Hello.
There is no shortage of things to do and it seems Summer gets busier all the time. Whew. How about we slow things down a bit to start the day? Every Saturday morning we simply take a stroll down memory lane.
It’s a simple way to look back at events that happened on this day in history before we head out to make new history today. So, grab your favorite (cold!) sippin’ drink and let’s scroll!
Today is Saturday, July 18th, the 199th day of the year.
On this day:
In 1914, six United States Army planes helped form the Signal Corps aviation division.
In 1921, Babe Ruth achieved 139 home runs and became the all-time home run leader in Major League Baseball. Babe’s home run record stood for a very long time, until the great Hank Aaron came along.
In 1927, Detroit Tigers baseball player Ty Cobb recorded his four-thousandth career hit. He became the first player to reach the mark.
In 1936, the first Oscar Mayer Wienermobile was completed. The hotdog-shaped vehicle promotes the famous Oscar Mayer wiener.
In 1940, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was nominated for a third presidential term. He first took office in 1933 as America’s 32nd president. F-D-R eventually went on to serve four consecutive terms becoming the only president to serve more than two.
In 1969, a car driven by Senator Edward Kennedy plunged off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island near Martha’s Vineyard. The crash killed Kennedy’s passenger Mary Jo Kopechne.
In 1976, 14-year-old Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci earned a perfect score of ten on the uneven parallel bars in the Olympic Games. It was the first ten ever given in the event. She went on to win three gold medals, a silver and a bronze.
In 1984, 21 people were killed after a gunman opened fire at a McDonald’s fast food restaurant in San Ysidro, California. The suspect was later killed by police.
In 1988, a California appeals court upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss a case against Ozzy Osbourne and CBS Records. The case against the rocker stemmed from the 1984 death of a teenager who allegedly killed himself after listening to Osbourne’s “Suicide Solution.”
In 1989, “My Sister Sam” actress Rebecca Schaeffer was shot and killed at her home in Los Angeles by an obsessed fan. She was 21. The suspect was later sentenced to life in prison for the Schaeffer’s murder.
In 1990, prominent psychiatrist, Dr. Karl Menninger died on this date, just four days before his 97th birthday.
In 1994, Crayola announced their introduction of scented crayons.
In 1995, the Susan Smith murder trial began in South Carolina on this date. Smith was charged and later found guilty of drowning her two young sons.
In 1998, South African President Nelson Mandela celebrated his 80th birthday by marrying Graca Machel, widow of Mozambican President Samora Machel.
In 1999, investigators searching for the plane carrying John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife and sister-in-law, announced a change in the objective of the mission. Instead of “search and rescue,” the operation was re-organized as a “search and recovery” operation.
In 2003, authorities in Colorado charged Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant with sexual assault in connection to an incident that took place June 30th, 2003 at a resort hotel in Vail, Colorado. A 19-year-old woman claimed the NBA all-star sexually assaulted her in his hotel room. In his defense, Bryant issued a statement saying he made the mistake of adultery, but did not assault the woman.
In 2008, the highly-anticipated Batman sequel “The Dark Knight,” starring Christian Bale as Batman and the late Heath Ledger as the Joker, opened in theaters to record numbers. The movie brought in 66-point-four-million dollars in its first day out in theaters. By the end of the weekend, “The Dark Knight” shattered another box office record, taking in more than 155-million-dollars to become the highest grossing weekend opening for a film.
In 2010, the first Nelson Mandela International Day was observed on Mandela’s 92nd birthday.
In 2013, Nelson Mandela celebrated his 95th birthday in a South African hospital a month after he was admitted for a recurring lung infection.
In 2013, Netflix’s “House of Cards” received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series to become the first original series from a video streaming service to receive a major-category Emmy nod.
In 2013, the city of Detroit filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection, becoming the largest U.S. city to do so. The city reported about 18-billion dollars of debt.
In 2016, Melania Trump’s speech at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland drew comparisons to the speech First Lady Michelle Obama delivered at the Democratic National Convention eight years ago.
In 2016, the highest-ranking Baltimore police officer charged in the death of Freddie Gray was found not guilty on all charges. Lieutenant Brian Rice faced charges that included involuntary manslaughter after Gray died from injuries suffered while being transported in a police van.
In 2018, The European Union fined Google five-point-one-billion-dollars for abuse of power.
In 2019, the city of West Palm Beach in Florida used the children songs “Baby Shark” and “Raining Tacos” to keep homeless people from their beaches.
In 2023, Phoenix, Arizona broke a five decade heat record after 19 consecutive days of 110 degrees or higher and an overnight low of 97 degrees, the highest since 1989.
In 2024, actor Bob Newhart died at the age of 94. His credits include the film “Elf” and the TV shows “The Bob Newhart Show,” “Newhart,” and “The Big Bang Theory.”
That brings us here to this day.
Whatever plans you have for your own 7.18.2026 here’s hoping there are moments along the way to record on the pages of your own personal history books.
Thanks for stopping by!
