Allison and I formally and officially set our wedding date today, via a deposit on the place we’re getting married. May 19, 2017. After I paid the deposit I searched May 19 to see if there was anything historically significant about that date, with specific reference to marriage. What I got:
- On May 19, 1536, Anne Boleyn was beheaded at the order of her husband, Henry VIII, for adultery, treason, and incest;
- On May 19th 1499 Catherine of Aragon was married by proxy to Arthur, Prince of Wales. She was 13. He was a one year-old baby. It didn’t last.
- May 19th is Eric Clapton and Patti Boyd’s anniversary. He wrote “Layla” about her when she was the wife of his best friend, George Harrison, because he was desperately in love with her. They later got divorced;
- May 19th was the day Amy “Long Island Lolita” Fisher shot Mary Jo Buttafuoco, wife of her lover, Joey Buttafuoco. Amy and Joey didn’t work out, despite the admittedly audacious gesture of love;
- May 19th was the day Marilyn Monroe sang “Happy Birthday Mr. Preeeesssssident …” to JFK, which probably didn’t make Mrs. Kennedy all that happy;
- May 19 is the birthday of Ho Chi Min, Pol Pot and Nicole Brown Simpson. I can’t speak for Ho Chi Min or Pol Pot’s marriages;
- May 19th is Al and Tipper Gore’s anniversary. They’ve been married for 41 years, but it’s apparently only a marriage in name lately. It’s also the anniversary of a few friends of mine, I found out this afternoon. They all seem like happy, well-adjusted people in good marriages, so they trump Al and Tipper;
- Eric Davis, outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds, debuted on May 19, 1984. He was one of my favorite players ever;
- On May 19, 2017 I’ll be 16,015 days old. That’s how old Hal Linden was the day “Barney Miller” debuted. That’s gotta be a great sign. That show ruled.
Anyway. I’m gettin’ married next year. I think the Eric Davis and “Barney Miller” thing outweighs that Anne Boleyn and Joey Buttafuoco noise. It’s gonna be a great day.