On this Day: July 15

On this Day July 15

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Celebrity Birthdays
Celebrity Birthdays

1606 – Dutch artist Rembrandt (d. 1669)

1935 – Pro football player-turned-actor Alex Karras (d. 2012)

1944- Actor Jan-Michael Vincent, best remembered from the 1980s TV series “Airwolf”  

1946 – Grammy and Emmy-winning singer-songwriter Linda Ronstadt (“You’re No Good,” “Blue Bayou”)

1950 – Author-media mogul Arianna Huffington, publisher of The Huffington Post

1951 – Pro wrestler and former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura

1952 – Emmy-winning actor Terry O’Quinn, best known for portraying John Locke in TV’s “Lost” 

1960 – Supermodel and actress Kim Alexis

1961 – Oscar-winning actor-producer-director Forest Whitaker (“Platoon,” “Good Morning, Vietnam,” “Bird,” “The Crying Game,” “Panic Room,” “Phone Booth,” “The Last King of Scotland,” “Lee Daniels’ The Butler”)

History Highlights
History Highlights

1903 – The newly formed Ford Motor Company receives its first automobile order. The customer is Chicago dentist Ernst Pfenning, who buys an $850 two-cylinder Model A with a tonneau, or backseat. The vehicle is delivered a week later.

1968 – Agnes Nixon’s daytime soap opera “One Life to Live” premieres on ABC and goes on to launch many successful acting careers. 

1971 – During a live television and radio broadcast, President Richard Nixon stuns Americans by announcing that he will visit the People’s Republic of China the following year. 

1979 – President Jimmy Carter delivers his famous “Crisis of Confidence” speech, later referred to as the “malaise speech,” in which he challenged Americans to overcome consumersism and materialism to solve the energy crisis and other challenges.

1988 – A new action-thriller movie franchise is born as “Die Hard” opens in U.S. theaters, starring Bruce Willis as detective John McClane, who single-handedly battles a terrorist group led by Alan Rickman that is holding hostages inside a Los Angeles skyscraper.

1997 – World-renowned Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace is shot to death outside his Miami mansion by serial killer Andrew Cunanan, who was already wanted in connection with four other murders across the U.S.

2006 – Podcasting company Odeo launches the social media platform Twitter as twttr, touting it as “a new mobile service that helps groups of friends bounce random thoughts around with SMS.” Twitter’s popularity explodes, with the service boasting more than 300 million users by 2016.

Musical Milestones
Musical Milestones

1967 – The Association is in the midst of a four-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Windy.”

1972 – Elton John’s “Honky Château,” the album that introduces “Rocket Man” and “Honky Cat,” begins five weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart. Sir Elton’s fifth studio album is named after the 18th century French estate where it was recorded — Château d’Hérouville.

1978 – “Some Girls,” by The Rolling Stones, lands on top of the Billboard album chart, delivering three Top 40 hits: “Miss You,” “Beast of Burden” and “Shattered.”

1986 – Columbia Records drops country music legend Johnny Cash, ending a 26-year relationship. Cash is later signed by Mercury Records, and in 1994, releases his first album with producer Rick Rubin’s American Recordings label, beginning a major comeback.

1989 – Simply Red has its second No. 1 single — this time with the cover of Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes’ 1973 smash “If You Don’t Know Me By Now.”

1995 – “Waterfalls,” by TLC, flows into its second week as a chart-topper. The track remains at No. 1 for a total of seven weeks.

2000 – “Everything You Want,” by Vertical Horizon, tops the Billboard Hot 100 and remains there for a week.

2006 – “Promiscuous,” by Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland, is in the midst of a six-week run atop the pop chart.

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On this Day: July 12

On this Day July 12

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Celebrity Birthdays
Celebrity Birthdays

1817 – Author-poet Henry David Thoreau (d. 1862)

1895 – Songwriter Oscar Hammerstein II (d. 1960)

1908 – Comedian-actor Milton Berle, known to millions as “Uncle Miltie” and “Mr. Television” during TV’s Golden Age (d. 2002)

1934 – Internationally acclaimed pianist Van Cliburn (d. 2013)

1937 – Comedian-actor Bill Cosby (“I Spy,” “Fat Albert,” “The Cosby Show”), who is serving prison time following his 2018 conviction on sexual assault charges

1943 – Fleetwood Mac singer-songwriter Christine McVie, born Christine Anne Perfect

1948 – Fitness guru and motivational speaker Richard Simmons

1951 – Actress Cheryl Ladd, born Cheryl Jean Stoppelmoor, best known for playing Kris Munroe in TV’s “Charlie’s Angels”

1978 – Actor Topher Grace (“That ‘70s Show,” “In Good Company,” “Spider-Man 3,” “Interstellar”) 

1978 – Actress Michelle Rodriguez (“Girlfight,” “Blue Crush,” “Lost,” “Avatar,” “The Fast and the Furious” movie series, “Battle: Los Angeles”)

History Highlights
History Highlights

1933 – Architect, engineer and philosopher Buckminster Fuller produces the first of three prototypes of the three-wheeled, multi-directional, rear-engine Dymaxion. The aerodynamic concept car could transport up to 11 passengers, got 30 miles to the gallon and reached a top speed of 90 miles per hour. However, a rollover accident during Dymaxion’s debut at the 1933 World’s Fair in Chicago kills the driver, injures three passengers and scares off investors, ensuring that the vehicle never goes to market.

1960 – Way before the advent of the iPad, Xbox and PlayStation, Etch A Sketch is introduced to consumers by the Ohio Art Company. The distinctive red plastic drawing toy with two white knobs has since sold over 175 million units worldwide and was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in Rochester, New York in 1998. 

1976 – The TV game show “Family Feud” premieres with host Richard Dawson. It is currently hosted by Steve Harvey.

1982 – After 60 years of production, the last Checker taxi cab rolls off a Kalamazoo, Michigan assembly line.

1984 – Democratic presidential nominee Walter Mondale becomes the first major-party candidate to choose a woman as a running mate when he announces his choice of Geraldine Ferraro. 

1990 – The quirky series “Northern Exposure,” starring Rob Morrow as a New York doctor transplanted to a tiny town in Alaska, premieres on CBS. 

1991 – John Singleton makes his directorial debut with the release of “Boyz N the Hood,” a drama about life in South Central Los Angeles. The movie stars two future Oscar winners — Cuba Gooding Jr. and Regina King — and two Oscar nominees who are Hollywood legends: Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne.

Musical Milestones
Musical Milestones

1969 – “In the Year 2525,” by one-hit-wonder Zager & Evans, is No. 1 on the singles chart and holds there for six weeks. 

1970 – “Evening at Pops” premieres on PBS with conductor Arthur Fiedler leading the Boston Pops Orchestra. Composer-conductor John Williams takes the baton following Fiedler’s death in 1979. 

1979 – Singer-songwriter Minnie Riperton, best known for her 1975 No. 1 hit “Loving You,” dies of cancer at the age of 31. Riperton’s daughter is comedian-actress and “SNL” alum Miya Rudolph.

1980 – “Coming Up,” by Paul McCartney, begins its third and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100. McCartney plays all the instruments on the track and shares vocal harmonies with wife Linda McCartney.

1986 – “Holding Back the Years,” by British band Simply Red, tops the Billboard Hot 100 for a week. 

1997 – “I’ll Be Missing You,” by Puff Daddy (a.k.a. Sean Combs) featuring Faith Evans and 112, is in the midst of an 11-week domination of the pop chart.

2003 – “Crazy in Love,” by Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z, begins eight weeks as a No. 1 single. The track, off the “Dangerously in Love” album, goes on to capture a Grammy Award for Best R&B Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

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