Good morning. It's July 9th — let's begin where we always do: on this very date in history.
📅 On This Day — July 9
🍪 (It's also National Sugar Cookie Day — the only acceptable excuse to have dessert with your coffee.)
1955 — Bill Haley & His Comets' "Rock Around the Clock" hit No. 1, the first rock 'n' roll single ever to top the American pop chart.
1962 — Andy Warhol's Campbell's Soup Cans debuted at a Los Angeles gallery, helping launch the Pop Art movement.
1979 — NASA's Voyager 2 made its closest approach to Jupiter, beaming home dazzling new views of the giant planet and its moons.
1981 — Nintendo's Donkey Kong rolled into arcades, introducing a barrel-dodging little hero first called "Jumpman" — soon renamed Mario.
2011 — South Sudan declared independence, becoming the world's newest country.
Now, let's set the dial back to 2013…
⏪ REWIND: 2013
Barack Obama is settling into a second term, a first-class stamp runs 46 cents, gas is around $3.50 a gallon, and everyone's staring at a smartphone — Instagram, Vine, and Snapchat are rewiring how we share a summer. Between a Minion takeover, an inescapable song, and a royal arrival on the way, 2013 is one very online, very sunny summer.
📰 The Headlines The whole world is on baby watch. The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, is due any day with her and Prince William's first child, and the press has set up camp outside a London hospital for what the tabloids are calling "the Great Kate Wait." The little prince — George — will finally arrive on July 22, third in line to the throne.
🎬 At the Movies Ruling the box office is Despicable Me 2 — Gru (Steve Carell) trades supervillainy for fatherhood and a new gig with the Anti-Villain League, while the Minions steal every scene. It opened over the July 4th weekend and held No. 1 for weeks on its way to nearly a billion dollars worldwide.
🎵 On the Charts Inescapable this summer is "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke (with T.I. and Pharrell Williams) — the falsetto-and-cowbell earworm parked at No. 1 and blasting out of every car window and beach speaker in the country.
🏆 In Sports A legend's long goodbye reaches its sweetest note next week: at the All-Star Game in Queens on July 16, Yankees closer Mariano Rivera — in his final season — will jog in from the bullpen to a two-minute standing ovation from both dugouts, pitch a perfect inning, and walk off as the game's MVP.
🏰 The Disney Vault Not every Disney swing connects. Fresh in theaters this July 4th weekend is The Lone Ranger, Disney's $250-million Western reteaming Pirates star Johnny Depp (as Tonto) with director Gore Verbinski. Despite the star power, it got trampled at the box office — famously by those very same Minions — and has since become a curious cult footnote in the vault.
— a couple of quick things before you go —
👟 Step Challenge: the Summer 2026 Step Challenge is rolling — grab the free Pacer app and walk with us: Join the challenge (already have Pacer? Club code E42727228). Every step counts.
💡 Health Snap: Long summer days are perfect for a post-dinner stroll — it aids digestion and helps you wind down for sleep. Want a simple, no-cost health baseline to build on? Grab your free health report.
🎉 Born on a July 9th — or know someone who was?
Forward this to them right now — there's no better "this is the day you were born" gift than a little time travel.
🎂 In good company: July 9 babies include actor Tom Hanks (1956), actor Jimmy Smits (1955), musician Courtney Love (1964), Jack White of the White Stripes (1975), and actor Fred Savage (1976).
(Got this from a friend? Subscribe free at yesterdaytoday.news.)
Yesterday Today — A NovaOpsLab Briefing Series 345 Route 9 South, Suite 358, Englishtown, NJ 07726 You subscribed at yesterdaytoday.news. [Unsubscribe anytime]. Yesterday Today may earn a commission from partner links.