Paradise Driver

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Today is Sunday, April 18th

The 109th day of 2004.

There are 257 days left in the year.



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Today's Highlight in History:



On April 18, 1775, American revolutionaries Paul Revere, William Dawes and Samuel Prescott rode though the towns of Massachusetts giving the warning that "the British are coming."



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On this date:



In 1853, Vice President William R. King dies one month after his inauguration, and President Pierce will not have a Vice President during his term in office.



In 1902, Denmark was the first country to adopt fingerprinting as a way to identify criminals.



In 1906, A devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck San Francisco at 5:12AM local time, followed by raging fires. The earthquake and resulting fires caused an estimated 3,000 deaths and $524 million in property loss.



In 1921, Junior Achievement, created to encourage business skills in young people, was incorporated in Colorado Springs, Co.



In 1923, The first game was played in Yankee Stadium. The Yankees defeated the Boston Red Sox, 4-1.



In 1934, The first coin-operated laundry (called a "washateria") was opened by J.F. Cantrell in Fort Worth, Texas.



In 1936, Pan-Am's "Clipper" starts providing regular passenger flights between San Francisco and Honolulu.



In 1937, Leon Trotsky called for the overthrow of Soviet leader Josef Stalin.



In 1942, An air squadron from the USS Hornet led by Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle raided Tokyo and other Japanese cities.



In 1943 Traveling in a bomber, Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, was shot down by American P-38 fighters.



In 1944, The ballet "Fancy Free," with music by Leonard Bernstein premiered.



In 1945, Famed American war correspondent Ernie Pyle, 44, was killed by Japanese gunfire on the Pacific island of Ie Shima, off Okinawa.



In 1946, The League of Nations went out of business.



In 1949, The Irish Republic came into existence as it withdrew from the British Commonwealth.



In 1950 1st transatlantic jet passenger trip by BOAC in a DH Comet 4.



In 1951, New York Yankee Mickey Mantle goes 1-for-4 in his 1st game



In 1955, Inventor, Mathematician, Physicist Albert E. Einstein died at the age of 76 in Princeton; NJ. He was born November 29, 1849.



In 1955, The phrase "Third World" was first used by Indonesia's President Sukarno in a speech about non-white and underdeveloped areas.



In 1956, "the match made in heaven," when American actress Grace Kelly married Prince Ranier III of Monaco in a civil ceremony. A church wedding took place the following day.



In 1964, Sandy Koufax is 1st to strike out the side on 9 pitches



In 1968, The London Bridge was sold to American Robert McCullough for one million pounds (about $4M at the time). It was later re-erected in Arizona.



In 1971, THE 1ST "EARTH DAY" A nationwide observance is held to promote awareness and activism concerning environmental issues



In 1974, The Washington District Court conducting the Watergate proceedings issued a subpoena on President Richard M. Nixon to produce tape recordings and other material demanded by the Special Prosecutor.



In 1977, Alex Haley, author of "Roots", awarded Pulitzer Prize



In 1978, The U.S. Senate voted 68-32 to turn the Panama Canal over to Panamanian control on Dec. 31, 1999.



In 1980, Rhodesia became the independent nation of Zimbabwe as the British flag was lowered at a ceremony in Salisbury.



In 1980, The Prime Interest Rate went to 19.5 percent



In 1982, Canada Constitution Act replaces British North America Act



In 1983, 62 people, including 17 Americans, were killed at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, by a suicide bomber.



In 1989, Thousands of Chinese students demanding democracy tried to storm Communist Party headquarters in Beijing.



In 1992, An 11-year-old Florida boy sued to "divorce" his natural parents and remain with his foster parents. The boy eventually won his suit.



In 1996, gunmen killed 18 people and wounded 15 more in an attack on tourists at the Egyptian pyramids.



In 2002, Four Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan were killed when they were mistakenly bombed by an American F-16 pilot.



Ten years ago (1994):



Former President Richard Nixon suffered a stroke at his home in Park Ridge, N.J., and was taken to New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center; he died four days later.



Five years ago (1999):



NATO launched its most active day of airstrikes in its assault on Yugoslavia, pummeling refineries, bridges and dozens of other targets in the 25th straight day of attacks.



Wayne Gretzky played his last National Hockey League game as his New York Rangers lost to Pittsburgh 2-1 in overtime at Madison Square Garden.



One year ago (2003):



Iraqi police arrested Saddam Hussein's former finance minister (Hikmat Mizban Ibrahim al-Azzawi) and turned him over to the U.S. Marines.



Scott Peterson was arrested in San Diego in the death of his wife, Laci, who was eight months pregnant when she vanished on Christmas Eve.



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Today's Birthdays:



Actress Barbara Hale (Perry Mason's "Della Street"; William Katt's mom, Bill Williams' wife) is 83.



Blues singer Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown is 80.



Actor Clive Revill is 74.



Actor James Drury is 70.



Actor Robert Hooks is 67.



Actress Hayley Mills (Parent Trap; Sir John's daughter, Juliet's sister) is 58.



Actor James Woods is 57.



Actress-director Dorothy Lyman is 57.



Actress Cindy Pickett is 57.



Country musician Walt Richmond (The Tractors) is 57.



Country musician Jim Scholten (Sawyer Brown) is 52.



Actor Rick Moranis is 50.



Actress Melody Thomas Scott is 48.



Actor Eric Roberts (Julia's brother) is 48.



Actor John James is 48.



Rock musician Les Pattinson (Echo and the Bunnymen) is 46.



Talk show host Conan O'Brien is 41.



Actress Jane Leeves ("Daphne" on Frasier) is 41.



Actor Eric McCormack is 41.



Actress Maria Bello is 37.



Rock musician Greg Eklund (Everclear) is 34.



Rhythm and blues singer Trina (Trina and Tamara) is 30.



Actress Melissa Joan Hart ("Sabrina The Teenage Witch") is 28.



Actor Sean Maguire is 28.



Actress Alia Shawkat is 15.



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Thought for Today:

"It's what you learn after you know it all that counts." -

- Earl Weaver, baseball manager.

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