On this day in1877, the publication Scientific American
enthuses about Thomas Edison‘s new invention: the
phonograph, a way to record and play back sound.

Calling it a "wonderful invention," the article describes
the machine’s capability: "…whoever has spoken or
whoever may speak into the mouthpiece of the phonograph,
and whose words are recorded by it, has the assurance that
his speech may be reproduced audibly in his own tones long
after he himself has turned to dust.

The famous picture of Marilyn Monroe, laughing as her skirt
is blown up by the blast from a subway vent, was shot on
September 15, 1954 during the filming of The Seven Year
Itch.

The phonograph was invented in 1877 by Thomas Edison,
Alexander Graham Bell‘s Volta Laboratory made several
improvements in the 1880s and introduced the graphophone,
including the use of wax-coated cardboard cylinders and a
cutting stylus that moved from side to side in a zigzag groove
around the record. In the 1890s, Emile Berliner initiated the
transition from phonograph cylinders to flat discs with a spiral
groove running from the periphery to near the center, coining
the term gramophone for disc record players.

Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847 – October 18, 1931)

Elvis Presley checking out his very own personalized
"Hound Dog" bike which was given to him in 1957 to
ride around the Paramount studio complex in Hollywood.

The singer and actor had just finished filming Jailhouse
Rock at Paramount.

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The "Face on Mars" was first photographed on this day in history, July 25, 1976. (NASA)

A photo from Mars taken by NASA’s Viking 1 spacecraft left
people perplexed and wondering about the possibility of
extraterrestrial life. 

Dubbed the "Face on Mars," the image appeared to show a
carving of eyes, nose and a mouth in the Martian region of
Cydonia.

NASA’s website said "the Viking 1 spacecraft (below) was
circling the planet, snapping photos of possible landing
sites for its sister ship Viking 2, when it spotted the shadowy  
likeness of a human face."