Happy Chandler (1898–1991) was the 44th Governor of Kentucky (1935–1939), a member of the U.S. Senate, the Commissioner of Baseball, and the 49th Governor of Kentucky (1955–1959). In his first term as governor, he oversaw the repeal of the sales tax, replacing the lost revenue with new excise taxes and the state's first income tax, and helped improve the state's education and transportation systems. He resigned as governor so his successor could appoint him to the Senate. A fiscal conservative and disciple of Virginia's Harry F. Byrd, Chandler opposed parts of Roosevelt's New Deal and openly disagreed with the president's decision to prioritize European operations in World War II over the Pacific War. In 1945, he resigned his Senate seat to become the Commissioner of Baseball, succeeding Kenesaw Mountain Landis. He approved Jackie Robinson's contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers, initiating the integration of Major League Baseball.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Chandler
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1520:
Pope Leo X issued the papal bull Exsurge Domine to censure propositions from Martin Luther's Ninety-five Theses and threaten him with excommunication. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exsurge_Domine
1815:
The Duchess of Richmond held a ball in Brussels, Belgium, that was described as "the most famous ball in history". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchess_of_Richmond%27s_ball
1919:
After nearly 16 hours, the Vickers Vimy flown by John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown crash-landed in County Galway, Ireland, to complete the first non-stop transatlantic flight. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transatlantic_flight_of_Alcock_and_Brown
1978:
King Hussein of Jordan married American Lisa Halaby, who became known as Queen Noor of Jordan (pictured). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Noor_of_Jordan
2012:
Nik Wallenda became the first person to walk a tightrope stretched directly over Niagara Falls. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nik_Wallenda
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
coquina: 1. (geology) A soft form of limestone made of fragments of shells, sometimes used as a building or road paving material. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/coquina
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
I protect my right to be a Catholic by preserving your right to believe as a Jew, a Protestant, or non-believer, or as anything else you choose. We know that the price of seeking to force our beliefs on others is that they might some day force theirs on us. This freedom is the fundamental strength of our unique experiment in government. In the complex interplay of forces and considerations that go into the making of our laws and policies, its preservation must be a pervasive and dominant concern. --Mario Cuomo https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mario_Cuomo