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 28 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1944 – Actor Ken Howard (“1776,” “The White Shadow,” “Clear and Present Danger,” “Crossing Jordan”) (d. 2016) 1948 – Oscar, Golden Globe and Emmy-winning actress Dianne Wiest (“Hannah and Her Sisters,” “Parenthood,” “The Lost Boys,” “Bullets Over Broadway,” “In Treatment,” “Law & Order”) 1955 – Grammy-winning country singer and actress Reba McEntire, who starred in her own sitcom, “Reba,” from 2001-07 1970 – Actor Vince Vaughn (“Swingers,” “Wedding Crashers,” “The Break-Up,” “The Internship,” “True Detective”) 1981 – Actress Julia Stiles (“Save the Last Dance,” “10 Things I Hate About You,” “The Bourne Ultimatum,” “Dexter”) 1986 – Grammy and Golden Globe-winning pop superstar and actress Lady Gaga, born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta History Highlights 1834 – The U.S. Congress censures President Andrew Jackson over his refusal to turn over documents regarding his dealings with the Bank of the United States. 1881 – The Greatest Show on Earth is born when P.T. Barnum and James Bailey merge their circus troupes. 1915 – The first American is killed during World War I, before the U.S. had even entered the conflict. Leon Thrasher, a 31-year-old mining engineer from Massachusetts, drowns when a German U-boat (submarine) torpedoes the British steamship RMS Falaba off the coast of England. The vessel was on its way from Liverpool to West Africa when the Germans attacked. The sinking is reported by American media as the “Thrasher Incident.” 1969 – Dwight Eisenhower, the 34th president of the United States and one of the most highly decorated American generals of World War II, dies at the age of 78. 1979 – The worst commercial nuclear accident in U.S. history takes place at the Three Mile Island plant near Harrisburg, PA. A mechanical failure in the Unit 2 reactor, compounded by human error, forces thousands to evacuate and triggers a public backlash against the nuclear power industry. 1984 – Baltimore Colts owner Robert Irsay outrages fans and local officials when he moves the NFL franchise to Indianapolis in the middle of the night with no public announcement. Musical Milestones 1958 – Composer William Christopher “W.C.” Handy, regarded as the “Father of the Blues,” dies in New York City. 1964 – “She Loves You,” by The Beatles, tops the U.S. pop chart. It is the second of three consecutive singles that keep The Beatles at No. 1 from the beginning of February through the beginning of May of that year. 1970 – “Bridge over Troubled Water,” by Simon & Garfunkel, sits at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. 1981 – Kim Carnes delivers new music to the Billboard singles chart in the form of “Bette Davis Eyes,” which reaches No. 1 that May and holds there for nine weeks. 1981 – “Rapture,” by Blondie featuring Debbie Harry, becomes the first rap song to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The track, off the band’s “Autoamerican” album, claims the top spot for two weeks. 1987 – Club Nouveau’s cover of the Bill Withers soul classic, “Lean On Me, ” wraps up two weeks as a No. 1 single. 1992 – Vanessa Williams rules the singles chart for five weeks beginning this day with “Save the Best for Last.” 1998 – Will Smith wraps up a three-week run on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Gettin’ Jiggy wit It.” 2001 – Sean Combs, the Grammy-winning artist formerly known as both Puffy and Puff Daddy, tells MTV that he now wants to be known as P. Diddy. In August 2005, he changes his stage name to simply Diddy. 2009 – “Right Round,” by Flo Rida featuring Kesha, tops the pop chart. READ MORE