Writer of Pop Culture

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This Day in Pop Culture for January 2

On this day in pop culture history, Time crowned the first “Man of the Year”, Mickey Mouse had a radio show, and a new national speed limit was decided.

January 10, 2020

2–3 minutes

1928: Time Crowns the First ‘Man of the Year’

While considered a tradition today, Time magazine’s first “Man of the Year” was a bit of a fluke. It is said that during a slow news week in 1927, the publishers were wrestling about how to remedy their embarrassment by not featuring Charles Lindbergh on its cover after he completed his trans-Atlantic flight. They came up with creating the honorable cover and story featuring Linbergh which was featured on the January 2, 1928, issue. (Images: Wikimedia Commons)

1974: I Can’t Drive 55

On this day in 1974, President Nixon signed the Emergency Highway Energy Conservation Act, which set a new national maximum speed limit of 55 mph. Up until that point, Americans enjoyed inexpensive Middle Eastern oil.

However, in 1973, Arab members of the Organization for Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) protested the West’s support of Israel in the Yom Kippur War by stopping oil shipments to the United States, Japan and Western Europe and raising oil prices four times the original price. The president had hoped that by forcing Americans to drive at more “fuel-efficient” limits, it would help them to not have to depend on foreign oil so much. The act wasn’t fully repealed until November 28, 1995.

1938: A Mickey Mouse Radio Show

Airing on NBC radio on this day, The Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air show was created to help promote the film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. During each episode, Mickey and the gang would travel the world and time (through the magic mirror) and meet up with various literary characters like Mother Goose, Cinderella and Old MacDonald. Walt Disney voiced the role of Mickey Mouse for the first three episodes.

From there, the role was given to comedian Joe Twerp. When Disney was too busy to attend the Sunday afternoon purchases, his voice was impersonated by announcer John Hiestand. The rest of the cast included Thelma Boardman as Minnie Mouse, Stuart Buchanan as Goofy and Clarence Nash as Donald Duck.