Mary Blair (1876 - 1977)

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

In 1876, in the year that Mary Blair was born, on August 1st, Colorado became the 38th U.S. state. Its nickname is the "Centennial State" because it was admitted just 28 days after the United States' centennial.

In 1915, by the time she was 39 years old, The Birth of a Nation opened in February. A silent film, it was the most ambitious film to date and is considered a classic. Three hours long, it starred Lillian Gish and was directed by D. W. Griffith. The movie was based on the book The Clansman and told the story of two families (one pro-Union and one pro-Confederate) and their relationship during the Civil War and Reconstruction. The KKK was shown as "a heroic force".

In 1928, when she was 52 years old, Mickie Mouse was born! He first appeared in Disney's Steamboat Willie, along with Minnie. Although they were in two previous shorts, this was the first to be distributed. Steamboat Willie took advantage of the new technology and was a "talkie" - music was coordinated with the animation. It became the most popular cartoon of its day.

In 1945, she was 69 years old when on April 12th, Harry S. Truman sworn in as President of the United States at 7p in Washington, D.C. His first term lasted 3 years and 283 days - then he ran for re-election.

In 1977, in the year of Mary Blair's passing, on January 20th, Jimmy Carter became the 39th President of the United States. Running against incumbent Gerald Ford, he won 50.1% of the popular vote to Ford's 48.0%. He was elected to only one term.