On this Day August 11 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1921 – Author Alex Haley (“Roots,” “The Autobiography of Malcolm X”) (d. 1992) 1925 – TV talk show host Mike Douglas (“The Mike Douglas Show”) (d. 2006) 1949 – Singer-songwriter Eric Carmen (“All By Myself,” “Never Gonna Fall in Love Again,” “She Did It,” “Hungry Eyes,” “Make Me Lose Control,”) 1950 – Apple Computer co-founder Steve “Woz” Wozniak 1953 – Pro wrestling superstar Hulk Hogan, born Terry Gene Bollea 1954 – Singer-songwriter Joe Jackson (“Is She Really Going Out With Him,” “Steppin’ Out,” “Breaking Us In Two”) 1965 – Tony and Emmy-winning actress Viola Davis (“Doubt,” “The Help,” “How to Get Away With Murder”) 1983 – Actor Chris Hemsworth (“Thor,” “Snow White and the Huntsman,” “Red Dawn,” “Star Trek Into Darkness,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron”) History Highlights 1934 – The first inmates, classified as “most dangerous,” arrive at the federal prison on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay, joining a few dozen prisoners left over from the island’s days as a U.S. military prison. 1956 – Abstract artist Jackson Pollock dies in a drunk-driving car crash at the age of 44. 1965 – Following the arrest of a young black motorist, the predominately black Los Angeles neighborhood of Watts erupts in riots that last six days and leave more than 30 people dead. 1965 – The Ford Motor Company introduces the Bronco to compete with the Jeep CJ-5 and International Harvester Scout. The Bronco gets a massive publicity boost in June of 1994 when it was the subject of a low-speed LA police chase involving then-murder suspect O.J. Simpson. More than five decades later, an updated version of the workhorse is still going strong. 1973 – “American Graffiti” opens in theaters. The coming-of-age film set in 1962 California was co-written and directed by George Lucas and stars Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard and Harrison Ford. 1984 – During a sound check before a Saturday radio broadcast, President Ronald Reagan jokingly says, “My fellow Americans. I’m pleased to announce that I’ve signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.” Reagan was unaware, however, that the feed was live. The Soviets, who find no humor in the remark, put their military on high alert. 2014 – Oscar-winning actor-comedian Robin Williams (“Mork and Mindy,” “The World According to Garp,” “Moscow on the Hudson,” “Good Morning, Vietnam,” “Dead Poets Socity,” “Aladdin,” “Mrs. Doubtfire,” “The Birdcage,” “Good Will Hunting”) dies by suicide at the age of 63. Musical Milestones 1962 – Neil Sedaka has his first No. 1 single with “Breaking Up Is Hard to Do.” The song holds the top spot for two weeks. 1964 – The Beatles’ movie “Help!” premieres in New York. Directed by Richard Lester, it is the Fab Four’s second film. 1979 – ‘Disco Queen’ Donna Summer begins her fifth and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Bad Girls.” 1984 – Who ya gonna call? Ray Parker, Jr. starts a three-week run at No. 1 with the theme from the film “Ghostbusters.” 1999 – KISS arrives on Hollywood Boulevard to unveil their star on The Walk Of Fame. The band had released over 30 albums and sold over 80 million records worldwide. 2001 – Boy band NSYNC’s “Celebrity” album debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. READ MORE
On this Day May 22 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1813 – German classical music composer Richard Wagner (d. 1883) 1859 – Sherlock Holmes author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (d. 1930) 1907 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actor Sir Laurence Olivier (“Wuthering Heights,” “Hamlet,” “Marathon Man”) (d. 1989) 1938 – Golden Globe-winning actor Richard Benjamin (“Goodbye, Columbus,” “Westworld,” “The Sunshine Boys”) 1950 – Pop music lyricist and longtime Elton John collaborator Bernie Taupin 1959 – Singer-songwriter and former The Smiths frontman Morrissey, born Stephen Patrick Morrissey (“This Charming Man,” “How Soon Is Now?” “Bigmouth Strikes Again,” “Girlfriend in a Coma”) 1970 – British supermodel and actress Naomi Campbell 1979 – Model-turned-actress Maggie Q, born Margaret Quigley (“Mission: Impossible III,” “Live Free or Die Hard,” “Nikita,” “Divergent,” “Designated Survivor”) History Highlights 1947 – The Truman Doctrine takes effect, providing U.S. aid to Greece and Turkey in an effort to combat Communism after World War II. 1960 – The most powerful earthquake ever recorded (9.5 magnitude) strikes southern Chile, killing 2,000 people and leaving two million people homeless. 1966 – Bill Cosby, the first African American actor to star in a regular dramatic series, wins the Best Actor Emmy for his role in “I Spy.” 1967 – The educational children’s series “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” hosted by creator Fred Rogers donning his famous cardigan sweater, premieres on Pittsburgh public television station WQED. Less than a year later, it airs coast to coast on National Education Television (NET), which later becomes Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). 1980 – Gaming is revolutionized with the release of PAC-MAN. The iconic video game features a maze filled with dots and prizes and menacing bright-colored ghosts that players must gobble up or avoid in order to win. It becomes one of the highest-grossing video games of all time. 1992 – After nearly 30 years as the king of late-night television, Johnny Carson makes his final appearance as host of NBC’s “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.” Musical Milestones 1961 – “Mother-in-Law,” by New Orleans native Ernie K-Doe, is the No. 1 single. The song was written and produced by Allen Toussaint, who also played the piano solo. 1965 – The Beatles have a ticket to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard singles chart with “Ticket to Ride,” from the “Help!” soundtrack. 1971 – “Sticky Fingers,” by The Rolling Stones, begins a four-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, spawning the hits “Brown Sugar” and “Wild Horses.” The iconic album features a cover photo of tight-fitting jeans with an actual working zipper, conceived by celebrated pop artist Andy Warhol. And the sleeve features the first use of the now-legendary “tongue and lips” logo designed by John Pasche. 1976 – “Silly Love Songs,” by Wings featuring Paul McCartney, begins a five-week run as the hottest single in the U.S. 1982 – The Paul McCartney-Stevie Wonder duet, “Ebony and Ivory,” is in its second of seven weeks as a chart-topper 1999 – Grammy-winning pop vocalist Ricky Martin is midway through a five-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Livin’ La Vida Loca.” 2004 – Usher sears his way into the top of the pop chart with “Burn,” which stays at No. 1 for eight weeks. READ MORE