History Archives - Ponderwall

IF I CAN DREAM: THE ELVIS TRIBUTE TO MARTIN LUTHER KING

Elvis Presley recorded the song “If I Can Dream” just two months after the murder of Martin Luther King, Jr. Both were born and raised in the Deep South.

THE SONG THAT HAD ONE BRITISH POLITICIAN WISHING FOR THE SEX PISTOLS’ SUDDEN DEATH

History

When the Sex Pistols came out with “God Save the Queen” 40 years ago, on May 27, 1977, it was instantly greeted with widespread, visceral condemnation.

THE WALL CEMENTED PINK FLOYD’S FAME – BUT DESTROYED THE BAND

Arts, History

Forty years ago, on Nov. 30, 1979, the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd released its 11th studio album, “The Wall.”

POLICING THE BERLIN WALL: THE GHOSTLY PHOTOS TAKEN BY THE STASI’S HIDDEN CAMERAS

History

Surveillance occurred through the collection of documents, audio, video, human odors – and around two million photographs now held in the Stasi archive.

NOT ONE BUT TWO AUSSIE DISHES WERE USED TO GET THE TV SIGNALS BACK FROM THE APOLLO 11 MOONWALK

History, Technology

When Neil Armstrong stepped on to the Moon, Australians saw the images first. They used a second Aussie dish to bring the historic images to the world.

THE BATTLE BETWEEN NBC AND CBS TO BE THE FIRST TO FILM A BERLIN WALL TUNNEL

History

In 1962, NBC and CBS were at work on two separate, secret documentaries on escape tunnels being dug under the Berlin Wall.

BRONZE AGE DISCOVERY REVEALS SURPRISING EXTENT OF BRITAIN’S TRADE WITH EUROPE 3,600 YEARS AGO

History, Politics

Research reveals evidence of a copper-mining bonanza in Wales 3,600 years ago that reached France, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Sweden.

HOW GAMBLING BUILT BASEBALL – AND THEN ALMOST DESTROYED IT

History, Sports

In baseball’s infancy, it was thought of as a boy’s game. But over the course of the 19th century, gambling deepened adult interest in the sport.

BEFORE WALT DISNEY, THERE WAS LOTTE REINIGER – THE STORY OF THE WORLD’S FIRST ANIMATED FEATURE

Arts, History

The oldest surviving animated feature was not made by Walt Disney, but by a German puppeteer named Lotte Reiniger: The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926).

HOW RUPTURE WITH MAINLAND EUROPE CAUSED BRITAIN TO FALTER FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS

Geography, History

Mainland Europe has always been essential to Britain’s prosperity. When the relationship with Europe is poor, the lot of ordinary Briton is poorer for it.

CAR-FREE PARIS? IT WAS ALREADY A DREAM IN 1790.

Geography, History

Car-free Paris? It was already a dream in 1790 Le Pont-Neuf et la Pompe de la Samaritaine, vue du quai de la Mégisserie, painting by Nicolas Raguenet (circa 1750-1760). Musée Carnavalet Arnaud Exbalin, Université Paris

THE BEATLES’ REVOLUTIONARY USE OF RECORDING TECHNOLOGY IN ‘ABBEY ROAD’

Arts, History

The Beatles’ album “Abbey Road” holds a special place in the hearts of the band’s fans. But few realize how groundbreaking its tracks were for the band.

WHY THE BRITISH ARE HIDING INFORMATION ABOUT RUDOLF HESS

History

The Russian scholar, Andrei Fursov, explains in this video the reason why the British authorities insist to keep Rudolf Hess’s files classified until 2050.

WHY HISTORIANS ARE FIGHTING TO SAVE THOMAS COOK’S ENORMOUS ARCHIVE

Economics, History

Thomas Cook’s enormous 178-years heritage is about to be lost and a number of business historians are fighting to save it.

DISCOVERY OF PREHISTORIC BABY BOTTLES SHOWS INFANTS WERE FED COW’S MILK 5,000 YEARS AGO

History

Clay vessels that have been found in Germany could have been used to supplement breast milk and wean children more than 5,000 years ago.

I CAN’T GET NO SATISFACTION, 50 YEARS LATER: THE SONG THAT ALMOST NEVER WAS

Arts, History

Fifty years ago, the Rolling Stones released their breakthrough single (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction, which debuted during the first week of June 1965.

ANIMATED HISTORY OF POLAND – 1000 YEARS IN 8 MINUTES

Geography, History

This animation takes you through 1000 years of history in about 8 minutes, 140 events that feature 500 characters from different historical periods.

IN ANOTHER NEWLY DISCOVERED SONG, WOODY GUTHRIE CONTINUES HIS ASSAULT ON ‘OLD MAN TRUMP’

Arts, History

The invective was directed against a man Guthrie had dubbed his “worst enemy”: Fred C. Trump, the landlord of the Beach Haven apartment complex.

PLAGIARISTS OR INNOVATORS? THE LED ZEPPELIN PARADOX ENDURES?

Arts, History

Fifty years ago – in September 1968 – the legendary rock band Led Zeppelin first performed together, kicking off a Scandinavian tour billed as the New Yardbirds.

1929-1930: EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS OF LINCOLN’S ASSASSINATION.

History

Eyewitness accounts video recording of Lincoln’s assassination.

BACKGROUNDER: WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT INDONESIA’S 1965 ANTI-COMMUNIST PURGE

History

In less than 48 hours, Suharto had roundly defeated the 30th September Movement. At about the same time, the abductees’ bodies were found in an old well in an area known as Lubang Buaya (Crocodile Hole) in east Jakarta.

LEE HARVEY OSWALD’S RADIO INTERVIEWS OF AUGUST 1963 ON THE WDSU RADIO

History

Oswald had two interview on the New Orleans radio station WDSU. The first program took place on August 17, 1963. The second on August 21, 1963.

D-DAY SUCCEEDED THANKS TO AN INGENIOUS DESIGN CALLED THE MULBERRY HARBOURS

History

When allied troops stormed the beaches at Normandy on June 6, 1944, they were using a remarkable and entirely untested technology: artificial ports.

A FEW DAYS WITH LENIN AND TROTSKY IN 1920

History

A Few Days With Lenin And Trotsky In 1920 By the American cartoonist Ellison Hoover.

BREXIT: HOW THE END OF BRITAIN’S EMPIRE LED TO RISING INEQUALITY THAT HELPED LEAVE TO VICTORY

History

The echoes of empire have continued to reverberate in British political life. These echoes had a strong influence on why people voted for Brexit.

THE NOT-SO-NOBEL PAST OF THE NOBEL PRIZES

History

“The Nobel Prize has interrupted my work. I’m not sure it is a useful interruption, though it certainly is a pleasant one.” 2010 Physics laureate Andre Geim.

BOOKS ACROSS HISPANIC WORLD ARE STILL SCARRED BY FRANCO’S CENSORSHIP

History

Between 1936 and 1966, all books published in Spain had to be submitted to Franco’s national board of censors for examination.

WHY GLASGOW’S BOLSHEVIST UPRISING IN 1919 WASN’T QUITE THE RED THREAT MANY BELIEVED

History

January 31, 2019 is the centenary of Bloody Friday 1919, in which thousands of protesting workers were attacked in Glasgow’s main civic square by police.

NIXON AND REAGAN ADVISER CLAIMS LBJ KILLED JFK

History

THE TRUE COLORS OF EUROPE ANCIENT STATUES

History

The true colors of the ancient statues of the Greek and Roman civilizations.

JFK ASSASSINATION: WHO WAS THE UMBRELLA MAN?

History

Who was the umbrella man in the JFK assassination footage?

NUCLEAR MILITARY JET CRASHED IN GREENLAND IN 1968, WITH 4 NUCLEAR BOMBS ON BOARD

History

Fifty years ago, an American B-52G bomber, carrying four nuclear bombs, crashed onto the sea ice of Wolstenholme Fjord in the northwest corner of Greenland.

ALGERIAN FREEDOM FIGHTERS’ SKULLS EXHIBITED IN THE MUSEUM OF MANKIND IN PARIS

History, Sidebar

The Museum of Mankind in Paris keeps 37 skulls of Algerian militants who had revolted against the French occupation forces in the year 1849.

A DRONE VIEW OF THE FORGOTTEN PYRAMIDS OF SUDAN

History, Sidebar

THE LAST FUHRER OF THE THIRD REICH SERVED 10 YEARS IN JAIL AND WENT FREE IN 1956

History, Sidebar

THE WONDERFUL GEOMETRY OF THE ITALIAN FORTRESS-TOWN OF PALMANOVA, THE MOST PERFECTLY SHAPED TOWN IN THE WORLD

History, Sidebar

THE CURIOUS ROLE OF RICHARD NIXON IN THE FALL OF THE SOVIET UNION

History, Sidebar

The synchronicity of Richard Nixon’s resurgence in the 1980s with Gorbachev’s rise, and his curious 1991 trip to the Soviet Union, show clearly that he had an active role in the intelligence strategy that led to the fall of the Soviet Union.

30 DAYS BEFORE WWII EINSTEIN SENDS A LETTER TO ROOSEVELT RECOMMENDING NUCLEAR BOMB

History, Sidebar

In August 1939, one month before the start of World War II, Einstein sent a letter to the U.S President Roosevelt recommending the utilization of nuclear chain reactions to create an atomic bomb. In his

DENG XIAO PING, THE FATHER OF MODERN CHINA

History, Sidebar

He was born in August 22nd 1904 in the village of Paifang in Sichuan province.

THE AMERICANS, ESPIONAGE IN THE LAST DECADE OF COLD

History, Sidebar

After three years and five seasons, The Americans has finally been nominated for the 2016 Emmy’s Best Drama Series. The show depicts the life and operations of two covert Soviet agents in the U.S in

One in every 200 men is a descendant of Genghis Khan

Briefs, History

Genghis Khan (1162 – 1227) is known for having unified the Mongolian tribes and establishing a large empire in Central Asia. He used ingenious military tactics and ferocious brutality to defeat the Chinese dynasties in the south

JULY IN HISTORY – THE STORM OF THE BASTILLE

History, Today in History

On July 14th 1789, French revolutionaries stormed into the Bastille prison, a symbol of the tyrannic monarchy. They succeeded to dismantle it and signal the beginning of the French revolution. King Louis 16, his wife

SIR OSWALD MOSLEY AND THE BRITISH UNION OF FASCISTS

History, Sidebar

This photo was not taken in the Nazi Germany. It shows the MP Sir. Oswald Mosley, during a parade of the British Union of Fascists in the 1930s. Throughout his career, Mosley explored the whole political spectrum, from the extreme left to the extreme right. This photo illustrates his Fascist episode with the Black Shirts. The uniformed and military-style organisations were later banned by the British government. After the war, Mosley formed the Union Movement, calling for the unification of Europe under one super state.