On June 23, 1972, Title IX of the education amendments of 1972, which prohibits federally funded educational institutions from discriminating against students or employees based on sex, is enacted into law. Title IX's impact is felt most notably in college athletics, as schools increase their spending on women's sports, though some schools achieve equality in part by eliminating men's sports (see: LSU wrestling). In general, Title IX is credited with increasing female enrollment in higher education and decreasing the dropout rate among females. On June 23, 1992, Mafia boss John Gotti is sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty on 14 accounts of conspiracy to commit murder and racketeering. Gotti earned the nickname "Teflon Don" by avoiding conviction through multiple trials in the '80s, often walking thanks to juror intimidation. Moments after his sentence was read in a federal courthouse in Brooklyn, hundreds of Gotti’s supporters stormed the building and overturned and smashed cars before being forced back by police reinforcements. Gotti died in prison of throat cancer in 2002. On June 23, 1940, Adolph Hitler makes his only visit to Paris. In the wake of the Nazi takeover of the French capital city, Hitler orders the destruction of 2 monuments to Allied heroes of WWI. He also visits Napoleon's tomb, calling it "the greatest and finest moment of my life.” Hitler would gush about Paris for months afterward, but also orders Albert Speer, the architect charged with remodeling Berlin in anticipation of it becoming the central point of a Nazi-dominated globe, to make sure new Berlin be superior to Paris, saying, "When we are finished in Berlin, Paris will only be a shadow.” (below: Hitler, in light colored suit, at Napoleon's tomb)
Wait, so Nazis toppled monuments, stifled free speech, and instituted gun control? Sounds vaguely familiar.
On June 24, 1997, the Air Force releases a 231-page report dismissing long-standing claims of an alien spacecraft crash in Roswell, New Mexico. The Air Force had announced it recovered the wreckage of a "flying disk" on July 8, 1847, but quickly walked back the story, inadvertently launching one of the great conspiracy theories of the 20th century. On June 24, 1948, the Soviet Union, severely at odds with the other Allied nations on how to administer a defeated Germany, blockades all roads and railroad lines into West Berlin. Members of the Truman Administration recommend a military response, and the world holds its breath over a possible USA vs USSR armed confrontation. More to come.... On June 24, 2010, American John Isner wins the 144th tiebreaker game over Frenchman Nicolas Mahut, ending the longest match in Wimbledon history. The 1st round match takes 11 hours, 5 minutes spread over 3 days to complete. On June 24, 1863, the 1st (Gen. James Longstreet) and 3rd (Gen. A.P. Hill) Corps of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia cross the Potomac River into Maryland. General Richard Ewell's 2nd Corps had crossed the river earlier in the month. Lee's reasons for moving north are two-fold: he wants to resupply his army in the farmlands of Maryland and Pennsylvania that have been untouched by war, and he hopes to weaken northern support for the war by threatening Washington, Baltimore and Philadelphia. More to come....
On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George Custer leads the U.S. 7th Cavalry into disaster near Montana's Little Bighorn River. The 7th Cav is one of several units charged with stemming the tide of Native American tribes refusing to be driven into reservations. Custer hears of a large group of Sioux gathered near the Little Bighorn and, believing their numbers are overestimated, leads 200 men in pursuit. But the numbers are real; the Sioux warrior Crazy Horse has about 3,000 men poised to fight, and by day's end, Custer and every last cavalryman are dead. On June 25, 1950, North Korean forces cross the border into South Korean, surprising the South Korean army, as well as the small U.S. force stationed in the country. The United States immediately begins pushing a resolution through the U.N.’s Security Council calling for military assistance. The Soviet Union is boycotting the Security Council at the time, and its representative is not present to oppose the resolution. On June 25, 1996, a tanker truck loaded with 25,000 pounds of explosives rips through the U.S. Air Force military housing complex Khobar Towers in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 19 U.S. airmen and wounding nearly 500 others. On June 25, 1942, General Dwight D. Eisenhower takes command of all Allied troops in the European Theatre. Eisenhower is chosen by Army Chief of Staff George Marshall for his reputation as a strategist and organizer, despite his never having seen a day of combat. On June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson dies at the age of 50 at his home in Los Angeles, California, after suffering from cardiac arrest caused by a fatal combination of drugs given to him by his personal doctor. Jackson's honors are too numerous to mention, but in short, he sold more than 350 million albums during his solo career and in childhood with his brothers, the Jackson 5. His best selling album, Thriller, went platinum (1 million copies sold) 33 times over, and he had 39 mentions in the Guinness Book of World Record in his lifetime. He also endured two charges of child molestation, which resulted in one acquittal and one expensive settlement. Following a performance of his hit single "Billie Jean" on a 1983 Motown Anniversary TV special, an LA Times music critic dubbed him "The King of Pop."
On June 26, 1948, the Berlin Airlift begins. Deciding against a military response to the previous day's blockade of West Berlin by the Soviets, the British and American governments launch a campaign of supplying the war-ravaged city by air. About 5,000 tons of food, water, clothing, fuel and medicine are flown in on that first day. At the height of the Airlift, planes are landing at Templehof Airport every four minutes, and pilots - many flying obsolete WWII aircraft - are making 2 or even 3 round trips between England and Berlin a day. On June 26, 1959, President Eisenhower and Queen Elizabeth II preside over the official opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway. The 2,500 mile long system of canals, logs and dredged natural waterways makes all of the Great Lakes accessible to the Atlantic Ocean. On June 26, 1956, the U.S. Congress approves the Federal Highway Act, which allocates more than $30 billion for the construction of some 41,000 miles of interstate highways; it will be the largest public construction project in U.S. history to that date.
On June 27, 1950, President Harry S. Truman announces that he is ordering U.S. air and naval forces to South Korea to aid the democratic nation in repulsing an invasion launched 2 days earlier by communist North Korea. Though Truman did not ask for a declaration of war, Congress overwhelmingly approved the order, voting to extend the draft and authorizing Truman to call up reservists. On June 27, 1829, English scientist James Smithson dies in Italy after a long illness, leaving behind a will with a peculiar footnote. In the event that his only nephew died without any heirs, Smithson decreed that the whole of his estate would go to “the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an Establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” The gift was unexplained in the will and made even more curious by the fact that Smithson never set foot in the U.S. in his lifetime. Today, The Smithsonian consists of 19 museums and the national zoo in Washington, D.C. and nine research centers around the U.S. (below: the original Smithsonian Institution "castle," which now serves as the complex's administrative offices and visitor's center) On June 27, 1844, Joseph Smith, founder and leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is murdered along with his brother Hyrum when a mob breaks into a jail where they are being held in Carthage, Illinois. The Smiths had been charged with treason and conspiracy as anti-Mormon sentiments had grown around the Midwest communities the two had established for practice of their religion. On June 27, 1972, Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney, inventors of the first modern video game, found Atari, Inc. Bushnell and Dabney had begun transforming commercial "game rooms" built around pool tables and pinball machines with their invention of the first "video game," called Computer Space. Atari will take the video game into the home with small consoles that hook to a television set. The first home video game, an adaptation of an arcade game called Pong, will be an instant hit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=6&v=fiShX2pTz9A&feature=emb_logo On June 27, 1985, Route 66, the iconic U.S. Highway that was the connector for the midwest and west coast for nearly 60 years, is decertified by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation, made obsolete by the interstate highway system. From Chicago to Santa Monica, highway signs identifying "America's Main Street" are removed. Today, National Historic Route 66 Foundation says about 85% of the highway's original 2,200 miles is still in use, and is a popular driving vacation destination.
On June 28, 2007, the American Bald Eagle is removed from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. Despite its significance as a national symbol, a variety of factors caused the bird's population to drop below 1,000 in the lower 48 states by the mid 1950's. Significant protections afforded by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 have increased the population to more than 100,000 in Alaska alone, while 23 of the lower 48 have at least 100 pairs of breeding adults. (During the winter months I see them on an almost daily basis overhead, but I can never get a good picture) On June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Sophie are shot to death by a Bosnian Serb nationalist during an official visit to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo. The killings sparked a chain of events that led to the outbreak of World War I by early August. On June 28, 1953, the first Corvette rolls off the assembly line at the Chevrolet plant in Flint, Michigan. Though it looked the part of an early American muscle car, performance in the early models didn't match the looks, and Chevy was considering dropping the line, but Ford had introduced the Thunderbird around the same time. Instead, Chevy rose to the competition by putting a V-8 in the 'Vette in 1955. On June 28, 1997, Evander Holyfield defends his WBA heavyweight boxing title in a rematch with former champ Mike Tyson. Seven months earlier, Holyfield shocked Tyson with an 11th round TKO; Tyson afterward complaining that he had been continuously headbutted by Holyfield throughout the fight. In the rematch, Holyfield controlled round one and was doing the same in round two when he appeared to accidentally headbutt Tyson. That's when things turned.....strange. With about 40 seconds remaining in round 3, Tyson got Holyfield in a clinch and bit off a 1-inch chunk of Holyfield's right ear. A time out was called as Holyfield, shrieking in pain, was attended to. Referee Mills Lane considered stopping the fight, but instead went with a point deduction for Tyson. After several minutes of medical treatment, the round was resumed, but within seconds the two fighters clinched again and Tyson bit Holyfield again, this time on the left ear. This time the damage was superficial, but when Holyfield's corner pointed out the second bite to Lane, he stopped the fight, DQ'ing Tyson. The Nevada State Athletic Commission would fine Tyson $3 million and suspend his boxing license for a year.
What I read said the first Vettes had a V6. I'm only as good as my material. Speaking of, btw, @GiantDuckFan further searching indicates the 800,000 cops figure is wrong. Best estimates are around 670,000.
