January 8 in Pop Culture History

1780 (Earthquake) Tabriz, Iran

1790 – George Washington gave the first ‘State of the Union’ message, urging the opening of the US Patent Office.

1815 – Johnny Horton’s Battle of New Orleans derives its melody from a fiddle tune called The 8th of January, the date on which the Battle was fought. Andrew Jackson won the “Battle of New Orleans”.

1835 – The United States’ official debt was $0.00.

1889 – Dr. Herman Hollerith received the 1st U.S. patent for a tabulating machine; technically, this was the first computer patent!

1918 – Mississippi was the 1st state to ratify the 18th amendment (prohibition)

1963 – Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa was exhibited in the United States for the first time at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

1964 – US President Lyndon Johnson declared ‘War on Poverty’

1966 – #1 Hit January 8, 1966 – February 4, 1966: The Beatles – We Can Work It Out

1977 – #1 Hit January 8, 1977 – January 14, 1977: Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr. – You Don’t Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)

1987 – Dow Jones closed above 2,000 for 1st time (2,002.25)

1996 – Jacques Cousteau’s Calypso was accidentally rammed by a barge and sank in Singapore Harbor. It was raised and is now a museum in France.

2002 – President George W. Bush signed the bi-partisan No Child Left Behind Act into law.

2001 – #1 Hit January 8, 2011 – January 28, 2011: Bruno Mars – Grenade