April 29 History International Day of the Dance

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not—April 29, 2015 Trust your Hump Day is off to a great start and you are rattled by the difficulties inherent in waiting to the last moment in picking out the appropriate Mothers’ Day gift. As always, I  hope you enjoy the holidays and observances, factoids of interest, music videos of Kiss on My List and Hair and a relevant quote by Voltaire, having enjoyed a large plate of shrimp scampi followed by a night of dancing, blessed  with a positive attitude even though you know you will have to wade through tons of spam in your inbox, and secure in the knowledge that if you want to find a gift for any memorable event like Mothers’ Day, birthdays, weddings, or anniversaries, you know that the Alaskanpoet can provide you with a unique customized poem at a great price tailored to the event and the recipient. You need only contact me for details.
       1. International Dance Day—celebrated on this day since 1982 and created by the International Council for Dance to educate the general public to this unique human form of art.
       2. Day of Remembrance for All Victims of Chemical Warfare (International)—commemorating the victims of chemical weapons from the horror of liquid fire in antiquity to mustard and chlorine gas in World War I to the possible use of chemical weapons today by ISIS; April 29 was chosen as that was the day that Chemical Weapons Convention was signed which today has be signed by all but five nations one of which should not surprise you--North Korea.
       3. 1981 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1981 on a three week run Kiss on My List by Daryl Hall and John Oates, following in the footsteps of another hit by Blondie—Rapture. Hall and Oates were a dynamic duo that achieved great fame in the 70’s and 80’s with the fusion of rock and roll and rhythm and blues. Here is a link to a music video of Hall and Oats singing Kiss on My List: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHXvosmjaOI
       4. National Shrimp Scampi Day—celebrating another one of this omnivore’s favorite dishes. In honor the day Red Lobster is offering ten shrimp scampi at $2.99 to be added to any entrée.
       5. You Don’t Need a Horse to Be a Duke—commemorating the birthday on this day in 1899 of one of the most influential jazz musicians of all times with over 1,000 compositions which he called not jazz but American Music—Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington.  
On this day in
       a. 1882 the Electromote, the forerunner to the trolleybus, was tested in Berlin by Ernst Werner von Siemens.
       b. 1910 the British Parliament passed the People’s Budget, the first budget in British history with the goal of redistributing the wealth of the creators of jobs to those less fortunate—coincidence that since that time the sun set more and more on the English Empire.
       c. 1953 ABC affiliate KECA in Los Angeles broadcasted the first 3D television Space Patrol.
       d. 1967 after refusing induction into the Army on religious grounds, Mohamed Ali, formerly known as Cassius Clay was stripped of his heavy weight championship title.
       e. 1968 the controversial musical Hair with nudity, drugs and an antiwar message  opened at the Biltmore Theatre in New York City. Here is a link to the song Hair from the musical Hair:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dyl0j3WU6Y
Reflections on dance on this International Dance Day: “Let us read, and let us dance; these two amusements will never do any harm to the world.” Voltaire, noted 18^th Century French Enlightment author, philosopher and historian noted for his attacks on the Catholic Church, advocacy of freedom of religion and expression and separation of Church and State. I agree with him on dance but to some it extent reading depends on what you are reading, i.e. Al Qaeda tracts on how to make IEDs.
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© April 29 Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet
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