Monday, November 15, 2010

de rigueur \duh ri-GUR\, adjective:

• Strictly required, as by etiquette, usage, or fashion.

De rigueur literally means "of strictness" in French.

X-rayted

• TSA rating for airport, naked body scan images.

Scanner Operator: "Hey Sarge, check out these X-rayted pics that I scanned this afternoon".

Trivia

What is genericide?

• The process by which a brand name—such as Thermos or Aspirin—becomes a generic name.

History

• Pikes Peak: explorer Zebulon Pike first spotted the 14,000-foot (4,267 m.) Colorado mountain that eventually bore his name (1806)
• March to the Sea: Union commander Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman began his attack "into the very bowels of the Confederacy" during the American Civil War (1864)
• Brazil: became a republic when its emperor, Pedro II, was deposed (1889)
• Wendy's: the first branch of the fast food chain was opened by Dave Thomas in Columbus, Ohio (1969)
• Moratorium to end the war in Vietnam: up to an estimated half-million protesters marched peacefully on Washington, DC (1969)

Birthdays

• William Pitt the elder (1708-1778): British war minister and orator who was known as the "Great Commoner"
• William Herschel (1738-1822): astronomer who discovered Uranus
• Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986): painter of bleached bones and flowers
• Marianne Moore (1887-1972): award-winning modernist poet
• Sam Waterston (70): Jack McCoy on Law and Order; also, actors Ed Asner (80), Yaphet Kotto (71), Bob Gunton (65), Jay Harrington (39), Jonny Lee Miller (38), Virginie Ledoyen (34) and Sean Murray (33)
• Petula Clark (78): singer of "Downtown"; musicians Frida (65), Kevin Eubanks (53) and E-40 (43) share this birthday