Detroit – Time Rewind

On This Day January 30

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On This Day December 5

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Celebrity Birthdays

1901 – Animator, voice actor and producer Walt Disney, born Walter Elias Disney, who founded The Walt Disney Company and created the iconic character Mickey Mouse (d. 1966)

1932 – Rock and Roll legend Little Richard, born Richard Wayne Penniman (“Tutti Frutti,” “Good Golly Miss Molly”)

1947 – Singer-songwriter Jim Messina (Loggins & Messina)

1968 – Comedian, actress, producer and writer Margaret Cho

1985 – “Malcolm in the Middle” star and race car driver Frankie Muniz

History Highlights

1933 – Fourteen years of Prohibition in the U.S. ends with ratification of the 21st Amendment to the Constitution, which repeals the 18th Amendment.

1945 – A squadron of U.S. Navy bombers, collectively known as “Flight 19,” mysteriously vanishes in the Bermuda Triangle — a section of ocean between Miami, Bermuda and Puerto Rico. A rescue aircraft also disappears during an attempt to locate the missing team. Despite countless theories throughout the years, there still is no definitive explanation for what happened to the six aircraft and 27 airmen aboard.

1955 – After 20 years of rivalry, the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merge to become the AFL-CIO.

1955 – The Montgomery (Alabama) Bus Boycott begins, following the arrest of black bus passenger Rosa Parks for refusing to give up her seat to a white man. The boycott lasts more than a year until a U.S. Supreme Court decision requires integration of Montgomery’s public transportation system.

1978 – In an effort to prop up an unpopular pro-Soviet regime in Afghanistan, the Soviet Union signs a “friendship treaty” with the Afghan government, agreeing to provide economic and military assistance.

1984 – “Beverly Hills Cop” opens, starring Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley, a Detroit detective who heads to Beverly Hills, California to solve the murder of his best friend.

Musical Milestones

1960 – Elvis Presley tops the singles chart with “Are You Lonesome Tonight.”

1964 – Actor Lorne Greene, beloved star of TV’s “Bonanza,” achieves musical success when his song, “Ringo,” lands on top of the Billboard Hot 100 and holds there for a week.

1973 – Paul McCartney releases “Band On The Run,” his fifth album since the breakup of The Beatles. It spawns two hit singles: “Jet” and “Band on the Run.”

1987 – Former Go-Gos lead singer Belinda Carlisle enjoys her first and only No. 1 single as a solo act: “Heaven is a Place on Earth.”

1992 – Grammy-winning pop legend Whitney Houston rules the Billboard Hot 100 with “I Will Always Love You,” a song written and originally recorded by country music legend Dolly Parton in 1973.

1998 – “I’m Your Angel,” by R. Kelly and Céline Dion kicks off six weeks as a No. 1 single.

2009 – Jay-Z and Alicia Keys own the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Empire State of Mind.” The single holds at No. 1 for five weeks and becomes the last chart-topper of the 2000s.

On This Day October 7

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Celebrity Birthdays

1931 – Anti-apartheid hero, South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu (d. 2021)

1951 – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer-songwriter John Mellencamp (“Ain’t Even Done With the Night,” “Hurts So Good,” “Jack & Diane,” “Crumblin’ Down,” “Pink Houses,” “Small Town,” “Cherry Bomb”)

1955 -Internationally acclaimed, Grammy-winning cellist Yo-Yo Ma

1959 – TV producer, executive and celebrity judge Simon Cowell (“American Idol, “The X Factor,” “America’s Got Talent”)

1967 – Grammy-winning soul-R&B singer and actress Toni Braxton, best known for her 1996 hit “Un-Break My Heart” and for playing Belle in the Broadway production of “Beauty and the Beast”

History Highlights

1913 – The moving assembly line is introduced at Ford Motor Company’s Highland Park factory outside Detroit. Henry Ford’s invention allowed workers to build a Model T from scratch in 84 steps, cutting production time from 12.5 hours to six hours, and a year later to just 93 minutes.

1968 – The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) adopts its film rating system. Movies are rated G for general audiences, M (which later becomes PG), R or X (for adults only).

1982 – “Cats” opens, becoming the longest-running production in Broadway history. The musical is based the T.S. Eliot’s 1939 collection of poems, “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats,” and features music by Andrew Lloyd Webber.

1985 – Four Palestinian terrorists hijack the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro in the Mediterranean Sea. They kill a disabled American tourist, 69-year-old Leon Klinghoffer, and order his body thrown overboard with his wheelchair.

2001 – President George W. Bush announces that a U.S.-led coalition has begun attacks on Taliban-controlled Afghanistan with an intense bombing campaign by American and British forces. The campaign, in retaliation for terror attacks in New York and Washington, D.C. three weeks earlier (9/11), is known as Operation Enduring Freedom.

2003 – “Terminator” actor Arnold Schwarzenegger is elected governor of California, replacing Gray Davis — the first U.S. governor to be recalled by the public since 1921. Affectionately called “The Governator,” he is reelected in 2006.

Musical Milestones

1967 – The Mamas & the Papas’ British tour is cancelled when Mama Cass Elliot is arrested and charged with stealing items from a hotel.

1967 – The Box Tops are mid-way through a four-week ride at No. 1 on the pop chart with “The Letter.”

1977 – Queen releases the single “We Will Rock You,” with “We Are the Champions” on the B-side, and many radio stations eventually play the tracks back to back. The songs continue getting airplay today on classic rock stations and serve as a motivational anthem at sporting events around the world.

1978 – Exile tops the Billboard Hot 100 with “Kiss You All Over.”

1989 – “Miss You Much,” by Janet Jackson, begins a four-week run as a chart-topping single.

1995 – Alanis Morissette rules the Billboard album chart with “Jagged Little Pill,” becoming the first Canadian female artist to reach No. 1 in the U.S. The album sells more than 30 million copies and goes on to capture four Grammy Awards.

2000 – “Music,” by Madonna, enters its fourth and final week as a No. 1 single.

2006 – Justin Timberlake is mid-way through a seven-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100 with “SexyBack.”

On this Day August 16

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Celebrity Birthdays

1928 – Grammy and Emmy-winning singer Eydie Gormé, who often performed with her husband, Steve Lawrence (d. 2013)

1930 – NFL Hall of Famer and sportscaster Frank Gifford (d. 2015)

1933 – Tony-winning actress Julie Newmar, born Julie Newmeyer, best known for playing Catwoman in the 1960s “Batman” TV series

1953 – TV talk show host Kathie Lee Gifford (“The Morning Show,” “Today” show)

1954 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning director James Cameron (“The Terminator,” “Aliens,” “The Abyss,” “True Lies,” “Titanic,” “Avatar”)

1958 – Golden Globe-winning actress Angela Bassett (“What’s Love Got to Do With It,” “Waiting to Exhale,” “The Rosa Parks Story,” “The Jacksons: An American Dream,” “Malcolm X,” “American Horror Story”)

1958 – Pop superstar Madonna, born Madonna Ciccone

1960 – Oscar-winning actor Timothy Hutton (“Ordinary People,” “Taps,” “The Falcon and the Snowman,” “The Dark Half”)

1962 – Golden Globe-winning actor-comedian Steve Carell (“The Office,” “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Bruce Almighty,” “Little Miss Sunshine,” “Anchorman,” “Despicable Me,” “Foxcatcher,” “The Big Short”)

History Highlights

1812 – During the War of 1812, U.S. General William Hull surrenders Fort Detroit and his army to the British without a fight. Hull, a 59-year-old veteran of the American Revolution, had lost hope of defending the settlement after seeing the large English and Indian force gathering outside Detroit’s walls.

1920 – Cleveland Indians shortstop Ray Chapman is struck in the temple by a ball pitched by Carl Mays of the New York Yankees. Chapman dies 12 hours later, becoming the first and only Major League Baseball player to die as the result of a pitched ball.

1948 – Cancer claims the life of baseball legend George Herman “Babe” Ruth. For two days following, his body lays in state at the main entrance to Yankee Stadium, and tens of thousands of people stand in line to pay their last respects.

1984 – John DeLorean, the celebrity millionaire caught on videotape discussing cocaine deals with government agents posing as drug dealers, is acquitted of all charges by a federal jury in a tumultuous and emotional climax to a five-month, $1 million trial.

1985 – The final episode of “The Dukes of Hazzard” airs on CBS.

1987 – A four-year-old girl is the lone survivor of the crash of a Northwest Airlines flight after takeoff from Detroit. 148 passengers and six crew members are killed in the accident which investigators blame on pilot error.

Musical Milestones

1962 – Twelve-year-old ‘Little’ Stevie Wonder releases his first single, “I Call It Pretty Music, (But The Old People Call It The Blues),” which features Marvin Gaye on drums.

1969 – The world is introduced to the Jackson 5 by Diana Ross & The Supremes during a performance at the Los Angeles Forum.

1975 – Peter Gabriel announces that he’s leaving Genesis. After auditioning more than 400 singers over the next 18 months, the band selects its longtime drummer, Phil Collins, as new frontman.

1977 – Music legend Elvis Presley dies of a heart attack at the age of 42. The King’s career included 33 movies and 105 Top 40 hits that continue to entertain fans decades after his death.

1980 – “Magic,” by Olivia Newton-John, is in the middle of a one-month reign of the Billboard Hot 100.

1985 – On her 27th birthday, Madonna weds actor Sean Penn in a Malibu ceremony described as a “media circus.” The marriage lasts four years.

1986 – “Papa Don’t Preach” becomes Madonna’s fourth No. 1 single. It holds the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks. The track is from her “True Blue” album, which begins its own five-week run atop the album chart this same day.

1997 – “I’ll Be Missing You, by Puff Daddy and Faith Evans featuring 112, tops the Billboard Hot 100. The song samples The Police’s 1983 hit song “Every Breath You Take.”

2018 – ‘Queen of Soul’ Aretha Franklin dies of pancreatic cancer at the age of 76. The self-taught piano prodigy, vocalist and songwriter notched 77 Hot 100 chart entries and earned 18 Grammys during her career. In 1987, Franklin became the first woman inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

On this Day July 23

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Celebrity Birthdays

1918 – Major League Baseball All-Star shortstop Pee Wee Reese, born Harold Henry Reese (d. 1999)

1933 – Emmy-winning actor and game show host Bert Convy (d. 1991)

1940 – Radio talk show host Don Imus (d. 2019)

1961 – Emmy-winning actor Woody Harrelson (“Cheers,” “Indecent Proposal,” “Natural Born Killers,” “Kingpin,” “The Thin Red Line,” “True Detective”)

1965 – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame guitarist and songwriter Slash, born Saul Hudson, formerly with Guns N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver

1967 – Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman (“The Talented Mr. Ripley,” “Capote,” “Scent of a Woman,” “Boogie Nights,” “Mission: Impossible III,” “Doubt,” “The Hunger Games”) (d. 2014)

1973 – Former White House intern-turned-designer Monica Lewinsky

1987 – Actor Daniel Radcliffe, best known for his portrayal of Harry Potter in the movie series

History Highlights

1885 – Shortly after completing his memoirs, Civil War hero and former president Ulysses S. Grant dies of throat cancer.

1967 – A police raid on an illegal Detroit bar triggers the 12th Street Riot, with days of firebombing, violence and looting, as African Americans lash out over police brutality, housing discrimination and unemployment.

1982 – Actor Vic Morrow and two child actors are killed in an accident involving a helicopter while filming a Vietnam combat scene for “Twilight Zone: The Movie” — director John Landis’ film adaptation of Rod Serling’s TV series. The deaths lead to tighter on-set safety measures by the film industry.

1984 – Vanessa Williams gives up her Miss America title — the first resignation in the pageant’s history — after Penthouse magazine announces plans to publish nude photos of her. At 21, Williams was the first African American woman to win the Miss America crown. Despite the scandal, she goes on to enjoy a successful singing and acting career that continues today.

1985 – A revolution in gaming takes place as Commodore releases the Amiga 1000, the home computer that played host to everything from Speedball to Rainbow Islands.

1996 – At the Summer Olympics in Atlanta, the U.S. women’s gymnastics team, nicknamed the “Mag 7” or “Magnificent 7,” captures its first-ever team gold.

Musical Milestones

1966 – Tommy James and the Shondells have the No. 1 single in the U.S. for a second straight week: “Hanky Panky.”

1977 – Barry Manilow’s “Looks Like We Made It” makes it to the No. 1 spot on the singles chart.

1983 – “Synchronicity,” by The Police, kicks off 17 weeks on top of the Billboard album chart. It is the band’s fifth and final studio album and goes on to capture three Grammy Awards. In 2009, it is inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

1988 – The first single from Richard Marx, “Hold On to the Nights,” is the hottest song on the radio.

1988 – Guns N’ Roses scores a huge popular breakthrough when their first hit single, “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” enters the Billboard Top 40. It climbs to No. 1 that September.

1994 – “I Swear,” by All-4-One, is in the middle of an 11-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100.

2005 – Mariah Carey claims the top spot on the pop chart with “We Belong Together.”

2011 – Grammy-winning British singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse (“Stronger Than Me,” “Rehab”) dies of alcohol poisoning in her London townhouse at the age of 27.

On this Day June 16

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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.”