On October 22, 1797, a crowd in Paris looked up in awe as balloonist André-Jacques Garnerin rose 3,200 feet into the sky in a hydrogen balloon — then jumped. Attached was a silk canopy resembling an umbrella without rigging lines — the first real parachute. Moments after cutting the rope, his basket plunged and swung wildly as the parachute inflated, slowing his fall and saving his life.

Garnerin landed roughly in Parc Monceau, bouncing through the trees but cheering with his arms raised. No one had ever seen a human descend from the heavens and live. The crowd erupted. It was a wild blend of science and spectacle — part circus, part revolutionary symbol of freedom from earthly bounds.

The flight paved the way for future aviation safety — Garnerin would later perform jumps across Europe, and his wife Jeanne-Geneviève became the first woman to parachute. His simple silk design laid the foundation for every skydiving rig ever made.

So next time you see someone gliding down through a cloud of blue, remember: it all started with a Frenchman, a balloon full of hydrogen, and a dangerous idea.

On October 22, 1962, the world held its breath. That evening, President John F. Kennedy appeared on television to reveal that American spy planes had discovered Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba — just 90 miles from Florida. He announced a “quarantine” of the island and demanded that Moscow remove its weapons.

For the next 13 days, humanity teetered on the edge of nuclear war. U.S. ships blockaded Cuban waters as Soviet freighters approached. In Washington, Kennedy and his advisers debated air strikes, invasions, and secret back-channel deals with Khrushchev. Any miscalculation could mean the end of civilization.

Finally, on October 28, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in exchange for a U.S. promise not to invade Cuba and a quiet removal of American missiles from Turkey. The world exhaled. The Cuban Missile Crisis became the closest the Cold War ever came to turning hot.

It was the moment when politics, power, and panic collided — and when two men on opposite sides of the world decided to step back from the brink.

Cleopatra & Wifi🧬
Cleopatra lived closer in time to the invention of the iPhone than to the building of the Great Pyramid. That’s how long Egyptian civilization lasted — 2,500 years before her, and 2,000 years before us. Humanity really peaked with eyeliner and sun gods, not smartphones.

Space Pizza🍕
In 2001, Pizza Hut paid millions to put its logo on a Russian rocket. It became the first brand advertised in space — beating Coca-Cola. Astronauts didn’t get free slices, though. Space pizza is technically impossible because cheese doesn’t melt properly in zero gravity.

Star Wars Execution🍿
France used the guillotine until 1977 — the same year the first Star Wars premiered. While Americans were meeting Darth Vader, France was still chopping heads. The machine wasn’t outlawed until 1981. So technically, Luke Skywalker and the guillotine once shared a release weekend.

Octopus Time Travelers🐙
Octopuses have three hearts, nine brains, and blue blood — but the weirdest part? Their DNA doesn’t match any known evolutionary pattern on Earth. Some scientists even suggested they might’ve evolved from alien microbes. Basically, they’re the smartest, strangest time travelers in the ocean.

If you enjoy this edition of Today In History be sure to send it to a friend and force them to sign up because that’s what good friends do. Until next time, stay curious, question everything, and keep uncovering the mysteries of the past.