On This Day April 26 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1933 – Emmy, Tony and Golden Globe-winning comedian-actress Carol Burnett 1936 – Guitarist and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Duane Eddy 1958 – Actor Giancarlo Esposito (“Do The Right Thing,” “School Days,” “The Usual Suspects,” “Malcolm X,” “Breaking Bad”) 1963 – Martial artist-actor Jet Li (“The War Lords,” “Lethal Weapon 4,” “Romeo Must Die,” “Kiss of the Dragon,” “The Forbidden Kingdom”) 1965 – Actor-comedian Kevin James (“Everybody Loves Raymond,” “The King of Queens,” “Paul Blart: Mall Cop,” “Grown Ups,” “Zookeeper,” “Pixels”) 1980 – Actor Channing Tatum (“Coach Carter,” “21 Jump Street,” “22 Jump Street,” “She’s the Man,” “The Dilemma,” “White House Down,” “Foxcatcher,” “The Hateful Eight,” “Hail, Caesar!”, “Smallfoot”) History Highlights 1865 – Presidential assassin John Wilkes Booth is killed by Union soldiers that track him to a Virginia farm 12 days after Booth fatally shot Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C. 1954 – More than 1.8 million American children (“Polio Pioneers”) participate in the Salk polio vaccine field trials. Dr. Jonas Salk developed the vaccine in an effort to wipe out polio — an infectious disease occurring primarily in children that can result in paralysis. A year later, researchers declare that the vaccine is safe and effective, and it becomes a standard part of childhood immunizations across the U.S. 1984 – President Ronald Reagan visits China — the first such mission by a U.S. president since the historic Nixon trip in 1972. 1986 – An explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine sets off fires that release deadly radioactive material into the air, becoming the world’s worst nuclear disaster. 1986 – Almost a decade after meeting at a celebrity tennis tournament, TV news reporter Maria Shriver weds movie actor and former bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger. The marriage lasts 25 years. 1989 – An American entertainment icon, comedian Lucille Ball (“I Love Lucy”) dies at the age of 78. 1994 – South Africa’s 18 million blacks vote in multi-party elections for the first time ever and anti-Apartheid crusader Nelson Mandela is elected president. Musical Milestones 1969 – The Edwin Hawkins Singers hit the singles chart with “Oh Happy Day,” which eventually soars to No. 4 and million-selling status. It becomes the first gospel track to cross over to the pop chart. 1975 – B.J. Thomas owns the hottest single in America with “(Hey Won’t You Play), Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song.” 1980 – Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” begins its 15th and final week on top of the Billboard album chart. It becomes the best-selling album of 1980. 1986 – “Kiss,” by Prince and The Revolution, holds at No. 1 on the singles chart for a second week. The song clinches Prince a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. 1988 – A jury in White Plains, New York finds Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger not guilty of copyright infringement. Reggae singer Patrick Alley had sued Jagger for $7 million over the song “Just Another Night,” claiming the chorus’s lyrics were similar to his version. Jagger provided jurors with a rare glimpse into his work habits by playing homemade and studio tapes demonstrating the development of his song. 1997 – “Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down,” by Puff Daddy featuring Mase, wraps up a six-week run as a Billboard chart-topper. 2008 – Leona Lewis kicks off a week at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with “Bleeding Love.” 2013 – George Jones, known as “the greatest voice in country music,” dies in Nashville at the age of 81. READ MORE
On This Day March 14 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1879 – Physicist Albert Einstein, who developed the theory of relativity (d. 1955) 1933 – Oscar-winning actor Sir Michael Caine (“Deathtrap,” “Educating Rita,” “Hannah and Her Sisters,” “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,” “The Cider House Rules,” the “Dark Knight” trilogy, “Inception,” “Interstellar”) 1933 – Grammy-winning composer-producer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Quincy Jones 1948 – Emmy and Tony-winning comedian-actor Billy Crystal (“The Princess Bride,” “When Harry Met Sally…,” “City Slickers,” “Analyze This,” “Monsters, Inc.”) 1988 – NBA superstar and 2015/2016 MVP Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors 1997 – Olympic gold medal gymnast Simone Biles, the most decorated American gymnast in history; also the first American woman to win seven national all-around titles and first female gymnast to earn three consecutive World All-Around titles. History Highlights 1879 – Albert Einstein, the physicist best known for his theory of relativity and who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1921, is born at Ulm, in Württemberg, Germany. 1950 – The FBI introduces the “Ten Most-Wanted Fugitives” list to help track down dangerous criminals who are at large. The first person placed on the list is Thomas James Holden, wanted for the murder of his wife, her brother and her stepbrother. 1964 – A Dallas jury finds Jack Ruby guilty of murder in the death of JFK assassin Lee Harvey Oswald. Ruby is sentenced to death. 1990 – Running unopposed, Mikhail Gorbachev is elected president of the Soviet Union. While the election was a victory, it also revealed serious weaknesses in Gorbachev’s power base that eventually lead to the collapse of his presidency in December 1991. 1991 – British authorities release the so-called “Birmingham Six” — six Irish men who had been sent to prison 16 years earlier for the 1974 terrorist bombings of two Birmingham, England pubs. Musical Milestones 1958 – The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) awards its first official Gold Record to Perry Como for his last No. 1 single — the smash “Catch A Falling Star.” 1964 – The Beatles begin their seventh and final week as Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers with “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” The following week, the Fab Four are back at No. 1 with “She Loves You.” 1970 – Simon & Garfunkel are in the midst of a six-week domination of the singles chart with “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” 1981 – Dolly Parton takes the theme song from the movie “9 to 5” to the top of the singles chart for a second time. The track spent a week at No. 1 beginning on February 21. 1983 – Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora and Alec John Such form the rock band Bon Jovi in Sayreville, New Jersey. 1987 – “Jacob’s Ladder,” by Huey Lewis and the News, is the No. 1 single. It’s among five Top 10 singles to come off the band’s “Fore!” album. 1998 – Will Smith kicks off a three-week run atop the singles chart with “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It.” The song is based around a sample of “He’s the Greatest Dancer” by Sister Sledge. READ MORE