Paul Layendecker’s “WAY BACK WHEN” for Thursday, April 13, 2023
1860 The Pony Express arrived in Sacramento, completing it first run in just 10 days. It departed from St. Joseph, Missouri on April 3. Until then, sending a message across the U.S. could take months.
1943 The Jefferson Memorial in Washington was dedicated.
1964 Sidney Poitier became the first black actor to win Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Homer Smith in Lilies of the Field.
1970 An Apollo 13 oxygen tank exploded, endangering the crew and causing the planned Moon landing to be aborted. After some creative and ingenious work by Nasa engineers, the crew was able to return safely. (“Houston, we’ve had a problem up here.” Fantastic film from 1995!)
Music History:
1974 Elton John went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Bennie and The Jets’, his second US No.1. John was set against releasing it as a single, believing it would fail. CKLW in Windsor, Ontario, began heavy airplay of the song and it became the No.1 song in the Detroit market with other radio stations adding it to playlists.
Notable Birthdays today:
Actor Rick Schroder 53
Singer Al Green 77
Actor Tony Dow 77
Credit to:
Thisdayinmusic.com and Thisdaytrivia.com
