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On This Day January 5

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Celebrity Birthdays

1928 – Former U.S. Vice President Walter “Fritz” Mondale, who served under President Jimmy Carter

1931 – Oscar, Golden Globe and Emmy-winning actor Robert Duvall (“To Kill a Mockingbird,” “Apocalypse Now,” “The Godfather,” “The Godfather Part II,” “Tender Mercies,” “Lonesome Dove,” “The Judge”)

1946 – Oscar-winning actress Diane Keaton (“The Godfather” series, “Annie Hall,” “The First Wives Club,” “Something’s Gotta Give”)

1969 – Shock rocker Marilyn Manson, born Brian Hugh Warner (“Sweet Dreams are Made of These,” “The Dope Show,” “The Beautiful People”)

1975 – Actor-director Bradley Cooper (“Wedding Crashers,” “Yes Man,” “He’s Just Not That Into You,” “The Hangover” trilogy, “Silver Linings Playbook,” “American Hustle,” “American Sniper,” “A Star is Born”)

1978 – Actress January Jones, best known for her role as Betty Draper in the “Mad Men” television series

History Highlights

1914 – The Ford Motor Company introduces an eight-hour workday and minimum wage of $5 for a day’s labor. 

1933 – Construction begins on California’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge, spanning San Francisco Bay.  Crews complete the engineering marvel ahead of schedule and $1.3 million under budget when it opens four years later, on May 27, 1937.

1970 – The ABC soap “All My Children” premieres and runs for 41 seasons.

1972 – President Richard Nixon orders the development of a new space transportation system that relies on a reusable vehicle, and NASA’s space shuttle program is born.

1998 – Entertainer-turned-congressman Sonny Bono is killed in a California skiing accident at the age of 62.

Musical Milestones

1959 – Coral Records releases Buddy Holly’s “It Doesn’t Matter Anymore.” It is Holly’s last single before his tragic death in a February 1959 plane crash that also killed popular singers Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper. 

1963 – “Telstar,” by the British instrumental band The Tornados, marks its third and final week as a No. 1 single. 

1973 – Bruce Springsteen releases his debut album, “Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J.,” on Columbia Records.

1979 – Jazz musician and bandleader Charles Mingus dies at the age of 56.  

1980 – KC and the Sunshine Band claims the top spot on the singles chart with “Please Don’t Go,” the band’s fifth and final Billboard No. 1.

1991 – Madonna scores the first No. 1 single of 1991 with “Justify My Love,” off her album, “The Immaculate Collection.” It remains a chart-topper for two weeks.

2002 – Nickelback enters its third week on top of the singles chart with “How You Remind Me.”

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