July 30 – Happy Birthday, Lisa Kudrow

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nToday is the birthday of a highly accomplished actor, producer, writer, and comedian. Lisa Kudrow is famous for everything from TV to movies, and from comedy to drama.
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nI wanted to highlight a reality program she produces: Who Do You Think You Are?
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nThis TV show is all about genealogy. We can watch famous people researching their own families – and along the way, we can learn about how genealogists research family ancestry. Of course, being an hour-long show, we do not wallow in the parts of a family for which nobody can find any records – instead, we are treated to the best-of-the-best that genealogists were able to learn about each family.
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nLike history? You will dip in and out of various centuries in this show.
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nLike geography? You will follow the celebrities across the nation and the world.
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nLike drama? Every family has is tragedies and its surprises. 
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Kudrow was shocked to hear that one of her ancestors was killed in the Holocaust. But she was joyful to meet a cousin she never knew – someone who survived the Holocaust!

nKudrow’s own family seems relatively boring and middle class. She was born in Los Angeles. Her mom was a travel agent, and her dad was a doctor. But her family ancestry – which she partially explored during the show – included hardships and tragedies. Her various ancestors immigrated to the U.S. from Belarus, Germany, Hungary, and Poland, and her paternal great-grandmother was killed by Nazis in the Holocaust.
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nI liked this article about the series – it really lays out the kinds of things that I learned from Who Do You Think You Are?
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nAlso on this date:

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nnArt historian Giogio Vasari’s birthday 

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nnInternational Day of Friendship
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nIndependence Day in Vanuatu

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nPaperback Book Day

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nAnniversary of the invention of corn flakes

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nBirthday of the “Father of Television”

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nFirst Disney Foray into Technicolor

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nPlan ahead:

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nCheck out my Pinterest boards for:

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• nJuly holidays

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• nJuly birthdays

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• nHistorical anniversaries in July

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nAnd here are my Pinterest boards for:

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• nAugust holidays

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• nAugust birthdays

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• nHistorical anniversaries in August

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