The first published poem by 20-year-old John Keats appears in The Examiner on May 5, in 1816. Unlike many writers of his day, Keats came from a lower-middle-class background. His father worked at a stable in London and eventually married the owner’s daughter. John was the first of the couple’s five children. John was sent […]

Cinco de Mayo, or the fifth of May, is a holiday that celebrates the date of the Mexican army’s 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War.

On May 5, 1904, 37-year-old Cy Young pitches the first perfect game in modern Major League Baseball history as the Boston Americans defeat the Philadelphia Athletics, 3-0. Young strikes out eight of the 27 batters he faces and benefits from excellent defense in a game that is completed in only 83 minutes. “Unparalleled feat,” a […]

Trial starts in the murder case of Thomas and Ann Farrow, shopkeepers in South London. The case would be the first resolved on the basis of fingerprint evidence. The neighbors had found the Farrows in their home, badly bludgeoned, on March 27 of that year. Thomas was already dead, but Ann was still breathing. She […]

On May 5, 1921, a date of symbolic importance to its iconic creator, the perfume Chanel No. 5 officially debuts in Coco Chanel’s boutique on the Rue Cambon in Paris. The new fragrance immediately revolutionized the perfume industry and remained popular for a century. Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was the daughter of a clothing peddler and […]

The Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) becomes a sovereign state when the United States, France and Great Britain end their military occupation, which had begun in 1945. With this action, West Germany was given the right to rearm and become a full-fledged member of the western alliance against the Soviet Union. In 1945, the […]

On May 5, 1978, area residents line up outside a renovated gas station in Burlington, Vermont, for the grand opening of Ben & Jerry’s Homemade. Opened by childhood friends Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, the store sells soups, crêpes and pottery, but it is their homemade ice cream, made with locally sourced cream and butterfat […]

Directed by Sam Raimi and starring Tobey Maguire in the title role, the eagerly awaited comic book adaptation Spider-Man is released on Friday, May 3, 2002, and quickly becomes the fastest movie ever to earn more than $100 million at the box office, raking in a staggering $114.8 million by Sunday, May 5. After a […]