Frank Halenkovich (1879 - 1965)

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

In 1879, in the year that Frank Halenkovich was born, on October 22nd, Thomas Edison tested the first practical electric light bulb. Lasting 13½ hours before burning out, it used a "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected to platina contact wires". He applied for a patent on November 4th, receiving the patent in January 1880.

In 1885, Frank was merely 6 years old when Germany's Karl Benz built the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, which had an internal combustion engine. It is considered to be the world's first automobile. The Benz cost $150 - just under $4,000 in today's money.

In 1893, Frank was only 14 years old when a songbook, called Song Stories for the Kindergarten, was published by sisters Patty and Mildred Hill. One of the songs included in the book was "Good Morning to All" - later the lyrics were changed and it became "Happy Birthday to You".

In 1907, he was 28 years old when radiometric dating, a recently discovered technology that could date rocks, found that the earth was 2.2 billion years old which was dramatically older than previously thought. Later refinements and advancements in science would date the age of the earth at over 4.5 billion years.

In 1965, in the year of Frank Halenkovich's passing, the television show "I Spy" premiered in the fall season on NBC. The stars were Bill Cosby and Robert Culp, making Cosby the first African American to headline a television show. Four stations - in Georgia, Florida, and Alabama - refused to air the show.