On This Day February 20 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1902 – Pioneering photographer and preservationist Ansel Adams (d. 1984) 1927 – Oscar-winning actor-director Sidney Poitier (“Lilies of the Field,” “In the Heat of the Night,” “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” “To Sir, With Love,” “Sneakers,” “The Jackal”) 1946 – Singer-songwriter and guitarist John Warren Geils, Jr., known professionally as J. Geils, frontman for the 80s rockers The J. Geils Band. (d. 2017) 1963 – Retired basketball star Charles Barkley, named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History 1966 – Fashion icon, supermodel and entrepreneur Cindy Crawford 1967 – Legendary grunge music pioneer Kurt Cobain, lead singer-songwriter-guitarist of the band Nirvana (d. 1994) 1988 – Grammy-winning R&B singer-songwriter Rihanna, born Robyn Rihanna Fenty (“Umbrella,” “We Found Love,” “The Monster”) History Highlights 1792 – President George Washington signs the Postal Act, creating the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). 1895 – American journalist, author, orator and abolitionist Frederick Douglass dies at the age of 78. Douglass conferred with President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War and recruited northern Black officers for the Union Army. After the War, he fought for the rights of women and African Americans alike. 1962 – John Glenn launches into space from Cape Canaveral, Florida aboard NASA’s Mercury capsule, named Friendship 7, on the first orbital flight by an American astronaut. He completes three Earth orbits in just under five hours, ushering in a new era of spaceflight for the United States. 1965 – Ranger 8 crashes into the moon after a successful mission to photograph possible landing sites for the Apollo program. 1986 – The Soviet Union launches the first components of the Mir space station, which orbits Earth more than 86,000 times before falling harmlessly into the South Pacific near Fiji in March 2001. 1998 – American Tara Lipinski is 15 when she wins the Gold medal in women’s figure skating at the Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, becoming the youngest gold medalist in her sport. 2003 – One hundred people are killed, 230 others are injured when pyrotechnics during a Great White concert at The Station nightclub in Warwick, Rhode Island ignite flammable foam installed as soundproofing. The club burns to the ground in less than three minutes. Musical Milestones 1959 – Legendary rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix is 16 years old when he makes his stage debut during a performance at Temple De Hirsch Sinai synagogue in Seattle. He is fired before the second set begins. 1965 – “This Diamond Ring,” by Gary Lewis & the Playboys, begins a two-week ride atop the Billboard singles chart. 1970 – The single “Instant Karma! (We All Shine On),” by John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band, is released in the U.S. Lennon wrote, recorded and mixed the track all in one day, on January 27, 1970, with producer Phil Spector, at the Abbey Road Studios in London. 1982 – The J. Geils Band’s “Centerfold” is midway through a six-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100. It is the first single from the band’s “Freeze Frame” album. The music video becomes an early staple of MTV programming. 1988 – “Seasons Change,” by one-hit wonder Exposé, tops the Billboard Hot 100 for a week. 1991 – Actor Jack Nicholson presents Bob Dylan with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th Annual Grammys. 1993 – “I Will Always Love You,” by Whitney Houston, enters its 13th week as a No. 1 single. Written by Dolly Parton, the song is from the soundtrack to the movie, “The Bodyguard,” starring Houston and Kevin Costner. 1999 – Monica is in the middle of a four-week run at No. 1 on the pop chart with “Angel of Mine.” 2010 – Kesha dominates the pop chart with “Tik Tok,” which enters its eighth week at No. 1. READ MORE
On this Day July 26 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1928 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning director Stanley Kubrick (“Spartacus,” “Dr. Strangelove,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “A Clockwork Orange,” “The Shining,” “Full Metal jacket,” “Eyes Wide Shut”) (d. 1999) 1943 – Legendary Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger 1945 – Oscar, Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Dame Helen Mirren (“Prime Suspect,” “Caligula,” “Shadowboxer,” “Elizabeth I,” “The Queen,” “Hitchcock,” “Woman in Gold”) 1956 – Olympic gold medal figure skater Dorothy Hamill 1959 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actor-director-producer Kevin Spacey (“Seven,” “The Usual Suspects,” “L.A. Confidential,” “American Beauty,” “House of Cards,” “Elvis & Nixon”), who went on to face multiple accusations of sexual misconduct 1964 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actress Sandra Bullock (“The Net,” “Speed,” “Miss Congeniality,” “The Blind Side,” “Gravity”) 1965 – Emmy-winning actor Jeremy Piven, best known for his role as Hollywood agent Ari Gold in the TV series and movie “Entourage” 1973 – Actress Kate Beckinsale (“Pearl Harbor,” “Underworld,” “The Aviator,” “Click,” “Total Recall”) History Highlights 1775 – Signed, sealed and delivered. The U.S. Postal Service is established and the Continental Congress appoints Benjamin Franklin as first Postmaster General. 1908 – The Office of the Chief Examiner, later named the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is founded. It begins with a short memo signed by Attorney General Charles J. Bonaparte, describing a “regular force of special agents” available to investigate certain cases of the U.S. Department of Justice. 1947 – President Harry Truman signs the National Security Act, creating the Department of Defense, the National Security Council, the Central Intelligence Agency and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 1964 – Teamsters President Jimmy Hoffa is convicted of fraud and conspiracy. The man long suspected of mafia ties serves four years in prison before President Richard Nixon commutes his sentence. 1990 – President George H. W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law, extending civil rights protections to people with disabilities, guaranteeing them equal employment opportunities as well as accessibility to buildings and transportation. Musical Milestones 1952 – Vera Lynn is in the midst of a nine-week ride on top of the Billboard singles survey with “Auf Wiederseh’n Sweetheart.” 1968 – Motown Records signs the Jackson 5 to a one-year contract. 1969 – Johnny Cash releases the single, “A Boy Named Sue,” which was recorded five months earlier during a performance at California’s San Quentin State Prison. 1975 – Disco anthem “The Hustle,” by Van McCoy and the Soul City Symphony, boogies its way to the top of the singles chart. 1984 – Movie-goers line up to see the premiere of “Purple Rain,” the semi-autobiographical story of musician Prince. 1986 – Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer,” off his “So” album, is the No. 1 single. The accompanying music video goes on to capture a record nine awards at the 1987 MTV Video Music Awards. Gabriel also earns three Grammy nominations: Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, Song of the Year and Record of the Year. 1997 – “I’ll Be Missing You,” by Puff Daddy and Faith Evans featuring 112, tops the Billboard Hot 100. READ MORE