Rock and roll ‘king’ Presley dies

August 16, 1977

ON this day, Elvis Presley, whose singing and style revolutionised popular music in the 1950s, died at his mansion in Memphis, Tennessee, the US.

Presley, who was 42, died of cardiac arrhythmia — a form of heart attack. However, the cause of cardiac arrhythmia was not determined.

Elvis Presley was rock & roll’s first real star, and one of the most important cultural forces in history, which led to him being referred to as the “King of Rock & Roll” of simply “The King”.

August 17, 1982

ON this date, the world’s first CD pressing plant manufactured and pressed out its very first disc “The Visitors” by ABBA in Langenhagen, Germany, by Polygram Records. The CD was designed to be the successor to the phonograph record. Though CD production started in August 1982, the format wasn’t formally brought to market until November, then only in Japan. The US and European music lovers had to wait until March 1983 for the first discs specifically tailored for them.

First around the world telegram sent

August 20, 1911

THIS day, the New York Times sends a telegram message to test how fast a commercial message could be sent around the world by telegraph cable.

The message simply read, “This message sent around the world”, left the Times building in New York at 7pm, it travelled over 28,000 miles and was relayed by 16 different operators, through San Francisco, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Saigon, Singapore, Bombay, Malta, Lisbon and the Azores, among other locations.

The reply was received by the same operator 16.5 minutes later. It was the fastest time achieved by a commercial cablegram since the opening of the Pacific Cable in 1900 by the Commercial Cable Company. The building where the message originated is now called ‘One Times Square’.