The author of To Kill a Mockingbird was born on this day in 1926. When her novel, a seminal work examining racism in the US, was denounced by one school board as “immoral,” she responded by saying, “what I’ve heard makes me wonder if any of its members can read.”
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More than 6 million Jews perished in the Holocaust.
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On this day in 1975 B.J. Thomas had the longest title of a number one song at the top of the “Billboard” popular music chart. The song was “(Hey, Won’t You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song?” (source: On-This-Day.com )
April 23 is World Book Night.
According to the WorldBookNight.org:
World Book Night is an annual celebration of reading and books which takes place on 23 April. It sees passionate volunteers give hundreds of thousands of books away in their communities to share their love of reading with people who, for whatever reason, don’t read for pleasure or own books.
It is run by The Reading Agency – the charity with a mission to give everyone an equal chance to become a reader. Because everything changes when we read…
…World Book Night is about giving books and encouraging those who have lost the love of reading – or are yet to gain it – to pick up a book and read. Line by line, paragraph by paragraph until they too have discovered the power of reading and the opportunities in life that reading can open the door to.
For more information, visit worldbooknight.org
William Shakespeare, arguably the greatest writer in the English language, was born on this day in 1564. Maybe. We are not sure. In fact, there is much we don’t know about Shakespeare. Some don’t think that he wrote the plays that are attributed to him, or that he even existed,. This might not even be a picture of him. Learn more about Shakespeare and the debate surrounding his identity. More importantly, take the opportunity to enjoy the plays, whether on film, television, or best of all, live!
Today is Earth Day, a day to celebrate our planet and to raise awareness about the need to protect it for our future and for future generations.
For more on Earth Day in Canada, check out earthday.ca
On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson played his first game for the Brooklyn Dodgers. In doing so, he became the first African-American to play in the major leagues of baseball, breaking the racist colour barriers that shamefully tarnish the history of the great game of baseball. Jackie Robinson was a wonderfully talented player who earned the praise of fans for his play on the field. He also earned praise for his courage and determination in the face of a racist society that continued to resist the equal participation of non-whites in the game and in the everyday life of the nation. Robinson faced racial taunting and violence on the field, and untold indignities and threats away from the ballpark. Thankfully his determination led the way for more black players to follow and helped our society move along the long slow path towards changing attitudes, promoting acceptance and tolerance, and the goal of eliminating racism. Today in all MLB parks, players will wear #42 in honour of Jackie Robinson.
The reigning King of late night television, David Letterman, was born on this day in 1947. David plans to retire from “The Late Show” in 2015.
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April 11 is “Louie Louie Day.” Richard Berry was born on this day in 1935, and would go on to write Louie Louie, one of rock’s most beloved songs and one of the most covered songs in the world. The most celebrated version of “Louie Louie” was recorded by The Kingsmen in 1963, the same year that Paul Revere and the Raiders recorded a competing version. Over the years the song would be recorded hundreds of times by groups as diverse as Heavy Metal and Marching Bands. The song was even investigated by the FBI over concerns that the lyrics were obscene. After testing the recordings at various RPMs, the FBI concluded that the lyrics were “incomprehensible at any speed.”
Danny Gallivan was born on this day in 1917. He was the greatest hockey play-by-play broadcaster in history and a master of the English language. Danny Gallivan was the voice of the Canadiens through the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Whether you were a fan of the Montreal Canadiens or not, for those over 40 you cannot help but smile when you hear clips from his calls featuring such greats as Guy Lafleur, Serge Savard and Yvon Cornoyer. Hockey fans who are under 40 should take any opportunity to take in some old audio or video clips featuring Danny and some of his classic “Gallivanisms.” The “Savardian Spin-o-rama,” “cannonading shots” and making saves in “rapier like fashion” are just a few. When Mr. Gallivan died in 1993 the hockey world lost one of the all time greats.
Are you looking for a quiet, comfortable place do some reading? Come down to your school library and our Silent Reading area. There you will find some comfy chairs and a quiet space to enjoy some silent reading. You can come down during the SSR period, or anytime during the day– it is silent reading in that area all day, every day. No homework, no screens, no talking, just wonderful, wonderful reading.
Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary School Library 