On 'On This Day'

Finding Information + Inspiration On The Daily

Most mornings (and some evenings), I start (or end) my day by checking in with history. I love finding out what happened “On This Day” years ago.

Mostly, I focus on birthdays, events, milestones, and “holidays.” Things that amuse, delight, entertain, and/or inspire me. At first glance, it may look like trivia, but for me, it’s become something much deeper: a daily meditation, a practice of remembrance, and a way of keeping company with our shared past.

My “On This Day” lists tend to skip the political and religious leaders who already loom large in textbooks. Instead, I tend to gravitate toward artists who broke the molds, LGBTQ pioneers, and pop culture wunderkinds who caught my attention and imagination because their story tugged at something in me.

These are the people and events that make me pause and think: Yes, you deserve a moment today.

Sometimes, it’s the birthday of a queer trailblazer who refused to be erased, or the passing of a musician whose voice carried a generation. Other times, it’s a fashion icon, a screenwriter, or a cult figure who didn’t quite fit the mainstream but left their mark anyway.

And yet other times it’s pure happenstance—a quirky invention, a first broadcast, a cultural debut—that makes me smile and remember how creativity has always found a way to slip into the world.

The act of looking back reminds me of the diversity of human history. It also keeps me humble. For every well-known name, there are countless others who shaped culture in subtler ways, often without recognition in their own lifetime. Honoring them, even briefly, feels like (re)lighting their candle and setting a small bouquet at their feet.

This ritual is also a wellspring of inspiration. Reading about how someone created, dared, or persevered puts some pep in my step as I start my own day. If these folks managed to make history in their own ways and time, why can’t I in mine?

Even the sad anniversaries—the lives cut short, the talents lost too soon—are reminders to take nothing for granted, to savor both fragility and resilience.

Over time, I’ve come to see this daily ritual less as research and more as prayer.

Every name I jot down, every event I spotlight, is a way of saying: I see you. You mattered. You still matter.

So, when I share “on this day” notes, it’s never just about fun facts. It’s about keeping our shared history alive, spotlighting voices I find intriguing, and letting their lives and legacies inspire me in the present.

It’s my way of staying rooted, curious, and grateful.

Keep calm and Manic Monday on!
Clint 🌈✌️

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ON THIS DAY = AUGUST 25

BIRTHDAYS

• 1724 = George Stubbs = English painter and academic

• 1786 = Ludwig I = Bavarian king

• 1845 = Ludwig II = Bavarian king 🌈 🤩

KING LUDWIG II OF BAVARIA BY UNKNOWN (C. 1870S) - PRINT

• 1910 = Dorothea Tanning = American painter, sculptor, and poet

• 1913 = Don DeFore = American actor

• 1913 = Walt Kelly = American illustrator and animator

• 1916 = Van Johnson = American actor 🤩

• 1917 = Mel Ferrer = American actor, director, and producer

• 1918 = Leonard Bernstein = American conductor and composer 🌈

• 1918 = Richard Greene = English actor

• 1921 = Monty Hall = Canadian tv personality and game show host

• 1930 = Graham Jarvis = Canadian actor

• 1930 = Sean Connery = Scottish actor and producer 🤩

• 1931 = Regis Philbin = American actor and tv host

• 1933 = Tom Skerritt = American actor

• 1938 = David Canary = American actor

• 1949 = Gene Simmons = Israeli-American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor

• 1949 = John Savage = American actor and producer

• 1954 = Elvis Costello = English singer-songwriter

• 1958 = Christian LeBlanc = American actor

• 1958 = Tim Burton = American filmmaker

• 1959 = Ian Falconer = American author and illustrator 🌈

• 1959 = Lane Smith = American author and illustrator

• 1961 = Billy Ray Cyrus = American singer-songwriter

• 1961 = Joanne Whalley = English actor

• 1964 = Blair Underwood = American actor 🤩

• 1965 = Tim Cain = American video game designer

• 1967 = Jeff Tweedy = American singer-songwriter

• 1967 = Tom Hollander = English actor

• 1968 = Rachael Ray = American chef, author, and tv host

• 1969 = Cameron Mathison = Canadian actor and tv personality 🤩

• 1970 = Claudia Schiffer = German model and fashion designer

• 1976 = Alexander Skarsgård = Swedish actor 🤩

• 1981 = Rachel Bilson = American actor

EVENTS

• 1609 = Galileo Galilei demonstrates his first telescope to Venetian lawmakers.

• 1835 = The first Great Moon Hoax article is published in The New York Sun, announcing the discovery of life and civilization on the Moon.

• 1916 = The United States National Park Service is created.

• 1939 = The Wizard Of Oz is released in theaters.

• 1944 = World War II: Paris is liberated by the Allies.

• 1948 = The House Un-American Activities Committee holds its first-ever televised congressional hearing: "Confrontation Day" between Whittaker Chambers and Alger Hiss.

• 1958 = The world's first publicly marketed instant noodles, Chikin Ramen, are introduced by Taiwanese-Japanese businessman Momofuku Ando.

• 1980 = The last performance of the Jahrhundertring at the Bayreuth Festival receives ovations of 45 minutes.

• 1991 = Linus Torvalds announces the first version of what will become Linux.

• 1994 = My So-Called Life premieres on ABC.

• 1998 = Lauren Hill’s debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, is released.

HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES

• National Kiss And Make Up Day

• National Park Service Founders Day

• National Secondhand Wardrobe Day

• National Whiskey Sour Day

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PORTRAIT + QUOTE OF THE DAY

SEAN CONNERY = MR. UNIVERSE PAGEANT (1953) = THIRD PLACE

“There is nothing like a challenge to bring out the best in man.”
Sean Connery