Halloween (Contest Winning Entries!)

October 31st, 2005

Today's post is entirely written by our Halloween Contest winners - congratulations to Mike Smith, Gamer Girl, Nathaniel Engelsen, Dante Ojeda, Jake Dominguez, Leaper and Bob Brandon! Enjoy their alternate efforts!

in 605, in accordance to Pope Gregory the First's edict to his missionaries to Christianize pagan rituals, Brother Seanedd spoke to the pagans in Eire, stating Samhain was a ritual that worshiped the Christian God. The druids counciled, nodded wisely, and invited Brother Seanedd to be a part of that years celebration. That marked the first year a Christian was immolated in the Samhain Eve bone fires.

in 1517, Martin Luther, followed by acolytes, tries to impose his 95 theses in Wittenberg, Germany. Moments after he nails these theses at a church gate, he´s struck by lighting in front of the whole town. Pope Leo X called this tragedy an act of punishment from God. “May the Lord forgive his heretical soul and may he finally realize that there´s only one truth”, he said publicly.

in 1864, the Province of Nevada first achieved self-government as a state of the (former) United States. Although the congressional delegation did vote for the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution banning slavery on January 31, 1865, it was the only significant legislation Nevada had any say in before the American Union finally disintegrated after the Union defeat at Nashville in December 1864. With a fully reequipped Confederate army poised on the Ohio River on January 31, President Lincoln was forced to resign, and President Hamlin unilaterally declared a ceasefire on February 1. In the resulting constitutional melee, Lord Palmerston offered the western states and territories a place – and British protection – in the future Canadian dominion, an offer that was gratefully accepted. Despite its small population, Nevada was formally recreated as one of the first seven Canadian provinces on July 1, 1867.

in 1887, inventor Karl Leiber originated the concept of Candy Corn, a small candy laboriously made of sugar, water, corn syrup, fondant, and marshmallow in three colored layers. The candy was intended to be a Halloween special, bringing to mind the changing colors of the fall and the old staple winter foods of the colonists. When he presented his ideas to the Wunderle Candy Company however, he was laughed out of the business.

in 1892, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes was published. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a lifelong believer in the supernatural, created the character of Holmes as a vehicle for his occult beliefs. A detective who solved crimes via such methods as scrying, seances, and faerie assistance, Holmes and his trusted Boswell, mentalist John H. Watson, have become enduring characters that fascinate readers even today.

in 1926, Harry Houdini, hospitalized at Detroit's Grace Hospital for peritonitis following an injury received days earlier at Garrick Theater, receives a visit from a mysterious doctor who spends several hours alone with the injured escapist. When nurses and family check in on the injured performer later, they find him fully recovered with no sign of the mysterious doctor. Houdini is unable to recall the man's name or anything about the strange visit. After this time, the famous performer and debunker begins to inexplicably travel through the ancient towns of haunted Massachusetts; focusing special attention on the storied town of Arkham.

in 1926, Harry Houdini is released from the hospital. Houdini was hospitalized after being punched at a school twelve days before and having his appendix burst. This brush with mortality gave Houdini his biggest thrill to date and convinced Harry to push the limits more than ever before. In subsequent shows he had audience members shoot, stab, and poison him to show he could escape even from death.

in 1926, famed magician and escape artist Erich Weiss 'died' of peritonitis from a ruptured appendix received two weeks earlier, when an overenthusiastic fan sought to test his ability to withstand blows by unexpectedly punching him in the abdomen. Weiss was interred in the Machpelah Cemetery, Queens, New York, but his grave was found torn open and empty the morning following his burial. In decades to follow, Weiss was spotted in formerly-empty prison cells at maximum-security penitentiaries, wrapped in anchor chains at major shipyards, and half-buried in concrete at construction sites. However, he has never been found and held successfully.

in 1929, St. Louis city officials announced that they wanted to establish something called trick-or-treat, where children would go door to door dressed in costumes begging for candy as an alternative to the traditional, (and increasingly destructive), pranks that were pulled every prior October 31st. This was the first year that children dressed in costumes assisted in the burning down of City Hall. The St. Louis City Hall was burned down 3 more times in the next 10 years.

in 1936, Bess Houdini is found dead on the roof of the Knickerbocker Hotel. One of a series of seances conducted on the anniversary of her husband's death, the event is shrouded in mystery. The only access to the roof was locked, and no buildings nearby could have permitted access. No official cause of death is ever released. One eerie piece of the puzzle that quickly spread through the grapevine: the seance table was shattered, the pieces and objects used scattered about the roof as if by some terrific force.


Christmas Day Contest! Following up on our Halloween contest, you can enter our next contest, which will be alternate histories for Christmas Day, December 25th, 2005. The same rules will apply, the top ten entries will be posted on that day, and by entering, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often - entries must be received by December 20th, 2005! Email us up to 3 entries of your best alternate Christmas Days!

We still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

The Society Of Friends

We have our winners! Our thanks to everyone who entered, and be sure to enter our next contest, which will be Christmas Day, December 25th, 2005. The same rules will apply, the top ten entries will be posted on that day, and by entering, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!
Now for the winners - congratulations to Mike Smith, Gamer Girl, Nathaniel Engelsen, Dante Ojeda, Jake Dominguez, Leaper and Bob Brandon! Their winning entries will appear tomorrow, Halloween day!

October 30th, 2005

in 1650, the murderous cult that called itself The Society of Friends first gained its popular name of Quakers when founder George Fox told them that “the unbelievers will quake and tremble at our approach”.

in 1890, as the sun rises, Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson leads condemned Mormon rebel Charles Brigman up the scaffold to be hung in Salt Lake City. Dozens of citizens have assembled to watch, and they are being kept back by federal soldiers. Just as the noose is being lowered over Brigman's neck, an expertly-fired shot sunders the rope and a small group of men break through the federal lines and hustle Brigman away. Jackson shoots Brigman in the back as he escapes, but is unsure if the shot is fatal.

in 1915, H.G. Wells opens his second Little Warriors role-playing convention, with a special scenario to be run by himself on Halloween night. Over 15,000 attendees flood the hall in London where the convention is being held, and even members of high society can't resist joining in. At this convention, the American company called Parker Brothers announces that they will be producing a role-playing game of their own based on the legends of King Arthur, called Knights & Castles. It sells like hotcakes at the convention.

in 1938, the Mercury Theater was interrupted by breaking news from New Jersey of an invasion from Mars. After the hideous takeover of our government, the news program was passed off as a “hoax” by radio actor Orson Welles; the truth wasn’t revealed until decades later, when the Red Planet’s influence was finally eradicated from our government.

in 1953, President Eisenhower approves National Security Council Action 162/4, which formally grants the power to [CENSORED][CENSORED][CENSORED], thus ending American democracy.

in 1958, after convincing the Soviet government to allow him to travel to Sweden for the Nobel Prize Awards so that he could refuse his, Arthur Miller officially requested political asylum from the Swedish government. In his request, he denounced the state of free speech within the Soviet States of America, and likened the influence of America to “an iron curtain that has descended across all of North America, squelching artistic and political expression in subservience to the state.” Needless to say, Comrade President Joel Rosenberg lost no time denouncing Miller as a reactionary counter-revolutionary, no friend of the common people.

in 1975, King Juan Carlos begins his formal reign as ruler of Spain. True to his word to former dictator Francisco Franco, he maintains the fascist government, ignoring the entreaties of other governments and exiled Spaniards to transition Spain to a more democratic society.

in 1995, the Canadian province of Quebec overwhelmingly approves a referendum on secession from Canada. When the rest of Canada refused to let it secede, it closed its borders and began shooting Canadian troops sent in to restore it to the bosom of Canada. The short-lived civil war ended in 1998, when Canada finally subdued the rebel province.

in 2001, President Al Gore threw out the 1st pitch at game 3 of the World Series between the New York Yankees and the Arizona Diamondbacks. Republicans denounced his action roundly; as trivial showboating when America was at war with terrorism; as dangerous to the nation, since he didn’t wear a bullet-proof vest while on the mound; and as wimpy, since his pitch didn’t strike out the batter. Just as he had during his campaign, President Gore laughed off the Republican complaints; a winning strategy - he seems to be on his way to reelection.

in 2002, safely back in their stolen vessels, Dr. Courtney, Professor Thomas and their Air Force escort find themselves being approached by dozens of ships. They take off in a hurry, and advise the pilots in the other craft to stop for nothing. “We have to get back to earth with this,” Dr. Courtney says of the globe they have stolen. The desperate humans begin a prolonged chase through the Pleiades to escape from the aliens.

We still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Political Parties Banned; White Tuesday

October 29th, 2005

in 1794, decrying “the baneful effects of the spirit of party politics,” President George Washington of the United States convinces the nation to pass a constitutional amendment banning political parties. “They only serve to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration,” he says, and the young nation agrees. From this point on, political leaders are judged by their actions rather than their affiliations.

in 1863, Swiss “philanthropist” Henri Dunant founds the International Order of the Red Cross, which, in its public face, was dedicated to aiding the wounded and ill from war and disaster around the globe. Its hidden agenda, of course, was to advance the cause of the Swiss Illuminati, and bring even more power to its secret leaders.

in 1890, Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson is shocked when a small family of collaborators is killed outside of Salt Lake City. He sentences rebel Mormon Charles Brigman to death for the crimes he has instigated, and sets the punishment for sunrise the following day. Brigman, shocked at facing death, begins to plead for his life, but Colonel Jackson is unmovable.

in 1901, a nurse in Amherst, Massachusetts becomes the focus of a crime investigation when a family she has been staying with all die. When they police find her, the nurse has sewed her own eyes shut, crying that the horrors of that house should not be witnessed by human eyes!

in 1929, White Tuesday, the single best day in the American stock market, doubles the value of the Dow Jones, making millionaires overnight. Although the stock prices were considered illusory by many economists, as long as Americans believed in them, the Dow Jones remained buoyant.

in 1956, the New Reich begins an all-out invasion of Africa after subduing Egypt, Sudan and South Africa. The weapons they wield prove too powerful for any nation on the continent to resist, and the Africans find themselves in much the same position as the Greater Zionist Resistance before them; having to wage a guerilla campaign in order to survive.

in 1957, Buddy Holly’s 1st #1 hit, Oh Boy was released by Brunswick Records. It marked the beginning of a string unequaled by any other artist – Holly managed a #1 in each of 5 decades across his career from the 50’s to the 90’s. Only ill health kept him from continuing the string into the 21st century.

in 1969, during the trial of the Chicago Eight, Comrade Judge William Kunstler orders defendant Oliver North bound and gagged to prevent his constant disruptions of the court proceedings. North and his fellow reactionaries had attempted to disrupt the Socialist National Party Convention in Chicago.

in 1998, Senator John Glenn’s triumphant return to space ended on a sour note as, during a routine EVA, he was snatched from the space shuttle Discovery by what appeared to be a flying saucer. Unable to deny now that such things existed, President Clinton revealed to the nation that aliens had been performing experiments on human beings for decades, and the United States was working on a method of defense; due to the highly sensitive security nature of the matter, he was not at liberty to say any more. Senator Glen, however, was returned the next week.

in 2002, in the alien repository of knowledge, the group led by Dr. Courtney and Professor Thomas stumble on a globe that looks suspiciously like earth. After a moment's scanning, Dr. Courtney says, “This is what we came for. Pick it up and let's get out of here.” The Air Force pilots with him struggle to carry it and they hurriedly leave the building, delusions chasing them as they go.

We need to hear from some of the winners, (Mike S, your email gave us a delivery failure - please email us again!), but as soon as we do, we will announce the winners for the Halloween Contest! And remember - even though the Halloween Contest is over, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

The Sword Of Socialism Is Raised

October 28th, 2005

in 1065 AUC, the forces of Maxentius destroy the Emperor Constantine, who had begun trusting in visions to direct his actions. His most recent had been to convert to an obscure religion called Christianity.

in 1636, the first institution of higher learning in the colonies, Harvard College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, opens its doors. Although the colonial elite enjoyed sending their children to an institution that promised exclusivity, there were not enough of them to make the College a going concern, and it closed in 1702.

in 1886, Socialist President Grover Cleveland celebrated the ties between the comrades of France and America with the dedication of the Statue of Liberty. Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame with conquering limbs astride from land to land, rang the words of the poet inscribed at its base. The towering figure of a woman escaping the chains of oppression, holding aloft the sword of socialism, has been the symbol of America ever since.

in 1890, with rebel Mormon Charles Brigman in custody, Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson spreads the word around Salt Lake City that attacks had better stop, or Brigman will pay the price. The Latter-Day Saint is defiant though, practically daring Jackson to kill him.

in 1919, the U.S. Congress passes the Volstead Act, which makes it illegal to buy or sell anything of an intoxicating nature in the United States. This makes tobacco, alcohol, caffeine, and many forms of medicine illegal. President Wilson called it “one of the most colossal blunders ever to see the light of day in the legislature,” and wisely vetoed it.

in 1940, the German Underground invaded Greece. Although the Greeks resisted well, the superior armaments of the G.U. eventually wore them down. They became the first nation conquered by the G.U. in Europe that wasn’t in the hands of the Greater Zionist Resistance.

in 1955, William Gates III is born in Seattle, Washington. As the son of a millionaire attorney, Gates had few worries in life, and dropped out of Harvard to push the small hobbyist computer community into excepting what he was calling open software, computer programs that people could share and even change without paying for it. Open software made computing become so transparent that today, everything from refrigerators to paper is a computing instrument.

in 4694, a shuttle used to transport people between the inner planets was hijacked by pilot Yuan Bin. He threatened to crash it into the Imperial Palace in Beijing unless his pay was raised. The Emperor’s Star Fleet officers took swift action and disabled the vessel, then towed the ship to the moon. Emperor Xiao took pity on the man and pardoned him after the Imperial Council presents him with a study that shows the woeful pay rate of small-ship pilots in the solar system. The Emperor took steps afterwards to improve living conditions for those who sailed the solar waves.

in 2002, after a few frustrating trips through the city send them into various small cells, Professor Thomas, Dr. Courtney and their Air Force detachment go inside a building in the alien city. The scientists seem very excited at getting into this building, and pull out a device to scan it. Dr. Courtney tells the group, “This is where they keep much of their knowledge. Don't trust most of what you may see.” True enough, the group starts experiencing delusions shortly afterwards.

in 2003, London is shaken by a strong earthquake and several aftershocks. Parts of Buckingham Cathedral collapse, but Pope Righteous I is not harmed, according to the Pope’s spokesman. His Holiness doesn’t make an appearance to calm the population of the city, so rumors start to run wild that the Buckingham staff are keeping his death quiet.


We need to hear from some of the winners, (Mike S, your email gave us a delivery failure - please email us again!), but as soon as we do, we will announce the winners for the Halloween Contest! And remember - even though the Halloween Contest is over, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Roosevelt Born; Simpson Murdered

October 27th, 2005

in 1656, Quaker killers William Robinson and Marmaduke Stevenson are executed by Massachusetts after a brief trial confirming their guilt. They had been the accomplices of notorious murderers Ann Austin and Mary Fisher, who reportedly killed a hundred men for their bizarre cult.

in 1858, Spanish-American War hero Theodore Roosevelt is born in New York City. Although he came from old money, Roosevelt felt the call of adventure during the war and formed the Rough Riders, whose famous victory at San Juan Hill made Roosevelt a legend; unfortunately, it made him a dead legend, as one of the Puerto Rican defenders shot him in the head during the assault.

in 1871, Democratic party boss William Tweed is arrested for corruption by Communist Attorney General David Wade. The arrest of the most powerful Democrat in New York brings the Democratic party in New York crashing down. With the loss of New York, the party soon began losing its hold over other states, and in 1884, was completely absorbed into the Socialist Party.

in 1890, Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson, while directing men to put out a fire, is set on by Mormon rebel Charles Brigman and several of his followers. Colonel Jackson, along with 20 of his soldiers, battle the fanatic for an hour before Colonel Jackson is able to subdue Brigman and force the others to surrender.

in 1936, Wallis Simpson, American socialite, was found dead in a London flat. Her mutilated body brought to mind the murders committed by Jack the Ripper before the turn of the century. For some reason, the Crown discouraged an investigation into her death, which was attributed to a random madman.

in 1954, Norma Jean Mortensen divorced baseball legend Joe Dimaggio, who had been somewhat abusive to her during their brief marriage. This left her free to marry humorist Arthur Miller, whom she remained with for the rest of her life. Dimaggio always regretted what he'd done to Mortensen, but said he couldn't be mad at Miller because, “he's just so damn funny.”

in 1962, Nikita Kruschev refuses to back down from the placement of nuclear missiles in Cuba, and President Kennedy orders troops onto the island to remove them. The resulting nuclear exchange kills hundreds of millions of people across North America, Europe and Asia. The survivors of this holocaust, mostly in the southern hemisphere, are plagued by cancer and other diseases for decades afterwards. The tenuous nature of life on earth enforces a strict code of non-violence among the remaining nations, and humanity pulls itself back from the brink a much stronger race than before.

in 1978, in a highly controversial move, the Swedish Nobel Peace Prize Committee gave its award to Semitic-African Resistance leaders Anwar Sadat and Elie Wiesel for their resistance against the global spread of Nazism. After this award, the Peace Prize was officially discontinued.

in 1984, a 19-year old fan credits heavy metal rocker Ozzy Osbourne with saving his life after he decides not to kill himself because he wanted to listen to Osbourne's next album. The rocker dedicates his next album to the youth, who begins a tour of the nation speaking out on the issue of teenage suicide.

in 2002, moving cautiously through the apparently abandoned alien city, Professor Thomas, Dr. Courtney and their Air Force pilots suddenly find themselves in a small room, crowded together. Dr. Courtney, who had been expecting this, touches one of the devices he has brought along and they are back by their stolen spaceships. “We may have to do that a couple of times,” he tells the others as they move out again.

Even though the Halloween Contest is over,(winners to be announced soon), we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Erie Tunnels Open; Rain Of Frogs

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: WE ARE DONE! - the contest has now ended. If you wanted to submit, it's too late for Halloween, but we will be holding another contest soon - watch for the details. The winners will receive an email notifying them by October 28, and they must reply back by October 30. Thanks for your interest, and watch for future contests!

October 26th, 2005

in 1825, the Erie Tunnels began operation in the Great Lakes of North America. The high-speed train services provided an alternate to air travel and opened the way to the creation of underwater cities. Today, millions of people in the North American Confederation travel the tunnels every day.

in 1881, the reactionary Earp brothers, with their friend J.H. Holliday, ambush Sheriff Johnny Behan and his deputies, Ike & Billy Clanton and Frank McLaury at the OK Corral in Tombstone, Arizona. The famous gunfight at the OK Corral was one of the last gasps of the old order in the west attempting to assert itself through violence; Comrade Behan and Deputy Frank McLaury survived, but the Earps, Holliday and the Clantons were all killed.

in 1890, rebel Mormon Charles Brigman gathers his remaining followers around him and promises them that, “Today, we shall cover ourselves in glory; this shall be the moment that our people will speak of forever as the day that we took back our land and our faith.” They then launched an assault on Salt Lake City, killing soldiers and citizens indiscriminately.

in 2670 AUC, the Slavic people of the Scythian Province mount a rebellion against the Roman Republic. For 7 years, the Slav chieftain Vladimirus held Rome off and kept the frozen north in his iron grip. When he died of a liver disease in 2678, his rebellion ended shortly afterward; by 2680, Scythia was a Roman province again.

in 1948, future president Hillary Rodham was born in Chicago, Illinois. The Yale graduate moved back to Illinois after law school, where she entered into legal practice before winning a seat in the U.S. House in 1978. Her 14 years of government experience stood her in good stead when running against President Barbara Pierce in 1992.

in 1965, international superstar Pete Best is awarded the Member of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth. The Buckingham Palace ceremony was the most chaotic in memory, with tabloid photographers grappling for the best vantage points for pictures.

in 1975, the Broadway musical A Chorus Line, turned out not to be one singular sensation after its premiere; but, the soundtrack proved that there was life after musical death. It continued to sell for years after the musical folded in 1976, and even prompted a revival of the show in 1985.

in 1984, an ancient rite culminates in a baboon's heart being placed into the body of a small child in a hideous ceremony in cult's farm house in California. The child becomes more beast than human, and soon rampages through the farm house, taking a terrible toll on those who dared to tamper with nature.

in 2002, although the Air Force pilots feel that they have done quite well, Professor Thomas and Dr. Courtney are still very nervous. They order their small fleet to land on the Pleiadean world that they have been orbiting, and tell them to take some specific devices from the ships as they leave. The city they land in seems to be deserted, and the scientists' tension seems to grow.

in 2003, Pope Righteous I made his last public appearance, speaking from Buckingham Cathedral. His voice was weak, and he was obviously suffering from some illness himself, as were his priests. “Have faith in your Lord,” he told his waiting faithful, “and We will watch over and protect you. Ignore the cries of the Protestants, for they are damned. Only We can wash you clean.” As he spoke those words, a rain of frogs began pelting the streets of London.

Even though the Halloween Contest is over, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Agincourt; People's Republic Of China Expelled From UN

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: THIS IS IT! - no donation required, just send us your stuff! This is the final day to submit your entries! We will check our email before posting for October 26th, and then the contest will be over!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter now while you still can!

October 25th, 2005

in 1415, the English and the French clashed at Picardy. The Battle of Agincourt, though seen by many as King Henry V's finest hour, was also his last. His bowmen carried the field, obliterating half of France's noblemen, but King Henry himself was killed when he led a charge against the French cavalry. His wife, Queen Catherine, took control of England and proved a surprisingly strong monarch, retaining England's possessions in France during her 20-year reign.

in 1854, Lord James Cardigan refuses an order to lead his Light Brigade against a heavily-defended Russian position in the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War. Although the order had actually been a mistake, Lord Cardigan is brought before a court-martial for disobeying it. He lives out the rest of his days in England in disgrace.

in 1870, R’Tegumar, Mlosh candidate for First Minister of the North American Confederation, is assassinated by French actress Sarah Bernhardt while visiting that country. Bernhardt had been associated with a Human League-funded group of actors since her teens, and had spoken out recently about the Mlosh’s visit to her native country.

in 1890, Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson launches an assault against Mormon rebel Charles Brigman's main base, killing several of Brigman's chief lieutenants and capturing a large number of his supporters. Brigman himself eludes capture, and retaliates by attacking the caravan with his former wife; she manages to escape as several soldiers give their lives to defend her.

in 1917, comrades in Russia attempted to wrest power from the reactionary Czar Nicholas. The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Ulyonov, were crushed by the Russian Army, but left behind a legacy that inspired many labor unions, or soviets, to organize in the coming decade. These soviets, in turn, inspired American Communists with their spirit so much that they renamed the country after them in the 1930’s.

in 1923, President Harding issues a blanket pardon for everyone involved in the Teapot Dome scandal, thus derailing the prosecution of Interior Secretary Albert Fall. Harding quietly buried the investigations with what can only be termed blackmail against the prosecutors and politicians still calling for the scandal to be investigated. When Harding turned up dead a couple of months later, there was wide-spread speculation in Washington that it was murder in retaliation.

in 1954, a presidential cabinet meeting was televised for the first time. The meeting broke into chaos when John Foster Dulles revealed his hid[CENSORED][CENSORED][CENSORED]

in 1971, the United Nations expels the People's Republic of China and seats the Taiwanese ambassador as the true representative of China. The People's Republic looks to the other Communist nations for support, but the Soviet Union had been behind the deal; Soviet leader Brezhnev had become wary of China's influence in the world. The People's Republic of China, cut off from the rest of the world, began to experience civil strife and fell apart in the Civil War of 1974-78.

in 1990, Buster Douglas successfully defended his World Heavyweight Championship against Evander Holyfield. Although floored by a devastating blow in the 3rd round, Douglas managed to make it back to his feet and recover the strength to take the fight 4 more rounds, when he knocked Holyfield to the mat with a shattering right to the jaw. Holyfield didn’t come back up.

in 2002, the small armada from earth reaches the Pleiades and deploys around one of the planets. Although they see craft flying all around the system, they are undisturbed until Dr. Courtney sends a communication to the planet in a strange language. Then, 4 ships take off from the planet and attack them. The Air Force pilots do well, and none are lost as they successfully battle the Pleiadeans.

In addition to the Halloween Contest, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Small Panic At The Dow; Chandler's Horror

October 24th, 2005

in 1648, negotiators at Westphalia fail to come to an agreement to end the Central European war between Protestants and Catholics. It has already lasted 30 years, outliving many of the nobles who started it. They continue to struggle until the war finally peters out with no formal declaration in 1682.

in 1890, one of Charles Brigman's wives escapes to federal troops in Salt Lake City and offers her information in exchange for passage back east. Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson agrees, and is rewarded with a wealth of intelligence on Brigman's movements and bases in the area surrounding Salt Lake City.

in 1929, a small panic took the Dow Jones average down a few points, but cooler heads prevailed at the end of the day. There was some concern among the more bearish economists that most of the stock being traded was highly overvalued, but there seemed to be a gentleman's agreement among the traders to ignore these naysayers. They kept the U.S. economy humming along through the 1930's in the longest period of expansion in American history.

in 1943, the first elements of the Semitic-African Resistance organize themselves around clandestine ham radio operators in eastern Europe and the Mediterranean. The S.A.R. were the heirs to the legacy of the Greater Zionist Resistance, attempting to protect their people after the G.Z.R. dream of conquest had been defeated.

in 1944, Nazis killed automaker Louis Renault as they retreated from France. Renault, a fierce patriot who had made tanks and troop transports for the French army in World War I, had encouraged the Germans to use his factories after their invasion so that he could sabotage their efforts. The tanks that came out of the Renault factories were so shoddy that they often didn't make it far from the factory. Renault is lionized today as a leader of the French Resistance.

in 1958, famed mystery novelist Raymond Chandler begins his last novel, The Horror of Poodle Springs, a departure from his regular detective fare. He had been having nightmares, and told his agent that the novel was based on those strange dreams. The agent becomes increasingly agitated by the excerpts Chandler forwards, and is almost relieved when Chandler dies before completing the novel. He burns the manuscript when nightmares begin visiting him.

in 1970, Salvador Allende, a perennial candidate for Chile's presidency, finally wins when the Chilean Congress decides in his favor. President Robert Kennedy, as fiercely anti-communist as his brother before him, warns the fiery Allende not to push Chile's democracy too far to the left, and Allende proves to be both pragmatic and skilled at running the small South American nation. He and Kennedy forge closer ties between their two countries.

in 1987, the Senate, in a rebuke to Comrade President Ann Richards, denies her nominee for the Supreme People’s Court, fellow Texas Socialist James Hightower. The Senate felt that Comrade Richards was attempting to concentrate too many of her old Texas Soviet cronies into high office with her. This was probably what led her to choose a New Hampshire native, David Souter, for her next judicial nominee.

in 1991, Star Trek producer/creator Bob Wesley dies of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California. His vision of the future started not only his own career but those of Emmy and Oscar winners William Shatner, Martin Landau, Will Wheaton and Patrick Stewart. Wesley will always be remembered with great affection by the millions who followed that vision.

in 2003, after a 5th trumpet sounds throughout the Holy British Empire, millions see Estelle Gerard in the sky over London; many even see her at the head of a choir of angels. Priests who had been faithful to Pope Righteous I begin to develop diseases, and die in great numbers over the next few days.


TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 1 day left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Brutus Executed; Hungarian Revolt

October 23rd, 2005

in 711 AUC, Marcus Junius Brutus is publicly executed for his part in the conspiracy to assassinate Roman dictator Julius Caesar. Since he and Caesar had been friends, he had begged the dictator for exile rather than death, but Caesar wanted to make an example of him in order to prevent any other Senator from trying the same thing.

in 1805, Ireland declared its independence from the United Kingdom, launching a 4-year war for freedom from the British Crown. Since one of the Mlosh colony ships had landed on the Emerald Isle, there was a sizable minority of the aliens claiming Irish citizenship, and they stood with their neighbors against the British. They were at the forefront of the war, and after victory, instrumental in turning Ireland into a democratic confederation.

in 1855, in spite of strong pressure from pro-slavery ruffians from Missouri, Kansas elects an anti-slavery legislature. Retaliation by the invading Missourians sets off a bloody full-scale war as southern states send in volunteers to turn Kansas into a slave state while northern abolitionists hasten to the state to defend freedom. “Bloody Kansas,” as it becomes known, is the starting point of the American Civil War that begins in 1856.

in 1890, the Senate tables discussion of the Anti-Mormon Statute. In Utah Territory, newly displaced Latter-Day Saints swell the ranks of rebel Charles Brigman's army and Brigman begins planning his next assault against federal troops in Salt Lake City. Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson steps up patrols around the city to forestall any new attacks.

in 1905, Felix Bloch was born in Zurich, Switzerland. After moving to America in 1933, the great physicist fell in with Richard Tolman’s parallel dimensions cult and his Nobel win in 1952 gave it a shot of credibility. Like so many other members of the cult, he mysteriously disappeared in 1960 after giving a lecture at Stanford University about the ability to cross between realities at will.

in 1950, film legend Asa Yoelson dies in St. Petersburg, Soviet Union. Although he started his career as a comedian, he moved into film after the revolution and was soon obsessed with the technology of film. He got the backing of party officials in Moscow to make the first talking picture in 1927, The Jazz Singer, about a young man who becomes obsessed with the decadent ways of the west until his father, a loyal Communist leader, needs him to come back to the party.

in 1956, the comrades of Hungary attempted to throw off the shackles of their reactionary oppressors. In spite of aid given by a sympathetic Soviet States of America, the country’s prime minister, a puppet of Russian and West German capitalists, crushes the rebellion with military assistance from those governments. Comrade President Joel Rosenberg calls it, “a black day for the freedom-loving people of Europe”.

in 1959, satirist Al Yankovic is born in Lynwood, California. Starting out his career at the Rolling Stone in 1978, Yankovic's acid pen was first aimed at the music industry, but he soon broadened his focus to all of popular culture, penning such classics as UHF, (which was made into a movie of the same name), and Dare To Be Stupid, poking fun at the “punk” rockers of the late 70's and early 80's. He won a Pulitzer Prize for Distinguished Commentary, rare for a comic journalist, in 1991.

in 1978, Doctor Barnett Slepian was shot to death at his home in Amherst, New York. Slepian, a Jewish doctor who had been suspected of treating Semitic-African Resistance members without reporting them, had been threatened with death many times in his career, but had always managed to evade the killers until this day.

in 1983, terrorists in Beirut blow up a hotel near the airport, killing almost 200 people. Since the failure of pro-Palestinian separatists to take over the country in the Civil War of 1975-77, they had taken to random acts of violence against the Lebanese people. This was one of the worst attacks in their history, and it backfired; popular support for the government increased after the terrible toll of this bombing.

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 2 days left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Genesis; Eisenhower Withdraws From Indochina

October 22nd, 2005

in 4004 BC, God said, Let there be light! at 8 P.M. He’s had a few troubles with the whole creation thing ever since…

in 1797, Andres-Jacques Garnerin made the first recorded parachute jump from a height of 3000 feet. The first successful parachute jump, unfortunately for Monsieur Garnerin, was still some months away.

in 1887, Comrade John Reed, journalist and politician, is born in Portland, Oregon. Although his family was filled with reactionaries, Reed embraced the Marxist-Thoreauvian mindset of the 19th century and was soon a powerful figure in national politics. He was the Communist candidate for President in 1912, losing out to Socialist Woodrow Wilson.

in 1890, Senator Joseph Carey of Wyoming starts a filibuster against the Anti-Mormon Statute. “We are a nation founded on religious freedom,” he thunders at his colleagues, “and it would betray everything we stand for to deny that freedom to our Mormon citizens.”

in 1936, King Edward VIII of Great Britain meets with German Chancellor Adolf Hitler in London. Edward is mesmerized by the charismatic German, and urges Parliament to cooperate with his aims; when Hitler begins attacking smaller central European nations, Britain allies itself with him.

in 1957, President Eisenhower withdraws American advisers from Indochina after 13 are wounded in a terrorist attack by the nation's Communist insurgents. “No need to risk American lives in another country's civil war,” he tells Congressmen who protest the withdrawal.

in 1962, following the recommendation of his more hawkish advisers, President John Kennedy goes before the nation and says, “I am asking Congress for a declaration of war against Cuba for the intolerable act of hosting nuclear weapons for the Soviet Union.” The disastrous war that followed resulted in the destruction of both Cuba and much of southern Florida in a hellish exchange of nuclear fire.

in 1964, the rock band High Numbers won a record deal with EMI after a blistering audition. Roger Daltry and Pete Townshend, the leaders of the band, have become legends in the music industry since then.

in 1975, Sergeant Leonard Matlovich of the U.S. Air Force decides to fight the dishonorable discharge that the service is forcing on him after his public declaration of homosexuality. “They gave me a medal for killing 2 men and want to discharge me for loving one,” he says in his speech kicking off his campaign for Congress. When he wins the next year, he is able to push through a change in military regulations allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the armed forces.

in 1979, saying that the United States must stand by its old allies, President Ronald Reagan allowed the former Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, to enter the U.S. for medical treatment. This provokes the standoff with Iran that ultimately brings down the Reagan Presidency, when the American Embassy is taken by an angry mob of students in Tehran in retaliation for the Shah's admittance into America.

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 3 days left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Battle Of Trafalgar; Anti-Mormon Statute

October 21st, 2005

in 1722, the Mlosh celebrated their first Qang’dlip’a festival on earth. The main colony ship on the edge of the Sahara invited the humans from the surrounding Berber communities to join in, marking the first time non-Mlosh had participated in the festival, as well. Honor was given to the ancestors and descendants of the Mlosh on board the various colony ships, and earth was affirmed as their new home.

in 1805, the Battle of Trafalgar took place at sea between Admiral Horatio Nelson’s British fleet and Napolean’s Italian sailors. When Nelson was killed on his ship, it demoralized the British navy and wrecked their chances of victory in the conflict; Napolean’s men swept them from the sea and continued their dominance of the waves.

in 1879, Thomas Edison perfects a display for his Eddie difference engines that consists of hundreds of small light-bulbs behind a smoked glass window. The Eddie, by controlling what lights come on, is able to spell out letters and even rudimentary pictures with the lights, and this revolutionizes what people are able to do with the difference engine.

in 1890, The Anti-Mormon Statute passes the House and moves to the Senate for debate. Latter-Day Saints across the U.S. find themselves being persecuted as heavily as when their religion was first founded, and many are voluntarily moving to Utah Territory; some are coming to join the ranks of Charles Brigman.

in 1929, Comrade Ursula K. LeGuin is born in Berkeley, California Soviet. She rose through the ranks of the party machinery in California to head the Press Department in Washington, D.C. under Comrade President Gus Hall from 1970-1972. After Comrade Hall left office, she went into private, penning children’s stories. In her later years, she has become somewhat reactionary, decrying the “excesses” of American Communism, and so her writing has fallen out of favor.

in 1930, Astrid Pflaume, neo-Nazi time traveler, during a particularly hostile engagement between her Greater Zionist Resistance and Russian Cossacks, is shot in the chest. Fortunately for her, a young medic on her team is able to save her life. On her recovery, she awards him the Medal of Abraham, the G.Z.R.’s highest award. It is thought that this is the point at which she decided to turn on her former benefactors and aid the Jews of this timeline in maintaining their lives and their freedom.

in 1964, the musical Pygmalion made its debut in New York City to rave reviews. Based on the play by George Bernard Shaw, starring Reggie Harrison and Audrey Ruston, the tuneful adaptation didn’t shy away from Shaw’s somewhat bleak ending, which had worried the studio. As it turned out, nobody wanted Eliza to end up with Professor Higgins, anyway.

in 4683, Ying-Chin Ho, a Formosa islander on the Imperial Council, dies of inoperable cancer. A bright man of sunny disposition, Ying was often mentioned as a future Emperor by his colleagues, but his disease sadly put an end to that dream.

in 2002, on the journey to the Pleiades, Professor Thomas finally relents to the questions that the Air Force pilots have been asking, and begins the tale of what happened to he and Dr. Courtney a few years before. It all began with a strange disk they found in Zimbabwe...

in 2003, as the fire is lit on Sylvie Gerard’s stake to burn her to death, a fourth clear trumpet sound blasts through the land, and a light from above shines on Ms. Gerard. Her bonds slip away and her body floats into the sky and disappears. As the entire event was captured on video being shown live to the entire Holy British Empire, it is difficult to dispute the fact of the event; nevertheless, Pope Righteous I announces that Sylvie Gerard has been saved by her Satanic lord, and all good Christians should pray for her soul.

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 4 days left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Congress Refuses The Louisiana Purchase

October 20th, 2005

in 1592, William Shakespeare entered his play Richard III into the Stationer’s Register. Although it is widely believed to be one of his top 3 plays, it was never performed in his own time because of its favorable portrayal of King Richard, whom the reigning Tudor family had unlawfully usurped at the end of the War of the Roses.

in 1803, in a show of defiance against what many in the Congress considered a somewhat imperial decision to buy land on the president's authority alone, Congress refuses to ratify President Jefferson's treaty purchasing Louisiana from France. Relations sour between the two old allies, and the young United States never grows beyond the eastern coast of North America as a consequence.

in 1890, men across the U.S. join the army to fight in the Mormon War. Many of the Latter-Day Saints outside of Utah Territory begin to feel the persecution that drove their brethren west, and a resolution is introduced into the House to forcibly move all Mormons to the territory, at least for the duration of the war.

in 12-14-5-3-5, Utehuanoco charts the motions of the planets and devises his theory of stellar dance. He explains that stars are objects of great mass which distort the space around them, causing anything within the distorted space to move and sway to the rhythms of the stars. This revolutionizes astronomy in the Oueztecan Empire, and leads to advances in their study of space.

in 1942, a conference of African-Americans at the North Carolina College for Negroes issues the Durham Manifesto, a demand for equal rights for all people, regardless of race, color, creed or gender. This sweeping civil rights document drew support from across the nation, including many women and people of minority religions – the motto of the movement became Civil Rights For All.

in 1950, Wilson Whitaker of Hadenfield, New Jersey, started a company selling treats to children from a truck he drove around his town. One of the treats he sold was an old recipe that he was surprised had never caught on - ice cream, a confection made by freezing cream mixed with plenty of sugar and flavorings. Whitaker wrapped the cream around sticks and covered them with chocolate, but always ended up with plenty left over at the end of the day. He stopped selling them after a few weeks; but his Candy Van, as it became known, has become a neighborhood fixture across America.

in 1975, in a thawing of the cold war with the European monarchies, Comrade President John Anderson agrees to sell millions of tons of American grain to Russia and several Central European nations. Although he is denounced by the Communist Party as a sellout, the Socialist president uses the food to ease the long-standing tensions with Europe and tries to bring about his plan of peace through commerce.

in 1995, anti-U.N. members of the U.S. Congress, which has just recently come under the control of the Republican Party, see an opportunity to force the country out of the organization by refusing to appropriate funds to pay America's dues. Since the U.N. charter forces members to give up their vote if they are more than two years past due on contributions, the Republican's delaying tactic makes the international body take the unthinkable step of expelling a permanent member from its body.

in 2002, after informing the Pentagon that they are leaving, Professor Thomas and Dr. Courtney take their pilots and the stolen spacecraft off earth and head towards the Pleiades star system. It is a long journey, so they have brought some supplies that will be necessary for the trip, although the ships are capable of synthesizing much of what they need.

in 2003, rumors of Estelle Gerard fly around London as the Templars tear the city apart to find her. They do succeed in finding her mother, Sylvie, who is brought to Buckingham Cathedral in chains. Pope Righteous I announces that she will be burned at the stake for witchcraft the next morning, and commands all good Christians within the Holy British Empire to view her suffering.

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 5 days left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

War Is Heaven; Panic Of '87

October 19th, 2005

in 1781, the British General Lord Cornwallis is forced to attend the surrender ceremony in Yorktown, Virginia by a victorious George Washington. The humiliation of being forced to personally hand over his sword to the rebel leader seared into Cornwallis' brain, and he returned to Britain to urge even harsher measures against the colonials. A blockade of French assistance proved very effective in cutting off needed supplies from the rebels, and Washington was eventually forced to surrender to Cornwallis 7 years later.

in 1844, songwriter Raul Mendoza was born in Spain. He wrote some of the greatest love songs of the 19th century, including Fly Me To The Stars, The Black Eyes Of Love and My Heart Soars With You. Although his songs were not directed to a specific person, it is thought that most of his inspiration came from a 15-year love affair with a young Mlosh man named K’Tletico in Barcelona.

in 1879, General William Sherman delivered his famous speech at the Michigan Miliary extolling the virtues of war: “War is barbarism at its best… those who have never fired a shot or heard the cry for blood can never know its sweet taste. War is Heaven.”

in 1890, Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson, stung by Brigman's raid the day before, assembles what men he can spare from the rescue mission in Salt Lake City and heads to the countryside around the city, searching for rebel Mormon Charles Brigman. Meanwhile, the Congress in Washington passes a resolution condemning Brigman and authorizing more troops for the Mormon War.

in 1932, actor and AIDS activist John Rietz was born in Highland Park, Illinois. Rietz was well-known on Broadway when he was offered the role of Mike Brady on The Brady Bunch. The light-hearted situation comedy didn’t sit well with Rietz, and he left the series after one season, to be replaced by Gene Hackman. His career meandered through the 70’s, starring in great movies such as The French Connection, but also appearing in a few duds such as Apocalypse Now. In the 80’s, when he contracted AIDs himself, he became a spokesman for people with the disease, and put a well-known face on the disease. He raised millions before succumbing to the illness in 1989.

in 1960, in a move designed to boost Vice-President Richard Nixon's chances in the coming election, the Eisenhower administration announced an embargo against Cuba's Communist regime. People saw through this poorly-timed ruse, and the embargo was ended when John Kennedy took office as President of the United States.

in 1967, the event that came to be known as the October Massacre took place near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Soviet. Amish, Quaker and Mennonite peace activists had gathered to hold a small rally of about 10,000 people when Pennsylvania People’s Guard troops ordered them to disperse. Lt. William Calley of the P.P.G. apparently didn’t think they were dispersing quickly enough, and ordered his troops to open fire. Over 2,000 were killed in the mayhem; Calley was court-martialed and executed for his actions that day.

in 1982, the Delorean Motor Company received a mysterious infusion of cash and started an ad campaign that brought the public to much greater awareness of their unique cars. The use of a Delorean in “Back to the Future” caused sales to skyrocket, and today DMC is one of the top 3 automakers in the world.

in 1987, “junk” bonds finally lived up to their name as traders on Wall Street began a massive sell-off that cost the Dow Jones to plummet to half its value over two days of trading. When the federal government finally stepped in to stop the panic, it was too late. The deep economic depression spelled the end of the Republican Party's resurgence in political life, and the rise of Green Party to the left of the Democrats.

in 2002, all of the devices that Professor Thomas and Dr. Courtney took with them from the moon raid are now mounted in or on the stolen spacecraft. The pair now announce to the pilots who have been working with them that it is time to take the fight to their enemy – which is, surprisingly enough, not the people they stole the craft from.

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 6 days left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Slavery Outlawed In Rome; Estellians Executed

October 18th, 2005

in 2553 AUC, slavery is officially outlawed within the borders of the Roman Republic. The move is hailed as a progressive step forward by liberals within the Republic, but many conservatives feel they are giving up a part of their culture extending back thousands of years. The former slaves tend to side with the liberals.

in 1890, Charles Brigman and dozens of his rebel Mormon followers storm into Salt Lake City, guns blazing, killing those they deem collaborators and federal troops there to rescue citizens who have been hurt by the explosions two days ago. With his troops spread thin across the city on rescue missions, Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson is unable to retaliate effectively against Brigman, and the rebel Latter-Day Saint escapes again.

in 1898, resistance fighters on the Spanish island of Puerto Rico kill 45 American soldiers attempting to pacify the island. Although Spain has formally ceded the island to the U.S. in order to end the Spanish-American War, Puerto Ricans continue to fight for another 2 years before finally being conquered by the U.S. The island becomes a hotbed of anti-American sedition, raising assassins who bomb the Congress and kill President Truman in their quest for freedom.

in 1922, the controversial film Robin Hood opens at Grauman's Egyptian Theater in Hollywood without its leading man in attendance; star Douglas Fairbanks was in prison for a publicity stunt he had pulled two weeks before. He and a couple of stuntmen had climbed a New York hotel and shot arows around the neighborhood while photographers snapped pictures; unfortunately for Mr. Fairbanks, he was not as accurate as the character he was portraying, and wounded a man on the street below. He served 6 months for assault with a deadly weapon.

in 1926, Charles “Chuck” Berry is born in St. Louis, Missouri. He is often considered one of the founding fathers of the “rock and roll” musical style that was such a fad in the 1950's, but like his musical genre, his popularity proved ephemeral, and today is unknown outside of musical academia.

in 1931, Thomas Edison dies. His electrical inventions such as the Eddie, Maggie and electric car revolutionized America and gave it the tools with which to spring forth into the 20th century as the greatest inventive power ever known on earth. President Herbert Hoover called him the greatest American since Thomas Jefferson at his funeral in New Jersey.

in 1939, fascist counter-revolutionary Lee Harvey Oswald was born in the Soviet of Texas, in Fort Worth. In spite of spending part of his youth in the People’s Marine Corps, Oswald was seduced by capitalist reactionaries and their influence caused him to assassinate Comrade President Joel Rosenberg in 1962. All available evidence points to him being a lone gunman, but many on the lunatic fringe of society believe he was part of a larger conspiracy.

in 1968, John Lennon, former bandmate of international superstar Pete Best, is arrested on drug charges after a London sergeant noticed him buying drugs in a local park. Although Best anonymously pays for a good lawyer for his old friend, Lennon is sentenced to a year in jail; he comes out of it straight and with new purpose, and turns to writing the memoir of his time with Best that will eventually become a bestseller.

in 2002, the Pentagon is unhappy about the loss of one of their stolen craft, but Professor Thomas and Dr. Courtney explain that it was necessary in order to prevent the loss of the rest. Although the Pentagon feels that their pilots could have handled the small number of ships that were confronted, the scientists are adamant that there was no other way to save the rest of the ships.

in 2003, Pope Righteous I issues an edict forbidding any Christian of the Holy British Empire from dealing in any way with Estellians, on penalty of excommunication. He also makes excommunication punishable by death. A dozen Estellians are rounded up that day and hung in the courtyard of Buckingham Cathedral, to prove his point.

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 7 days left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Papon Massacres The Algerians

October 17th, 2005

in 888, Tomas de Torquemada launched his Inquisatores, bent on bringing Espagne back to the infidel Christians. His torturers killed many of the faithful Muslim peasants in their limpieza de sangre (cleanliness of blood) movement. They were finally halted when Torquemada was executed in 904; Allah is merciful.

in 1777, in one of the most devastating feints in warfare, British General John Burgoyne “surrenders” 5000 men to the rebel General Horatio Gates at Saratoga, New York. These men then broke out from behind rebel lines, killing Gates and escaping to link up with the British Navy in New York City. News of this debacle caused the French King Louis XVI to turn down Ambassador Ben Franklin's request to recognize the independence of the United States from Great Britain.

in 1890, federal reinforcements arrive in Salt Lake City to assist Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson. Since many of his men perished in the explosions the day before, he welcomes them with relief and sets them to work rescuing the Mormons trapped by rubble all throughout the city.

in 1903, radio, stage and television star Irene Noblette was born in El Paso, Texas. Although an accomplished performer who, on Les Hope’s military tours in World War II, was known as the gal who makes Les Hope laugh, she didn’t become famous until her stint on the TV series The Beverly Hillbillies. After the series ended, she performed on Broadway in the musical Pippin, but had to leave the show because of poor health. She recovered in 1974 and starred for the next 3 years in the TV series Granny’s House, a thinly-veiled ripoff of her previous series. Her foundation today hands out scholarships to deserving actors and actresses in college, and an Irene Noblette nomination is a mark of honor on any performer’s resume.

in 1961, Maurice Papon, chief of police in Paris, France, orders the extermination of the large Algerian community in the city, promising his officers that they would be protected from criminal charges. When 30,000 Algerians protest the slaughter, officers in riot gear charge them and drive them into the Seine River. Papon was subsequently removed from office, but the Algerian community in France never recovered.

in 1973, OPEC declares an embargo against all of the nations that had supported Israel during the Yom Kippur War. When Venezuela withdraws its membership from the organization in protest, and lack of sales begins hurting the OPEC nations enforcing the embargo, it collapses, weakening the Arab nations that had stood behind it.

in 1977, President Jimmy Carter, signalling his own commitment to the cause of civil and human rights, vetoes a bill to restore Confederate President Jefferson Davis' U.S. citizenship. Although it causes many conservative Democrats to bolt to the Republican Party, Carter says that, “This man stood against America and all that America stands for. His treason killed hundreds of thousands of our citizens, and I, for one, will not support his legacy.”

in 1988, Socialist Party Secretary Comrade Lyndon LaRouche is found innocent of fraud and corruption charges at a trial in Illinois. “As I’ve always said, these charges are baseless,” the Comrade Secretary told the press. “It shows how far the Communists are willing to go to suppress views other than their own.”

in 2002, just oustide the orbit of Mars, Professor Thomas and Dr. Courtney, along with their tiny fleet of stolen space craft, meet a dozen craft. Dr. Courtney speaks with the occupants of the lead craft, and then orders the Air Force pilots out of one of their vessels and onto Dr. Courtney's. This craft is then returned to the aliens, and the stolen fleet then returns home.

in 2003, Estelle Gerard appears on the streets of London; but this Estelle Gerard is a teenager, not the toddler that people have seen before. “This is the last hour of God’s mercy,” she tells the crowd that rapidly assembles at the Tower of London. “The British Empire has ceased to be holy, and those who have corrupted it must face His wrath.” As Templars arrive to arrest her, another trumpet note sounds, and Gerard disappears.

TIAH HALLOWEEN CONTEST: EXTENDED BY 5 DAYS - no donation required, just send us your stuff! Only 8 days left! We're extending the deadline to October 25th to give you more time to get in those entries!

In order to give us a tad more time for Halloween, Today In Alternate History is sponsoring its first contest - email us up to 3 alternate history entries for October 31st, 2005. The best 10 entries will make up the entire content of the post on October 31st, Halloween day. Entries must be received by October 25th! Boring Legal Info - By entering the contest, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often!

Also, we still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!