Hi! So glad you are enjoying the Today in History each Sunday.

1955
Disneyland opens
Disneyland, Walt Disney’s metropolis of nostalgia, fantasy and futurism, opens on July 17, 1955. The $17 million theme park was built on 160 acres of former orange groves in Anaheim, California, and soon brought in staggering profits. Today, Disneyland hosts more than 18 million visitors a year, who spend close to $3 billion.
1938
Douglas “Wrong Way” Corrigan crosses the Atlantic
Douglas Corrigan, the last of the early glory-seeking fliers, takes off from Floyd Bennett field in Brooklyn, New York, on a flight that would finally win him a place in aviation history. Eleven years earlier, American Charles A. Lindbergh had become an international celebrity …read more
1941
Joe DiMaggio ends 56-game hitting streak
On July 17, 1941, New York Yankees center fielder Joe DiMaggio fails to get a hit against the Cleveland Guardians (then known as the Cleveland Indians), which brings his historic 56-game hitting streak to an end. The record run had captivated the country for two months. Joseph …read more
1763
John Jacob Astor is born
Destined to make a fortune from the furs of the American West, John Jacob Astor is born in modest circumstances in the small German village of Waldorf. Although the number of foreign immigrants to the U.S. who succeeded in striking it rich is often exaggerated in the popular …read more
1967
Jimi Hendrix drops out as opening act for The Monkees
On July 17, 1967, one of the oddest musical pairings in history comes to an end when Jimi Hendrix dropped out as the opening act for teenybopper sensations The Monkees. The booking of psychedelic rock god Jimi Hendrix with the made-for-television Monkees was the brainchild of …read more
Have a great day!
Melinda
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