What Happened On This Day ? March 8
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1979
The compact disc is presented to the public
The CD was developed by Philips and Sony. The companies later collaborated to produce a standard format and CD players.
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1978
The first episode of the radio comedy The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is broadcast
Douglas Adams' radio play was a major success with BBC Radio 4 listeners. The book version consisting of five novels - A Trilogy in Five Parts - became a worldwide success.
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1971
In the Fight of the Century, Joe Frazier triumphs over Muhammad Ali
Ali had been stripped of his World Heavyweight Champion title in 1967 for refusing to serve in the armed forces. As he was still undefeated, Frazier had to beat him to be recognized as the world champion.
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1910
Raymonde de Laroche becomes the first woman with a pilot's license
The French aviatrix was also the first woman to fly solo. She died at the age of 36 when her experimental plane crashed at Le Crotoy airfield in northern France.
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1817
The New York Stock Exchange is founded
The NYSE at 11 Wall Street in New York City is the world's largest stock exchange.
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1990
Petra Kvitova
Czech tennis player
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1952
George Allen
American politician, 67th Governor of Virginia
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1907
Konstantinos Karamanlis
Greek politician, 3rd President of Greece
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1879
Otto Hahn
German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
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1841
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
American jurist
-
1999
Joe DiMaggio
American baseball player
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1942
Jose Raul Capablanca
Cuban chess player
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1930
William Howard Taft
American politician, 27th President of the United States
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1917
Ferdinand von Zeppelin
German general, businessman
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1869
Hector Berlioz
French composer