#Middlebury
On April 5, 1614, Pocahontas, daughter of the chief of the Powhatan Indian confederacy, marries English tobacco planter John Rolfe in Jamestown, Virginia. The marriage ensured peace between the settlers and the Powhatan Indians for several years.- On April 9, 1865, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrenders his 28,000 troops to Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, effectively ending the American Civil War. The two generals met in the parlor of the Wilmer McLean home at 1 p.m. Grant arrived in his muddy field uniform, while Lee turned out in full dress attire, complete with sash and sword.
- On April 10, 1906, O. Henry’s second short story collection, “The Four Million,” is published. It includes one of his most beloved stories, “The Gift of the Magi,” about a poor but devoted couple who each sacrifice their most valuable possession to buy a gift for the other.
- On April 6, 1968, Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey” debuts in theaters. The film went on to win an Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Today it is regarded as one of the defining films of the 20th century.
- On April 7, 1970, legendary actor John Wayne wins his first – and only – acting Academy Award, for “True Grit.” Wayne played a drunken, foul-tempered but endearing U.S. marshal named Rooster Cogburn.
- On April 11, 1988, actress and singer Cher collects the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in “Moonstruck” (1988). Cherilyn Sarkasian first became famous as the taller, female half of the 1960s singing duo Sonny and Cher.
- On April 8, 1990, “Who killed Laura Palmer?” was the question on everyone’s mind when David Lynch’s surreal TV drama “Twin Peaks” premiered on ABC. The body of the blonde homecoming queen was found washed up on shore wrapped in plastic in the show’s opening episode.
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