250 years ago today, a shot rang out in Lexington, Massachusetts, that’s often called the one “heard round the world.” It marked the start of a skirmish leading to the American Revolution. It gave needed time to the militia at nearby Concord to organize around the North Bridge where they turned back British troops under heavy rifle fire. British Officer John Pitcairn had ordered his redcoats forward toward Lexington to raid the colonists’ stash of cannon and gunpowder. Halting them was a rookie band of militiamen led by Captain John Parker, a veteran of the French and Indian War. READ what happened next… (1775)

Many years later, one of the participants recalled Parker’s words as being what is now engraved in stone at the site of the battle: “Stand your ground; don’t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here.”

According to Parker’s sworn deposition after the battle, the captain saw the English troops’ sudden approach and “immediately ordered our Militia to disperse, and not to fire.” But then, those troops “made their appearance and rushed furiously, fired upon, and killed eight of our Party without receiving any Provocation therefor from us (the Colonists).”

A British officer (probably Pitcairn, but accounts are uncertain, as it may also have been Lieutenant William Sutherland) then rode forward, waving his sword, and called out for the assembled militia to disperse, and may also have ordered them to “lay down your arms, you damned rebels!”

Captain Parker told his men instead to disperse and go home, but, because of the confusion, the yelling all around, and due to the raspiness of Parker’s tubercular voice, some did not hear him, some left very slowly, and none laid down their arms. Both Parker and Pitcairn ordered their men to hold fire, but a shot was fired from an unknown source.

Historian Mark Urban’s estimations are as followed.

“Pitcairn signaled his soldiers to move forward and disarm the locals. The sight…of the Americans lowering their weapons and moving off touched [a] nerve…among the British soldiers. For months the local people had abused and taunted them. Instead of a deliberate, orderly walk forward, many [British soldiers] started shouting and cheering, running towards the Americans with…bayonets [still fixed]. Facing this onslaught, one or two of those villagers opened fire…Without orders from Pitcairn, one of the formed British companies levelled its weapons and let fly a crashing volley.”

MORE Good News on this Day:

• The first Boston Marathon was run (1897)
• The Swiss chemist Dr. Albert Hofmann became the first person to intentionally ingest LSD, a lysergic acid derived from a fungus he discovered, which was used successfully for ten years in psychoanalysis (the date is commemorated as bicycle day for Albert’s psychedelic ride on his bike) (1943)
• Volkswagen of America was founded in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey to standardize its dealer and service network in the US (1955)
• Happy Birthday to Kate Hudson, the comedic actress and daughter of Goldie Hawn (1979)
• For the first time in history the top five artists on the US country chart were all female—Crystal Gayle, at No.1, followed by Dottie West, Debbie Boone, Emmylou Harris, and Tammy Wynette (1980)
• Sally Ride was announced as the first woman astronaut in the space program, and Guinon Bluford as the first black (1982)
• The Simpsons debuts for the first time as a short cartoon on the Tracey Ullman Show (1987)

Happy 38th birthday to the Tennis ace Maria Sharapova, the only Russian, and one of only 10 women to have won the Career Grand Slam. She managed to earn a No. 1 world ranking at age 18 and spend time as the highest-paid female athlete in the world due to her considerable winnings. She’s also an Olympic silver medalist.

In 1990, when Sharapova was three, the family moved to Sochi. Her father, Yuri, befriended Aleksandr Kafelnikov, whose son Yevgeny would go on to win two Grand Slam singles titles and become Russia’s first world No. 1 ranked tennis player. Aleksandr gave Sharapova her first tennis racquet in 1991 when she was four, whereupon she began practicing regularly with her father at a local park.

Her father took various low-paying jobs in Florida to fund Maria’s entry into a tennis clinic organized by Nick Bollettieri, which allowed her to get the training necessary to win the Eddie Herr International Junior Tennis Championships in the girls’ 16 division at the age of just 13.

in 2004, aged 17, at Wimbledon, she reached her first Grand Slam semifinal by defeating Ai Sugiyama. There, she defeated fifth seed and former champion Lindsay Davenport. In the final, Sharapova upset top seed and defending champion Serena Williams to win her first Grand Slam singles title. (1987)

4 years ago today, the first rotary flight was performed on the surface of another planet, as humanity continued its quest to become a multi-world species with the Ingenuity Mars helicopter. This little solar-powered small fry arrived on the world riding on the rover Perseverance’s underbelly, separating while the rover was descending.

It has completed 25 flights on Mars, gathering crucial data on the air density, wind speeds, and other aeronautical figures, while also scouting for Perseverance and sending back stellar photographs of 33 feet above the Red Planet.

What good news the Perseverance success was during the height of the Delta-variant COVID wave, and in addition to it having a very successful year, the little helicopter also exceeded expectations for performance. Here on Earth, drones have become a keystone of modern reconnaissance, and having the information to design them to fly on Mars will be critical in future missions. WATCH a video montage of its footage… (2021)

On this day, 38 years ago, Gregory Robertson intentionally committed to a 200-mph free fall to save an unconscious skydiver. From 13,500 feet, he saw fellow skydiver, Debbie Williams collide in mid-air with a third parachutist knocking her unconscious. She was free-falling to her death at speeds greater than 100 miles per hour. He immediately dove toward Earth and rolled himself into a ball to gain the speed needed to reach her and then spread out to slow down and make contact. “With seconds to spare as they hurtled groundward, he opened her chute and then his own — thus saving them both,” according to the Jackson Sun. (1987)

45 years ago, R.E.M. played their first gig before 150 people at the 11:11 Koffee Club in Athens, Georgia. The show ended at 2 am when police closed it down due to their hometown venue being unlicensed.

A pioneering band that became known for their obscure lyrics and Michael Stipe’s distinctive vocals, R.E.M. was one of the first alternative rock bands. Three years later, the group released its critically acclaimed debut album, Murmur. The first single to become a mainstream hit was The One I Love (1987). Their No.1 biggest hit, which was played on every college radio station turntable in 1991, was Losing My Religion, which won 2 Grammys.

The group disbanded amicably in September 2011, with former members having continued with various musical projects, and several live and archival albums have been released. WATCH their award-winning music video… (1980)

Happy Birthday to Tim Curry, who turns 79 today. The British actor and singer is known for his work in theater, film, and television, but especially for his break-out role in the 1975 cult classic, The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Often portraying villainous roles or character parts, Curry was nominated for three Tony awards—for playing Mozart in Amadeus, and also for My Favorite Year and Spamalot. Also remembered for such movies as Clue and Home Alone 2, and recurring TV roles in Criminal Minds and Will & Grace, he suffered a stroke in 2012—but his Rocky Horror role as Dr. Frank-N-Furter lives on…

A Portland, Oregon theater has kept up its weekly screening tradition throughout the pandemic regardless of audience partici…pation. Clinton Street Theater has screened The Rocky Horror Picture Show every Saturday for 43 years—a streak that continued throughout this past year since March 15, 2020, except to an empty theater.

“I’m just a guy holding a torch for the city, for all the weirdos. It’s just kind of a silly thing… but it was still a sense of hope that things would eventually get back to normal,” said the owner, whose business stayed afloat thanks to donations, loans, and grants.

On April 3, however, Clinton Street reopened at 25% capacity to a sold-out crowd of 50 people in costume who longed to do ‘The Time Warp, again’. Pre-show games for “virgins” who haven’t seen the movie included recommendations to yell profane jokes and throw props. (1946)