auto racing – Time Rewind

On This Day February 22

Click each item below to learn more!

On This Day February 21

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1946 – Emmy and Tony-winning actress Tyne Daly (“Cagney & Lacey,” “Judging Amy,” “Gypsy”)

1946 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Alan Rickman (“Die Hard,” “Galaxy Quest,” the “Harry Potter” series, “Something the Lord Made,” “Eye in the Sky”) (d. 2016)

1955 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor-producer Kelsey Grammer (“Cheers,” “Frasier,” “Toy Story 2,” “X-Men: Last Stand”)

1963 – Actor William Baldwin (“Flatliners,” “Backdraft,” “Sliver,” “The Squid and the Whale,” “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”)

1979 – Actress Jennifer Love Hewitt (“Party of Five,” “I Know What You Did Last Summer”)

1987 – Actress Ellen Page (“Juno,” “Whip It,” “Inception”, “X-Men” Series)

History Highlights

1885 – The newly completed Washington Monument is dedicated. The monument, built in the shape of an Egyptian obelisk, underwent two phases of construction: one private (1848-1854) and one public (1876-1884). When completed, it was the tallest structure in the world at 555 feet, 5-1/8 inches.

1925 – The New Yorker magazine publishes its first edition.

1948 – The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is officially incorporated and goes on to become one of America’s most popular spectator sports as well as a multi-billion-dollar industry.

1965 – Malcolm X, an African American nationalist and religious leader, is assassinated by rival Black Muslims while addressing his Organization of Afro-American Unity in New York City.

1972 – Richard Nixon makes the first presidential visit to the People’s Republic of China in an effort to normalize Sino-American relations.

1995 – National Aviation Hall of Famer Steve Fossett lands safely in Leader, Saskatchewan, Canada, completing the first ever solo flight across the Pacific Ocean in a balloon. Sadly, Fossett is declared dead in 2008 after a plane he was piloting vanished over the Nevada desert in September 2007. He was 63.

Musical Milestones

1970 – Sly & the Family Stone begin the second and final week as chart-toppers with “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin).”

1976 – Paul Simon begins his third and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover.” The track, off his Grammy-winning “Still Crazy After All These Years” album, is the only No. 1 Simon has ever achieved as a solo act.

1976 – The Willie Nelson-Waylon Jennings album “Outlaws” becomes the first country music album to go platinum.

1981 – Dolly Parton rules the singles chart with the title track from the motion picture “9 to 5.” Parton co-stars in the movie with Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dabney Coleman.

1987 – “Livin’ on a Prayer,” by Bon Jovi, is in the midst of a four-week run at No. 1 on the singles chart.

1990 – “Let the River Run,” by Carly Simon, wins Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture at the 32nd annual Grammy Awards. The track, which had previously been honored with an Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, is from the movie “Working Girl,” starring Melanie Griffith, Sigourney Weaver and Harrison Ford.

1998 – Usher wraps up two weeks as a Billboard chart-topper with “Nice & Slow.”

2004 – “Slow Jamz,” by Twista featuring Kanye West and Jamie Foxx, begins a week on top of the Billboard Hot 100.

On This Day February 15

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1564 – Scientist Galileo Galilei (generally referred to as Galileo), a major figure in the scientific revolution, who made pioneering discoveries that advanced the study of astronomy, physics and philosophy (d. 1642)

1820 – Suffragette reformer and women’s rights activist Susan B. Anthony (d. 1906)

1927 – Emmy-winning comedian Harvey Korman (“The Carol Burnett Show,” “Blazing Saddles”) (d. 2008)

1951 – Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Melissa Manchester (“Midnight Blue,” “Don’t Cry Out Loud, “Through the Eyes of Love”)

1951 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Jane Seymour (“Somewhere in Time,” “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman,” “Wedding Crashers”)

1954 – Cartoonist Matt Groening, best known for creating “The Simpsons”

1964 – Actor-comedian Chris Farley (“Saturday Night Live,” “Wayne’s World,” “Tommy Boy,” “Black Sheep,” “Beverly Hills Ninja”) (d. 1997)

History Highlights

1879 – President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

1898 – The battleship USS Maine explodes and sinks in Havana (Cuba) Harbor, killing more than 260 crewmen. The incident prompts the U.S. to declare war on Spain.

1903 – The first teddy bear, named for U.S. President Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt, goes on sale. Toy store owner and inventor Morris Michtom places two stuffed bears in his shop window after personally getting Roosevelt’s permission to name them after him.

1933 – Two weeks before his inauguration, President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt is fired upon by a would-be assassin after giving a speech in Miami. FDR is unharmed, but a bullet strikes Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak, who dies three weeks later.

1965 – A new red-and-white maple leaf design is adopted as the flag of Canada, replacing the old Canadian Red Ensign banner.

1978 – Leon Spinks takes the heavyweight boxing champion title away from defending champ Muhammad Ali in a split decision in Las Vegas.

1985 – “The Breakfast Club” opens in U.S. theaters. Directed by John Hughes and starring Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Anthony Michael Hall and Ally Sheedy — members of the so-called “Brat Pack” — it becomes an ’80s movie classic. In 2016, the film is selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by The Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

1998 – Racing great Dale Earnhardt, Sr. wins his first Daytona 500, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) season opener and an event dubbed the “Super Bowl of stock car racing.”

Musical Milestones

1964 – “Meet The Beatles!” reaches No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, becoming The Beatles’ first chart-topping album in the U.S. It holds the top spot for eleven weeks and sells more than four million copies by the end of that year.

1965 – The Beatles record “Another Girl” and “Ticket to Ride” for the “Help!” album. Earlier that day, John Lennon earns a personal ticket to ride by passing his driving test.

1965 – Entertainer Nat King Cole (“Unforgettable,” “Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer,” “The Christmas Song,” “Mona Lisa”), who earned early acclaim as a jazz pianist and became the first African American performer to host a network TV variety show, dies of lung cancer at the age of 45.

1969 – Sly & the Family Stone rule the Billboard singles chart with “Everyday People,” which remains at No. 1 for four weeks.

1975 – “You’re No Good,” by Linda Ronstadt, is the No. 1 single.

1984 – Beloved actress-singer Ethel Merman, best known for her rendition of “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” from the musical “Annie Get Your Gun,” dies at the age of 75.

1986 – “How Will I Know,” by Whitney Houston, becomes the most popular single in the U.S. for two weeks.

1992 – One-hit-wonder Right Said Fred is in the middle of three weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “I’m Too Sexy.”

2003 – “All I Have,” by Jennifer Lopez featuring LL Cool J, is midway through a four-week run at No. 1 on the singles chart.

On This Day January 16

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1908 – Theater actress and singer Ethel Merman, best remembered for her rendition of “There’s No Business Like Show Business” (d. 1984)

1935 – Indianapolis 500 champion A.J. Foyt

1943 – Grammy and Country Music Award-winning singer Ronnie Milsap (“Pure Love,” “There’s No Getting Over Me,” “Smoky Mountain Rain”)

1948 – Director-screenwriter-producer and composer John Carpenter, best known for the classic horror film “Halloween”

1950 – Actress-dancer Debbie Allen (“Fame,” “West Side Story,” “Sweet Charity”)

1959 – Grammy-winning musician Sade, born Helen Folasade Adu (“Smooth Operator,” “The Sweetest Taboo”)

1974 – Supermodel Kate Moss

1979 – R&B singer and actress Aaliyah, born Aaliyah Dana Haughton, whose career was cut short by a plane crash in The Bahamas (d. 2001)

History Highlights

1919 – The 18th Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes.” Known as Prohibition, the alcohol ban takes effect one year and one day later — on January 17, 1920 — and remains the law of the land until 1933 when it is repealed.

1942 – Actress Carole Lombard, famous for her roles in such screwball comedies as “My Man Godfrey” and “To Be or Not to Be,” and for her marriage to actor Clark Gable, is killed in a plane crash outside Las Vegas at the age of 33.

1979 – The Shah of Iran is forced to flee his country amid violent protests against his regime. Later that year, he settles in the U.S.

1991 – The Persian Gulf War begins as the United Nations deadline for the Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait expires at midnight. The Pentagon prepares to launch offensive operations to forcibly eject Iraq from its five-month occupation of its oil-rich neighbor.

1997 – Comedian and TV star Bill Cosby’s 27-year-old son Ennis is murdered while fixing a flat tire along a Los Angeles freeway.

Musical Milestones

1938 – Acclaimed clarinetist and band leader Benny Goodman (a.k.a. “The King of Swing”) makes history when he takes the stage at New York’s Carnegie Hall. It not only marks the first time jazz is played in the hallowed music venue, but the first time a racially integrated ensemble performs.

1965 – The Supremes have a No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Come See About Me.”

1971 – George Harrison marks his fourth and final week at No. 1 on the pop chart with “My Sweet Lord.”

1979 – Cher’s divorce from Gregg Allman is finalized.

1988 – Twenty-four years after The Beatles first rule the singles chart, “Got My Mind Set On You” by George Harrison is No. 1. The track was originally recorded by R&B singer James Ray in 1962.

1988 – After huge success as half of the pop duo Wham! during the early to mid-80s, George Michael claims the top spot on the Billboard album chart with his debut solo album, “Faith.” The production packs several major hits, including the title track, “Father Figure,” “One More Try” and “Monkey.”

1993 – “I Will Always Love You,” by Whitney Houston, is in the middle of a 14-week domination of the Billboard singles chart.

1999 – Brandy’s “Have You Ever?” tops the Billboard Hot 100 and remains there for two weeks.

2004 – King of Pop, Michael Jackson, pleads not guilty to child molestation charges, as fans, reporters and TV crews from around the world swarm outside the California courthouse. The judge admonishes Jackson for arriving late.

On this Day August 19

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1871 – Aviation pioneer Orville Wright (d. 1948)

1883 – French fashion designer Coco Chanel (d. 1971)

1921 – “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry (d. 1991)

1940 – Singer-songwriter Johnny Nash, best known for his 1972 smash “I Can See Clearly Now” (d.2020)

1940 – Actress Jill St. John, born Jill Arlyn Oppenheim (“The Lost World,” “Come Blow Your Horn,” “Diamonds Are Forever,” “Sitting Target”)

1946 – Bill Clinton, 42nd U.S. president

1947 – Actor Gerald McRaney (“Simon & Simon,” “Major Dad,” “Promised Land,” “Jericho,” “House of Cards”)

1955 – Actor Peter Gallagher (“Sex, Lies, and Videotape,” “The Player,” “While You Were Sleeping,” “The O.C.,” “Covert Affairs”)

1963 – Actor John Stamos (“General Hospital,” “Full House,” “Fuller House,” “ER,” “Jake in Progress,” “Necessary Roughness”)

1965 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Kyra Sedgwick (“Singles,” “Heart and Souls,” “Something to Talk About,” “Phenomenon,” “The Closer”)

1965 – Actor Kevin Dillon (“Platoon,” “No Escape,” “Entourage”)

1966 – Grammy-winning country singer-songwriter Lee Ann Womack (“I Hope You Dance,” “Something Worth Leaving Behind,” “I May Hate Myself In the Morning”)

1969 – Actor-producer Matthew Perry, best known for playing Chandler Bing on the hit TV sitcom “Friends”

History Highlights

1909 – The first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway before a crowd of 12,000. Austrian driver Louis Schwitzer wins the five-lap event behind the wheel of a Stoddard-Dayton traveling at an average speed of 57.4 miles per hour.

1960 – A Soviet military court sentences American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers to 10 years in prison for spying. Powers had pleaded guilty to spying for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) after his plane was shot down at high altiitude above the Soviet Union.

1969 – Some 8,000 volunteers begin a massive cleanup of Max Yasgur’s Bethel, New York dairy farm after nearly half a million people leave the muddy, garbage-strewn site of the iconic Woodstock music festival. Decades later, archaeologists begin digging up remnants of the event.

1977 – Beloved, cigar-chomping comedian Groucho Marx dies at the age of 86. A member of the comedic Marx Brother, he spent nearly seven decades making people laugh with his snappy one-liners and sharp wit.

1981 – ABC airs its final episode of “Charlie’s Angels” after a five-year run. The detective series starred Kate Jackson, Jaclyn Smith and Farrah Fawcett.

Musical Milestones

1967 – The Beatles have their 14th No. 1 single with “All You Need Is Love.”

1972 – Gilbert O’Sullivan begins his fourth and final week on top of the pop chart with “Alone Again (Naturally).”

1978 – “Three Times a Lady,” by The Commodores featuring Lionel Richie, begins its second and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The single is the band’s first No. 1 hit and garners two Grammy nominations for Song of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group, or Chorus.

1989 – Richard Marx is in the midst of a three-week run at No. 1 on the pop chart with “Right Here Waiting” — his third consecutive chart-topper.

1995 – TLC’s “Waterfalls” wraps up a seven-week domination of the singles chart. The music video goes on to win four MTV Video Music Awards.

2000 – “Incomplete,” by American R&B artist Sisqó, tops the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

2006 – Fergie kicks off three weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “London Bridge.”

2017 – “Despacito,” by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber, is in the midst of a 16-week domination of the U.S. pop chart.

On this Day June 15

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1937 – Country music singer-songwriter Waylon Jennings (d. 2002)

1954 – Actor and comedian Jim Belushi (“Curly Sue,” “According to Jim”)

1963 – Oscar, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Helen Hunt (“Mad About You,” “Twister,” “As Good As It Gets”)

1964 – Actress-producer Courteney Cox (“Friends,” “Scream,” “Cougar Town”)

1969 – Rapper-turned-actor and filmmaker Ice Cube, born O’Shea Jackson (“Straight Outta Compton,” “Boyz n the Hood,” “Friday, “Three Kings,” “Barbershop,” “21 Jump Street”)

1973 – Emmy and Tony-winning actor Neil Patrick Harris (“Doogie Howser, M.D.,” “How I Met Your Mother,” “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”)

History Highlights

1215 – Following a revolt by the English nobility against his rule, King John puts his royal seal on the Magna Carta (“Great Charter”). The document, essentially a peace treaty between John and his barons, guaranteed that the king would respect feudal rights and privileges, uphold the freedom of the church, and maintain the nation’s laws.

1846 – Representatives of the United States and Great Britain sign the Oregon Treaty, establishing the boundary between the U.S. and Canada.

1877 – Henry Ossian Flipper, born a slave in Thomasville, Georgia, becomes the first black cadet to graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York.

1917 – Two months after America formally enters World War I Congress passes the Espionage Act. The measure makes it a crime for any person to convey information intended to interfere with the U.S. armed forces’ prosecution of the war effort or to promote the success of the country’s enemies.

1934 – Great Smoky Mountains National Park is established, straddling North Carolina and Tennessee.

1955 – The Eisenhower administration stages the first Operation Alert (OPAL) exercise, an attempt to assess America’s preparations for a nuclear attack.

1969 – The variety show “Hee Haw” premieres on CBS and continues through 1971 before starting a 21-year run in syndication. The show centered around country music and rural culture.

1986 – Auto racing legend Richard Petty makes the 1,000th start of his National Association for Stock Car Racing (NASCAR) career, becoming the first driver to do so.

Musical Milestones

1963 – Japanese singer Kyu Sakamoto begins a three-week domination of the U.S. pop chart with “Sukiyaki.” Two decades later, in 1981, the band A Taste of Honey — which gave us the disco hit “Boogie Oogie Oogie” — releases its English-language version of the song and takes it to No. 3 on the pop chart.

1965 – Bob Dylan records one of the defining songs of his career: “Like a Rolling Stone.” The track is credited with transforming Dylan’s image from folk singer to rock star, and is considered one of the most influential compositions in postwar popular music. “Rolling Stone” magazine named it the best song of all time.

1974 – One-hit wonder Bo Donaldson claims a two-week hold on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Billy, Don’t Be a Hero.”

1985 – “Around the World in a Day,” by Prince and the Revolution, begins its third and final week atop the Billboard album chart. The album contains the hits “Paisley Park and “Raspberry Beret.”

1989 – Nirvana’s debut album, “Bleach,” is released in the U.S., but doesn’t gain much traction until after the grunge band’s “Nevermind” album is released three years later.

1996 – “The First Lady of Song,” Ella Fitzgerald, dies at the age of 79. Fitzgerald was the most popular female jazz singer in the United States for more than half a century, winning 13 Grammy awards and selling more than 40 million albums.

2002 – Ashanti’s debut single, “Foolish,” is in the midst of a 10-week run on top of the Billboard Hot 100. Her accompanying music video features actor Terrence Howard.

On this Day June 11

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1913 – Legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi (d. 1970)

1933 – Actor-comedian and author Gene Wilder, born Jerome Silberman (“Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” “The Producers,” “Blazing Saddles,” “Young Frankenstein”) (d. 2016)

1945 – Actress-author Adrienne Barbeau (“The Fog,” “Creepshow,” “Escape From New York”)

1956 – Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Montana, who played for the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs

1959 – Golden Globe-winning actor-comedian and musician Hugh Laurie, best known for his starring role in the TV series “House”

1969 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Peter Dinklage (“Death at a Funeral,” “The Station Agent,” “Elf,” “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” “Ice Age: Continental Drift,” “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian,” “Pixels,” “Game of Thrones”)

1978 – Actor Joshua Jackson (“Dawson’s Creek,” “The Mighty Ducks,” Fringe”)

1986 -Emmy-winning actor Shia LaBeouf (“Even Stevens,” “Holes,” “Transformers,” “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”)

History Highlights

1944 – Lieutenant John F. Kennedy receives the prestigious Navy and Marine Corps Medal in recognition of his heroic, life-saving actions as a gunboat pilot during World War II. Kennedy, who goes on to become America’s 35th president, also receives a Purple Heart for wounds sustained in battle. He is the only president to have earned either of those high honors.

1955 – Carnage at Le Mans, as an Austin-Healey and Mercedes-Benz collide, showering flaming wreckage onto spectators. Eighty-two people are killed and at least 100 injured in one of auto racing’s worst accidents.

1962 – Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin become the only prisoners to successfully escape from Alcatraz prison. No one ever saw or heard from them again, although there were multiple unconfirmed sightings over the years.

1967 – The Six-Day War between Israel and its Arab neighbors ends with a United Nations-brokered ceasefire. That November, the U.N. Security Council adopts a resolution establishing a formula for Arab-Israeli peace whereby Israel would withdraw from territories occupied in the war in exchange for peace with its neighbors.

1963 – An outspoken opponent of school desegregation, Alabama Governor George Wallace physically blocks two African American students from entering the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. President John F. Kennedy responds by federalizing the Alabama National Guard and ordering troops to escort the students to their classes. Wallace then steps aside, but that evening, Kennedy delivers a national address about segregation regarded by many historians as one of the turning points in the civil rights movement.

1977 – MLK assassin James Earl Ray escapes from Brushy Mountain State Prison in Tennessee, but is recaptured three days later.

1979 – Cancer claims the life of screen legend John Wayne (“El Dorado,” “Rio Bravo,” “True Grit,” “The Comancheros”) at the age of 72.

1982 – Steven Spielberg’s “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” opens in U.S. theaters and becomes a box office bonanza. The movie launches the career of actress Drew Barrymore, and in 1994, is selected for preservation in the National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

1986 – “Bueller… Bueller…” The now-classic John Hughes film, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” starring Matthew Broderick, Alan Ruck and Mia Sara, opens in U.S. theaters.

Musical Milestones

1957 – Elvis Presley releases “(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear,” which becomes a No. 1 hit a month later.

1960 – The Hollywood Argyles claim the top spot on the pop chart with “Alley-Oop,” based on the comic strip of the same name.

1966 – The Rolling Stones rule the Billboard singles chart with “Paint it Black,” which holds at No. 1 for two weeks.

1977 – “I’m Your Boogie Man” becomes the fourth chart-topping hit for KC and the Sunshine Band.

1983 – Irene Cara is in the middle of a six-week run on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Flashdance…What a Feeling,” from the “Flashdance” movie soundtrack.

1988 – London’s Wembley Stadium hosts Freedomfest, a concert celebrating the 70th birthday of imprisoned anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela. Performers include Whitney Houston, Sting, Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Dire Straits, Stevie Wonder, Tracy Chapman, George Michael, Eric Clapton, UB40, The Eurythmics and Simple Minds. The concert is broadcast to about a billion people in 67 countries.

1994 – “I Swear,” by All-4-One is in the midst of an 11-week reign over the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

2011 – Pink Floyd’s 1973 album, “The Dark Side Of The Moon,” re-enters the Billboard album chart at No. 47 and reaches a milestone of 1,000 weeks on the charts. This classic contains such fan favorites as “Time,” “Money” and “Breathe (In the Air).” To date, more than 50 million copies have sold worldwide.