Born on this day
Wednesday, March 2, 1904. : Children’s author, Dr Seuss, is born.
Theodor Seuss Geisel, aka Dr Seuss, was born on 2 March 1904 in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA. As a young boy, he enjoyed drawing, but his teachers discouraged him from planning to make a living from it, telling him he lacked talent. Geisel attended Dartmouth College, where he studied writing. Again, he was discouraged from making a career out of it. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1925, after being voted “Least likely to succeed” by his college class. He then entered Lincoln College, Oxford, intending to earn a doctorate in literature. However, he met his future wife there, married her in 1927 and returned to the USA.
Geisel continued writing stories humorous articles, accompanied by strange illustrations, submitting them to a variety of magazines. Of the 27 publishers to whom he sent his work, 27 turned him down. Finally, the 28th publisher accepted his work, and after six months, he began signing his work as “Dr Seuss”.
Dr Seuss began writing children’s books before WWII, but much of his time was spent drawing to support the US government’s war effort. He initially drew posters for the Treasury Department and the War Production Board. In 1943, he joined the Army and was sent to Frank Capra’s Signal Corps Unit in Hollywood, where he wrote films for the US Armed Forces, including “Your Job in Germany,” a 1945 propaganda film about peace in Europe after World War II, “Design for Death,” a study of Japanese culture that won the Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1948, and the Private Snafu series of army training films. While in the Army he was awarded the Legion of Merit.
After the war, Dr Seuss returned to writing children’s books. After reading a report on declining literacy levels among children, he endeavoured to make his books quirky and appealing. Such books as “The Cat in the Hat” and “Green Eggs and Ham” remain very popular today. Seuss died on 24 September 1991.
Australian Explorers
Friday, March 2, 1860. : Stuart departs Chambers Creek on the first of his expeditions to cross from the south to the northern coast.
John McDouall Stuart was born in Dysart, Fife, Scotland, on 7 September 1815. He arrived in South Australia in 1839. He had a passion for exploration and gained experience when he was employed as a draughtsman by Captain Charles Sturt on an expedition into the desert interior. Following his experience with Sturt, Stuart led a number of expeditions west of Lake Eyre. When the South Australian government offered a reward of two thousand pounds to the first expedition to reach the northern coast, Stuart chose to push beyond Lake Eyre in the attempt to reach the north.
Stuart led a total of five expeditions to attempt to be the first to cross the continent from south to north. On his first attempt, he departed from Chambers Creek on 2 March 1860. Stuart finally succeeded on his fifth attempt, reaching the northern waters at Chambers Bay in July 1862.
Australian History
Monday, March 2, 1959. : Stage One of the building of the Sydney Opera House commences.
The Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia, sits on Bennelong Point in Sydney Harbour. Designed by Danish architect Joern Utzon in 1955, it has become one of the most famous performing arts venues in the world. Utzon arrived in Sydney to oversee the project in 1957 and work commenced on the Opera House in 1959. The ceremony marking Stage One of the Sydney Opera House was held on 2 March 1959. The Premier of New South Wales, Hon JJ (Joe) Cahill, laid a bronze plaque at the site marking what would be the first step of the podium, and declared the project underway.
The Opera House, famous for its geometric roof shells, was completed in 1973, at a cost of $102 million. It was formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973. The opening was celebrated with fireworks and a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. Prior to this, however, Sergei Prokofiev’s ‘War and Peace’ was played at the Opera Theatre on 28 September 1973. The following day, the first public performance was held, with a programme performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Charles Mackerras and with accompanying singer Birgit Nilsson.
Australian History
Tuesday, March 2, 1971. : Leadbeater’s Possum is proclaimed the official animal emblem of Victoria, Australia.
The Leadbeater’s Possum, ‘Gymnobelideus leadbeateri McCoy’, is a small marsupial, 30-40cm in length, believed to live only in the tall eucalypt forests of central Victoria, from Healesville and Marysville to Mt Baw Baw. First recorded in 1867, sightings decreased and the last recorded sighting for many decades was in 1909. The possum was believed to be extinct, until it was rediscovered near Marysville in 1961.
Like many Australian animals, Leadbeater’s Possum is endangered because of habitat loss. It nests in the hollows of old trees, preferably those over 150-200 years old, but fewer of these trees are available due to drought, timber production and frequent bushfires in recent years. Leadbeater’s possum was placed on the IUCN Red list of endangered species in 2004. While estimates suggest there are around 1200 adult animals remaining, its elusiveness means no accurate figures exist. There could be as many as 1500 or fewer than 1000 left. Leadbeater’s possum is classified as “threatened” under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 of Australia.
Leadbeater’s possum was proclaimed as Victoria’s official faunal emblem on 2 March 1971, and added to the Government Gazette No 20, dated 10 March 1971.
World History
Thursday, March 2, 1713. : Johann Sebastian Bach is promoted to Concert Master at Weimar
Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, Germany on 21 March 1685. He was a German composer and organist of the Baroque Era. The Baroque Era spanned approximately 1600 to 1750, and followed the Renaissance style. Baroque Music was typically harder to perform than Renaissance music as it was written more for virtuoso singers and instrumentalists, and made more complex use of harmony and rhythm.
Bach is arguably one of the greatest composers of all time. His most famous works include the Brandenburg Concertos, The Well-Tempered Clavier (a collection of 48 preludes and fugues), Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Mass in B Minor, much sacred choral music, and the St Matthew Passion. He wrote Cantatas, Masses and Magnificats, Chorales, Oratorios and many other styles and forms of music. On 2 March 1713, Johann Sebastian Bach was promoted to Concert Master at Weimar, which is where he composed his “Toccatas” and some of his finest organ music.
When Bach died on 28 July 1750, he left behind the legacy of a musically talented family, many of whom also composed prolifically. His style strongly influenced both Mozart and Beethoven.
World History
Sunday, March 2, 1969. : Supersonic airliner, the Concorde, makes its test flight.
The concept of supersonic aircraft was conceived in the 1950s. During the 1960s, Britain’s Bristol Aeroplane Company and France’s Sud Aviation were simultaneously working on designs, but the anticipated costs of the project were too great to be developed by an individual company: hence, France and Britain decided to work cooperatively. An international treaty between Britain and France was negotiated for the development of the project. The first test flight took place from Toulouse, France, on 2 March 1969, and lasted for 27 minutes before its first pilot, Andre Turcat, made the decision to land.
The test flight reached 3,000m in altitude, but the airliner’s speed did not exceed 480kph. Concorde completed its first supersonic flight on 1 October 1969, while the first commercial flights took place on 21 January 1976.