by James D. Irwin
On this day…
1849— Fyodor Dostoevsky sentenced to death for anti-government activities, but this is later reduced to hard labour. Talk about crime and punishment!
1938— Dr Albert Hoffman, a Swiss scientist, creates LSD and throws open the doors of perception.
1940— The Nazis close off the Warsaw ghetto from the outside world, taking another horrifying step towards their ‘Final Solution.’
1992— In Hoxne, Suffolk, metal detector enthusiast Eric Lawes stumbles across a hoard of Roman gold and silver from the 4th and 5th century. It is the largest find of its kind within the Roman Empire.
Happy Birthday to…
1896— Oswald Mosley, British fascist and father of Max.
1907— Burgess Meredith, the Penguin. He later went on to train Rocky Balboa in Rocky.
1942— Willie Carson, tiny little man who couldn’t control Swindon Town as well as he could control a horse.
1950— John Swartzwelder, reclusive genius who has written more episodes of The Simpsons than anyone else. The majority of his 59 episodes are absolute classics. After leaving the show in 2003 he took up writing absurdist novels.
1977— Maggie Gyllenhall, Jake’s less attractive sister.
And we fondly remember…
1960— Clark Gable, although frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.**
2009— Edward Woodward, best known for The Wicker Man and the ‘E-War Woo-war’ joke.
Finally, today is International Tolerance Day and we won’t stand for anyone who doesn’t observe it!
*Splendid Fred does not condone or recommend recreational drug use.
**We’ve used this joke before, but frankly my dear…
Splendid Fred Magazine 