On This Day: February 3

On This Day February 3

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Celebrity Birthdays
Celebrity Birthdays

1874 – Author-poet and art collector Gertrude Stein (“How to Write,” “The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas”) (d. 1946)

1894 – Artist Norman Rockwell, famous for his “Saturday Evening Post” cover illustrations of everyday American life (d. 1978)

1918 – Entertainer and “Rat Pack” member Joey Bishop (d. 2007)

1940 – Legendary Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton, who spent 18 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants

1943 – Emmy and Tony-winning actress Blythe Danner (“Butterflies are Free,” “Will & Grace,” “Meet the Parents”)

1950 – Actress Morgan Fairchild (“Dallas,” “Falcon Crest,” “Murphy Brown”) 

1956 – Tony-winning actor-comedian Nathan Lane (“The Producers,” “Guys and Dolls,” “The Birdcage”) 

History Highlights
History Highlights

1913 – The 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is ratified, authorizing the federal government to impose and collect a nationwide income tax. 

1966 – The Soviets achieve the first controlled rocket-assisted landing on the moon with Luna 9. After touching down, the circular capsule opens like a flower and begins transmitting photographs and television images back to Earth.

1971 – New York City police officer Frank Serpico is shot during a Brooklyn drug bust and survives to expose corruption in the NYPD. Many believe the shooting was fellow officers trying to kill him. His experience is immortalized in the 1973 movie “Serpico,” starring Al Pacino.

1994 – President Bill Clinton lifts the 19-year-old U.S. trade embargo on Vietnam that was first imposed during the Vietnam War when North Vietnamese forces captured Saigon in South Vietnam.

2002 – The New England Patriots shock football fans everywhere by defeating the heavily favored St. Louis Rams, 20-17, to clinch their first Super Bowl victory. Super Bowl XXXVI was played at the Superdome in New Orleans before a crowd of nearly 73,000 people.

2005 – Alberto Gonzales wins U.S. Senate confirmation as the nation’s first Hispanic attorney general despite protests over his record on torture.

Musical Milestones
Musical Milestones

1959 – Rock and Roll greats Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. ‘The Big Bopper’ Richardson are killed when their single-engine plane crashes in an Iowa cornfield during their Winter Dance Party tour. The tragedy is remembered as “The Day the Music Died.”

1968 – One-hit wonder The Lemon Pipers shake their way up to No. 1 on the singles chart with “Green Tambourine.”

1973 – Elton John scores his first No. 1 single in the U.S. with “Crocodile Rock,” from his “Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player” album. The song holds the top spot for three weeks.

1979 – The Blues Brothers (Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi) land on top of the Billboard album chart with “Briefcase Full of Blues.” The album contains their cover of “Soul Man,” which reaches No. 14 on the singles chart, and “Rubber Biscuit,” which climbs as high as No. 37.

1990 – Michael Bolton begins his third and final week atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You.”

2007 – Beyoncé rules the singles chart with “Irreplaceable,” which holds at No. 1 for 10 weeks.

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On This Day: November 8

On This Day November 8

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Celebrity Birthdays
Celebrity Birthdays

1847 – Bram Stoker, author of the legendary horror novel “Dracula” (d. 1912)

1900 – Pulitzer Prize-winning “Gone With the Wind” author Margaret Mitchell (d. 1949)

1927 – 1950s pop sensation Patti Page (“Tennessee Waltz,” “(How Much Is That) Doggie in the Window,” “Old Cape Cod”) (d. 2013)

1931 – CBS “60 Minutes” correspondent Morley Safer (d. 2016)

1949 – Grammy-winning blues-rock singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt (“Something to Talk About,” “Love Sneakin’ Up on You,” “I Can’t Make You Love Me”)

1950 – Mary Hart, born Mary Johanna Harum, who hosted the syndicated TV show “Entertainment Tonight” for nearly 30 years

1952 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Alfre Woodard (“Hill Street Blues,” “St. Elsewhere,” “Passion Fish,” “Crooklyn,” “How to Make an American Quilt,” “Miss Evers’ Boys,” “The Practice,” “12 Years a Slave”)

1961 – 1970s teen heartthrob Leif Garrett (“Runaround Sue” and “The Wanderer,” “I Was Made For Dancin”)

1968 – Actress Parker Posey (“Kicking and Screaming,” “Waiting for Guffman,” “The Daytrippers,” “You’ve Got Mail,” “Scream 3,” “Superman Returns,” “Irrational Man,” “Café Society”)

History Highlights
History Highlights

1895 – German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen discovers the X-ray, a scientific advancement that would revolutionize the fields of physics and medicine. He is awarded the first Nobel Prize in physics in 1901 for his discovery.

1939 – Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler survives an attempted assassination when the bomb intended to kill him during a speech at a Munich beer hall goes off 13 minutes after he leaves the building.

1960 – At age 43, John F. Kennedy becomes the youngest man ever and the first Catholic to be elected president of the United States, as he narrowly defeats Republican Vice President Richard Nixon. Kennedy’s first term is cut short when an assassin guns him down three years later as his motorcade passes through downtown Dallas, Texas.

1965 – A new soap opera hits American television. It’s “Days of Our Lives” on NBC. Still on the air today, it is one of the longest-running scripted TV programs in the world.

1966 – Actor Ronald Reagan, who goes on to become the 40th U.S. president, is elected governor of California. He defeats Democratic incumbent Pat Brown by nearly a million votes.

1978 – The world mourns the death of artist Norman Rockwell at age 84. Rockwell was best known for the cover illustrations he produced for The Saturday Evening Post magazine for nearly 50 years.

Musical Milestones
Musical Milestones

1969 – “Wedding Bell Blues,” by The 5th Dimension, begins three weeks as a No. 1 single. Written by Laura Nyro, it is the band’s second chart-topping hit.

1975 – Elton John’s “Rock of the Westies” debuts at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart — the same thing that happened with his “Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy” album six months earlier.

1975 – David Bowie makes his American television debut on the “Cher” variety show on CBS. He performs “Fame” as well as a medley with Cher that includes “Young Americans.”

1980 – Bruce Springsteen’s double LP, “The River,” flows to the top of the Billboard album chart, where it remains for four weeks. Among the work’s 20 tracks is “Hungry Heart,” The Boss’ first No. 1 single.

1986 – Boston has its first and only No. 1 single with “Amanda,” off the rock band’s “Third Stage” album, which was actually recorded in 1980. The power ballad holds the top spot for two weeks.

1997 – Elton John’s tribute to the late Diana, Princess of Wales — “Candle in the Wind 1997” — continues its 14-week ride at the top of the singles chart.

2008 – AC/DC begin two weeks on top of the Billboard album chart with “Black Ice,” the band’s 15th studio album. While the album garners a Grammy nomination, it’s the track “War Machine” that actually captures a Best Hard Rock Performance Grammy — AC/DC’s first-ever Grammy Award.

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