Franz Seraphicus Grillparzer was born in Vienna, Austria back in 1791 to E.J. and Anna.  I could not find anything about him until 1807 when he entered the University of Vienna fulfilling his father’s wishes to become a lawyer.  he received his degree in 1811.  He worked as a private tutor until 1813.  He worked as a clerk at the Imperial and Royal Exchanger in Austria. However, his true love was the works of Pedro Calderon de la Barca.  He (Franz) wrote many dramas, he was considered a popular author ranking with Goethe and Schiller.  He was considered as the national poet of Austria.  He died in1872, he was 81.What you may not know about Franz is that not only was he the author of dramas, he also wrote the oration for Ludwig van Beethoven’s funeral.Your day is worthwhile when you make... 05/09/2020

Caleb Greenwood was born in Virginia back in 1783. I don’t have any information on him until 1810 when he took part in a fur trapping expedition with John Jacob Astor.  He trapped independently on the Arkansas River and the upper Missouri River.  He was also in good company like Jim Bridger when they crossed the Wind River Mountains.In 1825, he joined a group led by Jedediah Smith with the Hudson’s Bay Company. In 1844, he guided a group across the Sierra Nevada mountain range.  He returned the next year with two sons pioneering a new route bypassing the Truckee River Canyon. He died in 1873, he was 90.What you may not know about Caleb is that in 1846 on his return trip, well that is something you may have heard of the California Trail.  That’s right he was the person who founded that t... 05/07/2020

Pearl Grey was born in Ohio back in 1872 to Lewis and Alice.  Like me at an early age he was fascinated by history.  His father was abusive to Pearl, which caused him to frequently be engaged in brawls.  He did find comfort by finding a father substitute by the name of Muddy Miser. He attended the University of Pennsylvania on a baseball scholarship, graduating with a degree in dentistry in 1896. After graduation, he set up practice in New York City.  He moved to California in 1918.  Because of his father’s abuse he struggled with bouts of depression, anger and mood swings for the rest of his life.  His love was fishing and exploring taking copious notes about both. Pearl died of heart failure in 1939.  So, if you haven’t figured it out by now or haven’t heard of Pearl, what about if I ... 05/04/2020

William Robert Greer was born in Stewartstown, County Tyrone, Ireland back in 1909.  He emigrated to the United States in 1929, where he found work as a chauffeur to several families in the Boston and New York area.  Enlisting in the United States Navy during WWII, he was assigned to the presidential yacht, being discharged in 1944.He joined the United States Secret Service in 1945.  He worked his way up through the ranks where he was assigned to chauffeur several Presidents.  He retired from the Secret Service in 1966, due to a stomach ulcer, moving to Waynesville, North Carolina, he died in 1985, he was 75.While you may not know his name is will forever be written into the history books, for he was chauffeuring then President John, F. Kennedy’s presidential limousine as it made its wa... 04/28/2020

Robert K. Greenleaf was born in Terre Haute, Indiana back in 1904.  He attended Rose Polytechnic school before transferring to Carleton College in Minnesota.  He graduated with a math degree.  He worked for AT&T for 38 years, taking his retirement in 1964. During his time at AT&T he participated in its first management training program.  He was the originator of the world’s first corporate assessment center for the promotion of the first females and Blacks to non-menial positions.  After his retirement in 1964 he founded the Center for Applied Ethics.  For the next 25 years he served as a consultant to MIT, the American Foundation for Management Research and the Lily Endowment. He died in 1990.What you may not know about Robert is that he was the founder of the modern Servant Leadership... 04/25/2020

Nathan Green Gordon was born in Morrilton, Arkansas back in 1916 to Edward and Ada.  He attended the public-school system in Morrilton until the 10th grade.  He graduated from the Columbia Military Academy in Columbia, Tennessee.  He continued his education at the Arkansas Polytechnic College in Russellville, before graduating from the University of Arkansas with a Juris doctor degree in 1939.He joined the Navy in 1941, earning his wings before he was stationed in the Southwest Pacific area based in Milne Bay, New Guinea.  On February 15, 1944, he rescued 15 survivors of the United States Army Air Forces.  He was released from duty in 1945.  He returned to Arkansas, elected as the 10th Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas from 1947 to 1967. He died in 2008, he was 92.What you may not know ab... 04/22/2020

Susan Catherine Jessop was born in Great Britain.  She studied electronics at the Newcastle Polytechnic graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree.  She joined the Women’s Royal Air Force in 1985, promoted to flying officer in 1986.  In 1991, she was deployed to Iraq as a part of the Gulf War.Sorry but I do not know who her husband is, but what I can tell you is that she is still serving in the British Armed Forces. What you may not know about Susan Catherine Gray is that she is currently air marshal, which makes her Britain’s first ever female three-star officer.  She is the most senior female officer in the British Armed Forces.  Since 2019, she has served as the Director General of the Defense Safety Authority.  Thirty-five years and counting.  Now, that is what I call service to y... 04/19/2020

Archibald Gracie was born in Dumfries, Scotland back in 1755.  At just 11 years of age he moved to Liverpool working as a clerk for a London shipping firm.  He was a thrifty young man as he used part of his earnings to purchase a part interest in a merchant ship.  In 1784, he moved to America.  Part of the cargo was goods that were from his own profit. After his arrival, he moved to Petersburg, Virginia where he engaged in the export of tobacco to Great Britain.  He moved again to New York City where he was a business partner of Alexander Hamilton.  He became active in the banking and insurance industries.   He was an incorporator of the Eagle Fire Insurance Company, vice president of the New York Insurance Company and a director of the United States Bank and the Bank of America.  He di... 04/09/2020

Malvin Russell Goode was born in White Plains, Virginia back in 1908.  He graduated from the public school in Homestead, Pennsylvania before continuing his education at the University of Pittsburgh in 1931.  He worked in the steel mills for 12 years staring when he was in high school and after five years of graduating from the University of Pittsburgh.In 1936, he was appointed to ta position in the Juvenile Court as a boys work director at the Centre Avenue YMCA.   He also worked at the Pittsburgh Housing Authority for six years.  In 1948, he joined the Pittsburg Courier for 14 years.  In 1949, he also began a career as a radio broadcaster with KQV radio.  In 1962, you could find him working for ABC News covering the United Nations (UN).  His first assignment was covering the Cuban Miss... 04/05/2020

Giovanni di Pletro di Bernardone was born in the Holy Roman Empire back in 1181 or 1182, the time frame is really not known to Pietro and Pica. He parents were wealthy and he lived the high-spirited life typical of a wealthy young man.  In 1202, he joined a military expedition, where he was taken as a prisoner at Collestrada.When he was released he made a pilgrimage to Rome, where he joined the poor in begging at St. Peter’s Basilica.  In his travels, he had a mystical vision of Jesus Christ in the chapel of San Damiano.  In 1208, he devoted himself to a life of poverty.  In 1209, he composed a simple rule, “To follow the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ and to walk in his footsteps”.   While there is much more to write about, he died in 1226, he was just 44.What you may not know abou... 03/24/2020

Elvira Gibson was born in Winchendon, Massachusetts back in 1821.  I don’t have any information as to her childhood, but what I do have I believe you will enjoy.  She worked as a teacher in Rindge, New Hampshire.  She was noted for her writings and lecturing on abolition among other issues.She married the Rev. John Hobart in 1861.  She became a chaplain in the 8th. Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment of Heavy Artillery.  She had difficulty getting paid for her work because the Secretary of War Edwin Stanton refused to recognize her because she was a woman.  She was finally able to get paid in 1876.  She was posthumously given the rank of Captain in the Chaplains Corps of the U.S. Army in 2002.What you may not know about Elvira is that she was the first woman to serve as a military cha... 03/18/2020

Abraham Pineo Gesner was born back in 1797 in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia, Canada.  I don’t have a lot of information about his early childhood. He pursued a career at sea twice shipwrecked by his early twenties he returned to the family farm near Kentville.  In 1824, he moved to London, England to study medicine at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital.He returned to Nova Scotia as a practicing physician.  He also had a passion for geology.  In 1838, he was appointed Provincial Geologist for New Brunswick.  In 1842, he discovered the first great fossil deposits of the future Miguasha National Park.  That same year he started the Gesner’s Museum of Natural History, in Saint John, New Brunswick, it was the first public museum in Canada.What you may not know about Abraham is that he was also an inventor... 03/10/2020

Kaiho Tuomas Albin Gerdt was born in Heivavesi, Finland back in 1922.  I don’t have any data as to his early childhood, not until WWII.  He served with the Finland Army as a junior runner officer in the infantry regiment 7.  During the war, he was involved in several battles.  He was sent to the Reserve Officer School in Niinisalo after lying in a hospital for four months.He was discharged in November of 1944.  After the war, he worked as the office manager of Oy Kaukas Ab and Kymmene Oy in Lappeenranta until 1987.What you may not know about Kaiho is that number one, he is still alive, number two he is the last living Knight of the Mannerheim Cross, it is the most distinguished Finnish military honor.  He last attended the Celebration as the only knight of the Mannerheim Cross in 2011.Y... 03/06/2020

Antoine Marc Gaudin was born in Smyrna, Turkey back in 1900.  His father was a railroad general manager so the family moved quite frequently.  By the time he finished school he was fluent in English, Greek, and French.  He attended universities in Paris and Aix-en-Province receiving his bachelor’s degree in engineering.In 1926, he became an American citizen and taught at the University of Utah, while working with the U.S. Bureau of Mines. In 1939, he assumed a professorship at MIT, teaching there for over 25 years.  He retired in 1966 and died in Boston, Massachusetts in 1974.What you may not know about Antoine is that during WWII, he secretly led an MIT team extracting uranium from low-grade ore for the Manhattan Project, for the development of the atomic bomb.Your day is worthwhile wh... 02/29/2020

Charles Bare Gatewood was born in Woodstock, Virginia back in 1853. He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point graduating in 1877, as a Second Lieutenant. He received orders to report to the 6th Cavalry in the Southwest at Fort Wingate, New Mexico. He led Apache’s and Navajo Scouts throughout the Southwestern United States.After just one year he was placed in command of the Apache scouts from the White Mountain Apache Reservation then an aide-de-camp to General Nelson Miles. In 1890, he was assigned to the 6th Cavalry, H Troop ordered to South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Agency. He was not engaged in the final campaign at Wounded Knee due to rheumatism in both shoulders. By 1891, he had recovered enough rejoining the 6th Cavalry at Fort McKinney, Wyoming and was involved in th... 02/27/2020

Margaret Kemble was born in New Brunswick, Province of New Jersey back in 1734 to Peter and Gertrude. I could not find out much about her early life on her father’s 1,200-acre plantation, but I can tell you she married Thomas in 1758. Together they had eleven children. Her brother Stephen was a Lieutenant-Colonel in the British Army during the American Revolution.She died in England in 1824, she was 89-90. Now here is the rest of the story.While it cannot be proven it is felt by many historians she may have been responsible in causing the first shots to be fired in the American Revolution at the Battle of Lexington and Concord. She had access to the British Army’s plan to seize Samuel Adams and John Hancock. The informant passed on the data to Dr. Joseph Warren, who dispatched Paul Reve... 02/14/2020

Harry Katsuharu Fukuhara was born in Seattle, Washington back in 1920. His father died in 1933, so his mother moved back to Japan where he graduated from high school. After graduation, he returned to the United States. After the outbreak of WWII, he enlisted in the Gila River internment camp in 1942.He served in the 33rd Infantry Division, being involved in several campaigns as a linguist. Following the war, he returned to the United States before being assigned to the US Army’s occupation and reconstruction of Japan. He ended his career in uniform in 1971 as the military governor of the Yaeyama Island Group in the Ryukyu Islands. Some of his military decorations include the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star. He died in Honolulu, Hawaii in 2015 he was 95.What you may not know about Ha... 02/04/2020

Jeremy Joseph Fry was born in Bristol, England back in 1924. He was educated at Gordonstoun. He joined the Royal Air Force as a pilot during WWII. After the war, he became a product designer with Frenchay Products Ltd from 1954-57. In 1957, he founded Rotork Engineering Company. He died in 2005 in Tamil Nadu, India.What you may not know about Jeremy is he was also an inventor of sorts. Some of his inventions includes the Sea Truck (a flat boat ferry capable of carrying one car at high speed), a four-wheel-drive wheelchair (that’s a first for me, never knew they were made). He was mentioned in a book by Tony Richardson Long Distance Runner (London, 1993).Your day is worthwhile when you make someone smile, so give the free gift of a smile today 02/01/2020

Forest Dewey Dodrill was born in Webster Springs, West Virginia back in 1902. He earned his bachelor’s degree from West Virginia University in 1925. After graduation, he went to the Harvard Medical School, graduating in 1930. He did his residency at the Harper Hospital in Detroit where he became a staff surgeon.He continued his education at the University of Michigan receiving a Master of Surgery Degree in 1942. However, what he is most noted for was something that he did on July 3, 1952. On that day, he operated on Henry Opitek, it was the first successful open-heart surgery, using a machine developed by hi and researchers at General Motors. That machine the Dodrill-GMR was the first operational mechanical heart used by performing open heart surgery.Your day is worthwhile when you make... 01/19/2020

John Ambrose Fleming was born in Lancaster, England back in 1849. He was educated at the Lancaster Royal Grammar School, then continued his studies at the University College School in London. He entered St. John’s College, Cambridge in 1877 receiving his BA with honors in 1881. After graduation, he worked at the University College London where he was the first professor of electrical engineering.He retired from University College, London in 1927, he was 77. He died in Sidmouth, Devon, England in 1945, he was 95.What you may not know about Sir John Ambrose Fleming is that he invented the first vacuum tube, designed the first large radio transmitter, which was used to make the first transatlantic radio transmission in 1901. He also established the right-hand rule used in physics. He also ... 01/06/2020