The first record to sell over a million copies was ‘Vesti la giubba’ from Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci, sung by the Italian opera singer Enrico Caruso (1873–1921). It was recorded in November 1902 and released by GT. Caruso released two further recordings of ‘Vesti la giubba’ in February 1904 and March 1907 for the Victor Talking Machine Company (predecessor of the RCA Red Seal label). In 1987, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences recognised Caruso with a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
A 3 1/2ton Mercedes Benz Fernseh-Aufnahmewagen equipped with an intermediate-film transmission system was employed for the first time at the opening of the Berlin television station of the Reichs Rundfunk on 22 March 1935. Thereafter, it was taken out into the streets daily to gather contributions for the evening programme Spiegel des Tages (Mirror of the day).
The Ulysse Nardin Chairman is the first mobile phone to contain a self-winding rotor mechanism, like an automatic watch, that supplies backup kinetic energy to help keep the battery charged. Running Google’s Android operating system, models range from $13,000 to $50,000 (?8,600 to ?33,000) for precious metal versions. The phone includes a lacquered wooden docking station with built-in speakers. It has a 3.2-inch touchscreen (81 mm), offers high-definition video playback, has 32 gigabytes of memory and an 8-megapixel camera.
In the tradition of great dynamic duos, City of Heroes implemented a feature where superhero characters could recruit a sidekick (or “lackey” if they are a supervillain) who benefits from combat and level bonuses provided he stays within a certain distance of his mentor. This allows casual or inexperienced players to team up with veterans and enjoy the game without having to grind their way up to high levels. Guinness World Records Gamers’ Edition 2009.
Jack Kilby (US), together with Robert Noyce (US) discovered that large numbers of transistors and their connections could be etched onto a piece of silicon. Kilby went on to conceive and patent the microchip in 1958, less than a year of joining as a researcher with Texas Instruments. Kilby continued refining his invention, producing the world’s first pocket calculator, the ‘Poketronic’. Without Kilby’s invention, no personal computer, fax machine, cellular phone, satellite television or any mass communication system would exist.
The first modern trading card game, Magic: The Gathering, was set loose upon the world on 5 August 1993. Created by Professor Richard Garfield and published by Wizards of the Coast, Inc, Magic: The Gathering can be said to be the origin, indeed the very Genesis, of TCGs as we know them. The game, which remains enormously popular, combines the excitement of cards with the thrill of trading and collecting. Players engage in mortal combat to reduce their opponent’s score from 20 to 0 with
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Conceived by the French academic and sports enthusiast Pierre de Fredi, Baron de Coubertin (1863-1937), the modern Olympic Games were inaugurated in Athens, Greece, the birthplace of Olympic sport, on 6 April 1896. The first-ever modern Games were a modest affair by today’s standards, with just 241 participants representing 14 different countries and competing in 43 events.
The world´s first farm devoted to the domestication and rearing of the moose (Alces alces) – the world´s biggest species of deer – primarily for milk and cheese production is Kostroma Moose Farm in Kostroma Oblast, Russia. An experimental moose farm was launched in 1949 by Yevgeny Knorre and the staff of the Pechora-Ilych Nature Reserve outside Yaksha in Russia´s Komi Republic. Then in 1963, Kostroma´s Moose Farm was established, where a herd of free-ranging semi-domesticated moose is maintained. It presently includes 10-15 milk-producing moose
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The earliest monster truck backflip successfully performed in a scored competition was accomplished by Cam McQueen (Canada) at the Jacksonville Monster Jam in Jacksonville, Florida, USA on 27 February 2010. The Monster Jam series is a motorsport event tour series whose season traditionally runs from January to March. It is sanctioned by the United States Hot Rod Association (USA), with the Monster Jam World Finals held each year in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Champions have been crowned in the “Racing” and “Freestyle” disciplines each year
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Supercentenarians are people who have attained an age greater than 110. Mary P Romero Zielke Cota (USA, b.1870) died in 1982 aged 112 years 17 days; her daughter, Rosabell Zielke Champion Fenstermaker (USA, b. 1893), was equally long-lived and died in 2005 aged 111 years 344 days.