May 27 in Pop Culture History

1199 – John (December 24, 1166 – October 19, 1216) became King of England. He’s the one who signed The Magna Carta, which was the first document to offer people individual rights.

1796 – The patent (#X0116) for a piano was issued to James Sylvanus McLean of New Jersey for “an improvement in piano fortes.”

1890 – Two U.S. patents (#428,750,#428,751) for the first jukebox were issued to Louis Glass and his business associate, William S. Arnold for a “coin actuated attachment for phonographs.”

1896 (Tornado) St. Louis and East St. Louis, Missouri.

1919 – Pyrex Glass was issued a patent (#1,304,623) – the inventors Eugene C. Sullivan and William C. Taylor for Corning Glass Works.

1930 – Masking Tape was patented (#1,760,820) by Richard G. Drew of St. Paul, Minnesota for his employer, 3M.

1931 – Auguste Piccard and Charles Knipfer took man’s first trip (in a pressurized cabin) into the stratosphere when they rode their balloon to an altitude of 51,800 feet.

1933 – The Century of Progress World’s Fair opened in Chicago.

1937 – The Golden Gate Bridge, connecting San Francisco with Marin County, California, opened. Today was “Pedestrian Day” – cars were allowed the following day.

1941 – The British navy sank the German battleship Bismarck in the North Atlantic near France, killing over 2,000 Germans.

1963 – Bob Dylan’s second album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, was released.

#1 Hit May 27, 1972 – June 2, 1972: The Chi-Lites – Oh Girl

1983 – Benton Fireworks Disaster, Tennessee

1986 – The first major role-playing video game, Dragon Quest, was released in Japan.

1987 – U2 played in Rome so loud that they set off earthquake alarms in 2 different neighborhoods.

1994- The Arsenio Hall Show came to an end on FOX

1994 – The National League and American League Baseball M.V.P.s were Jeff Bagwell and Frank Thomas, respectively. Jeff and Frank were both born on the exact same day: May 27, 1968.

#1 Hit May 27, 2017 – September 15, 2017: Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber – Despacito