Today in History: May 9, FDA approves first birth control pill
In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson, acting on a joint congressional resolution, signed a proclamation designating the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day.
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In 1951, the US conducted its first thermonuclear experiment as part of Operation Greenhouse by detonating a 225-kiloton device, nicknamed 'George,' on Enewetak Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
In 1960, the US Food and Drug Administration conditionally approved Enovid for use as the first oral contraceptive pill.
In 1962, scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology succeeded in reflecting a laser beam off the surface of the moon.
In 1974, 'I saw rock and roll's future and its name is Bruce Springsteen.' So wrote Jon Landau in his review in The Real Paper after the then-little known songwriter-singer opened for Bonnie Raitt at the Harvard Square Theater on this date. The mesmerizing performance and Landau's ecstatic response would catapult the young New Jersey rocker to recognition in Rolling Stone and, eventually, across the music world. Also on this date, the House Judiciary Committee opened public hearings on whether to recommend the impeachment of President Nixon. (The committee ultimately adopted three articles of impeachment against the president, who resigned before the full House took up any of them.)
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In 1980, 35 people were killed when a freighter rammed the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay in Florida, causing a 1,300-foot section of the southbound span to collapse.
In 2019, Pope Francis issued a groundbreaking new church law requiring all Catholic priests and nuns to report clergy sexual abuse and cover-ups by their superiors to church authorities.
In 2023, a jury found Donald Trump liable for sexually abusing advice columnist E. Jean Carroll in 1996, awarding her $5 million in damages.
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Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Teen Thrown from Ride at 'Most Dangerous Amusement Park.' He Died Days Before He Was Supposed to Be His Brother's Best Man
Action Park was a New Jersey amusement park open from May 1978 to September 1996 Throughout the park's time open, it became known for rides that were thrill-seeking at best and dangerous at worst The death of George Larsson Jr. is explored in the 2020 documentary, Class Action ParkThe Larsson family continues to remember a beloved family member whose horrifying death still shocks people to this day. George Larsson Jr. was just 19 years old when he visited Action Park, located on Route 94 in Vernon, N.J., with friends on July 8, 1980. The infamous location for summer fun was the subject of a 2020 documentary, Class Action Park. Created by filmmakers Chris Charles Scott and Seth Porges, the film features the first comments from the Larsson family after they settled for $100,000 and were "subject to a gag order for years," per Esther Larsson and Brian Larsson, George's mom and brother, appear to share their side of the story of his untimely death. George was riding the 2,700-ft. Alpine Slide, which riders would navigate on small sleds that could only accelerate or brake. The trip to the theme park had been a last-minute decision. "He wanted to go to Action Park, so I loaned him the money in the afternoon, and a friend of his went over there to meet him," Esther shares. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. "He goes onto the Alpine Slide, and he's going down the hillside. And the cart break, I don't believe, was working," Brian says of the accident. "He went off the track and, in flipping down the hillside, and into some rocks. And he hit his head on the rocks. Esther was at home when she got the call her son had been injured. Her husband and Brian were working together when they got the call that George was in the hospital. "I didn't think it was any big deal because he was so athletic," Esther shared. "I thought scrapes or bumps or something, maybe a cut, but I had no idea how awful it was. When we got to that hospital, he had been moved to another hospital. I saw the bed that he had been in, and there was blood, all over the pillowcase, all over everything." They rushed to the other hospital, where they got their first look at George and learned the extent of his injuries. "When I first saw my brother, I knew he was hurt bad. I just knew, real bad. They were checking for brain waves to see if he still had brain waves. And not only once, but obviously two times or three times, multiple times, just to see if he was with it or not with it," Brian said. "There was no sign that he was going to wake up," Esther said, noting a family member who was a doctor came to independently examine George and confirm there was nothing further they could do. George died of his injuries on July 16, 1980. The entire family was distraught, with Esther confessing that between the rectory and the hospital, "We were walking across the street and I deliberately walked out in front of a truck." "At that point, my husband pulled me back, and he just screamed at me, 'What were you thinking?' I was thinking I couldn't live with that kind of pain. It just, it hurt so much. And here, 39 years later, I can still feel that pain." It was also devastating for Brian, who was due to get married days later with George as his best man. He noted, "Everything was in a cloud." Further, Gene Mulvihill, owner of Action Park, never contacted the family or the hospital to check on what happened to George after emergency services transported him out of the park. Action Park claimed that the Alpine Slide wasn't responsible for George's death. Rather, they claimed the rock he came in contact with was, and that could have happened anywhere. To protect the park's image, Mulhivill and his team alleged that George was an employee of the park using equipment after hours, so as to not report his death to the state. In reality, George worked at the sister ski resort, but never at Action Park. He was also there during regular business hours. Later, Esther would learn, "The State of New Jersey told them they could not open for the 4th of July, and they wanted to open for the 4th of July, but they never removed the rocks that they were told to remove." "And when my son went on that ride, the car flipped him off and his head hit the rocks," she says, noting his visit was just four days later." The incident would reveal that Mulhivill had "fake liability insurance in the Cayman Islands." As a result, the family was informed that any payout from legal recourse would be minimal. "We eventually settled for $100,000," Esther says. The family, traumatized by what they experienced, moved from New Jersey to Florida as they attempted to heal. While George Larsson Jr. was the first to die at Action Park, he wouldn't be the last. At least another five deaths and countless injuries were attributed to the park from 1980 through its closing in 1996. Mulhivill died on Oct. 27, 2012, at the age of 78. Class Action Park is streaming on HBO Max. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Teen Thrown from Ride at 'Most Dangerous Amusement Park.' He Died Days Before He Was Supposed to Be His Brother's Best Man
Action Park was a New Jersey amusement park open from May 1978 to September 1996 Throughout the park's time open, it became known for rides that were thrill-seeking at best and dangerous at worst The death of George Larsson Jr. is explored in the 2020 documentary, Class Action ParkThe Larsson family continues to remember a beloved family member whose horrifying death still shocks people to this day. George Larsson Jr. was just 19 years old when he visited Action Park, located on Route 94 in Vernon, N.J., with friends on July 8, 1980. The infamous location for summer fun was the subject of a 2020 documentary, Class Action Park. Created by filmmakers Chris Charles Scott and Seth Porges, the film features the first comments from the Larsson family after they settled for $100,000 and were "subject to a gag order for years," per Esther Larsson and Brian Larsson, George's mom and brother, appear to share their side of the story of his untimely death. George was riding the 2,700-ft. Alpine Slide, which riders would navigate on small sleds that could only accelerate or brake. The trip to the theme park had been a last-minute decision. "He wanted to go to Action Park, so I loaned him the money in the afternoon, and a friend of his went over there to meet him," Esther shares. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Class Action Park (@classactionpark) "He goes onto the Alpine Slide, and he's going down the hillside. And the cart break, I don't believe, was working," Brian says of the accident. "He went off the track and, in flipping down the hillside, and into some rocks. And he hit his head on the rocks. Esther was at home when she got the call her son had been injured. Her husband and Brian were working together when they got the call that George was in the hospital. "I didn't think it was any big deal because he was so athletic," Esther shared. "I thought scrapes or bumps or something, maybe a cut, but I had no idea how awful it was. When we got to that hospital, he had been moved to another hospital. I saw the bed that he had been in, and there was blood, all over the pillowcase, all over everything." They rushed to the other hospital, where they got their first look at George and learned the extent of his injuries. "When I first saw my brother, I knew he was hurt bad. I just knew, real bad. They were checking for brain waves to see if he still had brain waves. And not only once, but obviously two times or three times, multiple times, just to see if he was with it or not with it," Brian said. "There was no sign that he was going to wake up," Esther said, noting a family member who was a doctor came to independently examine George and confirm there was nothing further they could do. George died of his injuries on July 16, 1980. The entire family was distraught, with Esther confessing that between the rectory and the hospital, "We were walking across the street and I deliberately walked out in front of a truck." "At that point, my husband pulled me back, and he just screamed at me, 'What were you thinking?' I was thinking I couldn't live with that kind of pain. It just, it hurt so much. And here, 39 years later, I can still feel that pain." It was also devastating for Brian, who was due to get married days later with George as his best man. He noted, "Everything was in a cloud." Further, Gene Mulvihill, owner of Action Park, never contacted the family or the hospital to check on what happened to George after emergency services transported him out of the park. Action Park claimed that the Alpine Slide wasn't responsible for George's death. Rather, they claimed the rock he came in contact with was, and that could have happened anywhere. To protect the park's image, Mulhivill and his team alleged that George was an employee of the park using equipment after hours, so as to not report his death to the state. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Class Action Park (@classactionpark) In reality, George worked at the sister ski resort, but never at Action Park. He was also there during regular business hours. Later, Esther would learn, "The State of New Jersey told them they could not open for the 4th of July, and they wanted to open for the 4th of July, but they never removed the rocks that they were told to remove." "And when my son went on that ride, the car flipped him off and his head hit the rocks," she says, noting his visit was just four days later." The incident would reveal that Mulhivill had "fake liability insurance in the Cayman Islands." As a result, the family was informed that any payout from legal recourse would be minimal. "We eventually settled for $100,000," Esther says. The family, traumatized by what they experienced, moved from New Jersey to Florida as they attempted to heal. While George Larsson Jr. was the first to die at Action Park, he wouldn't be the last. At least another five deaths and countless injuries were attributed to the park from 1980 through its closing in 1996. Mulhivill died on Oct. 27, 2012, at the age of 78. Class Action Park is streaming on HBO Max. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Sophia Bush Goes Full Mom Mode as She Piles Girlfriend Ashlyn Harris' Stroller with All the Things
Sophia Bush is going full mom mode The actress' girlfriend Ashlyn Harris shared a photo of the actress pushing a stroller loaded with lots of things on her Instagram Harris shares her two kids with ex Ali KriegerSophia Bush is going full mom mode. The actress's soccer star girlfriend Ashlyn Harris, 39, shared a series of photos on her Instagram on Friday, June 6, which included a snap of Bush in an elevator. In the photo, Bush could be seen wearing two hats and a backpack, pushing a stroller piled high with bags and bags of things. Harris also included snaps of her two kids — daughter Sloane, 4, and son Ocean, 2 — whom she shares with ex-wife Ali Krieger. "Full week. Full heart," Harris wrote in her caption. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. On Mother's Day this year, Bush shared a sweet message to her girlfriend and added carousel of photos on her Instagram as she celebrated Harris on the spring holiday. In the pictures, Harris could be seen walking with her two kids hand-in-hand as they trudged up a snowy road. A second photo showed Harris and one of her kids dragging a sled through the snow as they got ready to play outdoors. "In awe of the mother you are @ashlynharris24, today and every day. You. You're the gift. To them. To me. To every person lucky enough to be loved by you," Bush sweetly wrote in her caption. "I've never known anyone as magical as you — and I think that's saying a lot because my life is full of some really incredibly magical humans. Happiest day, angel. Thank you for being you 💖." Bush and Harris started dating in October 2023 after they both filed for respective divorces – Harris from Krieger and Bush from ex-husband Grant Hughes. Back in March, Harris and Bush spent some quality time with the former professional athlete's two kids in a sweet post on Instagram. One picture showed Harris in between her two kids, smiling as the three posed together. Another adorable snap featured Bush and Ocean laughing and cuddling together on a couch. "May I always be their soft place to land, the quiet light when the world feels loud," Harris wrote in her caption. "For in their laughter and little hands, I've found my refuge—the place where my heart rests and rises all at once. ⚓️." Read the original article on People
