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19th day of 2011 - 346 remaining
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
THUMBS UP DAY
The first film reviews appeared in Variety magazine on this day in 1907. The magazine had only been in print two years before it expanded its section covering new vaudeville acts in order to include reviews of films.
Critics were kind in the days before talkies. Maybe they didn’t bother reading the subtitles and just reviewed the action. The first film to receive the critic’s praise was a comedy titled, An Exciting Honeymoon. It was just seven minutes long. The other ‘first’ Variety film review was of the thirteen-minute movie, The Life of a Cowboy. The critics gave it two thumbs up, saying it was “so melodramatic in treatment that it acted on the audience like a vivid play.”
And, a century later, Variety is still in the movie-review business
Events January 19
1825 - Ezra Daggett and Thomas Kensett of New York City patented a canning process to preserve salmon, oysters and lobsters.
1840 - Antarctica was discovered by Charles Wilkes expedition. Simultaneous to Wilkes’ American expedition were those from two of the dominant players in Antarctic exploration, Great Britain and France.
1915 - George Claude of Paris, France patented the neon tube advertising sign. His handiwork was regularly seen adorning the Eiffel Tower and many pizza parlors throughout America. Now you can buy a neon sign for your in-home office at the discount warehouse. Probably not in one of George Claude’s wildest dreams...
1937 - Howard Hughes set a transcontinental air record, flying from Los Angeles to New York City in 7 hours, 28 minutes and 25 seconds.
1942 - The Japanese Army crossed the river Salween to invade Burma. Already victorious in the fighting in China, Hong Kong and the Philippines, the Japanese faced weak opposition from the British and Empire troops defending the vast Burmese frontier.
1947 - The Steve Canyon comic strip debuted. It ran through June 4, 1988.
1949 - The salary of the President of the United States was increased from $75,000 to $100,000 with an additional $50,000 expense allowance added for each year in office.
1952 - The National Football League bought the franchise of the defunct New York Yanks. The NFL permitted the New York Giants to take five players from the Yanks roster. One of the five was Tom Landry, who played (defensive back, punter and kick returner) for the Giants for several years. The NFL sent the Yanks franchise to Dallas where it became the first incarnation of the Dallas Texans, but folded after one season. (In 1953, the NFL reinstated that dead Dallas Texans franchise as the Baltimore Colts). Pay attention now: In 1959, the AFL was organized with a new team named the Dallas Texans as a charter club (in 1963, that team moved to Kansas City and became the Chiefs.) In 1960, still another new Dallas team (the Cowboys) hired Tom Landry as head coach. FYI: That original New York Yanks club was sold to the NFL in 1952 for a mere $300,000.
1953 - Sixty-eight percent of all TV sets in the U.S. were tuned to CBS-TV this day, as Lucy Ricardo of I Love Lucy gave birth to a baby boy -- just as she actually did in real life -- following the script to the letter! The audience for the program was greater than that watching the inauguration of President Dwight D. Eisenhower the following day.
1955 - U.S. President Eisenhower allowed a filmed news conference to be used on television (and in movie newsreels) for the first time. The 33-minute conference was cut to 28-1/2 minutes to fit TV formats.
1957 - Philadelphia comedian, Ernie Kovacs, became a major star, when he was able to pull off the challenge of doing a half-hour TV show without uttering a single word of dialogue.
1959 - **** Clark’s American Bandstand was the number-one daytime TV show in the U.S. Remember Rate-A-Record? Three kids would listen and then rate a new song. Rankings went from 35 to 98. The usual comment, “It has a good beat and you can dance to it.”
1966 - Indira Gandhi, the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, was appointed India’s prime minister. Following the death of her father (May 1964), Gandhi had become minister of information and broadcasting in Lal Bahadur Shastri’s government. Gandhi succeeded him as prime minister this day, after he died suddenly. The following year she was elected to a 5-year term by the Parliament members of the dominant Congress party. She led her party to a landslide victory in the national elections of 1971. Indira Gandhi was assassinated Oct 31, 1984 by Sikh members of her security guard.
1970 - The soundtrack of the film, Easy Rider, the movie that made a star of Peter Fonda, became a gold record. It was the first pop-culture, film soundtrack to earn the gold award.
1971 - Ruby Keeler made her comeback in the play, No, No Nanette, which opened at the 46th Street Theatre in New York City. Keeler played the role of Sue Smith in the revival of the 1925 hit musical. The show played on for 861 performances.
1974 - Notre Dame ended UCLA’s 88-game winning streak -- at South Bend, Indiana. The Fighting Irish posted a 71-70 basketball win over the Bruins of the University of California at Los Angeles.
1976 - The Beatles turned down an offer of $50 million to play together again on the same stage. Rock promoter Bill Sargent was astonished when the group turned down the offer.
1977 - Outgoing U.S. President Gerald R. Ford pardoned Tokyo Rose on this day. Tokyo Rose, whose real name was Iva Toguri D’Aquino, was an American citizen of Japanese descent. Millions of G.I.s knew her voice from World War II Japanese propaganda radio broadcasts. The programs were extremely popular with U.S. servicemen located in remote areas of the Pacific. Although there was little evidence that the broadcasts had any negative effect, D’Aquino had been convicted of treason after the war.
1983 - Klaus Barbie (“the butcher of Lyon”), Nazi Gestapo chief in Lyon, France during the German occupation, was arrested in Bolivia on charges of having tortured and killed thousands of people. After World War II, Barbie was protected and employed by U.S. intelligence agents because of his “police skills’ and anti-Communist zeal.” Klaus Barbie, together with his wife and children, then escaped to Latin America, where he worked primarily as an interrogator and torturer for dictatorships both in Peru and in Bolivia. He was tried in 1987 and died in prison in 1991.
1985 - The New York Times announced that Lee Iacocca’s book, Iacocca, was the best selling hard cover book of 1984. It wasn’t topped in sales until the arrival of Rush Limbaugh’s first tome in the early 1990s.
1989 - Loretta Lynn and Crystal Gayle teamed up for a version of Stand By Your Man in honor of President-elect George Bush (I). Other celebrities at the pre-inaugural gala included Clint Eastwood, Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra.
1991 - Janet Jackson’s single, Love Will Never Do (Without You), hit #1 (for one week) in the U.S.: “I feel better when I have you near me; Cause no other love around; Has quite the same ooh ooh (ha ha ha!); Like you do do do do babe.”
1992 - City of Angels Closed at the Virginia Theater in New York City after 879 performances.
1993 - A pre-inaugural gala in Landover, MD toasted incoming U.S. President Bill Clinton. The party featured a reunion of Fleetwood Mac performing Don't Stop (Thinking About Tomorrow), the unofficial campaign song for Clinton and his running mate, Al Gore. Other performers included Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, Michael Jackson, Little Richard and Chuck Berry.
1995 - Russian troops regained control of the presidential palace in Grozny, the capital of the breakaway republic of Chechnya.
1995 - Mr. Holland’s Opus opened in the U.S. (a frustrated composer finds fulfillment as a high school music teacher). The drama stars Richard Dreyfuss, Glenne Headly, Jay Thomas, Olympia Dukakis, W. H. Macy, Alicia Witt and Jean Louisa Kelly.
1997 - The English Patient won best picture and Evita won in the category of best movie musical or comedy at the annual Golden Globes.
1998 - Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Carl Perkins died at age 65 after a series of strokes. Perkins was a Tennessee sharecropper’s son. His first guitar was made from a cigar box and broom handle, and his "Blue Suede Shoes" was written on a potato sack.
2000 - Michael Skakel, a nephew of Robert F. Kennedy, was charged with bludgeoning to death 15-year-old Martha Moxley in Greenwich, Connecticut, in 1975 (when he was 15 also). (Skakel was convicted in 2002 and was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison.)
2000 - Actress Hedy Lamarr died in Orlando, FL at age 86. She made her Hollywood debut as Gaby in the 1938 film Algiers; followed a year later with Lady of the Tropics. In 1942, she landed the plum role of Tondelayo in the classic, White Cargo. In 1949, Hedy Lamarr appeared as Delilah opposite Victor Mature in Samson and Delilah.
2001 - New movies in the U.S.: The Gift (a woman with extrasensory perception is asked to help find a young woman who has disappeared), starring Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Keanu Reeves, Greg Kinnear and Hilary Swank; The Pledge (a retiring police chief pledges to catch the killer of a young child), with Jack Nicholson, Robin Wright Penn and directed by Sean Penn; and Snatch (weirdos tracking down a priceless stolen diamond), starring Benicio Del Toro, Dennis Farina, Jason Flemyng, Vinnie Jones, Brad Pitt, Rade Sherbedgia and Jason Statham.
2002 - Reports revealed that China had imposed new Internet controls and were requiring Internet service providers to screen all e-mail messages in the country for political content.
2003 - At the 60th Golden Globes The Hours won as best drama and Chicago won as best musical or comedy. Jack Nicholson won the prize for his role in About Schmidt and Nicole Kidman won for her role in The Hours. Martin Scorsese won as best director for Gangs of New York.
2003 - The Oakland Raiders won the AFC title game, beating the Tennessee Titans 41-24. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers took the NFC Championship game, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 27-10.
2004 - In the Iowa caucuses John Kerry led the Democrats with 38%, John Edwards was second with 32%, Howard Dean was third with 18% and **** Gephardt fourth with 11%.
2005 - Assault on Precinct 13 opened in U.S. theatres. The action thriller stars Laurence Fishburne, Ethan Hawke, Maria Bello, Drea de Matteo, John Leguizamo, Aisha Hinds, Gabriel Byrne, Fulvio Cecere, Kim Coates, Matt Craven, Brian Dennehy, Colin Glazer, Currie Graham, Sasha Roiz and Ja Rule.
2005 - Walter Wriston, longtime head of Citicorp and an advisor to U.S. President Ronald Reagan, died in NY at 85 years of age.
2006 - The 22nd Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the U.S., began in Salt Lake City and Park City, Utah. The festival opened with the world premiere of Friends With Money, written and directed by Nicole Holofcener and starring Jennifer Aniston, Scott Caan, Joan Cusack, Catherine Keener and Frances McDormand.
2006 - Thirty-one people died during a four-day cold snap in Russia where temperatures plunged to as low as -31°C (-24°F). In Siberia, the temperature plummeted to minus 61 degrees Celsius (minus 78 Fahrenheit), an all-time record low.
2007 - North Carolina’s Governor Mike Easley announced that online search giant Google was investing some $600 million to build a data center in his state.
2007 - Singer, songwriter Denny Doherty, of The Mamas and the Papas, died at his home in Ontario, Canada of an abdominal aneurysm after having undergone surgery a few weeks earlier. He was 66 years old. The group was known for their soaring harmony on hits like California Dreamin’ (1966) and Monday, Monday. Doherty was the third of the band’s four members to die. ‘Mama’ Cass Elliot died of a heart attack in 1974 and ‘Papa’ John Phillips died of heart failure in 2001. Michelle Phillips is the remaining living member of the group.
2008 - Hillary Clinton defeated rival Barack Obama 51-45% in tight Democratic Nevada caucuses. Her delegate count increased to 236, followed by Barack Obama with 136 and 50 for Senator John Edwards. Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor, cruised to victory in the little-contested GOP Nevada caucuses.
2008 - Actress Suzanne Pleshette died in Los Angeles. The film and TV star was best known for her role as Bob Newhart’s sardonic wife on the long-running The Bob Newhart Show. Her work also included roles in such films as Hitchcock’s The Birds and in Broadway plays including The Miracle Worker.
2009 - China warned of a rising Bird flu risk after a second person died of the virus in less than a month.
2009 - U.S. President George Bush (II), in his final acts of clemency, granted early prison releases to two former U.S. Border Patrol agents whose convictions for shooting a Mexican drug dealer in 2005 fueled the debate over illegal immigration.
2010 - Smokin’ Aces 2: Assassins’ Ball opened in U.S. theatres. The action crime drama stars Tom Berenger, Clayne Crawford, Tommy Flanagan, Maury Sterling, Martha Higareda, Christopher Michael Holley, Ernie Hudson, Michael Parks, Autumn Reeser and Vinnie Jones.
2010 - The U.S. Justice Department arrested 22 executives and employees of suppliers to the military and law enforcement agencies. The arrests came after a 2½-year undercover sting operation aimed at foiling schemes to bribe a foreign official.
2010 - Japan Airlines filed for one of the country’s largest bankruptcies ever, entering a restructuring that shrank Asia’s top carrier and its presence around the world.
Birthdays January 19
1736 - James Watt
inventor: condensing steam engine; the watt, a Unit of power, was named after him; died Aug 19, 1819
1807 - Robert E. (Edward) Lee
Civil War: Confederate General surrendered to the North’s General Ulysses S. Grant; died Oct 12, 1870
1809 - Edgar Allan Poe
poet: The Raven; author of suspense tales: The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Fall of the House of Usher; died Oct 7, 1849
1813 - Sir Henry Bessemer
inventor: the Bessemer process of converting pig iron to steel; died Mar 15, 1898
1908 - Merwyn Bogue
Ish Kabibble: comic singer: Three Little Fishies; sang and played trumpet with Kay Kyser’s Kollege of Musical Knowledge; big bandleader; combo: The Shy Guys; died June 5, 1994
1909 - Hans Hotter
opera singer: [as Wotan] Der Ring des Nibelungen; actor: Land, das meine Sprache spricht, Grobstadtnacht, Seine beste Rolle, Lache Bajazzo, Bruderlein fein, Mutterliebe; died Dec 6, 2003
1922 - Guy Madison (Robert Ozell Moseley)
actor: Zorro, Drums in the Deep South, Special Forces, Hell Commandos, Till the End of Time; died Feb 6, 1996
1923 - Jean Stapleton (Murray)
Emmy Award-winning actress: All in the Family [1970-1971, 1971-1972, 1977-1978]; Bells are Ringing, Cinderella, **** Yankees, Klute
1926 - Fritz Weaver
actor: Holocaust, Marathon Man, Black Sunday
1930 - Tippi (Natalie) Hedren
actress: The Birds, Deadly Spygames, Harrad Experiment, Pacific Heights
1931 - Robert MacNeil
Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist: The Story of English: A Muse of Fire [1986-87]; The MacNeil/Lehrer Report, NBC News anchor [1965]
1939 - Phil Everly
singer: The Everly Brothers [w/brother, Don]: Bye Bye Love, Wake Up Little Susie, All I Have to Do is Dream, Bird Dog, Cathy’s Clown; solo: When Will I Be Loved; radio host: In Session
1940 - Mary Mills
champion golfer: U.S. Open [1963]; LPGA [1964, 1973]
1941 - Tony Anholt
actor: Space, The Protectors, Howards’ Way, The Late Nancy Irving, The Last Days of Pompeii, The Strauss Family, Cosmic Princess, Napoleon and Love, Destination Moonbase Alpha; died Jul 26, 2002
1942 - Michael Crawford (Dumble-Smith)
actor, singer: The Phantom of the Opera, Condorman, Hello, Dolly!, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, The Knack
1943 - Janis Joplin
singer: with Big Brother and The Holding Company: Piece of My Heart, How Hard It Is; formed Kozmic Blues Band, then Full Tilt Boogie Band: Pearl, Me and Bobby McGee; died Oct 4, 1970
1944 - Shelley Fabares
singer: Johnny Angel, Johnny Loves Me; comedienne-actress, Nanette Fabray’s niece
1946 - Dolly Parton
songwriter, singer: ACM Entertainer of the Year [1977], CMA Entertainer of the year [1978]: Jolene, Coat of Many Colors, Here You Come Again, 9-to-5, You’re the Only One, [w/Kenny Rogers]: Islands in the Stream; Grand Ol’ Opry member; actress: 9-to-5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias; owns Dollywood amusement park in Tennessee
1947 - Ann Compton
newscaster: ABC News
1947 - Rod Evans
singer: group: Deep Purple: Hush, Kentucky Woman, Black Night, Speed King, Child in Time, Strange Kind of Woman, Fireball, Demon’s Eye
1948 - Terry Hanratty
football: Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback: Super Bowl IX, X
1948 - Harvey Hinsley
musician: guitar: groups: Outlaws, Cliff Bennett’s Rebel Rousers, Hot Chocolate Emma, Disco Queen, You Sexy Thing, So You Win Again, I’ll Put You Back Together Again, Every 1’s a Winner, Girl Crazy, Chances
1949 - Robert Palmer
singer, guitarist: Sneakin’ Sally through the Alley, Hey Julia, Addicted to Love, Every Kinda People, I Didn’t Mean to Turn You On, It Could Happen To You; died Sep 26, 2003
1950 - Jon (Jonathan Trumpbour) Matlack
baseball: pitcher: NY Mets [NL Rookie of the Year: 1972/World Series: 1973/all-star: 1974-1976], Texas Rangers
1951 - Dewey Bunnell
musician, singer, songwriter: group: America: A Horse with No Name, You Can Do Magic
1951 - Martha Davis
songwriter, singer: group: The Motels: Only the Lonely, Danger, Celia, Shame, Careful, Suddenly Last Summer, So L.A., Cries and Whispers
1953 - Desi Arnaz Jr.
entertainer, singer: group: Dino, Desi and Billy: Through Spray Colored Glasses; see 1953 [above]
1953 - Larry Goodenough
hockey: Richmond Robins, Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks, Tulsa Oilers, Dallas Blackhawks, Saginaw Gears, Houston Apollos, New Haven Nighthawks, Binghamton Whalers
1957 - Mickey Virtue
musician: keyboard: group: UB40: Food for Thought, If It Happens Again, Don’t Break My Heart, Red, Red Wine
1961 - William Ragsdale
actor: Fright Night, LA Blues, The Last Time, Road House 2: Last Call, Big Momma’s House 2, Pizza My Heart, The Madam’s Family: The Truth About the Canal Street Brothel, Herman’s Head, American Pie, Grosse Point
1966 - Sylvain Cote
hockey: Hartford Whalers, Washington Capitals, Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, Dallas Stars
1966 - Stefan Edberg
International Tennis Hall of Famer: 41 titles, including six grand slams
1969 - Orlando Palmeiro
baseball: Univ of Miami; California/Anaheim Angels, SL Cardinals, Houston Astros
1969 - Junior Seau
football: Univ of Southern California; NFL: SD Chargers, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots
1970 - T.J. (Timothy Jay) Matthews
baseball [pitcher]: Nevada-Las Vegas College; St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, Houston Astros
1971 - Phil Nevin
baseball: Cal State-Fullerton Univ; Houston Astros, Detroit Tigers, Anaheim Angels, SD Padres
1971 - Shawn Wayans
film writer, producer, actor: In Living Color, The Wayans Bros., Little Man, White Chicks, Scary Movie, Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood; brother of Keenen Ivory Wayans, Damon Wayans, Marlon Wayans and Kim Wayans
1972 - Drea de Matteo
actress: The Sopranos, West Memphis Three, Beacon Hill, Deuces Wild, Swordfish, The Perfect You, ’R Xmas, Sleepwalk, Meet Prince Charming, Assault on Precinct 13
1972 - Tyrone Wheatley
football: Univ of Michigan and has played NY Giants, Oakland Raiders
1973 - Chris Stynes
baseball: KC Royals, Cincinnati Reds, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, Pittsburgh Pirates
1974 - Ian Laperriere
hockey: SL Blues, NY Rangers, LA Kings, Colorado Avalanche
1974 - Brian Martin
luge: Olympics: bronze medal [1998], silver [2002]
1975 - Fernando Seguignol
baseball: Montreal Expos, NY Yankees
1976 - Randy Thomas
football: Mississippi State Univ; NFL: NY Jets, Washington Redskins
1976 - Marsha Thomason
actress: Las Vegas, Lost, White Collar, Into the Blue 2: The Reef, LA Blues, The Fast One, The Haunted Mansion, Black Knight, Prime Suspect 5: Errors of Judgement
1977 - Keith Newman
football [linebacker]: Univ of North Carolina; NFL: Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons, Minnesota Vikings
1978 - Bernard Williams
track and field: Olympic 200m silver medalist [2004]; World Outdoor 100m bronze medalist [2001]; U.S. Outdoor 100m champion [2003]; Olympic 4x100m relay gold medalist [2000]; World Outdoor 4x100m relay gold medalist [2001, 2003]; NCAA 100m champ [2000]; Pan American Games 100m champ [1999]
1982 - Jodie Sweetin
actress: Full House, Jim Henson Presents Mother Goose Stories, Small Bits of Happiness, Port City
1984 - Trever O’Brien
actor: They Call Him Sasquatch, Motocrossed, Michael Landon, The Father I Knew, Homecoming, Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace, Ring of the Musketeers; brother of actor Austin O’Brien
1992 - Logan Lerman
actor: Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, 3:10 to Yuma, The Number 23, Meet Bill, Gamer, My One and Only, What Women Want, The Patriot
Chart Toppers January 19
1949Buttons and Bows - Dinah Shore
A Little Bird Told Me - Evelyn Knight
On a Slow Boat to China - The Kay Kyser Orchestra (vocal: Harry Babbitt & Gloria Wood
I Love You So Much It Hurts - Jimmy Wakely
1958At the Hop - Danny & The Juniors
Oh, Boy! - The Crickets
Don’t/I Beg of You - Elvis Presley
Great Balls of Fire - Jerry Lee Lewis
1967I’m a Believer - The Monkees
Tell It Like It Is - Aaron Neville
Good Thing - Paul Revere & The Raiders
Where Does the Good Times Go - Buck Owens
1976I Write the Songs - Barry Manilow
Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You’re Going To) - Diana Ross
Love Rollercoaster - Ohio Players
Convoy - C.W. McCall
1985Like a Virgin - Madonna
All I Need - Jack Wagner
You’re the Inspiration - Chicago
How Blue - Reba McEntire
1994Hero - Mariah Carey
All for Love - Bryan Adams/Rod Stewart/Sting
Breathe Again - Toni Braxton
Wild One - Faith Hill
2003Beautiful - Christina Aguilera
I’m With You - Avril Lavigne
Your Body Is a Wonderland - John Mayer
19 Somethin’ - Mark Wills
Chart Topper January 19th, 1976...I Write the Songs - Barry Manilow
View attachment 9772
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
THUMBS UP DAY
The first film reviews appeared in Variety magazine on this day in 1907. The magazine had only been in print two years before it expanded its section covering new vaudeville acts in order to include reviews of films.
Critics were kind in the days before talkies. Maybe they didn’t bother reading the subtitles and just reviewed the action. The first film to receive the critic’s praise was a comedy titled, An Exciting Honeymoon. It was just seven minutes long. The other ‘first’ Variety film review was of the thirteen-minute movie, The Life of a Cowboy. The critics gave it two thumbs up, saying it was “so melodramatic in treatment that it acted on the audience like a vivid play.”
And, a century later, Variety is still in the movie-review business
Events January 19
1825 - Ezra Daggett and Thomas Kensett of New York City patented a canning process to preserve salmon, oysters and lobsters.
1840 - Antarctica was discovered by Charles Wilkes expedition. Simultaneous to Wilkes’ American expedition were those from two of the dominant players in Antarctic exploration, Great Britain and France.
1915 - George Claude of Paris, France patented the neon tube advertising sign. His handiwork was regularly seen adorning the Eiffel Tower and many pizza parlors throughout America. Now you can buy a neon sign for your in-home office at the discount warehouse. Probably not in one of George Claude’s wildest dreams...
1937 - Howard Hughes set a transcontinental air record, flying from Los Angeles to New York City in 7 hours, 28 minutes and 25 seconds.
1942 - The Japanese Army crossed the river Salween to invade Burma. Already victorious in the fighting in China, Hong Kong and the Philippines, the Japanese faced weak opposition from the British and Empire troops defending the vast Burmese frontier.
1947 - The Steve Canyon comic strip debuted. It ran through June 4, 1988.
1949 - The salary of the President of the United States was increased from $75,000 to $100,000 with an additional $50,000 expense allowance added for each year in office.
1952 - The National Football League bought the franchise of the defunct New York Yanks. The NFL permitted the New York Giants to take five players from the Yanks roster. One of the five was Tom Landry, who played (defensive back, punter and kick returner) for the Giants for several years. The NFL sent the Yanks franchise to Dallas where it became the first incarnation of the Dallas Texans, but folded after one season. (In 1953, the NFL reinstated that dead Dallas Texans franchise as the Baltimore Colts). Pay attention now: In 1959, the AFL was organized with a new team named the Dallas Texans as a charter club (in 1963, that team moved to Kansas City and became the Chiefs.) In 1960, still another new Dallas team (the Cowboys) hired Tom Landry as head coach. FYI: That original New York Yanks club was sold to the NFL in 1952 for a mere $300,000.
1953 - Sixty-eight percent of all TV sets in the U.S. were tuned to CBS-TV this day, as Lucy Ricardo of I Love Lucy gave birth to a baby boy -- just as she actually did in real life -- following the script to the letter! The audience for the program was greater than that watching the inauguration of President Dwight D. Eisenhower the following day.
1955 - U.S. President Eisenhower allowed a filmed news conference to be used on television (and in movie newsreels) for the first time. The 33-minute conference was cut to 28-1/2 minutes to fit TV formats.
1957 - Philadelphia comedian, Ernie Kovacs, became a major star, when he was able to pull off the challenge of doing a half-hour TV show without uttering a single word of dialogue.
1959 - **** Clark’s American Bandstand was the number-one daytime TV show in the U.S. Remember Rate-A-Record? Three kids would listen and then rate a new song. Rankings went from 35 to 98. The usual comment, “It has a good beat and you can dance to it.”
1966 - Indira Gandhi, the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, was appointed India’s prime minister. Following the death of her father (May 1964), Gandhi had become minister of information and broadcasting in Lal Bahadur Shastri’s government. Gandhi succeeded him as prime minister this day, after he died suddenly. The following year she was elected to a 5-year term by the Parliament members of the dominant Congress party. She led her party to a landslide victory in the national elections of 1971. Indira Gandhi was assassinated Oct 31, 1984 by Sikh members of her security guard.
1970 - The soundtrack of the film, Easy Rider, the movie that made a star of Peter Fonda, became a gold record. It was the first pop-culture, film soundtrack to earn the gold award.
1971 - Ruby Keeler made her comeback in the play, No, No Nanette, which opened at the 46th Street Theatre in New York City. Keeler played the role of Sue Smith in the revival of the 1925 hit musical. The show played on for 861 performances.
1974 - Notre Dame ended UCLA’s 88-game winning streak -- at South Bend, Indiana. The Fighting Irish posted a 71-70 basketball win over the Bruins of the University of California at Los Angeles.
1976 - The Beatles turned down an offer of $50 million to play together again on the same stage. Rock promoter Bill Sargent was astonished when the group turned down the offer.
1977 - Outgoing U.S. President Gerald R. Ford pardoned Tokyo Rose on this day. Tokyo Rose, whose real name was Iva Toguri D’Aquino, was an American citizen of Japanese descent. Millions of G.I.s knew her voice from World War II Japanese propaganda radio broadcasts. The programs were extremely popular with U.S. servicemen located in remote areas of the Pacific. Although there was little evidence that the broadcasts had any negative effect, D’Aquino had been convicted of treason after the war.
1983 - Klaus Barbie (“the butcher of Lyon”), Nazi Gestapo chief in Lyon, France during the German occupation, was arrested in Bolivia on charges of having tortured and killed thousands of people. After World War II, Barbie was protected and employed by U.S. intelligence agents because of his “police skills’ and anti-Communist zeal.” Klaus Barbie, together with his wife and children, then escaped to Latin America, where he worked primarily as an interrogator and torturer for dictatorships both in Peru and in Bolivia. He was tried in 1987 and died in prison in 1991.
1985 - The New York Times announced that Lee Iacocca’s book, Iacocca, was the best selling hard cover book of 1984. It wasn’t topped in sales until the arrival of Rush Limbaugh’s first tome in the early 1990s.
1989 - Loretta Lynn and Crystal Gayle teamed up for a version of Stand By Your Man in honor of President-elect George Bush (I). Other celebrities at the pre-inaugural gala included Clint Eastwood, Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra.
1991 - Janet Jackson’s single, Love Will Never Do (Without You), hit #1 (for one week) in the U.S.: “I feel better when I have you near me; Cause no other love around; Has quite the same ooh ooh (ha ha ha!); Like you do do do do babe.”
1992 - City of Angels Closed at the Virginia Theater in New York City after 879 performances.
1993 - A pre-inaugural gala in Landover, MD toasted incoming U.S. President Bill Clinton. The party featured a reunion of Fleetwood Mac performing Don't Stop (Thinking About Tomorrow), the unofficial campaign song for Clinton and his running mate, Al Gore. Other performers included Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, Michael Jackson, Little Richard and Chuck Berry.
1995 - Russian troops regained control of the presidential palace in Grozny, the capital of the breakaway republic of Chechnya.
1995 - Mr. Holland’s Opus opened in the U.S. (a frustrated composer finds fulfillment as a high school music teacher). The drama stars Richard Dreyfuss, Glenne Headly, Jay Thomas, Olympia Dukakis, W. H. Macy, Alicia Witt and Jean Louisa Kelly.
1997 - The English Patient won best picture and Evita won in the category of best movie musical or comedy at the annual Golden Globes.
1998 - Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Carl Perkins died at age 65 after a series of strokes. Perkins was a Tennessee sharecropper’s son. His first guitar was made from a cigar box and broom handle, and his "Blue Suede Shoes" was written on a potato sack.
2000 - Michael Skakel, a nephew of Robert F. Kennedy, was charged with bludgeoning to death 15-year-old Martha Moxley in Greenwich, Connecticut, in 1975 (when he was 15 also). (Skakel was convicted in 2002 and was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison.)
2000 - Actress Hedy Lamarr died in Orlando, FL at age 86. She made her Hollywood debut as Gaby in the 1938 film Algiers; followed a year later with Lady of the Tropics. In 1942, she landed the plum role of Tondelayo in the classic, White Cargo. In 1949, Hedy Lamarr appeared as Delilah opposite Victor Mature in Samson and Delilah.
2001 - New movies in the U.S.: The Gift (a woman with extrasensory perception is asked to help find a young woman who has disappeared), starring Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Keanu Reeves, Greg Kinnear and Hilary Swank; The Pledge (a retiring police chief pledges to catch the killer of a young child), with Jack Nicholson, Robin Wright Penn and directed by Sean Penn; and Snatch (weirdos tracking down a priceless stolen diamond), starring Benicio Del Toro, Dennis Farina, Jason Flemyng, Vinnie Jones, Brad Pitt, Rade Sherbedgia and Jason Statham.
2002 - Reports revealed that China had imposed new Internet controls and were requiring Internet service providers to screen all e-mail messages in the country for political content.
2003 - At the 60th Golden Globes The Hours won as best drama and Chicago won as best musical or comedy. Jack Nicholson won the prize for his role in About Schmidt and Nicole Kidman won for her role in The Hours. Martin Scorsese won as best director for Gangs of New York.
2003 - The Oakland Raiders won the AFC title game, beating the Tennessee Titans 41-24. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers took the NFC Championship game, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 27-10.
2004 - In the Iowa caucuses John Kerry led the Democrats with 38%, John Edwards was second with 32%, Howard Dean was third with 18% and **** Gephardt fourth with 11%.
2005 - Assault on Precinct 13 opened in U.S. theatres. The action thriller stars Laurence Fishburne, Ethan Hawke, Maria Bello, Drea de Matteo, John Leguizamo, Aisha Hinds, Gabriel Byrne, Fulvio Cecere, Kim Coates, Matt Craven, Brian Dennehy, Colin Glazer, Currie Graham, Sasha Roiz and Ja Rule.
2005 - Walter Wriston, longtime head of Citicorp and an advisor to U.S. President Ronald Reagan, died in NY at 85 years of age.
2006 - The 22nd Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the U.S., began in Salt Lake City and Park City, Utah. The festival opened with the world premiere of Friends With Money, written and directed by Nicole Holofcener and starring Jennifer Aniston, Scott Caan, Joan Cusack, Catherine Keener and Frances McDormand.
2006 - Thirty-one people died during a four-day cold snap in Russia where temperatures plunged to as low as -31°C (-24°F). In Siberia, the temperature plummeted to minus 61 degrees Celsius (minus 78 Fahrenheit), an all-time record low.
2007 - North Carolina’s Governor Mike Easley announced that online search giant Google was investing some $600 million to build a data center in his state.
2007 - Singer, songwriter Denny Doherty, of The Mamas and the Papas, died at his home in Ontario, Canada of an abdominal aneurysm after having undergone surgery a few weeks earlier. He was 66 years old. The group was known for their soaring harmony on hits like California Dreamin’ (1966) and Monday, Monday. Doherty was the third of the band’s four members to die. ‘Mama’ Cass Elliot died of a heart attack in 1974 and ‘Papa’ John Phillips died of heart failure in 2001. Michelle Phillips is the remaining living member of the group.
2008 - Hillary Clinton defeated rival Barack Obama 51-45% in tight Democratic Nevada caucuses. Her delegate count increased to 236, followed by Barack Obama with 136 and 50 for Senator John Edwards. Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor, cruised to victory in the little-contested GOP Nevada caucuses.
2008 - Actress Suzanne Pleshette died in Los Angeles. The film and TV star was best known for her role as Bob Newhart’s sardonic wife on the long-running The Bob Newhart Show. Her work also included roles in such films as Hitchcock’s The Birds and in Broadway plays including The Miracle Worker.
2009 - China warned of a rising Bird flu risk after a second person died of the virus in less than a month.
2009 - U.S. President George Bush (II), in his final acts of clemency, granted early prison releases to two former U.S. Border Patrol agents whose convictions for shooting a Mexican drug dealer in 2005 fueled the debate over illegal immigration.
2010 - Smokin’ Aces 2: Assassins’ Ball opened in U.S. theatres. The action crime drama stars Tom Berenger, Clayne Crawford, Tommy Flanagan, Maury Sterling, Martha Higareda, Christopher Michael Holley, Ernie Hudson, Michael Parks, Autumn Reeser and Vinnie Jones.
2010 - The U.S. Justice Department arrested 22 executives and employees of suppliers to the military and law enforcement agencies. The arrests came after a 2½-year undercover sting operation aimed at foiling schemes to bribe a foreign official.
2010 - Japan Airlines filed for one of the country’s largest bankruptcies ever, entering a restructuring that shrank Asia’s top carrier and its presence around the world.
Birthdays January 19
1736 - James Watt
inventor: condensing steam engine; the watt, a Unit of power, was named after him; died Aug 19, 1819
1807 - Robert E. (Edward) Lee
Civil War: Confederate General surrendered to the North’s General Ulysses S. Grant; died Oct 12, 1870
1809 - Edgar Allan Poe
poet: The Raven; author of suspense tales: The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Fall of the House of Usher; died Oct 7, 1849
1813 - Sir Henry Bessemer
inventor: the Bessemer process of converting pig iron to steel; died Mar 15, 1898
1908 - Merwyn Bogue
Ish Kabibble: comic singer: Three Little Fishies; sang and played trumpet with Kay Kyser’s Kollege of Musical Knowledge; big bandleader; combo: The Shy Guys; died June 5, 1994
1909 - Hans Hotter
opera singer: [as Wotan] Der Ring des Nibelungen; actor: Land, das meine Sprache spricht, Grobstadtnacht, Seine beste Rolle, Lache Bajazzo, Bruderlein fein, Mutterliebe; died Dec 6, 2003
1922 - Guy Madison (Robert Ozell Moseley)
actor: Zorro, Drums in the Deep South, Special Forces, Hell Commandos, Till the End of Time; died Feb 6, 1996
1923 - Jean Stapleton (Murray)
Emmy Award-winning actress: All in the Family [1970-1971, 1971-1972, 1977-1978]; Bells are Ringing, Cinderella, **** Yankees, Klute
1926 - Fritz Weaver
actor: Holocaust, Marathon Man, Black Sunday
1930 - Tippi (Natalie) Hedren
actress: The Birds, Deadly Spygames, Harrad Experiment, Pacific Heights
1931 - Robert MacNeil
Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist: The Story of English: A Muse of Fire [1986-87]; The MacNeil/Lehrer Report, NBC News anchor [1965]
1939 - Phil Everly
singer: The Everly Brothers [w/brother, Don]: Bye Bye Love, Wake Up Little Susie, All I Have to Do is Dream, Bird Dog, Cathy’s Clown; solo: When Will I Be Loved; radio host: In Session
1940 - Mary Mills
champion golfer: U.S. Open [1963]; LPGA [1964, 1973]
1941 - Tony Anholt
actor: Space, The Protectors, Howards’ Way, The Late Nancy Irving, The Last Days of Pompeii, The Strauss Family, Cosmic Princess, Napoleon and Love, Destination Moonbase Alpha; died Jul 26, 2002
1942 - Michael Crawford (Dumble-Smith)
actor, singer: The Phantom of the Opera, Condorman, Hello, Dolly!, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, The Knack
1943 - Janis Joplin
singer: with Big Brother and The Holding Company: Piece of My Heart, How Hard It Is; formed Kozmic Blues Band, then Full Tilt Boogie Band: Pearl, Me and Bobby McGee; died Oct 4, 1970
1944 - Shelley Fabares
singer: Johnny Angel, Johnny Loves Me; comedienne-actress, Nanette Fabray’s niece
1946 - Dolly Parton
songwriter, singer: ACM Entertainer of the Year [1977], CMA Entertainer of the year [1978]: Jolene, Coat of Many Colors, Here You Come Again, 9-to-5, You’re the Only One, [w/Kenny Rogers]: Islands in the Stream; Grand Ol’ Opry member; actress: 9-to-5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias; owns Dollywood amusement park in Tennessee
1947 - Ann Compton
newscaster: ABC News
1947 - Rod Evans
singer: group: Deep Purple: Hush, Kentucky Woman, Black Night, Speed King, Child in Time, Strange Kind of Woman, Fireball, Demon’s Eye
1948 - Terry Hanratty
football: Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback: Super Bowl IX, X
1948 - Harvey Hinsley
musician: guitar: groups: Outlaws, Cliff Bennett’s Rebel Rousers, Hot Chocolate Emma, Disco Queen, You Sexy Thing, So You Win Again, I’ll Put You Back Together Again, Every 1’s a Winner, Girl Crazy, Chances
1949 - Robert Palmer
singer, guitarist: Sneakin’ Sally through the Alley, Hey Julia, Addicted to Love, Every Kinda People, I Didn’t Mean to Turn You On, It Could Happen To You; died Sep 26, 2003
1950 - Jon (Jonathan Trumpbour) Matlack
baseball: pitcher: NY Mets [NL Rookie of the Year: 1972/World Series: 1973/all-star: 1974-1976], Texas Rangers
1951 - Dewey Bunnell
musician, singer, songwriter: group: America: A Horse with No Name, You Can Do Magic
1951 - Martha Davis
songwriter, singer: group: The Motels: Only the Lonely, Danger, Celia, Shame, Careful, Suddenly Last Summer, So L.A., Cries and Whispers
1953 - Desi Arnaz Jr.
entertainer, singer: group: Dino, Desi and Billy: Through Spray Colored Glasses; see 1953 [above]
1953 - Larry Goodenough
hockey: Richmond Robins, Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks, Tulsa Oilers, Dallas Blackhawks, Saginaw Gears, Houston Apollos, New Haven Nighthawks, Binghamton Whalers
1957 - Mickey Virtue
musician: keyboard: group: UB40: Food for Thought, If It Happens Again, Don’t Break My Heart, Red, Red Wine
1961 - William Ragsdale
actor: Fright Night, LA Blues, The Last Time, Road House 2: Last Call, Big Momma’s House 2, Pizza My Heart, The Madam’s Family: The Truth About the Canal Street Brothel, Herman’s Head, American Pie, Grosse Point
1966 - Sylvain Cote
hockey: Hartford Whalers, Washington Capitals, Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, Dallas Stars
1966 - Stefan Edberg
International Tennis Hall of Famer: 41 titles, including six grand slams
1969 - Orlando Palmeiro
baseball: Univ of Miami; California/Anaheim Angels, SL Cardinals, Houston Astros
1969 - Junior Seau
football: Univ of Southern California; NFL: SD Chargers, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots
1970 - T.J. (Timothy Jay) Matthews
baseball [pitcher]: Nevada-Las Vegas College; St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, Houston Astros
1971 - Phil Nevin
baseball: Cal State-Fullerton Univ; Houston Astros, Detroit Tigers, Anaheim Angels, SD Padres
1971 - Shawn Wayans
film writer, producer, actor: In Living Color, The Wayans Bros., Little Man, White Chicks, Scary Movie, Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood; brother of Keenen Ivory Wayans, Damon Wayans, Marlon Wayans and Kim Wayans
1972 - Drea de Matteo
actress: The Sopranos, West Memphis Three, Beacon Hill, Deuces Wild, Swordfish, The Perfect You, ’R Xmas, Sleepwalk, Meet Prince Charming, Assault on Precinct 13
1972 - Tyrone Wheatley
football: Univ of Michigan and has played NY Giants, Oakland Raiders
1973 - Chris Stynes
baseball: KC Royals, Cincinnati Reds, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, Pittsburgh Pirates
1974 - Ian Laperriere
hockey: SL Blues, NY Rangers, LA Kings, Colorado Avalanche
1974 - Brian Martin
luge: Olympics: bronze medal [1998], silver [2002]
1975 - Fernando Seguignol
baseball: Montreal Expos, NY Yankees
1976 - Randy Thomas
football: Mississippi State Univ; NFL: NY Jets, Washington Redskins
1976 - Marsha Thomason
actress: Las Vegas, Lost, White Collar, Into the Blue 2: The Reef, LA Blues, The Fast One, The Haunted Mansion, Black Knight, Prime Suspect 5: Errors of Judgement
1977 - Keith Newman
football [linebacker]: Univ of North Carolina; NFL: Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons, Minnesota Vikings
1978 - Bernard Williams
track and field: Olympic 200m silver medalist [2004]; World Outdoor 100m bronze medalist [2001]; U.S. Outdoor 100m champion [2003]; Olympic 4x100m relay gold medalist [2000]; World Outdoor 4x100m relay gold medalist [2001, 2003]; NCAA 100m champ [2000]; Pan American Games 100m champ [1999]
1982 - Jodie Sweetin
actress: Full House, Jim Henson Presents Mother Goose Stories, Small Bits of Happiness, Port City
1984 - Trever O’Brien
actor: They Call Him Sasquatch, Motocrossed, Michael Landon, The Father I Knew, Homecoming, Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace, Ring of the Musketeers; brother of actor Austin O’Brien
1992 - Logan Lerman
actor: Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, 3:10 to Yuma, The Number 23, Meet Bill, Gamer, My One and Only, What Women Want, The Patriot
Chart Toppers January 19
1949Buttons and Bows - Dinah Shore
A Little Bird Told Me - Evelyn Knight
On a Slow Boat to China - The Kay Kyser Orchestra (vocal: Harry Babbitt & Gloria Wood
I Love You So Much It Hurts - Jimmy Wakely
1958At the Hop - Danny & The Juniors
Oh, Boy! - The Crickets
Don’t/I Beg of You - Elvis Presley
Great Balls of Fire - Jerry Lee Lewis
1967I’m a Believer - The Monkees
Tell It Like It Is - Aaron Neville
Good Thing - Paul Revere & The Raiders
Where Does the Good Times Go - Buck Owens
1976I Write the Songs - Barry Manilow
Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You’re Going To) - Diana Ross
Love Rollercoaster - Ohio Players
Convoy - C.W. McCall
1985Like a Virgin - Madonna
All I Need - Jack Wagner
You’re the Inspiration - Chicago
How Blue - Reba McEntire
1994Hero - Mariah Carey
All for Love - Bryan Adams/Rod Stewart/Sting
Breathe Again - Toni Braxton
Wild One - Faith Hill
2003Beautiful - Christina Aguilera
I’m With You - Avril Lavigne
Your Body Is a Wonderland - John Mayer
19 Somethin’ - Mark Wills
Chart Topper January 19th, 1976...I Write the Songs - Barry Manilow
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