This Weekend in History
February 17.
1996 Kasparov beats the IBM computer Deep Blue over six games of chess.
In first sign of artificial intelligence, computer pouts then sweeps chess pieces from board.
1988 US: Two former Beech-Nut Nutrition Corp. executives are found guilty of selling phony apple juice. ‘Potato juice is a delicious, healthy substitute,’ they insist.
1982 Method-acting pioneer Lee Strasberg dies. Possibly preparing
for a role as corpse.
1972 US actress Denise Richards born. Men glad.
1960 President Eisenhower approves CIA training of Cuban exiles to overthrow Castro government. Wacky Schemes Bill passed.
1959 US launches first weather station in space. Temperature in space reported to be ‘very cold’.
1955 Britain announces ability to make H-bombs/deadly cuisine.
1946 New Yorkers donate 2.5 million pounds of clothing for European relief. Europeans declare the clothing ‘in bad taste’ and send it back.
1938 John Logie Baird demonstrates a large-screen prototype colour TV. Tony Barber spotted in background of picture.
1931 Man attacks a painting by Rembrandt in Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum with an axe. Blames strange cake he ate in ‘coffee shop’.
1930 France’s Tardieu Cabinet overthrown by five votes. ‘This would never happen in a true democracy like the United States,’ Tardieu says.
1922 French reject baseball for 1924 Olympics. ‘Ce n’est pas un sport comme boulles,’ they say.
1919 Germany signs armistice, giving up territory to Poland. Fingers thought to be held behind back, crossed.
1912 UK aviator Graham Gilmour is killed when his Dragonfly monoplane breaks up in mid-air. Designers blame name: ‘We should have
called it the Eagle.’
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