On This Day January 23 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1737 – John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress and first to sign the Declaration of Independence (d. 1793) 1919 – Comedian, writer and actor Ernie Kovacs (d. 1962) 1930 – Poet and playwright Derek Walcott, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1992 (d. 2017) 1933 – Tony-winning actress-dancer-singer Chita Rivera (“The Rink,” “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” “West Side Story,” “Sweet Charity,” “Chicago”) 1944 – Golden Globe-winning actor Rutger Hauer (“Blade Runner,” “The Hitcher,” “Ladyhawke,” “Sin City,” “The Blood of Heroes,” “Batman Begins,” “Hobo with a Shotgun”) (d. 2019) 1951 – Retired pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, who became a hero after safely landing a crippled passenger jet on the Hudson River in 2008, an event dubbed the “Miracle on the Hudson” 1957 – Princess Caroline of Monaco 1964 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Mariska Hargitay, best known as Detective Olivia Benson in the NBC crime series “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” History Highlights 1849 – Elizabeth Blackwell becomes the first woman physician in U.S. history when she earns a medical degree from the all-male Geneva Medical College in upstate New York, graduating at the top of her class at the age of 28. Blackwell devotes her life to advocating for women in the healthcare professions and, in 1868, opens a women’s medical college in New York City. 1957 – The Wham-O toy company introduces the first aerodynamic plastic disc known as the Frisbee, and forever changes outdoor recreation. The disc was the creation of Walter Frederick Morrison, who originally named it the Pluto Platter. 1968 – North Korea seizes the U.S. intelligence-gathering ship USS Pueblo and interrogates its 83 crew members claiming the vessel violated North Korean territorial waters while spying. 1973 – President Richard Nixon announces that a peace accord had been reached in Paris to end the Vietnam War. 1975 – The ABC sitcom “Barney Miller” debuts. It’s about an NYPD precinct captain played by Hal Linden, and the shenanigans he endures with his detectives. 1976 – Singer, actor, athlete and civil rights activist Paul Robeson dies at the age of 77. 1977 – The miniseries “Roots,” based on the book by Alex Haley, debuts. It runs for eight consecutive nights on ABC Television and becomes the single most-watched program in American history, drawing about 100 million viewers. 1997 – One day after her unanimous confirmation by the U.S. Senate, Madeline Albright is sworn in as America’s first female Secretary of State by Vice President Al Gore. Musical Milestones 1961 – Bert Kaempfert begins his third and final week on top of the Billboard pop chart with “Wonderland By Night.” 1965 – Petula Clark strolls to the top of the singles chart with “Downtown” and remains there for two weeks. The recording features Led Zeppelin founder Jimmy Page on guitar. Page was a studio session player at the time. 1971 – “Knock Three Times,” by Dawn featuring Tony Orlando, tops the Billboard Hot 100 and remains there for three weeks. 1986 – The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducts its first members at a ceremony in New York City. Inductees include Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley. 1988 – Michael Jackson owns the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100: “The Way You Make Me Feel,” off his “Bad” album. 2000 – Santana’s “Supernatural” reaches the top of Billboard album chart for the second time. The album, which contains the hit single “Smooth,” ultimately remains at No. 1 for 12 non-consecutive weeks and goes on to capture eight Grammy awards. READ MORE
On This Day December 23 Click each item below to learn more! Celebrity Birthdays 1943 – Emmy-winning actor Harry Shearer, the voice talent behind several characters on “The Simpsons” 1946 – Emmy-winning actress Susan Lucci, best known as Erica Kane on the ABC soap “All My Children” 1949 – Guitarist and singer-songwriter Adrian Belew 1964 – Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder 1971 – Actor and 1980s teen idol Corey Haim (“Lucas,” “Silver Bullet,” “Murphy’s Romance,” “The Lost Boys,” “License to Drive,” “Dream a Little Dream”) (d. 2010) History Highlights 1783 – Following the signing of the Treaty of Paris, General George Washington resigns as commander in chief of the Continental Army and retires to his home at Mount Vernon, Virginia. 1888 – Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, suffering from severe depression, uses a razor to sever part of his left ear. He later documents the event in a painting titled “Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear.” Over years, however, a variety of new theories have emerged about this incident. 1913 – U.S. President Woodrow Wilson signs the Federal Reserve Act into law establishing the Federal Reserve (The Fed), which continues to serve as the nation’s central banking system today and is responsible for executing monetary policy. 1947 – John Bardeen, Walter Brattain and William Shockley with Bell Laboratories unveil their invention of the transistor, which revolutionizes communications and electronics. 1968 – The crew and captain of the American intelligence gathering ship USS Pueblo are released after 11 months imprisonment by the North Korean government. 1986 – Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager complete the first non-stop flight around the world without refueling. They set a new world record of 216 hours of continuous flying in the experimental aircraft Voyager. 1993 – The movie “Philadelphia,” starring Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington, and directed by Jonathan Demme, opens in U.S. theaters. It is the first major Hollywood film to address the HIV/AIDS crisis and garners Hanks a Best Actor Oscar and Bruce Springsteen a Best Original Song Oscar for his track, “Streets of Philadelphia.” Musical Milestones 1957 – “You Send Me” sends Sam Cooke to the top of the Billboard Top 100 (what the singles chart was called before becoming the Hot 100) for two weeks. 1967 – “Magical Mystery Tour,” by The Beatles, hits the U.S. album chart, introducing fans to such classic tracks as “Hello, Goodbye,” “All You Need is Love” and “Penny Lane.” 1967 – The Monkees begin their fourth and final week as chart-toppers with “Daydream Believer,” their last No. 1 hit in the U.S. 1977 – Folk singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, known for hits like “Wild World,” “Moonshadow,” “Peace Train” and “Morning Has Broken,” formally changes his name to Yusef Islam. 1989 – “Another Day in Paradise” by Phil Collins reaches the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and holds there for four weeks, becoming the last No. 1 single of the 80s and first of the 90s. The track also goes on to capture a Record of the Year Grammy Award. 1995 – The Mariah Carey-Boyz II Men duet “One Sweet Day” begins its fourth week on top of the Billboard Hot 100. It remains a chart-topper for 16 weeks. 2000 – Destiny’s Child holds at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Independent Women Part I,” from the soundtrack to the 2000 “Charlie’s Angels” movie starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Luci Liu. 2006 – “Irreplaceable,” by Beyoncé, is in the second of its 10-week ride atop the singles chart, making it the final hit of 2006 and the first of 2007. READ MORE