On This Day April 25 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1874 – Nobel Prize-winning radio inventor Guglielmo Marconi (d. 1937) 1908 – Pioneering broadcast journalist and longtime CBS correspondent Edward R. Murrow (d. 1965) 1917 – Legendary Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald, affectionately known as “The First Lady of Song” (d. 1996) 1932 – Basketball Hall of Famer and former Harlem Globetrotter Meadowlark Lemon, born Meadow Lemon III (d. 2015) 1940 – Oscar, Tony and Emmy-winning actor Al Pacino (“The Godfather” movie series, “Serpico,” “Dog Day Afternoon,” ” …And Justice for All,” “Scarface,” “Scent of a Woman,” “Carlito’s Way,” “The Devil’s Advocate,” “The Insider,” “Oceans Thrteen,” “Danny Collins,” “The Irishman,” “Hunters”) 1946 – Actress Talia Shire, best known for her roles as Connie Corleone in “The Godfather” films and Adrian Balboa in the “Rocky” series 1964 – Emmy-winning actor-producer-comedian Hank Azaria (“The Simpsons,” “The Birdcage,” “Mystery Men,” “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” “The Smurfs,” “Brockmire”) 1969 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actress Renée Zellweger (“Jerry McGuire,” “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” “Me Myself and Irene,” “Chicago,” “Cold Mountain,” “Cinderella Man”) History Highlights 1901 – New York becomes the first state to require license plates on cars. Owners had to display their initials on the back of the vehicle and the letters had to be at least three inches tall. Since the state did not produce license plates, owners were forced to make their own, and they did so using metal, leather or wood — or they painted their initials directly onto the vehicle. In 1903, Massachusetts became the first state to produce license plates. 1945 – A milestone in the approaching end of World War II in Europe is achieved when U.S. and Russian troops meet in Torgau along the River Elbe, cutting Nazi Germany in two. 1980 – President Jimmy Carter informs the nation that eight U.S. servicemen were killed in the collision of two military aircraft to be used to rescue 52 Americans held hostage in Iran. Those hostages are finally freed the following January, on the day Ronald Reagan is inaugurated president. 1983 – Soviet leader Yuri Andropov personally invites American fifth-grader Samantha Smith of Maine to visit his country after reading her letter in which she expressed fears about nuclear war. She makes the trip that summer and becomes an honorary ambassador for peace at a time when U.S.-Soviet relations were strained during the Cold War. Sadly, Smith dies in a plane crash two years later. 1990 – The crew of Space Shuttle Discovery places the Hubble Space Telescope, a long-term space-based observatory, into a low orbit around Earth. Hubble — named after astronomer Edwin Hubble — continues to provide astronomers with an unparalleled view of the solar system, the galaxy and the universe. 1995 – Oscar-winning entertainer Ginger Rogers, best known for her films with dance partner Fred Astaire, dies at the age of 83. Musical Milestones 1956 – Rock and Roll King Elvis Presley signs a seven-year movie contract with Paramount Pictures. 1960 – Elvis Presley gets stuck on top of the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks with “Stuck On You.” It’s his first hit single following his two-year stint in the U.S. Army. 1970 – The Jackson 5 give The Beatles’ “Let It Be” the boot and claim the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks with “ABC.” 1981 – Daryl Hall and John Oates begin their third and final week as chart-toppers with “Kiss On My List.” 1987 – U2 begin a nine-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart with “The Joshua Tree,” which packs chart-topping tracks including “With or Without You,” “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” and “Where the Streets Have No Name.” It goes on to capture Grammys for Album of the Year and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. 1990 – The Fender Stratocaster that rock guitar legend Jimi Hendrix played at the Woodstock festival is auctioned off for a record $330,000. His two-hour set at the 1969 rock festival included a rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner.” 1992 – “Jump,” by hip hop duo Kris Kross, grabs the top spot on the singles chart and remains there for eight weeks. 1998 – Next has the No. 1 single with “Too Close.” The track remains on top of the pop chart for five weeks. 2007 – Leukemia claims the life of 69-year-old Bobby “Boris” Pickett, best known for his hit novelty song “Monster Mash,” which still gets radio airplay every Halloween. READ MORE
On This Day February 3 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1874 – Author-poet and art collector Gertrude Stein (“How to Write,” “The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas”) (d. 1946) 1894 – Artist Norman Rockwell, famous for his “Saturday Evening Post” cover illustrations of everyday American life (d. 1978) 1918 – Entertainer and “Rat Pack” member Joey Bishop (d. 2007) 1940 – Legendary Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton, who spent 18 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants 1943 – Emmy and Tony-winning actress Blythe Danner (“Butterflies are Free,” “Will & Grace,” “Meet the Parents”) 1950 – Actress Morgan Fairchild (“Dallas,” “Falcon Crest,” “Murphy Brown”) 1956 – Tony-winning actor-comedian Nathan Lane (“The Producers,” “Guys and Dolls,” “The Birdcage”) History Highlights 1913 – The 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is ratified, authorizing the federal government to impose and collect a nationwide income tax. 1966 – The Soviets achieve the first controlled rocket-assisted landing on the moon with Luna 9. After touching down, the circular capsule opens like a flower and begins transmitting photographs and television images back to Earth. 1971 – New York City police officer Frank Serpico is shot during a Brooklyn drug bust and survives to expose corruption in the NYPD. Many believe the shooting was fellow officers trying to kill him. His experience is immortalized in the 1973 movie “Serpico,” starring Al Pacino. 1994 – President Bill Clinton lifts the 19-year-old U.S. trade embargo on Vietnam that was first imposed during the Vietnam War when North Vietnamese forces captured Saigon in South Vietnam. 2002 – The New England Patriots shock football fans everywhere by defeating the heavily favored St. Louis Rams, 20-17, to clinch their first Super Bowl victory. Super Bowl XXXVI was played at the Superdome in New Orleans before a crowd of nearly 73,000 people. 2005 – Alberto Gonzales wins U.S. Senate confirmation as the nation’s first Hispanic attorney general despite protests over his record on torture. Musical Milestones 1959 – Rock and Roll greats Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. ‘The Big Bopper’ Richardson are killed when their single-engine plane crashes in an Iowa cornfield during their Winter Dance Party tour. The tragedy is remembered as “The Day the Music Died.” 1968 – One-hit wonder The Lemon Pipers shake their way up to No. 1 on the singles chart with “Green Tambourine.” 1973 – Elton John scores his first No. 1 single in the U.S. with “Crocodile Rock,” from his “Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player” album. The song holds the top spot for three weeks. 1979 – The Blues Brothers (Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi) land on top of the Billboard album chart with “Briefcase Full of Blues.” The album contains their cover of “Soul Man,” which reaches No. 14 on the singles chart, and “Rubber Biscuit,” which climbs as high as No. 37. 1990 – Michael Bolton begins his third and final week atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You.” 2007 – Beyoncé rules the singles chart with “Irreplaceable,” which holds at No. 1 for 10 weeks. READ MORE
On This Day December 9 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1916 – Actor Kirk Douglas, born Issur Danielovitch (“Spartacus,” “The Bad and the Beautiful,” “The Odyssey,” “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” “Gunfight at the O.K. Corral,” “Tough Guys,” “Lust for Life”) (d. 2020) 1922 – Standup comedian-actor Redd Foxx, born John Elroy Sanford, who played a junk dealer the 1970s NBC sitcom “Sanford and Son” (d. 1991) 1928 – Actor Dick Van Patten, best known for his role as the father in the ABC sitcom “Eight Is Enough” (d. 2015) 1930 – Screenwriter, director and actor Buck Henry, born Henry Zuckerman (“The Garduate,” “Heaven Can Wait”) 1934 – Oscar-winning actress Dame Judi Dench (“Shakespeare in Love,” “Chocolat,” “Iris,” “Mrs. Henderson Presents,” “Notes on a Scandal,” “Philomena,” and has played M in several James Bond films) 1941 – Golden Globe, Emmy and Grammy-winning actor Beau Bridges (“Without Warning: The James Brady Story,” “The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom,” “The Fabulous Baker Boys”) 1953 – Emmy-winning actor, director and producer John Malkovich (“Places in the Heart,” “The Killing Fields,” “Death of a Salesman,” “Empire of the Sun,” “Dangerous Liaisons,” “In the Line of Fire,” “Con Air,” “Being John Malkovich,” “Secretariat,” “Burn After Reading,” “RED”) 1957 – Musician, dancer and former teen idol Donny Osmond History Highlights 1835 – The newly created Texan Army captures the city of San Antonio, an important victory for the Republic of Texas in its war for independence from Mexico. 1965 – Based on the Peanuts comic strip created by Charles M. Schulz, “A Charlie Brown Christmas” premieres on CBS and remains a holiday season viewing staple all these decades later. 1979 – A scientific panel declares that smallpox has been eradicated from the world. It marks the first time that a disease had been banished from the earth by the planning and action of international public health officials. 1983 – “Scarface,” a crime drama starring Al Pacino, opens in movie theaters. Directed by Brian De Palma and written by Oliver Stone, it is a remake of the 1932 film of the same name. 1990 – Lech Walesa becomes the first popularly elected president of Poland. Walesa had fought on behalf of Polish workers against the communist government as head of the Solidarity movement. 1992 – More than 1,800 U.S. Marines arrive in Mogadishu, Somalia, to spearhead a multinational force aimed at restoring order in the war-stricken and famine-plagued African nation. 1992 – British Prime Minister John Major announces the formal separation of Charles, Prince of Wales and heir to the British throne, and his wife, Princess Diana. Musical Milestones 1967 – The Monkees are in the middle of a four-week domination of the pop chart with “Daydream Believer.” 1972 – “I Am Woman,” by Helen Reddy, dominates the Billboard Hot 100 for one week, but endures as the unofficial anthem of the women’s rights movement. 1978 – Disco is all the rage as “Le Freak,” by Chic, tops the singles chart for the first of six non-sequential weeks. 1989 – Billy Joel has the top-selling single in the U.S. with “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” off his “Storm Front” album. The song burns brightly on top of the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks. 1995 – “One Sweet Day,” by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men, tops the Billboard Hot 100. It holds that spot for an unprecedented 16 weeks. 2000 – Destiny’s Child is in the middle of an 11-week domination of the singles chart with “Independent Women.” 2006 – “I Wanna Love You,” by Akon featuring Snoop Dog, begins its second and final week on top of the pop chart. READ MORE