Today in History - January 29th


  • 1845 - On this day in history, Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" was published for the first time in the "New York Evening Mirror." Poe was considered the inventor of the detective fiction genre and a master of the short story.
  • 1848 - Greenwich Mean Time was adopted by Scotland. 
  • 1850 - Today in history, Henry Clay presented a bill on slavery in the Senate that included the admission of California into the Union as a free state.
  • 1861 - In America, Kansas became the 34th state of the Union. 
  • 1916 - On this day in history, Paris was bombed by German zeppelins during WWI.
  • 1958 - Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward were married creating one of the great collaborations of the 20th century. 
  • 1979 - Today in history, President Carter officially welcomed Chinese Vice-Premier Deng Xiaoping to the White House.  
  • 1987 - "Physician's Weekly" stated that the smile on the face of Da Vinci's Mona Lisa was caused by a "facial paralysis resulting from a swollen nerve behind the ear." 
  • 1998 - On this day in history, a Woman's Clinic in Alabama was bombed and 1 person was killed.
  • 1999 - The Senate delivered subpoenas for Monica Lewinsky and two presidential advisers for videotaped testimony in the Clinton impeachment trial. 
  • 2002 - Today in history, in his State of the Union address, President George W. Bush stated that Iraq, Iran and North Korea were an 'axis of evil.'
  • 2011 - A painting by Titian of the Madonna and Child set a record at Sotheby's, selling for $16.9 million.
  • 2013 - On this day in history, Senator John Kerry was approved by the Senate to become the next U.S. Secretary of State.
  • 2013 - For the first time since launching Google Maps, Google extended its data coverage of North Korea, filling in previously blank areas on most of the country.

SCIENCE, DISCOVERIES, PATENTS - Today in History, January 29th

  • 1886 - The first successful petrol-driven motorcar, built by Karl Benz, was patented. 
  • 1924 - Today in history, Benjamin Taylor patented the ice-cream cone rolling machine. 
  • 1949 - "The Newport News" was commissioned as the first air-conditioned naval ship.

SPORTS - Today in History, January 29th

  • 1963 - The first members to the NFL's Hall of Fame were named in OH. 
  • 1995 - On this day in history, The San Francisco 49ers became the first team in The NFL to win five Super-Bowl titles.

MUSIC HISTORY - Today in History, January 29th

  • 1937 - Today in history, Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra recorded the legendary "Song of India." 
  • 1962 - Warner Bros. Records signed Peter, Paul & Mary.
  • 1969 - On this day in history, the "Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour" premiered on CBS. 
  • 1989 - Billy Joel sang the national anthem at Super Bowl XXIII.
  • 1996 - Today in history, Garth Brooks refused his American Music Award for Favorite Overall Artist. Brooks said that Hootie and the Blowfish had done more for music that year than he had and was more deserving of the Award.  
  • 1998 - Paul Simon's musical "The Capeman" premiered in New York.

FAMOUS BIRTHDAYS - January 29th

  • Thomas Paine 1737
  • William McKinley 1843
  • Germaine Greer 1939 
  • Katherine Ross 1942
  • Tom Selleck 1945
  • Oprah Winfrey 1954