George W. Bush – Time Rewind

On This Day April 24

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On This Day April 11

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Celebrity Birthdays

1928 – Human rights advocate Ethel Kennedy, widow of assassinated U.S. Senator and former U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy

1932 – Oscar and Tony-winning actor, singer and dancer Joel Grey, born Joel David Katz, best known for his role in both the screen and stage versions of “Cabaret”

1939 – Actress Louise Lasser (“Take the Money and Run,” “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman”)

1987 – Grammy-winning British soul singer-songwriter and actress Joss Stone (“Super Duper,” “Fell in Love with a Boy,” “Spoiled,” “Right to Be Wrong”)

History Highlights

1814 – An alliance of European nations signs a treaty removing Napoleon Bonaparte from the French throne and banishing him to the small Italian isle of Elba.

1945 – American troops liberate Buchenwald, one of the largest concentration camps established by the Nazis during World War II.

1951 – In one of the most famous civilian-military confrontations in United States history, President Harry S. Truman relieves General Douglas MacArthur of command of American forces in Korea.

1968 – One week after the assassination of civil rights crusader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1968 into law, banning housing discrimination.

1970 – Apollo 13 blasts off on a mechanically flawed mission that denies astronauts Jim Lovell, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert a moon landing.

1981 – President Ronald Reagan is released from the hospital 12 days after he was shot outside a Washington D.C. hotel in an assassination attempt.

2001 – President George W. Bush announces that the Chinese government has agreed to release the crew of a U.S. spy plane that collided with a Chinese fighter jet, killing the pilot.

Musical Milestones

1960 – Movie music dominates the pop chart as Percy Faith’s “Theme From A Summer Place” remains at No. 1 for an eighth consecutive week. The track holds the top spot for a total of nine weeks and goes on to capture a Grammy for Record of the Year.

1964 – “Can’t Buy Me Love,” by The Beatles, is in the middle of five weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100.

1970 – The Beatles’ “Let It Be” is No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains there for two weeks. It is the Fab Four’s last hit before their break-up.

1981 – Rocker Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli (“One Day at a Time”) tie the knot, The marriage lasts until 2007, when their divorce is finalized.

1981 – Darryl Hall & John Oates have the No. 1 single in the U.S. with “Kiss on My List.” The song remains on top of that list for three weeks.

1988 – Jennifer Warnes and Bill Medley (of The Righteous Brothers) perform “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” at the Academy Awards. The song, from the “Dirty Dancing” movie soundtrack, becomes the third one by Warnes to capture an Oscar.

1992 – “Save the Best for Last,” by Vanessa Williams, is parked at the summit of the Billboard Hot 100. It holds the top spot for five weeks.

1998 – “All My Life,” by R&B duo K-Ci & JoJo, is midway through a three-week domination of the Billboard pop chart.

2006 – June Pointer, the youngest of the four Pointer Sisters, who went from teenage gospel singers to the top of the pop chart with hits like “‘Fire,” “Slow Hand” and “I’m So Excited,” dies of cancer at the age of 52.

2009 – The Billboard Hot 100 deals Lady Gaga a favorable hand as “Poker Face” begins a week at No. 1. The track, which also tops the charts in 19 other countries, wins Best Dance Recording honors at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards.

On This Day March 19

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Celebrity Birthdays

1848 – Frontiersman, marshall and gambler Wyatt Earp, remembered for participating in the legendary Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (d. 1929)

1936 – Golden Globe-winning actress Ursula Andress, best known as (James) Bond girl Honey Ryder in “Dr. No” and Vesper Lynd in the Bond spoof film “Casino Royale”

1947 – Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Glenn Close (“The Big Chill,” “The Natural,” “Fatal Attraction,” “Dangerous Liaisons,” “The Shield,” “Damages,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “The Wife”)

1955 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Bruce Willis (“Moonlighting,” the “Die Hard” movie series, “Pulp Fiction,” “12 Monkeys,” “Armageddon,” “The Sixth Sense,” “Sin City,” “Unbreakable,” “The Expendables 2,” “Looper,” “Glass”)

History Highlights

1916 – Eight Curtiss “Jenny” planes of the 1st Aero Squadron take off from Columbus, New Mexico, in the first combat air mission in U.S. history, supporting 7,000 U.S. troops that invaded Mexico to capture Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa.

1918 – Congress establishes time zones and approves daylight saving time.

1953 – The big screen invades the small screen as the Academy Awards are broadcast on television for the first time. Some 34 million viewers tune in to NBC for the event, which features ceremonies in Hollywood and New York. Comedian Bob Hope hosts from the West coast.

1977 – Fans of CBS’s popular sitcom, “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” watch the broadcast of the series finale. During its seven-season run, the show garnered an unprecedented 29 Emmy Awards and spawned three spin-offs.

1987 – Televangelist Jim Bakker resigns as head of the PTL Club due to a brewing sex scandal, and turns control over to the Reverend Jerry Falwell.

2003 – President George W. Bush announces that the United States and coalition forces have launched Operation Iraqi Freedom — a military offensive against Iraq aimed at toppling its dictator, Saddam Hussein, and eliminating the storage, development and deployment of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs).

Musical Milestones

1957 – Seeking a refuge from fans and the pressure of fame, 22-year-old Elvis Presley purchases the Graceland estate in Memphis, Tennessee for himself, his parents and his grandmother with a $1,000 cash down payment. The property’s sale price was $102,500 — about $900,000 in today’s dollars.

1960 – Percy Faith’s “Theme From a Summer Place” is mid-way through a nine-week reign over the singles chart.

1962 – Columbia Records releases Bob Dylan’s self-titled debut album. Produced by John Hammond, Jr., who signed Dylan to the label, the album features folk standards, plus two original compositions, “Talkin’ New York” and “Song to Woody.”

1977 – Another film theme begins its third and final week as the most popular single in America: Barbra Streisand’s “Evergreen” from “A Star is Born.”

1988 – Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” begins its second and final week as a No. 1 single.

1994 – “The Sign,” by Swedish band Ace of Base, tops the Billboard Hot 100.

2005 – 50 Cent becomes the first solo artist to have three singles in the Billboard Top 5: “Candy Shop” is at No. 1, “How We Do” by The Game (a member of his G-Unit group) is at No. 4 and “Disco Inferno” is at No. 5.

On This Day March 10

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Celebrity Birthdays

1940 – Actor and martial artist Chuck Norris (“Way of the Dragon,” “Walker, Texas Ranger”)

1958 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Sharon Stone (“Total Recall,” “Basic Instinct,” “Casino,” “The Mighty”)

1971 – Golden Globe-winning actor Jon Hamm, best known as ad executive Don Draper in the TV series “Mad Men”

1983 – Grammy-winning country music singer-songwriter Carrie Underwood, whose career was launched after winning Season 4 of “American Idol”

1984 – Actress Olivia Wilde (“House,” “Tron: Legacy,” “Cowboys and Aliens,” “In Time”)

History Highlights

1862 – Paper money, known as Legal Tender Notes or United States Notes, is issued for the first time in the U.S. The denominations are $5 (Hamilton), $10 (Lincoln) and $20 (Liberty).

1876 – Alexander Graham Bell places the world’s first telephone call at his Boston laboratory. He summons his assistant, Thomas Watson, who was in the next room, by saying, “Mr. Watson, come here — I want to see you.” Bell had secured a patent for his groundbreaking communication device just three days earlier.

1959 – Some 300,000 Tibetans band together in revolt, surrounding the summer palace of the Dalai Lama in defiance of Chinese occupation forces that moved in almost 10 years earlier. The anniversary of the failed rebellion is observed by Tibetan exiles as the “Tibetan Uprising Day.”

1969 – James Earl Ray pleads guilty to assassinating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and is sentenced to 99 years in Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Tennessee. Ray later retracts his guilty plea.

1993 – An anti-abortion protester shoots and kills Dr. David Gunn outside the Pensacola (Florida) Women’s Medical Services clinic, where Gunn performed abortions. Although the gunman immediately turns himself in to authorities, the murder sets off a wave of deadly anti-abortion violence across the U.S.

Musical Milestones

1956 – RCA Victor takes out a half-page ad in Billboard magazine proclaiming that Elvis Presley is “the new singing rage.”

1962 – “Hey! Baby,” by Bruce Channel, begins a three-week run at No. 1 on the singles chart.

1964 – Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel record an acoustic version of “The Sound of Silence” for their debut album, “Wednesday Morning, 3AM.” Later, without the duo’s knowledge, Columbia Records producers overdub electric guitar, bass and drums for another version of the track that becomes the chart-topping hit in January 1966.

1979 – Gloria Gaynor reaches the top of the singles chart with the disco anthem “I Will Survive.”

1984 – Madonna charts for the first time in her career with “Borderline.” The single climbs as high as No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1988 – Pop sensation Andy Gibb, the younger brother of the Bee Gees, dies of an inflammatory heart virus at the age of 30.

1990 – “Escapade,” by Janet Jackson, is in the midst of a three-week ride atop the Billboard Hot 100.

2003 – During a concert in London, Dixie Chicks lead singer Natalie Maines declares that the band is “ashamed the President of the United States is from Texas,” referring to President George W. Bush. The remark sparks outrage among many Americans, and some radio stations stop playing their music.

2010 – “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You),” by Kelly Clarkson, is the No. 1 single for a week.

On This Day January 29

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Celebrity Birthdays

1820 – Civil rights crusader Harriet Tubman, known for freeing slaves via the Underground Railroad, and who served as a Union spy during the Civil War (d. 1913)

1843 – 25th U.S. President William McKinley, who was assassinated six months into his second term after leading the nation to victory in the Spanish-American War (d. 1901)

1940 – Actress Katharine Ross (“Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” “The Stepford Wives”)

1945 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Tom Selleck (“Magnum, P.I.,” “Lassiter,” “Three Men and a Baby,” “Friends,” “Blue Bloods”)

1954 – Media executive, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist Oprah Winfrey

1970 – Actress Heather Graham (“Twin Peaks,” “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me,” “Boogie Nights,” “Bowfinger,” Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me,” “The Hangover”)

1975 – Actress and TV talk show host Sara Gilbert (“Roseanne,” “The Talk’)

1982 – Singer-songwriter Adam Lambert, whose career was launched during the eighth season of “American Idol” and now tours with Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor as Queen + Adam Lambert

History Highlights

1845 – The Evening Mirror publishes Edgar Allan Poe’s now-classic poem, “The Raven” which begins, “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary…”

1936 – The first inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame are announced In Cooperstown, New York. They include Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson.

1963 – Robert Frost, considered the dean of American poets, dies in Boston at the age of 88.

1964 – Stanley Kubrick’s black comic masterpiece, “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb,” opens in movie theaters to critical acclaim. Actor Peter Sellers plays three roles in the Cold War parody.

1979 – Teenager Brenda Spencer shoots and kills two men and wounds nine children as they enter the Grover Cleveland Elementary School in San Diego. Asked by authorities upon her arrest why she did it, the 16-year-old replies, “I don’t like Mondays. This livens up the day.” The incident inspires The Boomtown Rats to write their hit song, “I Don’t Like Mondays.”

1979 – President Jimmy Carter welcomes Chinese Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping to the White House following the establishment of diplomatic relations. The visit culminates with the signing of historic new accords that reverse decades of U.S. opposition to the People’s Republic of China.

2002 – In his first State of the Union address since the September 11 terror attacks on the U.S., President George W. Bush says Iraq, Iran and North Korea constitute an “axis of evil.” He outlines his rationale for the “war on terror,” a series of military engagements which would define U.S. foreign policy for years to come.

Musical Milestones

1964 – The Beatles spend the day at the Pathe Marconi Studios in Paris in their only studio recording session for EMI held outside the U.K. They record “She Loves You,” “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and “Can’t Buy Me Love” in German.

1966 – “We Can Work It Out,” by The Beatles, reaches the top of the Billboard singles chart and remains there for a week.

1970 – Elvis Presley releases the single “Kentucky Rain,” which climbs as high as No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1972 – Don McLean’s “American Pie” is in the midst of a four-week ride atop the Billboard Hot 100. In 2017, the recording is selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or artistically significant.”

1977 – “Car Wash,” by Rose Royce, is the No. 1 single. It comes from the movie of the same name that features Richard Pryor, George Carlin and The Pointer Sisters, and is considered a staple of the disco genre.

1983 – Men at Work wrap up three weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Down Under,” off the Aussie band’s “Business as Usual” album.

1994 – “All for Love,” by Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart and Sting, is in the middle of a three-week run on top of the pop chart. The single comes from the soundtrack to “The Three Musketeers,” a movie starring Charlie Sheen, Kiefer Sutherland and Chris O’Donnell.

2000 – The No. 1 spot on the pop chart belongs to Australian pop duo Savage Garden with “I Knew I Loved You.”

2011 – Britney Spears lands on top of the Billboard Hot 100 for a week with “Hold It Against Me.”

2019 – Two-time Grammy-winning 80s R&B singer-songwriter James Ingram (“Just Once,” “Baby, Come to Me,” “I Don’t Have the Heart”) dies of brain cancer at the age of 66.

On This Day January 26

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Celebrity Birthdays

1925 – Oscar-winning actor and race car driver Paul Newman (“The Hustler,” “Hud,” “Cool Hand Luke,” “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” “The Verdict,” “The Color of Money,” “The Hudsucker Proxy,” “Road to Perdition”) (d. 2008)

1941 – Actor Scott Glenn (“Urban Cowboy,” “The Right Stuff,” “The Hunt for Red October,” “The Silence of the Lambs,” “Backdraft,” “Training Day,” “The Bourne Ultimatum”)

1955 – Legendary rock guitarist and songwriter Eddie Van Halen of the band Van Halen (“Hot for Teacher”, “Ain’t Talking ‘Bout Love”, “Jump”, “Panama”) (d. 2020)

1958 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Anita Baker (“Sweet Love,” “Just Because”)

1958 – Emmy-winning TV host, comedian, actress and LGBTQ advocate Ellen DeGeneres

1961 – Retired hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, who played for four teams during 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL)

History Highlights

1788 – Britain’s First Fleet sails into Sydney Harbor and begins the European colonization of Australia. The fledgling colony marks this event each year as Australia Day, however in recent years Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander have objected because they see the occasion as the beginning of the deliberate destruction of their people and culture.

1905 – A 3,106-carat diamond is discovered during a routine inspection at the Premier Mine in Pretoria, South Africa. Weighing 1.33 pounds, it is the largest diamond ever found, and is named the Cullinan after Sir Thomas Cullinan, the owner of the mine.

1926 – Scottish inventor John Logie Baird gives the first public demonstration of a true television system (called a “televisor”) in London, launching a revolution in communication and entertainment.

1950 – The Republic of India is formed as the Indian constitution takes effect.

1961 – President John F. Kennedy appoints Janet Travell, 59, as his personal physician, making her the first woman in history to hold that post.

1979 – The General Lee, a bright orange Dodge Charger with a Confederate flag on its roof, kicks up dust clouds as “The Dukes of Hazzard” premieres on CBS.

1988 – Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “The Phantom of the Opera” has its first Broadway performance at the Majestic Theatre.

1998 – During one of the most memorable news conferences of his presidency, Bill Clinton tells reporters, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.” Clinton later confesses that he did indeed have an “improper physical relationship” with Monica Lewinksky, a 24-year-old White House intern.

2005 – Condoleezza Rice assumes the post of U.S. Secretary of State two months after her nomination by President George W. Bush. She becomes the highest ranking African American woman ever to serve in a presidential cabinet.

Musical Milestones

1963 – The Rooftop Singers stroll to the top of the singles chart with “Walk Right In.”

1970 – Phil Spector and John Lennon write and record Lennon’s “Instant Karma” in one day. It lands on the Billboard pop chart 33 days later, eventually climbing to No. 3.

1974 – “You’re Sixteen” by Ringo Starr is the No. 1 single. The song is from the ex-Beatle’s “Ringo” album, which also contains the hits “Photograph” and “Oh My My.”

1980 – Prince makes his television premiere with an appearance on “American Bandstand.” He shyly answers questions from host Dick Clark, beginning with “How did you learn to do this in Minneapolis?”

1985 – Madonna wraps up six weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with her first No. 1 single, “Like a Virgin.”

1991 – Surface kicks off two weeks atop the pop chart with “The First Time.” It is the last time the New Jersey trio has a No. 1 single.

2002 – “U Got It Bad,” by Usher, is in the midst of a five-week ride on top of the singles chart.

On This Day January 6

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Celebrity Birthdays

1912 – Comedian-philanthropist Danny Thomas (“Make Room for Daddy”) (d. 1991)

1944 – Actress Bonnie Franklin, best known for her role in the 70s sitcom “One Day at a Time” (d. 2013)

1953 – Malcolm Young, guitarist-vocalist and co-founder of the hard rock band AC/DC (d. 2017)

1955 – Comedian, actor and writer Rowan Atkinson (“Black Adder,” “Mr. Bean,” “Johnny English”)

1957 – Three-time LPGA champion Nancy Lopez

1967 – Director John Singleton (“Boyz n the Hood,” “Poetic Justice,” “Shaft,” “Four Brothers,” “2 Fast 2 Furious”)

1969 – Actor Norman Reedus (“The Boondock Saints,” “American Gangster,” “The Walking Dead”)

1982 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actor Eddie Redmayne (“My Week with Marilyn,” “Les Misérables,” “The Theory of Everything,” “The Danish Girl”)

History Highlights

1838 – Samuel Morse publicly demonstrates the telegraph system he invented and which would go on to revolutionize long-distance communication.

1919 – Ten years after the end of his term as the 26th U.S. president, Theodore Roosevelt dies in his sleep at his Long Island, New York estate at the age of 60. The cause is a coronary embolism.

1942 – Pan American World Airways completes the first around-the-world commercial flight with the Pacific Clipper, a Boeing 314 “flying boat” piloted by Capt. Robert Ford. The journey ends with a safe water landing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport.

1973 – The animated Saturday morning TV series “Schoolhouse Rock!” premieres on ABC, featuring “Multiplication Rock.” Educational topics include grammar, science, economics, history, math and civics.

1974 – In response to the U.S. energy crisis, President Richard Nixon signs emergency legislation imposing daylight saving time for almost 16 months — until April 27, 1975.

2001 – Congress certifies George W. Bush as the winner of the 2000 presidential election over Vice President Al Gore after the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to halt a five-week-long manual recount of ballots in Florida. This marked the fourth election in U.S. history in which the winner failed to get a plurality of the popular vote.

2021 – Supporters of President Donald Trump storm the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. in an effort to halt the certification of electoral votes from the 2020 presidential election, which was won by Democrat Joe Biden. After violently clashing with Capitol police, the rioters ransacked the complex, destroyed property and sent members of Congress and their staff into hiding in offices and bunkers. The attack is often referred to as the “January 6 insurrection.”

Musical Milestones

1954 – Working as a truck driver, Elvis Presley enters the Memphis Recording Service in Tennessee and records “It Wouldn’t Be The Same Without You” and “I’ll Never Stand In Your Way” as a demo for Sun Records. Impressed with his sound, Sun Records head Sam Phillips calls Presley back to record more, and the rest is rock and roll history.

1958 – Danny & the Juniors bop to the top of Billboard’s Best Sellers in Stores chart with “At the Hop,” which holds at No. 1 for five weeks.

1968 – The Beatles commandeer the top spot on the Billboard album chart for eight weeks with “Magical Mystery Tour,” which contains such classics as “Hello, Goodbye,” “Strawberry Fields Forever,” “Penny Lane,” “All You Need is Love” and, of course, the title track.

1973 – “You’re So Vain,” by Carly Simon, begins a three-week reign over the Billboard singles chart. Through the years, speculation swirled about the subject of the song, with Simon eventually admitting that it refers to three men, only one of whom she named publicly: actor Warren Beatty.

1979 – The Bee Gees own the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Too Much Heaven.”

1990 – Phil Collins has the first No. 1 album of the 90s as “…But Seriously” claims the top spot on the Billboard 200. The album contains his Grammy-winning smash “Another Day in Paradise.”

1993 – Legendary jazz trumpeter and composer Dizzy Gillespie dies of cancer at the age of 75. Gillespie developed his own signature style called “bebop,” and worked with musical greats like Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald, Earl Hines, Charlie Parker and Duke Ellington.

2001 – Destiny’s Child is in the midst of an 11-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Independent Women Part I,” from the “Charlie’s Angels” movie soundtrack and the group’s third album, “Survivor.”

On This Day December 13

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Celebrity Birthdays

1925 – Emmy, Tony and Grammy-winning actor-comedian Dick Van Dyke (“Bye Bye Birdie,” “Mary Poppins,” “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” “Diagnosis: Murder,” “Night at the Museum”)

1929 – Oscar, Golden Globe, Emmy and Tony-winning actor Christopher Plummer (“The Sound of Music,” ” A Beautiful Mind,” “Nicholas Nickleby,” “The New World,” “Inside Man,” “Beginners”)

1948 – Rock musician Ted Nugent, best known for his 1977 hit “Cat Scratch Fever”

1957 – Golden Globe-winning actor Steve Buscemi (“Reservoir Dogs,” “Desperado,” “Con Air,” “Fargo,” “Armageddon,” “Boardwalk Empire”)

1967 – Oscar and Grammy-winning actor-comedian and musician Jamie Foxx, born Eric Marlon Bishop (“Ray,” “Django Unchained,” “Dreamgirls,” “Collateral,” “The Soloist”)

1989 – Grammy-winning pop superstar Taylor Swift

History Highlights

1957 – The Ford Motor Company produces the last two-seater Thunderbird. Beginning with the 1958 model year, the car becomes a four-seater, referred to as the “Square Bird.”

1972 – Apollo 17 astronauts Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt begin the third and final “extravehicular activity” (EVA) or “moonwalk” during NASA’s last manned mission to the moon.

1983 – The Detroit Pistons defeat the Denver Nuggets by a score of 186-184 in triple overtime, the highest scoring game in the history of the NBA.

2000 – A long and bitter U.S. presidential race finally comes to an end. After five weeks of legal wrangling over the vote count in Florida, Democrat Al Gore—then vice president—concedes to Republican Texas Governor George W. Bush after the Supreme Court rules that the Florida recount must stop.

2000 – Seven convicts escape from a maximum-security prison in South Texas, setting off a manhunt that lasts six weeks. The so-called ‘Texas Seven’ leave behind an ominous note that reads, “You haven’t heard the last of us yet.” A tip from someone that had seen the escapees profiled on TV’s “America’s Most Wanted” crime program leads to their capture.

2003 – Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is captured by U.S. military forces without as single shot being fired. Nine months after he and his family fled Baghdad, he is discovered hiding in an underground hole near his hometown of Tikrit. He stands trial and is executed in December 2006.

Musical Milestones

1969 – The Dutch band Shocking Blue hurtles onto the Billboard Hot 100 with “Venus,” which climbs to No. 1 in the U.S. and eight other countries in 1970. Bananarama’s 1986 cover of the song also becomes a chart-topper.

1975 – Silver Convention soars through its third and final week atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “Fly, Robin, Fly.”

1980 – Kenny Rogers holds the top spot on the Billboard pop chart with “Lady” — a song written by Lionel Richie.

1986 – “The Way It Is,” by Bruce Hornsby and the Range, hits No.1 on the singles chart.

1993 – Janet Jackson’s “Again” is in the middle of a two-week ride atop the singles chart. The song goes on to receive Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for Best Original Song.

On this Day July 6

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Celebrity Birthdays

1907 – Artist Frida Kahlo (d. 1954)

1921 – Actress and U.S. First Lady Nancy Reagan (d. 2016)

1925 – Rock and Roll pioneer Bill Haley (d. 1981)

1935 – The Dalai Lama, born Tenzin Gyatso, leader of Tibet and best-selling author

1945 – Actor Burt Ward, most remembered for playing Robin in the 1960s “Batman” TV series

1946 – Golden Globe-winning actor-director-producer Sylvester Stallone (“Rocky” and “Rambo” movie series, “Cliffhanger,” “Demolition Man,” “Judge Dredd,” “Cop Land,” “The Expendables”)

1946 – George W. Bush, 43rd U.S. president

1951 – Oscar-winning actor Geoffrey Rush (“Shine,” “The King’s Speech,” “Pirates of the Caribbean”)

1975 – Grammy-winning rapper-actor 50 Cent, born Curtis James Jackson III

1979 – Actor-comedian Kevin Hart (“Paper Soldiers,” “Think Like a Man,” “Grudge Match,” Ride Along,” “About Last Night,” “Get Hard,” “Real Husbands of Hollywood”)

History Highlights

1933 – The first Major League Baseball All-Star Game is played in Chicago’s Comiskey Park. The American League beats the National League by a score of 4-2.

1946 – FBI agents arrest Chicago gangster George “Bugs” Moran in Kentucky. During the Prohibition era, Moran was one of the biggest organized crime figures in America, and has been credited with popularizing the drive-by shooting.

1957 – Althea Gibson cracks the color barrier in professional tennis, defeating Darlene Hard 6-3, 6-2 to become the first African American to win Wimbledon. Gibson is honored with a ticker tape parade when she returns home to New York City.

1976 – Women are admitted to the U.S. Naval Academy for the first time.

1994 – “Forrest Gump” opens in U.S. theaters. It receives 13 Academy Award nominations and captures six Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Tom Hanks) and Best Director (Robert Zemeckis).

Musical Milestones

1957 – Beatles co-founders John Lennon and Paul McCartney meet for the first time as teenagers as Lennon’s band, The Quarrymen, gets set to perform at St. Peter’s Church in Liverpool, England.

1964 – The Beatles’ movie, “A Hard Day’s Night,” premieres at the London Pavilion with the Fab Four and 12,000 fans, including the Rolling Stones, in attendance. The film is widely regarded as the forefather of the music video and launched the career of director Richard Lester. It also garnered two Oscar nominations.

1968 – Herb Alpert holds the top spot on the singles chart with “This Guy’s in Love with You.” A nine-time Grammy-winning trumpeter, Alpert takes on additional duties singing lead vocals in the track, which remains at No. 1 for four weeks,

1971 – The world mourns the death of an entertainment giant, with the passing of legendary jazz trumpeter and singer Louis Armstrong (a.k.a. “Satchmo”) at the age of 69.

1974 – “Rock The Boat,” by The Hues Corporation, drops anchor at the top of the Billboard Hot 100.

1996 – “Tha Crossroads,” by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, wraps up eight weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100.

2002 – Nelly dominates the singles chart with “Hot in Herre,” which holds at No. 1 for seven weeks.

2013 – “Blurred Lines,” by Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell is in the midst of a 12-week reign over the Billboard Hot 100.

On this Day May 2

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Celebrity Birthdays

1903 – Internationally acclaimed pediatrician-author Dr. Benjamin Spock (“Baby and Child Care”) (d. 1998)

1907 – Actor-comedian Pinky Lee, born Pincus Leff, who hosted the children’s TV program “The Pinky Lee Show” in the early 1950s. (d. 1993)

1924 – Actor Theodore Bikel (“The Defiant Ones,” “The African Queen,” “Fiddler on the Roof”) (d. 2015)

1936 – Pop singer Engelbert Humperdinck (“Release Me,” “After the Lovin’”)

1946 – Pop singer Lesley Gore (“It’s My Party,” “You Don’t Own Me”), born Lesley Sue Goldstein (d. 2014)

1952 – Emmy and Tony-winning actress Christine Baranski (“Cybill,” “The Birdcage,” “Bowfinger,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “The Good Wife,” “Mamma Mia!” “Into the Woods, “Trolls,” “The Good Fight”)

1955 – Fashion designer Donatella Versace

1972 – Pro wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (“The Mummy Returns,” “Walking Tall,” “Tooth Fairy,” “The Fast and the Furious” franchise, “Pain and Gain,” “San Andreas,” “Baywatch”)

History Highlights

1918 – General Motors (GM), which goes on to become the world’s largest automotive firm, acquires Chevrolet Motor Company.

1933 – The modern legend of the Loch Ness Monster is born when the Scottish newspaper Inverness Courier reports the account of a local couple that claimed to have seen “an enormous animal rolling and plunging on the surface.”

1939 – Legendary New York Yankee Lou Gehrig ends his record-setting streak of 2,130 consecutive games played by benching himself.

1945 – The curtain comes down on Germany in the waning days of World War II, as Russia’s Red Army announces the capture of Berlin.

1952 – The Jet Age begins as the world’s first commercial jet airliner, the British-built de Havilland Comet, makes its 24-hour maiden flight from London, England to Johannesburg, South Africa. Despite the aircraft’s overall success and longevity, the first Comets suffered from structural problems and experienced a number of accidents through the mid-1950s.

1969 – The British ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2 departs Southampton on her maiden voyage to New York City.

2011 – The world’s most wanted terrorist, Osama bin Laden — mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks on America — is killed by U.S. forces during a raid on his compound hideout in Pakistan. After undergoing extensive training, U.S. Navy SEAL Team Six carried out the mission, codenamed Operation Neptune Spear.

Musical Milestones

1960 – Elvis Presley’s “Stuck on You” remains stuck on top of the singles chart for a second consecutive week. It will hold that spot for another two weeks.

1964 – “Can’t Buy Me Love,” by The Beatles, begins its fifth and final week as a No. 1 single.

1970 – The Jackson 5 wrap up two weeks at No. 1 on the pop chart with “ABC.” Two months before it became a chart-topper, the band performed the song on “American Bandstand.”

1981 – Sheena Easton lays claim to the top spot on the singles chart with “Morning Train (Nine to Five).”

1987 – “(I Just) Died in Your Arms,” by Cutting Crew, is No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1998 – The Minneapolis-based R&B trio, Next, is in the midst of a five-week domination of the Billboard pop chart with “Too Close.”

2003 – The Dixie Chicks appear naked on the cover of Entertainment Weekly, with slogans such “Traitors,” “Hero,” “Boycott,” “Saddam’s Angels” and “Proud Americans” across their bodies. The slogans represent the reactions the trio received following singer Natalie Maines’ anti-George W. Bush comments.

2009 – The Black Eyed Peas dominate the pop chart with “Boom Boom Pow.” The track is the band’s first No. 1, and it remains a chart-topper for 12 weeks.