History: What Came First ? #4

Seinfeld first hit the airwaves as The Seinfeld Chronicles in 1989, half a decade before Friends moved into its generously sized New York City apartment in 1994. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Considered one of the first science-fiction novels, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein came to life in 1818. Bram Stoker’s Dracula wouldn’t begin haunting readers until 1897.

The first Oreo cookie was sold in 1912, while Ruth Wakefield invented the chocolate chip cookie at the Toll House restaurant in Massachusetts in the 1930s. She initially called her creation the Toll House Crunch Cookie.

Netflix began offering rental DVDs through the mail in 1997 and launched its streaming service in 2007. Hulu became available to the public in 2008.

Both games have had many iterations over the centuries. The earliest forms of checkers were played in ancient Egypt, as far back as 1600 bce. The earliest forms of chess were played about two thousand years later, in India during the 6th century ce.

The Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York is credited with setting up 20-rule parameters by which the first game of baseball was played in 1846. In 1857 Daniel Adams, a member of that club, expanded and formalized the rules. Both years predate basketball inventor James Naismith hanging his first peach basket in 1891.

Jean Naigeon, of the city of Dijon, France, is credited with replacing the vinegar commonly used in mustard with the sour juice of unripened grapes in 1752 to create Dijon mustard. Ketchup was originally an Asian fish sauce completely different from today’s french fry dip. Variations subbed out fish for other ingredients, such as mushrooms and walnuts, until tomato ketchup hit the scene in 1812

The gigantic ape first climbed up on the big screen in 1933, while Godzilla didn’t start stomping until 1954.

Alessandro Volta, namesake of the volt unit of measure, invented the battery in 1800. The first electric plug was patented in 1904 and took several more decades to become commonplace.

Barbie made her debut in 1959, while the original 12-inch G.I. Joe “action soldier” reported for duty in 1964 (the 3.75-inch G.I. Joe line launched in 1982).

Elevators have had their ups and downs over the years. Ancient Roman architect Vitruvius described a platform hoisted with pulleys in the 1st century bce. The first passenger elevator opened its doors in a New York City department store in 1857. Jesse W. Reno invented the escalator in 1891, though it would not be marketed under that name until 1900.

White wedding dresses became fashionable after Queen Victoria wore one while tying the knot with Prince Albert in 1840. Tuxedos first hit the scene in 1886, when Pierre Lorillard wore a tailless black jacket to a social gathering at the Tuxedo Club in Tuxedo Park, New

Named for the Mars family horse, the Snickers bar was introduced in 1930. M&Ms (named for Forrest Mars and his partner Bruce Murrie) were launched in 1941 and quickly became a fixture of U.S. military rations thanks in part to their ability to withstand high temperatures.

The Communist Manifesto author Karl Marx was born in 1818, well before the birth of the oldest Marx brother, Chico, in 1887

Once considered the ninth planet of our solar system, Pluto was discovered on February 18, 1930. Pluto the dog first appeared in “The Chain Gang,” released August 6, 1930, as an unnamed bloodhound searching for an escaped Mickey. The following year he became Mickey’s pet and was named Pluto amid the excitement over the newly discovered celestial body.