On This Day: Sunday October 1, 2006

This is the 274th day of the year, with 91 days remaining in 2006.

Fact of the Day: pizza

Pizza is a flattened disk of bread dough topped with olive oil, tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese, baked quickly and served hot - and the recipient of various toppings. It originated in 1830 in Naples, Italy and came to America through the Italian community of New York City, where the first pizzeria opened in 1905. After World War II, pizza's popularity soared. According to a survey, about 62% of Americans prefer meat toppings on their pizza, while 38% prefer vegetables. The most popular topping is pepperoni with 37% ordered this way. Americans eat an average of 100 acres worth of pizza daily. There are approximately 61,269 pizzerias in America.

Holidays

China, Nigeria, Cyprus, Palau, Tuvalu: National Day/Independence Day.
Feast day of St. Romanus the Melodist, St. Melorus or Mylor, St. Bavo or Allowin, St. ThérÈse of Lisieux.

Events

331 B.C.E. - Alexander the Great defeated Darius III at Arbela.
1273 - Rudolf of Hapsburg was elected emperor in Germany.
1791 - The National Legislative Assembly of France held its first meeting
1795 - Belgium became part of the French Republic.
1800 - Spain ceded Louisiana to France in a secret Treaty of San Ildefonso.
1843 - "The News of the World," Britain's most popular Sunday newspaper, was first published.
1878 - General Lew Wallace was sworn in as governor of New Mexico Territory.
1885 - Special Delivery mail service began in the United States.
1890 - Yosemite National Park was dedicated in California.
1896 - Rural Free Delivery mail service began in the United States.
1903 - The Boston Americans (eventually Boston Red Sox) played the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first game of the modern World Series.
1908 - Henry Ford introduced the Model T automobile. It cost $825.
1918 - Lawrence of Arabia captured Damascus from the Turks with combined Arab and British forces.
1936 - General Francisco Franco was named leader of Spain's fascist party, Falange, making him head of the Nationalist government.
1938 - German forces entered Czechoslovakia and seized control of the Sudetenland.
1940 - The first section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, 160 miles long, was opened.
1943 - Allied forces captured Naples in World War II.
1946 - Twelve Nazi war criminals were sentenced to be hanged at Nuremberg trials: Karl Donitz, Hermann Goring, Alfred Jodl, Hans Frank, Wilhelm Frick, Ernst Kaltenbrunner, Wilhelm Keitel, Joachin von Ribbentrop, Fritz Saukel, Arthur Seyss-Inquart, Julius Streicher, and Alfred Rosenberg.
1961 - Roger Maris of the New York Yankees hit his 61st home run during a 162-game season, compared to Babe Ruth's 60 home runs during a 154-game season.
1962 - Johnny Carson succeeded Jack Paar as regular host of NBC's "Tonight Show"
1962 - "The Merv Griffin Show" premiered on TV.
1964 - The Free Speech Movement was launched at the University of California, Berkeley.
1965 - A coup against the Indonesian president was crushed by army chief of staff General Suharto. By 1967, Suharto assumed full power in the country.
1971 - Walt Disney World, the world's largest amusement resort, opened in Florida.
1972 - "Kung Fu." debuted on TV.
1982 - Helmut Kohl became federal chancellor of West Germany, succeeding Helmut Schmidt.
1988 - Mikhail Gorbachev was elected president of USSR by Supreme Soviet.
1989 - Thousands of East Germans were welcomed into West Germany when the Communist government allowed them to flee to the west.
1994 - National Hockey League team owners began a 103-day lockout of their players.
2001 - The Supreme Court suspended former President Bill Clinton from practicing before the high court.