August 5: On This Day in World History … briefly
Most notable historic snippets or facts extracted from the book ‘On This Day’ first published in 1992 by Octopus Publishing Group Ltd, London, as well as additional supplementary information extracted from Wikipedia.
1858: US and UK link up
The completion of the world’s first transatlantic telegraph cable is a dream come true for American financier Cyrus West Field (39), who had sunk his considerable financial resources and mental energies into this monumental project.
The cable, which ran between Ireland and Newfoundland, was laid jointly by the naval vessels USS Niagara and HMS Agamemnon.
Queen Victoria and US President Buchanan were set to inaugurate the line by exchanging messages.
1936: Brilliant Owens blows Aryan myth
German Chancellor Adolf Hitler turns his back on a living refutation of his theory of Aryan superiority. As 23-year old black American athlete Jesse Owens acknowledged the cheers of the vast crowd after his gold-medal triumph in the 200m final of the 11th Olympiad, the disgruntled Führer left the stadium. The multi-talented Owens turned the Führer’s racist philosophy on its head by winning a gold in the 100m, 200m and the long-jump. A fourth gold medal in the 4 x 100m relay was also a certainty.
After the long-jump, in which Owens smashed the world record, Hitler privately congratulated silver medallist German Lutz Long, ignoring the American. The Führer’s pique at having a ‘black mercenary’ (the name given to Owens and his fellow black Americans by propaganda minister Josef Goebbels) threaten his party to glorify the Third Reich was not spoiling the genial American athlete’s fun however – he revelled in the warmth of the Berlin crowd and his own hard-earned achievements.
2000: Sir Alec Guinness dies at 86
One of Britain’s most famous film actors Sir Alec Guinness dies at the age of 86. He first made his name with classical roles in London theatre, but in a career that spanned nearly 70 years, he played comedy, tragedy and farce.
His performances spanned a wide range of roles – from adaptations of the novels of Charles Dickens to blockbuster films such as Star Wars. He was always in demand during the 50s, 60s and 70s, and built a close working relationship with British director, the late Sir David Lean, who directed him in ‘Lawrence of Arabia’.
Sir Alec won an Oscar for his performance as the British colonel in another cinema classic ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’.
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