Today is my birthday (thank you, thank you, it was quite a feat on my part). That being said, 30 years ago it is also the day that 4 people were killed at Kent State, and the day that the Indians sold Manhattan for some cloth and shiny buttons. So, two questions, (1) Anybody know of any other events that occurred on May 4?; and (2) What events occurred on the day of YOUR arrival?
(hurry, we don’t have much time…the 5/5/2000 convergence is nigh)
Here ya go Gazoo… I found some stuff for you!
Today is Thursday, May 4, the 125th day of 2000. There are 241 days left in the year.
On May 4, 1970, National Guardsmen opened fire on anti-war protesters at Kent State University, Ohio, killing four students and wounding nine others.
In 1626, Dutch explorer Peter Minuit landed on present-day Manhattan Island.
In 1776, Rhode Island declared its freedom from England, two months before the Declaration of Independence was adopted.
In 1886, at Haymarket Square in Chicago, a labor demonstration for an eight-hour work day turned into a riot when a bomb exploded.
In 1927, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was founded.
In 1932, mobster Al Capone, convicted of income-tax evasion, entered the federal penitentiary in Atlanta.
In 1942, the Battle of the Coral Sea, the first naval clash fought entirely with carrier aircraft, began during World War II.
In 1945, during World War II, German forces in the Netherlands, Denmark and northwest Germany agreed to surrender.
In 1961, a group of ``Freedom Riders’’ left Washington for New Orleans to challenge racial segregation in interstate buses and bus terminals.
In 1980, Marshal Josip Broz Tito, president of Yugoslavia, died three days before his 88th birthday.
In 1994, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat signed a historic accord on Palestinian autonomy that granted self-rule in the Gaza Strip and Jericho.
Ten years ago: The South African government and the African National Congress concluded historic talks in Cape Town with a joint statement agreeing on a ``common commitment toward the resolution of the existing climate of violence.’’
Five years ago: An Iranian nuclear official said spent fuel from Iran’s Russian-made reactors, potential raw material for nuclear bombs, would be returned to Russia for safeguarding.
One year ago: Work crews struggled to restore electricity across Serbia after NATO strikes on major power grids left Belgrade and other cities in the dark. Five New York police officers went on trial for the torture of Haitian immigrant Abner Louima. (One officer later pleaded guilty; a second was convicted; three were acquitted.) Tornadoes roared across the Plains for a second straight day.
Thought for Today: ``Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime; therefore, we must be saved by hope.’’ – Reinhold Niebuhr, American theologian (1892-1971).
Happy Birthday!! Have a great day! 
Wow - thanks!!
Being born on Jan 1, the main event on my birthday is usually that everyone around me is hung over, tired, and completely sick of celebrating. What fun!
I also believe that it’s J.D. Salinger’s birthday.
Seeing as how my birthday is Feb 14th, I always end up giving gift on my big day. Dangit, birthdays are supposed to be about selfish greed!
More Notable May 4 Happenings
[ul]
[li]The United States took possession of the Panama Canal property in 1904 and undertook measures to eliminate yellow fever and malaria there. As a result of the measures, the death rate among canal construction workers was lower than that in many United States cities during the same period.[/li]
[li]United States Navy researchers Lieut. Comdr. Victor Prather and Comdr. Malcolm Ross piloted a balloon to a record height of 113,740 feet (34,668 meters) in 1961. Prather was killed when he fell from the hoist of a helicopter while being picked up after the flight.[/li]
[li]In 1992 voters in Canada’s Northwest Territories authorized the partition of the region into two separate territories. The eastern part, to be called Nunavut (Our Land), was to become a self-governing homeland for Inuit.[/li][/ul]
You think you’ve got gift-confusion problems, try having a birthday on December 25.
Wow, interesting stuff. I have just done a search at Excite for my exact birthday (exact search “September 11, 1974”) and learned the following about that day:
[ul]
[li]Doug Wyman was hired by the Washington State Patrol only to be fired later for being homosexual.[/li][li]The State of California Air Resources Board had a meeting. Among other things they accredited something called a “Kar Kit.”[/li][li]“Frank Cannon” starring William Conrad started its fourth season with an episode entitled “Kelly’s Song.”[/li][li]Eastern Airlines Flight 212 crashed on approach to Charlotte-Douglas (SC) Airport killing 72 with 10 survivors.[/li][li]Children’s author Lois Lenski died[/li][li]Delisha Milton of the Los Angeles Sparks (WNBA) was born.[/li][li]Series premier of “Little House on the Prarie”[/li][li]The National Organization for the Repeal of the[/li]Federal Reserve Act and the Internal Revenue Code is founded.
[li]The Grateful Dead performed at Alexandra Place, London.[/li][li]McMaster University’s Guidelines for the Implementation of Load Teaching in Part-Time Degree Studies is revised.[/li][li]Michael A. Maycock was admitted into the Wyoming State Bar.[/li][/ul]
Ok, I’ll stop now. But I got so interested in reading all the stuff I felt I had to share.
happy birthday kid!
my birthday is full of doom and gloom.
the titanic hit an iceberg and sank, sputnik crashed, lincoln was assasinated, DaVinci died, acid was made illegal…
oh, and its the day before taxes are due 
looooove my birthday. the ides of April seem to hold more doom then those of March me thinks.
Hope yours is absolutely fantastic, and wishing you all the best.
I was born on the anniversary of JFK’s assasination.
I was born on february 7th: the day of utopia. Charles Dickens and Laura Ingalls wilder were born on the same day as me.
may 4th: thats my cats birthday. shes 7 today (in human years, of course).
as for my birthday, it happens to be on may day: there was an amazing tea party concert just this year. in terms of significant historical events, though…
may 1st is lei day in hawaii
its mother goose day
…im too lazy to really search for more.
The majority of young children in America performed an unusual ritual whereby they took on different identities and walked throughout their community, demanding from the residents of the neighborhoods a forceful giving of food donations, lest the residents be dealt with curses or other misfortunes. Later, these young children would horde their take, overstuffing themselves and becoming ill from eating too much sugar.
I share my birthday with Galileo - Feb 15th.