Finding Nemo

What species of fish is Nemo in the Disney movie “Finding Nemo” ?

Not Hey Jules, But “Hey Jude”

“Hey Jude” was one of the first releases from the band’s own Apple label, in 1968 and continues to be included in Billboard’s “Greatest Songs of All Time” lists. Although credited to both McCartner and Lennon, Paul McCartney essentially wrote the lyrics as a sort of letter to John Lennon’s son, Julian, born with his first wife Cynthia.

In the summer of 1968, John Lennon started his relationship with Yoko Ono and left the marital home he shared with Cynthia, leaving Julian behind as well.

According to Sir McCartney, as a friend of the family, on the hour-long drive to visit Cynthia and Julian to try and comfort them and cheer them up, he started singing ‘Hey Jules – don’t make it bad, take a sad song, and make it better…’ It was a message of hope for Julian telling him that even if it sounds like a sad song today, it will get better, and he will be OK.  That’s what good family friends do!

Sir McCartney ultimately decided to change the name to “Jude” because he liked the name Jud, one of the characters in the musical Oklahoma! The rest, as they say, is history.

Robin Williams

“I’m sorry, if you were right, I’d agree with you.”

Leo, the Lion

The fifth sign of the zodiac is named Leo (♌︎), corresponding to the celestial constellation Leo.  The constellation is associated with the Nemean lion, a monster in Greek mythology that lived at Nemea that was ultimately killed by Hercules.

Thanksgiving

In 1789, President George Washington called for an official “day of public thanksgiving and prayer.” Although Congress agreed with his suggestion, no official annual holiday was enacted. However, on October 3, 1863, almost 75 years later, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation to express gratitude for the important Union Army’s victory at Gettysburg, stating that the country will celebrate an official Thanksgiving holiday on November 26, 1863 and thereafter the fourth Thursday of every November will be considered an official U.S. holiday. What most people don’t know is that while the proclamation was written by then Secretary of State William Seward, most of the credit for the Thanksgiving Proclamation should probably go to a woman named Sarah Josepha Hale.

Hale, the author of the children’s poem “Mary Had a Little Lamb” (originally “Mary’s Lamb”) written in 1830, was a well-respected writer, founder of the American Ladies Magazine, which promoted women’s issues. Among the many accomplishments during her lifetime, in 1837 she became the editor in chief of Godey’s Lady Book and by the time the Civil War had began, it was one of the most influential periodicals in the nation. She persistently argued and lobbied for a national holiday in November, believing it might help heal the wounds of the Civil War.
Born in New Hampshire, she had regularly celebrated a thanksgiving holiday and had published “Northwood: A Tale of New England” in 1827 in which there was an entire chapter devoted to the Thanksgiving tradition which had already become popular in many parts of the United States.

The fourth Thursday of November remained the annual day of Thanksgiving from Lincoln’s proclamation in 1863 until 1939, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt, hoping to boost an ailing economy at the end of the depression, moved the holiday to the third Thursday to give merchants and consumers an extra week to shop between Thanksgiving and Christmas. But Congress wouldn’t have it and in 1941, in deference to Congressional wishes, agreed to restore and permanently establish the official Thanksgiving holiday on the fourth Thursday of November.

Anne Frank

“I lie in bed at night, after ending my prayers with the words ‘Ich danke dir für all das Gute und Liebe und Schöne.’ (Thank you, God, for all that is good and dear and beautiful.)”

MTV Music Television

MTV debuted just after midnight on August 1, 1981, with the broadcast of “Video Killed the Radio Star” by the Buggles.

Sir Winston Churchill

“I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter.”