Felice A Valcourt (1906 - 1990)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Felice's lifetime.

In 1906, in the year that Felice A Valcourt was born, the great San Francisco earthquake hit, estimated at 7.8 on the Richter scale. The earthquake caused fires that raged for days and between the earthquake and the fire, about 3,000 people were killed and 80% of the City was destroyed.

In 1915, at the age of only 9 years old, Felice was alive when in April, the Ottoman Empire rounded up, arrested, and deported 235 to 270 Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Turkey. As their actions continued through the next several years, an estimated 600,000 to 1 million Armenians were killed by Turkish soldiers.

In 1957, at the age of 51 years old, Felice was alive when on September 24th, the "Little Rock Nine" (nine African-American students) entered Little Rock High School. Arkansas Gov. Orval Faubus had previously prevented the students from entering the school at the beginning of the term with the Arkansas National Guard - they blocked the door. President Eisenhower ordered federal troops - the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army - to guard the students and allow them entry.

In 1988, at the age of 82 years old, Felice was alive when on December 16th, 1988 the popular film Rain Man was released. Featuring Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise. this film brought attention to autistic savants and was based on the "megasavant" Laurence Kim Peek. The film would later go to win four Oscars including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director and Best Actor in a Leading Role.

In 1990, in the year of Felice A Valcourt's passing, on April 24th, the Hubble telescope was launched into space after long delays due to the Challenger explosion. An optical flaw was found within weeks of launch but was fixed within three years. The discoveries made possible by the Hubble have contributed to scientists' understanding of the universe.