NASA – Time Rewind

On This Day February 29

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On This Day April 17

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Celebrity Birthdays

1837 – Financier J. P. Morgan (d. 1913)

1918 – Actor William Holden (“Stalag 17,” “Sunset Boulevard,” “The Bridge on the River Kwai,” “Network”) (d. 1981)

1923 – Network television anchor-reporter Harry Reasoner (d. 1991)

1959 – Actor Sean Bean (“The Field,” “Patriot Games,” “Ronin,” “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, “GoldenEye,” “National Treasure,” “Flightplan,” “The Island,” “The Martian”)

1972 – Golden Globe-winning actress Jennifer Garner (“Alias,” “13 Going on 30,” “Juno,” “The Odd Life of Timothy Green,” “Dallas Buyers Club,” “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day,” “Miracles from Heaven,” “Daredevil,” “Love, Simon”)

1974 – Singer-actress and fashion designer Victoria Beckham, known as Posh Spice when she performed with The Spice Girls

1985 – Actress Rooney Mara (“The Social Network,” “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” ” Side Effects,” “Carol”)

History Highlights

1961 – The Bay of Pigs Invasion sees 1,400 CIA-trained and financed Cuban exiles invade Cuba in a failed attempt to overthrow dictator Fidel Castro.

1964 – Jerrie Mock achieves what Amelia Earhart could not, becoming the first woman pilot to fly solo around the world. It takes her 29.5 days to achieve the historic feat. Later, Mock is honored with the Gold Medal Award from President Lyndon Johnson on behalf of what is now the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

1964 – The Ford Mustang is officially unveiled at the World’s Fair in New York. That same day, the the so-called “pony car” debuts in Ford showrooms across the U.S. with buyers immediately snapping up almost 22,000 vehicles. Price tag for the base model is $2,372, half the cost of a Corvette.

1964 – Shea Stadium opens as the new home of the New York Mets in Flushing Queens, just a short distance from the World’s Fair.

1969 – A jury convicts Sirhan Sirhan of first degree murder for the assassination of Senator Robert Kennedy a year earlier. Sirhan continues to serve a life sentence at a federal prison in California.

1970 – The Apollo 13 astronauts return safely to earth after an oxygen tank explosion robs them of a moon landing and nearly costs them their lives.

Musical Milestones

1965 – Freddie and the Dreamers wrap up two weeks as chart-toppers with “I’m Telling You Now.”

1970 – At the invitation of President Richard Nixon, country music legend Johnny Cash performs for an invited audience in the East Room of the White House. One of the first songs that Cash plays is a track that Nixon personally requested: “A Boy Named Sue.”

1971 – ”Joy to the World” launches Three Dog Night on a six-week ride atop the singles chart.

1973 – Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon,” which delivers classics like “Money” and “Us and Them,” begins a week at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, but remains on the chart for 15 years — the longest stretch of any rock album.

1982 – Vangelis rules the album chart with the soundtrack to “Chariots Of Fire,” for which he later wins a Best Original Score Oscar.

1998 – Linda McCartney dies at the age of 56 following a long battle with cancer. She was married to Paul McCartney for nearly 30 years, was a member of his band Wings, and was an accomplished photographer and animal rights advocate.

1999 – “No Scrubs” becomes TLC’s third No. 1 single and holds the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks. The track also garners the girl group a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year.

2004 – “Yeah,” by Usher featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris, is in the middle of a 12-week domination of the single chart.

On This Day April 19

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Celebrity Birthdays

1903 – Federal Agent Eliot Ness, head of “The Untouchables,” which helped bring down gangster Al Capone (d. 1957)

1933 – Actress-singer Jayne Mansfield (“The Girl Can’t Help It,” “Too Hot to Handle,” “Kiss Them for Me”) (d. 1967)

1935 – Actor-comedian-musician-composer Dudley Moore (“Bedazzled,” “10,” “Arthur”) (d. 2002)

1946 – Actor Tim Curry (“The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” “It,” “The Three Musketeers,” “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York”)

1968 – Actress Ashley Judd (“Kiss the Girls,” “High Crimes,” “Divergent,” “Dolphin Tale,” “Dolphin Tale 2,” “Missing”)

1978 – Golden Globe-winning actor James Franco (“Freaks and Geeks,” “James Dean,” “Pineapple Express,” the “Spider-Man” trilogy, “127 Hours,” “11.22.63,” “Sausage Party”,”The Disaster Artist”)

1979 – Golden Globe-winning actress Kate Hudson (“Almost Famous,” You, Me and Dupree,” “Fool’s Gold,” “Bride Wars,” “Deepwater Horizon”)

History Highlights

1775 – The “shot heard round the world” is fired in Lexington, Massachusetts, triggering the American Revolution.

1897 – The first Boston Marathon is run, and John McDermott of New York emerges from a 15-person starter field as the winner of the all-male event with a completion time of 2:55:10. In 1924, the course is extended from 24.5 miles to 26 miles, 385 yards to conform to the Olympic standard.

1943 – Nazi forces attempting to clear out the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw, Poland are met by gunfire from Jewish resistance fighters, marking the beginning of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

1971 – The Soviet Union launches Salyut, the first manned orbiting space lab that goes on to be replaced by Mir in 1986.

1993 – A 51-day standoff between federal agents and Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas comes to a fiery end. The cult compound burns to the ground and 80 Davidians, including their leader, David Koresh and 22 children, are dead.

1995 – A massive explosion at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma kills 168 people and injures hundreds more. The bomb, contained in a rented truck parked outside the building, goes off at 9:02 a.m. as people prepare for the workday.

Musical Milestones

1969 – The 5th Dimension have the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures).”

1975 – Elton John rules the pop chart with “Philadelphia Freedom.” The track is sometimes mistaken as a patriotic song about America, with the bicentennial approaching. It is actually a tribute to John’s close friend, tennis legend Billie Jean King, who, at the time, coached a tennis team called the Philadelphia Freedoms.

1980 – For the first time ever, the top five artists on the country music chart are all female: Crystal Gayle is No. 1, with Dottie West, Debby Boone, Emmylou Harris and Tammy Wynette making up the rest of the top five.

1980 – “Call Me” by Blondie claims the top spot on the singles chart and holds there for six weeks. The track is from the band’s “Autoamerican” album and is featured in the movie “American Gigolo,” starring Richard Gere.

1986 – “Kiss,” by Prince and The Revolution from the “Parade” album (the “Under the Cherry Moon” soundtrack) is the No. 1 single. Following Prince’s April 2016 death, the song re-charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 28, and jumped to No. 23 a week later.

1997 – Michael Jackson attends the unveiling of a wax statue of himself at the Grevin Museum of Wax in Paris. The King of Pop had provided one of his own outfits to dress the figure.

2008 – Mariah Carey begins her second and final week at No. 1 on the pop chart with “Touch My Body.”

On This Day April 25

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Celebrity Birthdays

1874 – Nobel Prize-winning radio inventor Guglielmo Marconi (d. 1937)

1908 – Pioneering broadcast journalist and longtime CBS correspondent Edward R. Murrow (d. 1965)

1917 – Legendary Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald, affectionately known as “The First Lady of Song” (d. 1996)

1932 – Basketball Hall of Famer and former Harlem Globetrotter Meadowlark Lemon, born Meadow Lemon III (d. 2015)

1940 – Oscar, Tony and Emmy-winning actor Al Pacino (“The Godfather” movie series, “Serpico,” “Dog Day Afternoon,” ” …And Justice for All,” “Scarface,” “Scent of a Woman,” “Carlito’s Way,” “The Devil’s Advocate,” “The Insider,” “Oceans Thrteen,” “Danny Collins,” “The Irishman,” “Hunters”)

1946 – Actress Talia Shire, best known for her roles as Connie Corleone in “The Godfather” films and Adrian Balboa in the “Rocky” series

1964 – Emmy-winning actor-producer-comedian Hank Azaria (“The Simpsons,” “The Birdcage,” “Mystery Men,” “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” “The Smurfs,” “Brockmire”)

1969 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actress Renée Zellweger (“Jerry McGuire,” “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” “Me Myself and Irene,” “Chicago,” “Cold Mountain,” “Cinderella Man”)

History Highlights

1901 – New York becomes the first state to require license plates on cars. Owners had to display their initials on the back of the vehicle and the letters had to be at least three inches tall. Since the state did not produce license plates, owners were forced to make their own, and they did so using metal, leather or wood — or they painted their initials directly onto the vehicle. In 1903, Massachusetts became the first state to produce license plates.

1945 – A milestone in the approaching end of World War II in Europe is achieved when U.S. and Russian troops meet in Torgau along the River Elbe, cutting Nazi Germany in two.

1980 – President Jimmy Carter informs the nation that eight U.S. servicemen were killed in the collision of two military aircraft to be used to rescue 52 Americans held hostage in Iran. Those hostages are finally freed the following January, on the day Ronald Reagan is inaugurated president.

1983 – Soviet leader Yuri Andropov personally invites American fifth-grader Samantha Smith of Maine to visit his country after reading her letter in which she expressed fears about nuclear war. She makes the trip that summer and becomes an honorary ambassador for peace at a time when U.S.-Soviet relations were strained during the Cold War. Sadly, Smith dies in a plane crash two years later.

1990 – The crew of Space Shuttle Discovery places the Hubble Space Telescope, a long-term space-based observatory, into a low orbit around Earth. Hubble — named after astronomer Edwin Hubble — continues to provide astronomers with an unparalleled view of the solar system, the galaxy and the universe.

1995 – Oscar-winning entertainer Ginger Rogers, best known for her films with dance partner Fred Astaire, dies at the age of 83.

Musical Milestones

1956 – Rock and Roll King Elvis Presley signs a seven-year movie contract with Paramount Pictures.

1960 – Elvis Presley gets stuck on top of the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks with “Stuck On You.” It’s his first hit single following his two-year stint in the U.S. Army.

1970 – The Jackson 5 give The Beatles’ “Let It Be” the boot and claim the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks with “ABC.”

1981 – Daryl Hall and John Oates begin their third and final week as chart-toppers with “Kiss On My List.”

1987 – U2 begin a nine-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart with “The Joshua Tree,” which packs chart-topping tracks including “With or Without You,” “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” and “Where the Streets Have No Name.” It goes on to capture Grammys for Album of the Year and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

1990 – The Fender Stratocaster that rock guitar legend Jimi Hendrix played at the Woodstock festival is auctioned off for a record $330,000. His two-hour set at the 1969 rock festival included a rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner.”

1992 – “Jump,” by hip hop duo Kris Kross, grabs the top spot on the singles chart and remains there for eight weeks.

1998 – Next has the No. 1 single with “Too Close.” The track remains on top of the pop chart for five weeks.

2007 – Leukemia claims the life of 69-year-old Bobby “Boris” Pickett, best known for his hit novelty song “Monster Mash,” which still gets radio airplay every Halloween.

On This Day April 13

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Celebrity Birthdays

1743 – Third U.S. president and Declaration of Independence author Thomas Jefferson (d. 1826)

1923 – Emmy-winning actor-comedian Don Adams, best known for his role as secret agent Maxwell Smart in the NBC sitcom “Get Smart” (d. 2005)

1939 – Actor Paul Sorvino (“Goodfellas,” “Law & Order,” “The Firm”)

1946 – Grammy-winning soul singer-songwriter, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and minister Al Green (“Let’s Stay Together,” “I’m Still In Love With You”)

1950 – Golden Globe-winning actor Ron Perlman (“Beauty and the Beast,” “Hellboy,” “Sons of Anarchy”)

1963 – Russian chess Grandmaster and former World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov

1970 – Golden Globe-winning actor Ricky Schroder (“The Champ,” “Silver Spoons,” “Lonesome Dove,” “NYPD Blue”)

History Highlights

1928 – German pilot Hermann Köhl, Irish aviator James Fitzmaurice and Baron Ehrenfried Günther Freiherr von Hünefeld complete the first Europe to North America transatlantic flight, taking off from Ireland and landing safely on a small Canadian island.

1964 – Sidney Poitier becomes the first African American to win the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in “Lilies of the Field.”

1970 – The phrase “Houston, we’ve had a problem” is immortalized in a radio transmission from the crew of Apollo 13 after an explosion in an oxygen tank forces cancellation of a planned moon landing. NASA’s priority quickly becomes finding a way to get the astronauts safely home as they begin losing precious oxygen and power.

1972 – The first strike in the history of Major League Baseball ends 13 days after players walk off the field.

1976 – The Federal Reserve begins issuing $2 bicentennial notes.

1997 – Tiger Woods wins the Masters Tournament for the first time. At 21, he becomes the youngest man to win the title, and the first African American man to ever win a major. Woods had only turned pro eight months earlier.

Musical Milestones

1957 – Elvis Presley’s “All Shook Up” tops what Billboard then called the Best Sellers in Stores chart — later becoming the Hot 100. The single remains at No. 1 for eight weeks.

1958 – A 13-year-old British boy named Laurie London turns an American gospel song into commercial success, as “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” begins four weeks on top of the U.S. singles chart. However, it is to be London’s only hit and charting single. So, it can be said that in the pre-Beatles era, this was the most successful record by a British male singer in the U.S.

1964 – The Beatles shoot chase scenes for “A Hard Day’s Night” with actors dressed as policemen in the Notting Hill Gate area of London. That evening, the Fab Four record the movie’s title track at Abbey Road Studios.

1968 – Bobby Goldsboro’s “Honey” begins a five-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1974 – “Bennie and the Jets,” from Elton John’s “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” album, kicks off a week on top of the Billboard Hot 100.

1985 – The charity single “We Are the World,” featuring dozens of famous pop artists collaborating for African famine relief, begins four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

2000 – Metallica files a copyright infringement lawsuit against the online music file sharing company Napster for allowing the illegal swapping of the band’s music. The case is the first in an ongoing love-hate relationship between the music industry and the Internet.

On This Day April 9

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Celebrity Birthdays

1898 – Stage actor, singer and civil rights crusader Paul Robeson (d. 1976)

1926 – Playboy magazine founder and publisher Hugh Hefner (d. 2017)

1928 – Singer-songwriter, satirist, pianist, and mathematician Tom Lehrer

1954 – Actor Dennis Quaid (“Breaking Away,” “The Right Stuff,” “Enemy Mine,” “Innerspace,” “Postcards From the Edge,” “The Parent Trap,” “Frequency,” “The Day After Tomorrow,” “In Good Company,” “A Dog’s Purpose”)

1966 – Emmy, Tony and Grammy-winning actress Cynthia Nixon, best known as Miranda Hobbes in “Sex and the City”

1990 – Actress Kristen Stewart (“Panic Room,” “Zathura,” “The Twilight Saga,” “Snow White and the Huntsman”)

1998 – Actress Elle Fanning (“I Am Sam,” “Phoebe in Wonderland,” “Super 8,” “We Bought a Zoo,” “Low Down,” “Maleficent,” “Trumbo”)

History Highlights

1865 – Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox, Virginia, ending the American Civil War.

1959 – Six months after its creation, NASA holds a news conference to introduce the U.S. Air Force pilots that were to become America’s first astronauts – the Mercury Seven: Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, John Glenn, Gus Grissom, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard and Deke Slayton.

1962 – “West Side Story” sweeps the Academy Awards, winning 10 Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor and Actress and Best Director.

1965 – The Houston Astrodome, the world’s first domed stadium and so-called “Eighth Wonder of the World,” opens to the public with a sold-out exhibition game between the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees. President Lyndon B. Johnson is in attendance as the Astros prevail 2-1.

1972 – Jane Fonda wins the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role as a call girl who witnesses a crime in “Klute,” co-starring Donald Sutherland.

Musical Milestones

1966 – “(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration,” by The Righteous Brothers, launches a three-week run at No. 1 on the singles chart.

1969 – Columbia Records releases Bob Dylan’s “Nashville Skyline” album, showcasing Dylan’s foray into country music. It spawns the hit “Lay Lady Lay,” which climbs as high as No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1977 – “Dancing Queen,” by ABBA, becomes the Swedish band’s first and only No. 1 single in the U.S. The song holds the top spot for a week.

1978 – Donna Summer’s “Last Dance,” from the “Thank God It’s Friday” soundtrack, captures an Oscar for Best Original Song at the 51st annual Academy Awards.

1988 – Billy Ocean kicks off two weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car.”

1994 – “Bump n’ Grind,” by R. Kelly, begins four weeks as a Billboard singles chart-topper.

On This Day March 25

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Celebrity Birthdays

1881 – Classical composer Béla Bartók (d. 1945)

1918 – Longtime ABC sportscaster Howard Cosell, who was part of the original “Monday Night Football” announcer team (d. 1995)

1928 – Retired NASA astronaut (Apollo 8/Apollo 13) Jim Lovell

1934 – Feminist crusader and Ms. magazine founder-publisher Gloria Steinem

1942 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and undisputed “Queen of Soul,” Aretha Franklin (d. 2018)

1947 – Grammy, Oscar, Tony and Golden Globe-winning pop superstar Elton John, born Reginald Dwight

1965 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Sarah Jessica Parker (“Hocus Pocus,” “Ed Wood,” “Miami Rhapsody,” “The First Wives Club,” “Sex and the City”)

1982 – NASCAR star Danica Patrick, the first woman to lead the Indy 500 and win the pole position at the Daytona 500

History Highlights

1911 – A raging fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City kills 146 garment workers in less than 20 minutes. The tragedy becomes a turning point in labor history, triggering reforms in workplace health and safety laws.

1967 – The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. leads 5,000 demonstrators in Chicago in a march against the Vietnam War, calling the conflict in Southeast Asia “a blasphemy against all that America stands for.” It is King’s first anti-war march.

1975 – Saudi Arabia’s King Faisal is assassinated by his nephew, Prince Faisal Ibu Musaed. A motive is never determined and the king’s son, Crown Prince Khalid, ascends to the throne.

1994 – Wrapping up a largely unsuccessful 15-month mission, the last American troops pull out of Somalia, leaving 20,000 U.N. troops behind to keep the peace and facilitate “nation building” in the divided country.

Musical Milestones

1967 – “Happy Together,” by The Turtles, begins a three-week run as the hottest single in the U.S.

1972 – “A Horse with No Name,” by America, gallops to the top of the singles chart and stables there for three weeks.

1978 – The Bee Gees continue their reign over the Billboard Hot 100 with “Night Fever.”

1983 – Motown celebrates its 25th anniversary with a star-studded concert featuring such musical legends as Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, The Supremes and The Temptations. Michael Jackson uses a performance of “Billie Jean” to introduce the world to his iconic moonwalk.

1989 – Mike + The Mechanics own their first and only No. 1 single with “The Living Years.” The track holds the top spot for a week.

1995 – Madonna is midway through a seven-week domination of the singles chart with “Take a Bow.”

2001 – Icelandic singer Björk walks the red carpet at the Academy Awards wearing a Marjan Pejoski-designed swan dress that is mocked for years to come. Björk had received an Original Song nomination for “I’ve Seen It All” from the movie “Dancer in the Dark.” However, the Oscar goes to Bob Dylan for “Things Have Changed,” from the “Wonder Boys” soundtrack.

2006 – Ne-Yo begins his second and final week on top of the pop chart with “So Sick.”

On This Day March 24

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Celebrity Birthdays

1874 – Magician and escape artist Harry Houdini, born Ehrich Weisz (d. 1926)

1930 – Actor and auto racer Steve McQueen, nicknamed the “King of Cool” (“The Magnificent Seven,” “The Great Escape,” “The Sand Pebbles,” “Bullitt,” “The Getaway,” “The Towering Inferno”) (d. 1980)

1951 – Fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger

1970 – Actress Lara Flynn Boyle (“Twin Peaks,” “The Practice,” “Men In Black II”)

1973 – Emmy-winning actor Jim Parsons (“Garden State,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Hidden Figures”)

1974 – Actress Alyson Hannigan (“American Pie,” “Buffy The Vampire Slayer,” “How I Met Your Mother”)

1976 – Retired star NFL quarterback and actor Peyton Manning, who set records for most career passing yards and most career passing touchdowns while playing for the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos

History Highlights

1965 – NASA’s Ranger 9 spacecraft beams the first video images of the moon down to Earth before making a planned crash-landing on the lunar surface.

1977 – For the first time since severing diplomatic relations in 1961, Cuba and the U.S. enter into direct negotiations when the two nations discuss fishing rights.

1989 – The tanker Exxon Valdez runs aground in Prince William Sound off Alaska and spills 11 million gallons of crude oil into one of nature’s richest habitats, eventually contaminating 1,300 miles of coastline. This was the largest oil spill in U.S. waters until the 2010 Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico caused a 168-million-gallon spill.

1996 – Astronaut Shannon Lucid begins the first full day of a five-month stay aboard the Russian space station Mir. She transfers from the space shuttle Atlantis, becoming the first female American astronaut to live on a space station.

2002 – Halle Berry becomes the first African-American performer to win a Best Actress Oscar (for “Monster’s Ball”) and only the second African-American actress ever to be honored by the Academy (the first was Hattie McDaniel, who won for her supporting role in 1939’s “Gone With the Wind”).

Musical Milestones

1958 – Elvis Presley swaps his blue suede shoes for military boots as he reports for duty in U.S. Army as a private at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas. The King achieves the rank of sergeant in February 1960, and a month later, is honorably discharged from active duty at the age of 25.

1962 – Bruce Channel wraps up his three-week run at No. 1 on the pop chart with “Hey! Baby.”

1973 – “Love Train” by the O’Jays steams its way to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

1979 – The Bee Gees have the No. 1 single on the radio with “Tragedy,” off their “Spirits Having Flown” album.

1986 – Howard Jones releases “No One Is To Blame” in the U.S. It goes on to become his biggest-selling single.

1992 – A class-action lawsuit against Milli Vanilli’s record label is resolved when a judge approves a plan to refund up to $3 to everyone who bought the pop duo’s music before November 27, 1990 — the date they admitted to not actually singing their songs. Fans who bought tickets to a Milli Vanilli concert could claim a rebate of up to $2.50.

2001 – One-hit-wonder Crazy Town has the No. 1 single for a week with “Butterfly,” which features a sample of “Pretty Little Ditty” from the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

On This Day April 12

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Celebrity Birthdays

1932 – Singer and ukulele player Tiny Tim, born Herbert Buckingham Khaury (d. 1996)

1940 – Oscar and Grammy-winning jazz musician Herbie Hancock

1947 – Bestselling author Tom Clancy (“Patriot Games,” “The Hunt for Red October,” “Clear and Present Danger”) (d. 2013)

1947 – Comedian and retired “Late Show” host David Letterman

1950 – Actor-singer and former teen heartthrob David Cassidy (“The Partridge Family”) (d.2017)

1956 – Actor-director Andy Garcia (“The Untouchables,” “The Godfather Part III,” “Stand and Deliver,” “Oceans Eleven” and its sequels, “The Lost City”)

1957 – Grammy-winning country music singer-songwriter Vince Gill (“When I Call Your Name,” “Go Rest High On That Mountain,” “I Still Believe in You”)

1971 – Actress-director Shannen Doherty (“Little House on the Prairie,” “Our House,” “Beverly Hills 90210,” “Charmed”)

1979 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Claire Danes (“My So-Called Life,” “Romeo and Juliet,” “The Rainmaker,” “Homeland”)

History Highlights

1861 – The Civil War — the bloodiest four years in American history — begins in the early-morning hours when Confederate troops open fire on Union-held Fort Sumter in South Carolina’s Charleston Bay. Neither side anticipated the length of the war nor the devastation that the conflict would bring.

1945 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies during his fourth term in office, leaving Vice President Harry Truman in charge of a nation still embroiled in World War II.

1961 – The Space Race between the U.S. and Soviet Union begins as the Soviets launch Vostok I. Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space, making a single orbit around Earth in just under two hours.

1981 – The U.S. achieves a space exploration milestone with the inaugural space shuttle flight. Shuttle Columbia represents the first manned U.S. space mission since Apollo-Soyuz in July 1976. The shuttle is also the first reusable manned spacecraft.

2003 – Fifty years after their introduction, tokens for the New York City subway system are sold for the last time, replaced by the Metro Card.

Musical Milestones

1954 – Bill Haley and his Comets record “(We’re Gonna) Rock Around The Clock” at Pythian Temple studios in New York City. The song, widely credited with bringing rock ‘n’ roll into the mainstream, becomes a worldwide No. 1 and the biggest-selling pop single, with sales exceeding 25 million.

1963 – Bob Dylan performs his first major solo concert at Town Hall in Manhattan. Dylan’s 24-song set includes “Blowin’ In The Wind,” “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall,” “Highway 51” and “Last Thoughts On Woody Guthrie.”

1969 – The 5th Dimension soar to the top of the singles chart with “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In,” which holds at No. 1 for six weeks.

1973 – Stevie Wonder is just 23 years old when he makes a guest appearance on the children’s television show Sesame Street. Wonder interacts with several beloved characters in segments throughout the program, including Grover, whom he teaches how to sing. He also performs his smash hit, “Superstition.”

1975 – Elton John claims the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks with “Philadelphia Freedom,” a song he wrote for his good friend, international tennis legend Billie Jean King. “Philadelphia Freedom” is the name of the tennis team that King coached at the time.

1986 – Falco wraps up three weeks atop the Billboard singles chart with “Rock Me Amadeus.”

1997 – “Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down,” by Puff Daddy featuring Mase, is in the midst of a six-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100.

2003 – 50 Cent rules the singles chart with “In da Club,” which remains at No. 1 for nine weeks.

On This Day March 6

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Celebrity Birthdays

1475 – Michelangelo, the greatest of the Italian Renaissance artists

1906 – Actor-comedian Lou Costello of the comedic duo, Abbott & Costello (d. 1959)

1923 – TV host Ed McMahon (“The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson,” “Star Search”) (d. 2009)

1926 – Economist and former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan

1927 – Astronaut Gordon Cooper, who piloted the sixth and last flight of NASA’s Mercury program and later commanded Gemini 5 (d. 2004)

1946 – Guitarist-vocalist David Gilmour of the rock band Pink Floyd

1947 – Director-producer-actor Rob Reiner, who garnered Emmys playing Michael ‘Meathead’ Stivic in the 1970s sitcom “All in the Family,” and directed box office bonanzas including”Stand By Me,” “The Princess Bride,” “When Harry Met Sally” and “A Few Good Men”

1959 – Actor-comedian Tom Arnold (“True Lies,” “Nine Months,” “The Stupids,” “McHale’s Navy,” “The Best Damn Sports Show Period”)

1972 – Retired NBA star and actor-rapper Shaquille “Shaq” O’Neal

History Highlights

1836 – The Battle of the Alamo comes to a bloody end, capping off a pivotal moment in the Texas Revolution. Mexican forces successfully recapture the garrison after a 13-day siege, and nearly all of the roughly 200 Alamo defenders — including legendary frontiersman Davy Crockett — are killed.

1899 – Acetylsalicylic acid, better known as aspirin, is trademarked by the German pharmaceutical company Bayer. Designed to relieve pain and fever, it becomes the most common drug found in household medicine cabinets.

1930 – Industrialist and inventor Clarence Birdseye brings the food industry into the modern era as he introduces consumers to pre-packaged, frozen foods — still available in supermarkets today.

1933 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares a national “bank holiday,” closing all U.S. banks and freezing all financial transactions in an effort to salvage the faltering banking system during the Great Depression. The banks reopen a week later with depositors standing in lines to return their hoarded cash.

1981 – An estimated 17 million American viewers watch as anchor Walter Cronkite says, “And that’s the way it is” for the final time as he signs off the “CBS Evening News.” Considered “the most trusted man in America,” Cronkite retires after more than 30 years in broadcasting and is succeeded by Dan Rather.

1986 – Georgia O’Keeffe, the artist who gained worldwide fame for her austere minimalist paintings of the American southwest, dies in Santa Fe, New Mexico at the age of 98.

Musical Milestones

1965 – The Temptations claim the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 with “My Girl,” the first of four chart-toppers the Motown legends produced during their career.

1971 – “One Bad Apple” by The Osmonds is midway through a five-week ride on top of the singles chart.

1976 – “Love Machine (Part 1),” by The Miracles (without Smokey Robinson), is the No. 1 single.

1982 – The J. Geils Band is in the middle of a six-week run on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Centerfold.”

1988 – George Michael wraps up a two-week run at No. 1 on the pop chart with “Father Figure,” from his Grammy-winning debut solo album, “Faith.”

1993 – The Peabo Bryson-Regina Belle duet, “A Whole New World,” tops the singles chart. The song, written by Alan Menken and Tim Rice, comes from Disney’s 1992 animated feature, “Aladdin.”

1999 – “Angel of Mine,” by Monica begins its fourth and final week on top of the pop chart.

2004 – “Yeah!”, by Usher featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris, rules the Billboard Hot 100 and holds the top spot for 12 weeks, becoming the longest-running No. 1 single of 2004.