modest in size, with a central hearth for cooking and heating that also provided a place for families to spend time together at the beginning and end of the day. After a light supper of leftovers, the family would often gather around the hearth for warmth and engage in storytelling, handiwork, or quiet chores by candlelight.

Homemade entertainment, such as playing musical instruments, singing songs, or playing simple games, were also popular ways for families to spend what little free time they had. Outside of the home, attending church services, gathering in common halls and taverns, and participating in organized social gatherings like fairs and dances offered a chance for neighbors to interact, share meals, and reinforce their sense of community.

At the end of the evening, families would retire to their beds, which were made of woven sacks known as “ticks.” Beds were stuffed with straw or chaff and sometimes layered with a softer feather-stuffed tick and homemade quilts for warmth. Because there were few rooms in the average home, there were rarely any designated sleeping quarters; rather, people slept in living areas with multiple family members sharing a room. Older children slept in one bed and infants and very young children slept next to their mother. With the natural rhythm of daylight and limited artificial lighting, bedtime was early by modern standards — and a necessity for preparing for the long days of physical labor.

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