Tag: sport

To Boldly Go…to a Musical

All of the following are about today’s date, 22 March, but in a variety of years.

William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk.
Wikipedia
  1. William Shatner was born today in 1931 in the Canadian city of…
    • Montreal, Quebec
    • Toronto, Ontario
    • Vancouver, British Columbia
  2. On this day in 1508, Ferdinand II of Aragon commissioned a new chief navigator of the Spanish Empire. Born in the Republic of Florence, he was…
    • Amerigo Vespucci
    • Vasco da Gama
    • Christopher Columbus.
  3. The Arab League was formed this day in Cairo by Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Transjordan (now Jordan) and…
    • Tunisia
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Yemen
  4. The first Masters Tournament took place at Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia on this date in…
    • 1934
    • 1938
    • 1941
  5. The 22nd March 1948 saw the birth of the English composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, who is well known for his collaboration with Tim Rice. The first of their works to be performed publicly was…
    • Evita
    • Jesus Christ Superstar
    • Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Amerigo Vespucci. Wikipedia

Good luck! The answers will be posted later today.

Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio—Answers

Joe DiMaggio.
Wikipedia
  1. Paul Simon and the song was Mrs Robinson—DiMaggio’s elegant style and sophisticated demeanour inspired nostalgic lines in literature and music, including Paul Simon’s tribute to forgotten heroes in Mrs. Robinson from the film The Graduate:”—
    “Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? 
    A nation turns its lonely eyes to you, whoa, whoa, whoa 
    What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson? 
    Joltin Joe has left and gone away, hey, hey, hey 
    Hey, hey, hey”
    Queen Anne
    by Michael Dahl
    Wikipedia
  2. Anne—Anne, born on 6 February 1665, in London, became the last Stuart monarch of Great Britain on 8 March 1702, succeeding under the Act of Settlement of 1701. She reigned until her death on 1714, marking the end of the Stuart monarchy. Despite her desire for independent rule, Anne’s health issues and intellectual limitations led her to rely on ministers, who guided the country through the War of the Spanish Succession. Her reign was marked by Whig-Tory rivalries and succession uncertainty. Anne, raised Protestant, married Prince George of Denmark in 1683 and had a significant political relationship with Sarah Jennings Churchill.
    The cover for The Wind in the Willows
    Wikipedia
  3. Kenneth Grahame—Kenneth Grahame, born on 8 March 1859, in Edinburgh, Scotland, was a British author renowned for The Wind in the Willows (1908), a beloved children’s classic featuring animal characters with human traits. Orphaned young, he lived with his grandmother in England and attended St. Edward’s School, Oxford. Financial constraints prevented university attendance, leading him to a career at the Bank of England until his retirement in 1908 due to ill health. Grahame also contributed to journals like the St. James Gazette and published works such as Pagan Papers (1893), The Golden Age (1895), and Dream Days (1898), showcasing his insight into childhood.
    Althing logo.
    Wikipedia
  4. Althing—The Althing, Iceland’s unicameral legislature, is one of the world’s oldest national parliaments, founded around 930 at Thingvellir. It was the first representative assembly in medieval Scandinavia to hold national legislative power. The Althing met at Thingvellir until 1798 and was abolished by the Danish crown in 1800. It was reconvened in Reykjavík in 1845, with a special session at Thingvellir on June 17, 1944, to proclaim Iceland’s republic. Despite its historical interruptions, the Althing continues to serve as Iceland’s legislative body, reflecting its enduring significance in the nation’s political history.
  5. Clove and coconut plantations—1964 Revolutionary government of Zanzibar nationalized all farms and clove and coconut plantations. 
Flag of independent People Republic of Zanzibar in use between 12 January and 26 April 1964.
Wikipedia

Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio

Joe DiMaggio
Wikipedia
  1. In 1999 Joe DiMaggio died. A few decades before he died  he was mentioned in a lament to lost heroes in the line “Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio”—Who wrote the song that contained that line?
    • David Crosby
    • Bob Dylan
    • Paul Simon, and
    • as a bonus what was the song?
  2. On this day in 1702, who became the last Stuart monarch of Great Britain?
    • Anne
    • James VII
    • Charles II
  3. In 1859 the author of The Wind in the Willows was born, who was he?
    • Kenneth Grahame
    • Jerome K. Jerome
    • AA Milne 
  4. In 1844, the parliament of Iceland was reopened after a closure of 45 years, by what name is it known?
    • Althing
    • Storting
    • Folketing
  5. 1964 Revolutionary government of Zanzibar nationalized all…
    • Antimony and arsenic production
    • Banking and betting professions
    • Clove and coconut plantations

Good luck! The answers will be posted later

Hatches and Despatches—Answers

The answers to the questions posted earlier are shown in bold.

Bryan Cranston, Comic-Con, San Diego, 2012
Wikipedia
  1. Bryan Cranston—Bryan Lee Cranston is an acclaimed American actor renowned for his roles as Walter White in Breaking Bad and Hal in Malcolm in the Middle. He has won six Primetime Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards and two Golden Globes, with nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA. Cranston’s Breaking Bad performance earned him four Emmys and a Golden Globe, and he also won for Outstanding Drama Series as a producer. On stage, he won a Tony for All the Way and another for Network. Notable films include Trumbo, Saving Private Ryan, and Godzilla.
    Sir Edwin Landseer
    By Francis Grant.
    National Portrait Gallery
    Wikipedia
  2. Edwin Landseer—Landseer, born in London to engraver John Landseer and Jane Potts, was a prodigious artist recognised early on. He studied under his father and Benjamin Robert Haydon, who encouraged dissections to understand animal anatomy. Landseer’s association with the Royal Academy began at 13, exhibiting as an “Honorary Exhibitor,” becoming an Associate at 24, and an Academician in 1831. He was acquainted with Charles Robert Leslie and visited Scotland in 1824, which influenced him. In 1823, he painted Georgiana Russell, Duchess of Bedford, with whom he had an affair. Knighted in 1850, he declined the Royal Academy Presidency in 1866. Suffering from mental health issues, he was declared insane in 1872.
    Crossing of the Strait of Dover by Blanchard and Jefferies, 1785.
    Wikipedia
  3. Jean-Pierre Blanchard—Jean-Pierre Blanchard (1753–1809) was a French inventor and pioneer of gas balloon flight. He achieved fame with a hydrogen balloon flight in Paris in 1784 and later crossed the English Channel in 1785, earning praise from Louis XVI. Blanchard toured Europe, demonstrating balloons and parachutes, using the latter for a successful escape in 1793. In 1792, he conducted the first balloon flight in the Americas, observed by President George Washington. Blanchard married Sophie Blanchard in 1804 and died of a heart attack in 1808. His widow continued balloon demonstrations until her accidental death.
    Rachel Weisz
    Wikipedia
  4. Rachel Weisz—Rachel Weisz is an acclaimed English actress known for her roles in both independent films and blockbusters. She began her career in the early 1990s, gaining recognition with her film debut in Death Machine (1994) and winning a Critics’ Circle Theatre Award for Design for Living. Her breakthrough came with The Mummy series (1999-2001). Weisz won an Academy Award for The Constant Gardener (2005) and a Laurence Olivier Award for A Streetcar Named Desire (2009). She continued to excel in films like The Bourne Legacy (2012) and The Favourite (2018),winning a BAFTA for the latter.
    Viv Richards
    Wikipedia
  5. Viv Richards—Sir Vivian Richards is a retired Antiguan cricketer celebrated as one of the greatest batsmen ever. Representing the West Indies from 1974 to 1991, he was pivotal in their 1975 and 1979 World Cup victories and a runner-up in 1983. Richards made his Test debut in 1974 and scored 8,540 runs in 121 matches, becoming the West Indies’ leading run-scorer. Despite eye surgery in 1984, he continued to excel. Knighted in 1999, he was named a Cricketer of the Century by Wisden in 2000 and inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame in 2009.
    Ranulph Fiennes at the Celebrating Captain Scott’s Legacy: 100 Years of Discovery and Diplomacy in Antarctica event in London.
    Wikipedia
  6. Ranulph Fiennes—Sir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes is a renowned British explorer, writer and poet, holding several endurance records. He served in the British Army for eight years, including counter-insurgency work in Oman. Fiennes is celebrated for being the first to visit both the North and South Poles by surface means and the first to cross Antarctica on foot. In 2009, at 65, he summited Mount Everest. Recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1984 as the world’s greatest living explorer, he has authored numerous books on his adventures and explorers like Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton.
    Maurice Ravel
    Wikipedia
  7. Maurice Ravel—Maurice Ravel was a distinguished French composer, pianist, and conductor, often associated with Impressionism alongside Claude Debussy, though both distanced themselves from the label. His work gained international acclaim in the 1920s and 1930s, earning him the title of France’s greatest living composer. Ravel’s compositions are celebrated for their intricate harmonies and innovative orchestration, exemplified in Boléro (1928) and his arrangement of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition (1922). Despite facing bias at the Paris Conservatoire, he developed a unique style blending modernism, baroque, neoclassicism and jazz, known for its clarity and experimentation.
    Amanda Gorman steps to the podium to recite her inaugural poem, “The Hill We Climb,” during the 59th Presidential Inauguration ceremony in Washington, Jan. 20, 2021.
    (DOD Photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Carlos M. Vazquez II)
    Wikipedia
  8. Amanda Gorman—Amanda Gorman is an American poet, activist and model known for addressing issues like oppression, feminism, race, and marginalisation. She was the first National Youth Poet Laureate and published The One for Whom Food Is Not Enough in 2015. Gorman gained global fame in 2021 for her poem The Hill We Climb at Joe Biden’s inauguration, leading to best-selling books and a management contract. She was featured in Time magazine’s 100 Next list and became the first poet to perform at the Super Bowl, delivering Chorus of the Captains at Super Bowl LV.
    Ivan Lendl, 1984.
    Wikipedia
  9. Ivan Lendl—Ivan Lendl is a Czech-American former professional tennis player and coach, celebrated as one of the greatest in the sport. He held the world No. 1 ranking for 270 weeks and won 94 singles titles, including eight majors. Lendl is the only player with a match-winning percentage over 90% in five different years and leads head-to-head against rivals Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. Known as the ‘Father Of Modern Tennis’, he pioneered aggressive baseline power tennis. Post-retirement, he coached Andy Murray to three major titles and a world No. 1 ranking.
  10. Stanley Kubrick—Stanley Kubrick (1928–1999) was an acclaimed American filmmaker known for his meticulous attention to detail, innovative cinematography and dark humour. Born in New York City, he developed an early interest in literature, photography, and film, teaching himself filmmaking after high school. Kubrick’s notable works include The Killing, Paths of Glory, Spartacus, Lolita, Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining and Full Metal Jacket. He moved to England in 1961, where he maintained artistic control over his films, often using groundbreaking techniques. Kubrick’s legacy includes numerous award nominations and critical acclaim.
Production photo of director Stanley Kubrick (left, seated) and actor Tony Curtis (right) on the set of the 1960 film Spartacus.
Wikipedia

Hatches and Despatches

I am…

See question 10. Poster for the film Spartacus (1960)
Wikipedia

Ten questions about people who were either born or sadly died on the 7 March—each answer will follow these two words: “I am…”

Question 1. The second man to walk on the Moon.
Wikipedia
  1. Born today in 1956 in Los Angeles, California, I played the second man to walk on the moon in From the Earth to the Moon (1998). I did voice work on the animated series Family Guy, Robot Chicken and SuperMansion. I am…
    • Bryan Cranston
    • Patrick Warburton
    • Hulk Hogan
      Question 2. Monarch of the Glen.
      Wikipedia
  2. Born 7 March 1802, I am British painter and sculptor best known for my paintings of animals such as the Monarch of the Glen (above). I am…
    • Frank Knight
    • Edwin Landseer
    • Langford Monroe
  3. Died today in 1809. I am a French balloonist who, with the American physician John Jeffries, made the first aerial crossing of the English Channel. I am…
    • Jean Pierre Alfred Nadal
    • Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier
    • Jean-Pierre Blanchard
  4. Born today in 1970, I am an actor and appeared as as Evelyn Carnahan in the Hollywood action films The Mummy (1999) and its sequel. I was Tessa Abbott-Quayle in the 2005 film adaptation of John le Carré’s The Constant Gardener. I am…
    • Abigail Cruttenden
    • Olivia d’Abo
    • Rachel Weisz
  5. Born this day in 1952, I am a West Indian cricketer described by Encyclopædia Britannica as “arguably the finest batsman of his generation”. I am…
  6. Born today in 1944, I am a British adventurer and explorer who, as part of the Transglobe Expedition circumnavigated the world via the North and South Pole. I also ran seven marathons on seven continents in seven consecutive days. I am…
    • Benedict Allen
    • Ranulph Fiennes
    • Gino Watkins
      Question 7. Jayne Torville and Christopher Dean, Dancing on Ice, 2011
      Wikipedia
  7. Born 7 March 1875, I am a composer probably best known for
    Boléro (1928) which gained new popular following after featuring in the film 10 (1979) and the 1984 Olympics when used by ice-dancers Torvill and Dean. I am…
    • Antonín Dvořák
    • Maurice Ravel
    • John Philip Sousa
  8. Born this in 1998, I am a poet and activist who gained international fame when I read my poem The Hill We Climb at Joe Biden’s 2021 presidential inauguration. I am…
    • Amanda Gorman
    • Amanda Grayson
    • Amanda Hunsaker
  9. Born today in 1960, I’m a former American tennis player of Czech descent who was very successful in the 1980s and early 1990s. As a right-hander, I was known for my powerful forehand. I won eight Grand Slam titles, including three consecutive US Open championships from 1985 to 1987. I am…
    • Goran Ivanišević
    • Ivan Lendl
    • Ilie Năstase
  10. Died this day in 1999 in England. In 1960, I took over direction of Spartacus, the slave revolt epic set in Ancient Rome; I am also known for my Odyssey. I am…
    • David Lean
    • Stanley Kubrick
    • Otto Preminger

The births and deaths used in my Hatches and Despatches post were all listed in Encyclopædia Britannica’s Biographies on This Day in History: March 7.

Good luck! The answers will be posted later today.

Malcolm Campbell—Answer

C. 174.883 mph

On February 4, 1927, Malcolm Campbell achieved the land speed record at Pendine Sands in Wales. In an average of two runs, the Napier-Campbell Blue Bird covered the flying kilometre at 174.883 miles per hour (281.447 kilometres per hour) and the flying mile at 174.224 miles per hour (280.386 kilometres per hour).

1927, Malcolm Campbell in the Napier-Campbell Blue Bird broke the world’s Land Speed Record at Pendine Sands. [Image via Wikipedia]

In total, Campbell set nine land speed records between 1924 and 1935, with three at Pendine Sands and five at Daytona Beach. His initial two records were achieved while driving a racing car built by Sunbeam. Additionally, he set the world water speed record four times, with his fastest recorded speed reaching an astonishing 141.740 mph (228.108 km/h) in the Blue Bird K4. This remarkable feat was accomplished on August 19, 1939, at Coniston Water.