Ralph L Angier 1910 - 2007
Ralph Angier's Biography
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Ralph L Angier
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1910 - 2007 World Events
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In 1910, in the year that Ralph L Angier was born, Halley's comet, which returns past the earth every 75 - 76 years was observed photographically for the first time. Two fortuitous events occurred - photography had been invented since the last time the comet had passed and the comet was relatively close. There was panic because one astronomer claimed that the gas from its tail "would impregnate the atmosphere and possibly snuff out all life on the planet." People bought gas masks, "anti-comet pills" and "anti-comet umbrellas".
In 1935, by the time he was 25 years old, on August 14, the Social Security Act was signed into law. The purpose was to "provide federal assistance to those unable to work". The law established the Social Security Administration whose primary focus was to "provide aid for the elderly, the unemployed, and children". The Act survived many Supreme Court challenges and the Administration continues until today.
In 1948, when he was 38 years old, on January 30th, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated in New Delhi by a member of a Hindu nationalist party who thought that Gandhi was too accommodating to Muslims. The man, Nathuram Godse, shot Gandhi 3 times. He died immediately. The shooter was tried, convicted, and hung in November 1949.
In 1950, Ralph was 40 years old when in February, Joe McCarthy gave a speech alleging that he had a list of "members of the Communist Party and members of a spy ring" who worked in the State Department. He went on to chair a committee that investigated not only the State Department but also the administration of President Harry S. Truman, the Voice of America, and the U.S. Army for communist spies - until he was condemned by the U.S. Senate in 1954.
In 1960, by the time he was 50 years old, on September 26th, the first televised debate for a Presidential campaign in the United States - Kennedy vs Nixon - was held. Seventy million people watched the debate on TV. The debate pre-empted the very popular Andy Griffith Show.
