The German new-age band Cusco released Apurimac III: Nature-Spirit-Pride, which all tracks are related to Native American cultures of North America. Cusco incorporates their electronic style with Native American music with drum beats, chants, and flute.
The album peaked at #7 on the Billboard Top New Age Albums chart. It's a great way to introduce Native American music to new listeners.
Shenzhou 15 crew (L-R): Fei Junlong, Deng Quingming, Zhang Lu
China successfully launched Shenzhou 15 earlier today, its tenth manned mission of the Shenzhou program, and the fifteenth flight overall, to the Tiangong Space Station. Its crew consists of Commander Fei Junlong, Deng Quingming, and Zhang Lu.
They will meet with the crew of Shenzhou 14, who launched in June 2022 and plan to return in December. The Shenzhou 15 crew is planned to conduct 3-4 EVAs, in addition to their scientific experiments and payload work. They are scheduled to return in May 2023.
Enoch Kelly Haney, born November 12, 1940 in Seminole, Oklahoma, served as the principal chief of the Seminole Nation in Oklahoma, and served in both houses of the Oklahoma Legislature. He was also an artist and his creation The Guardian is the bronze statue that sits atop the Oklahoma State Capitol.
He graduated from Prairie Valley High School in Earlsboro, Oklahoma, and earned an Associate of Arts degree from Bacone College in Muskogee. He obtained his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Oklahoma City University and served in the Oklahoma National Guard.
He was elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1980 to 1986 and then was elected to the Oklahoma Senate from 1986 to 2002. He went on to be the Chief of the Seminole Nation in Oklahoma from 2002 to 2005.
More disco! Silver Convention's Fly, Robin, Fly reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, bumping off KC and the Sunshine Band's That's the Way (I Like It), which had sat at the top of the charts for a week. They are the first German act to have a #1 song on American music charts. Fly, Robin, Fly won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Instrumental Performance in 1976.
It stayed at #1 for three weeks, when it was replaced by That's the Way (I Like It).
Chadwick Boseman, born November 29, 1976 in Anderson, South Carolina, first made waves in his performance as Jackie Robinson in 42, but garnered millions of more fans when he appeared as T'Challa, or Black Panther, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
He first appeared as T'Challa in Captain America: Civil War and went on to play the character in his own movie Black Panther. He performed as T'Challa in Avengers: Endgame, Avengers: Infinity War, and the TV series What If...?
He many awards for his performance as T'Challa and for his performance in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.
Unfortunately, Boseman passed away in August 2020 after a long battle with colon cancer.
Deb Haaland, born December 2, 1960 in Winslow, Arizona, is the first Native American to be appointed to the US Cabinet. She assumed the office of Secretary of the Interior under President Biden in March 2021, after being confirmed by a vote of 51-40.
Haaland is a member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe, and earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of New Mexico, and later earned her Juris Doctor in Indian Law from UNM's School of Law. She ran for Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico in 2014 with Gary King, but lost the election.
She ran for the US House of Representatives for New Mexico in 2018 and won the election. Haaland was one of first two Native American women to be seated in Congress, with Sharice Davids, a representative from Kansas.
Haaland had the support of many Democrats in Congress for the position of Secretary of the Interior before Biden announced her nomination. She wore traditional Laguna Pueblo regalia for her swearing-in ceremony.
William Wirt Hastings, born December 31, 1866 in Benton County, Arkansas, moved with his family to the Cherokee Nation, in Indian Territory. He attended Cherokee tribal school and graduated from Cherokee Male Seminary in 1884. He graduated from Vanderbilt University in Tennessee in 1889 and began his law practice in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
He was first elected to the US House of Representatives, making him the first Native American representative in Congress from Oklahoma. He served for three terms from March 1915 to March 1921. He was defeated by Alice Mary Robertson in 1920, but re-elected in 1923 and served for five more terms to January 1935. He did not seek re-election in 1934 and returned to his practice in Tahlequah.
My girls, the Pointer Sisters, lovely as always, performed at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, November 26, 1998. Ruth, June, and Anita rendered an awesome, upbeat rendition of Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer!
Tony Hillerman, born May 27, 1925 in Sacred Heart, Oklahoma, is a best-selling author of mystery novels featuring Navajo Nation police officers Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee. He is noted for including Navajo culture into his writings.
He served in WWII in the 103rd Infantry Division, and was awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star, and the Purple Heart.
His first novel The Blessing Way, featuring Joe Leaphorn was published in 1970. His fourth novel People of Darkness introduced Jim Chee. Starting with his seventh novel Skinwalkers, Leaphorn and Chee begin working together.
His second novel Dance Hall of the Dead won the 1974 Edgar Award. His novels have won many more awards.
Hillerman passed away in Albuquerque, New Mexico in October 2008.
Ola Mildred "Millie" Rexroat, born August 28, 1917 in Argonia, Kansas, is the only Native American to serve in the Women's Airforce Service Pilots.
Her mother was from the Oglala and Rexroat started public school in Wynona, Oklahoma in 1923. She attended WASP training in Sweetwater, Texas and was given the task of towing target planes for aerial gunnery students at Eagle Pass Army Airfield.
When the WASPs were disbanded in 1944, she joined the Air Force and worked as an air traffic controller at Kirkland Air Force Base in New Mexico, during the Korean War. She continued to work as an air traffic controller for the FAA for 33 years.
She passed away in South Dakota in June 2017, just two months shy of her 100th birthday.
The Mexican fantasy film Santa Claus was released in the US November 24, 1959. It features Pitch, a demon, sent to ruin Christmas by killing Santa Claus and making children do evil. He manages to sabotage Santa's visit to Mexico City by trapping him in a tree with a vicious dog underneath. However, Merlin the magician intervenes and defeat Pitch, allowing Santa to complete his task.
The film has been deemed the worst and the best of the worst. It did win the Golden Gate award for Best International Family Film at the San Francisco International Film Festival in 1959.
Santa Claus was featured in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 Christmas Eve 1993, giving it a cult status.
James Young Deer, born April 1, 1876 in Washington, DC as part of the Nanticoke tribe of Delaware, is the first Native American filmmaker/producer in Hollywood. He joined the US Navy in 1898 and fought during the Spanish-American War, but was subject to racism.
He began acting in 1909 in New York in short films such as The Falling Arrow and Young Deer's Bravery. In 1910 he was hired to direct for a French-based studio in Jersey city, whose movies were criticized that their movies were not realistic portrayals of the Old West. Young Deer went to LA to make "Indian-themed" films. It has been noted that his films portrayed the Native Americans in a favorable light, opposed to the "cliches of hostile Indian warriors or wagon train attacks".
Over his career, he acted in, wrote, or directed about 150 silent movies at Pathe's West Coast Studio.
After about a year in England, he returned to the US, but westerns were less popular at that time. He passed away in New York City in April 1946, and is buried as a veteran of the Spanish-American War.
In 2008, the Library of Congress added White Fawn's Devotion, a film Young Deer wrote and directed, to the National Film Registry.
After three years of delays from the original launch schedule, China successfully launched Chang'e 5 November 23, 2020 (UTC). On November 28, it arrived at the moon and the Lander/Ascender separated from the Orbiter/Returner, landing December 1, near the volcanic complex Mons Rumker in the Northern Oceanus Procellarum.. It took samples of the lunar soil
The Ascender lifted from the lunar surface December 3 and docked with the Orbiter/Returner on December 5, transferring the samples to the return capsule. The Ascender crashed back onto the moon, and the Orbiter/Returner returned to Earth December 16.
China is the third country to send a spacecraft to the moon and return with samples.
Minnie Spotted-Wolf, born in 1923 in Heart Butte, Montana of the Blackfoot tribe, was the first Native American woman to enlist in the US Marine Corps. She enlisted in the Marine Corps Women's Reserve in July 1943. During her service, she served on bases in California and Hawai'i, working as a heavy equipment operator and a driver for general officers. She left the Corps in 1947 and spent 29 years as a teacher. She passed away in 1988.
A section of US Highway 89 in Montana was dedicated to her in 2019.
Plato's Stepchildren, the tenth episode of the third season of Star Trek (original series) aired on November 22, 1968. In this episode, the crew of the Enterprise encounter a planet where the inhabitants possess powerful telekinesis, except for one, who is a little person. Michael Dunn, from Oklahoma, starred as the little person and whipping boy of the others.
It is also purported to be the first interracial kiss on television between Capt. Kirk (William Shatner) and Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), but apparently Nancy Sinatra kissed Sammy Davis Jr. the year before. However, some television stations in the south US would not air it.
Hey, I'm a child of the seventies, back when disco was king! These are the songs we cranked up loud whenever they came on the radio. KC and the Sunshine Band's single That's the Way (I Like It) reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 22, 1975. It stayed at #1 for a week, then got replaced by Silver Convention's Fly, Robin, Fly the following week. Three weeks later, That's the Way (I Like It) reached #1 for a second time for a week.
It was released June 10, 1975 from their second studio album KC and the Sunshine Band.
Clarence "Taffy" Abel, born May 28, 1900 in Sault St. Marie, Michigan, has achieved a lot of firsts for Native Americans. His wikipedia page says he is was a member of the Ojibwe tribe, but the video below says he was from the Sioux tribe of the Chippewas.
He was the first Native American to be a US Olympic flag bearer for the US at the 1924 Winter Olympics where he was a silver medalist in ice hockey. In 1926 he signed with the New York Rangers, becoming the first Native American to play in the National Hockey League. He was part of the team when they won the Stanley Cup in the 1927-1928 season.
He went to the Chicago Black Hawks and helped them win the Stanley Cup in the 1933-1934 season. He retired afterwards.
Joseph "Jocko" Clark, born November 12, 1893 in the Cherokee Nation, in Indian Territory, is the first Native American to graduate from the US Naval Academy. Jocko attended Willie Halsell College, Oklahoma Agriculture and Mechanical College (now OSU), before being appointed to the Naval Academy. He graduated as ensign when he graduated in 1917.
He served aboard the USS North Carolina during WWI. After the war, he graduated as a naval aviator from NAS Pensacola in Florida in March 1925.
He was stationed on the USS Yorktown when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. In 1944, Clark was promoted to Rear Admiral. Subsequently, he was assigned to command the USS Hornet and commanded his task group in conjunction with Task Force in the Battle of the Philippine Sea.
He served during the Korean War and was promoted to Vice Admiral commanding the 7th fleet before retiring from the Navy in December 1953, with the rank of Admiral. He passed away in July 1971.
The Creeping Terror, released November 20, 1964, has been dubbed the second worse movie ever, after Plan 9 from Outer Space. But Plan 9 had a coherent plot, albeit a campy one. Vic Savage directed, produced, and starred in the movie. It follows an alien, resembling a shag carpet, that eats people, terrorizing a small rural town.
According to wikipedia.com, the special effects creator was not paid for his work, so he stole the original costume for the alien monster the day before shooting started so Savage and his crew had to throw together a poor recreation of the costume.
Savage experienced difficulty securing funding so even though filming started in 1962, it wasn't finished until 1963. The movie is almost completely narrated, with very little dialogue. There are several theories on why there was so little speaking.
Savage was sued several times prior to the film's release and disappeared, never to be seen again. It is rumored that he died of liver failure in 1975.
William Thourlby, who played Dr. Bradford, was the face of the Marlboro Man advertising campaign in the 1950s.
The Creeping Terror was featured in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1994.
The Daughter of Dawn, released in October 1920, is probably the first and only silent film to feature an entirely Native American cast. It was shown only a few times and then vanished from history in the 1920s.
In 2005, a private investigator offered the film to the Oklahoma City Museum of Art for $35,000. In 2007, the Oklahoma Historical Society purchased it for $5000. They digitized the film and re-released it in 2013.
The film took place in the Wichita Mountains in southern Oklahoma, and focuses on a love triangle between a Kiowa chief's daughter, a Kiowa and a Comanche, during conflicts between the Kiowa and Comanche tribes.
Over 300 people from the Kiowa and Comanche tribes acted in the film.
It starred Hunting Horse, Oscar Yellow Wolf, Esther LeBarre, White Parker, and Wanada Parker, both children of Quanah Parker.
In 2013, The Daughter of Dawn was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
Hayabusa, the Japanese spacecraft launched in May 2003, landed on the asteroid Itokawa November 19, 2005. It had arrived at the asteroid just two months before. Just as it landed, Hayabusa fired tiny projectiles at the surface and collected the spray. Small specks were collected to be sent back to Earth for analysis.
Hayabusa returned to Earth June 13, 2010 in Australia.
Nicholas Patrick, born November 19, 1964 in Yorkshire, England, has spent almost a month in space.
His first mission was aboard Discovery (STS-116) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in December 2006. He spent almost 13 days in space, 7 of those docked at the space station.
His second and final mission was aboard Endeavour (STS-130) as mission specialist to the ISS in February 2010. He conducted 3 EVAs with fellow astronaut Robert Behnken for a total of more than 18 hours. He spent almost 14 days in space and completed 217 orbits.
Standing Bear, born 1829 in present-day Nebraska, was a member of the Ponca tribe. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 encouraged European-American settlers to swarm to that area. The US Government forced the Ponca tribes as well other Nebraska tribes to sell their land. They were were made to relocate to Indian Territory in present day Oklahoma. During the trip south, Chief Standing Bear's tribe lost a third of their members including Standing Bear's son Bear Shield. To honor his son's dying wish to be buried in their home in the Niobrara River, Standing Bear returned to Nebraska.
After his arrival, he was arrested for having left Indian Territory, but Brigadier General George Crook had grown sympathetic to the plight of the Poncas and allowed them to remain until they could regain their health and seek legal redress.
At this time, the US Government did not recognize Native Americans as human beings and therefore, had no rights. In April 1879, Standing Bear sued for a writ of habeas corpus in the US District Court in Omaha, Nebraska. The judge Elmer Dundy allowed Standing Bear to make a speech. Standing Bear delivered an impassioned speech and during it, he raised his hand and said "That hand is not the color of yours, but if I prick it, the blood will flow, and I shall feel pain." He told the listeners that if they prick their hands, they will also feel pain. "The blood is of the same color as yours. God made me, and I am a Man."
In May 1879, the judge ruled that "an Indian is a person" within the meaning of habeas corpus. It was the first time a Native American was granted civil rights.
Joseph Oklahombi, born May 1, 1895 in Bokchito, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory (east of present-day Durant, Oklahoma), served as a Choctaw code talker in WWI. He was assigned to Company D, First Battalion, 141st Regiment, 71st Brigade of the 36th Infantry Division. While in France in 1918, he and 23 other soldiers attacked an enemy position, capturing 171 Germans, killing about 79 more. He was awarded the Silver Star with Victory Ribbon, and the Croix de Guerre from France. The awards made him the most decorated WWI soldier from Oklahoma.
He passed away in April 1960 after being hit by a truck.
Redbone's Come and Get Your Love peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1974, making them the first Native American band to reach the top five. Brothers Patrick and Candido "Lolly" Vasquez-Vegas, of Yaqui, Shoshone, and Mexican heritage, formed the band with Peter DePoe, and Robert Anthony Avila (stage name Tony Bellamy), also of Yaqui-Mexican descent.
They released their first album Redbone in 1970. Their first major hit (and my favorite) was Witch Queen of New Orleans which was a single released from their third album, Message from a Drum.
In 1973, they released their fifth album Wovoka, which generated the single Come and Get Your Love, which became their biggest hit.
The same album generated the track We Were All Wounded at Wounded Knee, which recalled the massacre of Lakota Sioux Indians by the 7th Cavalry Regiment in 1890. It reached #1 in the Netherlands but did not chart in the US due to it being banned by radio stations due to its political orientation and controversial subject.
One of my favorite episodes of Isis, No Drums, No Trumpets, first aired November 15, 1975. I like it because the climax isn't Isis saving a dopey teenager from doing something stupid. That's actually how the episode begins, which is a strange but welcome turn. The episode ends with Isis actually using her powers to fight crime. Watch the episode below!
JoAnna Cameron appears as the goddess Isis, with Brian Cutler, and Joanna Pang. Mark Lambert plays the sore loser of the high school's science fair. Actress Christopher Norris, who had a supporting role in the episode, would appear in another superhero show. She appeared in the final episode of the first season of Wonder Woman.
Stephanie Byers, born February 5, 1963 in Norman, Oklahoma, is a member of the Chickasaw Nation and the first transgender Native American to be elected to office in the US. She is also the first transgender person to serve in the Kansas Legislature.
She graduated from Oklahoma Christian University with a Bachelor of Music Education, and then Kansas State University with Master of Music in 2015. She was awarded National Educator of the Year by Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, an organization working to end discrimination, harassment, and bullying based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in schools.
She retired from teaching at Wichita North High School in 2019 and the same year, announced she would seek the Democratic nomination for the Kansas House of Representatives for the 86th district. Byers won the election, but did not seek re-election.
David Moniac, born December 1802 in present-day Alabama, was the first Native American to graduate the US Military Academy at West Point, NY in 1822. He was related to major Creek leaders on both sides of his family, and had some Scottish ancestry as well.
After he graduated, he resigned his commission to manage his family's property in Alabama. During the Second Seminole War in 1863, he was recalled into service twice. He first served with the Alabama militia to suppress an uprising of displaced Creek.
In August of that year, Moniac was commissioned as captain of the Creek Mounted Volunteer Regiment, a volunteer unit of Creek warriors led by white officers. He was promoted to major in November. During the Battle of Wahoo Swamp, he and his unit were to find and destroy a Seminole camp. Deep water separated the camp from Moniac's force. He ran into the water to encourage his men to follow, but was shot dead by the Seminoles.
Philae, the European Space Agency lander launched with the Rosetta spacecraft, landed on Comet 67/Churyumov-Geraskimenko November 12, 2014. Unfortunately, the landing did not go as planned. The lander bounced upon landing and ended up on its side. Much of its scientific equipment was rendered unusable, but scientists have been able to use the crash to their advantage. The site of Philae had limited sunlight so its solar batteries could not be charged sufficiently. Contact was lost on November 15.
On June 13, 2015, ground controllers received an 85-second transmission from Philae, forwarded by Rosetta which indicated the lander was in good health. Its batteries had charged sufficiently to come out of safe mode. The final communication came on July 9. Afterwards mission controllers were not able to contact Philae with new investigations. By January 2016, controllers determined that no further communications were likely.
In September 2016, cameras on Rosetta located Philae on the surface of the comet.
William Rogers, born November 4, 1897 in the Cherokee Nation in Indian Territory near what is now Oologah, Oklahoma, is known as "Oklahoma's Favorite Son". He made 71 films, most of them silent movies, and in the mid-thirties, was the highest paid actor in Hollywood. Both of his parents were of Cherokee ancestry.
He began his show business in South Africa as a trick roper and later went to Australia where he worked with the Wirth Brothers Circus. He returned to the US in 1904 and appeared at the St. Louis World's Fair. In April 1905, he was visiting Madison Square Gardens in NYC when a steer broke out and began climbing the viewing stands. Rogers used his roping skills to catch the animal, which delighted the crowd. He worked for the next ten years performing with his horse on the Victoria Roof in NYC.
He appeared in his first movie in Laughing Bill Hyde in 1918. His first sound film came in 1929 in They Had to See Paris.
In 1935, he asked Wiley Post, another Oklahoman, to fly him through Alaska in search of new material for his newspaper column. On August 15, after several stops in Alaska, they left Fairbanks for Point Barrow. About 20 miles south of Point Barrow, Wiley attempted to take off from a lagoon after asking for directions. The engine failed and the plane crashed into the water, killing both men instantly.
The international airport in Oklahoma City is named Will Rogers World Airport. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
SS Edmund Fitzgerald, the largest ship on the Great Lakes at the time, sank in Lake Superior during a storm, November 10, 1975, resulting in the loss of her entire crew of 29. She left Superior, Wisconsin on November 9 under the command of Capt. Ernest McSorley, en route to Zug Island, near Detroit, Michigan.
The National Weather Service tracked a storm, but predicted it would pass south of Lake Superior. The next day, the NWS altered its forecast and reported that gale force winds were expected for Lake Superior.
Just after 3:30pm on Nov 10, Capt. McSorley radioed the Arthur M. Anderson, another cargo ship about 10 miles behind them, to say they were taking on water and they had developed a list. Winds of over 50 knots (58 mph) were observed as were waves up to 25 feet.
Arthur M. Anderson notified McSorley at about 7:10pm and the captain replied "We are holding our own." It was the last message heard from the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Four days later, the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald was located about 15 miles west of Deadman's Cove, Ontario, at a depth of 530 feet. She lay in two pieces with scattered wreckage around. Although the wreck has been extensively researched, there has not been a definitive reason given as to why she sank.
Gordon Lightfoot wrote and composed The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald in 1976 and made it to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Mary Golda Ross, born August 9, 1908 in Park Hill, Oklahoma, was the first Native American female engineer. Her great-grandfather was Cherokee Chief John Ross. She attended primary and secondary school in Tahlequah, where she lived with her grandparents. She earned a Bachelor's degree in mathematics from Northeastern State Teachers' College in 1928, and received her Master's degree from Colorado State Teachers College in 1938.
Ross taught in rural Oklahoma schools for nine years. She worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs as a statistical clerk. She was hired as a mathematician by Lockheed Corporation in 1942 and was a founding engineer of the secretive Skunk Works. During her tenure there, she worked on the Agena Rocket program, and early studies of orbiting satellites.
She passed away in April 2008, just a few months shy of her one hundredth birthday.
Luna 17, launched November 10, 1970, delivered Lunokhod 1, the first robotic rover to the moon. The spacecraft reached the moon November 15 and landed on Nov 17. Lunokhod 1 had eight wheels that could be controlled independently and could travel up to 100 m/hr or about 0.062 mph.
During its mission, it traveled 10.5 km, returned over 20,000 images, and performed 25 soil samples. The last communication with Lunokhod 1 occurred on September 14, 1971. On October 4, attempts to reestablish contact ceased.
Darmstadtium was first created November 9, 1994 at the Institute for Heavy Ion Research in Darmstadt, Germany. Researches bombarded a lead (Pb-208) target with nickel (Ni-62) and created a single atom of the isotope darmstatdium-269. Using heavier isotopes of nickel, they created 9 atoms of Ds-271, confirmed by its decay and the daughter elements.
So far, 10 isotopes of darmstadtium have been reported, with Ds-281 being the most stable, with a half-life of about 12.7 seconds. Due to such a short life span, chemical characteristics have not been determined. However, Ds is extremely radioactive. It is named after the city Darmstadt, where it was discovered.
William A. Durant, born March 18, 1866 in Indian Territory, in what is now Bryan County, Oklahoma, He became a lawyer and practiced in the courts of Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations, as well as the US federal courts. He was elected to the legislature of the Choctaw Nation in 1890 and became its speaker in 1891.
When Oklahoma became a state in 1907, he was elected to the state legislature and served in the first six regular sessions of the Oklahoma Legislature. He became the only Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives to serve simultaneously as the Speaker of the Choctaw Nation.
Durant was appointed by Franklin Roosevelt in 1937 as Principal Chief of the Choctaw Nation until his death in 1948.
Jeffrey Alan Cook, born August 27, 1949 in Fort Payne, Alabama, passed away November 7, 2022. He announced in 2017 that he had contracted Parkinson's disease. He is one of the founding members of the country supergroup Alabama with his cousins Randy Owen and Teddy Gentry. He provided guitar, backing vocals, keyboard and fiddle to the band's sound.
Cook was in ducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2019. While with the group, Cook won multiple Grammy Awards, Country Music Association Awards, and was inducted into Alabama Hall of Fame three times.
Sam Bradford, born November 8 (Happy birthday, Sam!), 1987 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, is the first Native American to win the Heisman Trophy. He is a member of the Cherokee Nation and was drafted in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams. He set a record for most completions by a rookie in NFL history and won NFL Offense Rookie of the Year.
He played football at Putnam City North High School and accepted a scholarship from University of Oklahoma. He became only the second sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy. Bradford played for the Rams, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Minnesota Vikings, and the Arizona Cardinals.
The sequel to Marvel Cinematic Universe's Thor, Thor: The Dark World, was released November 8, 2013. Chris Hemsworth reprised his role as the God of Thunder, with Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba, Sir Anthony Hopkins, and Ray Stevenson.
It surpassed its predecessor's success in only 19 days after release. It earned $206.4M in North American and $438.4M world-wide. Rotten Tomatoes, which doesn't like any movie, gave it a rating of 66%!
Alexander Posey, born August 3, 1873 in Indian Territory, near what is now Eufaula, Oklahoma, was a poet, journalist, politician, and satirist in late 19th century and early 20th century. He grew up speaking Muscogee as their first language but later, his father insisted he and his siblings speak English.
Posey attended Bacone Indian University in Muskogee, Oklahoma where he studied writing. In 1901, he founded the Eufaula Indian Journal, the first Native American daily newspaper. He wrote a series of letters which were published in the Eufaula Indian Journal from a fictional persona, Fus Fixico, satirizing the political climate between Indian Territory and the US government. When the Dawes Act and the Curtis Act of 1898 were enacted to dismantle tribal governments to make way for statehood for Oklahoma, the Five Civilized Tribes met to draft a constitution, which Posey wrote, to establish an indigenous-controlled State of Sequoyah. The proposal was rejected by the US Government and President Theodore Roosevelt.
Posey drowned while trying to cross the flooded North Canadian River in April 1908.
Daryl Hall & John Oates single Private Eyes from their studio album of the same name reached #1 November 7, 1981. It was the first single from their tenth studio album. It stayed at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks.
It was one of their first songs to get heavy rotation on MTV.
DC's mightiest heroine Wonder Woman, based on the character developed by William Moulton Marston,debuted on television November 7, 1975, with the incomparable, beautiful Lynda Carter in the title role. The pilot episode featured Lyle Waggoner (Steve Trevor), the amazing Cloris Leachman (Queen Hippolyta), Red Buttons, Stella Stevens, Fannie Flagg, Henry Gibson, Anne Ramsey, and Kenneth Mars.
The pilot episode was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in Graphic Design and Title Sequences.
The series ran for three seasons from 1975 until 1979.
Samuel Sixkiller, born in 1842 in the Cherokee Nation, which is now Adair County in Oklahoma, was the first Captain of the United States Indian Police in Muskogee. He supported the Confederacy in the Civil War and became a private in the 1st Cherokee Cavalry. At 19, he switched sides and fought for the Union with his father, 1st Lt. Red Bird Sixkiller.
In 1875, he was appointed to High Sheriff of the Cherokee Nation and Warden of the National Penitentiary. The position gave him authority of the Cherokee Nation and he became a Deputy US Marshall. In 1880, he became the first Captain of the United States Indian Police in Muskogee.
In 1886, he was murdered by two men on Christmas Eve. In March 1887, President Grover Cleveland signed a bill that made assault against an Indian policeman a federal offense.
Forge, who first appeared in The Uncanny X-Men comic #184 in August 1984. He is one of dozens of Native American superheroes and is a mutant with the superhuman talent for invention and intuitive genius. He trained as a shaman in the Cheyenne nation, but uses his technology genius rather than his mysticism in conflicts.
He has had a romantic relationship with Storm, and even a brief affair with Mystique. He has been a member of the X-Men, X-Factor, and X-Force.
Forge has made appearances in the animated television series, X-Men (1992); X-Men: Evolution (2000); and most recently in Wolverine and the X-Men (2009).
Famke Janssen, born November 5, 1964 in the Netherlands, is probably best known for her performance as Jean Grey in the X-Men movies. She began as a model in New York City and then later became an actress. She appeared in four of the movies.
She appeared in Star Trek: The Next Generation episode The Perfect Mate with Patrick Stewart, who plays Professor Xavier in the X-Men movies!
She won a Saturn Award (Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films) in 2007 for her performance in X-Men: The Last Stand. She wrote and directed Bringing Up Bobby, a comedy set and filmed in Oklahoma.
Mariner 3, which launched November 5, 1964, was NASA's first attempt to study Mars. Unfortunately, an hour into the flight, telemetry indicated the solar panels were not working. It seemed that a separation had not taken place properly. Eight hours later the batteries in the probe died and the mission was scrapped.
Three weeks later, Mariner 4 was launched successfully to the Red Planet.
Annie Dodge Wauneka, born April 11, 1910 in Arizona Territory, is the first Native American to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She was a member of the Navajo Nation. She survived the 1918 Spanish influenza epidemic and helped care for other flu victims. This experience helped inspire her interest in public health.
She traveled the Navajo Nation with her father Henry Chee Dodge and noticed the lack of medical treatment and poverty. She translated medical terms into Navajo. She hosted a radio show explaining health issues and better care for the Navajo community. Her work improved care for expectant mothers, babies, alcoholism, sanitation, and housing.
She went on to serve on the advisory boards of the US Surgeon General and the US Public Health Service.
President Lyndon B. Johnson awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963.
The Incredible Hulk, starring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno as the titular character, debuted on November 4, 1977. Susan Sullivan appeared in the two-hour premiere. At one time three superhero series existed simultaneously. The Amazing Spider-Man premiered just two months prior and Wonder Woman debuted in 1975.
The Incredible Hulk ran for 5 seasons from 1977 to 1982. It was a ratings success, but was cancelled suddenly at the end of the fifth season. Throughout its run, it garnered three Primetime Emmy awards, winning one for Mariette Harley for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Series.
Navarre Scott Momaday, born February 27, 1934 in Lawton, Oklahoma, is the first Native American to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His father was a full-blooded Kiowa. Scott was granted the award in 1969 for his novel House Made of Dawn, which is considered to be the "first major work of the Native American Renaissance."
He is the first professor to teach American Literature at Moscow State University in Russia. He was awarded a National Medal of Arts in 2007 and is one of the first inductees into the National Native American Hall of Fame.
I admit that I could not finish House Made of Dawn because of Momaday's non-sequential style of writing. However, I think I should try to re-read it, since at the time, I was not aware of its importance.
Elizabeth "Marie" Tallchief, born January 24, 1924 in Fairfax, Oklahoma, became America's first major prima ballerina and the first Native American (Osage) to hold the rank. She started dancing at age three and when she was eight, her family moved to Los Angeles hoping to advance their daughters' dance careers. Both Marie and her younger sister Marjorie studied dancing and both became leading figures in the world of ballet.
At 17, she moved to New York City and danced with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. There, she met choreographer George Balanchine. With his difficult choreography and her passion for dancing, ballet was revolutionized. Her performance as the Sugarplum Fairy in the Nutcracker changed the ballet from obscure to being America's favorite.
In 1949, her role in The Firebird, a work by Igor Stravinsky, put her on top of the ballet world. She became the first American to perform in Moscow's Bolshoi Theater.
She retired in 1966, and actively promoted ballet in Chicago, serving as the director of ballet for the Lyric Opera of Chicago. She was awarded a Lifetime Achievement award from the Kennedy Center.
She passed away in April 2013 in Chicago from complications from hip surgery the previous December.
Expedition 1 crew (L-R): Sergei Krikalev, Bill Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko
Expedition 1 mission patch
Expedition One, which began November 2, 2000, marked the beginning of a constant human presence aboard the International Space Station. Crew members William Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko, and Sergei Krikalev had blasted off just two days before aboard Soyuz TM-31 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The first supply ship, the unmanned Russian spacecraft Progress M1-4 arrived at the station on November 18.
On December 2, Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-97) arrived at the ISS, bringing more equipment for the station. The crew conducted three EVAs prior to boarding the station. The Endeavour's crew returned to Earth December 11.
Expedition One's crew was given Christmas Day and New Year's Day off.
On February 9, 2001, Atlantis (STS-98) docked with the station bringing a crew of five for a temporary stay. By this time, Expedition One had been on board for three months. NASA had noticed a "three-month wall", a psychological barrier that causes depression in previous astronauts. To combat this, NASA allowed more time for them to speak to their families and encouraged them to watch movies and listen to music they liked.
Discovery (STS-102) arrived at the ISS March 10, 2001, bringing a new crew for Expedition 2. Expedition One returned to Earth on Discovery March 21, ending their four and a half months stay in space.
