Jody Victor : On this day, May eleventh....
1189 Emperor Frederik I Barbarossa & 100,000 crusaders depart Regensburg
1330 Constantinople (Istanbul) becomes new capital by Roman Emperor Constantine for Eastern Roman Empire
1502 Columbus begins 4th & last trip to "Indies"
1751 1st US hospital founded (Pennsylvania Hospital)
1752 1st US fire insurance policy issued (Philadelphia)
1792 Columbia River discovered & named by US Captain Robert Gray
1812 Waltz introduced into English ballrooms - Most observers considered it disgusting & immoral. No wonder it caught on!
1814 Americans defeat British at Battle of Plattsburgh
1818 Cincinnati Reds Hod Eller no-hits St Louis Cardinals, 6-0
1850 Work starts on 1st brick building in San Fransisco
1858 Minnesota admitted as 32nd US state
1862 Confederates scuttle CSS Virginia off Norfolk VA
1864 General J E B Stuart is mortally wounded in Battle of Yellow Tavern VA (Sheridan's Raid, South Anna Bridge)
1875 George "Charmer" Zettlein pitches the 1st 9 inning shutout
1887 13th Kentucky Derby: Isaac Lewis aboard Montrose wins in 2:39¼
1888 16th Preakness: F Littlefield aboard Refund wins in 2:49
1892 18th Kentucky Derby: Lonnie Clayton aboard Azra wins in 2:41½
1894 American RR Union strikes Pullman Sleeping Car Co
1897 Washington Senator catcher Charlie Farrell throws out 8 attempted stealers
1900 James J Jeffries KOs James J Corbett in 23 for heavyweight boxing title
1910 Montana's Glacier National Park forms
1912 38th Kentucky Derby: Carol H Shilling aboard Worth wins in 2:09.4
1916 Einstein's Theory of General Relativity presented
1918 44th Kentucky Derby: William Knapp on Exterminator wins in 2:10.8
1919 Yankees' Jack Quinn & Senators' Walter Johnson, 12 inning 0-0 tie
1923 10 homeruns hit in Phillies 20-14 victory over St Louis Cardinals
1924 Pulitzer Prize awarded to Robert Frost (New Hampshire)
1927 Louis B Mayer forms Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences
1928 56th Preakness: Raymond Sonny Workman aboard Victorian wins in 2:00.2
1928 63rd British Golf Open: Walter Hagen shoots a 292 at Royal St George's
1928 General Electric opens 1st TV-station (Schenectady NY)
1929 1st regularly scheduled TV broadcasts (3 nights per week)
1935 61st Preakness: Willie Saunders aboard Omaha wins in 1:58.4
1940 66th Preakness: Fred A Smith aboard Bimelech wins in 1:58.6
1940 New York World's Fair reopens
1941 1st Messerschmidt 109F shot down above England
1943 Hermann Goering-division in Tunisia surrenders
1943 US 7th division lands on Attu, Aleutian, (1st US territory recaptured)
1945 US marines conquer Awatsha Draw Okinawa
1946 1st night game at Boston Braves Field (Giants 5, Braves 1)
1947 BF Goodrich manufactures 1st tubeless tire, Akron OH
1949 1st Polaroid camera sold for $89.95 (NYC)
1949 By a vote of 37-12, Israel becomes 59th member of UN
1949 Siam renames itself Thailand
1951 Jay Forrester patents computer core memory
1953 Tornado kills 114 in Waco TX ($39 million damage)
1958 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Bikini Island
1958 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Enwetak
1959 "Kookie, Kookie Lend Me Your Comb" by Byrnes & Connie Stevens hits #4
1959 Elvis Presley's 1st entry on UK charts with "Heartbreak Hotel"
1959 Rodgers & Barer's musical "Once Upon a Mattress" premieres in NYC
1959 Yankee catcher Yogi Berra's errorless streak of 148 games ends
1960 Israeli soldiers capture Adolf Eichmann in Buenos Aires
1962 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Christmas Island
1963 "Puff (The Magic Dragon)" by Peter, Paul & Mary hits #2
1963 Los Angeles Dodger Sandy Koufax 2nd no-hitter beats New York Giants, 8-0
1965 Ellis Island added to Statue of Liberty National monument
1967 100,000,000th US phone connected
1968 Richard Harris releases "MacArthur Park"
1968 Stanley Cup: Montréal Canadiens sweep St Louis Blues in 4 games
1969 Monty Python comedy troupe forms
1970 Sammy Davis Jr weds Altovise
1971 Cleveland's Steve Dunning becomes last American League pitcher to hit grand slam
1972 John Lennon says his phone is tapped by the FBI on Dick Cavett Show
1972 San Francisco Giants trade Willie Mays to New York Mets for pitcher Charlie Williams & cash
1972 Stanley Cup: Boston Bruins beat New York Rangers, 4 games to 2
1972 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1974 Steely Dan releases "Rikki Don't Lose that Number"
1976 Last broadcast of "Marcus Welby, MD" on ABC-TV
1978 Margaret A Brewer is 1st female general in the US Marine Corps
1980 Pam Higgins wins LPGA Lady Michelob Golf Tournament
1980 Pete Rose, 39, steals second, third, & home in one inning for Phillies
1981 Andrew Lloyd Webber/TS Eliot's musical "Cats" premieres in London
1981 Kim Carnes' "Bette Davis Eyes" hits #1, stay there 9 weeks
1983 "Dance a Little Closer" opens & closes at Minskoff Theater NYC
1984 Tigers set best 30 game start record (26-4)
1984 Transit of Earth as seen on Mars
1985 Dave Concepcion becomes 4th Cincinnati Red teammate to get 2,000 hits, the others include Pete Rose, Tony Perez & Cesar Cedeno
1985 Madonna's "Crazy For You" single goes #1
1987 1st heart-lung transplant takes place (Baltimore)
1987 Corazon Aquino is elected President in the Philippines
1988 Mario Andretti records fastest Indianapolis 500 lap (221.565 mph)
1989 217th & final episode of "Dynasty" is aired
1989 Kenya announces worldwide ban on ivory to preserve its elephant herds
1990 New York Yankees trade Dave Winfield to Angels for Mike Witt
1993 28th Academy of Country Music Awards: Garth Brooks wins
1994 "Grease" opens at Eugene O' Neill Theater NYC for 1,503 performances
1996 Florida Marlin Al Leiter no hits Colorado Rockies, 11-0
1996 Valujet DC-9 crashes in Miami, 109 die
1997 New York Mets C Everett & Butch Huskey are 9th to hit consecutive pinch HRs