On this day in 1519, daughter of Pope Alexander VI, Lady of Pesaro and Gradara, Duchess of Bisceglie and Princess of Salerno, Duchess of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio, Lucrezia Borgia died in Ferrara, Italy at the age of 39 from complications after giving birth to her eighth child, having had a lifelong history of complicated pregnancies and miscarriages. Born in Subiaco, near Rome on 18 April 1480. Her mother was Vannozza dei Cattanei, one of the mistresses of Lucrezia’s father, Rodrigo Borgia (Pope Alexander VI). Her brothers included Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, and Gioffre Borgia. Lucrezia’s family later came to epitomize the ruthless Machiavellian politics and sexual corruption characteristic of the Renaissance Papacy. Lucrezia was cast as a femme fatale, a role she has been portrayed as in many artworks, novels, films and an opera. Very little is known of Lucrezia, and the extent of her complicity in the political machinations of her father and brothers is unclear. They certainly arranged several marriages for her to important or powerful men in order to advance their own political ambitions. Lucrezia was married to Giovanni Sforza (Lord of Pesaro), Alfonso of Aragon (Duke of Bisceglie), and Alfonso I d’Este (Duke of Ferrara). Tradition has it that Alfonso of Aragon was an illegitimate son of the King of Naples and that Lucrezia’s brother Cesare may have had him murdered after his political value waned.
The Final Footprint – Lucrezia was entombed in the convent of Corpus Domini. On 15 October 1816, the Romantic poet Lord Byron visited the Ambrosian Library of Milan. He was delighted by the letters between Borgia and her one-time lover, poet Pietro Bembo (“The prettiest love letters in the world”) and claimed to have managed to steal a lock of her hair (“the prettiest and fairest imaginable”) held on display. Victor Hugo’s 1833 stage play Lucrèce Borgia, loosely based on the stories of Lucrezia, was transformed into a libretto by Felice Romani for Donizetti’s opera, Lucrezia Borgia (1834), first performed at La Scala, Milan, 26 December 1834.
#RIP #OTD in 1909 novelist, short story writer (The Country of the Pointed Firs), poet, Sarah Orne Jewett died in her South Berwick, Maine from a stroke aged 59. Portland Street Cemetery, South Berwick, Maine
#RIP #OTD in 1933 soprano, called “The Black Patti” in reference to Italian opera singer Adelina Patti, Sissieretta
Jones died from cancer at the Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island aged 64-65. Grace Church Cemetery, Providence
#OTD #RIP in 1935 French-born Argentine singer, songwriter, composer and actor, the most prominent figure in the history of tango, «El Zorzal”, “The King of Tango” Carlos Gardel died in an airplane crash in Medellín, Columbia, aged 44. La Chacarita Cemetery in Buenos Aires
On this day in 1987 comedian, actor and musician Jackie Gleason died at his home in Lauderhill, Florida at the age of 71. Born Herbert Walton Gleason, Jr. on 26 February 1916 in either Bushwick or Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. Perhaps best known for his role on television as Ralph Kramden in The Honeymooners and for The Jackie Gleason Show (1952-1970). His most noted film roles were as Minnesota Fats in the drama film The Hustler (1961) starring Paul Newman, and as Buford T. Justice in the Smokey and the Bandit movie series. Gleason married three times; Genevieve Halford (1936-1970 divorce), Beverly McKittrick (1970-1975 divorce) and Marilyn Taylor (1975-1987 his death). His trademark phrases were “And away we go!” and “How sweet it is!”. In my opinion, The Honymooners is, without question, the “Bang, Zoom” funniest show that ever aired on television. And I will stand on Jerry Seinfeld’s coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that. I remember watching The Jackie Gleason Show as a kid. Gleason was hilarious in Smokey and the Bandit.
The Final Footprint – Gleason is entombed in a private mausoleum in Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Cemetery in Miami, Florida. Engraved at the base of the mausoleum is his epitaph; “AND AWAY WE GO”. A life-size statue of Gleason, in full uniform as bus driver Ralph Kramden, stands outside the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City. Another statue stands at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in North Hollywood, California, showing Gleason in his famous “And away we go!” pose. Local signs on the Brooklyn Bridge, which indicate to drivers that they are entering Brooklyn, have the Gleason phrase “How Sweet It Is!” as part of the sign.
On this day in 2014, actor, graduate of the University of Texas, Eli Wallach died of natural causes at the age of 98 in Manhattan. Born Eli Herschel Wallach on 7 December 1915 in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Wallach’s career spanned more than six decades, beginning in the late 1940s. On stage, he often co-starred with his wife, Anne Jackson, becoming one of the best-known acting couples in the American theater. Wallach initially studied method acting under Sanford Meisner, and later became a founding member of the Actors Studio, where he studied under Lee Strasberg. His versatility gave him the ability to play a wide variety of different roles throughout his career, primarily as a supporting actor.
For his debut screen performance in Baby Doll, he won a BAFTA Award for Best Newcomer and a Golden Globe Award nomination. Among his other most famous roles are; Calvera in The Magnificent Seven (1960), Guido in The Misfits (1961), and Tuco in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), Don Altobello in The Godfather Part III, Cotton Weinberger in The Two Jakes (both 1990), and Arthur Abbott in The Holiday (2006). One of America’s most prolific screen actors, Wallach remained active well into his nineties, with roles as recently as 2010 in Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps and The Ghost Writer.
Wallach received BAFTA Awards, Tony Awards and Emmy Awards for his work, and received an Academy Honorary Award at the second annual Governors Awards, presented on November 13, 2010. Wallach and Jackson were married from 1948 until his death.
The Final Footprint – Wallach was cremated.
Have you planned yours yet?
Follow TFF on twitter @RIPTFF
On this day in 1863 painter Horace Vernet died in Paris at the age of 73. Born Émile Jean-Horace Vernet on 30 June 1789 in the Louvre in Paris. Vernet’s father Carle Vernet and grandfather Claude Joseph Vernet were painters.
The Final Footprint
On this day in 1933, artist and designer Louis Comfort Tiffany died in New York City at the age of 84. Born on 18 February 1848 in New York City, the son of Charles Lewis Tiffany, founder of Tiffany and Company; and Harriet Olivia Avery Young. Tiffany worked in the decorative arts and is best known for his work in stained glass. He is the American artist most associated with the Art Nouveau and Aesthetic movements. Tiffany was affiliated with a prestigious collaborative of designers known as the Associated Artists. Tiffany designed stained glass windows and lamps, glass mosaics, blown glass, ceramics, jewelry, enamels and metalwork. Tiffany married twice: Mary Woodbridge Goddard (1872 – 1884 her death) and Louise Wakeman Knox (1886 – 1904 her death).
The Final Footprint – Tiffany is interred in Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn. Other notable final footprints at Green-Wood include; Albert Anastasia, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Leonard Bernstein, Lorenzo da Ponte, and Charles Ebbes.
On this day in 1996, U.S. Congresswoman, Texas Senator, Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, Barbara Jordan, died in Austin, Texas. Born Barbara Charline Jordan on 21 February 1936 in Houston, Texas. She was the first African-American elected to the Texas Senate after reconstruction and the first Southern black woman ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Jordan was mentioned as a possible running mate to Jimmy Carter in 1976. That year, she became the first African-American woman to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention. Jordan retired from politics in 1979 and became an adjunct professor teaching ethics at the University of Texas at Austin Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs.
The Final Footprint – Jordan is interred in the Texas State Cemetery in Austin becoming the first African-American woman interred there. Her grave is marked by a large granite upright column monument and a full ledger granite marker. At the top of the column the word, PATRIOT, is engraved and the ledger is engraved in part; WE THE PEOPLE SALUTE YOU. Upon her death, Jordan lay in state at the LBJ Library on the campus of The University of Texas at Austin. The main terminal at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is named after her. On April 24, 2009, a Barbara Jordan statue was unveiled at the University of Texas at Austin. Other notable final footprints at Texas State Cemetery include; Stephen F. Austin, John B. Connally, Nellie Connally, J. Frank Dobie, Tom Landry (cenotaph), James A. Michener (cenotaph), Ann Richards, Edwin “Bud” Shrake, Big Foot Wallace, and Walter Prescott Webb.
On this day in 1942, Academy Award nominated actress, Carole Lombard, died on Mount Potosi near Las Vegas, Nevada at the age of 33. Born Jane Alice Peters on 6 October 1908 in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She is particularly noted for her roles in the screwball comedies of the 1930s. Lombard is listed as one of the American Film Institute’s greatest stars of all time and was the highest-paid star in Hollywood in the late 1930s. Graham Greene praised the “heartbreaking and nostalgic melodies” of her faster-than-thought delivery: “Platinum blonde, with a heart-shaped face, delicate, impish features and a figure made to be swathed in silver lamé, Lombard wriggled expressively through such classics of hysteria as Twentieth Century and My Man Godfrey.” Lombard was married twice; William Powell (1931 – 1933 divorce) and Clark Gable (1939 – 1942 her death). Lombard and Gable eloped in Kingman, Arizona on the 29 March 1939. The couple, both lovers of the outdoors, bought a 20-acre ranch in Encino, California, where they kept barnyard animals and enjoyed hunting trips. Lombard and 21 others, including her mother, were killed when TWA Flight 3 crashed on returning to California from a war bond rally in Indiana. 
On this day in 2009, visual artist Andrew Wyeth died in his sleep in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, after a brief illness, at the age of 91. Born Andrew Newell Wyeth on July 12, 1917 in Chadds Ford.
The Final Footprint
On this day in 1947, The Black Dahlia, Elizabeth Short‘s body was found in the Leimert Park district of Los Angeles, the victim of a gruesome and much-publicized murder, at the age of 22. Born Elizabeth Short on 29 July 1924 in Boston, Massachusetts. Short acquired the nickname posthumously by newspapers in the habit of nicknaming crimes they found particularly colorful. Short’s unsolved murder has been the source of widespread speculation, leading to many suspects, along with several books and film adaptations of the story. 
On this day in 1983, major organized crime figure, the “Mob’s Accountant”, Meyer Lansky died of lung cancer at the age of 80 in Miami Beach. Born Meyer Suchowlansky in Grodno (then in Russian Empire, now in Belarus) on 4 July 1902. Along with his associate Charles “Lucky” Luciano, Lansky was instrumental in the development of the “National Crime Syndicate” in the United States. For decades he was thought to be one of the most powerful individuals in the country. Lansky developed a gambling empire which stretched across the seas. He was said to own points in casinos in Las Vegas, Cuba, The Bahamas and London. Although a member of the Jewish Mob, Lansky undoubtedly had strong influence with the Italian Mafia and played a large role in the consolidation of the criminal underworld (although the full extent of this role has been the subject of some debate, as he himself denied many of the accusations against him). Despite all the reports, the U.S. Justice Department never found Lansky guilty of anything more serious than illegal gambling. 
On this day in 2018, musician, singer and songwriter Dolores O’Riordan died as a result of accidental drowning in a bathtub due to sedation by alcohol intoxication at the London Hilton on Park Lane hotel in Mayfair, London, at the age of 46. Born Dolores Mary Eileen O’Riordan on 6 September 1971 in Ballybricken, County Limerick, Ireland. She was the vocalist for rock band The Cranberries from 1990 until their break-up in 2003, later reuniting with her band in 2009, which she led until her death in 2018.
The Final Footprint
On this day in 2019, 
On this day in 1957, U.S. Navy veteran, Academy Award-winning actor and American icon, Bogie, Humphrey Bogart, died from cancer at his home in Holmby Hills, California at the age of 57. Born Humphrey DeForest Bogart on 25 December 1899 in New York City. Bogart is a Dutch name meaning orchard. His acting breakthrough came in 1941, with High Sierra and The Maltese Falcon. The next year, his performance in Casablanca raised him to the peak of his profession and cemented his trademark film persona; the hard-boiled cynic who ultimately shows his noble side. Bogart’s other notable movies included; To Have and Have Not (1944), The Big Sleep (1946), Dark Passage (1947), Key Largo (1948), with his wife Lauren Bacall; The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948); The African Queen (1951), for which he won his only Academy Award; Sabrina (1954) and The Caine Mutiny (1954). His last movie was The Harder They Fall (1956). During a film career of almost thirty years, he appeared in 75 feature films. Bogart was married four times; Helen Menken (1926 – 1927 divorce), Mary Phillips (1928 – 1937 divorce), Mayo Methot (1938 – 1945 divorce), Bacall (1945 – 1957 his death).
On this day in 1977, author Anaïs Nin died in Los Angeles, California after a three year battle with cancer, at the age of 73. Born Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmell on 21 February 1903 in Neuilly, France to a Cuban father and a French/Danish mother. Nin wrote journals (which span more than 60 years, beginning when she was 11 years old and ending shortly before her death), novels, critical studies, essays, short stories, and erotica; including Delta of Venus (1977), Little Birds (1979) and Henry and June (1986). On 3 March 1923, in Havana, Cuba, Nin married her first husband, Hugh Parker Guiler (1898–1985), a banker and artist, later known as “Ian Hugo” when he became a maker of experimental films in the late 1940s. According to her diaries, Vol.1, 1931–1934, Nin shared a bohemian lifestyle with writer Henry Miller during her time in Paris. The diaries tell that her union with Miller was very passionate and physical, and that she believed that it was a pregnancy by him that she aborted in 1934. In 1947, at the age of 44, she met former actor Rupert Pole in a Manhattan elevator on her way to a party. The two ended up dating and traveled to California together; Pole was sixteen years her junior. On 17 March 1955, she married him at Quartzsite, Arizona, returning with Pole to live in California. Guiler remained in New York City and was unaware of Nin’s second marriage until after her death in 1977, or chose not to know. Nin referred to her simultaneous marriages as her “bicoastal trapeze”. In 1966, Nin had her marriage with Pole annulled, due to the legal issues arising from both Guiler and Pole having to claim her as a dependent on their federal tax returns. Though the marriage was annulled, Nin and Pole continued to live together as if they were married, up until her death in 1977. Nin often cited authors Djuna Barnes and D. H. Lawrence as inspirations. 
On this day in 1986, actress Donna Reed died 
On this day in 2006, actress Shelley Winters died from heart failure at the Rehabilitation Center of Beverly Hills, at the age of 85. Born Shirley Schrift on August 18, 1920 in St. Louis, Missouri. Her career spanned almost six decades.
Winters was married four times. Her husbands were:
The Final Footprint
On this day in 2009, actor Ricardo Montalbán died from congestive heart failure at his home in Los Angeles at age 88. Born Ricardo Gonzalo Pedro Montalbán y Merino on November 25, 1920 in Mexico City. His career spanned seven decades, during which he became known for many different performances in a variety of genres, from crime and drama to musicals and comedy.
The Final Footprint
On this day in 2016, actor and director Alan Rickman died in London 
On this day in 2010, singer Teddy Pendergrass died from respiratory failure with his wife Joan by his side, at Bryn Mawr Hospital in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania at the age of 59. Born Theodore DeReese Pendergrass on March 26, 1950 in Philadelphia. He initially rose to musical fame as the lead singer of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. After leaving the group over monetary disputes in 1976, Pendergrass launched a successful solo career under the Philadelphia International label, releasing four consecutive platinum albums, then a record for an African-American R&B artist. Pendergrass’ career was suspended after a near-fatal car crash in March 1982 that left him paralyzed from the chest down. Pendergrass continued his successful solo career until announcing his retirement in 2007. Pendergrass died from respiratory failure in January 2010.
The Final Footprint
On this day in 2001, thoroughbred racehorse, Champion Two-Year-Old Colt (1977), Champion Three-Year-Old Male (1978), Two-X Horse of the Year (1978, 1979) and 11th Triple Crown Winner (1978), Affirmed, died at Jonabell Farm near Lexington, Kentucky, age 25. Affirmed was euthanized after falling seriously ill with laminitis, a circulatory hoof disease. The same disease led to the death of fellow Triple Crown winner Secretariat. Foaled on 21 February 1975 at Harbor View Farm near Fellowship, Florida. Affirmed was the great-great-grandson of Triple Crown winner War Admiral through damsire Crafty Admiral, and thereby the great-great-great grandson of Man o’ War who won two of the three Triple Crown races himself. Affirmed was also known for his famous rivalry with Alydar, whom he met ten times, including in all three Triple Crown races and where Alydar became the first racehorse to finish second in all three Triple Crown races. I remember watching all three of those races that year. I fell in love with both of these beautiful chestnut horses. Affirmed was trained by Hall of Fame trainer Laz Barrera. Barrera once said: “Affirmed is greater than Secretariat, or any Triple Crown winner, because only Affirmed had to face Alydar.” During the Triple Crown races, Affirmed was ridden by Hall of Fame jockey Steve Cauthen. 
On this day in 2003, musician, singer, songwriter Maurice Gibb died unexpectedly due to complications of a twisted intestine, with his wife, children, and brothers at his side at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, Florida at the age of 53. Born Maurice Ernest Gibb on 22 December 1949 in Douglas, Isle of Man. He achieved fame as a member of the pop group Bee Gees. Although his brothers Barry and Robin Gibb were the group’s main lead singers, most of their albums included at least one or two compositions by Maurice, including “Lay It on Me”, “Country Woman”, and “On Time”. Gibb’s role in the group focused on melody and arrangements, providing backing vocal harmony and playing a variety of instruments.
On this day in 2007, jazz musician and composer, and swamini, Alice Coltrane died of respiratory failure at West Hills Hospital and Medical Center in suburban Los Angeles, aged 69. Born Alice McLeod on August 27, 1937 in Detroit. Also known by her adopted Sanskrit name Turiyasangitananda or Turiya. One of the few harpists in the history of jazz, she recorded many albums as a bandleader, beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s for Impulse! and other major record labels. She was the second wife and the widow of jazz saxophonist and composer John Coltrane.
The Final Footprint
On this day in 1843, lawyer, author, and poet, Francis Scott Key, died at the home of his daughter Elizabeth Howard in Baltimore, Maryland at the age of 63. Born on 1 August 1779 in Carroll County Maryland. During the War of 1812, Key dined aboard the British ship HMS Tonnant, as a guest of the British. Key was there to negotiate the release of prisoners. Key was not allowed to return to his own sloop: he had become familiar with the strength and position of the British units and with the British intent to attack Baltimore. As a result, Key was unable to do anything but watch the bombarding of the American forces at Fort McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore on the night of 13 September – 14 September 1814. When the smoke cleared, Key was able to see an American flag still waving and reported this to the prisoners below deck. On the way back to Baltimore, he was inspired to write a poem describing his experience, “The Defence of Fort McHenry”, which he published in the Patriot on 20 September 1814. He intended to fit the words to the rhythms of composer John Stafford Smith‘s “To Anacreon in Heaven”. It became known as “The Star Spangled Banner”. Under this name, the song was adopted as the American national anthem, first by an Executive Order from President Woodrow Wilson in 1916 (which had little effect beyond requiring military bands to play it) and then by a Congressional resolution in 1931, signed by President Herbert Hoover. In 1832, Key served as the attorney for Sam Houston during his trial in the U.S. House of Representatives for assaulting another Congressman. Key was a distant cousin and the namesake of F. Scott Fitzgerald whose full name was Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald. Scott was married to Mary Tayloe “Polly” Lloyd (1784 – 1843 his death). 
On this day in 2015, actress Anita Ekberg died at the clinic San Raffaele in Rocca di Papa in Castelli Romani, Italy, at the age of 83. Born Kerstin Anita Marianne Ekberg on 29 September 1931 in Malmö, Skåne, Sweden. She is best known for her role as Sylvia in the Federico Fellini film La Dolce Vita (1960). Ekberg worked primarily in Italy, where she became a permanent resident in 1964.
The Final Footprint
On this day in 1917, soldier, Medal of Honor recipient, bison hunter and showman, Buffalo Bill Cody, died surrounded by family and friends at his sister’s house in Denver, Colorado, at the age of 70. Born William Frederick Cody on 26 February 1846 near LeClaire, Iowa. One of the most colorful figures of the American Old West, mostly famous for the shows he organized with cowboy themes. At one time or another, the wild west shows Cody appeared in or founded featured, James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok, Annie Oakley, Calamity Jane and the great Lakota Sioux holy man and war chief Sitting Bull. He was instrumental in founding the city of Cody, Wyoming. Cody established the TE Ranch located on the South Fork of the Shoshone River about thirty-five miles from Cody. The spread eventually included 8,000 acres for a grazing operation that ran about 1,000 head of cattle. Cody was married to Louisa Maud Frederici (1866 – 1917 his death). My heroes have always been Cowboys.
The Final Footprint – Cody is interred in the Cody private estate on Lookout Mountain in Golden, Colorado. Louisa was interred next to him when she passed in1921. The estate is marked by a stone monument with a bronze plaque with their names and birth and death years. Underneath Louisa’s name is the inscription, AT REST HERE BY HIS REQUEST. Cody’s grave is marked by a bronze individual marker inscribed with his name and birth and death dates and the following; MEDAL OF HONOR INDIAN SCOUT 3 US CAV INDIAN WARS.
On this day in 1971, fashion designer and founder of the Chanel brand, Coco Chanel died at the Hotel Ritz in Paris, where she had resided for more than 30 years, at the age of 87. Born Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel on 19 August 1883 to an unmarried mother, Eugénie Jeanne Devolle – known as Jeanne – a laundrywoman, in the charity hospital run by the Sisters of Providence (a poorhouse) in Saumur, France. Her father, Albert Chanel was an itinerant street vendor who peddled work clothes and undergarments. Chanel is the only fashion designer listed on Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century. Along with Paul Poiret, Chanel was credited with liberating women from the constraints of the “corseted silhouette” and popularizing the acceptance of a sportive, casual chic as the feminine standard in the post-World War I era. A prolific fashion creator, Chanel’s influence extended beyond couture clothing. Her design aesthetic was realized in jewelry, handbags, and fragrance. Her signature scent, Chanel No. 5, has become an iconic product. Chanel was known for her lifelong determination, ambition, and energy which she applied to her professional and social life. She achieved both success as a businesswoman and social prominence thanks to the connections she made through her work. These included many artists and craftspeople to whom she became a patron. However, Chanel’s life choices generated controversy, particularly her behaviour during the German occupation of France in World War II. Chanel was the mistress of some of the most influential men of her time, but she never married. She had significant relationships with the poet Pierre Reverdy and the illustrator and designer Paul Iribe. During the German occupation of France, Chanel resided at the Hotel Ritz, which was also noteworthy for being the preferred place of residence for upper echelon German military staff. Her romantic liaison with Hans Gunther von Dincklage, a German officer who had been an operative in military intelligence since 1920, facilitated her arrangement to reside at the Ritz.
On this day in 1976, blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and harmonica player Howlin’ Wolf died from complications of kidney disease at the Hines VA Hospital in Hines, Illinois at the age of 65. In my opinion, one of the greatest blues artists of all-time. A number of songs written or popularized by Burnett, such as “Smokestack Lightnin'”, “Back Door Man”, “Killing Floor” and “Spoonful”, have become blues and blues rock standards. Born Chester Arthur Burnett on 10 June 1910 in West Point, Mississippi in an area now known as White Station. 
On this day in 1858, doctor, fourth and final President of the Republic of Texas and Architect of Annexation, Anson Jones, died from a self inflicted gunshot wound, in the Capitol Hotel (now the Post Rice Lofts, formerly the Rice Hotel) in Houston, Texas at the age of 59. Born on 20 January 1798 in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Before becoming president Jones served as Texas congressman, Minister to the United States under Sam Houston, Texas senator and Secretary of State under Houston. On 19 February 1846, a formal ceremony was held in Austin to bring Texas into the United States. Jones delivered a speech that he concluded by declaring, “The final act in this great drama is now performed. The Republic of Texas is no more.” In his final official act as president, Jones lowered the Texas flag from its pole; Houston, with tears in his eyes, stepped from the crowd to gather the flag in his arms. Jones had hoped to be selected as one of Texas’ two U.S. senators, however, Houston and Thomas Rusk were chosen. 
On this day in 1923, writer Katherine Mansfield died from a 
On this day in 1324 merchant traveler Marco Polo died at his home in Venice at the age of 69. Born 0n 16 September 1254 in Venice, possibly in the former contrada of San Giovanni Crisostomo. His travels are recorded in Livres des merveilles du monde, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. Polo learned the mercantile trade from his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, who travelled through Asia, and apparently met Kublai Khan. The three of them embarked on an epic journey to Asia, returning after 24 years to find Venice at war with Genoa; Marco was imprisoned, and dictated his stories to a cellmate. He was released in 1299, became a wealthy merchant, married and had three children. Polo was not the first European to reach China, but he was the first to leave a detailed chronicle of his experience. Polo influenced European cartography, leading to the introduction of the Fra Mauro map.
http://thefinalfootprint.com/2025/01/08/on-this-day-8-january/The Final Footprint – Due to the Venetian law stating that the day ends at sunset, the exact date of Marco Polo’s death cannot be determined, but according to some scholars it was between the sunsets of January 8 and 9, 1324. Biblioteca Marciana, which holds the original copy of his testament, dates the testament in January 9, 1323, and gives the date of his death at some time in June 1324. Polo was either entombed in the San Lorenzo church in the sestiere of Castello (Venice), or perhaps in the no longer extant San Sebastiano in Venice.
On this day in 1642, astronomer, physicist, engineer, and polymath Galileo Galilei died in Arcetri, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, Italy at the age of 77. Born on 15 February 1564 in Pisa (then part of the Duchy of Florence), Italy. Galileo is perhaps the father of observational astronomy, the father of modern physics, the father of the scientific method, and the father of modern science.
On this day in 1896, French poet associated with the Symbolist movement, Paul Verlaine died in Paris at the age of 51. He is considered one of the greatest representatives of the fin de siècle in international and French poetry. One of my favorite poets. Verlaine married Mathilde Mauté de Fleurville but later left her and their son to begin a love affair with the poet Arthur Rimbaud. The French painter Henri Fantin-Latour depicted Rimbaud and Verlaine in his 1872 painting Around the Table (Writers). Born Paul-Marie Verlaine on 30 March 1844 in Metz, France. 
On this day in 1958 architect and designer Mary Colter died in Santa Fe, aged 88. Born Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter on 4 April 1869 in Pittsburgh.
On this day in 2007, actress, dancer, and singer Yvonne De Carlo died of heart failure in Los Angeles at the age of 84. Born Margaret Yvonne Middleton on September 1, 1922 in Vancouver. A brunette with blue-grey eyes, she became an internationally famous Hollywood film star in the 1940s and 1950s, made several recordings, and later acted on television and stage.
She gained a new generation of fans as a star of the CBS sitcom The Munsters (1964–1966), playing Herman Munster’s glamorous vampire wife, Lily, a role she reprised in the feature film Munster, Go Home! (1966) and the television film The Munsters’ Revenge (1981). In 1971, she played Carlotta Campion and introduced the popular song “I’m Still Here” in the Broadway production of the Stephen Sondheim musical Follies. Yvonne, her best-selling autobiography, was published in 1987. A stroke survivor, De Carlo died of heart failure in 2007. She was awarded two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to motion pictures and television.
On this day in 2020, 
The Final Footprint
