Communist Party – Time Rewind

On This Day March 20

Click each item below to learn more!

On This Day February 7

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1812 – Author Charles Dickens (“David Copperfield,” “Oliver Twist,” “A Christmas Carol”) (d. 1870)

1867 – Pioneer author Laura Ingalls Wilder, best known for her “Little House on the Prairie” series (d. 1957)

1885 – Novelist Sinclair Lewis, the first American author to win the Nobel prize for literature (d. 1951)

1955 – Actor Miguel Ferrer (“Twin Peaks,” “Crossing Jordan,” “Traffic,” “NCIS: Los Angeles”) (d. 2017)

1960 – Emmy-winning actor James Spader (“Less Than Zero,” “The Practice,” “Boston Legal,” “The Blacklist”)

1962 – Grammy-winning country music singer-songwriter Garth Brooks

1965 – Emmy and Grammy-winning comedian, actor, producer and “SNL” alum Chris Rock (“New Jack City,” “Lethal Weapon 4,” “Everybody Hates Chris”)

1978 – Actor-producer Ashton Kutcher (“That 70s Show,” “Dude, Where’s My Car?”, “Guess Who,” “A Lot Like Love,” “What Happens in Vegas,” “No Strings Attached,” “Two and a Half Men,” “Jobs”)

History Highlights

1812 – The most violent in a series of earthquakes near Missouri causes the Mississippi River to flow backward for several hours, a phenomenon known as a fluvial tsunami. It triggers landslides and leaves massive cracks in the ground. Research completed in 2011 determines that these powerful New Madrid earthquakes could be felt in varying intensity across a nearly 965,000-square-mile stretch of the U.S.

1979 – Dr. Josef Mengele, the infamous Nazi doctor known as the “Angel of Death,” who performed medical experiments at the Auschwitz death camps, dies of a stroke while swimming in Brazil. However, his death is not confirmed until 1985.

1984 – While in orbit 170 miles above Earth, Navy Captain Bruce McCandless becomes the first human being to fly untethered in space when he exits the space shuttle Challenger and maneuvers freely, using a rocket pack of his own design.

1986 – Twenty-eight years of one-family rule end in Haiti when President Jean-Claude ”Baby Doc” Duvalier flees the Caribbean nation.

1990 – The Soviet Union crumbles when the Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party agrees to give up its monopoly on power.

1999 – Jordan’s King Hussein bin Talal, the 20th century’s longest-serving executive head of state dies, and his son Prince Abdallah bin Hussein ascends to the throne.

Musical Milestones

1964 – The Beatles are mobbed by thousands of adoring fans after landing at New York’s Kennedy Airport to start their first U.S. tour. Later in the day, they appear on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” becoming the first British rock group to perform on American television.

1970 – The No. 1 single is “Venus” by the Dutch rock band Shocking Blue.

1976 – Paul Simon begins three weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover.”

1981 – Kool & the Gang have reason to celebrate as their single, “Celebration,” tops the Billboard Hot 100.

On This Day October 14

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1927 – Actor Sir Roger Moore, who played Simon Templar in the 1960s spy series “The Saint” and secret agent James Bond in seven movies between 1973 and 1985 (d. 2017)

1939 – Fashion designer Ralph Lauren

1940 – Singer Cliff Richard ( “Devil Woman,” “We Don’t Talk Anymore”)

1946 – Singer-songwriter and guitarist Justin Hayward of the rock band The Moody Blues (“Nights in White Satin,” “Tuesday Afternoon,” “Question”)

1958 – Synth-pop musician-producer Thomas Dolby, best known for his 1980s hits “She Blinded Me With Science” and “Hyperactive!”

1978 – Grammy-winning R&B singer-songwriter and actor Usher, born Usher Terry Raymond IV (“Nice & Slow,” “You Make Me Wanna…,” “My Way,” “Yeah!”, “There Goes My Baby,” “Climax”)

History Highlights

1947 – U.S. Air Force pilot Chuck Yeager ushers in the era of supersonic flight when he breaks the sound barrier in his Bell X-1 experimental plane, which he named “Glamorous Glennis,” in tribute to his wife.

1962 – The Cuban Missile Crisis begins as an American U-2 spy plane snaps aerial photos showing the installation of Soviet-made medium-range missiles, capable of carrying nuclear warheads, just 90 miles off the Florida coast in Cuba.

1964 – Civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. becomes the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for his nonviolent resistance to racial prejudice in America. The 35-year-old King donates the entire $54,000 prize money to furthering civil rights causes.

1964 – Nikita Khrushchev is ousted as both premier of the Soviet Union and chief of the Communist Party after 10 years in power. He is succeeded by his former protégé, Leonid Brezhnev.

1987 – While playing in her aunt’s back yard in Midland, Texas, 18-month-old Jessica McClure (“Baby Jessica”) slips and falls into an abandoned well. Millions of people around the world are riveted to news coverage of her rescue over the next 58 hours.

1994 – “Pulp Fiction,” a crime drama starring John Travolta, Uma Thurman and Samuel L. Jackson, and directed by Quentin Tarantino, opens in theaters and becomes a cult classic.

Musical Milestones

1957 – The Everly Brothers have their first No. 1 single with “Wake Up Little Susie.” The song also spends seven weeks on top of the Billboard country chart.

1967 – The Box Tops enter their fourth and final week as chart-toppers with “The Letter.”

1968 – The Jackson 5 make their national television debut when they appear on ABC’s “Hollywood Palace,” performing with Diana Ross and Sammy Davis, Jr.

1972 – Michael Jackson’s first solo single, “Ben,” reaches the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song, used for the closing credits of the horror film, “Ben,” goes on to capture a Best Song Golden Globe Award.

1978 – Exile is in the middle of four weeks atop the singles chart with “Kiss You All Over.”

1989 – The Grammy-nominated “Miss You Much,” by Janet Jackson, tops the Billboard Hot 100.

1990 – Internationally renowned Grammy and Tony-winning composer-conductor Leonard Bernstein (“On The Waterfront,” “Candide,” “West Side Story”) dies in New York at the age of 72.

1995 – Mariah Carey is in the middle of an eight-week domination of the U.S. pop chart with “Fantasy.” The track is the first by a female artist and second overall to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

2000 – “Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You),” by Christina Aguilera, begins four weeks on top of the singles chart.

On this Day June 16

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1907 – Oscar and Tony-winning actor Jack Albertson (“The Subject Was Roses,” “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” “The Poseidon Adventure”) (d. 1981)

1937 – Award-winning author Joyce Carol Oates

1943 – Actress Joan Van Ark (“Dallas,” “Knots Landing”)

1955 – Emmy-winning actress Laurie Metcalf, best known for her role as Jackie on TV’s “Roseanne”

1970 – World Golf Hall of Famer Phil Mickelson

1971 – Iconic hip-hop artist, actor and poet Tupac Shakur (d. 1996)

1972 – Actor John Cho (the “Harold & Kumar” movies, “American Pie,” the 2009 “Star Trek” movie)

History Highlights

1884 – The first roller coaster in America opens along the boardwalk at Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York, and is called a “switchback railway.” It was the brainchild of inventor-businessman LaMarcus Adna Thompson, traveled approximately six miles per hour and cost a nickel to ride.

1903 – Entrepreneur Henry Ford incorporates the Ford Motor Company. With a dozen investors and a thousand shares, the company spends almost all of its $28,000 cash investment by the time it sells the first Ford Model A on July 23, 1903. By that October, Ford Motor Company had made a profit of $37,000.

1963 – Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova becomes the first woman to venture into space, traveling aboard the Soviet spacecraft Vostok 6. She orbits Earth 48 times over three days and is hailed as a national hero upon her return, receiving the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star Medal. While Tereshkova has since traveled the world to promote science, she never flew in space again.

1977 – Leonid Brezhnev, first secretary of the Soviet Communist Party since 1964, is elected president of the Supreme Soviet, becoming both head of party and head of state.

Musical Milestones

1967 – The Monterey Pop Festival opens in California, featuring the first major appearances by The Who, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.

1973 – “My Love,” by Paul McCartney & Wings, is mid-way through a four-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100.

1979 – “Queen of Disco,” Donna Summer, claims the No. 1 spot on the pop chart with “Hot Stuff.”

1980 – “The Blues Brothers,” starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, premieres in Chicago, where most of the movie takes place and was filmed. Directed by John Landis, the cult classic is based on characters from NBC’s “Saturday Night Live (SNL).”

1984 – Cyndi Lauper begins her second and final week on top of the singles chart with “Time After Time.”

1990 – Swedish pop duo Roxette is No. 1 on the singles chart with “It Must Have Been Love.”

2001 – Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mýa and Pink hold the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 with their cover of “Lady Marmalade.”

On this Day June 8

Click each item below to learn more!

Celebrity Birthdays

1867 – Architect Frank Lloyd Wright (d. 1959)

1918 – Actor Robert Preston (“The Music Man,” “Victor Victoria,” “The Last Starfighter”) (d. 1987)

1925 – Former First Lady Barbara Bush (d. 2018)

1927 – Comedian-actor Jerry Stiller, best known for his roles in the sitcoms “Seinfeld” and “The King of Queens” and for the Stiller & Meara comedy routines with his late wife, Anne Meara (d. 2020)

1933 – Comedian-TV host Joan Rivers (d. 2014)

1940 – Singer-actress Nancy Sinatra (“These Boots Are Made for Walkin’,” “Somethin’ Stupid,” “Sugar Town”)

1944 – Singer-songwriter Boz Skaggs (“Lowdown,” “Lido Shuffle”)

1966 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Julianna Margulies (“ER,” “The Sopranos,” “The Good Wife”)

1977 – Grammy-winning rapper-music producer Kanye West

History Highlights

1949 – An FBI report names Hollywood figures, including film stars Frederic March, John Garfield, Paul Muni and Edward G. Robinson as members of the Communist Party.

1966 – The rival National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) announce plans to merge. The first “Super Bowl” between the two leagues is held at the end of the 1966 season, though it takes until the 1970 season for the leagues to unite their operations and integrate their regular season schedules.

1968 – James Earl Ray is arrested in London and questioned by authorities in connection with the murder of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. three months earlier.

1968 – The body of Senator Robert Kennedy is laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery three days after his assassination.

1984 – “Ghostbusters” opens in U.S. movie theaters, starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. Directed by Ivan Reitman, the film grosses $242 million in the U.S. and more than $295 million worldwide, is nominated for two Oscars and becomes an 80s cinematic classic.

2001 – Tropical Storm Allison makes a second pass over the Houston, Texas area, dumping more than three feet of rain in some neighborhoods, causing deadly flooding and billions of dollars in damage. The storm is blamed for 23 deaths in Texas.

Musical Milestones

1968 – The Rolling Stones release “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” which goes on to top the U.K. singles chart. In the U.S., it climbs as high as No. 3.

1974 – Dolly Parton reaches No. 1 on the country chart with “I Will Always Love You.” In 1982, she re-records it for the soundtrack of “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. And, in 1992, Whitney Houston records her own version that spends 14 weeks on top of the pop chart.

1974 – Paul McCartney & Wings scale the summit of the singles chart with “Band on the Run,” off the album of the same title.

1985 – Tears For Fears rules the Billboard Hot 100 with “Everybody Wants To Rule The World.” The band’s first No. 1 hit in the U.S. holds the top spot for two weeks. Two months later, the band scores another chart-topper with “Shout.”

1991 – The rock band Extreme claims the No. 1 spot on the Billboard singles chart with “More Than Words.”

1996 – “Tha Crossroads,” by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, is in the midst of an eight-week domination of the pop chart.