Win some, lose some

•On Aug. 2, 1876, “Wild Bill” Hickok, one of the greatest gunfighters of the American West, is murdered while playing poker in Deadwood, S.D. Hickok held a pair of black aces and black eights when he died, a combination that has since become known as the Dead Man’s Hand.

•On Aug. 6, 1890, at Auburn Prison in New York, William Kemmler becomes the first person to be executed by electrocution. A charge of 700 volts was delivered for 17 seconds before the current failed. Inventor George Westinghouse, an innovator of the use of electricity, remarked, “They would have done better with an ax.”

•On Aug. 4, 1901, legendary jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong is born in New Orleans. Armstrong’s innovative music established the instrumental solo as the backbone of jazz. Among his many hits were “Blueberry Hill” and “What a Wonderful World.”

•On July 31, 1930, the radio mystery program “The Shadow” first airs. The show featured a crime-fighting superhero, the Shadow, and became famous for its trademark opening line: “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows …”

•On Aug. 1, 1971, the “Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour” debuts. The hit show, featuring music and comedy routines, was set apart from similar shows by the banter between Sonny and Cher.