#ThrowbackThursday – 27 June
It’s 27 June, and that means it’s time for another edition of Throwback Thursday! Today, we’re taking a look back at three prominent events that went down on this day in history:
1890 – Knocking Down Barriers
For the first time in history, a boxer overcame the odds to become the first black world champion in history.
On 27 June 1890, Canadian professional boxer George Dixon of Halifax, Nova Scotia took on English bantamweight champion, Edwin “Nunc Wallace”, in an 18-round bout in London, England. Considering the attitude of the time towards people of colour, Dixon was likely viewed as an underdog going into the fight.
However, the 20-year-old proved his doubters wrong with a masterful performance, knocking out Wallace in the 18th round to become the new world bantamweight champion. This is the first time that a black individual ever won a major championship title.
Although his name isn’t commemorated enough, George Dixon was a pioneer and undoubtedly paved the way for future black boxers – both men and women – to compete at the highest level.
1994 – Head First into the Future
In this modern day and age, downloading music from the Internet – either for a fee, for free, or *ahem* through less legal means – has become incredibly common. Back in the day, though, music had to be bought in the forms of CDs, vinyl records and cassette tapes from stores.
Thirty years ago, the industry of music took an innovative turn: on 27 June 1994, rock band Aerosmith released an unused song, “Head First”, onto CompuServe, an American-based online service.
Observe this excerpt from a report by United Press International: “CompuServe’s estimated two million users will be able to download the Aerosmith single for free, but it is expected to take up to 90 minutes to transfer the song to their computers.
“Aerosmith will waive their royalties for the song and CompuServe will waive connect-time charges because of the ‘groundbreaking nature of this event.’”
This marked the first time that a major music act had distributed a new song online. In the process, it changed the way music was shared and consumed forever.
1999 – Hawk Goes for 900
Skateboarding is a sport full of excitement, skill and creativity – and difficult tricks aplenty!
Take the 900, for example: performed on a half-pipe or vert ramp, the skateboarder rotates two-and-a-half full revolutions in mid-air before landing back on the ramp. That’s 900 degrees, folks, and it’s no easy feat to complete; only a handful of skateboarders have ever successfully pulled this stunt off.
On 27 June 1999, pro skateboarder Tony Hawk did the unthinkable: while participating at the X Games in San Francisco, California, he landed the 900 without fail.
Granted, it took Hawk 11 tries to land the 900, plus he performed the trick way past the X Games’ regulation time. Fortunately, with the crowd getting behind him after being hyped up by the announcers, the 31-year-old was determined to make history.
Eventually, Hawk nailed the 900 to near-perfection. This incredible feat solidified his status as one of the greatest skateboarders of all time, helping to popularise the sport even further.
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