John Kendrick was a Cape Cod sea captain who lived an adventure-filled life commanding whaling ships in peacetime and war ships during the American Revolution.
Bad Night at the Hacienda Motel
It was on this evening that Sam Cooke, the King of Soul, was shot dead in a seedy Los Angeles motel.
The Man Who Saved a Billion Lives
His ground-breaking development of a wheat strain that helped Pakistan and India double their wheat yield between 1965 and 1970.
The Flying Lawnmower Incident
A 40-pound airplane shaped like a lawnmower took off from the endzone and veered over the crowd.
Death at the Washington Monument
By seizing the Washington Monument he hoped to capture the world's attention.
The Blue Marble
The photograph is one of only a few that shows the planet fully illuminated.
First Recording
Edison stepped up to the machine and blurted out the first thing that popped into his head.
The Lost Patrol
The mysterious case has become one of the most celebrated legends of the Bermuda Triangle.
Smoke on the Water
This was the night that the historic Montreux Casino on the shore of Lake Geneva, Switzerland burned to the ground.
Times Beach
The federal government would spend $32 million to relocate the citizens, plus another $110 million on the subsequent cleanup.
The End of Escobar
Despite his attempt to portray himself as a Robin Hood character, Pablo Escobar's ruthlessness and greed eventually caught up with him.
Christine Jorgensen
People had been having sex change operations since at least the 1920s, but what made Jorgensen's case stand out was the use of hormone therapy in combination with the surgical procedures.
Hit by a Meteorite
Ann Elizabeth Hodges was taking a nap on this day when she was rudely awakened by a meteorite crashing through her roof.
Seal Befriends Lady on a Beach
A tourist gets up close and personal with an elephant seal.
The Legend of Kate Morgan's Ghost
For over 100 years, guests at San Diego's Hotel del Coronado have reported spooky encounters with the ghost of Kate Morgan.
Old Billy
The world's oldest horse died on this day.
Voice of Asteron
At 5:10 PM the nightly news report on England's Southern Television broadcast was interrupted by an audio hijacking.
The Plot to Burn New York
Southerner Jacob Thompson hatched a desperate plan to set the Big Apple ablaze.
Forry
He was perhaps the biggest force in science fiction fandom, and he spent his life promoting/elevating the genre as both an art form and a cultural movement.
Going Deep
Jacques Mayol channeled his inner dolphin to dive deeper than anyone had ever gone before.