102009: Water Cooler News
Water Cooler News – October 20/09
It’s time for another edition of the Water Cooler News! In this edition you will find the usual historical tidbits and birthdays for this date. You will also find a collection of off-beat news!
- Customer Accused of Taking Car On a One Thousand Mile Test Drive
- Motorist Racks Up 15 Violations in 11 Minutes
- Driver Ticketed For Using Two Phones And Steering With One Finger
Daily Mindbender Question
10 years ago people did this all the time, now we hardly ever do it. What is it?
Answer at end of post!
Off-Beat News
“Customer Accused of Taking Car On a One Thousand Mile Test Drive”
A Massachusetts man is in police custody in Wisconsin after he allegedly kidnapped a Honda car salesman during a test drive and drove the vehicle more than one thousand miles. Police arrested the 32-year-old suspect after he was caught speeding and found to be operating a motor vehicle without owner consent. Authorities say the episode started when the suspect and the car salesman went for a test drive and he refused to return to the car dealership. The salesman managed to jump out of the car when it slowed down at a tollbooth near the Massachusetts state line.
“Motorist Racks Up 15 Violations in 11 Minutes”
An Italian motorist driving through Switzerland apparently doesn’t mind getting tickets as police say he received 15 of them in just 11 minutes. Authorities say the man’s first violation was driving his jeep past an unmarked patrol car at 100 miles per hour. He then proceeded to speed through a construction zone, a stop sign and commit numerous other violations. When the driver was finally caught 11 minutes later, he’d racked up a total of 15 traffic violations. Police confiscated his license and a judge ordered him tested for medications and illegal drugs.
“Driver Ticketed For Using Two Phones And Steering With One Finger”
If using a cell phone while behind the wheel is dangerous, how risky is it when a motorist is caught using two phones while driving? Police in Australia pulled a driver over for using two cell phones and were shocked when he told them it was okay because he had one finger on the wheel at all times. The motorist told the officer he was driving with one finger because he needed to transfer info from one phone to the other. The man was driving through a tunnel at the time of the incident.
Historical Notes
Today is…
Miss American Rose Day
The Six Million Dollar Man TV Show Premiered – 1973
Notable Birthdays…
William Christopher (“MASH”) is 77
Tom Petty, 59, musician / singer
Born on this date…also known as the late…
Bela Lugosi–1882-1956/horror movie legend
Earl Hindman–1942-2003/actor, Wilson on TV’s Home Improvement
Jerry Orbach–1935-2004/actor, TV’s Law and Order
Music History
1999 – John Mellencamp played a surprise gig at the 350-person capacity Mercury Lounge in New York.
1978 – The Police gave their first U.S. performance, at CBGB’s in New York City.
1977 – Three days after the release of Lynard Skynyrd’s Street Survivors album — whose cover depicts the band standing amid flames — vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and backup singer Cassie Gaines were killed when their rented single engine plane crashed in the swamps of Gillsburg, Mississippi, en route to Baton Rouge.
1976 – The Led Zeppelin film The Song Remains the Same, a mixture of concert footage and fantasy sequences, premiered in London.
1973 – The Rolling Stones had their first number one ballad, Angie – a song that sparked rumors that it had been written by Jagger for David Bowie’s then wife, Angela.
1961 – Bob Dylan’s self-titled debut album was released.
1960 – Elvis Presley’s movie GI Blues premiered.
General History
1803 – The Senate approved the Louisiana Purchase.
1818 – The U.S. and Great Britain established the boundary between the U.S. and Canada to be the 49th parallel.
1914 – For the first time, the U.S. required photographs be included with all new U.S. passports.
1928 – The Republican Party promised voters “a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage” during their election year campaign.
1967 – Bigfoot was allegedly filmed in California, just north of the little city of Eureka. According to Bob Gimlin and Roger Patterson, who took the pictures, the creature was seven feet tall, weighed over 350 pounds and was covered with shiny, black hair.
1978 – History’s tallest wedding cake was baked in Canada. It was 23 feet, seven inches high.
2003 – A 40-year-old man went over Niagara Falls without safety devices and survived. He was charged with illegally performing a stunt.
Daily Mindbender Answer
10 years ago people “developed film” all the time. Now we hardly ever do it.
Yours in Water Cooler News Fun!
Dr. Rus
