Barbra Streisand – Time Rewind

On This Day April 24

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On This Day April 28

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Celebrity Birthdays

1916 – Italian industrialist Ferruccio Lamborghini, who founded the high-end sports car company that bears his name (d. 1993)

1926 – Novelist Harper Lee, best known for her Pulitzer Prize-winning bestseller “To Kill a Mockingbird” (d. 2016)

1941 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress-dancer-singer Ann-Margret (“Carnal Knowledge,” “Tommy”)

1950 – Emmy-winning TV host, stand-up comedian and classic car collector Jay Leno, born James Douglas Muir Leno (“The Tonight Show,” “The Jay Leno Show,” “Jay Leno’s Garage”)

1952 – Actress Mary McDonnell (“Dances With Wolves,” “Passion Fish,” “Independence Day”)

1971 – Actress Bridget Moynahan (“I, Robot,” “Lord of War,” “Blue Bloods”)

1973 – Actor Jorge Garcia, best known for playing Hugo “Hurley” Reyes in the TV series “Lost”

1974 – Oscar-winning actress Penélope Cruz (“Vanilla Sky,” “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin,” “Vicki Cristina Barcelona”)

1981 – Actress Jessica Alba (“Dark Angel,” the “Sin City” films, the “Fantastic Four” movie series, “Into The Blue,” “Good Luck Chuck,” “Spy Kids 4: All The Time in the World”)

History Highlights

1945 – Italy’s deposed former dictator, Benito Mussolini (a.k.a. “Il Duce”), and his mistress, Clara Petacci, are shot by Italian partisans who had captured the couple as they attempted to flee to Switzerland.

1967 – Boxing champion Muhammad Ali refuses induction into the U.S. Army to serve in the Vietnam War. He is immediately stripped of his world heavyweight title. Ali, a Muslim, cites religious reasons for his decision to forgo military service.

1969 – Charles de Gaulle, a towering figure in post-World War II politics, resigns as the president of France.

1988 – An Aloha Airlines 737 makes an emergency landing on Maui, Hawaii after a large section of roof and fuselage tears away in flight, killing one stewardess.

2004 – Comcast, America’s largest cable operator, abandons a $54 billion hostile takeover bid for the Walt Disney Company in the face of faltering stock prices and Disney’s continued refusal to entertain the proposal.

Musical Milestones

1962 – “Good Luck Charm,” by Elvis Presley, begins its second and final week on top of the pop chart.

1965 – Barbra Streisand makes her television debut in the CBS special, “My Name is Barbra,” in conjunction with the album of the same name. The hour-long special consists of three acts and clinches five Emmy and two Tony Awards. The album captures a Best Female Vocal Performance Grammy.

1968 – The first rock musical, “Hair,” opens at New York’s Biltmore Theater, featuring the songs “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In,” “Good Morning Starshine” and the title track. More than 1,700 performances are given by the time it closes in the summer of 1972.

1979 – Blondie’s “Heart of Glass,” off the band’s “Parallel Lines” album, is a Billboard No. 1 for a week

1984 – Phil Collins rules the Billboard Hot 100 with “Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now),” from the movie “Against All Odds.”

1990 – Sinéad O’Connor is mid-way through a four-week domination of the pop chart with the Prince composition, “Nothing Compares 2 U.”

1999 – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

On This Day April 14

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Celebrity Birthdays

1932 – Country music legend Loretta Lynn

1941 – Retired Major League Baseball slugger Pete Rose, a 17-time MLB All-Star and 1973 National League MVP

1960 – Emmy-winning actor and stand-up comedian Brad Garrett, best known for his role as Ray Romano’s sad-sack brother Robert in the sitcom “Everybody Loves Raymond”

1968 – Actor Anthony Michael Hall (“Sixteen Candles,” “The Breakfast Club,” “Weird Science,” “Edward Scissorhands”)

1973 – Oscar-winning actor Adrien Brody (“The Thin Red Line,” “The Pianist,” “The Village,” “Midnight in Paris,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “Houdini”)

1977 – Emmy-winning actress Sarah Michelle Gellar (“All My Children,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Cruel Intentions, “Scooby-Doo,” “The Grudge”)

History Highlights

1828 – Noah Webster’s American Dictionary of the English Language is published. Webster wanted Americans to have a national identity not based on the language and ideas of England. The dictionary, which took Webster more than two decades to complete, introduced more than 10,000 “Americanisms.”

1865 – Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth shoots President Abraham Lincoln during a performance at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C. Lincoln dies the next day.

1912 – RMS Titanic strikes an iceberg in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic just before midnight during its maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City. More than 1,500 people perish when the luxury liner sinks less than three hours later.

1918 – During World War I, two pilots from the U.S. Army Air Service’s 94th Aero Squadron engage in America’s first aerial dogfight with enemy aircraft over Europe’s Western Front. In a battle above Toul, France, aviators Douglas Campbell and Alan Winslow shoot down a pair of German two-seaters. Campbell is honored as America’s first “flying ace” about a month later after taking out his fifth enemy plane.

1969 – For the first time in Academy Awards history, there’s a tie for the Best Actress Oscar. The award is shared by Barbra Streisand (“Funny Girl”) and Katharine Hepburn (“The Lion in Winter”).

1988 – The Soviet Union withdraws its military forces from Afghanistan.

Musical Milestones

1962 – “Johnny Angel,” by Shelley Fabares — the actress best known for her role in “The Donna Reed Show” — starts its second and final week as a No. 1 single.

1979 – The Doobie Brothers rule the singles chart with “What a Fool Believes.” The song goes on to capture Song of the Year and Record of the Year Grammys.

1984 – Kenny Loggins’ “Footloose,” from the movie of the same name, wraps up three weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100. The track is nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song , but loses to Stevie Wonder’s “I Just Called to Say I Love You” from the movie “The Woman in Red.”

1990 – One-hit-wonder Tommy Page begins a week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “I’ll Be Your Everything.” The song spends 13 weeks in the Top 40 and is certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

2001 – “All for You,” by Janet Jackson, begins seven weeks on top of the U.S. pop chart and goes on to win a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. It becomes the longest-reigning single of 2001.

On This Day March 19

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Celebrity Birthdays

1848 – Frontiersman, marshall and gambler Wyatt Earp, remembered for participating in the legendary Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (d. 1929)

1936 – Golden Globe-winning actress Ursula Andress, best known as (James) Bond girl Honey Ryder in “Dr. No” and Vesper Lynd in the Bond spoof film “Casino Royale”

1947 – Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Glenn Close (“The Big Chill,” “The Natural,” “Fatal Attraction,” “Dangerous Liaisons,” “The Shield,” “Damages,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “The Wife”)

1955 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Bruce Willis (“Moonlighting,” the “Die Hard” movie series, “Pulp Fiction,” “12 Monkeys,” “Armageddon,” “The Sixth Sense,” “Sin City,” “Unbreakable,” “The Expendables 2,” “Looper,” “Glass”)

History Highlights

1916 – Eight Curtiss “Jenny” planes of the 1st Aero Squadron take off from Columbus, New Mexico, in the first combat air mission in U.S. history, supporting 7,000 U.S. troops that invaded Mexico to capture Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa.

1918 – Congress establishes time zones and approves daylight saving time.

1953 – The big screen invades the small screen as the Academy Awards are broadcast on television for the first time. Some 34 million viewers tune in to NBC for the event, which features ceremonies in Hollywood and New York. Comedian Bob Hope hosts from the West coast.

1977 – Fans of CBS’s popular sitcom, “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” watch the broadcast of the series finale. During its seven-season run, the show garnered an unprecedented 29 Emmy Awards and spawned three spin-offs.

1987 – Televangelist Jim Bakker resigns as head of the PTL Club due to a brewing sex scandal, and turns control over to the Reverend Jerry Falwell.

2003 – President George W. Bush announces that the United States and coalition forces have launched Operation Iraqi Freedom — a military offensive against Iraq aimed at toppling its dictator, Saddam Hussein, and eliminating the storage, development and deployment of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs).

Musical Milestones

1957 – Seeking a refuge from fans and the pressure of fame, 22-year-old Elvis Presley purchases the Graceland estate in Memphis, Tennessee for himself, his parents and his grandmother with a $1,000 cash down payment. The property’s sale price was $102,500 — about $900,000 in today’s dollars.

1960 – Percy Faith’s “Theme From a Summer Place” is mid-way through a nine-week reign over the singles chart.

1962 – Columbia Records releases Bob Dylan’s self-titled debut album. Produced by John Hammond, Jr., who signed Dylan to the label, the album features folk standards, plus two original compositions, “Talkin’ New York” and “Song to Woody.”

1977 – Another film theme begins its third and final week as the most popular single in America: Barbra Streisand’s “Evergreen” from “A Star is Born.”

1988 – Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” begins its second and final week as a No. 1 single.

1994 – “The Sign,” by Swedish band Ace of Base, tops the Billboard Hot 100.

2005 – 50 Cent becomes the first solo artist to have three singles in the Billboard Top 5: “Candy Shop” is at No. 1, “How We Do” by The Game (a member of his G-Unit group) is at No. 4 and “Disco Inferno” is at No. 5.

On This Day March 15

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Celebrity Birthdays

1933 – U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to be appointed to the position (d. 2020)

1935 – Emmy and Tony-winning actor Judd Hirsch (“Taxi,” “Ordinary People,” “Independence Day,” “A Beautiful Mind,” “Numb3rs, “Forever,” “Superior Donuts”)

1941 – Singer-songwriter Mike Love of The Beach Boys

1959 – Male supermodel Fabio, born Fabio Lanzoni

1963 – Poison lead singer and reality TV star Bret Michaels

1975 – Actress and director/producer Eva Longoria (“The Young and the Restless,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Harsh Times,” “The Sentinel,” “Over Her Dead Body,” “Overboard”)

1975 – Grammy-winning rapper and The Black Eyed Peas founder/frontman Will.i.am, born William Adams

History Highlights

44 B.C. – Caught in an ambush, Roman dictator Julius Caesar is stabbed to death by a group of his own senators. March 15 of 44 B.C. is known as the “Ides of March” in the Roman calendar.

1820 – As part of the Missouri Compromise between the U.S. North and South, Maine is admitted as the 23rd state in the Union.

1965 – Just days after a deadly police assault on civil rights marchers in Selma, Alabama, President Lyndon B. Johnson addresses a historic joint session of Congress to urge passage of legislation guaranteeing equal voting rights for all Americans. Congress passes the Voting Rights Act that summer, and Johnson signs the measure into law on August 6, 1965.

1970 – Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins becomes the first defenseman in NHL history to score 100 points in a season, after scoring four goals in one game against the Detroit Red Wings.

1975 – “Funny Lady,” starring Barbra Streisand, James Caan and Omar Sharif, opens in movie theaters. It is the sequel to the 1968 musical film, “Funny Girl,” the story of Ziegfeld Follies star Fanny Brice.

1977 – The sitcom “Three’s Company” debuts on ABC, starring John Ritter, Joyce DeWitt and Suzanne Somers. It runs until 1984.

1988 – “The Wonder Years” premieres on ABC and runs for six seasons. Set against the backdrop of the tumultuous late 1960s, the series follows a suburban American family, focusing on the growing pains of youngest son Kevin, played by Fred Savage.

Musical Milestones

1964 – “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” The Beatles’ first No. 1 single in the U.S., begins its seventh and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100 only to be replaced by The Beatles’ second No. 1 hit: “She Loves You.”

1969 – “Dizzy,” by Tommy Roe, starts a four-week run as the No. 1 single.

1975 – The Doobie Brothers rule the Billboard Hot 100 for a week with “Black Water,” from their “What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits” album.

1980 – Queen wraps up a four-week run on top of the pop chart with “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” the band’s first No. 1 U.S. hit.

1986 – “Sara,” by Starship, tops the singles chart for a week. The track is one of two No. 1 hits from the band’s “Knee Deep in the Hoopla” album. The other is “We Built This City.”

1997 – The Spice Girls’ debut single, “Wannabe,” marks its fourth and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100. It becomes the best-selling single ever by a female group.

1999 – Bruce Springsteen is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by U2 frontman Bono.

2003 – 50 Cent scores his first No. 1 single with “In da Club.” The track holds the top spot for nine weeks.

On This Day March 5

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Celebrity Birthdays

1908 – Oscar, Tony and Golden Globe-winning actor Rex Harrison (“Cleopatra,” “My Fair Lady,” “Doctor Doolittle”) (d. 1990)

1936 – Actor Dean Stockwell, most remembered as Rear Admiral Al Calavicci in the NBC television series “Quantum Leap”

1955 – Emmy-winning magician, illusionist, comedian and author Penn Jillette, of the Penn & Teller team

1958 – Pop singer Andy Gibb (“I Just Want to Be Your Everything,” “(Love Is) Thicker Than Water,” “Shadow Dancing”) (d. 1988)

1963 – Televangelist pastor and author Joel Osteen

1974 – Actress Eva Mendes (“Training Day,” “2 Fast 2 Furious,” “Stuck on You,” “Hitch,” “Ghost Rider,” “The Other Guys,” “Fast Five,” “Girl in Progress,” “Lost River”)

History Highlights

1770 – The Boston Massacre takes begins as a skirmish between British troops and a crowd and ends with those troops killing five men and injuring six others. Crispus Attucks, one of the dead, is thought to be a runaway slave. Word of the bloody clash sparks growing resentment toward the British regime in America and eventually leads to the American Revolution.

1946 – Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill introduces the term “iron curtain” during a speech in which he condemns the Soviet Union’s policies in Europe. His remarks are considered one of the opening volleys announcing the beginning of the Cold War.

1963 – Wham-O Company co-founders Arthur “Spud” Melin and Richard Knerr patent the Hula Hoop, the hip-swiveling toy that goes on to become one of America’s greatest fads. An estimated 25 million Hula-Hoops sell during the first four months of production alone.

1982 – Comedic actor and singer John Belushi dies of a drug overdose at the age of 33. Belushi was best known as one of the original “Saturday Night Live” (“SNL”) cast members and for starring roles in “National Lampoon’s Animal House” and “The Blues Brothers.”

Musical Milestones

1963 – Country music star Patsy Cline, known for hits like “Crazy” and “Walking After Midnight,” is killed in a Tennessee plane crash at the age of 30. Ten years later, she becomes the first female solo artist inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

1966 – “The Ballad of the Green Berets,” by U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler, starts a five-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1977 – Barbra Streisand claims the No. 1 spot on the singles chart for the second time in her career. This time it’s with “Evergreen (Love Theme From A Star Is Born),” which holds the top spot for three weeks. The track captures an Oscar for Best Original Song as well as Grammys for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Song of the Year (which it shares with “You Light Up My Life”), and a Golden Globe for Best Original Song.

1983 – Michael Jackson begins a seven-week hold on the top spot on the singles chart with “Billie Jean,” off his Grammy-winning “Thriller” album.

1994 – Céline Dion enjoys her fourth and final week at No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart with “The Power of Love.”

2005 – “Candy Shop,” by 50 Cent featuring Olivia, kicks off nine weeks on top of the singles chart and receives a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Song.

On This Day February 23

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Celebrity Birthdays

1868 – American civil rights activist, sociologist, educator, historian and writer W.E.B. Du Bois (d.1963)

1940 – Actor Peter Fonda (“Easy Rider,” “Ulee’s Gold,” “The Passion of Ayn Rand,” “Wild Hogs,” “3:10 to Yuma”) (d. 2019)

1955 – 80s synth-pop singer-songwriter Howard Jones (“Things Can Only Get Better,” “Life in One Day,” “No One Is To Blame”)

1965 – Entrepreneuer and Dell Computer founder-CEO Michael Dell

1976 – Actress Kelly Macdonald (“Trainspotting,” “Gosford Park,” “The Girl in the Café,” “Boardwalk Empire”)

1983 – Golden Globe-winning actress Emily Blunt (“The Devil Wears Prada,” “Gideon’s Daughter,” “The Adjustment Bureau,” “The Five-Year Engagement,” “Edge of Tomorrow,” “Sicario,” “The Huntsman: Winter’s War,” “The Girl on the Train”, “A Quiet Place”, “Mary Poppins Returns”)

1994 – Actress Dakota Fanning (“I Am Sam,” “Man on Fire,” “War of the Worlds,” “Charlotte’s Web,” “Coraline,” “The Twilight Saga”)

History Highlights

1836 – The Battle of the Alamo begins as Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna and his army arrive in San Antonio, Texas. Undaunted, William Travis, Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie and a few hundred others prepare to defend the mission together, holding out for 13 days. “Remember the Alamo!” becomes a rallying cry for the Texian Army.

1945 – During the bloody Battle of Iwo Jima, five U.S. Marines and a U.S. Navy corpsman reach the top of Mount Suribachi on the island and are photographed raising the American flag by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal. His iconic World War II image — a symbol of American military heroism — wins a Pulitzer Prize and becomes the inspiration for the national U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia.

1954 – Elementary school children in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania receive the first injections of the new polio vaccine developed by Dr. Jonas Salk.

1968 – Considered a basketball legend, Wilt Chamberlain becomes the first NBA player to score more than 25,000 points during his professional sports career.

1980 – American speed skater Eric Heiden wins the 10,000-meter race at the Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, setting a world record with his time and winning an unprecedented fifth Gold medal at the games.

1997 – Scientists in Scotland announce that they have cloned a sheep named Dolly — the first successful cloning of a mammal from an adult cell. This development sparks widespread speculation about the possibility of human cloning.

Musical Milestones

1963 – Paul & Paula wrap up their three-week ride on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Hey Paula.”

1974 – Barbra Streisand dominates the pop chart for a third week with the Oscar and Grammy-winning theme from the movie “The Way We Were.”

1978 – For the first time in Grammy Award history, two singles tie for Song of the Year: Barbra Streisand’s “Love Theme from A Star Is Born (Evergreen)” and Debby Boone’s “You Light Up My Life.” Other winners include Fleetwood Mac (Album of the Year for “Rumours”), Eagles (Record of the Year for “Hotel California”) and The Bee Gees (Best Pop Vocal Performance for “How Deep Is Your Love”).

1980 – “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” from Queen’s “The Game” album, becomes the British rock band’s first No. 1 single in the U.S. It holds the top spot for four weeks. Freddie Mercury claimed to have written the song in about 10 minutes while taking a bath.

1991 – Whitney Houston scores her ninth No. 1 single in five years with “All the Man That I Need.”

2000 – Carlos Santana cleans up at the 42nd Annual Grammys, winning eight awards, including Album of the Year for his chart-topping “Supernatural” album.

2002 – “Always on Time,” by Ja Rule featuring Ashanti, tops the Billboard Hot 100.

On This Day February 12

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Celebrity Birthdays

1809 – Abraham Lincoln, 16th U.S. president (d. 1865)

1809 – Scientist Charles Darwin, who laid the foundations for the theory of evolution in his book, “The Origin of Species” (d. 1882)

1915 – Radio announcer-turned-actor and singer Lorne Greene, best know as Ben Cartwright in the TV western “Bonanza,” and Commander Adama in the sci-fi TV series “Battlestar Galactica” (d. 1987)

1923 – Director-producer Franco Zeffirelli, known for his Shakespeare film adaptations, including “The Taming of the Shrew” and “Romeo and Juliet” (d. 2019)

1934 – Five-time NBA Most Valuable Player and 12-time All-Star Bill Russell, who led the Boston Celtics to 11 championships from 1957 to 1969

1938 – Best-selling author Judy Blume, known for her children’s books and young-adult novels, including “Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing” and “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret”

1952 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and former Doobies Brothers vocalist Michael McDonald

1956 – Actor, comedian and former talk show host Arsenio Hall

1968 – Actor Josh Brolin (“The Goonies,” “No Country For Old Men,” “W,” “Milk,” “Men in Black 3,” “Hail, Caesar!”, “Deadpool 2”, “Avengers: Infinity War”, “Once Upon A Deadpool”, “Avengers: Endgame”, )

1980 – Actress Christina Ricci (“The Addams Family,” “Casper,” “The Ice Storm,” “The Opposite of Sex,” “Sleepy Hollow,” “Monster,” “Pan Am”)

History Highlights

1909 – The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is founded. It is America’s oldest, largest and most widely recognized grassroots-based civil rights organization.

1976 – Oscar-nominated actor Sal Mineo (“Rebel Without a Cause,” “Giant,” “Exodus,” “The Longest Day”) is stabbed to death outside his West Hollywood apartment at the age of 37. It takes authorities more than two years to arrest Lionel Williams, who is convicted of the crime and sentenced to life in prison.

1986 – After spending eight years in Soviet prisons and labor camps, human rights activist Anatoly (Natan) Scharansky is released. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and U.S. President Ronald Reagan brokered the amnesty deal at a summit meeting three months earlier.

1999 – The five-week impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton comes to an end, with the Senate voting to acquit Clinton on both articles of impeachment: perjury and obstruction of justice.

2002 – Former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic goes on trial at The Hague, Netherlands, on charges of genocide and war crimes in Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo. The trial drags on for four years until Milosevic is found dead of a heart attack in his prison cell at the age of 64.

2008 – Struggling auto giant General Motors (GM) attempts to cut costs by offering buyouts to all 74,000 of its U.S. hourly employees represented by the United Auto Workers (UAW) union.

2008 – Hollywood’s longest work stoppage since 1988 ends when members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) overwhelmingly vote to go back to work following a 100-day walkout. The strike crippled the production of countless TV shows and cost the California economy more than $2 billion. It also gave rise to more reality TV programming that required little or no scripting.

Musical Milestones

1955 – “Sincerely,” by the McGuire Sisters, tops the singles chart and stays there for 10 weeks.

1966 – Petula Clark marks her second and final week atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “My Love.”

1972 – “Let’s Stay Together,” by Al Green, kicks off a week as the No. 1 single. In 2010, the Library of Congress adds it to the National Recording Registry, which collects recordings deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

1977 – Barbra Streisand begins six weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart with the soundtrack to “A Star Is Born.” The track “Evergreen,” which becomes a No. 1 hit, garners a Best Original Song Oscar for Streisand and composer Paul Williams, as well as Grammys for Song of the Year and Female Pop Vocal Performance.

1983 – Men At Work’s “Down Under” climbs to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for a second time, marking its fourth and final week as a chart-topper. The track is among two No. 1 hits off the Aussie band’s “Business As Usual” album.

1994 – “The Power of Love” by Céline Dion begins a four-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

2012 – Adele wins all six Grammy Award categories for which she was nominated. The British singer captures Song of the Year for “Rolling In the Deep” and receives Grammys for Best Pop Solo Performance for “Someone Like You” and Best Pop Vocal Album and Album of the Year for “21.”

On This Day February 2

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Celebrity Birthdays

1882 – Novelist James Joyce, considered one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century (“Dubliners,” “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man,” “Ulysses,” “Finnegans Wake”) (d. 1941)

1937 – Comedian-musician Tom Smothers of the Smothers Brothers

1942 – Singer-songwriter Graham Nash, who performed with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and The Hollies

1947 – Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated actress and pop icon Farrah Fawcett (“Charlie’s Angels,” “Extremities,” “The Burning Bed “) (d. 2009)

1949 – Actor Brent Spiner, best known for his portrayal of Data in TV’s “Star Trek: The Next Generation” series and four subsequent films

1954 – Supermodel Christie Brinkley

1977 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Shakira, born Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll (“Whenever, Wherever,” “Hips Don’t Lie”)

History Highlights

1880 – The first electric streetlight is installed in Wabash, Indiana.

1887 – Groundhog Day is celebrated for the first time at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. According to tradition, if the groundhog sees his shadow, we’re in for six more weeks of winter. No shadow means an early spring.

1913 – After 10 years of construction, the iconic Grand Central Terminal opens in Midtown Manhattan. More than 150,000 people visit New York City’s newest landmark on its first day of operation.

1964 – The G.I. Joe action figure hits U.S. toy stores. Manufacturer Hasbro boasts that this fighting man has 21 movable parts.

1980 – Details of ABSCAM, an FBI operation to uncover political corruption in the government, are released to the public. Thirty-one public officials had been targeted for investigation.

1996 – Acclaimed dancer, actor and choreographer Gene Kelly, who helped shape the Golden Age of movie musicals, dies at his Beverly Hills, California home at the age of 83.

2014 – Oscar-winning actor, director and producer Philip Seymour Hoffman, who starred in more than 50 movies, including “Capote, “Doubt,” “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” and “The Hunger Games” series, dies of an accidental drug overdose at the age of 46.

Musical Milestones

1959 – The Platters are perched on top of the singles chart with “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.”

1959 – Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper take their Winter Dance Party tour to the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa. It would be the last gig the three rock and roll legends ever play, as a plane crash claims their lives the next day.

1963 – The Rooftop Singers mark their second and final week as chart toppers with “Walk Right In.”

1973 – The first rock concert TV series, “The Midnight Special,” debuts on NBC, hosted by Wolfman Jack and Mike Carruthers.

1974 – Barbra Streisand starts a three-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with the Academy Award-winning theme from the movie “The Way We Were.”

1979 – Sex Pistols member Sid Vicious dies of a heroin overdose in New York City at the age of 21. It happens just one day after his release from prison on bail following his arrest on suspicion of murdering his girlfriend.

1980 – Michael Jackson is in the midst of a four-week domination of the pop chart with “Rock With You,” from his “Off The Wall” album.

1991 – “To The Extreme,” by Vanilla Ice, tops the Billboard album chart. The album contains the hits “Ice Ice Baby” and a cover of “Play That Funky Music.”

2002 – Usher is in the middle of a five-week run atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “U Got It Bad.”

2008 – “Low,” by Flo Rida featuring T-Pain, is the No. 1 single.

On This Day January 25

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Celebrity Birthdays

1882 – British novelist and journalist Virginia Woolf (d. 1941)

1931 – Actor Dean Jones (“The Love Bug,” “That Darn Cat”) (d. 2015)

1938 – Singer Etta James, best known for her Grammy-winning hit, “At Last” (d. 2012)

1943 – Director-screenwriter Tobe Hooper, best known for the horror classics, “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” and “Poltergeist” (d. 2017)

1957 – Singer-turned-actress Jenifer Lewis (“Dreamgirls,” “Beaches,” “Sister Act,” Cars,” “The Princess and the Frog”)

1981 – Grammy-winning R&B singer-songwriter Alicia Keys (“Fallin’,” “You Don’t Know My Name,” “If I Ain’t Got You,” “Diary,” “No One,” “Empire State of Mind”)

History Highlights

1924 – The first Winter Olympic Games open in Chamonix, France with athletes representing 16 nations. The event was originally called “Winter Sports Week.”

1949 – The first Emmy Awards ceremony, honoring excellence in television, is held at the Hollywood Athletic Club in Los Angeles. Ventriloquist Shirley Dinsdale becomes the first recipient of an Emmy for her show, “Judy Splinters.” Television was still a new medium at the time, with only about 50,000 American households owning a TV set.

1959 – American Airlines ushers in the Jet Age with the first scheduled transcontinental flight of a Boeing 707 from Los Angeles (LAX) to New York (Idlewild Airport, later known as Kennedy Airport/JFK).

1961 – Beginning a tradition that continues today, John F. Kennedy holds the first live televised presidential news conference, just five days after his inauguration as 35th U.S. president. An estimated 65 million viewers tune in.

1971 – Charles Manson and three of his cult followers are convicted of the brutal 1969 murders of actress Sharon Tate and six others.

1995 – The world comes dangerously close to nuclear war when Russia activates its nuclear missile arsenal for the first time in history after its early-warning defense system detects a missile launch near Norway. Russian leaders suspect it might be a U.S. attack, but it turns out to be a harmless scientific rocket that Norway launched to study the aurora borealis, or northern lights.

Musical Milestones

1964 – “There! I’ve Said It Again,” by Bobby Vinton, begins its fourth and final week as a No. 1 single. It’s the last song to occupy the top spot on the pop chart before The Beatles have their first No. 1 — “I Want to Hold Your Hand.”

1969 – Marvin Gaye’s “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” enjoys a seventh and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100.

1975 – Carpenters deliver a No. 1 single with their cover of The Marvelettes’ “Please Mr. Postman.” It becomes the brother-sister duo’s 12th million-selling single gold record.

1986 – Barbra Streisand kicks off a three-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart with “The Broadway Album.”

1992 – “All 4 Love,” by Color Me Badd, replaces Michael Jackson’s “Black or White” as the No. 1 single and holds the top spot for a week

1997 – Toni Braxton is in the midst of an 11-week reign over the pop chart with “Un-Break My Heart.”

2014 – “Timber,” by Pitbull featuring Ke$ha, is in the midst of a three-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.