May 10

Ranchos in 1837 
Rancho Punta de la Concepción was deeded. The Mexican land grant covering 24,992 acres in today’s Santa Barbara County belonged to Mission La Purísima Concepción. The rancho stretched along the coast from Point Arguello south to Cojo Creek, east of Point Conception.

Overland Journeys in 1846 
The Donner and Reed wagons reached Independence, Missouri. They spent the next two days preparing for the journey. They would get  trapped by snow in the Sierra Nevada and nearly half of them would die.

Transportation in 1869 
The Golden Spike Ceremony completed the Transcontinental Railroad. Leland Stanford drove the spike that linked the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory. Construction began on January 8, 1863.

War in 1873 
Modoc warriors attacked an Army encampment at Dry Lake. It was the first victory for the Army and began to divide the Modocs. One group surrendered to the Army and agreed to help capture their leader, Captain Jack.

Rancherias in 1909 
Sherwood Valley Rancheria was established in Mendocino County. It is home to Pomo people, whose land extends approximately from Highway 101, through redwood forests to the coast. The tribe owns Sherwood Valley Rancheria Casino and Creekside Cafe, formerly called the Black Bart Casino.

Flight in 1927 
Charles Lindbergh, pilot, picked up “The Spirit of St. Louis” in San Diego and flew to St. Louis, then to New York navigating with railroad maps.

Japanese American Internment in 1942 
The Stockton Assembly Center opened. Built on the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds, it played a role in the forced detention of approximately 110,000 Californians of Japanese ancestry during World War II. Assembly centers were used to securely move people to ten internment prisons.

Sports in 1953  
Betsy Rawls won the Ladies Professional Golf Association tournament in Sacramento. She won eight major championship, 55 LPGA tour events and is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.

 

Television in 1956 
KFSN-TV channel 30 in Fresno began broadcasting. The station is Fresno’s third-oldest TV station. Today it is part of the Disney-ABC Television Group and produces the shows “Motion” and “My Family Recipe Rocks” for the Live Well Network.

Science in 1997       
U.C. Berkeley physicists first documented the sound from superfluid helium atoms oscillating between overlapping quantum states, particle waves moving like like overlapping ripples in a pool.

Stevens in 2000        
Craig Stevens, star of the TV series “Peter Gunn” (1958-1961), died in Los Angeles at age 81.

Sports in 2002  
The Anaheim Angels crushed the Chicago White Sox, 19-0. This put them in company with just three other teams who beat opponents by 19 or more runs.

Guest in 2006        
Val Guest, British movie director, died in Palm Springs at age 94. He is best known for his horror and science fiction movies for Hammer Film Productions over 14 years. 

Fires in 2007 
The Island Fire broke out on Catalina Island. It burned 4,750 acres of interior chaparral then threatened Avalon, but only one residence and six commercial structures were destroyed.

Crime in 2007      
A federal jury in Santa Ana convicted Chi Mak, Chinese-born engineer, of spying for the Chinese government. He was sentenced to 24 1/2 years in federal prison.

Crime in 2011    
Three people were killed in a burst of gunfire at parking garage, an apparent double murder-suicide. They were the first shooting deaths in San Jose State University history.

Transportation in 2012       
BART, Bay Area Rapid Transit, directors awarded an $896.3 million contract to Bombardier to build 410 rail cars.

May 11

San Francisco in 1850  
Work began on the first brick building in San Francisco following the recent fire that burned much of the city built of wood. The Naglee Building stood at corner of Montgomery and Merchant streets.

Government in 1854 
Amador County was established in the Sierra Nevada. It is “The Heart of the Mother Lode” in Gold Rush country. The county was split into Amador, Calaveras and El Dorado counties and part of its territory was also given to Alpine County.

Business in 1880        
A U.S. Marshal and deputies faced a group of San Joaquin Valley farmers over a land dispute with the Southern Pacific Railroad. They had developed an irrigation system that turned the land into an agricultural area. The Railroad claimed the land and won a suit to that effect. Seven men were killed in what became known as the Battle of Mussel Slough. 

Accidents in 1907 
Thirty-two Shriners were killed when their chartered train derailed in Lompoc. They came from around the U.S. to a conference in Los Angeles and were on their way to San Francisco.

Environment in 1908 
The Hetch Hetchy Dam was approved. The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire made it clear that the city needed a large, reliable source of water.  Hetch Hetchy Valley, northwestern of Yosemite, drained by the Tuolumne River, was selected for development.

Movies in 1927  
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences met for the first time. At its first banquet, 230 film industry professionals joined the Academy. Membership cost $100. They awarded an honorary membership to Thomas Edison.

Clubs in 1939       
The Top of the Mark Nightclub opened at the top of the Mark Hopkins Hotel on Nob Hill. It’s built at the highest point of downtown San Francisco.

Rickets in 1948    
Edward “Doc” Ricketts, marine biologist and friend of John Steinbeck, died in Monterey at age 51. He was struck by a train when his car stalled on railroad tracks. He is best known for Between Pacific Tides (1939), a pioneering study of intertidal ecology, 

Sports in 1963 
Sandy Koufax, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher, threw his second no-hitter to beat the San Francisco Giants, 8-0. He fanned Willie Mays, Willie McCovey and Orlando Cepeda. Kaufax pitched four no-hitters in his career. 

Sports in 1972 
The San Francisco Giants traded Willie Mays to the New York Mets for pitcher Charlie Williams and cash.

Crime in 1996        
Daniel Fraembs, Orange County sheriff’s deputy, was shot and killed on South Humane Way.  

Education in 2007        
California high school graduation rates fell to 67%, a 10-year low, according to a basic skills exit exam given for the first time.

Crime in 2008        
Patricia Barrales’s mother found her body in a closet buried under toys in a toy chest. The 25-year-old had been stabbed 68 times. Honorio Pantaleon, age 32, was later convicted of the murder of the mother of his two children.

Business in 2010        
Richmond city officials signed an agreement with Chevron Corp., which operates the Richmond refinery, to pay the city $114 million over 15 years.

Crime in 2011        
Samuel Kioskli, a 64-year-old  former San Francisco ATM serviceman, was arrested during a routine traffic stop in Phoenix, Arizona. He stole about 200,000 from six bank branches by replacing cash with counterfeit $20 bills.

Young in 2011        
Snooky Young, legendary big band trumpeter, died in Newport Beach at age 92. He was a master of the plunger mute, with which he was able to create wide ranging sounds.

Crime in 2012      
Clyde Thompson Jr., 51-year-old president of the local Black Sabbath Motorcycle chapter, was killed in a drive-by shooting in San Diego.

May 12

Ranchos in 1844 
Rancho Paso de Robles was deeded. The name means “Pass of the Oaks.” The Mexican land grant, covering 25,993 acres in today’s San Luis Obispo County, included the present day Paso Robles and Templeton.

Gold Rush in 1848 
Sam Brannan sparked gold fever in San Francisco by waving a bottle of gold dust and shouting “Gold! Gold! Gold from the American River!” He had been paid in gold for goods he sold in his store at Sutter’s Fort.

Business in 1912 
Beverly Hills Hotel opened. It was popular with the rich and famous over many years. Elizabeth Taylor’s father had an art gallery in the hotel. Howard Hughes lived there on-and-off for 30 years. The hotel exterior was featured on the album cover of the Eagles’ “Hotel California” (1976).

Business in 1928         
Joe and Tom Longs, brothers, opened their first store in Oakland. They bought Bill’s Drugs, a 20 store chain in northern California, in 1993. Then CVS Caremark bought Longs Drugs for $2.9 billion in 2008.

Gold in 1937     
Some 1,000 tons of gold were moved from the old San Francisco Mint to the new one. The old one once held a third of the nation’s gold supply. 

Technology in 1964      
The reverse osmosis process for turning seawater and waste-water into potable stuff was patented in San Diego.

Hawk in 1968 
Anthony Frank “Tony” Hawk was born in Carlsbad. He is a skateboard pioneer who licensed video games. Hawk won the National Skateboard Association world championship 12 consecutive times. Six Flags opened Tony Hawk’s Big Spin rides at three parks.

Sports in 1986 
“Fast” Fred Markham became the first person to pedal 65 miles per hour. He did it unaided by the wind on a level course at Big Sand Flat. His racer, the Gold Rush, is housed at the Smithsonian Institution. 

Accidents in 1989 
Four people died in a train crash in San Bernardino. Then an underground gas pipeline damaged during the crash cleanup exploded, killing two more people a week later. The Southern Pacific train had lost control, plowed into a residential area and burst the pipeline where the derailment happened, covering the neighborhood with vapor that burst into a large fire that burned for nearly seven hours.

Reed in 1992        
Robert Reed, stage, film and television actor and television director, died in Pasadena at age 59. He was best known for his role in “The Brady Bunch” (1969-1974). 

Fires in 2000        
The Los Alamos fire burned 191 housing structures and 30,000 acres.

Government in 2006         
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed a $131 billion budget. The plan used most of the $7.5-billion windfall to boost school spending after years of cutbacks and to pay off a significant chunk of the state’s debt.

Business in 2008        
Powerset, a San Francisco Internet company founded in 2005, released a search engine that could find targeted answers to user questions, as opposed to keyword based search. Microsoft bought Powerset for some $100 million.

Government in 2012        
Governor Jerry Brown said the state budget deficit was a projected $16 billion, much larger than predicted months earlier. He said that if voters failed to pass tax increases, school and public safety budgets would be severely cut.

Music in 2013     
BottleRock, a 4-day music festival, closed in Napa. Ticket prices started at $299 for a 3-day pass. 

May 13

Exploration in 1817 
Lt. Don Luis Arguello and Padre Narciso Durán explored the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers. They were searching for Indians to baptize and bring to Mission Dolores. Their expedition lasted two weeks but they returned largely empty-handed. 

Ranchos in 1833 
Rancho Punta de Pinos was deeded. Its name means “Point of the Pines.” The 2,667-acre Mexican land grant in today’s Monterey County extended along the coast from near Pacific Grove south to Pescadero.

War in 1846 
The U.S. declared war on Mexico. U.S. forces occupied Alta California and New Mexico then invaded Mexico. Combat lasted to the fall of 1847. In the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexico surrendered those territories to the United States.

Eureka in 1850 
Eureka was incorporated. The name means “I found it!” and is on the state seal. Humboldt County’s capital is the largest city between San Francisco and Portland, Oregon and is on the second largest bay in the state.

Placerville in 1854 
Placerville was incorporated. The El Dorado County town was once known as Dry Diggings and Hangtown. During the Gold Rush it was a hub for the Mother Lode region’s mining operations. Today it is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville metropolitan area.

Monuments in 1903        
President Theodore Roosevelt dedicated the Dewey Memorial in San Francisco’s Union Square. The 12-foot statue of Victory atop an 83-foot column was modeled on beautiful Alma de Bretteville Spreckels.

 

 

Flight in 1912        
Roy Francis, pilot, and Phil Rader, artist, flew over San Francisco for 36 minutes. They performed a series of airship maneuvers for the Army at the Presidio. 

Civil Rights in 1960 
Bill Mandel was brought before a House on Un-American Activities Committee in San Francisco to explain his broadcasts at KPFA radio and KQED TV about the press in the Soviet Union. KQED canceled him but he kept broadcasting on KPFA. Sixty-four people were arrested at a protest. Police used fire hoses. Frank Cieciorka was inspired to create his woodcut fist that became an icon of the 1960’s. 

 

Cooper in 1961 
Gary Cooper, legendary actor, died in Los Angeles at age 60. He played leading roles in 84 feature films, famouly in  “High Noon” (1952) and other Westerns. 

Sports in 1973 
Bobby Riggs beat Margaret Court in a tennis match called the “Mother’s Day Massacre.” Promoted as a battle of the sexes in Ramona, Riggs came from retirement to challenge one of the world’s great female players.

Business in 1991 
Apple released Macintosh System 7.0.

Flight in 2004 
SpaceShipOne, a rocket built by Mojave Aerospace Ventures, climbed to 211,400 feet . It become the first privately funded vehicle to reach the edge of space.

Environment in 2007 
A mother humpback whale and her calf were spotted swimming up the Sacramento River. On May 29 they returned to San Francisco Bay and were spotted outside the Golden Gate the next day.

Government in 2008 
Assemblywoman Karen Bass , age 54, became the 67th speaker of the California Assembly and the first African American woman to hold that office.

Business in 2008 
Hewlett-Packard Co., headquartered in Palo Alto, announced purchase of Electronic Data Systems Corp. for $12.6 billion. That formed the second largest technology services provider behind IBM.

Education in 2009 
The California State University Board of Trustees voted 17-2 to adopt a 10% tuition increase at its 23 campuses. This was its 7th increase since 2002.

Science in 2009 
Deep Flight Super Falcon, a 2-person submarine, was unveiled at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. It scheduled to begin exploring Monterey Bay.

Government in 2010 
Los Angeles City Council voted to boycott Arizona businesses, making it the largest city to protest the state’s tough new law targeting illegal immigration.

Chew in 2010 
Ruth Chew, children’s fantasy author, died in Castro Valley at age 90. She published 30 children’s books including Trapped in Time (1986).

Government in 2011 
California state parks officials said 70 state parks would close starting in September as a result of state budget cuts.

May 14

Presidios in 1769
The Royal Presidio of San Diego was established. It was the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific Coast of the present-day U.S. and became the base for Spanish colonization of Alta California.

Crime in 1856
James Casey shot and killed James King of William. King, a San Francisco newspaper editor, printed articles accusing Casey of being a corrupt politician and an ex-con from New York. 

 

Science in 1935
Griffith Planetarium opened in Las Angeles. It is on Mount Hollywood with a view to the Pacific Ocean. The observatory was the third in the U.S.

Fires in 1936 
A fire at the Shamrock Club in San Francisco left four people dead. Dancer Betty Blossom’s flaming torches ignited drapes hanging from the ceiling. 

Lucas in 1944
George Lucas was born in Modesto. He is best known as the creator of the “Star Wars” and  “Indiana Jones” film series. Lucas is one of the most financially successful filmmakers and has been nominated for four Academy Awards.

Sports in 1972 
Willie Mays hit a home run to beat his former team, the San Francisco Giants, 5-4, in his first game as a New York Met.

Newspapers in 1988
El Latino began publishing. Today it is the largest Hispanic newspaper in San Diego.

Crime in 1998 
A U.S. district judge ruled that all California pot clubs violated federal law.

 

Sinatra in 1998 
Frank Sinatra, singer, actor, director and producer, died in West Hollywood at age 82. One of the first teen idols, he later identified with Los Vegas. He sold more than 150 million records worldwide.

Environment in 1999 
San Francisco and Oakland competed in the Great Green Sweep, an effort to sweep the cities clean.

Crime in 1999 
San Francisco police arrested Kevin Keating, age 38, head of the “Mission Yuppie Eradication Project,” on suspicion of property destruction in the Mission. Charges were later dropped. Keating was upset by rising real estate prices driving out current residents.

Stack in 2003 
Robert Stack, actor and television host, died in Beverly Hills at age 84. He was best known as the tough-guy hero of the pioneer police drama “Untouchables” (1959-1963) and later hosting “Unsolved Mysteries” (1987- 2002). 

Lee in 2004 
Anna Lee, actress, died in Beverly Hills at age 91. Her nearly 70-year acting career in movies and television spanned from her breakthrough role in “How Green Was My Valley” to an extended run on “General Hospital.”

Television in 2006 
Aras Baskauskas, a 24-year-old yoga instructor from Santa Monica, won “Survivor: Panama, Exile Island,” the 12th edition of the CBS reality show.

Education in 2008 
University of California regents announced a 7.4% tuition increase and California State University regents voted for a 10% increase. This was the 6th increase in seven years.

Business in 2008 
Comcast announced purchase of Plaxo, a social networking service. It sold for around $160 million. It was founded by Sean Parker, Napster founder, and two Stanford engineering students.

Science in 2012 
Stanford University scientists developed a prototype bionic eye that helps the visually impaired to see. 

Crime in 2013 
San Francisco prosecutors charged six current and former San Francisco Unified School District employees with 205 felony charges for allegedly misappropriating some $15 million in public funds.

May 15

Overland Journeys in 1841
The Bartleson-Bidwell Party left Independence, Missouri. Seventy men, women and children headed west with 15 wagons and two solid-wheel carts. John Bidwell, one the first overland travelers into Nevada and California, kept a journal. He described landmarks and the surrounding countryside, which guided later Overland Trail travelers.

Indians in 1850 
A U.S. Cavalry regiment killed a large number of Pomo Indians on a Clear Lake island in retaliation for Pomo killings of abusive settlers. A 6-year-old girl survived the Bloody Island Massacre by hiding underwater and breathing through a tule reed. Her descendants formed the Lucy Moore Foundation to work for better relations between Pomo and other residents of California.

Water in 1853 
A groundbreaking ceremony was held for a tunnel meant to deliver water from Mountain Lake to downtown San Francisco. The project was never completed and in 2010 the entrance was rediscovered near Polin Springs under 42 feet of landfill.

Crime in 1856
The second San Francisco Vigilance Committee was organized in response to James Casey’s murder of James King of William. They took Casey from the sheriff’s custody, gave him a short trial then hanged him.

Parks in 1903
John Muir and President Roosevelt visited Yosemite Valley. Muir convinced Roosevelt and California Governor George Pardee to make the Valley and the Mariposa Grove part of Yosemite National Park.

Movies in 1928 
Mickey Mouse appeared in his first cartoon. Walt Disney gave “Plane Crazy” a test screening to a theater audience but failed to pick up a distributor. The original version had no sound. When Disney released Mickey’s first sound cartoon, “Steamboat Willie,” later that year, it was an enormous success. So a sound version of “Plane Crazy” was released. 

Flight in 1930
Ellen Church became the first airline stewardess. She flew on a Boeing 80A for a 20-hour flight from Oakland/San Francisco to Chicago with 13 stops and 14 passengers. Stewardesses, called “sky girls,” had to be registered nurses, “single, younger than 25 years old; weigh less than 115 pounds and stand less than 5 feet, 4 inches tall.”

Business in 1940 
Richard and Maurice McDonald opened a restaurant in San Bernardino that was the start of McDonald’s Corporation. Today it is the world’s largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 68 million customers daily in 119 countries.

Water in 1952 
Central Valley Regional Water Pollution Control Board banned dumping of perchlorate and other chemicals into groundwater and the American River. Perchlorate blocks essential iodide from being taken into the thyroid. Aerojet Corp., a rocket fuel manufacturer, continued untreated discharges.

Cub Scouts in 1953 
Cubmaster Don Murphy, Pack 280C, organized the first pinewood derby in Manhattan Beach. Pinewood Derby was selected as part of “America’s 100 Best” in 2006 as “a celebrated rite of spring” by Reader’s Digest. It has been parodied by South Park in the episode, “Pinewood Derby” (season 13) and the film, “Down and Derby” (2005).

Government in 1969 
Governor Ronald Reagan ordered a fence built around People’s Park in Berkeley, the site of many anti-war protestors. Some 3,000 protesters tried to seize it back. Reagan placed Berkeley under martial law and dispatched tear gas-spraying helicopters and riot police who shot and killed one man. It was called “Bloody Thursday.”

Accidents in 1969  
The U.S. nuclear submarine Guitarro sank in the Napa River at Mare Island Naval Shipyard while under construction. Two crews filled tanks with water without communicating with each other. Damages were estimated at between $15.2 million and $21.85 million.

Baseball in 1973 
Nolan Ryan, California Angels pitcher, threw his first no-hitter to beat the Kansas City Royals, 3-0. He is the all-time leader in no-hitters with seven, three more than any other pitcher.

Albright in 1984 
Thomas Albright, art critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, died at age 48. He had just completed Art in the San Francisco Bay Area 1945-1980.

O’Brien in 1985 
Edmond O’Brien, film actor, died in Inglewood at age 69. He was best known for roles in “Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1939) and “The Wild Bunch” (1969).

Government in 1992 
A Los Angeles judge ordered police officer Laurence Powell retried on a charge of excessive force in the beating of Rodney King. It was eventually dropped.

Electricity in 2001 
California regulators adopted the highest rate increase in the state’s history. The increased cost to residential consumers was over $100 million.

Public Health in 2003 
Stephen Joseph, San Francisco attorney, withdrew his suit against Kraft Inc. to stop the sale of Oreo cookies. He was satisfied with the media attention on the high trans fat content in the cookies and other products.

Government in 2008 
California became the second state to legalize same-sex marriage. Under the direction of Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco in 2004, marriage licenses were issued to approximately 4,000 same-sex couples. Newsom’s authority was challenged but upheld by the state Supreme Court. A 2008 ballot measure Proposition 8, however, stopped same-sex marriages until the court decided the ban was unconsititutional.

Crime in 2008 
Anthony Pellicano, a 64-year-old Hollywood private eye, was convicted of federal racketeering and other charges for digging up dirt on wealthy Los Angeles clients. 

Crime in 2008 
Eleven members of the San Jose El Hoyo Palmas gang were indicted on charges related to four homicides over two years.

San Francisco in 2009 
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, said that 1,000 city workers would lose their jobs in the coming months to help close a growing budget deficit. The city’s biggest union this week rejected $38 million in wage concessions.

Crime in 2010 
Fresno police arrested 60 people and impounded 37 vehicles as part of crackdown on gangs that began last month.

Races in 2011 
San Francisco celebrated the 100th anniversary of its Bay to Breakers race. Guards confiscated alcohol and banned iconic floats.

Business in 2013 
Google announced email money, just like emailing photos or documents. The payer and recipient both need Google Wallet accounts.

May 16

Railroads in 1865
Central Pacific Railroad trains began running from Sacramento to Auburn.

Overland Journeys in 1903
George Adams Wyman left San Francisco on the first cross-country motorcycle trip. The 25-year-old Oakland native wore a three-piece wool suit with a tie and cap when he left on his 1.25-hp, 90cc. 120-mpg motorcycle that he could also pedal. His motor was beyond repair so he pedaled 150 miles to New York City, arriving there on July 6, 1903. He attended the first meeting of the Federation of American Motorcyclists then rode the train back to California.

Sports in 1914 
The new Ewing Field ballpark opened in San Francisco. Cal Ewing, owner of the Seals, built a 18,000 seat Ewing Field on Masonic Ave., now the site of Wallenberg High School. It was used for a half-season until the team returned to Recreation Park because of the fog.

Hollywood in 1929
The first Academy Awards are awarded at a private dinner in Los Angeles. Tickets cost $5. The presentation ceremony lasted fifteen minutes. It was not broadcast on radio or television.

Race Relations in 1936
San Francisco Municipal Judge Lazarus condemned dance hall operators who made white girls dance with Filipinos and called them “savages.” 

Post Offices in 1949
The Borrego Springs post office opened. The San Diego County town is home to many “snow birds” or seasonal residents. Borrego Springs is completely surrounded by the 600,000-acre Anza-Borrego State Park, the largest California State Park.

Post Offices in 1955
The Rancho Cordova post office opened. The Sacramento County town was known as Mayhew’s Crossing, Hangtown Crossing, Mills Station and Cordova Vineyards before it incorporated in 2003.

Sports in 1955 
Rocky Marciano, heavyweight boxer, knocked-out Don Cockell. He KO-ed the British and European Champion in the 9th round of a fight at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco. Marciano is the only person to hold the heavyweight title and go untied and undefeated throughout his career.

Science in 1960 
Theodore Maiman demonstrated a ruby laser at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu. It was the world’s first working laser. Maiman’s achievement established his reputation as the “father of the electro-optics industry.”

 

 

Music in 1966 
The Beach Boys released “Pets Sounds.” It was their 11th studio album, one of the best albums of the 1960’s and among the most influential in the history of popular music.

Crime in 1974
William and Emily Harris, Symbionese Liberation Army members, were spotted with Patty Hearst shoplifting at a Los Angeles sporting good store. They escaped in a stolen van with an 19-year-old kidnapped victim.

Sports in 1980 
The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Philadelphia 76ers in the thirty-fourth NBA Championship, 4 games to 2. Magic Johnson played one of the greatest game of his career in game 6. He started the game at center but played all 5 positions in a dominating performance.

Kaufman in 1984 
Andy Kaufman, entertainer, actor and performance artist, died in Los Angeles at age 35. He did not like the “comedian” label, did not tell jokes or perform traditional comedy but called himself a “song-and-dance man.” He was best know as Latka Gravas in the sitcom “Taxi” (1978-1983).

Music in 1987 
Weird Al Yankovic performed at the 72nd National Orange Show in San Bernardino.

Davis in 1990 
Sammy Davis Jr., entertainer, died in Los Angeles at age 64. The Frank Sinatra sidekick and member of The Rat Pack owed $5 million in taxes at his death. 

Crime in 1995 
Some $10 million worth of computer microprocessors were stolen from Centon in Irvine. The “Bytes Dust” task force named the men behind the heist. More than 15 members of “The Company” were arrested and tried. John That Luong was sentenced to 88 years in prison.

Accidents in 1996 
Chevron, of San Ramon, said it spilled as much as 17,000 gallons of oil into Pearl Harbor, Hawaii after a pipeline sprang a leak.

Environment in 1996 
The federal government set aside 3.9 million acres of land in California, Oregon and Washington for the endangered marbled murrelet.

Sports in 1997
The Montreal Expos, trailing the San Francisco Giants by 9 runs, came back to win, 14-13.

Crime in 2006 
The  J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles agreed to return ancient artifacts  that Greece claimed were stolen from their country.

Crime in 2009 
Anthony Perea, a 27-year-old motorist and Floyd Ross, a 41-year-old pedestrian, were killed when murder suspects fled from police and crashed in North Oakland. The suspected gang members had just killed Charles Davis, age 25, in West Berkeley.

May 17

Newspapers in 1851
The Los Angeles Star was published in Los Angeles. It was printed in Spanish and English until 1855. When the Civil War broke out, the editor’s outspoken criticism of the federal government led to The Star being banned from the mails. Its editor was arrested for treason. It ceased publication in 1864 but resumed in 1868.

Clubs in 1872
The Bohemian Club incorporated. It was a private club celebrating literature, art, music and drama. Today it is known for a membership of powerful men in politics, business and other industries.

War in 1898 
Camp Merritt was established in the San Francisco. There U.S. troops readied for combat in the Philippines. 

Sports in 1905 
Waseda University of Tokyo defeated Los Angeles High School, 5-3. It was the first stop on their American tour and first baseball game played by Japanese outside Japan.  Japan’s Big Six universities still field powerful baseball teams.

Parks in 1924 
The Giant Dipper roller coaster opened in Santa Cruz. It was built by local resident Arthur Looff in 47 days for $50,000. It was declared a Historic Landmark in 1987 and by 2012, some 60 million people had ridden it.

Technology in 1960 
J.W. Flora of Canoga Park patented the first atomic reactor system.

Transportation in 1962
Marin County withdrew from the BART district. Bay Area Rapid Transit connects San Francisco with cities in the East Bay and northern San Mateo County but does not extend cross the Golden Gate into Marin County.

Sports in 1973 
Bobby Valentine, Los Angeles Angels outfielder, broke his leg climbing a wall trying to catch Dick Green’s home run during a loss to the Oakland A’s, 5-4.

 

Crime in 1974
Six members of the Symbionese Liberation Army were killed in a gun battle with some 400 Los Angeles police officers. More than 9,000 rounds were fired in one of the largest police shootouts in history. The SLA, a self-styled revolutionary group, committed bank robberies, two murders and kidnapped Patty Hearst, daughter of a powerful newspaper family.

Literature in 1981 
San Francisco celebrated “Tillie Olsen Day.” Her books included Yonnondio (1974), and Silences (1978), a study of blocked creativity. In 2001 she received the Fred Cody Lifetime Achievement Award.

Business in 1993 
Intel, of Santa Clara, unveiled a new Pentium processor, the first time it gave a name, not a number, to a processor.

Jones in 1999 
Henry Jones, actor, died in Los Angeles at age 86. He appeared in more than 180 movies and television shows, including “This Is the Army” (1943).

Electricity in 2001 
California energy regulators uncovered evidence that some electrical power companies repeatedly shut down generating plants for unnecessary maintenance.

Politics in 2005 
Antonio Villaraigosa, 52-year-old Los Angeles Councilman, become the city’s first Hispanic mayor in more than a century. Voters embraced his promise of change in a metropolis troubled by gridlock, gangs and failing schools.

Gorshin in 2005 
Frank Gorshin, actor, impressionist and comedian. died in Burbank at age 72. He played the Riddler on the “Batman” television series (1966-1969).

Crime in 2013 
Christine Daniel, a 58-year-old Los Angeles physician, was sentenced to 14 years in prison for bilking patients out of more than $1 million by promising them that an herbal supplement she sold could cure late-stage cancer.

Venturi in 2013 
Ken Venturi, golfer and broadcaster, died in Rancho Mirage at age 82. He won 14 events on the PGA Tour, including the 1964 US Open.

Sports in 2014 
California Chrome won the Preakness Stakes.

May 18

Overland Trail in 1841
Ben and Nancy Kelsey and their baby joined John Bidwell in the first wagon train to California. She was the first white woman to travel from Missouri to California. Mother of nine children, she also played a role creating the original Bear Flag that gave the rebellion its name.

Ranchos in 1844
Rancho Canada de Salsipuedes, a Mexican land grant, was deeded. Salsipuedes means “get out if you can”, referring to the narrow winding canyons and trails on the 6,656-acre land grant in present day Santa Barbara County.

Gold Rush in 1849
Sailing ship “Grey Eagle” arrived with thirty-four passengers from the East in 113 days, a record.

Saroyan in 1908
William Saroyan was born in Fresno. He wrote  about the Armenian immigrant life in California, most notably in The Time of Your Life (1939), My Heart’s in the Highlands (1939) and My Name Is Aram (1940).

Agriculture in 1911 
San Francisco received its first shipment of red onions from Stockton. Italian gardeners were paid $2.25 per sack, earning about $500 an acre.

Evangelists in 1926
Aimee Semple McPherson disappeared. She vanished soon after arriving near Venice Beach where she went with her secretary to swim then stumbled from the Mexican desert on June 23rd. The event remains a mystery in the life of the evangelist-media celebrity, founder of the Foursquare Church.

Hollywood in 1927
Sid Grauman opened his Chinese Theater in Hollywood. Concrete  in the forecourt bear the signatures, foot and hand prints of movie stars from the 1920’s today.

Crime in 1932 
Luigi Malvese, bootleg gangster, was shot to death in front of the Del Monte Barbershop in San Francisco. Police rounded up some 1,000 suspects to pressure gangs to rein in their gunmen.

Newspapers in 1971
Pamoja Venceremos = Together We Will Win was published in Palo Alto. The originally Latino left-wing journal, named for Che Guevera’s battle cry “We will prevail!” continued until 1973.

Saroyan in 1981 
William Saroyan, writer, died in Fresno at age 82. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama (1940) and the Academy Award for Best Story (1943). 

Butler in 1988        
Daws Butler, voice actor, died in Culver City at age 71. He was the voice of Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss and Huckleberry Hound.

Education in 1990 
Trustees of all-women Mills College in Oakland voted to reverse their decision to admit men.

Montgomery in 1995        
Elizabeth Montgomery, film and television actress whose career spanned five decades, died in Beverly Hills at age 62. She was best know for playing the lead role in “Bewitched” (1964 to 1972).

Hollywood in 2001 
DreamWork Studios, of Universal City, released “Shrek,” featuring the voices of Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz.

De Forest in 2007 
Roy De Forest, artist and teacher, died in Vallejo at age 77. At U.C. Davis (1965-1992) he became known for working in Funk and Nut styles, comic-like paintings with patchwork images often depicting dogs and other figures.

Buncke in 2008        
Harry Buncke, microsurgery pioneer, died in San Francisco at age 86. His transplanting a monkey’s great toe to its hand was a breakthrough in attaching amputated digits and limbs. Buncke was called “the father of microsurgery.”

Roman in 2008        
Lawrence Roman, screenwriter, died in Woodland Hills at age 86. His work included the Broadway play and film “Under the Yum-Yum Tree” (1960 and 1963). He wrote more than 20 films and teleplays over 50 years.

Allwine in 2009        
Wayne Allwine, voice actor, sound effects editor and artist for The Walt Disney Company, died in Los Angeles at age 62. He was the voice of Mickey Mouse and his wife, Russi Taylor, was the voice of Minnie Mouse.