This Week in History: Communication
From February 7 through February 13:
1881 First US patent for halftone printing process (which enabled the reproduction of photographs in newspapers and magazines)
1885 Birthday of American novelist Sinclair Lewis: “People will buy anything that’s one to a customer.”
1894 Birthday of English statesman Harold Macmillan: “Diplomacy is forever poised between a cliche and an indiscretion.”
1898 Patent for a machine to make envelopes that both folded and sealed the edges - dramatically reducing the cost of manufacturing envelopes.
1898 Birthday of German poet and playwright Bertolt Brecht: “Grub first, then ethics.”
1914 Founding of ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) … to make sure both songwriters and publishers received compensation for public performances of their music.
1918 First publication of “Stars and Stripes” (a newspaper for US armed forces), in Paris.
1924 First coast-to-coast transmission of radio in the US.