Day Tripping: February 16
Discovery, dislodging, and disenfranchised
Welcome to my daily feature where each day on the calendar marks a part of our shared history.
Finding An Ancient Power
English archaeologist Howard Carter had been excavating the site of Egyptian tombs in the Valley Of The Kings where on this day in 1923, he opened a sealed door to reveal King Tutankhamun’s Burial Chamber. The nearly fully intact tomb quickly became a worldwide sensation. It was the first time that modern historians would enter an Egyptian shrine complete with a sarcophagus containing the mummified corpse of the Pharoah.
After his discovery of artefacts like the mask of Tutankhamun, one among more than five thousand others, Carter received no acknowledgement from the British government for his efforts. How surprising.
Seismic Power Shift
After defeating the military junta of General Fulgencio Batista with his guerilla army and declaring a provisional government, Fidel Castro is officially sworn in as Premier of Cuba in 1959. The small island state becomes the first communist state in the western world.
Under Castro’s rule, though he denied ever being a communist, Cuba would become a major board piece in the Cold War gamesmanship between the US and the Soviet Union. Taking power without earning it from his people, Castro ruled Cuba with an iron glove for decades to come.
Severe Power Outage
A sad day for hockey fans as the National Hockey League announces the 2004–2005 season would be lost to a labour dispute. In what would have been the league’s 88th season, it became the only such time a major professional sports organizations is forced to cancel an entire season.
The Season Not Played engraving on the Stanley Cup, professional sport’s oldest trophy, serves as a constant reminder to fans of hockey about where the business of sport has gone. It is usually the names of players and coaches that are etched onto the trophy’s silver face.
Musical Milestones
1993 — Rod Stewart receives a lifetime achievement BRIT award and reunites on stage with The Faces. Original bassist Ronnie Lane is suffering from multiple sclerosis so former Rolling Stone, Bill Wyman fills in.
1990 — Ike Turner misses his and wife Tina Turner’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame because on this day he is sentenced to four years in prison for a variety of charges.
Narratives
Benjamin Franklin became one of the first magazine publishers in North America when he launches General Magazine in 1741. Andrew Bradford’s American Magazine beat him by three days.
The New Yorker publishes an article by Hannah Arendt in 1963 who covered the Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann trial two years earlier. In the controversial essay, she describes Eichmann as The Banality of Evil, regarding him as thoughtless and a fool instead of evil.
Remembrance
Hall of Fame catcher and original member of the Montreal Expos, Gary Carter died at the age of 57 in 2012 from brain cancer.
Blues great Walter ‘Brownie’ McGhee in 1996. Partnering with harp player Sonny Terry, the duo delighted blues fans for decades.
Notable Births
1903 — the man who made Charlie McCarthy and Mortimer Snerd famous ventriloquist and father of Candice, Edgar Bergen.
1974 — two-time Oscar-winning actor Mahershala Ali.
Thanks for taking the time to read this article dedicated to the days of our history. I hope to see you tomorrow for another instalment.
K. Barrett Katie Wallace Maria Rattray Joseph M. Learned Maryam Merchant Dr Mehmet Yildiz Tree Langdon Myriam Ben Salem Phil Truman Chelsea Mandler MAT Terry Mansfield Hollie Petit, PhD. Terry Trueman Dr Preeti Singh