Post Scripts: Historical anniversaries

An article I read in the newspaper last week reminded me that there are a lot of historical dates in this year. You might not think of this because it isn’t the beginning of a new century or even a new decade, but there are a number of special anniversaries in 2011.

One of the most significant anniversaries is Sept. 11, as it marks the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on American soil, when everything changed. No doubt there will be special sections in newspapers and magazines about this sad event.

2011 is the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War. Confederate troops fired the first shots at Fort Sumter in South Carolina April 12, 1861.

2011 is the 100th anniversary of the Indy 500 Auto race in Indianapolis, Ind. Attending the races there is an experience I’ll never forget as I was privileged to attend that race three times. The first time was when I was a newspaper carrier for the Kansas City Journal Post and won that trip as a teenager. What a thrill that was. I was able to attend two more times in later years and even got Kathy to go with me once. It was held on Memorial Day many years but along with many things, that too, has changed. I still enjoy watching it on television.

2011 is the 50th anniversary of several special celebrations. It marks the birth of Marvel Comics, the Peace Corps and Barack Obama. An interesting note is that Obama was born the year John Kennedy became the first Catholic president of the United States. 1961 also saw Castro’s rise to power and the Beatles’ debut performance at the Cavern Club in Liverpool.

Lordy, Lordy, look what’s 40! "The Fight of the Century," between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier was that rare sporting event to live up to expectations March 8, 1971. (Frazier won that one.) From the opposite end of the entertainment spectrum, National Public Radio turns 40 in April.

2011 is the 30th anniversary of a couple of cultural landmarks happening 30 years ago. Television changed forever when "Hill Street Blues" first brought its gritty inner-city realism to middle-class living rooms on Jan. 15, 1981, paving the way for "The Shield" "The Wire" and "The Sopranos." Also 30 years ago on May 1, natural mystic Bob Marley, the singer, song-writer and musician, succumbed to cancer, launching a posthumous career that continues to enlighten and inspire.

2011 is the 25th anniversary of Civil Rights leader, Martin Luther King’s birthday becoming a federal holiday which will be celebrated this year on Jan. 17. Dr. King was a man of

impressive moral presence who devoted his life to the fight for full citizenship right to the poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in the United States. He is well-known for his brilliant "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963 and was chosen Time Magazine’s Man of the Year in 1964 as well as being the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He was born Jan. 15, 1929 and was assassinated April 4, 1968 on the balcony of a Memphis, Tenn., motel where he was spending the night.