Today is Friday, May 4, 2018, the 124th day of the year with 241 days remaining.
- Sunrise: 6:10am
- Sunset: 8:03pm
...giving us hours and minutes of daylight. 86% of the waning moon will be visible, setting at 9:43am.
Tides at the Golden Gate
- High: 2:23am/4:48pm
- Low: 9:14am/9:26pm
Special international celebrations today…
- Casinga Day - Namibia
- Crown Prince's Birthday - Tonga
- Kokumin-no-Kyujitsu / National Holiday "Greenery Day" - Japan
- National Youth Day - China
- Proclamation of Independence, Declaration of the Republic of Latvia - Latvia
- Remembrance Day for Martyrs & Disabled - Afghanistan
- Herdenkings Day (Remembrance Day) - Netherlands
It’s also…
- Bird Day
- International Space Day
- Intergalactic Star Wars Day (May the Fourth Be With You!)
- International Firefighters Day
- National Life Insurance Day
- Petite and Proud Day
- School Lunch Hero Day
- Tuba Day
- World Give Day
- National Orange Juice Day
- National Candied Orange Peel Day
- International Respect for Chickens Day
- International Sauvignon Blanc Day
- St. Florian's Day, patron of brewers and soap boilers
On this day in…
1471 - In England, the Yorkists defeated the Landcastrians at the battle of Tewkesbury in the War of the Roses.
1493 - Alexander VI divided non-Christian world between Spain and Portugal.
1626 - Dutch explorer Peter Minuit landed on Manhattan Island. Native Americans later sold the island (20,000 acres) for $24 in cloth and buttons.
1715 - A French manufacturer debuted the first folding umbrella.
1776 -Rhode Island declared its freedom from England two months before the Declaration of Independence was adopted.
1814 - Napoleon Bonaparte disembarked at Portoferraio on the island of Elba in the Mediterranean.
1863 - The Battle of Chancellorsville ended when the Union Army retreated.
1886 - A bomb exploded on the fourth day of a workers' strike in Chicago,IL. Eight people died in the violence during violence that day.
1886 - Chichester Bell and Charles S. Tainter patented the gramophone. It was the first practical phonograph.
1904 - The U.S. formally took control of the property for construction of the Panama Canal.
1905 - Belmont Park opened in suburban Long Island. It opened as the largest race track in the world.
1916 - Germany agreed to limit its submarine warfare after a demand fromU.S. President Wilson.
1942 - The Battle of the Coral Sea commenced as American and Japanese carriers launched their attacks at each other.
1942 - TheUnited States began food rationing.
1954 - The first intercollegiate court tennis match was played in theU.S. It was between Yale and Princeton.
1961 - Thirteen civil rights activists, dubbed "Freedom Riders," began a bus trip through the South.
1964 - "Another World" premiered on NBC-TV.
1970 - The Ohio National Guardsmen opened fire on students during an anti-Vietnam war protest at Kent State University. Four students were killed and nine others were wounded.
1979 - Margaret Thatcher became Britain's first woman prime minister.
1981 - The Federal Reserve Board raised its discount rate to 14%.
1987 - Live models were used for the first time in Playtex bra ads.
1987 - The First Bank of the United States was listed as a National Historic Landmark.
1994 - Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat signed a historic accord on Palestinian autonomy that granted self-rule in the Gaza Strip and Jericho.
2000 - The citizens of London elected their mayor for the first time.
2003 - Idaho Gem was born. He was the first member of the horse family to be cloned.
2010 - Pablo Picasso's "Nude, Green Leaves and Bust" sold for $106.5 million.
2012 - In Las Vegas, NV, Google received the first self-driving vehicle testing license.
Today’s birthday celebrants include (or included)...
- Horace Mann 1796 - Educator, father of public education in the U.S., author
- Joseph Whitaker 1820
- Thomas Huxley 1825
- John Hanning Speke 1827
- Howard DaSilva (Silverblatt) 1909 - Actor (“1776”, "The Lost Weekend", "The Great Gatsby")
- Heloise 1919
- Ed "Cass" Cassidy 1923 - Musician (New Jazz Trio, Taj Mahal, Spirit)
- Hosni Mubarak 1928 - Egyptian president
- Maynard Ferguson 1928 - Jazz trumpeter, bandleader
- Audrey Hepburn (Edda Kathleen Hepburn van Heemstra) 1929 - Actress ("Monte Carlo Baby", "Breakfast at Tiffany's")
- Roberta Peters 1930 - Opera singer
- Harlon Hill 1932 - Football player
- El Cordobés (Manuel Benítez Pérez) 1936 - Spanish bullfighter
- Dick Dale 1937 - Musician
- Ron Carter 1937 - Jazz bassist
- Tyrone Davis 1938
- George F. Will 1941 - Columnist ("Newsweek"), editor
- David LaFlamme 1941
- Nick Ashford 1942 - Singer, songwriter (Ashford and Simpson)
- Ronnie Bond 1943 - Musician (The Troggs)
- Paul Gleason 1944 - Actor
- Richard Jenkins 1947 - Actor ("The Visitor")
- Jackie Jackson 1951 - Singer (The Jackson Five,The Jacksons)
- Oleta Adams 1953 - Singer
- Julie Budd 1954
- Danny Brubeck 1955 - Drummer, Dave Brubeck's son
- Mick Mars 1955 - Musician (Motley Crue),Motley Crue Merchandise
- Pia Zadora 1954 - Actress ("Hairspray"), singer
- Randy Travis (Randy Bruce Traywick) 1959 - Country singer
- Mary McDonough 1961 - Actress ("The Waltons")
- Jay Aston 1961 - Musician (Bucks Fizz)
- Ana Gasteyer 1967 - Comedian ("Saturday Night Live")
- Dawn Staley 1970 - Basketball player
- Will Arnet 1970 - Actor ("Arrested Development")
- Chris Tomlin 1972 - Singer
- Mike Dirnt 1972 - Musician (Green Day)
- Kimora Lee Simmons 1975 - Television personality, fashion designer
- Jose Castellanos 1977 - Musician (Save Ferris)
- Lance Bass 1979 - Singer ('N Sync)
- Alexander Gould 1994 - Actor ("Weeds," "Finding Nemo")
