Christmas Day Contest! ONLY 3 DAYS LEFT!! 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 December 25th, 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've only had two contestants so far, so let's get cracking, people!
December 17th, 2005
in 1538, Pope Henry VIII excommunicated Duke Alessandro Farnese of Rome after the Duke had let slip that he didn’t approve of the attitude His Holiness held towards marriage. The Duke had been a supporter of the Reborn Roman Church, and Pope Henry never forgave him.
in 1751, Jane Reddings, Generation 2359 in the Speaker’s Line, organizes the first European meeting of the Speaker’s Children. Over 400 of Telka’s descendants crowded into her estate outside Sheffield to learn of the progress being made in realizing their common dream. This meeting led to contact with counterparts across the globe, and the first grand reunion of the Speaker’s Children in 1786, at the same time the Montgolfier brothers were flying across the Parisian sky.
in 1792, independent Canada is recognized by the government of France, which has recently been through its own revolution. After France formally recognizes the Canadians, the American Commonwealth follows, then Germany, Spain, most of the Scandinavian nations, and finally, in 1806, Great Britain.
in 1877, the Baron Von Todt arrived in Paris, France. Mikhail von Heflin had left his native Bohemia centuries before, wandering across Europe in a vain attempt to discover the secret of his continued existence. Wherever he dwelt for any length of time, though, people close to him began to die, and he found it necessary to move again. He hoped that the size of Paris would keep him anonymous for a time.
in 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright join the long line of inventors attempting to get a heavier-than-air craft off the ground. After their failure in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, the U.S. government decided that the only way to fly was with lighter-than-air craft, and built an Air Force using the new dirigible technology. The huge, gas-filled aircraft revolutionized international travel.
in 1941, James Crescent, the “World’s Luckiest Man”, was born in Reno, Nevada. Over his life, Crescent won almost $10 million at games of chance. He married his high school sweetheart, had 2 lovely children with her, and was reportedly one of the most well-liked people in all of Reno. When he disappeared in 1976, the police couldn’t find anyone who harbored ill will towards him; although they did hear of a drifter answering to the name “Tolman” who had been spotted near Crescent’s house the day of his disappearance. The drifter was never found, and the crime was never solved.
in 1869, the North American Confederation’s Air-Space Command closed down Project Red Shift, a 20-year program that had been charged with finding the Mlosh home world. Since no progress had been made in that time, the ASC concluded that the world was simply no longer anywhere that they could reach.
in 1975, Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme is sentenced to life in prison for the assassination of President Gerald Ford. President Rockefeller had pushed for the reinstatement of the death penalty in this case, but California would not hear of it. Ms. Fromme was a model prisoner, though, but talk of her parole was ended when a fellow prisoner killed her in 1992.
in 1977, the most controversial band to ever appear on Saturday Night Live played their hearts out, live from New York. The Sex Pistols had been denied visas to enter the United States until virtually the last minute; they arrived in New York City with no time to rehearse before their appearance. Their foul language and on-stage antics sent the censors into fits, but it remains one of the shows highlights.
in 1992, the Community of Trade was formally dissolved. Most of its membership had been trading goods with capitalist nations for decades, anyway; this move simply acknowledged what they had all been doing already. Comrade President Sam Webb reluctantly signed the dissolution treaty, proclaiming it “the end of a century of progress among the nations”.
in 1,246,358 CE, the Kholia climbing the Wall of Night is passed by a weathergod.
ALTERNATE HISTORIAN'S NOTE:Today's post contains an extended entry that is also a future date - since the poll on this issue is overwhelmingly in favor of including future dates, we felt we should give you a taste. Let us know what you think of this!
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!
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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
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