On This Day November 19 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1933 – Award-winning TV and radio talk show host Larry King, born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger 1936 – Retired Emmy-winning TV talk show host and comedian Dick Cavett, who tackled controversial topics and featured countless celebrities over the years on “The Dick Cavett Show” 1938 – Media mogul Ted Turner, born Robert Edward Turner III, who founded Cable News Network (CNN) and Turner Broadcasting (TBS) 1942 – Fashion designer Calvin Klein 1961 – Actress-producer Meg Ryan, born Margaret Hyra (“Top Gun,” “When Harry Met Sally…,” “Sleepless in Seattle,” “French Kiss,” “Addicted to Love,” “You’ve Got Mail,” “City of Angels,” “Proof of Life,” “Kate & Leopold”) 1962 – Oscar-winning actress-producer-director Jodie Foster (“Taxi Driver,” “The Accused,” “Silence of the Lambs,” “Contact,” “Anna and the King,” “Panic Room,” “Flightplan,” “Elysium”) History Highlights 1863 – During the dedication of a military cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln delivers one of the most memorable speeches in American history: the Gettysburg Address. 1954 – The first automatic toll machine in the United States goes into service along the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey, charging motorists 25 cents to pass. 1959 – It’s the end of the road for the Edsel, as Ford Motor Company terminates production of an automobile line that proved to be a marketing disaster. 1964 – Something other than bread pops in and out of the toaster, as Kellogg’s introduces the Pop-Tart in four flavors: strawberry, blueberry, apple currant and brown sugar-cinnamon. 1969 – Apollo 12 becomes the second manned space mission to land on the moon. The crew touches down within walking distance of the Surveyor III spacecraft, which landed in April 1967. The astronauts bring some Surveyor III instruments back to Earth to examine the effects of long-term exposure to the lunar environment. 1975 – “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” opens in theaters, starring Jack Nicholson as a patient in a 1960s psychiatric hospital, and Louise Fletcher as the head nurse. It becomes only the second movie of all time to clinch five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Nicholson). Musical Milestones 1955 – Carl Perkins records “Blue Suede Shoes” at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. Written by Perkins, it is considered one of the first rockabilly recordings. The single reaches No. 2 on the pop chart in 1956 and is later famously covered by Elvis Presley. 1966 – Reigning supreme on the singles chart: “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” by Diana Ross and The Supremes. The track hangs on to the No. 1 position for two weeks and is the Motown sensation’s seventh chart-topper. 1977 – Debby Boone is midway through a 10-week hold on No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “You Light Up My Life.” 1979 – Chuck Berry walks out of prison a free man after serving a four-month sentence for tax evasion. 1983 – Tina Turner has her first chart single in more than a decade with her cover of Al Green’s 1972 hit, “Let’s Stay Together.” The track, from her “Private Dancer” album, climbs as high as No. 26 on the Hot 100. 1994 – Boyz II Men have the No. 1 single with “I’ll Make Love to You.” 2003 – California authorities issue an arrest warrant for Michael Jackson on multiple counts of child molestation and ask the pop superstar to turn himself in and surrender his passport. 2005 – “Gold Digger,” by Kanye West featuring Jamie Foxx, begins its tenth and final week on top of the Billboard singles chart. READ MORE
On This Day September 4 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1931 – Actress-singer-dancer Mitzi Gaynor (“My Blue Heaven,” “Anything Goes,” “South Pacific”) 1942 – Singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Merald “Bubba” Knight (Gladys Knight & the Pips) 1949 – PGA champion Tom Watson 1960 – Comedian, actor and writer Damon Wayans (“In Living Color,” “The Last Boy Scout,” “Major Payne,” “My Wife and Kids”) 1970 – Actress Ione Skye (“Say Anything,” “Four Rooms,” “Zodiac”) 1981 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Beyoncé Knowles History Highlights 1886 – Apache leader Geronimo surrenders to U.S. federal troops in Arizona. For 30 years, the Native American warrior battled to protect his tribe’s homeland. However, by 1886 the Apaches were exhausted and outnumbered. With his surrender, Geronimo becomes the last Native American warrior to formally give in to U.S. forces, signaling the end of the Indian Wars in the Southwest. 1951 – President Harry Truman takes to the microphone for the first live coast-to-coast TV broadcast. It originates from the Japanese Peace Treaty Conference in San Francisco. 1957 – In what becomes a landmark event in the civil rights movement, nine African American students attempt to enter Little Rock Central High School, but are blocked by National Guard troops ordered in by Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus. The group is known as the Little Rock Nine. 1957 – Ford introduces the Edsel, a car named after company founder Henry Ford’s only son. The vehicle is widely considered to be one of the greatest marketing failures in automotive history. 1967 – The popular 1960s TV sitcom “Gilligan’s Island” sails off into the electronic sunset with its final episode. The show ran for three years but continues sailing across the airwaves and on cable through syndication. Musical Milestones 1962 – The Beatles assemble for their first formal recording session at London’s EMI/Abbey Road Studios, recording “Love Me Do” and “How Do You Do It?” with newest band member Ringo Starr on drums. 1971 – About a year after the Fab Four break-up, one of them enjoys his first No. 1 single. It’s Paul McCartney with “Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey,” from the “Ram” album — a collaboration with his wife, Linda. 1976 – The Bee Gees are chart-toppers with “You Should Be Dancing,” from the “Saturday Night Fever” movie soundtrack. 1976 – More than a year after entering the album chart, Fleetwood Mac’s self-titled album reaches No. 1. This breakthrough work contains the hits “Rhiannon,” “Over My Head” and “Say You Love Me,” and has sold more than five million copies. 1982 – “Abracadabra,” by the Steve Miller Band, appears at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. 1993 – UB40 ends a seven-week run on top of the Billboard singles chart with the cover of Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love.” 2004 – Terror Squad begins its fourth and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Lean Back.” 2010 – “Love The Way You Lie,” by Enimen featuring Rihanna, is in the middle of six weeks as a No. 1 single. READ MORE