Today is Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero Day
Dance and be gay! It's Chita Rivera's birthday.

ON THIS DAY
1840 - British colonists reach New Zealand.
1881 Ancient Egyptian obelisk "Cleopatra's Needle" erected in Central Park
1899 - Leaders of six Australian colonies meet in Melbourne to discuss federation
1901 - Edward VII becomes King after his mother, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, dies. Edward had previously been engaged in an affair with pioneering Chelsea Girl, Lillie Langtree
1907 - the first American Indian senator, Charles Curtis of Kansas, began his term in office
1931 - Sir Isaac Isaacs sworn in as the first Australian-born Governor-General of Australia.
1953 - Chelsea Hotel resident, Arthur Miller's The Crucible opens on Broadway.
1971 - John & Yoko record "Power to the People"
1973 - The Supreme Court of the United States delivers its decision in Roe vs. Wade .
1977 - ABBA Dancing Queen released
1983 - Duran Duran Hungry Like the Wolf released
1985 - Andy Warhol goes clubbing with Boy George and Marilyn
1998 - Suspected Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski pleads guilty and accepts a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.
2006 - NASA is scheduled to conduct a gravity-assist maneuver designed to guide the NEAR spacecraft launched in February 1996 toward its primary target, asteroid 433 Eros.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO:
1561 - Sir Francis Bacon, philosopher
1788 - George Gordon, Lord Byron, English poet & very bad boy
1849 - August Strindberg, writer
1875 - D. W. Griffith film-maker
1904 - George Balanchine dancer and choreographer
1933- Chita
1953 - Jim Jarmusch film director
1959 - Linda Blair friend of Satan
We deeply admire Lord Byron even if his work isn't much to our taste. Byron was a kindred spirit, some of these quotes might have come from my mouth if I spoke archaic English.
If he lived today he'd either be numb on anti-depressants or in gaol on drug crimes. More is the pity for western civilisation.
With no further onanism, and because it's my blog and I'll binge if I want to, lots of quotes from Byron.
Those who will not reason, are bigots, those who cannot, are fools, and those who dare not, are slaves
-Lord Byron
Man, being reasonable, must get drunk; the best of life is but intoxication.
-Lord Byron
To have joy one must share it. Happiness was born a twin
-Lord Byron
One certainly has a soul; but how it came to allow itself to be enclosed in a body is more than I can imagine. I only know if once mine gets out, I'll have a bit of a tussle before I let it get in again to that of any other.
-Lord Byron
I am acquainted with no immaterial sensuality so delightful as good acting.
-Lord Byron [who obviously saw Kathleen Turner do Virgina Woolf last year!)
Sorrow is knowledge, those that know the most must mourn the deepest, the tree of knowledge is not the tree of life.
-Lord Byron
n.b. conflicting sources report varying birthdays for Chita.It's either today or tomorrow.