306 years ago today, Maria Agnesei was born in Milan. She is the first woman in the Western World ever to be appointed as a professor of mathematics at a university. She is credited with writing the first book discussing both differential and integral calculus. Her name is remembered most often today through her mathematical curve called the Witch of Agnesi, defined from two diametrically opposite points of a circle. READ more about the prodigious maiden… (1718)
Maria was recognized early on as a child prodigy; she could speak both Italian and French at five years of age. By her eleventh birthday, she had also learned Greek, Hebrew, Spanish, German, and Latin, and was referred to as the “Seven-Tongued Orator.”
Agnesi suffered a mysterious illness at the age of twelve that was attributed to her excessive studying and reading, so she was prescribed vigorous dancing and horseback riding. This treatment did not work; she began to experience extreme convulsions, after which she was encouraged to pursue moderation.
By age fourteen, she was studying ballistics and geometry. When she was fifteen, her father began to regularly gather in his house a circle of the most learned men in Bologna, before whom she read and maintained a series of theses on the most abstruse philosophical questions.
The most valuable result of her labors was the Instituzioni analitiche ad uso della gioventù italiana, (Analytical Institutions for the Use of Italian Youth) which was published in Milan in 1748. The second volume of this treatise was lauded by European giants at the time, Empress Maria Theresa, who gifted the Italian a diamond ring, and Pope Benedict XIV who sent her a gold laurel and medal.
MORE Good News on this Date:
- A single vote in the United States Senate saved President Andrew Johnson from impeachment (1868)
- In Rome, Pope Benedict XV canonized Joan of Arc as a saint (1920)
- In Hollywood, California, the first Academy Awards were handed out (1929)
- Theodore Maiman operated the first optical laser, at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California (1960)
- Junko Tabei became the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest (1975)
- The Kuwaiti National Assembly passed a law 35–23 permitting women to vote and run for office, as long as they adhere to Islamic law (2005)
- U2’s Bono was guest editor for a day at UK’s newspaper, The Independent, and featured the AIDS issue on every page—calling it the Red Edition, it sold out within hours and raised money, half of all revenue generated, for the AIDS fight in Africa (2006)
38 years ago, When Doves Cry was released as a single by Prince, becoming Billboard’s Single of the Year, and was Prince’s first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single, staying there for five weeks. A worldwide hit, it was the top-selling single of 1984. It is certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and was also the last single released by a solo artist to receive a Platinum certification before the certification requirements were lowered in 1989. WATCH the music video that was banned at the time… (1984)
Taking out the dramatic lyrics and Prince’s striking voice, the music is really rather stark, lacking a bass guitar and the fullness of a real drum kit in place of a drum machine. There’s Prince’s guitar, but the only other significant part of the melody is the synthesizer.
58 years ago today, The Beach Boys released their iconic album Pet Sounds. Widely praised as one of the most influential records ever released, it was ranked No.2 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (behind Sgt. Pepper’s).
The composer, arranger, and producer, Brian Wilson, designed a ‘Wall of Sound’ with the goal of creating “the greatest rock album ever made”—a cohesive work with no filler tracks. With songs like Wouldn’t It Be Nice, God Only Knows, and Sloop John B, Pet Sounds was ranked No.1 on several lists of ‘greatest albums of all time’, in music magazines like Mojo.
5 months after the LP’s release, a leftover song Good Vibrations was released as a single and became a worldwide smash hit much-admired, like the album, for its ever-changing texture and multitude of sounds, instrumentation, and moods. Together with the LP, Wilson’s studio innovations heralded the beginning of psychedelic rock. WATCH a video on the making of Pet Sounds… (1966)
Happy Birthday to Pierce Brosnan who turns 71 today. Famous for playing James Bond in four films, the Irish immigrant came to the U.S. looking for acting work, which he found, and now says he is “proud to be an American.”
Last year Brosnan was sporting a white beard, speaking in a Texas drawl, and riding a horse while shooting the second season of AMC’s drama, The Son. After losing both his first wife and daughter to cancer, he has been happily remarried for almost a quarter century.
158 years ago today, Charles Hires introduced his root beer, a drink of sixteen herbs, berries, and roots, to the public.
After first tasting ‘root beer’, the traditional beverage dating back to the colonial era in America, while on his honeymoon, the Philadelphia pharmacist decided to make his own recipe. He began selling it in powder form to mix with water and eventually produced the soft drink. The Hires family sold the business in 1960, but other corporations still produce it, making it the longest continuously made soft drink in the United States. (1866)
And, 307 years ago today, the French playwright, novelist, and poet Voltaire was imprisoned in the Bastille for speaking out against political and religious repression. However, he used the opportunity to begin writing his first script, and after his release seven months later, he started producing successful plays, like Candide, which made him one of the most popular writers in Europe.
An advocate of freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and the separation of church and state, he became a forerunner to the American and French Revolutions. Famous Quotes Include:
“I disapprove of what you say, but will defend to the death your right to say it.”
“Judge a man by his questions, rather than by his answers.”
“Every man is guilty of all the good he did not do.”
“Think for yourselves and let others enjoy the privilege to do so, too.”
“Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.”
In all, Voltaire wrote more than 20,000 sharp-witted letters and more than 2,000 books and pamphlets, including non-fiction scientific works, having been heavily influenced by Sir Isaac Newton while living in London in exile. 13 years after his death at age 83, when he was denied a Christian burial in his beloved Paris for his lifelong criticism of Church authorities, his remains were brought back to Paris. He was enshrined in the Panthéon by the National Assembly of France, which regarded him as a forefather for the newly successful French Revolution. It is estimated that a million people attended the funeral procession, which stretched throughout the streets of Paris. (1717)
And 105 years ago today, Liberace was born in West Allis, Wisconsin.
A child prodigy of Italian and Polish parents, the classical pianist and singer entertained audiences for four decades marked by his flamboyant costumes on stage, film, screen, and album covers.
At the height of his fame, from the 1950s to the 1970s, Liberace was the highest-paid entertainer in the world, with established concert residencies in Las Vegas, and an international touring schedule. Liberace embraced a lifestyle that earned him the nickname “Mr. Showmanship”. WATCH a 3–part interview from 1986 that revealed his more private side, including home movies and concert footage. (1919)
Happy 69th Birthday to Debra Winger, the Oscar-winning actress who was born in Ohio to a Jewish meat packer. Her performances in three films—An Officer and a Gentleman, Terms of Endearment, and Shadowlands—earned her 3 Best Actress Academy Award nominations.
Over 20 years she also starred in Urban Cowboy, Legal Eagles, Cannery Row, Forget Paris, Sometimes In April, and Rachel Getting Married.
In 2010, Winger was co-executive producer of Gasland, the Academy Award-nominated documentary, and she currently is a series regular in the Netflix television series The Ranch—with Sam Elliott and Ashton Kutcher. Winger also penned a book based on her personal recollections, entitled: Undiscovered. WATCH a look back… (1955)
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