On This Day February 15 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1564 – Scientist Galileo Galilei (generally referred to as Galileo), a major figure in the scientific revolution, who made pioneering discoveries that advanced the study of astronomy, physics and philosophy (d. 1642) 1820 – Suffragette reformer and women’s rights activist Susan B. Anthony (d. 1906) 1927 – Emmy-winning comedian Harvey Korman (“The Carol Burnett Show,” “Blazing Saddles”) (d. 2008) 1951 – Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Melissa Manchester (“Midnight Blue,” “Don’t Cry Out Loud, “Through the Eyes of Love”) 1951 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Jane Seymour (“Somewhere in Time,” “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman,” “Wedding Crashers”) 1954 – Cartoonist Matt Groening, best known for creating “The Simpsons” 1964 – Actor-comedian Chris Farley (“Saturday Night Live,” “Wayne’s World,” “Tommy Boy,” “Black Sheep,” “Beverly Hills Ninja”) (d. 1997) History Highlights 1879 – President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. 1898 – The battleship USS Maine explodes and sinks in Havana (Cuba) Harbor, killing more than 260 crewmen. The incident prompts the U.S. to declare war on Spain. 1903 – The first teddy bear, named for U.S. President Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt, goes on sale. Toy store owner and inventor Morris Michtom places two stuffed bears in his shop window after personally getting Roosevelt’s permission to name them after him. 1933 – Two weeks before his inauguration, President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt is fired upon by a would-be assassin after giving a speech in Miami. FDR is unharmed, but a bullet strikes Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak, who dies three weeks later. 1965 – A new red-and-white maple leaf design is adopted as the flag of Canada, replacing the old Canadian Red Ensign banner. 1978 – Leon Spinks takes the heavyweight boxing champion title away from defending champ Muhammad Ali in a split decision in Las Vegas. 1985 – “The Breakfast Club” opens in U.S. theaters. Directed by John Hughes and starring Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Anthony Michael Hall and Ally Sheedy — members of the so-called “Brat Pack” — it becomes an ’80s movie classic. In 2016, the film is selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by The Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” 1998 – Racing great Dale Earnhardt, Sr. wins his first Daytona 500, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) season opener and an event dubbed the “Super Bowl of stock car racing.” Musical Milestones 1964 – “Meet The Beatles!” reaches No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, becoming The Beatles’ first chart-topping album in the U.S. It holds the top spot for eleven weeks and sells more than four million copies by the end of that year. 1965 – The Beatles record “Another Girl” and “Ticket to Ride” for the “Help!” album. Earlier that day, John Lennon earns a personal ticket to ride by passing his driving test. 1965 – Entertainer Nat King Cole (“Unforgettable,” “Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer,” “The Christmas Song,” “Mona Lisa”), who earned early acclaim as a jazz pianist and became the first African American performer to host a network TV variety show, dies of lung cancer at the age of 45. 1969 – Sly & the Family Stone rule the Billboard singles chart with “Everyday People,” which remains at No. 1 for four weeks. 1975 – “You’re No Good,” by Linda Ronstadt, is the No. 1 single. 1984 – Beloved actress-singer Ethel Merman, best known for her rendition of “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” from the musical “Annie Get Your Gun,” dies at the age of 75. 1986 – “How Will I Know,” by Whitney Houston, becomes the most popular single in the U.S. for two weeks. 1992 – One-hit-wonder Right Said Fred is in the middle of three weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “I’m Too Sexy.” 2003 – “All I Have,” by Jennifer Lopez featuring LL Cool J, is midway through a four-week run at No. 1 on the singles chart. READ MORE
On This Day December 17 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1939 – Singer-songwriter (The Temptations co-founder) Eddie Kendricks (d. 1992) 1945 – Actor Ernie Hudson (“Ghostbusters,” “The Crow,” “Oz”) 1945 – Political commentator and MSNBC host Chris Matthews 1946 – Actor Eugene Levy (“A Mighty Wind, “Best in Show,” “Waiting for Guffman.” “American Pie,” “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonians,” “Cheaper by the Dozen 2”) 1953 – Actor Bill Pullman (“Spaceballs,” “While You Were Sleeping,” “Independence Day,” “The Sinner”) 1974 – Actor Giovanni Rabisi (“Saving Private Ryan,” “Public Enemies,” “The Boiler Room,” “Gone in 60 Seconds,” “Lost in Translation,” “Avatar,” “Ted”) 1975 – Actress-model Milla Jovovich (The Fifth Element,” “Dazed and Confused,” “The Three Musketeers,” the “Resident Evil” series) 1978 – International boxing champion and Philippines lawmaker Manny Pacquiao History Highlights 1903 – The Wright Brothers make their first powered and heavier-than-air flight in the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina and revolutionize aviation. 1944 – The U.S. approves ending the internment of Japanese-American “evacuees” from the West coast. 1963 – Congress passes the Clean Air Act, a sweeping set of laws designed to protect the environment from air pollution. During the six decades since its enactment, the measure led to huge reductions in airborne lead, sulfur compounds, chlorofluorocarbons as well as concentrations of carbon monoxide, particulate matter and ozone. 1975 – A federal jury in California sentences Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme to life in prison for her attempted assassination of President Gerald Ford. 1979 – Hollywood stuntman Stan Barrett tears across the dry lakebed at California’s Edwards Air Force Base in a rocket- and missile-powered car, becoming the first person to travel faster than the speed of sound on land. However, he does not set an official record. 1989 – Doh! FOX TV’s Emmy-winning animated comedy series “The Simpsons,” created by Matt Groening, premieres. The first episode is called “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire.” In 2018, the show surpasses the classic Western TV series “Gunsmoke’s” record 635 episodes to become America’s longest-running series. Musical Milestones 1966 – Two weeks after its first trip to No. 1, “Winchester Cathedral,” by The New Vaudeville Band, returns to the top of the Billboard Hot 100. 1969 – Singer Tiny Tim (real name Herbert Butros Khaury) marries his sweetheart, “Miss Vickie” (real name Victoria Budinger), on NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.” 1977 – Debby Boone’s “You Light Up My Life” begins its tenth and final week at No. 1 on the pop chart. 1983 – The Paul McCartney-Michael Jackson duet, “Say Say Say,” is in the midst of a six-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100. It is the last No. 1 song of 1983 and first of 1984. 1995 – The Mariah Carey-Boys II Men collaboration, “One Sweet Day,” is into an unprecedented 16-week ride atop the Billboard singles chart. 2005 – Chris Brown’s debut single, “Run It!”, featuring Juelz Santana, rules the Billboard Hot 100. READ MORE