The History Channel

• On Sept. 23, 1875, 15-year-old Billy the Kid (born William Henry McCarty) is arrested for the first time for hiding a bag of stolen laundry as a joke. When Billy was literally caught holding the bag, a Silver City, N.M., policeman threw him in jail to teach him a lesson.

• On Sept. 22, 1914, in the North Sea, a German U-9 submarine sinks three British cruisers, killing 1,400 British sailors. More sophisticated than submarines built by other nations, the typical German U-boat was 214 feet long and could travel underwater for two hours at a time.

• On Sept. 27, 1935, 13-year-old singer and actress Judy Garland (born Frances Gumm) signs her first contract with MGM. Garland and her sisters toured the vaudeville circuit as “The Gumm Sisters’ Kiddy Act.” The sisters later took the stage name Garland, and Frances changed her name to Judy when she was 10.

• On Sept. 25, 1965, the Kansas City Athletics start 59-year-old Satchel Paige in a game against the Boston Red Sox. Paige gave up only one hit in his three innings of play. “Satchel” got his nickname as a boy while working as a luggage carrier at the Mobile, Ala., train station.

STRANGE BUT TRUE

By Samantha Weaver

• You’re more likely to have a heart attack on a particularly hot or a particularly cold day.

• Famed actor Gary Cooper was offered the role of Rhett Butler in the film adaptation of Margaret Mitchell’s novel “Gone With the Wind,” but he turned down the part. He said he believed the movie would be “the biggest flop in Hollywood history.” The film went on to win 10 Academy Awards, including one for Best Actor, which was taken home by Clark Gable, who took the part that Cooper refused.

• It was Albert Einstein who made the following sage observation: “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”

(c) 2008 King Features Synd. Inc.

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