| (1524) Explorer Verrazano sails into New York Harbor
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Sailing on an expedition for a French king, Giovanni da Verrazano and his crew are surveying the east coast of North America seeking a marine passage to the Pacific Ocean when they are the first Europeans known to have sailed into what will become New York Harbor. . |
| (1937) A ‘wacky quacker’ leaves his mark
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| Daffy Duck makes his first appearance in a Looney Tunes animated short, ‘Porky’s Duck Hunt.’ The plot has Porky Pig and his dog Rover duck hunting, where they run into sneaky Daffy, who thwarts their efforts to bag a bird. In future appearances, Daffy will lose his manic edge and become more of a put-upon everyman, er duck.. |
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| (1961) Ill-fated US ‘Bay of Pigs’ invasion of Cuba is launched
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A huge Cold War blunder begins as around 1,500 CIA-trained anti-Castro Cuban exiles land at the Bay of Pigs on the southern coast of Cuba. Hoping to overthrow Fidel Castro’s communist government, the invasion force will instead face total defeat. . |
| (1964) Iconic Ford Mustang unveiled at World’s Fair
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| The public gets its first look at Ford’s newest auto at the New York World’s Fair. The ‘pony car’ will go on to be Ford’s biggest seller since the Model T, inspiring a new class of sports cars that take to American asphalt in the ’60s and ’70s.. |
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