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On This Day October 23

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Celebrity Birthdays

1925 – NBC “The Tonight Show” host Johnny Carson (d. 2005)

1940 – Brazilian soccer legend Pelé, born Edson Arantes do Nascimento

1942 – Doctor-turned-author and producer Michael Crichton (“The Andromeda Strain,” “Jurassic Park,” “ER”) (d. 2008)

1954 – Oscar-winning director Ang Lee (“Crouching Tiger,” “Hidden Dragon,” “Brokeback Mountain,” “Life of Pi”)

1956 – Grammy-winning country music singer-songwriter and actor Dwight Yoakam

1959 – The Grammy-winning master of the musical parody, “Weird Al” Yankovic

1962 – Former NFL and Canadian Football League star quarterback Doug Flutie

1976 – Actor Ryan Reynolds (“X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” “The Proposal,” “Buried,” “The Green Lantern,” “The Change-Up,” “Mississippi Grind,” “Deadpool”)

History Highlights

1973 – President Richard Nixon agrees to turn over subpoenaed audio tapes of his Oval Office conversations about the Watergate scandal.

1983 – A suicide bomber drives a truck into the U.S. Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, Lebanon, killing 241 military personnel.

1989 – Thunderous explosions rock the Phillips 66 refinery in Pasadena, Texas, outside Houston, killing 23 employees and injuring more than 130 others. The blasts pack the force of a 3.5-magnitude earthquake. The ensuing fires take nearly 10 hours to extinguish.

1998 – Dr. Barnett Slepian is shot to death inside his home near Buffalo, New York by an anti-abortion radical, marking the fifth straight year that a doctor who was willing to perform abortions in upstate New York and Canada was targeted by a sniper.

2002 – Chechen rebels storm a Moscow theater and take close to a thousand people hostage during the sold-out performance of a popular musical. By the time the siege ends, the attackers and 130 hostages are dead.

Musical Milestones

1961 – Dion kicks off a two-week run atop the pop chart with “Runaround Sue.”

1962 – Little Stevie Wonder is 12 years old when he records his first single for Motown: “Thank You (For Loving Me All the Way).”

1965 – The Beatles are midway through a four-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Yesterday,” off the “Help!” album.

1971 – “Maggie May,” by Rod Stewart, is in the middle of of five weeks as a  No. 1 single.

1976 – Chicago scores its first No. 1 single with “If You Leave Me Now,” off the band’s “Chicago X” album.” The track remains a chart-topper for two weeks and goes on to capture two Grammy Awards.

1982 – Performing under the name John Cougar, John Mellencamp enters his fourth and final week on top of the singles chart with “Jack & Diane.”

1987 – Madonna lands on the big screen, as the comedy “Who’s That Girl” opens in London.

1999 – “Smooth,” by Santana featuring Rob Thomas, begins 12 weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100. The single goes on to capture Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals Grammys.

2006 – Amy Winehouse releases her autobiographical song, “Rehab,” from her second and final studio album, “Back to Black.” The track wins Grammy Awards for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

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