September 8

I found these moments in the history of this date interesting:

1900 6,000 killed when a hurricane & tidal wave destroys Galveston, Texas. While Katrina was certainly horrific, this was the grandaddy of them all.

1966 "That Girl" starring Marlo Thomas premiers on ABC-TV and yes there is still a website devoted to that show. Click here. That show featured guest appearances by several soon-to-be famous people including Penny Marshall, Dabney Coleman, and William Christopher (of M*A*S*H fame).

1974 President Gerald Ford pardons former President Richard Nixon of all federal crimes.

A classic trivia question: "Who was the only person to ever serve as both Vice President and President of the United States, but was never elected to either office?" That is why Ford was known as The Accidental President. And you thought it was because he kept falling down the stairs. If you don't remember him falling down the stairs, you're too young to be reading this blog. Other Trivia: At 93, he is the oldest living former president. That's the same age that Reagan was when he died. Ford was one of seven U.S. Presidents who legally changed his name. Any idea who the others were?

That concludes our history lesson for today.