Today in History!

The mighty elephant, trumpeter of the jungle and circus entertainer -- lumbering, powerful fieldworker and mode of transportation -- became a symbol of the Republican Party on this day in 1874.

The cigarette manufacturing machine was patented by Albert H. Hook of New York City. He probably had no idea how appropriate his name was for such an invention.

Pennsylvania’s Blue Laws meant that lots of things couldn’t be done on Sunday. Shopping was one. Drinking was another. Sports was yet another. The votes that were counted this day in the Keystone State eliminated sports from the forbidden activities. Fans in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia rejoiced!

U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt won a fourth term, defeating Republican Thomas E. Dewey. F.D.R. was the only President to be elected for more than two terms; he was elected four times with three different Vice Presidents. He died in office on April 12, 1945, after serving 53 days of his fourth term. Vice President Harry Truman filled the remainder of the term and was elected President in 1948.

A coin-operated television receiver was displayed in New York City. To sneak a peak at various test patterns and a model of Felix the Cat, folks dropped in a quarter.

Billboard magazine began listing the top 15 popular records. Only 10 songs had been featured previously.

Elvis Presley hit the charts with Love Me. The song was the first million-seller to make the charts without being released as a single. It was, instead, an EP (extended play) 45 rpm, with three other songs on it: Rip It Up, Paralyzed and When My Blue Moon Turns to Gold Again -- on RCA Victor.

Bruce Springsteen’s Tunnel of Love was the #1 album in the U.S. The rest of the top-five for the week: 2)-Bad (Michael Jackson); 3)-Dirty Dancing (soundtrack); 4)-Whitesnake (Whitesnake); 5)-A Memory Lapse of Reason (Pink Floyd).

Top Movies: Bean (“The Ultimate Disaster Movie”), starring Rowan Atkinson, Peter Macnicol and Pamela Reed; Mad City (“One man will make a mistake. The other will make it into a spectacle.”), with Dustin Hoffman, John Travolta and Alan Alda; and Starship Troopers (“A New Kind Of Enemy. A New Kind Of War.”), starring Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Denise Richards, Jake Busey, Neil Patrick Harris, Clancy Brown, Seth Gilliam, Patrick Muldoon, Michael Ironside and Marshall Bell.