Author Archives: Kathy Padden

The Princess Who Worked at Macy’s

Today in History: September 18, 1923 On September 18, 1923, Princess Anne Antoinette Francois Charlotte of Bourbon-Parma was born in Paris, France. Like most European royalty she was relatively closely related to many reining or former monarchs, but more directly she was the second child of Prince Rene of Bourbon-Parma and princess Margrethe of Demark. She spent her early years […]

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This Day in History: January 13th- A Couple of Dumb-Bells

This Day In History: January 13, 1928 Long Island housewife Ruth Snyder and the also-married Henry “Judd” Gray were having a torrid affair, beginning in 1925. In stereotypical fashion, Ruth suggested they murder her husband Albert for the insurance money. Henry was hesitant at first, but Ruth ultimately convinced him, with Gray later claiming she threatened to tell his wife […]

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That Time Christmas was Banned in Boston

From Boston’s earliest days, Christmas was not celebrated. Holiday goodies like pudding and mince pies were banned- December 25th was a mandatory work day, and town criers walked through the streets reminding the populace: “No Christmas! No Christmas! No Christmas!” In fact, in 1620, the Puritans spent their first Christmas in the New World building their first structures. The next […]

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This Day in History: December 23rd- Tojo’s End

This Day In History: December 23, 1948 On December 23, 1948, seven Class A war criminals that included the former Prime Minister of Japan, Hideki Tojo, were executed by hanging at Sugamo Prison. The executions were carried out by the American occupation authorities. According to official U.S. documents detailing the procedures, “The execution will be witnessed with due solemnity and […]

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This Day in History: December 22nd- Colo

This Day In History: December 22, 1956 Gorillas are intelligent animals that live together in small groups, usually led by a single male silverback. The first gorillas kept in captivity were held in stark, concrete cages with metal bars. Lacking any stimulation or entertainment, they became bored and depressed. Needless to say, this wasn’t a prime breeding environment. As such, […]

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This Day in History: December 18th- The Flop That Became One of the Most Popular Christmas Stories of All Time

This Day In History: December 18, 1892 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was riding high from the success of his ballet The Sleeping Beauty when he was commissioned to compose a double-bill program for Imperial Theatres- an opera and a ballet. This included Tchaikovsky’s last opera Iolanta and The Nutcracker, choreographed by Marius Petipa, who collaborated with Tchaikovsky on The Sleeping Beauty […]

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This Day in History: December 15th- The Life of One of the First Private Citizen Billionaires in the World

This Day In History: December 15, 1892 Jean Paul Getty, more commonly known as J. Paul Getty, was born on December 15, 1896 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The son of a self-made man, George Getty (a blue collared laborer turned lawyer turned oil prospector), J. Paul Getty used a business loan from his father to go on to create a global […]

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