On This Day: February 11

On This Day February 11

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Celebrity Birthdays
Celebrity Birthdays

1847 – Inventor Thomas Edison (d. 1931)

1926 – Actor-comedian Leslie Nielsen (“Forbidden Planet,” “The Poseidon Adventure,” “Airplane,” “The Naked Gun”) (d. 2010)

1936 – Golden Globe-winning actor Burt Reynolds (“Deliverance,” “The Longest Yard,” “Smokey and the Bandit,” “Evening Shade,” “Boogie Nights”) (d. 2018)

1941 – Grammy-winning Brazilian musician Sérgio Mendes

1962 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow (“If It Makes You Happy,” “Everyday Is a Winding Road”)

1969 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Jennifer Aniston, who has appeared in many movies, but is best known for playing Rachel in the NBC sitcom “Friends”

1971 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Damian Lewis (“Band of Brothers,” “Life,” “Homeland,” “Billions”)

1979 – Grammy-winning singer-actress Brandy, born Brandy Rayana Norwood (“The Boy is Mine,” “Moesha”)

History Highlights
History Highlights

1805 – Sacagawea, the Shoshone interpreter and guide to the Lewis and Clark expedition, gives birth to her first child, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau.

1932 – The Ford Motor Company introduces the flathead V8 engine, giving the world affordable, mass-produced V8 power. It becomes the darling of hot-rodders, road racers and stock car racers for more than two decades.

1945 – U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin wrap up the Yalta Conference following a week of intensive talks over the progress of World War II and the post-war world.

1963 – Chef Julia Child’s show, “The French Chef,” premieres on public television (NET, which later became PBS). 

1968 – New York City’s 20,000-seat Madison Square Garden officially opens between 7th and 8th Avenues in Manhattan, becoming the fourth version of that arena. The showplace for sports and entertainment opens with a gala hosted by Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. 

1970 – Japan’s first satellite (Ohsumi) is successfully launched into an orbit around Earth, making Japan the world’s fourth space power — after the Soviet Union in 1957, the United States in 1958, and France in 1965.

1990 – Anti-apartheid crusader Nelson Mandela, a political prisoner for more than 27 years, is released from Victor Verster Prison outside Cape Town, South Africa. Four years later, he is elected South Africa’s president.

Musical Milestones
Musical Milestones

1964 – The Beatles play their first U.S. concert at the Washington Coliseum. More than 350 police officers surround the stage to keep some 8,000 screaming fans under control. The set includes “I Saw Her Standing There,” “This Boy”, “All My Loving,” “I Wanna Be Your Man”,” Please Please Me”, “Till There Was You”, “She Loves You,” “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” “Twist and Shout” and much more.

1967 – The Monkees begin their seventh and final week on top of the pop chart with “I’m a Believer.”

1978 – The Bee Gees stay on top of the Billboard Hot 100 for a second week with “Stayin’ Alive,” from the “Saturday Night Fever” movie soundtrack. The single remains at No. 1 for a total of four weeks. 

1984 – Culture Club is midway through a three-week ride on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Karma Chameleon.”

1989 – Paula Abdul starts a three-week run at No. 1 on the singles chart with “Straight Up.”

2012 – Six-time Grammy-winning pop sensation Whitney Houston is found dead in a Beverly Hills hotel at the age of 48. Cause of death is determined to be drowning, with complications from cocaine use and heart disease.

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On This Day: January 16

On This Day January 16

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Celebrity Birthdays
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
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
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.

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