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Thursday, February 3, 2022

It's My Birthday, Once Again

And not just celebrated for one day, but throughout the entire year. It's my long-standing belief that celebrants should party on that long as this particular day (unfortunately) will only come once in a lifetime.

I'm part of the Baby Boomer generation which covers the age range between 58-77 years from 1945 to 1964. The term comes from the explosion of babies born during the post WW II baby boom when the number born during this time period was about 50% higher than average. Baby Boomers are now reaching the age of retirement which both Grenville, also a Baby Boomer, and myself have been enjoying for 20+ years.

I was born on a Thursday a.m. in 
II•III•MCMXLIX or 73 years ago in Arabic numerals! It wasn't a leap year, that was the year before (1948). My astrological sign is Aquarius, the water bearer; nice that there was a song about it too; The Age of Aquarius by The 5th Dimension remains a favorite. My Chinese zodiac sign is the Ox. My birthstone is the amethyst, and lucky for me as purple is my favorite color.

These events happened on my birthdate in various years

1864 - Maj. Gen. William Sherman begins the Meridian campaign through Mississippi
1869 - Booth theater opens in NYC at 23rd & 6th (Romeo & Juliet)
1918 - Twin Peaks Tunnel light rail/streetcar tunnel begins service in San Francisco, CA
1945 - Walt Disney releases The Three Caballeros
1945 - Yalta Conference agreed that Russia would enter WWII against Japan
1964 - Meet the Beatles LP goes Gold
1966 - Soviet Luna 9 is the first spacecraft to soft-land on the moon
1984 - Challenger 4,10th Space Shuttle Mission 4 is launched

While there were notable occurrences(and fun ones) worldwide in my birth year, none happened on my actual birthdate, but here's some major 1949 events:

Some Major Events
  • Communist forces gain power in China; nationalists flee to Taiwan
  • North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) established
  • Soviet Union detonates its first atomic bomb
  • Israel admitted to United Nations
  • Soviet Union lifts 11-month blockade against West Berlin
  • West Germany and East Germany formally established as nations
Business & Economy
Nearly 500,000 steel workers went on strike in 29 states shutting down 95 percent of the nation's steel mills. The issue was whether workers should contribute to a pension plan recommended by a Presidential fact-finding board. The strike coincided with a coal miners strike that year.

Science & Technology
U.S. Air Force’s Lucky Lady II, a Boeing B-50 Superfortress, became the first airplane to circle the world non-stop. Its 1949 journey, assisted by in-flight refueling, lasted 94 hours and 1 minute. 

Sports
In the World Series, the New York Yankees beat the Brooklyn Dodgers winning in five games for their second defeat of the Dodgers in three years

Arts & Entertainment
Here's what was happening in the movies, TV, on the radio, in books, and more:
  • Movies: The Third Man, All the King’s Men
  • Songs: So In Love, Riders in the Sky, Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Some Enchanted Evening
  • TV Shows: Texaco Star Theatre, Candid Camera, Colgate Theatre, Kukla Fran & Ollie
  • Books: The Man with the Golden Arm, Nelson Algren; The Jacaranda Tree, H.E. Bates; Guard of Honor, James Gould Cozzens; Love in a Cold Climate, Nancy Mitford; 1984, George Orwell; This I Remember, Eleanor Roosevelt
  • Rodgers and Hammerstein's production of South Pacific opened on Broadway
  • Death of a Salesman, a play by Arthur Miller won the Pulitzer Prize for drama
Everyday Life
  • Grocery stores: a loaf of bread cost 13 cents on average. Milk was 84 cents a gallon. A pound of bacon was 50 cents. A 13 ounce box of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes was 19 cents. A 10-1/2 ounce can of Campbell's Soup was 10 cents.
  • Average annual salary $2,950 to $3,600; minimum wage 40 cents per hour.
  • There were about 44,000 TVs in American households, compared to 44,000 in 1947, and that number swelled to 940,000 in 1949 and 20 million in 1953.
  • The fad of pyramid clubs began in California. The concept was that a dollar would get you in the door and 12 days later you were over $2,000 richer. The promise of easy money made these clubs hard to resist and they quickly spread across the U.S. and into Canada. Only a handful of people would make any profits from the fad; most will be organizers of their own pyramids. 
Popular 1949 Baby Names
Mary, Patricia, Barbara, Susan, Sandra, Linda, Carol, Kathleen, Margaret, Judith, Chirley
James, Robert, John William, Michael, Richard, David, Charles, Thomas, Donald, Joseph

Celebrated 1949 Birthday Babies
John Belushi, Jeff Bridges, Simon Callow, Keith Carradine, Patrick Duffy, Julian Fellowes, Victor Garber, Richard Gere, Billy Joel, Don Johnson, Lawrence Kasdan, Andy Kaufman, Jessica Lange, Nancy Meyers, Bill Nighy, Michael Richards, Sissy Spacek, Meryl Streep, Zoe Wanamaker, Sigourney Weaver

Couple of Fun Facts
Silly Putty® was introduced in a 1949 toy catalog and priced at $2, it outsold everything else. It was originally called Nutty Putty, and invented in 1943 by James Wright, an engineer working in a General Electric laboratory in New Haven, CT. When a rubber shortage threatened war production during WW II, the government had asked U.S. companies to invent a synthetic rubber with similar properties, but made with non-restricted ingredients. Wright found that combining boric acid and silicone oil produced a putty that could bounce when dropped, stretch farther then rubber, and had a high melting temperature, while amazing, it didn't contain properties needed to replace rubber. Unable to come up with an idea on how to use the putty, Wright sent samples to other scientists, but none found a use for it until Peter Hodgson, an advertising consultant, persuaded a toy seller to advertise it in a toy catalog. He later changed its name. Sales poured in after a 1950 article in The New Yorker magazine. It was considered a novelty toy for adults, before becoming a hit with children.

Gussie Moran
U.S. tennis player Gussie Moran, ranked No. 4, and playing at Wimbledon wore an outfit that featured a short skirt revealing, at certain angles, lace-trimmed panties. It was created by Cuthbert Tinling, a tennis player, fashion designer and sports writer. The outfit, a first at Wimbledon, caused photographers to lay down to capture the “racy” and “naughty” outfit. Moran was called Gorgeous Gussie in newspaper reports which reported the fringed panties were in evidence when Gussie races across the court or leaps for a high shot. The Committee of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club accused Moran of bringing “vulgarity and sin into tennis.” Tinling, who had served as an official Wimbledon host for 20 years, was asked to “take leave” of his position by the outraged tennis establishment. He wasn't invited back for 33 years. 
Thanks for reading this birthday post and also
for your well wishes, always MUCH appreciated.

We're on a road trip and Grenville told me it was for my birthday and Hearts Day. He said it was mere coincidence that there's a ham radio convention in Orlando, FL in between the two dates.

38 comments:

David M. Gascoigne, said...

Happy birthday, Beatrice.

Lee said...

And a very Happy Birthday to you, Beatrice. I hope you have/had a wonderful day...and that the wonderfulness continues throughout the year.

I'm a little older than you...so slow down, girl...or you'll catch up to me!

Take good care...enjoy. My best wishes go your way. :)

Anvilcloud said...

Well, Happy Birthday once again. Jonathan’s is tomorrow — again! It’s weird how that happens every year. Enjoy your trip.

MadSnapper said...

I cannot believe how quickly our birthdays are turning over . it shocks me. I did not know silly putty is older than me. a few weeks ago I heard a man on tv say he was 7 decades and starting the 8th and when I heard that I thought OMG I am only a couple of years away from the 8th decade... enjoy your birthday/ham radio trip

Vee said...

Happy Birthday 🎈 and Happy Travels. You were born in interesting times. 🗞

Bijoux said...

Happy happy birth year to you! It’s fun to read all the facts. I’m at the very tail end of the baby boomers. I’ve been very nostalgic lately and you’ve inspired me to post about it. Have a fun and safe road trip.

baili said...

i absolutely love love love your attitude about life and celebration dear Dorothy:)

heartfelt Happy birthday to you ,you were such an adorable baby i must say!

i had no idea what is this term of baby boomers few months ago but now i know and it was really nice to learn all that happened throughout the years :)
e
the player incident was intriguing .i am impressed with your general knowledge wow .
best wishes for your trip have safe joyous journey my amazingly wise friend ! hugs and blessings!

Anonymous said...

Happy happy birthday to you! I love how you put all this together on all the things that happened on this date. Very inspiring. I may have to do that in May when I turn 70! Have a wonderful celebratory day.

Red said...

Happy birthday. Enjoy your day. What a fun post. You give a good history lesson around your birthday.

Edna B said...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, MY FRIEND. Wow, so much history since you've been born! I never thought to look up my life that way. Hmmm, maybe an idea. Enjoy your trip, hugs, Edna B.

Jon said...

I hope you have a fantastic birthday and a memorable road trip. I agree that the celebration should be extended all year, rather than only on one day.
Your admirable research revealed so many interesting things. I enjoyed reading it.

BTW - I'm a Baby Boomer, too. And I was born on a Thursday morning at 8:00 a.m. December 13.....but I won't mention the year....

Barbara Rogers said...

Have a very happy birthday! My sister had the same birthday only in 1946. She died a few years ago, but every time I see this date I think Happy Birthday to Mary. Now I can also think of Happy Birthday to you. I really enjoyed all the trivia you researched! I think I'll do that for my 80th coming up in August this year!

Linda G. said...

Happy birthday, Dorothy! My birthday will be here in a few weeks. As you know Bob and I are baby boomers too. We are new to retirement, having retired in June last year.

Have an enjoyable trip. We will be headed south soon, but not as far south as you. I am looking forward to the warmer temperatures and hopefully no snow! It is snowing here in western PA, as I write this. Winter Storm Landon is supposed to dump 8-10 inches of that white stuff on our already 6-8 inches snow left over from a named storm that happened a couple storms ago. The piles along our driveway, where Bob plowed are still about 3 feet tall.

Marcia said...

Happy Birthday and happy travels.
We are in Buffalo helping out and awaiting new baby's arrival any day now.

William Kendall said...

Happy birthday!

Nil @ The Little House by the Lake said...

Happy birthday Beatrice! Have a wonderful day!

acorn hollow said...

Happy Birthday and safe travels! Love all the trivia! but lucky you you retired young so glad you are enjoying it.
Cathy

Pamela M. Steiner said...

Happy Happy Birthday to you!! How wonderful to be enjoying a nice trip for your birthday. I hope the weather is being kind to you and that you are having safe travels. Very interesting facts and statistics from your birth year. Mine is the next year...yes, Baby Boomers have lived through a very interesting span of time! I am very thankful to be a part of that great generation! I hope you are enjoying a blessed and happy day/evening!! Celebrate every day!!

My name is Erika. said...

Happy birthday Dorothy I hope your roadtrip celebration is lots of fun, and stay safe driving. But glad you're missing this snow! Hugs-Erika

L. D. said...

Happy, happy birthday to you. It was a very good year. My wife was also born in that year.

Carola Bartz said...

Happy birthday! How fun to read what happened on that day and in your year of birth. I hope this new year will be a good one for you.

Kathy said...

Happy birthday! What an interesting post about the year you were born. I'm not far behind you. Hope you had a wonderful day.

Rita said...

Happy, happy birthday travels! :)

diane b said...

Happy Birthday and celebrate as long as you like. Enjoy your road trip.

Bill said...

Happy Birthday and happy road trip. Have fun!

gigi-hawaii said...

Many interesting bits of information to savor on your birthday. "South Pacific" and "Death of a Salesman" are two of them. Happy Birthday! Enjoy your trip to Florida!

David said...

Beatrice, Wow! Putting this together was a bit of work! Very interesting though... I am not part of the Baby Boom period, but instead I belong to the "Silent Generation". In 1949 I had my 7th birthday and we lived at 1113 First Avenue in Jackson Michigan. We didn't have a TV yet and our home was heated with a coal furnace...not good for my asthma! Happy Birthday! Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Jeanie said...

What a fun post! I love birthdays that continue for days/weeks/months! And all the fun bits you included here are extra fun and make me smile big time. Have a wonderful trip -- we'll look forward to hearing all about it!

DeniseinVA said...

Weren't you just the sweetest little baby? I am so happy I was able to wish you A Very Happy Birthday last night. But once again, Happy Birthday! And a great post!

LL Cool Joe said...

We share our Birthday I forgot! I hope you had a lovely day. I'm going out for a meal with the family tonight.

Happy belated Birthday to you!

Doris said...

Happy Birthday! Have fun on your birthday/heart day/ham radio trip...how sweet of him =)

Lowcarb team member said...

Many Happy Birthday Wishes.
Enjoy your trip, safe travels.

All the best Jan

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Happy Belated Birthday Dorothy! Although since you tell us you are still celebrating, I can pretend these wishes are not *really* too late ))). I was already a big girl of 8 1/2 ... too old to be a Baby Boomer, too young (thankfully) to be a Depression baby. It's fun to look back at what was happening back then. And oh gosh, those prices. It was cool and rainy here in Fort Myers today, I hope everything is going well for you on your RoadTrip.

CrystalChick said...

Happy *belated* birthday, dear Dorothy!!!
Oooh, amethyst! So pretty, and purple is my favorite as well. Mine is Topaz, but also for November is Citrine. I like both.
Lots of interesting information here in your birthday post! Quite a few cool '49 b.d. club mates. I especially like Meryl Streep.
Hope you're enjoying your road trip and that the rest of your 73rd year's celebration will be as wonderful as possible.
~Mary xo

Rob K said...

Oh, Dorothy, Happy Belated Birthday!

Speaking boomer to boomer, I want to wish you all the best! Death of a Salesman, The Third Man, and Silly Putty--your birth year had its share of milestones.

Have a great time on your road trip!

nick said...

I'd like to think we've moved on from expecting tennis players to wear sexy and titillating garments, but I fear that's not the case. There was controversy over Sue Barker's minidress in 1976, Tatiana Golovin's red knickers in 2007 and Venus William's 'Tina Turner' inspired mini-dress in 2010. No doubt there will be more such provocative garments in due course.

Veronica Lee said...

Happy Belated Birthday, Dorothy.

I enjoyed reading all the facts.

I am a boomer too!

Have fun on your trip!

Brenda Kay Ledford said...

Happy Birthday. You've done an excellent job telling about the time and events of your birth.