Today in History 12/03/16

(unknown) Today in History
(1818) Illinois becomes the 21st state in the US
1818 What will be known as the Land of Lincoln, Illinois, joins the nation as the 21st state. Although it’s technically a slave-free state, slavery will be tolerated for many years in Illinois until the state Supreme Court gradually emancipates all people living in bondage..

Illinois is a state in the midwestern region of the United States, achieving statehood in 1818. It is the 5th most populous state and 25th largest state in terms of land area, and is often noted as a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal, timber, and petroleum in the south, Illinois has a diverse economic base and is a major transportation hub. The Port of Chicago connects the state to other global ports from the Great Lakes, via the Saint Lawrence Seaway, to the Atlantic Ocean, as well as the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River, via the Illinois River. For decades, O’Hare International Airport has been ranked as one of the world’s busiest airports. Illinois has long had a reputation as a bellwether both in social and cultural terms and politics.

Population: 12.86 million (2015)
Area: 57,915 sq miles (149,998 km²)
Colleges and universities: Illinois State University · University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign · University of Chicago · Northwestern University · Northern Illinois University · University of Illinois at Chicago
Governor: Bruce Rauner
Capital: Springfield
Senators: Mark Kirk · Dick Durbin · Barack Obama · Stephen A. Douglas · Samuel McRoberts · John McCracken Robinson · Paul Simon · James Shields · Elias Kane · David J. Baker · William Lee D. Ewing

— Source: wiki/Illinois
(1947) Brando screams, “Stella!” on Broadway and audiences rave
When the curtain falls on the first performance of Tennessee Williams’ play, ‘A Streetcar Named Desire,’ the audience applauds for half an hour. Epic performances will make Marlon Brando, who plays Stanley, an overnight star, and earn Jessica Tandy a Tony for her “incredibly true” portrayal of Blanche DuBois.. 1947

A Streetcar Named Desire is a 1947 play written by American playwright Tennessee Williams which received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1948. The play opened on Broadway on December 3, 1947, and closed on December 17, 1949, in the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. The Broadway production was directed by Elia Kazan and starred Jessica Tandy, Marlon Brando, Karl Malden, and Kim Hunter. The London production opened in 1949 with Bonar Colleano, Vivien Leigh, and Renee Asherson and was directed by Laurence Olivier. The drama A Streetcar Named Desire is often regarded as among the finest plays of the 20th century, and is considered by many to be one of Williams’ greatest.

Author: Tennessee Williams
Written: 1947
First performed: Dec 03, 1947
Adaptations: A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) · A Streetcar Named Desire (1995) · A Streetcar Named Desire (1984) · A Streetcar Named Desire
Awards: Pulitzer Prize for Drama
Genres: Drama · Songbooks · Music · Plays

— Source: wiki/A_Streetcar_Named_Desire
(1979) Eleven people die in a stampede outside a Who concert
1979 Excitement turns deadly as thousands of fans push their way into the Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati to see the British rock band the Who. Eleven people, mostly teenagers, are suffocated as the crowd crushes onto the concourse. The band won’t learn of the deaths until after the show. .

The Who concert disaster occurred on December 3, 1979 when British rock band the Who performed at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, and a stampede of concert-goers outside the coliseum’s entry doors resulted in the deaths of eleven people.

Date: Dec 03, 1979

— Source: wiki/The_Who_concert_disaster
(1984) Thousands die in chemical accident in Bhopal, India
When a deadly gas leaks from a Union-Carbide pesticide plant, thousands die almost immediately. Panic ensues as others try to escape the toxic cloud floating over the city, and the death toll will spike even higher as victims succumb to injuries and gas-related diseases. . 1984

The Bhopal disaster, also referred to as the Bhopal gas tragedy, was a gas leak incident in India, considered the world’s worst industrial disaster. It occurred on the night of 2–3 December 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. Over 500,000 people were exposed to methyl isocyanate gas and other chemicals. The toxic substance made its way into and around the shanty towns located near the plant.

Fatalities: 3,000
Date: Dec 03, 1984

— Source: wiki/Bhopal_disaster
DIH v2.9.o16

FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmail