661 Ali the last Rashidun caliph died and thus ended a dynasty. Half of North Africa and all of the Middle East were subject to the jet black flag of the Rashidun caliphate for nearly 30 years. This came crashing down when Ali a faithful and forthright guy was assassinated while praying at the mosque in Kufa Iraq. Sufi Muslims trace their mystical ascetism back to Ali and he also happens to be the man the Sunnis and Shiites split over. Shiites revere him as the first imam and regard his blood relation to Muhammad as a rightful line of succession. Sunnis believe he was an important figure but don’t follow his descendants as heirs to the Prophet’s message. Too bad the two groups can’t quite agree to disagree.
1756 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg Austria. Everything I thought I knew about Mozart I learned from watching the 1984 film “Amadeus.” Evidently that movie is a poor substitute for a factual account of Mozart’s life. The composer actually led a brilliant career and probably wasn’t stalked by Salieri. He was however a practical joker fond of scatological humor. He also played billiards and composed very close to deadlines as the movie portrayed. Further while Salieri probably didn’t scheme Mozart’s demise Wolfgang died leaving others to finish the largely incomplete Requiem Mass. This amount of unfinished business wouldn’t be seen again until Tupac died leaving us all alone to release his albums for him.
1918 the Finnish Civil War broke out in the vacuum left by the Russian Empire withdrawing from World War I. Unlike many civil wars this one had nothing to do with race or religion. The Finns are too classy for that but they’re not above letting their political parties turn into paramilitary groups. The previously discordant Social Democrats and Conservatives soon became the embattled Red and White Guards. Victorious the Whites attempted to establish a Finnish monarchy governed by Kaiser Wilhelm’s brother-in-law but aborted the project two months later when the Great War ended and the kaiser abdicated. A reign that short almost makes William Henry Harrison look good.
1967 scores of nations signed the Outer Space Treaty banning nuclear weapons in space. This treaty may seem like a no-brainer but it came right on the heels of Apollo 1 catching fire and killing three astronauts. In fact this treaty still has ramifications today as it restricts future space travel. A fairly expedient trip to Mars would be possible if a ship propelled itself with successive nuclear explosions but the Outer Space Treaty wags its finger at such an idea. I guess we’ll have to leave it to North Korea which signed but never ratified the treaty to get a glorious Kim Jong Il- emblazoned rocket hurtling towards the Red Planet indelibly besmirching virgin space with its radioactive wake.
1971 Atlanta rapper/crunkster Lil Jon was born. He is an alumnus of the Ohio State University but he makes his living outside of the classroom. It was his 2003 collaboration with the Ying Yang twins in “Get Low” that propelled him to national fame. The song peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and his subsequent collaboration with Ludacris and Usher “Lovers & Friends reached No. 3. Since then, Lil Jon has been notoriously spoofed on Chappelle’s Show” and invoked in spirit whenever anyone says “What? Okay!” or “Yeah!” You can see him using his college degree in March on “Celebrity Apprentice.” Leave it to Trump to let rap stars handle his money.
1984 Michael Jackson suffered second-degree burns while filming a Pepsi commercial. The King of Pop was singing “Billie Jean” to a crowd of 3000 in L.A.’s Shrine Auditorium when a pyrotechnic exploded behind him igniting his hair. He was treated at Brotman Medical Center in Culver City which now has a burn center bearing his name. In this same year Jackson won eight Grammies and achieved the Guinness World Record for best-selling album of all time. He was also welcomed by President Reagan to the White House for his charity work. The plastic surgery Jackson received for this trauma would be followed by many more surgeries for cosmetic purposes.