President Harry S. Truman led the effort to establish a single holiday for citizens to come together and thank our military members for their patriotic service in support of our country. On August 31, 1949, Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day to replace separate Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force Days. The single day celebration stemmed from the unification of the Armed Forces under the Department of Defense and is observed on the third Saturday in May.
Daily Calendar for Saturday, May 17, 2025
Died
- Sandro Botticelli (artist; works include the painting Birth of Venus”“) –
- John Jay (first Chief Justice of the U.S.) –
- John Deere (American manufacturer) –
- Lawrence Welk (musician) –
- Joe Black (baseball player) –
- Tony Randall (actor; well known for his role as Felix Unger on the sitcom The Odd Couple) –
- Frank Gorshin (actor best known for role as the Riddler on the Batman television series) –
- Donna Summer (singer; Queen of Disco”“) –
Born
- Edward Jenner (physician) –
- Maureen O'Sullivan (actress) –
- Dennis Hopper (actor) –
- Bill Paxton (actor) –
- Sugar Ray Leonard (boxer) –
- Bob Saget (actor & comedian) –
- Enya (New Age singer) –
- Craig Ferguson (actor & television host) –
- Tony Parker (basketball player) –
Events
- Joliet-Marquette Mississippi River expedition began–
- The New York Stock Exchange established at Merchants Coffee House, New York City–
- Fire began that destroyed part of St. Louis, Missouri–
- First Kentucky Derby held–
- District of Alaska created–
- Clifton Fadiman hosted the NBC Blue network quiz show Information Please–
- First coin-operated mailbox, the Mailomat, installed–
- First U.S. cross-country helicopter flight ended–
- U.S. Supreme Court issued Brown v. Board of Education decision, ruling that segregated schools are unconstitutional–
- Senate Watergate Committee began public hearings–
- Massachusetts became the first state to process marriage licenses for gay and lesbian couples–
- A team of rocketeers led by a Bloomington, MN, man claimed success in their goal of launching the first amateur rocket into space, sending a 21-foot rocket named GoFast an estimated 70 miles above the Nevada desert–
- Peter Phillips, son of British Princess Anne, wed Canadian Autumn Kelly–
- Allan Ganz honored for 67-year career (and counting) as ice-cream man–
Weather
- A hard frost covered southern New England–
- Portland, Maine, had 4.12 inches of rain in 12 hours–
- The worst May blizzard in seven years hit Denver, Colorado–
- Temperatures dipped to a mere 12 degrees F at the Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawaii–
