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On This Day January 8

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Celebrity Birthdays

1926 – Comedian Soupy Sales, born Milton Supman (d. 2009)

1933 – Retired CBS News host, anchor and commentator Charles Osgood

1935 – King of rock and roll, Elvis Presley, who became a legendary presence in cultural history and the best-selling solo artist in the history of pop (d. 1977)

1937 – Singer Shirley Bassey, whose numerous hits include three James Bond theme songs 

1938 – “The Newlywed Game” host Bob Eubanks

1942 – Physicist, cosmologist, and author Stephen Hawking (“A Brief History of Time”) (d. 2018)

1947 – Rock and Roll Hall of Famer David Bowie (“Space Oddity,” “Fame”) (d. 2016)

1967 – Singer-songwriter and producer R. Kelly, born Robert Sylvester Kelly

History Highlights

1963 – President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy lead opening ceremonies as Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece, the Mona Lisa, goes on display for the first time in America at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

1964 – President Lyndon Johnson declares “an unconditional war on poverty in America” during his first State of the Union address, stressing improved education as one of the cornerstones of the program.

1982 – In a landmark antitrust suit, AT&T agrees to give up its 22 local Bell System companies (“Baby Bells”), a move that ends its virtual monopoly on phone service in the U.S.

1987 – The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above the 2,000 mark for the first time.

Musical Milestones

1966 – The Beatles rule two U.S. music charts. “We Can Work It Out” is the group’s 11th No. 1 single while “Rubber Soul” parks itself for six weeks on top of the Billboard album chart.

1972 – Melanie has a lock on the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Brand New Key,” affectionately known as “The Rollerskate Song.” The track holds at No. 1 for three weeks.

1977 – “You Don’t Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show),” by Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr., is the hottest-selling single.

1983 – Hall & Oates enter the final week of their four-week run as Billboard chart-toppers with “Maneater,” off the “H2O” album.

1994 – Mariah Carey is in the midst of a four-week run atop the pop chart with “Hero,” her eighth No. 1 hit.

2000 – “Smooth,” by Santana featuring Rob Thomas, wraps up a 12-week reign over the Billboard Hot 100. The track is the first chart-topper in Carlos Santana’s long musical career.

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