A Polish programmer auctioned his name on eBay to help pay his rent
The 21-year-old student sold naming rights to his forename for one year, with the winning bidder paying £200 to rename him 'Jake.' He legally changed...
October 6 in History
Significant events that happened on this day.
Historical Events
2014
2007
A British man legally changed his name to 'Captain Fantastic Faster Than Superman Spiderman Batman Wolverine The Hulk And The Flash Combined'
George Garratt, a 19-year-old fan of superheroes, made the change official by deed poll. His friends started calling him 'Captain Fantastic' for short...
1995
Astronomers announced the discovery of the first planet orbiting a sun-like star outside our solar system
MajorSwiss astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz found 51 Pegasi b, a Jupiter-sized planet orbiting its star every four days. This groundbreaking disc...
1981
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was assassinated during a military parade
MajorIslamic extremists opened fire on the reviewing stand, killing Sadat who had made peace with Israel three years earlier. The attack lasted two minutes...
1979
Pope John Paul II became the first pope to visit the White House
The meeting between the Polish pontiff and President Jimmy Carter marked a historic moment in US-Vatican relations. Over 100,000 people lined the stre...
1973
Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israel, starting the Yom Kippur War
MajorThe coordinated assault began on the holiest day in Judaism while Israelis were fasting and at prayer. The war lasted three weeks and nearly led to a...
1939
Adolf Hitler delivered his 'final peace offer' speech to the German Reichstag
MajorAfter invading Poland, Hitler cynically offered peace to Britain and France while his troops continued their assault. The speech was rejected by the A...
1927
The first full-length talking picture 'The Jazz Singer' premiered in New York
MajorAl Jolson's film revolutionized cinema by synchronizing dialogue with action, effectively ending the silent film era. The movie's famous line 'You ain...
1889
The Moulin Rouge cabaret opened its doors in Paris
The iconic red windmill became synonymous with Parisian nightlife and the bohemian Belle Époque era. Its can-can dancers scandalized and delighted aud...
1884
The US Naval War College opened in Newport, Rhode Island
It became the world's first institution dedicated to advanced naval warfare strategy and officer education. The college revolutionized military thinki...
1866
An inventor received a patent for the modern roller skate with four wheels
James Plimpton's 'rocking' skate design with two pairs of wheels revolutionized skating by allowing smooth turns. His invention sparked a roller skati...
1820
Jenny Lind, the 'Swedish Nightingale,' was born in Stockholm
She became one of the most celebrated opera singers of the 19th century, earning extraordinary fees for her performances. P.T. Barnum brought her to A...
1683
German immigrants founded Germantown, Pennsylvania, the first permanent German settlement in America
Thirteen Mennonite families from Krefeld established the community, which became a center of German-American culture. In 1688, these settlers issued t...
Fun Facts from October 6
2010Entertainment
While filming Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides at Greenwich's Old Naval College in 2010, Johnny Depp received a letter from a 9-year-old girl at a nearby school asking Captain Jack Sparrow for help with a "mutiny" against her teachers. With just ten minutes' notice, Depp arrived at the school in full pirate costume — but advised against the idea of mutiny.