On This Day December 28 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1856 – 28th U.S. President Woodrow Wilson (d. 1924) 1922 – Legendary Marvel Comics writer, editor and publisher Stan Lee, who co-created such iconic characters as Spider-Man, the X-Men, Thor, Iron Man, Black Panther and the Fantastic Four (d. 2018) 1932 – Actress Nichelle Nichols, best known as Lieutenant Uhura from the “Star Trek” TV series and movies (d. 2022) 1934 – Actress Dame Maggie Smith, who plays Professor McGonagall in the “Harry Potter” movie series 1954 – Oscar, Golden Globe and Tony-winning actor-director-producer Denzel Washington (“St. Elsewhere,” “Glory,” “Malcolm X,” “Training Day,” “Antwone Fisher,” “American Gangster,” “Unstoppable,” “Flight,” “The Equalizer,” “The Magnificent Seven,” “Fences”) 1973 – Emmy-winning actor-comedian-writer-TV host Seth Meyers (“Saturday Night Live,” “Late Night with Seth Meyers”) 1978 – Grammy, Oscar and Golden Globe-winning singer-songwriter and actor John Legend (“Ordinary People,” “All of Me,” “Glory”) History Highlights 1895 – The world’s first commercial movie screening takes place at the Salon Indien of the Grand Cafe in Paris. Guests pay one franc to watch 10 short films produced by siblings Louis and Auguste Lumiere, who developed a camera-projector called the Cinematographe. 1938 – Silent-film star Florence Lawrence commits suicide in Beverly Hills at the age of 52. Though best known for roles in nearly 250 films, Lawrence also invented the first “auto signaling arm,” a mechanical turn signal, along with the first mechanical brake signal. However, because she never patented them, she never received credit for or profit from either one. 1945 – Congress officially recognizes the Pledge of Allegiance. The words “under God” were added in 1954 in response to the anti-Communist (and thus anti-atheist) opinion sweeping the U.S. during the Cold War. 1958 – Known as “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” the Baltimore Colts defeat the New York Giants at New York’s Yankee Stadium in the first National Football League (NFL) sudden death overtime playoff game 1981 – The first American test-tube baby, Elizabeth Jordan Carr, is born in Norfolk, Virginia. Musical Milestones 1959 – “Why,” by teen idol Frankie Avalon, becomes the last No. 1 single of the 1950s. It holds the top spot for a week. 1968 – The Beatles land on top of the Billboard album chart with their self-titled “The Beatles,” better known as “The White Album” — produced while the band was falling apart. It becomes their 12th chart-topping album. 1968 – Marvin Gaye’s “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” is in the midst of a seven-week ride atop the Billboard Hot 100. The track is the Motown legend’s first No. 1 hit and the label’s best-selling single of the 60s. 1974 – Helen Reddy dominates the Billboard Hot 100 with “Angie Baby,” one of her best-selling singles. The track was written by Alan O’Day, most recognized for his 1977 smash “Undercover Angel.” 1983 – Dennis Wilson, the only real surfer in the band The Beach Boys, drowns at the age of 39 after a day of drinking and diving off Marina del Ray, California. 1985 – “Say You, Say Me,” by Lionel Richie, is midway through a four-week ride on top of the Billboard Hot 100. 1996 – Toni Braxton dominates the Billboard Hot 100 with “Un-Break My Heart,” which remains a No. 1 single for 11 weeks. 2002 – Eminem rolls into an eighth week on top of the singles chart with “Lose Yourself,” which becomes the last No. 1 hit of 2002 and the first of 2003. It remains a chart-topper for a total of 12 weeks. READ MORE
On This Day September 15 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1254 – Venetian merchant and explorer Marco Polo (d. 1324) 1890 – Mystery author and playwright Agatha Christie (d. 1976) 1907 – Actress Fay Wray, most remembered for playing the lead in the original “King Kong” movie (d. 2004) 1922 – Jackie Cooper, the first child actor to be nominated for an Oscar (“Our Gang,” “Little rascals,” “The Champ’) (d. 2011) 1946 – Oscar-winning screenwriter-director Oliver Stone (“Platoon,” “Scarface,” “Born on the Fourth of July,” “JFK,” “Natural Born Killers”) 1946 – Oscar-winning actor Tommy Lee Jones (“Coal Miner’s Daughter,” “Men in Black,” “The Fugitive,” “No Country for Old Men,” “Lincoln,” “Jason Bourne”) 1977 – Actor Tom Hardy (“Black Hawk Down,” “Star Trek: Nemesis,” “Inception,” “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Mad Max: Fury Road,” “Dunkirk,” “Venom”) 1984 – Prince Harry of Wales History Highlights 1916 – The tank makes its debut as a battlefield weapon, attacking German troops as part of a British assault near Bois d’Elville, or Delville Wood, on the Western Front, during the Battle of the Somme in World War I. 1942 – Three Japanese torpedoes slam into the American aircraft carrier USS Wasp off Guadalcanal in the South Pacific during World War II. The attack claims the lives of nearly 200 of the ship’s 2,000 crewmen. The wreckage of the Wasp was discovered at the bottom of the Coral Sea in January 2019. 1954 – The iconic scene of Marilyn Monroe laughing as her skirt is blown up by the blast of air from a Manhattan subway vent is shot during the filming of “The Seven Year Itch,” directed by Billy Wilder. 1959 – Nikita Khrushchev becomes the first Soviet leader to visit the United States. During the next two weeks, Khrushchev’s visit dominates the headlines and provides some dramatic and humorous moments in the history of the Cold War. 1963 – Four young black girls are killed in a bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, that investigators determine to be a racially motivated terrorist attack. The bombing, which shocks the nation, is Birmingham’s third in 11 days following a federal order to integrate the Alabama schools. 1978 – Muhammad Ali defeats Leon Spinks to win the world heavyweight boxing title for the third time in his career, becoming the first fighter ever to do so. 1981 – The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approves Sandra Day O’Connor as the first female Supreme Court justice. 1982 – Gannett publishes the first edition of a new national daily newspaper called USA Today. 2008 – The venerable Wall Street brokerage firm Lehman Brothers seeks Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, becoming the largest victim of the subprime mortgage crisis that would devastate financial markets and contribute to the biggest economic downturn since the Great Depression. Musical Milestones 1956 – Elvis Presley is king of the pop chart with “Don’t Be Cruel,” which becomes his biggest-selling single and, in 2002, is inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. The B-side of the disc contains “Hound Dog,” which climbs to No. 2 a few weeks later. 1962 – “Sherry,” by The Four Seasons, is the No. 1 single and remains on top of the pop chart for five weeks. 1965 – Ford Motor Company is the first automaker to introduce factory-installed 8-track tape players in a car — the 1966 Mustang and Thunderbird — a year before 8-track equipment is available for home use. 1973 – Originally a Top-10 country hit for Tanya Tucker, Helen Reddy takes “Delta Dawn” to No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart. 1983 – Huey Lewis and the News release “Sports,” which goes on to top the Billboard album chart the following summer and spawns four Top-10 hits, including “The Heart of Rock & Roll” and “I Want a New Drug.” 1984 – Tina Turner’s “What’s Love Got to Do with It” begins its third and final week as a No. 1 single. The track goes on to capture Song of the Year and Record of the Year Grammys. 1990 – “Release Me,” by Wilson Phillips, claims the top spot on the singles chart and holds there for two weeks. 2001 – “I’m Real,” by Jennifer Lopez featuring Ja Rule, is No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. READ MORE