Jettye Tatum (1907 - 1980)

1907 - In the year that Jettye Tatum was born, 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.

1909 - This person was only 2 years old when explorer Robert Peary, a Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy, claimed to have been the first to have reached the geographic North Pole. His claim has been disputed for over a century - some say that he ended up 60 miles from the North Pole. Peary was the only navigator on his team and he didn't submit his records for public review.

1920 - At the age of merely 13 years old, Jettye was alive when on November 2, radio station KDKA began broadcasting in Pittsburgh, PA. This was the first commercial radio broadcast in the United States. Westinghouse, a leading manufacturer of radios and the backer of the station, chose the date because of the Presidential election. People liked it because they could hear about the results of the election between Harding and Cox before the morning papers arrived. Four years later, there were 600 commercial stations broadcasting in the U.S.

1927 - This person was 20 years old when the first "talkie" (a movie with music, songs, and talking), The Jazz Singer, was released. Al Jolson starred as a cantor's son who instead of following in his father's footsteps as expected, becomes a singer of popular songs. Banished by his father, they reconcile on his father's deathbed. It was a tear-jerker and audiences went wild - especially when they heard the songs. Thus begun the demise of silent films and the rise of "talkies".

1980 - In the year of Jettye Tatum's passing, on December 8th, ex-Beatle John Lennon was shot and killed by Mark David Chapman in front of his home - the Dakota - in New York City. Chapman was found guilty of murder and still remains in jail.