HAPPY NEW YEAR 2021!

As other news establishments look back, The Free Choice E-zine prefers to look toward the year ahead.

Australia celebrates its 120th anniversary today.

January 20 America will have a new President and Vice President as Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris (respectively) are sworn into office. Although whether or not outgoing President Donald Trump leaves peacefully remains to be seen.

Hopefully there will be enough vaccine supplies by this coming summer to inoculate the world against COVID-19, although it may still be awhile (2022?, 2023?) before the pandemic can be declared officially over.

Yet having a viable vaccine is the first step in the long term goal of getting this world back on its

figurative feet from a health, social, economic, ecological, and other perspectives.

And this humble E-zine will celebrate both its 2500th and 2600th posts in 2021.

This is career post #2461 for those interested.

OTHER ANNIVERSARIES AND EVENTS THIS COMING YEAR INCLUDE...🎉🥳

1,685TH ANNIVERSARY! (336)

December 25: Very first (known) Christmas celebration in Rome.

320TH ANNIVERSARY (1701)

October 9: What is now Yale University established.

255TH ANNIVERSARY (1766)

March 18: Great Britain repealed the Stamp Act.

230TH ANNIVERSARY (1791)

March 5: Vermont joins America as the 14th state.

225TH ANNIVERSARY (1796)

June 1: Tennessee joins America as the 16th state.

210TH ANNIVERSARY (1811)

July 5: Venezuela declared its independence from Spain.

205TH ANNIVERSARY (1816)

December 11: Indiana joins America as the 19th state.

200TH ANNIVERSARY (1821)

February 24: Mexico declared its independence from Spain.

March 25: Greece established its independence.

August 10: Missouri joins America as the 24th state.

175TH ANNIVERSARY (1846)

December 28: Iowa joined America as the 29th state.

160TH ANNIVERSARY (1861)

January 29: Kansas joined America as the 34th state.

145TH ANNIVERSARY (1876)

March 10: Alexander Graham Bell invents the telephone.☎

135TH ANNIVERSARY (1886)

May 8: What we know today as Coca-Cola was invented.

125TH ANNIVERSARY (1896)

January 4: Utah joined America as the 45th state.

120TH ANNIVERSARY (1901)

January 1: The Commonwealth of Australia was established.

December 10: The very first Nobel Prizes🏅 were awarded.

105TH ANNIVERSARY (1916)

August 4: The Virgin Islands became an American territory.

100TH ANNIVERSARY (1921)

August 25: The end of World War 1.

September 8: The first Miss America (Margaret Gorman) was crowned.👑

85TH ANNIVERSARY (1936)

January 29: The Baseball⚾ Hall of Fame was established.

September 7: Popeye’s father Poopdeck Pappy first appeared in the Thimble Theatre comic strip.

December 11: King Edward the VIII abdicated to marry Wallis Warfield Simpson.

80TH ANNIVERSARY (1941)

February 4: The United Service Organization was formed.

May 1: Citizen Kane debuted.

August 14: The Atlantic Charter was issued.

December 7: Infamous attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii that brought America into World War 2.

75TH ANNIVERSARY (1946)

July 5: The bikini debuted.

October 23: Very first meeting of the United Nations’ General Assembly.

November 12: The seriously dated and politically incorrect Disney movie Song of the South debuted, although ♫Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah♫ is still a great song.

70TH ANNIVERSARY (1951)

July 28: Disney’s version of Alice in Wonderland premiered.

65TH ANNIVERSARY (1956)

Anything that debuted this year, including My Fair Lady on Broadway March 15.

November 13: The US Supreme Court struck down segregation of public buses!

60TH ANNIVERSARY (1961)

March 1: Then US President John F. Kennedy created the Peace Corps.

April 12: Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space, making one complete orbit of Earth before returning.

55TH ANNIVERSARY (1966)

Anything that debuted, including the Adam West and Burt Ward version of Batman (January 12) and the original Star Trek September 8.

December 18: Animated version of Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas debuted. Has been on TV every year since.

50TH ANNIVERSARY (1971)

April 30: The first Lunar Rover vehicle was used on the moon (by Apollo 15 astronauts).

November 13: Mariner 9 space probe reached Mars.

November 24: Criminal D. B. Cooper disappeared and has yet to be found.

45TH ANNIVERSARY (1976)

April 1: Apple Computers was established, no joke.

40TH ANNIVERSARY (1981)

June 12: Raiders of the Lost Ark (Indiana Jones 1) debuted.

35TH ANNIVERSARY (1986)

August 1: Howard the Duck: The Movie premiered.

August 25: Voyager 2 space probe said goodbye to Saturn.

November 26: Star Trek 4-The Voyage Home premiered.

30TH ANNIVERSARY (1991)

April 30: Russia and the US established the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.

June 21: The Rocketeer movie debuted.

August 23: North American release of the Super NES video game system.

October 1: The first FOR DUMMIES book (DOS for Dummies) was published.

December 6: Star Trek 6-The Undiscovered Country premiered.

25TH ANNIVERSARY (1996)

September 29: North American release of the Nintendo 64 video game system.

20TH ANNIVERSARY (2001)

September 11: the cowardly terrorist attacks on US soil, including the World Trade Center and the crashing of United 93.

November 18: North American release of the Nintendo Game Cube console.

15TH ANNIVERSARY (2006)

November 19: North American release of the Nintendo Wii video game system.

10TH ANNIVERSARY (2011)

March 27: North American release of the Nintendo 3DS system.

JANUARY 1, 2020

Once again, as others pause to look back, The Free Choice E-zine prefers to look at the year ahead.

Regardless of what happens concerning Donald Trump’s pending Impeachment Trial, the United States is facing a major Presidential election in November, while the world has the Summer Olympics and the ongoing problems of terrorism and climate change.

Presumably the items on that list do not go hand in hand, but still…

Among other events in the days to come…
230TH ANNIVERSARY (1790)
July 16: Washington, DC was proposed as the capital of the United States. It became official October 16.
Notice how quickly something got done back then?

200TH ANNIVERSARY (1820)
March 15: Maine became the 23rd member of the United States.

170TH ANNIVERSARY (1850)
September 9: California became the 31st member of the United States.

155TH ANNIVERSARY (1865)
April 14/15: President Abraham Lincoln assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. He was shot in the evening and succumbed to his wounds after midnight, hence the date notation.
December 18: The 13th Amendment to the US Constitution, abolishing slavery, went into effect.

150TH ANNIVERSARY (1870)
January 15: Thomas Nast’s Donkey became the symbol for the Democratic Party.

130TH ANNIVERSARY (1890)
July 3: Idaho became the 43rd member of the United States.
July 10: Wyoming became the 44th member of the United States.

120TH ANNIVERSARY (1900)
January 29: Major League Baseball established the American League division.

110TH ANNIVERSARY (1910)
February 8: The Boy Scouts of America was established.

100TH ANNIVERSARY (1920)
EXACT DATES ARE UNCERTAIN FOR WHEN:
The Baby Ruth Candy Bar (named after Ruth Cleveland and not the Sultan of Swat) began.
The Good Humor Ice Cream Bar was first made.
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton was first published.
The three color-four way stop traffic light was created.
The first Jungle Gym was built.
Perdue Farms began.
Raggedy Andy’s debut.
Construction began on what would become the Holland Tunnel.
Main Street by Sinclair Lewis was first published.
Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting was first published.
And it was sometime in October when The Mysterious Affair At Styles, Agatha Christie’s first novel and the debut of Detective Hercule Poirot was published.
BUT WE DO KNOW...
January 1: Prohibition, via the Eighteenth Amendment, began in the United States.
January 1: The historic decade known as the Roaring 20’s began.
January 1: The AMC Theaters opened for business.
January 10: The League of Nations (forerunner to the United Nations) was founded.
January 20: The American Civil Liberties Union was established.

February 1: Canada established the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

February 24: Adolph Hitler officially came into power in Germany, founding the Nazi party and eventually starting World War 2.
March 26: This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald, his first novel, was published.
March 28: The Silent Screen version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde starring Lionel Barrymore debuted.
May 1: Rubbermaid was founded.
May 16: Joan of Arc received Sainthood.
May 17: KLM Airlines first took flight.
June: The first Band-Aid Brand Adhesive Bandage was invented.
August 12: Charles Ponzi was arrested by American authorities for what would become known as a “Ponzi” scheme to defraud people of their money.
August 26: American women officially gained the right to vote and hold office as the 19th Amendment became law.
September 17: The American Professional Football Association, the forerunner to the National Football League, was established.
September 25: Disabled American Veterans Organization founded.
October 7: Women became eligible for degrees from Oxford University.
October 22: The Scholastic Corporation founded.
November 2: KDKA of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania became the first radio station in America on the air.
November 16: Qantas Airlines officially founded.
November 21: “Bloody Sunday” in Irish history.
November 21: Silent screen version of The Last of the Mohicans debuted.
November 27: Douglas Fairbanks’ version of The Mark of Zorro debuted.
December 20: Hans Riegel of Bonn, Germany formed Haribo. The Gummy Bears came later.

80TH ANNIVERSARY (1940)
February 7: Walt Disney’s version of Pinocchio debuted.
May 10: Winston Churchill became Prime Minister of England.

75TH ANNIVERSARY (1945)
January 13: Bugs Bunny missed his first “left turn at Albuquerque” in Herr Meets Hare.
April 21: Yosemite Sam debuted in the Bugs Bunny cartoon Hare Trigger.

70TH ANNIVERSARY (1950)
March 1: Crusader Rabbit, the first direct to syndication cartoon series, debuted.
October 2: Charles Schulz’s Peanuts comic strip debuted.

2020 is also a Leap Year!

65TH ANNIVERSARY (1955)
April 15: Grand opening of the first McDonald’s.
May 9: Kermit the Frog debuted on Sam and Friends.

60TH ANNIVERSARY (1960)
April 1: TIROS 1, the first weather satellite, launched.
May 1: The start of the “U-2” incident.
September 30: The Flintstones, first animated series in prime time, debuted.

55TH ANNIVERSARY (1965)
February 15: Canada debuted the Maple Leaf Flag.
March 18: Alekski Leonov became the first human to “walk” in outer space.

50TH ANNIVERSARY (1970)
December 13: Santa Claus Is Coming To Town holiday special first aired.

40TH ANNIVERSARY (1980)
May 21: Star Wars-The Empire Strikes Back debuted.
July 25: Caddyshack 1 debuted.

35TH ANNIVERSARY (1985)
January 23: The original Thundercats series debuted in syndication.
March 17: The Luann comic strip debuted.

25TH ANNIVERSARY (1995)
At some point that year Doctor Sam Beckett took his first Quantum Leap, although the show actually started in 1989.

And of course, The Free Choice E-zine will be celebrating both our 2,300 AND 2,400th posts sometime this year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR: JANUARY 1, 2019

Can you believe another year is already upon us?

🌙Depending upon your beliefs, 2019 marks either the 25th anniversary of the moon being destroyed that led to the world of Thundarr the Barbarian or the 20th anniversary of the moon being violently launched from Earth orbit on September 13 to start Space: 1999.🌑

Then again, 2019 is also either the 20th anniversary of the Super Dimensional Space Fortress crashing to Earth that was the catalyst of the Macross anime as part of the overall Robotech series, or Phillip J. Frye getting cryogentically frozen on New Year’s Eve before being awakened to face Futurama.

On a more serious note the Euro, USB Drives, the BlackBerry, and Bluetooth all came into existence 20 years ago this year and there will be elections this fall, with Congressional seats being the highest office available. Despite past claims of this being a “minor” event, this year’s voting will be an important indicator of how America feels as the 2020 Presidential election approaches.

And to think, our biggest worry 20 years ago was what (if anything) the Y2K Bug 🐛would do.
Other events in the year ahead include...

525TH ANNIVERSARY (1494)
May 5: Christopher Columbus discovered what is now Jamaica during his second voyage.

190TH ANNIVERSARY (1829)
September 29: Scotland Yard was established.

175TH ANNIVERSARY (1844)
January 15: The University of Notre Dame was officially chartered.

165TH ANNIVERSARY (1854)
August 9: Henry David Thoreau's Walden was first published.

160TH ANNIVERSARY (1869)
November 24: Charles Darwin first published On the Origin of the Species.

150TH ANNIVERSARY (1869)
November 17: The Suez Canal officially opened.

115TH ANNIVERSARY (1904)
May 5: Cy Young pitched the first perfect game in baseball⚾ history: Boston Red Sox 3, Philadelphia Athletics 0.

95TH ANNIVERSARY (1924)
February 12: George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue premiered on Broadway.

90TH ANNIVERSARY (1929)
January 5: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit 🐰(voiced by Mickey Rooney) debuts in “Ozzie At The Circus”.
January 7: Debut of Buck Rogers in the comics.
January 17: Popeye the Sailor debuted in the Thimble Theater comic strip.

85TH ANNIVERSARY (1934)
August 11: Alcatraz was opened for business and started accepting prisoners.

80TH ANNIVERSARY (1939)
August 15: Debut of Ellery Queen’s first novel: The Roman Hat 🎩Mystery.
September 1: Germany under Adolph Hitler invaded Poland, thus starting World War 2.

75TH ANNIVERSARY (1944)
August 25: Allied Forces liberated Paris, France; a major point in ending the European portion of World War 2.

70TH ANNIVERSARY (1949)
February 28: Bob Clampett’s Beany and Cecil the Sea Sick Sea Serpent debuted on Time For Beany.
September 15: Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels first rode as The Lone Ranger and Tonto on TV.

65TH ANNIVERSARY (1954)
March 25: RCA made the first color TV set commercially available. 12 and a half inch screen for $1000!
July 5: Elvis Presley had his first recording session at Sun Records, making “That’s All Right Mama”.
July 21: The Geneva Accords divided Vietnam into two separate countries.
September 27: Steve Allen started hosting The Tonight Show.
October 27 saw the debut of Disneyland, the TV series, to help raise construction funds for the park. The original Mickey Mouse Club would debut the following year.
November 10: Then President Dwight D. Eisenhower dedicated the Iwo Jima Memorial in Arlington, Virginia.

60TH ANNIVERSARY (1959)
January 3: Alaska becomes the 49th member of the United States of America.
August 21: Hawaii becomes the 50th member of the United States of America.
September 12: Bonanza debuted as part of that year’s new fall TV season.
September 29: Rocky and Bullwinkle debuted.
We first entered The Twilight Zone on October 2 and asked “Where Is Everybody?”
December 1: Antarctica was established as a military free scientific preserve.

55TH ANNIVERSARY (1964)
Anything that debuted this year, like F-Troop and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea both did on September 14.
As of October 3, there’s no need to fear, Underdog is here!
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer 🦌shined for the first time December 6.

50TH ANNIVERSARY (1969)🌕
July 20: Apollo 11 landed on the moon! First moon walk next day, with Apollo 12 duplicating these feats before the end of the year.
Come and play! Sesame Street debuted November 10.
The first Internet set up was established on November 20 at the University of Southern California.

45TH ANNIVERSARY (1974)
Anything that debuted this year, like The Six Million Dollar Man January 18.
March 29: The Mariner 10 probe landed on Mercury.
April 8: Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves hit career home run #715, breaking Babe Ruth’s record, and he did it cleanly!⚾
April 13: Dungeons and Dragons first edition debuted.

40TH ANNIVERSARY (1979)
The first Papal visit to the White House (by Pope John Paul II) occurred October 6.
October 7 saw the premiere of Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

35TH ANNIVERSARY (1984)
April 16: Rose is Rose 🌹comic strip premiered.
June 1: Star Trek 3: The Search For Spock premiered.
That summer, the Soviet Union boycotted the Olympics in Los Angeles, California, USA.

30TH ANNIVERSARY (1989)
April 16: Scott Adams’ Dilbert started “taking care of business.”
June 23: Batman, starring Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson, directed by Tim Burton, premiered.

20TH ANNIVERSARY (1999)
March 20: Bertrand Piccard (Switzerland) and Brian Jones (Britain) completed the first around the world hot air balloon trip.
May 1: Spongebob Squarepants debuted.
May 19: Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace debuted.

15TH ANNIVERSARY (2004)
January 15: NASA’s Spirit Rover started exploring Mars.

10TH ANNIVERSARY (2009)
Then President Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize October 9.

And of course, The Free Choice E-zine will be celebrating its 2200 post sometime this year.

THE SUNDAY FUNNIES: JANUARY 1, 2017

Normally on a holiday weekend, The Free Choice E-zine gives the Sunday Funnies hostesses Autumn the Puppy and Waxy Dragon the weekend off as our esteemed Editor-In-Chief tries to entertain you.

However, since the holiday this weekend actually falls upon a Sunday, we shall simply say...

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2016: LOOKING AHEAD

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

IT'S JANUARY 1, 2016.

Hello, and welcome to the beginning of a brand new year!

The Commonwealth of Australia was formed on this day in 1901.
The Chinese government will now allow parents in their country to have up to 2 children, instead of one.
Meanwhile, Brunei (since 1984) and Samoa (1962) both celebrate their Independence today.

Besides the Summer Olympics and feeling melancholy about David Ortiz and Kobe Bryant ending their professional athletic careers, the 366 days of this Leap Year also includes...

POLITICALLY...
The citizens of New Zealand will be going to the polls in March 2016 to decide between keeping the country's current flag or adopting an alternative.
2016 is a Presidential Election year in the United States, with a slew of potential candidates still vying for the Republican nomination, while it looks like the Democrats have narrowed their preference down to either (alphabetically) Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders.

MEANWHILE, other anniversaries include the 140th ANNIVERSARY (in 1876) of Alexander Graham Bell creating the first working telephone (March 10)

125th ANNIVERSARY (1895)
Carnegie Hall opened (May 5)

85th ANNIVERSARY (1931)
Star Spangled Banner officially became United States' national anthem (March 3)

80th ANNIVERSARY (1936)
Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell first published (June 30)

75th ANNIVERSARIES (1941)
The USO was founded (February 4)
Citizen Kane debuted (May 1)

70th ANNIVERSARY (1946)
Walt Disney's Song of the South premiered (November 12)

65th ANNIVERSARY (1951)
Disney version of Alice In Wonderland was first released (July 27)

60th ANNIVERSARIES (1956)
My Fair Lady debuted on Broadway (March 15)
The US Supreme Court ended segregation on public buses (November 13)

55th ANNIVERSARIES (1951)
Yuri Gagarin first man in space, making one orbit of Earth before returning
The Dick Van Dyke Show debuted (October 3)

50th ANNIVERSARIES (1966)
Batman with Adam West and Burt Ward (January 12)
Dark Shadows (June 27)
Batman: The Movie, with West and Ward debuted (July 30)
American television officially went to full time color broadcasting (September 1)
Any other television program that debuted that fall, including Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, and The Monkees celebrate their major milestone
It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown first aired (October 27)
Animated version of Doctor Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas premiered (December 23)

45th ANNIVERSARIES (1971)
First Lunar Rover used (April 30)
Any television program that debuted that year

35th ANNIVERSARY (1981)
The Greatest American Hero (March 18)

30th ANNIVERSARIES (1986)
ALF (September 22) and any other television program that debuted that year

And of course, The Free Choice E-zine will achieve both our 1600 and 1700 post milestones this year, just based on the strength of our regular features: The Puzzle Corner and The Week In Review (news) on Saturdays, followed by comedy the next day with The Sunday Funnies.

So, here's hoping that 2016 is more peaceful, and less stressful and less violent than last year.