ELFA Reports July New Business
Down from June, 2021 but Up from July, 2020

(Leasing News Chart)

The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association Monthly Leasing and Finance Index for July was $9.9 billion, down from $10.4 billion in June, 2021, but up from July, 2020 $8.1 billion.

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(ELFA Chart)

ELFA President and CEO Ralph Petta said, “Despite supply chain disruptions in some sectors of the economy, signs of inflation and emergence of the Delta coronavirus, July new business volume in the equipment finance industry is strong. Consumer spending is picking up, equity markets continue to advance and unemployment is slowing—reasons to be optimistic about equipment investment and industry performance for the second half of the year.”

Jill McKean-Bilby, President, BOK Financial Equipment Finance, Inc., said, “2021 continues to be interesting. Demand for equipment remains high, which is resulting in higher equipment costs. Customers are ordering equipment from OEMs with very long lead times, with the delivery times of some orders unknown. The interest rate environment still remains low. Cash has been one of our main competitors this year, due to companies still having additional resources due to PPP loans. However, we have been able to continue to grow and remain steady with organic growth.”

Receivables over 30 days were 1.9 percent, up from 1.8 percent the previous month and down from 2.4 percent in the same period in 2020. Charge-offs were 0.18 percent, down from 0.22 percent the previous month and down from 0.73 percent in the year-earlier period.

Credit approvals totaled 76.5 percent, down from 76.7 percent in June. Total headcount for equipment finance companies was down 13.9 percent year-over-year, a decrease due to significant downsizing at an MLFI reporting company.

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Separately, the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s Monthly Confidence Index (MCI-EFI) in August is 66.6, a decrease from the July index of 72.9.

List of Participants:

Bank of America Global Leasing
Bank of the West
BB&T Bank
BMO Harris Equipment Finance
Canon Financial Services
Caterpillar Financial Services
CIT
Citizens Asset Finance
Dell Financial Services
DLL
Fifth Third Bank
First American Equipment Finance, a City National Bank Company
Frost Equipment Leasing and Finance
GreatAmerica Financial Services
Hitachi Capital America
HP, Inc.
HPE Financial Services Company
Huntington Equipment Finance
John Deere Financial
Key Equipment Finance
LEAF Commercial Capital Inc.
M&T Bank
Marlin Capital Solutions
Merchants Bank Equipment Finance
PNC Equipment Finance
Societe Generale Equipment Finance
Siemens Financial Services
Stearns Bank
Stonebriar Commercial Finance
TCF Capital Solutions, a division of TCF National Bank
TD Equipment Finance
TIAA Commercial Finance, Inc.
US Bancorp Business Equipment Finance
Volvo Financial Services
Wells Fargo Equipment Finance

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When Steve Jobs resigned from his position as Apple CEO on August 24, 2011, the stock market reaction was surprisingly muted. After all, Jobs was considered the visionary behind Apple’s resurgence from near bankruptcy in the late 1990s, and yet, Apple’s share price dropped by less than 1 percent on the day following the change of the guard.

10 years later, it’s safe to say that shareholders were right in trusting Jobs’ judgement that the company would be in good hands with Tim Cook, who had long been groomed as Jobs’ heir apparent. And while Cook has yet to prove that he can inspire Apple to come up with the next big thing after the iPhone, he did manage to build on the foundation laid by Jobs in remarkable fashion. Under Cook’s leadership, Apple went through a decade of relentless growth, bringing the company’s market capitalization to almost $2.5 trillion as of today.

As the following chart shows, Apple outperformed the broader market (indicated by the S&P 500 here) more than 3 to 1 over the past ten years, as the company’s share price increased by more than 1,000 percent adjusted for two stock splits that occurred during that period.

By Felix Richter, Statista

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Help Wanted Ads

Career Planning

Sales Makes it Happen
by Scott Wheeler, CLFP

I recently met with a group of young aggressive originators in the commercial equipment finance and leasing industry. I asked what changes or developments they believed would impact their careers over the coming years and what they were doing to confront these industry-wide opportunities and challenges. Below is a sample of topics that the entire group agreed will impact their careers over the next five to seven years.

Technology: The group agreed that advances in technology will impact every stage of the financing and leasing process. They all agreed that technology is a net positive for originating new relationships and transactions. Most of the group also admitted that they had little, if any, involvement in their company's current technology plans or implementation of new technology. One of the originators explained how he offered to be on a technology committee and how the experience helped him better understand the company's objectives. The committee participation provided him more visibility with the management team.

Managerial Transitions: The group agreed that most of their managerial teams were older and many would be retiring in the next decade. They agreed that this development will create opportunities for the next generation of leaders. However, they each needed to obtain more knowledge about the details of running an equipment finance and leasing operation beyond just originations. One originator commented that it is never too early to learn more about how top companies outperform their competition and grow their bottom-line profitability (well said).

Small Community: The group was aware of the close-knit community that makes up the commercial equipment finance and leasing industry. They expect additional mergers and acquisitions over the coming years and perhaps activity within their own companies. The comment was made that leaders are well connected throughout the industry and are well respected by their peers and competitors. The group agreed that industry involvement and association participation was key to long-term career enhancement.

The group of young aggressive originators agreed the commercial equipment finance and leasing industry provides unlimited career opportunities for young aggressive professionals who are willing to fully engage within the industry.

Order via Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/Call-Action

Scott A. Wheeler, CLFP
Wheeler Business Consulting
1314 Marquis Ct.
Fallston, Maryland 21047
Phone: 410 877 0428
Fax: 410 877 8161
Email: scott@wheelerbusinessconsulting.com
Web: www.wheelerbusinessconsulting.com

Sales Makes it Happen articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Legacy/index.htm

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Homeownership Cycle and Inventory
By James Montague

An interesting homeownership cycle begins with a starter home and progresses to larger and smaller homes throughout a person's lifetime.  Within a few years after purchasing their initial home, they might move up to a little larger house.  The reasons could be that they simply want a larger home and can afford it, or their increased family size may be motivating the move.

While the children are small, they can probably get by with less space but as they grow and behave more like adults, even though they may not be, the need for more room becomes more pressing.  Depending on the size of the family, this will last some time and then, as they go off to college, enter the work force and find their own living space, the parents may find that they no longer need the larger home.

In the interest of saving money or possibly convenience, they migrate from a larger home to a smaller home until they consider an assisted living facility or possibly, a nursing home.  Another alternative, many homeowners are electing is to move in with their children or other family members.  Some homeowners are even retro-fitting their homes with equipment and safety devices that will allow them to continue to live in their homes in old age.

According to the American Community Survey, a person in the United States can expect to move 11.7 times in their lifetime.  When that person is 18 years old, they can expect to move another 9.1 times and by age 45, they can expect another 2.7 moves in their lifetime.

One of the suspected reasons affecting the low housing inventory in America at this time is the group of homeowners who would move but are reluctant because the home will sell and with the shortage of homes, they may not be able to replace it with what they want.

The fact that builders have not kept up with the demand in the past twenty years has been a major contributor to the low inventory that housing is currently experiencing.  It is estimated that it will take two million new homes a year for the next decade to get caught up, assuming demand doesn't increase.

There are also other factors involved like the fact that since 2007, the owner's tenure in their home has more than doubled from five years to 10.6 years.  People are staying in their homes longer which means the homes are not coming on the market for sale.

Another consideration is that sellers with extremely low mortgage rates are reluctant to buy another house which would have to be financed at a higher rate than they are currently paying.

Regardless of where you are in the homeownership cycle, your agent can provide important information and experience that is essential to making a smooth move.  Having the facts reduces the risk of unexpected outcomes.

James Montague, Director of Operations
RTC Ranch Sustainable Housing LLC
7302 YELLOWSTONE RD
CHEYENNE, WY 82009
(307) 220-6211
compliance@rtcranch.com
http://www.rtcranch.com
BetterHomeowners.com/JamesMontague
Helping investors when they buy, sell and all the years in between.

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Existing Home Sales Rise 2.0% in July
MReport

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), existing-home sales rose in July, marking two consecutive months of increases. Total existing-home sales, defined as completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops, grew 2.0% month-over-month in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.99 million. Sales inched up year-over-year, increasing 1.5% from a year ago (5.90 million in July 2020).

Lawrence Yun, NAR's Chief Economist, noted, "We see inventory beginning to tick up, which will lessen the intensity of multiple offers. Much of the home sales growth is still occurring in the upper-end markets, while the mid- to lower-tier areas aren't seeing as much growth because there are still too few starter homes available."

The median existing-home price for all housing types in July was $359,900, up 17.8% from July 2020 ($305,600), as each region saw prices climb, marking 113 straight months of year-over-year gains.

"Although we shouldn't expect to see home prices drop in the coming months, there is a chance that they will level off as inventory continues to gradually improve," said Yun. "In the meantime, some prospective buyers who are priced out are raising the demand for rental homes, and thereby pushing up the rental rates.”

Single-family home sales increased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.28 million in July, up 2.7% from 5.14 million in June and down 0.8% from one year ago. The median existing single-family home price was $367,000 in July, up 18.6% from July 2020.

Time remained a factor as properties typically remained on the market for 17 days in July, unchanged from June and down from 22 days in July 2020. Eighty-nine percent of homes sold in July 2021 were on the market for less than a month.

First-time buyers accounted for 30% of sales in July, down from 31% in June and down from 34% in July 2020. NAR's 2020 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers–released in late 2020–revealed that the annual share of first-time buyers was 31%.

 

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Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant popularity
varies across US age groups

Terrier and Corgi Mix
Albany, New York  Adopt a Dog

Dixie

Female
Small
Coat Length: Short
Vaccinations up-to-date
Spayed
Good in a Home with Other dogs

Meet Dixie

This is Dixie a female Corgi/Terrier mix that weighs around 23 pounds and is approximately 8 years old but she could be older. Dixie had a terrible life before she was rescued. She was found in a hoarding situation and lived her entire life outside in a pen. The vet said it looks like she had a lot of puppies. As a result, the world is a terrifying place for Dixie and she is a scared and timid dog.

Once she is comfortable with you she loves to snuggle and is very affectionate and loves attention. She is quiet in the house, is not a barker and likes other dogs. I don’t know about cats. She loves her food and her treats and her naps on the couch. She is not completely housebroken and she still occasionally has accidents in the house.

Dixie is scared of most things but the three biggest things are being put on a leash, being picked up and stairs. She has a very strong reaction when you try to do any of those things with her. If you are looking for a dog to take on walks or to travel with you, Dixie is not the dog for you. She also in not a dog for an apartment.

We are looking for a very special home for Dixie. She needs someone with lots of patience that has experience with dogs from a hoarding or puppy mill or another traumatic situation and will work with us to help transition her to a new living situation. She needs a quiet home without children and because she is a flight risk a secure fenced in yard is a priority. Also access to a yard or deck without stairs is also important. Dixie is not a dog for a beginner. We are looking for someone who will accept her as she is and will give her a safe and loving home.

If you are interested fill out and application at Homeward Bound.

We are presently not holding our regular Saturday adoption clinics due to the Covid-19 virus. We are operating on a limited basis until further notice, but we are still adopting dogs out. We require an approved application before we consider anyone for an adoption - so filling out the application is your first step. Different dogs and puppies go up for adoption EVERY WEEK so please feel free to visit the site and click on the Petfinder link for updates. Puppies and dogs up to 2 years old are $350. Dogs over 2 years old are $250. 100% of the adoption fees go to help us save more dogs.

Homeward Bound Dog Rescue of New York, LLC.
P.O. Box 5782
Albany, NY 12205
518.424.1738
http://homewardbounddogrescue.com/

        
Adoption Requirements and Application
http://www.homewardbounddogrescue.com/adoption_info.php
**WE ARE ALWAYS IN NEED OF FOSTER HOMES** Homeward Bound

Dog Rescue is an all-volunteer rescue organization and all our dogs and puppies are in foster homes - we are not a shelter and do NOT have a facility where we house our dogs. For adoption information go to: www.homewardbounddogrescue.com. You must fill out an application online as we do NOT accept applications at our clinics.

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The 2021 NVLA Annual Conference is October 13-15
at One Ocean Resort in Atlantic Beach, Florida.

This year’s conference will feature top-notch speakers and engaging panel discussions on the most important topics in leasing. The diverse program features something for everyone, including a review of industry best practices, an examination of current trends, and a look at the issues that will shape our industry in the future.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13

Times in Eastern

 11:00 a.m. Golf Outing Lunch - All attendees welcome (lunch on own for non-golfers)
 12:30 p.m. Golf Outing
 6:00 p.m. Welcome Reception
 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14

 7:30 a.m. Breakfast and Exhibitor Networking
 8:15 a.m. Opening Ceremony - Charlie Vogelheim
 8:30 a.m. Keynote Address: Instantaneous Differentiation:
                 How to Make Yourself Memorable - Paul Neuberger
 9:30 a.m. The Future Faces of Leasing - Pete Stevens, Ben
                Carfrae, Paul Najarian
 10:15 a.m. Exhibitor Networking Break
 10:30 a.m. Legal/Legislative & Tax/Accounting Update - Sloan
                 Schickler & Mike North
 11:15 a.m. How to Structure EV Fleet Leases - Adam Berger
 12:00 p.m. Lunch and Exhibitor Interactions
 1:15 p.m.  NVLA Education Program Update
 1:45 p.m.  Lease Brokering - Garrett Kautz, Paul Erwin,Scott Crawford
 2:30 p.m.  How do I Benchmark My Company's Performance?- Doug Moore
 3:15 p.m.  Exhibitor Networking Break
 3:30 p.m.   Profit Making in its Simplest Form - Rick Reeves, Trevor Watson
 4:15 p.m.  Reducing Risk at Auto Auctions - Matt Arias
 5:00 p.m.  Have a Beer with a Vendor
 5:30 p.m.  Reception

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 15
7:30 a.m.  Breakfast and Exhibitor Networking
8:30 a.m.  What’s next for fleets? Fleet IoT and Automating Workflows - Mark Thomas
9:15 a.m.   Used Market and Residual Value Update
                  - Kristen Lanzavecchia
10:00 a.m. AM Break and Exhibitor Networking
10:15 a.m. Collections Made Easier - Nick Markosian, Bill Elizondo
11:00 a.m. Economic Forecast - Tom Kontos
11:45 a.m. Conference Conclusion -  Charlie Vogelheim
 

Register for the premier conference on vehicle leasing.
https://www.nvla.org/Login.aspx?optional=1&store=1&returl=%2fstore%2fRenewMembership.aspx

Hotel:
https://be.synxis.com/?_ga-ft=1WKbWQ.0.0.0.0.1b08m7-5Go-48U-97l-pOOhZEU_.0.0&_ga=2.263598735.2072008694.1616005494-6733

News Briefs---

House approves resolution allowing $3.5-trillion
    social spending bill to advance
https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2021-08-24/house-senate-infrastructure-bill-moderates?utm_id=36070&sfmc_id=1646692

Toyota Announces 40% Worldwide
    Production Cut Due Next Month
https://www.industryweek.com/supply-chain/article/21172830/toyota-announces-40-worldwide-production-cut-due-next-month

Maskless protesters disrupt San Jose meeting
   ahead of vaccination mandate decision
https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/08/24/protesters-disruptting-over-proof-of-vaccination-requirement/

Coronavirus cases lead to missed school days
     for 6,500 LAUSD students during first week
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-08-24/coronavirus-cases-force-6500-lausd-students-miss-school

Rivian’s RJ Scaringe Confirms September
    Deliveries, Infrastructure Buildout
https://www.ocbj.com/news/2021/aug/23/rivians-rj-scaringe-confirms-september-deliveries-/

Missouri attorney general’s office files lawsuit
    targeting school district mask rules
https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/missouri-attorney-general-s-office-files-lawsuit-targeting-school-district-mask-rules/article_7e3a0bcc-7e54-5b2e-a7f5-91572c62d5e4.html

McDonald’s possible dining room of the future makes its
     debut Aug. 31 at Elgin restaurant on Larkin Avenue
https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/elgin-courier-news/ct-ecn-bear-mcdonalds-elgin-remodeling-history-st-0822-20210821-qppud7v5pvbofbwlhtiif3lvgi-story.html

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You May Have Missed---

Credit card debt is rising again. Bank CEOs are betting on it
    Where Consumer Debt is Expanding
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/30/covid-consumers-did-great-job-paying-credit-card-debt-it-cant-last.html


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Sports Briefs---

Roger Goodell on Bills' future in Buffalo:
    'I think a new stadium is what's needed'
https://www.theredzone.org/Blog-Description/EntryId/17281/Roger-Goodell-on-Bills--future-in-Buffalo---I-think-a-new-stadium-is-what-s-needed-

Ranking Every NFL Starting Quarterback Entering 2021 Season
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2947355-ranking-every-nfl-starting-quarterback-entering-2021-season

Why is Major League Baseball losing Black players?
https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/article/Why-is-Major-League-Baseball-losing-Black-players-16407122.php

Tuesday’s Patriots practice report: Mac Jones takes command
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/08/24/sports/tuesdays-patriots-practice-report-mac-jones-takes-command/

Jacksonville Jaguars first-rounder Travis Etienne
      out for season with mid-foot sprain
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/jaguars/2021/08/24/travis-etienne-foot-sprain-lisfranc-jacksonville-jaguars/5570834001/

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California Nuts Briefs---

California congressional offices inundated with
    thousands of calls to help Afghan refugees
https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article253694868.html

California customers face higher rideshare
    bill on Prop. 22 reversal
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-22/californians-face-higher-rideshare-bills-with-prop-22-reversal

Lake Tahoe air quality reaches ‘hazardous’
     levels from wildfire smoke
https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/08/24/lake-tahoe-air-quality-reaches-hazardous-levels-from-wildfire-smoke/

Tech Company launches new San Jose campus
    About 1,000 could work at new north San Jose tech hub
https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/08/23/tech-company-launch-big-new-san-jose-campus-jobs-economy-real-estate/

1 million square feet: Caltrain plans office towers
    next to downtown San Jose transit hub
https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/08/23/1-million-square-feet-caltrain-office-tower-downtown-san-jose-transit/

Bay Area luxury homes selling for record premiums
    Million-dollar bidding wars for suburban estates
https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/08/23/ante-up-bay-area-luxury-homes-selling-at-record-premiums/

2-bedroom apartment with Oracle Park views:
    Guess the rent in San Francisco
https://www.sfgate.com/realestate/slideshow/2-bedroom-apartment-view-Oracle-Park-sf-for-rent-225485.php

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“Gimme that Wine”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJnQoi8DSE8

Illinois makes radical changes with HB2620
https://irishliquorlawyer.com/legislation/illinois-makes-radical-changes-with-hb2620/

Meet The Five Black Men And Women
      Influencing The Wine Industry
https://www.blackenterprise.com/meet-the-five-black-men-and-women-influencing-the-wine-industry/?test=prebid

Becky Wasserman, American Champion of Burgundy's
    Small Wineries, Dies at 84
https://www.winespectator.com/articles/becky-wasserman-american-champion-of-burgundys-small-wineries-dies

Big Dreams For Missouri’s Augusta Wine Region
    From Investor With Local Ties
https://news.stlpublicradio.org/2021-05-20/big-dreams-for-missouris-augusta-wine-region-from-investor-with-local-ties

250 Wine Grape Growing Families In Austria Produce
    Excellence By Banding Together
https://www.forbes.com/sites/cathrinetodd/2021/08/15/250-wine-grape-growing-families-in-austria-produce-excellence-by-banding-together/?sh=4a7120486b09

Free Wine App
https://www.nataliemaclean.com/mobileapp/

Wine Prices by vintage
http://www.winezap.com
http://www.wine-searcher.com/

This Day in History

     1718 - Hundreds of French colonists arrived in Louisiana, with some of them settling in present-day New Orleans.  Antoine Crozat, councilor and financial secretary to Louis XIV (1638–1715), received a fifteen-year commercial monopoly over Louisiana in 1712.  The European population increased from approximately 200 to 500 inhabitants during the Crozat years (1713–1717). Fur trading remained the primary source of income for the colony and to harvest silk, indigo, and other cash crops. The French also benefited from the start of the Yamasee War in 1715, a conflict between colonial South Carolina and Native Americans, which took the attention of the English away from making military and economic alliances with the Creek and Chickasaw.  Crozat pulled out of the company contract in 1717. Despite the company’s failures, the investment in Louisiana amounted to considerable changes in the organization and composition of the colony, which lasted through the 1720s. The colonial capital was moved from Mobile to New Orleans in 1718 around this time of the arrival of the colonists. Outside New Orleans, the company granted land concessions to wealthy Frenchmen along the Mississippi River. Upstart settlers and established elites smuggled trade goods throughout the Mississippi Valley and Caribbean in order to avoid the mercantilist policies of the French Crown. The growing labor force was made up of peasants and indentured servants from France and Alsace, impressed criminals, Swiss mercenaries and poorly trained French soldiers, and women from Parisian hospitals and asylums, ultimately raising the European population of Louisiana to around 5,000 by 1721. However, the number of European settlers dropped to fewer than 2,000 by the end of the 1720s, due largely to high death rates and the decision of many to abandon the colony.
    1814 - James Madison became the first president to face enemy gunfire while in office and the first president actively to use his authority as commander-in-chief. He assumed command of Commodore Joshua Barney's battery, stationed a half mile north of Bladensburg, MD. In 1813, the British fleet formed a blockade off the east coast of the U.S. They stopped trading ships from going in and out. They attacked U.S. Navy vessels. British ships in Chesapeake Bay went even farther. Soldiers from the ships burned and looted homes around the Bay. Barney came up with a plan. The plan called for a small group of ships to sneak into the Bay. They would attack the British ships. Then they would quickly hide again. The larger warships couldn't move as easily as the small vessels. Joshua's plan was put into action. He helped build a flotilla of barges. The flat boats would hold one cannon each. This little fleet fought back against the British warships. Two of the big ships were sunk. The enemy was kept busy dealing with the sneak attacks. In 1814, the British launched a plan. They would attack the U.S. capital! They thought they could win the war by taking Washington, D.C. They sailed their fleet up the river near Washington. Barney's flotilla kept the enemy ships back for several weeks. Finally, the larger ships won the battle. They landed troops at a town near the capital. Joshua had already decided what he would do. He had his own boats burned! Then, if captured, they couldn't be used by the enemy. Barney and his 400 marines marched to Bladensburg. This small town was the only thing that stood between the British and the U.S. capital. Barney's men went to help the militia defend the city. The defeat, on August 24, here of American troops under Gen. W. H. Winder enabled the British under General Robert Ross to march on Washington., D.C., and burn many of the public buildings, including the Library of Congress, Treasury, Department of War and other buildings. By the end of the same day, the Capitol building, the President's Mansion and many other public buildings were in flames. The following day, more buildings were burned. At about noon, a tremendous storm of hurricane force descended upon the city halting further destruction. With their mission accomplished, the British feared the Americans would reassemble their forces and attack while they were in the vulnerable position of being a long distance from their fleet. The men were miserable in the 98 degree temperatures. They were tired, ill and wounded. At dusk the troops quietly withdrew from the city. The troops were so exhausted that many died of fatigue on the four-day march back to the ships, several deserted, but the body of men marched on.  The Americans lost the battle because Barney's men ran out of ammunition and refused to retreat. The fight so impressed the British that all prisoners were treated as if they were officers and commodore Barney was fully escorted to the nearest large city where his wounds could be attended to.
    1819 - Birthday of detective Allan Pinkerton (d. 1884), Glasgow, Scotland.  Founder of detective agency, Chicago, IL.  In 1850, first chief of US Army's secret service, remembered now because of his strike-breaking and his lack of sympathy for working people. http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/aug25.html
    1829 - President Andrew Jackson offered to buy Texas for $5 million but the Mexican government refused.
    1830 - One of the great obstacles of the Industrial Age began around this time but did not “catch on” until after the Civil War, because people did not believe in new or modern things. A popular event was a race between a locomotive and a horse-drawn vehicle. It took place this day between Relay and Baltimore, MD., a distance of nine miles. The locomotive was the Tom Thumb, an engine of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, driven by Peter Cooper. Tom Thumb easily pulled away from the horse until a belt slipped off the blower pulley. Without the blower, the boiler did not draw adequately and the locomotive lost power, allowing the horse to pass and win the race. Nonetheless, it was realized that the locomotive offered superior performance for hauling tonnage compared to a horse-drawn carriage.
http://home.mindspring.com/~railroadstories/rrmmv1n1/birthof.htm
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/tomthumb.htm
    1831 - The first bedspring manufacturing patent was granted to Josiah French of Ware, MA.
    1836 - Birthday of Bret Harte (d. 1902), Albany, NY.  Journalist, poet, printer, teacher and novelist, especially remembered for his early stories of California and the Gold Rush era (“The Luck of Roaring Camp,” “The Outcasts of Poker Flat,” and “How Santa Claus Came to Simpson's Bar”).
    1840 - Revolutionizing farming, Joseph Gibbons of Adrian, MI received a patent for a seeding machine that was very practical. His machine was a grain drill with cavities to deliver seed and a device for regulating the volume.
    1877 - Joshua Lionel Cowen (d. 1965) was born in New York’s Lower East Side.  An inventor and the co-founder of Lionel Corporation, a manufacturer of model railroads and toy trains, Cowen also invented the flash lamp in 1899, an early photographer's flashlight source.  Cowen sold his first electric train in 1901 to a store owner in Manhattan, intending to use the train to call attention to other merchandise.  The store owner returned the next day to order six more trains, because customers wanted to buy the store display. By 1902, Lionel was primarily a toy train manufacturer; he started his company, the Lionel Corporation and it soon the largest such company in the US.  During its peak years in the 1950s, the company sold $25 million worth of trains per year. His trains continue to sell today.
    1879 - New York's Madison Square Garden displayed a real floating ship in a gigantic water tank as Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta, H.M.S. Pinafore, was performed.
    1908 - National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses was established.  Fifty-two nurses, including Martha Minerva Franklin and Adah Belle Samuels Thoms, met in New York City and decided to start the NACGN. Franklin was elected president at the first meeting.  In 1949, the members of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses unanimously voted to accept a proposed merger with the American Nurses Association. NACGN membership voted the NACGN out of existence in 1951.
    1909 – For sci-fi fans out there…Klaatu was born Eric Alexander Rennie (d. 1971) in Yorkshire, England. Actor Michael Rennie played the humanoid Klaatu in the science fiction film, “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (1951).  “…Klaatu barada nikto…”  
    1910 - Bowen, Montana drops to 5 degrees, lowest ever for the 48 states in August
    1913 - Birthday of American cartoonist and creator of the comic strip “Pogo,” Walt Kelly (d. 1973), at Philadelphia, PA. It was Kelly's character Pogo who paraphrased Oliver Hazard Perry to say, “We has met the enemy and it is us.”
    1916 - The United States National Park Service was created
    1918 - Composer/Conductor Leonard Bernstein (d. 1990) was born Lawrence, MA. One of the greatest conductors in American music history, he first conducted the New York Philharmonic Orchestra at age 25 and was its director from 1959 to 1969. His musicals include “West Side Story” and “On the Town,” and his operas and operettas include “Candide.” He died five days after his retirement. October 14, 1990, at New York, New York. While growing up in Manhattan, my mother would take my brother and I one Sunday a month to the children's concert that he conducted along with a short movie clip about music staring Gerald McBoing Boing. As I grew older, we went to the concerts on weekends, then saw “West Side Story,” “On the Town,” and “Candide.” My father played classical music all the time at our house and I grew to love this music. In fact, I first learned about how jazz worked from the Bernstein concerts and he also produced a Columbia record, which is not out of date today.
    1920 - The first Olympic female gold medalist from the United States was Ethelda Bleibtrey, who competed in the seventh Olympiad, held in Antwerp, Belgium. She won the 100-meter free-style swim and the 300-meter free-style swim on August 26.
    1925 – A. Philip Randolph organizes the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first labor organization led by African Americans to receive a charter in the American federation of Labor (AFL).  In the 1920s and 1930s, the Pullman Company was one of the largest single employers of blacks and had created an image for itself of enlightened benevolence via financial support for black churches, newspapers and other organizations. It also paid many porters well enough to enjoy the advantages of a middle-class lifestyle and prominence within their own communities. Working for Pullman was, however, less glamorous in practice than it appeared. Porters depended on tips for much of their income and thus on the generosity of white passengers. Porters spent roughly ten percent of their time in unpaid "preparatory" and "terminal" set-up and clean-up duties, paid for their food, lodging, and uniforms, which could consume up to half of their wages, and were charged whenever their passengers stole a towel or a water pitcher. Porters could ride at half fare on their days off — but not on Pullman coaches. They were not promotable to conductor, a job reserved for whites, despite frequently performing some of the conductor duties.  The company had squelched any efforts they made to organize during the first decades of the 20th century by isolating or firing union leaders. Like many other large companies of the time, the company employed spies to keep tabs on their employees; in extreme cases, company agents assaulted union organizers.  When 500 porters met in Harlem on August 25, 1925, they decided to make another effort to organize. During this meeting, they secretly launched their campaign, choosing Randolph, not employed by Pullman and thus beyond retaliation, to lead the effort. The union chose a motto to sum up their resentment over the working conditions: "Fight or Be Slaves."
    1927 - Birthday of tennis great Althea Gibson (d. 2003), at Silver, SC. Althea Gibson learned paddle tennis by chance as a child when her block of West 143d Street in New York was designated as a Police Athletic League play street. She overcame great financial and social adversity and eventually won ten consecutive national titles in the American Tennis Association, a league for black players. On August 28, 1950, she became the first black player to compete in the national tennis championship at Forest Hills, NY. A few years after, she became the first black woman to win the singles championship at Wimbledon. In her prime, she was ranked as high as 7th in the United States, winning titles at the French Open, Wimbledon and US National at Forest Hills.
    1930 - Birthday of well-known actor Sir Thomas Sean Connery (d. 2020), Edinburgh, Scotland.  He has won an Academy Award (1988 for “The Untouchables”), two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes, including the Cecil B. DeMille Award and the Henrietta Award. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II of England in 2000 after receiving Kennedy Center Honors in 1999.  Connery was the first actor to portray the character James Bond in film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983.
    1933 - Birthday of television host Regis Philbin (d. 2020), The Bronx.  Philbin holds the Guinness record for the most time spent in front of a television camera. Philbin is most widely known as the host of the New York City-based nationally syndicated talk show, “Live! With Regis and Kathie Lee” starting in 1988, which became “Live! With Regis and Kelly” starting in 2001 through his departure in 2011.  Philbin debuted and hosted “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” and other TV game shows.
    1933 - Birthday of sax player Wayne Shorter, Newark, NJ.
http://www.ejn.it/mus/shorter.htm
http://www.melmartin.com/html_pages/Interviews/shorter.html
http://home.ica.net/~blooms/wshome.html
    1937 - Pullman Company formally recognizes Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (see above – 1925).
http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/~latam/powerpoints/Pullman.pdf
    1939 – “The Wizard of Oz” is released. This motion-picture classic directed by Victor Fleming was a musical adaptation of the L. Frank Baum children's book with both black and white and color sequences. It starred Judy Garland as Dorothy, Frank Morgan as the Wizard (and four other characters), Ray Bolger as the Scarecrow, Bert Lahr as the Lion, Jack Haley as the Tin Man and Margaret Hamilton as the Wicked Witch of the West. Nominated for six Academy Awards, it won two for best musical score and best song, “Over the Rainbow.” (Harold Arlen music and E.Y. Harburg lyrics.)
    1944 - Paris Liberated: as dawn broke, the men of the 2d French Armored Division entered Paris, ending the long German occupation of the City of Light. That afternoon, General Charles de Gaulle led a parade down the Champs Elysees. Though Hitler had ordered the destruction of Paris, German occupying Officer General Dietrich von Choltiz, refused that order and instead surrendered to French Major General Jacques Le Clerc.
    1944 - Top Hits
“Amor” - Bing Crosby
“I'll Be Seeing You” - Bing Crosby
“Time Waits for No One” - Helen Forest
“Is You is or is You Ain't (Ma' Baby)” - Louis Jordan
    1945 - John Birch was killed by armed supporters of the Chinese Communist Party.  He is widely considered to be the first casualty of the cold War.  An American Baptist minister, missionary, and US Army Air Forces captain, Birch was a U.S. military intelligence officer in China during World War II.
    1948 – The House Un-American Activities Committee began its hearings, the first-ever televised congressional hearings.  They began with the confrontation between Whittaker Chambers and Alger Hiss.  The HUAC was created in 1938 to investigate alleged disloyalty and subversive activities on the part of private citizens, public employees, and those organizations suspected of having fascist or communist ties. The committee in 1947 held nine days of hearings into alleged communist propaganda and influence in the Hollywood motion picture industry. After conviction on contempt of Congress charges for refusal to answer some questions posed by committee members, "The Hollywood Ten" were blacklisted by the industry. Eventually, more than 300 artists – including directors, radio commentators, actors, and particularly screenwriters – were boycotted by the studios. Some left the U.S or went underground to find work. Others wrote under pseudonyms or the names of colleagues. Only about ten percent succeeded in rebuilding careers within the entertainment industry.
    1949 - Gene Simmons, lead singer of KISS, was born Chaim Witz in Israel.   
    1950 – President Harry Truman ordered the military to take control of the nation’s railroads to avert a nationwide rail shutdown dur to a strike.
    1952 - Top Hits
“Auf Wiedersehn, Sweetheart” - Vera Lynn
“Walkin' My Baby Back Home” - Johnnie Ray
“Kiss of Fire” - Georgia Gibbs
“It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels” - Kitty Wells
    1958 - "Little Star" by the Elegants topped the charts and stayed there for four weeks.  Members Vito Picone and Arthur Venosa co-wrote the lyrics. The music was adapted from "Twinkel, Twinkle, Little Star."  However, it was the only song that ever charted for The Elegants. Reportedly, the Elegants refused to pay payola to a prominent New York disc jockey, which inhibited air play of their follow up recordings.
    1958 - "Bird Dog" by the Everly Brothers topped the Billboard Country charts and stayed there for six weeks.
    1960 - Top Hits
“It's Now or Neve”r - Elvis Presley
“Walk--Don't Run” - The Ventures
“The Twist” - Chubby Checker
“Alabam” - Cowboy Copas
    1962 - "The Loco-Motion" by Little Eva topped the charts and stayed there for a week.
    1964 - For their hit single "A Hard Day's Night," The Beatles received a gold record, their third such award. Until 1970, they would collect 18 more.
    1966 - Yardbirds performed at the Carousel Ballroom. The Carousel was the former El Patio Ballroom on the second floor of the car dealership on the southwest corner of Market and Van Ness.
    1968 - Top Hits
“People Got to Be Free” - The Rascals
“Born to Be Wild” - Steppenwolf
“Light My Fire” - Jose Feliciano
“Already It's Heaven” - David Houston
    1973 - "Brother Louie" by the Stories topped the charts and stayed there for 2 weeks.
    1975 – Bruce Springsteen released his landmark album, “Born to Run.”  The album was a commercial success, peaking at number three on the Billboard 200 and eventually selling six million copies in the United States. It garnered widespread acclaim when it was first released and since has since been considered by critics to be one of the greatest albums in popular music.  According to Acclaimed Music, “Born to Run” is the 17th most ranked record on critics' all-time lists.  In 1987, it was ranked #8 by Rolling Stone in its "100 Best Albums of the Last Twenty Years" and in 2003, the magazine ranked it 18th on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2001, the TV network VH1 named it the 27th-greatest album of all time, and in 2003, it was ranked as the most popular album in the first Zagat Survey Music Guide.       
    1976 - Top Hits
“Don't Go Breaking My Heart” - Elton John & Kiki Dee
“You Should Be Dancing” - Bee Gees
“Let 'Em In” - Wings
“Bring It on Home to Me” - Mickey Gilley
    1979 - "My Sharona" by Knack topped the charts and stayed there for 6 weeks.
    1982 - The rock group, Fleetwood Mac, earned a gold record for their album, "Mirage."
    1984 - Fanatically popular toys, the Cabbage Patch Kids and Trivial Pursuit, were replaced in the public eye robotic action figures that fought galactic battles, the Transformers.
    1984 - Starting its third week at #1 on the pop music charts is "Ghostbusters," by Ray Parker, Jr. The hit song was featured in the movie of the same name which starred Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Rick Moranis and Harold Ramis.
    1984 - Top Hits
“Ghostbusters” - Ray Parker Jr.
“What's Love Got to Do with It” - Tina Turner
“Stuck on You” - Lionel Richie
“Long Hard Road” (“The Sharecropper's Dream”) - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
    1985 - Dwight Gooden of the New York Mets became the youngest pitcher to win 20 games in a season. Gooden defeated the San Diego Padres, 9-3. He was 20 years, nine months and nine days old. Bob Feller was a month older when he accomplished the feat in 1939.
    1987 - A new record for monthly rainfall was set at Chicago when a storm brought the total to 15.73 inches erasing the previous record for any month which had been 14.17 in September, 1961
    1996 - The New York Yankees dedicated a monument to the late Mickey Mantle at Monument Park in Yankee Stadium. The new monument joined three others honoring Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Miller Huggins. Mantle died August 13, 1995.
    2011 – Hurricane Irene affected much of the Caribbean and East Coast of the US as the seventh-costliest in United States history.  Shortly before making four landfalls in the Bahamas, Irene peaked as a 120 mph Category 3 hurricane. Irene caused widespread destruction and at least 56 deaths. Damage estimates throughout the United States are estimated near $15.6 billion In addition, monetary losses in the Caribbean and Canada were $830 million and $130 million respectively for a total of nearly $16.6 billion in damage.
    2012 – The first man to set foot on the moon, Astronaut Neil Armstrong died in Cincinnati at the age of 82 after complications from coronary artery bypass surgery.  Voyager I spacecraft entered Interstellar space, becoming the first man-made object to do so.
    2013 - The Rim wildfire burning in Yosemite National Park is the third largest wildfire in California's history, having burned 257,314 acres.  It is also the largest wildfire on record in the Sierra Nevada mountains.  The Rim Fire was fully contained by October 24, 2013 after a nine-week firefighting battle.  More than a year passed before it was declared out on November 4, 2014.  Due to a lack of winter rains, some logs smoldered in the interior portion of the fire throughout the winter.  The fire was caused by a hunter's illegal fire that got out of control, and it was named for its proximity to the Rim of the World vista point leading up to Yosemite.  A total of eleven residences, three commercial structures, and 98 outbuildings were destroyed in the fire.  A total of ten injuries from the wildfire were also reported, but no firefighters were killed during the suppression efforts which cost more than $127 million.
    2019 - NASA investigates possibly the first crime in space over astronaut Lt. Col. Anne McClain illegally accessing her bank account from space. Her then-husband, Summer Worden, filed a complaint against McClain through the Federal Trade Commission, accusing her of illegally accessing financial information while residing in the International Space Station. This accusation outed McClain as lesbian, making her the third known lesbian astronaut after Sally Ride and Wendy Lawrence. McClain unequivocally refuted Worden's claims. On April 7, 2020, McClain was cleared of all charges; Worden faces a two-count indictment on charges of making false statements. The couple divorced in 2019.