Whitney Houston – Time Rewind

Musical Milestones

1961 – In what’s been called “the greatest night in show business history,” Judy Garland — beloved for her role as Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz” — performs at New York’s Carnegie Hall. Garland sings 27 numbers, frequently interrupted by extended standing ovations. The double album of the historic performance becomes a smash, charting for 94 weeks on the Billboard chart, including 13 weeks at No. 1. It also captures five Grammy Awards.

1966 – “(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration,” by The Righteous Brothers, marks its third and final week as the No. 1 single. It is the duo’s first major hit after leaving their longtime producer, Phil Spector.

1977 – Thelma Houston’s disco smash, “Don’t Leave Me This Way,” is No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song goes on to capture a Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

1983 – The hottest single belongs to one-hit-wonder Dexys Midnight Runners: “Come On Eileen.”

1988 – “Where Do Broken Hearts Go?,” by Whitney Houston, begins a two-week hold on the No. 1 slot on Billboard Hot 100.

1994 – R. Kelly rules the singles chart with “Bump n’ Grind.”

2005 – “Candy Shop,” by 50 Cent featuring Olivia, begins its eighth week on top of the pop chart. It will remain there for one more week.

History Highlights

1896 – Entertainment is revolutionized as an audience at Koster and Bial’s Music Hall on 34th Street in New York City watches the first movie ever projected onto a screen.

1953 – Paramount Pictures releases “Shane,” starring Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur and Van Heflin, a film considered by many to be one of the greatest Westerns ever made.

1968 – Columbia University students, opposed to the Vietnam War and the school’s plans to construct a gymnasium in a Harlem neighborhood adjacent to the campus, seize administration buildings, take the dean hostage and shut the university down for a week.

1969 – Sirhan Sirhan is sentenced to the death penalty following his conviction for the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy of New York. In 1972, Sirhan’s sentence is commuted to life in prison after California abolishes the death penalty.

1985 – Coca-Cola replaces its original formula Coke with a beverage called New Coke. However, consumers overwhelmingly reject the new soft drink. Three months later, the company backtracks and announces the return of the original formula, which is branded Coca-Cola Classic.

Celebrity Birthdays

1564 – Poet-playwright William Shakespeare (d. 1616)

1928 – Oscar-winning child star Shirley Temple (d. 2014)

1936 – Rock and roll singer-songwriter Roy Orbison (“Oh, Pretty Woman,” “Crying,” “Dream Baby”) (d. 1988)

1939 – Actor Lee Majors, best remembered for his role as astronaut Steve Austin in the 1970s hit series “The Six Million Dollar Man”

1942 – Golden Globe-winning actress Sandra Dee, nicknamed “Queen of Teens” (“Gidget,” “A Summer Place”) (d. 2005)

1954 – Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Michael Moore (“Roger and Me,” “Bowling for Columbine,” “Fahrenheit 9/11″”Capitalism: A Love Story”)

1960 – Actress Valerie Bertinelli (“One Day at a Time,” “Touched by an Angel,” “Hot in Cleveland”)

1961 – Actor-comedian George Lopez, best known for his self-produced sitcom “George Lopez” that aired on ABC-TV for six seasons

1977 – Actor and former Obama administration aide Kal Penn, born Kalpen Suresh Modi (the “Harold and Kumar” films, “House,” “How I Met Your Mother,” “Designated Survivor”)

1990 – Actor Dev Patel (“Slumdog Millionaire,” “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” “The Newsroom,” “The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” “Chappie,” “The Man Who Knew Infinity,” “Lion,” “Hotel Mumbai”)

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Judy At Carnegie Hall: Fortieth Anniversary Edition

Judy Garland

Whitney: The Greatest Hits

Whitney Houston

Shane

Starring Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur and Van Heflin, and directed by George Stevens

The Real Coke, The Real Story

Thomas Oliver

The Ultimate Collection

Roy Orbison

Slumdog Millionaire

Starring Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor and Freida Pinto, and directed by Danny Boyle

Musical Milestones

1957 – Elvis Presley records “Jailhouse Rock,” which is first released as a single and later featured in the movie of the same name. It goes on to top the pop chart for seven weeks.

1966 – “Good Lovin’,” by The Young Rascals, tops the Billboard Hot 100.

1977 – Glen Campbell lands on top of the Billboard singles chart with “Southern Nights,” his second No. 1 hit.

1983 – Acclaimed blues artist Muddy Waters — best known for “I Just Want To Make Love To You,” “I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man” and “Got My Mojo Working” — dies of a heart attack at the age of 68.

1983 – Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” album delivers yet another chart-topper. “Beat It” rises to the top of the Billboard singles chart, just one week after “Billie Jean” ends its seven-week run at No. 1.

1988 – “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” by Whitney Houston, begins its second and final week as a chart-topper.

1994 – R. Kelly begins his fourth and final week at No. 1 on the pop chart with “Bump ‘N Grind.”

2015 – Legendary R&B singer Ben E. King, who performed with The Drifters before launching a solo career, dies at the age of 76. In 1960, the Drifters had a No. 1 single with “Save The Last Dance For Me,” and King had the Top 10 hit “Stand By Me” in 1961 and again in 1986 when it was used in the movie of the same name.

History Highlights

1789 – George Washington, the great military leader of the American Revolution, is inaugurated as the first president of the United States during a ceremony at Federal Hall in New York City — then the nation’s capital.

1939 – Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) becomes the first U.S. president to appear on television when he officially opens the New York World’s Fair. He does so on the 150th anniversary of George Washington’s presidential inauguration.

1945 – With Soviet forces closing in on him, German dictator Adolf Hitler and his companion, Eva Braun, commit suicide in his underground bunker in Berlin.

1975 – Saigon falls, as the president of South Vietnam announces his country’s unconditional surrender to the Viet Cong. Communist troops move into Saigon and a thousand Americans are hastily evacuated.

1993 – A knife-wielding man lunges from the stands during a tennis match in Hamburg, Germany and stabs then-world No. 1-ranked Monica Seles in the back. Spectators subdue the assailant, a fan of German tennis great Steffi Graf, who apparently hoped that by injuring Seles, Graf would be able to regain her No. 1 ranking. Seles recovers, but takes a two-year hiatus from the game.

1997 – Ellen DeGeneres’ TV character, Ellen Morgan, comes out as lesbian on “Ellen.” The introduction of the first-ever gay lead character on television becomes a breakthrough moment for the LGBQT community. Forty-four million viewers tune in to “The Puppy Episode,” which captures an Emmy and Peabody Award.

Celebrity Birthdays

1908 – Actress Eve Arden (“Our Miss Brooks,” “Grease,” “Grease 2”) (d. 1990)

1923 – Actor Al Lewis, born Albert Meister, best known for his portrayal of Grandpa in the 1960s sitcom “The Munsters” and Officer Leo Schnauser in another 60s sitcom, “Car 54, Where Are You?” (d. 2006)

1926 – Oscar and Emmy-winning actress Cloris Leachman (“The Last Picture Show,” “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “Young Frankenstein”)

1943 – Pop music singer and 1960s teen idol Bobby Vee (“Take Good Care of My Baby,” “The Night Has a Thousand Eyes”)

1944 – Actress Jill Clayburgh (“An Unmarried Woman,” “Starting Over”) (d. 2010)

1961 – Basketball Hall of Famer and 12-time NBA All-Star Isiah Thomas

1975 – Actor Johnny Galecki (“Roseanne,” “The Big Bang Theory”)

1982 – Actress Kirsten Dunst (“Interview With the Vampire,”,”Devil’s Arithmetic”,”The Bonfire of the Vanities,” “Spider-Man” trilogy, “Marie Antoinette,” “The Virgin Suicides,” “Melancholia”)

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Jailhouse Rock

Starring Elvis Presley, Judy Tyler and Mickey Shaughnessy, and directed by Richard Thorpe

The Very Best of Ben E. King

Ben E. King

Images of America: The 1939-1940 New York World's Fair/The World of Tomorrow

Bill Cotter

Hitler's Last Secretary: A Firsthand Account of Life with Hitler

Traudl Junge and Melissa Muller

Anatomy of a Murder

Starring James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara and Eve Arden, and directed by Otto Preminger

Interview With the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles

Starring Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Stephen Rea and Kirsten Dunst, and directed by Neil Jordan

Musical Milestones

1954 – Doris Day has the No. 1 single with “Secret Love” from the movie “Calamity Jane.”” The recording goes on to capture an Academy Award for Best Original Song.

1961 – “Pony Time” by Chubby Checker gallops away as the No. 1 single for three weeks.

1971 – Five months after her death, Janis Joplin begins nine weeks on top of the Billboard album chart with her second and final solo studio album, “Pearl,” which contains her smash “Me and Bobby McGee.”

1980 – The first and last Grammy ever awarded for Best Disco Recording goes to Gloria Gaynor for “I Will Survive,” unofficially marking the end of the disco era.

1988 – George Michael kicks off two weeks on top of the singles chart with “Father Figure,” off his debut studio album, “Faith.”

1993 – Whitney Houston wraps up a 14-week reign over the pop chart with “I Will Always Love You,” a song written and originally recorded by Dolly Parton in 1973.

1999 – “Angel of Mine,” by Monica, is in the midst of a four-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

History Highlights

1827 – Masked and costumed students dance through the streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, marking the beginning of the city’s famous Mardi Gras celebrations.

1951 – On the heels of FDR’s four successive presidential terms, Congress ratifies the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1, limiting the tenure of presidential office to two terms.

1964 – The Italian government announces that it is accepting suggestions on how to save the renowned Leaning Tower of Pisa from collapsing.

1991 – During the Persian Gulf War, President George H. W. Bush announces that “Kuwait is liberated.”

Celebrity Birthdays

1902 – Pulitzer and Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck (“The Grapes of Wrath,” “East of Eden,” “Of Mice and Men”) (d. 1968)

1930 – Oscar-winning actress Joanne Woodward (“The Three Faces of Eve,” “Rachel Rachel,” “Summer Wishes,” “Winter Dreams,” “Mr. and Mrs. Bridge”)

1932 – Oscar-winning actress Elizabeth Taylor (“National Velvet,” “A Place in the Sun,” “Giant,” “Cat On a Hot Tin Roof,” “Butterfield 8,” “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”) (d. 2011)

1940 – Actor Howard Hesseman, best known for playing DJ Johnny Fever on the 1970s TV sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati”

1980 – Presidential daughter and businesswoman Chelsea Clinton

1981 – Pop and classical singer-songwriter Josh Groban, who has performed at both the Olympics and the Super Bowl

1983 – Actress Kate Mara (“Brokeback Mountain,” “We Are Marshall,” “Shooter,” “The Open Road,” “Transcendence,” “Fant4stic” “House of Cards”)

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Pearl

Janis Joplin

Faith

George Michael

New Orleans Carnival Krewes: The History, Spirit & Secrets of Mardi Gras

Rosary O’Neill

A Brief History of the Leaning Tower of Pisa

Piero Pierotti

Of Mice and Men

John Steinbeck

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

Starring Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman and Burl Ives, and directed by Richard Brooks

Musical Milestones

1963 – Paul & Paula wrap up their three-week ride on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Hey Paula.”

1974 – Barbra Streisand dominates the pop chart for a third week with the Oscar and Grammy-winning theme from the movie “The Way We Were.”

1978 – Grammy Award winners include Fleetwood Mac (Album of the Year for “Rumours”), Eagles (Record of the Year for “Hotel California”),and The Bee Gees (Best Pop Vocal Performance for “How Deep Is Your Love”).

1980 – “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” becomes Queen’s first No. 1 single in the U.S. The track, penned by Freddie Mercury (who reportedly wrote the song in the bathtub), holds the top spot for four weeks.

1991 – Whitney Houston scores her ninth No. 1 single in five years with “All the Man That I Need.”

2000 – Carlos Santana cleans up at the 42nd Annual Grammys, winning eight awards, including Album of the Year for his chart-topping “Supernatural” album.

2002 – “Always on Time,” by Ja Rule featuring Ashanti, tops the Billboard Hot 100.

History Highlights

1836 – The Battle of the Alamo begins as Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna and his army arrive in San Antonio, Texas. Undaunted, William Travis, Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie and a few hundred others prepare to defend the mission together, holding out for 13 days. “Remember the Alamo!” becomes a rallying cry for the Texian Army.

1945 – During the Battle of Iwo Jima, a group of U.S. Marines and a commonly forgotten U.S. Navy Corpsman reach the top of Mount Suribachi on the island and are photographed raising the American flag. The photo would later win a Pulitzer Prize and become the model for the national U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial.

1954 – Elementary school children in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania receive the first injections of the new polio vaccine developed by Dr. Jonas Salk.

1968 – Considered a basketball legend, Wilt Chamberlain becomes the first NBA player to score more than 25,000 points.

1980 – American speed skater Eric Heiden wins the 10,000-meter race at the Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, setting a world record with his time and winning an unprecedented fifth Gold medal at the games.

1997 – Scientists in Scotland announce that they have cloned a sheep named Dolly—the first successful cloning of a mammal from an adult cell. This development sparks widespread speculation about the possibility of human cloning.

Celebrity Birthdays

1868 – American civil rights activist, sociologist, educator, historian and writer W.E.B. Du Bois (d.1963)

1940 – Actor Peter Fonda (“Easy Rider,” “Ulee’s Gold,” “The Passion of Ayn Rand,” “Wild Hogs,” “3:10 to Yuma”)

1955 – 80s synth-pop singer-songwriter Howard Jones (“Things Can Only Get Better,” “Life in One Day,” “No One Is To Blame”)

1965 – Entrepreneuer and Dell Computer founder-CEO Michael Dell

1976 – Actress Kelly Macdonald (“Trainspotting,” “Gosford Park,” “The Girl in the Café,” “Boardwalk Empire”)

1983 – Golden Globe-winning actress Emily Blunt (“The Devil Wears Prada,” “Gideon’s Daughter,” “The Adjustment Bureau,” “The Five-Year Engagement,” “Edge of Tomorrow,” “Sicario,” “The Huntsman: Winter’s War,” “The Girl on the Train”, “A Quiet Place”, “Mary Poppins Returns”)

1994 – Actress Dakota Fanning (“I Am Sam,” “Man on Fire,” “War of the Worlds,” “Charlotte’s Web,” “Coraline,” “The Twilight Saga”)

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The Platinum Collection (Greatest Hits I, II & III)

Queen

Supernatural

Carlos Santana

Polio: An American Story

David M. Oshinsky

The Rivalry: Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and the Golden Age of Basketball

John Taylor

Easy Rider

Starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Karen Black, and directed by Dennis Hopper

Live Die Repeat: Edge of Tomorrow

Starring Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt and Bill Paxton, and directed by Doug Liman

Musical Milestones

1964 – “Meet The Beatles!” reaches No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, becoming The Beatles’ first chart-topping album in the U.S. It holds the top spot for eleven weeks and sells more than four million copies by the end of that year.

1965 – Entertainer Nat King Cole (“Unforgettable,” “Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer,” “The Christmas Song,” “Mona Lisa”), who earned early acclaim as a jazz pianist and became the first African American performer to host a network TV variety show, dies of lung cancer at the age of 45.

1965 – The Beatles record “Another Girl” and “Ticket to Ride” for the “Help!” album. Earlier that day, John Lennon earns a personal ticket to ride by passing his driving test.

1969 – Sly & the Family Stone rule the Billboard singles chart with “Everyday People,” which remains at No. 1 for four weeks.

1975 – “You’re No Good,” by Linda Ronstadt, is the No. 1 single.

1984 – Beloved actress-singer Ethel Merman, best known for her rendition of “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” from the musical “Annie Get Your Gun,” dies at the age of 75.

1986 – “How Will I Know,” by Whitney Houston, becomes the most popular single in the U.S. for two weeks.

History Highlights

1879 – President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

1898 – The battleship USS Maine explodes and sinks in Havana (Cuba) Harbor, killing more than 260 crewmen. The incident prompts the U.S. to declare war on Spain.

1903 – The first teddy bear, named for U.S. President Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt, goes on sale. Toy store owner and inventor Morris Michtom places two stuffed bears in his shop window after personally getting Roosevelt’s permission to name them after him.

1965 – A new red-and-white maple leaf design is adopted as the flag of Canada, replacing the old Canadian Red Ensign banner.

1978 – Leon Spinks takes the heavyweight boxing champion title away from defending champ Muhammad Ali in a split decision in Las Vegas.

1985 – “The Breakfast Club,” directed by John Hughes and starring Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, and other members of the ‘Brat Pack,’ is released.

Celebrity Birthdays

1564 – Scientist Galileo Galilei (generally referred to as Galileo), a major figure in the scientific revolution, who made pioneering discoveries that advanced the study of astronomy, physics and philosophy (d. 1642)

1820 – Suffragette reformer and women’s rights activist Susan B. Anthony (d. 1906)

1927 – Emmy-winning comedian Harvey Korman (“The Carol Burnett Show,” “Blazing Saddles”) (d. 2008)

1951 – Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Melissa Manchester (“Midnight Blue,” “Don’t Cry Out Loud, “Through the Eyes of Love”)

1951 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Jane Seymour (“Somewhere in Time,” “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman,” “Wedding Crashers”)

1954 – Cartoonist Matt Groening, best known for creating “The Simpsons”

1964 – Actor-comedian Chris Farley (“Saturday Night Live,” “Wayne’s World,” “Tommy Boy,” “Black Sheep,” “Beverly Hills Ninja”) (d. 1997)

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Meet The Beatles!

The Beatles

The Very Best Of Nat King Cole

Nat King Cole

One Punch from the Promised Land: Leon Spinks, Michael Spinks, And The Myth Of The Heavyweight Title

John Florio and Ouisie Shapiro

The Breakfast Club

Starring Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall, and directed by John Hughes

The Carol Burnett Show: Carol's Crack Ups

Carol Burnett

The Simpsons: Season 1

Starring Albert Brooks and Maggie Roswell, and directed by Brad Bird and David Silverman

Musical Milestones

1914 – The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) is established to protect the copyrighted musical compositions of its members.

1961 – “Calcutta,” by Lawrence Welk, is the most popular single in America.

1961 – Frank Sinatra launches Reprise Records in order to have more artistic freedom for his own recordings — a move that garners him the nickname “The Chairman of the Board.” Reprise later becomes the home of many influential acts, such as Neil Young, Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman and The Beach Boys.

1967 – The Beatles release the double A-sided single “Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane” on Capitol Records in the U.S.

1971 – “One Bad Apple,” by The Osmonds, latches on to the No. 1 spot on the singles chart for five weeks.

1993 – “I Will Always Love You,” by Whitney Houston, is in the midst of a 14-week ride atop the singles chart.

History Highlights

1861 – Colonel Bernard Irwin becomes the first person awarded the new U.S. Medal of Honor for leading his troops in a battle against the Chiricahua Apaches during a rescue mission.

1945 – Allied firebombing raids begin against Dresden, reducing the eastern German city to rubble and flames and leaving thousands dead. The assault becomes the single most destructive bombing of World War II — including Hiroshima and Nagasaki — and has been considered controversial because Dresden was neither significant to German wartime production nor an industrial center.

1965 – Sixteen-year-old Peggy Fleming wins the ladies senior figure skating title at the U.S. Figure Skating championships in Lake Placid, New York. Fleming goes on to win Olympic gold.

1974 – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, winner of the Nobel Prize in literature in 1970, is exiled from the Soviet Union.

2001 – “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” by director Ang Lee, earns 10 Oscar nominations, becoming the first Asian film and only the seventh foreign-language production to get a nod for Best Picture.

Celebrity Birthdays

1923 – Retired U.S. Air Force General Chuck Yaeger, the first pilot to break the sound barrier

1933 – Actress Kim Novak (“Vertigo,” “The Man With the Golden Arm,” “Bell, Book and Candle”)

1934 – Golden Globe-winning actor George Segal (“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” “A Touch of Class,” “Just Shoot Me,” “The Goldbergs”)

1942 – Singer-songwriter Peter Tork, best known as keyboardist and bass guitarist of The Monkees (d. 2019)

1944 – Talk show host and former Cincinnati Mayor Jerry Springer

1944 – Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress Stockard Channing (“Grease,” “Six Degrees of Separation,” “The West Wing”)

1950 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and former Genesis front man Peter Gabriel (“Solsbury Hill,” “Shock the Money,” “Sledgehammer,” “Don’t Give Up,” “Big Time,” “In Your Eyes,” “Red Rain”)

1979 – Actress Mena Suvari (“American Beauty,” “American Pie,” “Six Feet Under”)

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The Best of The Osmonds: The Millennium Collection

The Osmonds

Whitney The Greatest Hits

Whitney Houston

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

Alexander Solzhenitsyn

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Starring Michelle Yeoh, Chow Yun Fat and Zhang Ziyi, and directed by Ang Lee

Grease

Starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, and directed by Randal Kleiser

American Pie

Starring Jason Biggs, Jason Biggs and Chris Klein, and directed by Paul Weitz

Musical Milestones

1956 – RCA Records releases Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel,” which sells 300,000 copies in its first week to become Presley’s first Gold record. That spring, it spends seven weeks on top of the pop chart.

1962 – The hottest song on the radio is “Peppermint Twist” by Joey Dee & The Starliters.

1973 – Stevie Wonder sneaks into the top spot on the singles chart with “Superstition,” from his “Talking Book” album that also contains the hit “You Are The Sunshine of My Life.”

1984 – King of Pop, Michael Jackson, suffers second and third degree burns on his scalp during the filming of a Pepsi commercial in Los Angeles.

1991 – Grammy-winning pop legend Whitney Houston performs “The Star Spangled Banner” at Super Bowl XXV in Tampa, Florida to such excellent response that a single (that eventually reaches No. 20 on the Billboard Hot 100) and video are rush-released. Houston’s appearance comes amid heightened patriotism across the U.S. during the Persian Gulf War.

1996 – “One Sweet Day” by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men is in the midst of an unprecedented 16 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100.

2001 – Destiny’s Child enjoys the final week of an 11-week reign over the Billboard Hot 100 with “Independent Women, Part I.”

History Highlights

1888 – The National Geographic Society is founded in Washington, D.C. for “the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge.”

1910 – Thomas Crapper, widely considered the prime developer of the flush toilet mechanism still in use today, dies at the age of 73.

1945 – Soviet troops reach the Auschwitz concentration camp complex and liberate more than 7,000 remaining prisoners who survived the Holocaust.

1965 – Ford introduces the Shelby GT 350, a version of the Mustang sports car developed by auto racer/car designer Carroll Shelby. The vehicle features a 306-horsepower V-8 engine and remains in production through 1971.

1967 – A launch pad fire during a preflight test at Cape Kennedy, Florida, kills Apollo 1 astronauts Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee. An investigation determines that a faulty electrical wire inside the command module was the probable cause.

1973 – In Paris, the U.S., South Vietnam, Viet Cong, and North Vietnam formally sign “An Agreement Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam.”

1996 – Tennis great Monica Seles wins her first Grand Slam title since her 1993 stabbing by a mentally unstable fan during a tournament in Hamburg, Germany that led her to take a two-year hiatus from the sport.

Celebrity Birthdays

1756 – Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (d. 1791)

1832 – Writer Lewis Carroll (“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” “Through the Looking-Glass”) (d. 1898)

1921 – Actress Donna Reed (“It’s a Wonderful Life,” “From Here to Eternity,” “The Donna Reed Show”) (d. 1986)

1940 – Emmy-winning actor James Cromwell (“Babe,” “Star Trek: First Contact,” “L.A. Confidential,” “The Green Mile,” “Six Feet Under,” “American Horror Story: Asylum”)

1944 – Pink Floyd founding member-drummer and auto racer Nick Mason

1948 – Dancer-actor Mikhail Baryshnikov (“The Turning Point,” “White Nights,” “Sex and the City”)

1956 – Actress Mimi Rogers (“Someone to Watch Over Me,” “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery”)

1959 – TV host and political commentator Keith Olbermann

1964 – Actress Bridget Fonda (“Single White Female,” “Point of No Return,” “Jackie Brown”)

1979 – Actress Rosamund Pike (“Die Another Day,” “Pride and Prejudice,” “Jack Reacher,” “Gone Girl,” “Entebbe”)

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Peppermint Twist

Joey Dee & The Starliters

Talking Book

Stevie Wonder

Flushed With Pride: The Story of Thomas Crapper

Wallace Reyburn

Failure Is Not an Option: Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond

Gene Kranz

The Donna Reed Show

Joanne Morreale

Star Trek VIII: First Contact

Starring Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner and James Cromwell, and directed by Jonathan Frakes

Musical Milestones

1965 – The Supremes have a No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Come See About Me.”

1971 – George Harrison marks his fourth and final week at No. 1 on the pop chart with “My Sweet Lord.”

1979 – Cher’s divorce from Gregg Allman is finalized.

1988 – Twenty-four years after The Beatles first rule the singles chart, “Got My Mind Set On You” by George Harrison is No. 1. The track was originally recorded by R&B singer James Ray in 1962.

1988 – After huge success as half of the pop duo Wham! during the early to mid-80s, George Michael claims the top spot on the Billboard album chart with his debut solo album, “Faith.” The production packs several major hits, including the title track, “Father Figure,” “One More Try” and “Monkey.”

1993 – “I Will Always Love You,” by Whitney Houston, is in the middle of a 14-week domination of the Billboard singles chart.

1999 – Brandy’s “Have You Ever?” tops the Billboard Hot 100 and remains there for two weeks.

2004 – King of Pop, Michael Jackson, pleads not guilty to child molestation charges, as fans, reporters and TV crews from around the world swarm outside the California courthouse. The judge admonishes Jackson for arriving late.

History Highlights

1919 – The 18th Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes.” Known as Prohibition, the alcohol ban takes effect one year and one day later — on January 17, 1920 — and remains the law of the land until 1933 when it is repealed.

1942 – Actress Carole Lombard, famous for her roles in such screwball comedies as “My Man Godfrey” and “To Be or Not to Be,” and for her marriage to actor Clark Gable, is killed in a plane crash outside Las Vegas at the age of 33.

1979 – The Shah of Iran is forced to flee his country amid violent protests against his regime. Later that year, he settles in the U.S.

1991 – The Persian Gulf War begins as the United Nations deadline for the Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait expires at midnight. The Pentagon prepares to launch offensive operations to forcibly eject Iraq from its five-month occupation of its oil-rich neighbor.

1997 – Comedian and TV star Bill Cosby’s 27-year-old son Ennis is murdered while fixing a flat tire along a Los Angeles freeway.

Celebrity Birthdays

1908 – Theater actress and singer Ethel Merman, best remembered for her rendition of “There’s No Business Like Show Business” (d. 1984)

1935 – Indianapolis 500 champion A.J. Foyt

1943 – Grammy and Country Music Award-winning singer Ronnie Milsap (“Pure Love,” “There’s No Getting Over Me,” “Smoky Mountain Rain”)

1948 – Director-screenwriter-producer and composer John Carpenter, best known for the classic horror film “Halloween”

1950 – Actress-dancer Debbie Allen (“Fame,” “West Side Story,” “Sweet Charity”)

1959 – Grammy-winning musician Sade, born Helen Folasade Adu (“Smooth Operator,” “The Sweetest Taboo”)

1974 – Supermodel Kate Moss

1979 – R&B singer and actress Aaliyah, born Aaliyah Dana Haughton, whose career was cut short by a plane crash in The Bahamas (d. 2001)

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The Best Of Diana Ross & The Supremes: The Millennium Collection

The Supremes

Faith (Remastered)

George Michael

Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition

Daniel Okrent

Fireball: Carole Lombard and the Mystery of Flight 3

Robert Matzen

Merman...Her Greatest!

Ethel Merman

Halloween

Starring Donald Pleasence and Jamie Lee Curtis, and directed by John Carpenter

Musical Milestones

1964 – Diana Ross & The Supremes score their third No. 1 single of 1964 with “Come See About Me,” which holds the top spot for a week.

1970 – Elton John’s first U.S. hit, “Your Song,” from the “Elton John” album, enters the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it eventually climbs to No. 8.

1979 – Elvis Presley’s personal physician, George Nichopoulos, is charged with ‘illegally and indiscriminately’ prescribing more than 12,000 uppers, downers and painkillers for the star during the 20 months preceding his untimely death.

1987 – George Michael is in the middle of a four-week domination of the pop chart with “Faith.”

1992 – “I Will Always Love You,” by Whitney Houston, starts its fourth week as a No. 1 single. It holds the top spot for a total of 14 weeks.

2000 – Roebuck “Pops” Staples, gospel singer, songwriter, guitarist and founding member of the Staple Singers, dies at age 85. The group had hits including “I’ll Take You There,” “Respect Yourself” and “Let’s Do It Again” in the 1970s.

History Highlights

1732 – Benjamin Franklin begins publishing “Poor Richard’s Almanack.” The book, filled with proverbs preaching industry and prudence, is published continuously for 25 years and becomes one of the most popular publications in colonial America, selling an average of 10,000 copies a year.

1843 – Charles Dickens publishes his Christmas classic, “A Christmas Carol.”

1903 – New Yorkers celebrate the opening of the Williamsburg Bridge, the second and largest of three steel-frame suspension bridges crossing the East River.

1972 – The Apollo manned lunar-landing program ends as the last three astronauts to travel to the moon safely splash down in the Pacific Ocean. Apollo 17 had lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, 10 days earlier.

1984 – The British government signs an agreement to return Hong Kong to China in 1997.

1998 – President Bill Clinton is impeached on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice by a divided House of Representatives, which recommends virtually along party lines that the Senate remove the nation’s 42d president from office. Clinton vows to finish his term.

Celebrity Birthdays

1915 – Internationally acclaimed French cabaret singer-songwriter and actress Edith Piaf, who became widely regarded as France’s national chanteuse (d. 1963)

1924 – Emmy and Tony-winning actress Cicely Tyson (“Sounder,” “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman,” “The Help”)

1944 – Paleoanthropologist-conservationist Richard Leakey

1957 – Basketball Hall of Famer Kevin McHale

1963 – Actress Jennifer Beals (“Flashdance,” “Devil in a Blue Dress,” “Four Rooms,” “The Chicago Code”)

1972 – Actress Alyssa Milano (“Who’s the Boss?” “Melrose Place,” “Charmed,” “Mistresses”)

1980 – Actor Jake Gyllenhaal (“October Sky,” “Donnie Darko,” “The Day After Tomorrow,” “Jarhead,” “Brokeback Mountain,” “Zodiac,” “Nightcrawler,” “Southpaw”)

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The Best of Diana Ross & The Supremes: The Millennium Collection

Diana Ross & The Supremes

Elton John

Poor Richard's Almanac

by Benjamin Franklin

A Christmas Carol

Charles Dickens

The Voice of the Sparrow: The Very Best of Edith Piaf

Édith Piaf

Brokeback Mountain

Starring Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal and Randy Quaid, and directed by Ang Lee

Musical Milestones

1964 – Bobby Vinton stands alone on top of the Billboard singles survey with “Mr. Lonely,” his second No. 1 of the year.

1970 – Smokey Robinson & The Miracles kick off two weeks atop the singles chart with “The Tears Of A Clown,” the group’s 26th Top 40 hit and first No. 1.

1987 – “Faith,” by George Michael, begins a four-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100. It goes on to become the biggest-selling single of 1988.

1992 – Whitney Houston has the No. 1 single with “I Will Always Love You,” which remains a chart-topper for 14 weeks and becomes one of the best-selling singles of all time.

2003 – Prince Charles bestows knighthood status upon Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger at Buckingham Palace. Jagger’s 92-year-old father, Joe, and daughters Elizabeth and Karis are on hand for the prestigious event.

2007 – R&B legend Ike Turner, credited by many music historians with making the first rock ‘n roll record in 1951, dies of a cocaine overdose at the age of 76. Turner was the former husband of superstar Tina Turner. The couple enjoyed a string of late 60s-early 70s hits, including “Proud Mary” and “River Deep Mountain High.”

History Highlights

1901 – Guglielmo Marconi successfully sends the first radio transmission across the Atlantic Ocean.

1917 – In Omaha, Nebraska, Irish priest, Father Edward J. Flanagan, opens the doors to Boys Town, a home for troubled and neglected children that continues to provide this service today.

1967 – “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” a groundbreaking movie about an interracial romantic relationship starring Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier and Katharine Houghton, opens in theaters.

1972 – The world turns upside down for cruise ship passengers when the epic disaster film “The Poseidon Adventure” opens, featuring a veritable Hollywood ‘Who’s Who’ of a cast.

1980 – American oil tycoon Armand Hammer pays $5.1 million at auction for a notebook containing writings by artist-inventor Leonardo da Vinci. The manuscript, written around 1508, is among over two dozen books da Vinci produced during his lifetime.

1989 – The so-called “Queen of Mean,” hotel operator and real estate developer Leona Helmsley, who once quipped that “only the little people pay taxes,” receives a four-year prison sentence, 750 hours of community service and a $7.1 million fine for tax fraud.

2000 – General Motors (GM) announces that it will begin to phase out its Oldsmobile line of cars, the oldest automotive brand in the United States. The last Olds rolls off an assembly line about four years later.

Celebrity Birthdays

1893 – Actor Edward G. Robinson, known for playing mobsters and other tough guys (“Little Caesar,” “Double Indemnity,” “The Woman in the Window,” “Scarlet Street,” “Key Largo”) (d. 1973)

1915 – Legendary Grammy and Oscar-winning entertainer Frank Sinatra, born Francis Albert Sinatra, and affectionately called “Ol’ Blue Eyes” and “The Chairman of the Board” (d. 1998)

1923 – Retired “The Price is Right” host and animal rights activist Bob Barker

1924 – Former New York City Mayor and “The People’s Court” Judge Ed Koch (d. 2013)

1938 – Pop singer Connie Francis, born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (Who’s Sorry Now?”, “Stupid Cupid”)

1940 – Grammy-winning singer Dionne Warwick (“Don’t Make Me Over,” “Walk On By,” “Alfie,” “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?”)

1949 – Actor Bill Nighy (“The Men’s Room,” “Love Actually,” “Pirates of the Caribbean” series, “The Girl in the Café,” “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”)

1952 – Actress and Olympic gymnast Cathy Rigby

1970 – Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Connelly (“Requiem for a Dream,” “A Beautiful Mind,” “The House of Sand and Fog,” “Hulk”)

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The Best Of Smokey Robinson & The Miracles: The Millennium Collection

Smokey Robinson & The Miracles

Faith (Remastered)

George Michael

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner

Starring Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier and Katharine Hepburn, and directed by Stanley Kramer

The Poseidon Adventure

Starring Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine and Red Buttons, and directed by Ronald Neame

Double Indemnity

Starring Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward G. Robinson, and directed by Billy Wilder

Sinatra: Best Of The Best

Frank Sinatra