Word of the Day for Wednesday, July 2, 2008

laconic \luh-KON-ik\, adjective:

• Using or marked by the use of a minimum of words; brief and pithy; brusque.

Dress Flops

• When the new young preps have two pairs of Rainbows flip flops and one of which they consider new and clean enough for formal occasions.

Dude, I can't wear these to dinner. I'll stop by my place and put on my dress flops.

Trivia

What baseball star turned sportscaster is heard on the Meat Loaf recording of "Paradise by the Dashboard Light"?

• Hall of Famer Phil Rizzuto. The former New York Yankee shortstop provided the baseball play-by-play in the 1977 song about a lover’s lane makeout session in the backseat of a car.

Today in History

• James A.Garfield: US president was shot by Charles J. Guiteau; he died on September 19 (1881)
• Amelia Earhart: disappeared with her navigator, Fred Noonan, while attempting the first round-the-world flight at the equator (1937)
• Wal-Mart: retail giant opened its first store, in Rogers, Arkansas (1962)
• Civil Rights Act: legislation that offered strong protection of minorities' rights was signed by US President Lyndon B. Johnson, who used over 75 pens (1964)
• Susan B. Anthony dollar: the 1st US coin to honor a woman was introduced (1979)
• artificial heart: first self-contained model was received by Robert Tools; he lived with it for 151 days (2001)

Today's Birthdays

• Thurgood Marshall (1908-1993): first black US Supreme Court justice
• Richard Petty (71): winner of a record 200 NASCAR races, including a record seven Daytona 500s
• Vincente Fox (66): former president of Mexico; former heads-of-state Sir Alec Douglas-Home (1903-1995) and Patrice Lumumba (1925-1961) were also born on this date
• Ashley Tisdale (23): actress, High School Musical 2; actors Robert Ito (77), Polly Holliday (71), Ron Silver (62), Jerry Hall (52) and train wreck Lindsay Lohan (22) share this birth date