On This Day March 11 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1903 – Bandleader and accordion player Lawrence Welk (“The Lawrence Welk Show”), known as the creator and king of so-called “champagne music” (d. 1992) 1931 – Media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who founded News Corporation and FOX Broadcasting 1950 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Bobby McFerrin, best known for his 1988 smash, “Don’t Worry Be Happy” 1963 – Actress Alex Kingston (“ER,” “Doctor Who,” “Arrow”) 1969 – Actor and singer-songwriter Terrence Howard (“Hustle & Flow,” “Get Rich or Die Tryin’,” “Crash,” “The Brave One,” “Iron Man,” “Lee Daniels’ The Butler,” “Empire”) 1971 – Comedic actor Johnny Knoxville of MTV’s “Jackass” series History Highlights 1888 – One of the worst blizzards in U.S. history strikes the Northeast, killing more than 400 people and dumping 55 inches of snow in some areas. “The Great White Hurricane,” as it comes to be known, paralyzes the East coast for days from the Chesapeake Bay to Maine. 1941 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Lend-Lease” program, which provides money and materials for U.S. allies in World War II, takes effect. 1985 – Mikhail Gorbachev becomes head of the Soviet Union following the death of Konstantin Chernenko. At 54, he is the youngest member of the ruling Politburo. 1989 – One of the first reality TV shows premieres on Fox Television. It’s “COPS,” which is shot documentary style as cameras follow police officers pursuing suspects and making arrests. 2011 – The most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Japan and resulting tsunami kill more than 18,000 people in Japan, triggering a meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Musical Milestones 1967 – “Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone,” by the Supremes, begins one week on top of the Billboard Hot 100 and becomes the Motown trio’s ninth No. 1 single. The track is from the “The Supremes Sing Holland–Dozier–Holland” album. 1972 – Harry Nilsson’s “Without You” begins its fourth and final week on top of the singles chart. The track garners Nilsson a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male. 1989 – Debbie Gibson conquers the Billboard Hot 100 for a second week with Lost in Your Eyes.” It remains at No. 1 for a total of three weeks. 1995 – “Take a Bow,” by Madonna, is in the midst of a seven-week ride atop the pop chart. The track is from her “Bedtime Stories” album. 1997 – Former Beatle Paul McCartney is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II during a Buckingham Palace ceremony honoring his “services to music.” 2000 – Country music conquers the Billboard Hot 100 as Lonestar scores a No. 1 hit with “Amazed.” It’s the last country song to do so until Taylor Swift’s “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” rockets to No. 1 on September 1, 2012. 2006 – “You’re Beautiful,” by British singer-songwriter James Blunt reaches the top of the pop chart and holds there for a week. READ MORE
On This Day November 19 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1933 – Award-winning TV and radio talk show host Larry King, born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger 1936 – Retired Emmy-winning TV talk show host and comedian Dick Cavett, who tackled controversial topics and featured countless celebrities over the years on “The Dick Cavett Show” 1938 – Media mogul Ted Turner, born Robert Edward Turner III, who founded Cable News Network (CNN) and Turner Broadcasting (TBS) 1942 – Fashion designer Calvin Klein 1961 – Actress-producer Meg Ryan, born Margaret Hyra (“Top Gun,” “When Harry Met Sally…,” “Sleepless in Seattle,” “French Kiss,” “Addicted to Love,” “You’ve Got Mail,” “City of Angels,” “Proof of Life,” “Kate & Leopold”) 1962 – Oscar-winning actress-producer-director Jodie Foster (“Taxi Driver,” “The Accused,” “Silence of the Lambs,” “Contact,” “Anna and the King,” “Panic Room,” “Flightplan,” “Elysium”) History Highlights 1863 – During the dedication of a military cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln delivers one of the most memorable speeches in American history: the Gettysburg Address. 1954 – The first automatic toll machine in the United States goes into service along the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey, charging motorists 25 cents to pass. 1959 – It’s the end of the road for the Edsel, as Ford Motor Company terminates production of an automobile line that proved to be a marketing disaster. 1964 – Something other than bread pops in and out of the toaster, as Kellogg’s introduces the Pop-Tart in four flavors: strawberry, blueberry, apple currant and brown sugar-cinnamon. 1969 – Apollo 12 becomes the second manned space mission to land on the moon. The crew touches down within walking distance of the Surveyor III spacecraft, which landed in April 1967. The astronauts bring some Surveyor III instruments back to Earth to examine the effects of long-term exposure to the lunar environment. 1975 – “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” opens in theaters, starring Jack Nicholson as a patient in a 1960s psychiatric hospital, and Louise Fletcher as the head nurse. It becomes only the second movie of all time to clinch five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Nicholson). Musical Milestones 1955 – Carl Perkins records “Blue Suede Shoes” at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. Written by Perkins, it is considered one of the first rockabilly recordings. The single reaches No. 2 on the pop chart in 1956 and is later famously covered by Elvis Presley. 1966 – Reigning supreme on the singles chart: “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” by Diana Ross and The Supremes. The track hangs on to the No. 1 position for two weeks and is the Motown sensation’s seventh chart-topper. 1977 – Debby Boone is midway through a 10-week hold on No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “You Light Up My Life.” 1979 – Chuck Berry walks out of prison a free man after serving a four-month sentence for tax evasion. 1983 – Tina Turner has her first chart single in more than a decade with her cover of Al Green’s 1972 hit, “Let’s Stay Together.” The track, from her “Private Dancer” album, climbs as high as No. 26 on the Hot 100. 1994 – Boyz II Men have the No. 1 single with “I’ll Make Love to You.” 2003 – California authorities issue an arrest warrant for Michael Jackson on multiple counts of child molestation and ask the pop superstar to turn himself in and surrender his passport. 2005 – “Gold Digger,” by Kanye West featuring Jamie Foxx, begins its tenth and final week on top of the Billboard singles chart. READ MORE