WOMEN IN HIGH PLACES
July 12th in history:
Geraldine Ferraro made history on this day in 1984. The Congresswoman from New York was chosen to be Walter Mondale’s running mate in the 1984 election, and she became the first woman nominated for vice-president by a major party.
Ferraro did not get to work in the White House as VP, but Dolley Madison got to live there for eight years as First Lady. According to legend, the wife of James Madison saved a famous portrait of George Washington before the British attacked the White House in 1814. Mrs. Madison died on July 12th, 1849.
On July 12th of 1543, Catherine Parr became the queen of England, when she became the sixth – and last – wife of Henry VIII.
“The King and I” is not about Catherine and Henry, but it was a big Broadway hit for lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, born on this date in 1895.
