Happy August 1st!
August 1st is a special holiday. In fact, every day’s a holiday for someone and for some reason.
Although we may not know the origins of many of these holidays, avid celebrants will participate eagerly in marking August 1st as a most special day for so many different reasons.
Here are several of the most popular holidays celebrated on August 1st (arranged alphabetically):
Homemade Pie Day
What is your favorite flavor of pie? Do you have a secret family recipe for the perfect pie crust?
August 1st is Homemade Pie Day, a fine food holiday, particularly for pastry chefs and bakers. Perhaps coincidentally, Raspberry Cream Pie also occurs on August 1st – right in the middle of fresh raspberry season in many regions.
Why not host a pie baking or pie eating contest to celebrate Homemade Pie Day on August 1st? Or, simply fill up a few pie pans with whipped cream or shaving cream and have a pie-throwing contest or a pie-in-the-face contest to mark the occasion? (C’mon kids, take it outside!)
Play Ball Day
August 1st is Play Ball Day.
In the United States, baseball umpires call out, “Play ball!” to start games. However, many sorts of sports involve playing with balls of all kinds. How many different kinds of ball games do you know?
Here are a few ball-based sports to get the proverbial ball rolling: baseball, basketball, billiards, bocce ball, bowling, carpet ball, croquet, dodge ball, field hockey, foosball, football, four square, golf, handball, jacks, juggling, lacrosse, marbles, paddleball, paddle tennis, paint ball, polo, racquetball, softball, squash, stickball, tee ball, tetherball, tennis, volleyball, water polo and waffle ball. Can you name any other ball sports?
How many of these ball games have you played so far? Why not try a new sort of ball game on August 1st to celebrate Play Ball Day?
Respect for Parents Day
“I get no respect,” quipped American comedian Rodney Dangerfield (1921 – 2004).
How many mothers and fathers could echo this sentiment?
August 1st is Respect for Parents Day. How many ways might sons and daughters (young and old) honor their parents?
Who invented the concept of Respect for Parents Day? Marilyn Dalrymple, a mother from Lancaster, California and a member of the International Federation for Parent Education, proposed a resolution to make the day official.
Sing-a-Round Day
Do you remember singing rounds in preschool or kindergarten? August 1st is Sing-a-Round Day.
Gather with family and friends around a crackling campfire, grab a banjo or guitar and sing a round song or two. Here are a few classic and familiar round songs: “Frere Jacques,” “Make New Friends,” “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” “Three Blind Mice” and “White Coral Bells.”
Listen to the enthusiastic echoing melodies on Sing-a-Round Day, a most musical August 1st holiday.
Special Saints Days (Various)
The Calendar of the Saints lists the following for August 1st: Aleksy Sobaszek, Alexander, Almedha, Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, Aquila, Arcadius, Attius, Bonus, Brogan, Charity, Cyril, Dominic Van Honh Dieu, Domitian, Ethelwold, Faith, Faustus, Friard, Holy Maccabees, Hope, Jonatus, Justin of Paris, Kenneth of Wales, Leontius, Leus, Maria Imelda of the Eucharistic Jesus, Maria Stella of the Most Blessed Sacrament, Martyrs of Nowogrodek, Mary the Consoler, Maur, Menander, Peregrinus of Modena, Peter, Rioch, Rudolph, Rufus, Saint Peter in Chains, Secundel, Thomas Welourne and Verus.
Notable Anniversaries on August 1st:
British composer Euphemia Allen (aka Arthur de Lulli) created “The Celebrated Chop Waltz” (aka “Chopsticks”) on August 1, 1877. Pianists have plunked out the tappy little tune ever since – often using just two fingers.
On August 1, 1952, Holiday Inn founder Kemmons Wilson opened his first motel. The Memphis, Tennessee, Holiday Inn became a prototype for one of the world’s largest lodging chains.
Comic book and superhero fans caught their first glimpse of Spider-Man on August 1, 1962. Created by artist Steve Ditko and writer Stan Lee, Spider-Man first appeared in a comic book titled Amazing Fantasy #15.
Actress Elizabeth Taylor completed her sixth divorce on August 1, 1976, parting ways with actor Richard Burton for the second time.
At 12:01 a.m. on August 1, 1981, American cable television network Music Television (MTV) went on the air for the first time.
Various Other August 1st Holidays
August 1st is also Abolition of Slavery Day (Jamaica), Admission Day (Colorado), American Family Day (Arizona), Benin Independence Day, Cheyenne Frontier Day, Colorado Statehood Day (1876), Confederation Day (Switzerland), Cross-Quarter Day, Dahomey Independence Day, Document Delivery Day, Emancipation Day (Trinidad and Tobago), Fairies’ Imps Charity Scramble Holiday, Feast of Bread, Fiesta Day (Nicaragua), Friendship Day, Girlfriend’s Day, Guam Constitution Day, Gule of August (Wales), Homowo – Hooting at Hunger Holiday (Ghana), International Friendship Day, Lady Day Eve, Lammas (Scotland), Lanmac Tide – Beginning of Harvest Season, Laughter Day (Southern California), Lughnasadh Holiday (Wiccan), and Lugnasadh – Lammas Day Celtic Festival.
Additional August 1st holidays include National Day (Benin), National Night Out, Non-Parent Day, Picnic Day (Australia), Pod Body Day (Maine), Sister’s Day, Sports Day, Wattle Day (Australia), Women Astronomers Day, St. Peter ad Vincula Feast Day, The Seven Machabees Martyrdom Day, St. Peregrinus Feast Day, St. Ethelwold Day, Armed Forces Day (Angola), Emancipation Day (Barbados, and Jamaica), Mini Fetes (French Polynesia), Parents’ Day (Zaire), People’s Liberation Army Day (China), Special Holiday – Guadalcanal Province (Solomon Islands), St. Dominic’s Day (Nicaragua) and TMT Day (Cyprus).
Happy August 1st to one and all!
Other Notable Holidays:
Click here to check other calendar dates for notable holidays and additional holiday content from this author.
(Note: Annually, some dates may fluctuate to accommodate weekends and local calendars.)
Sources:
http://halife.com/daily/trivia.html
http://halife.com/religion/ch04.html
http://holidayinsights.com
http://saints.sqpn.com/month00.htm
http://www.brainyhistory.com/events.html
http://www.brookston.org/almanac
http://www.earthcalendar.net
http://www.everythingpreschool.com/holidays
http://www.holidays.net/dailys.htm
http://www.holidaysforeveryday.com
http://www.kidsturncentral.com/holidays
http://www.partyguideonline.com/months
