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22nd day of 2011 - 343 remaining
Saturday, January 22, 2011
SAY GOOD NIGHT, **** DAY
The NBC-TV show, Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, debuted “from beautiful downtown Burbank” on this night in 1968. (It received the official go-ahead after a successful pilot special that had aired in 1967.) The weekly show, produced by George Schlatter and Ed Friendly, then Paul Keyes, used 260 pages of jokes in each hour-long episode.
The first 14 shows earned Laugh-In (as it was commonly called) 4 Emmys. And “you bet your bippy,” Nielsen rated it #1 ... for two seasons.
Thanks to an ever-changing cast of regulars including the likes of Dan Rowan, **** Martin, Arte Johnson, Goldie Hawn, Ruth Buzzi, JoAnne Worley, Gary Owens, Alan Sues, Henry Gibson, Lily Tomlin, Richard Dawson, Judy Carne, President Richard Nixon (“Go ahead, sock it to me!”), the show became the highest-rated comedy series in TV history. Out of a list of 40, the only four to remain from the show’s inception to its finale were hosts, Dan Rowan and **** Martin; announcer, Gary Owens; and comedienne, Ruth Buzzi (famous for her bit as an old lady using her umbrella to whack the little old man who sat down next to her).
You may remember some of the skits:
Lily Tomlin as the nasal, irritating telephone operator; The Flying Fickle Finger of Fate Award; the joke wall with cast members throwing one-liners as they popped out of windows with buckets of water being thrown back; and the final single pair of clapping hands taking the show to its very last second of its weekly close.
Phrases like the aforementioned ‘Burbank’, ‘bippy’ and ‘sock it’ lines plus “Look that up in your Funk and Wagnalls” and “Here come da judge” became part of everyday conversation throughout the USA. The fast-paced, unstructured routines were a match for the climate of the country in the late 1960s. Laugh-In was innovative in its comedy style and has since been copied by many. Yet it wasn’t completely original (as if anything can be); being a mix of the slapstick of burlesque, the antics of the Keystone Cops and the topical satire of shows like That Was the Week That Was. In fact, the same shtick that worked for four decades for Burns and Allen, was working again; this time for Rowan and Martin:
“Say good night, ****.” “Good night ****.”
Events January 22
1879 - James Shields, who had previously served Illinois and Minnesota, began a term as a U.S. Senator from Missouri. He was the first Senator to serve three states.
1889 - The Columbia Phonograph Company was formed in Washington, DC.
1895 - The National Association of Manufacturers was organized in Cincinnati, OH. Let’s all make something today, in commemoration.
1907 - The Richard Strauss opera, Salome, was featured, with the Dance of the Seven Veils, at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. The opera was banned at the Met after one performance, but it was soon copied by vaudeville and strip-tease performers.
1931 - Clyde McCoy and his orchestra recorded Sugar Blues on this day. The tune became McCoy’s theme song, thanks to its popularity on Columbia Records, and later on Decca, selling over a million copies. (McCoy was said to be related to the feudin’ and a-fightin’ McCoys of Hatfield and McCoy fame.)
1944 - The U.S. 5th Army landed at Anzio, a beachhead south of Rome, Italy. The Germans sent eight divisions south from Rome to contain the invasion. The fighting went on for four months. The town of Carrocetto changed hands no less than 8 times as the Allies fought to break out and the Germans fought to contain them.
1946 - The Central Intelligence Group, which later became the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), was established by U.S. President Harry S Truman’s directive issued this day.
1947 - KTLA, Channel 5, in Hollywood, began operation as the first commercial television station west of the Mississippi River.
1952 - 29 people were killed, including former Secretary of War Robert P. Patterson, when an airliner hit an apartment building in Elizabeth, NJ. Seven of the dead were on ground.
1956 - Raymond Burr starred as Captain Lee Quince in the Fort Laramie debut on CBS radio. The program was said to be in “the Gunsmoke tradition.”
1957 - Suspected ‘Mad Bomber’ George P. Metesky was arrested in Waterbury, CT. Metesky was accused of planting more than thirty explosive devices in the New York City area.
1959 - The Coors Brewing Company of Golden, Colorado, began offering its beer in aluminum cans. Coors was the first American beverage company to manufacture and market its product in the new container.
1960 - Paul Pender beat Sugar Ray Robinson in a 15-round decision and gained international recognition as middleweight boxing champion.
1961 - 1960’s Olympic gold medalist and track star Wilma Rudolph set a world indoor mark in the women’s 60-yard dash. She ran the race in a speedy 6.9 seconds in a meet held in Los Angeles on this day.
1962 - Cleveland Indians pitcher Bob Feller was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.
1968 - Apollo 5 was launched. It was the was the first flight of the lunar module and as such was only a systems test. The lunar module separated successfully after two orbits. After four orbits the mission was over. Apollo 5 crashed into the Pacific several hundred kilometers southwest of Guam on Feb 12, 1968.
1973 - The U.S. Supreme Court struck down state laws that had restricted abortions during the first six months of pregnancy. The famous Roe vs. Wade case spawned the debate between a woman’s right to end her pregnancy and whether such an abortion is murder of an unborn child. The overheated debate continues and has caused radicals to bomb women’s reproductive health clinics, killing and injuring many.
1973 - George Foreman took the heavyweight boxing title away from ‘Smokin’ Joe Frazier in Kingston, Jamaica, mon. Actually, George didn’t just go up to Joe and say, “Gimme that!” He had to successfully punch his lights out in the boxing ring first.
1973- Former U.S. President Lyndon Baines Johnson died. He was 64 years old.
1976 - A bank robbery in Beirut netted a world record haul. Boxes of cash and other valuables taken from the British Bank of the Middle East in Bab Idriss were estimated to be worth some $50 million.
1979 - Abu Hassan (Ali Hassan Salameh), the alleged planner of the 1972 Munich raid, was killed by a bomb in Beirut.
1983 - The Steven Spielberg film, E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial, became the top movie moneymaker this day. In less than a year, E.T., the modern day, fairy tale, brought in $194 million in video rentals; replacing the previously #1 rented film, Star Wars. Something for E.T. to phone home about.
1984 - Super Bowl XVIII (at Tampa): Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington Redsking 9. The Redskins were slight favorites going into the game. Raiders’ QB Jim Plunkett and LB Matt Millen called their own plays. Plus lots of big plays and that ’83 defense, did the Redskins in. MVP: Raiders’ RB Marcus Allen. Tickets: $60.00.
1987 - Phil Donahue became the first talk show host to tape a show from inside the Soviet Union. Donahue appeared in Leningrad, Kiev and Moscow. The shows were seen by Russian TV audiences later in the year.
1989 - Super Bowl XXIII (at Miami): San Francisco 49ers 20, Cincinnati Bengals 16. In the brand new Joe Robbie Stadium, it was coach Bill Walsh vs. coach Sam Wyche, QB Joe Montana vs. QB Boomer Esiason. The score at halftime: 3-3. In the end, the 49ers got past the Bengals, but just barely. MVP: 49ers’ WR Jerry Rice. 49ers won their third Super Bowl. Some said the Bengals lost “the best Super Bowl ever played.” Tickets: $100.00.
1990 - A jury in Syracuse, NY convicted graduate student Robert T. Morris of federal computer tampering charges for unleashing a ‘worm’ that crippled a computer network. Morris was the first person to be convicted under a U.S. law designed to protect computer systems from malicious break-ins and viruses.
1991 - In the Gulf War: Iraq fired ten Scud missiles into Saudi Arabia. All were either intercepted or fell into unpopulated areas. In Tel Aviv, however, a Scud eluded the Patriot missile defense system and struck the city, killing three people.
1992 - Roberta Bondar was the first Canadian woman in space. She was a member of the crew of the space shuttle Discovery which blasted off this day.
1993 - On the 20th anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision, U.S. President Bill Clinton lifted a series of abortion restrictions imposed by his Republican predecessors. (On this day in 2001, President George Bush (II) reimposed those restrictions.)
1994 - Schindler’s List, Steven Spielberg’s drama about the Holocaust, won Golden Globes for best dramatic picture and best director.
1994 - Actor Telly Savalas (Kojak) died in Universal City, CA, a day after turning 70.
1995 - Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy died at the age of 104 at the family’s Cape Cod compound. She was the the daughter of Boston mayor John Francis Fitzgerald, known as ‘Honey Fitz’; the wife of U.S. Ambassador Joseph Kennedy; the mother of U.S. President John F. Kennedy; and mother of U.S. Senators Robert F. and Edward M. Kennedy.
1997 - Rhythm-and-blues singer Ron Holden, best known for his hit single Love You So, died in Mexico at age 57. Love You So was Holden’s only hit, reaching number seven on Billboard June 13, 1960.
1998 - “The Unabomber’s career is over,” said prosecutor Robert Cleary. Theodore Kaczynski had pleaded guilty to being the notorious Unabomber. Kaczynski made the guilty plea in Sacramento, California in return for a sentence of life in prison without parole. Kaczynski was charged with four bombings in 1985, 1993 and 1995 that killed two people and maimed two. But the plea bargain resolved all federal charges against him -- including those filed in New Jersey -- growing out of the 17-year string of 16 bombings that killed three people and injured 29.
1998 - Mary Bono, widow of singer/politician Sonny Bono, announced that she would run for the congressional seat held by her late husband -- to represent the 44th Congressional District in California, which includes Palm Springs.
1998 - U.S. President Bill Clinton struggled to defuse an explosive sex scandal involving him with a former White House intern.
1999 - Gloria opened in the U.S. “Gloria. Big Mouth. Big Attitude. But Who Knew She Had a Big Heart.” The movie, starring Sharon Stone, Jeremy Northam, Jean-Luke Figueroa, Cathy Moriarty, Mike Starr, Bonnie Bedelia and George C. Scott, was directed by Sidney Lumet.
2000 - Food writer and restaurant critic Craig Claiborne died at a New York hospital. He was 79 years old. In 1957 he became the food editor of The New York Times and wrote The New York Times Cook Book in 1961, which became the standard text for home cookery.
2001 - Four of the seven convicts who had broken out of a Texas prison the previous month were captured southwest of Denver; a fifth inmate killed himself. (The last two escapees were caught two days later.)
2002 - British diplomats were accused of spying on Russia using a fake rock. The device, planted in a Moscow park, received information electronically and later transmitted it to a hand-held computer.
2003 - World War-II cartoonist Bill Maudlin died in Newport Beach, CA. He was 81 years old. In 1945 Maudlin won a Pulitzer Prize for his war cartoons.
2004 - Actress, dancer Ann Miller died in Los Angeles at 80 years of age. She appeared in over forty motion pictures during her sixty-year career.
2004 - The Chinese New Year (Lunar Year 4702) ushered in the Year of the Monkey -- the Wood Monkey, to be exact. Each animal in the Chinese zodiac is represented by one of five ‘elements’ important to Chinese culture: wood, water, fire, earth and metal. The next Year of the Monkey happens in 2016, and that will be the year of the Fire Monkey.
2005 - Gazillionaire Donald Trump (58) married Slovenian model Melania Knauss (34) in a glamourous, glitzy ceremony.
2006 - Kobe Bryant scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in the Lakers’ 122-104 come-from-behind win in Los Angeles. Bryant’s total was the second highest in NBA history (after Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 points on March 2, 1962).
2007 - The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a California criminal sentencing law because it allowed judges to add years to prison terms based on the judge’s own own fact finding. The court ruled that only juries could determine the justifcation for imposing longer prison terms on state prisoners.
2008 - The New York City Board of Health ruled that restaurant chains must list the number of calories in everything on their menus.
2008 - Australian-born actor Heath Ledger was found dead in a Manhattan apartment. He was 28 years old. The NYC medical examiner said Ledger died of an accidental overdose of painkillers, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety medication and other prescription drugs. Ledger received an Oscar nomination for his role as a troubled gay cowboy in the 2006 film, Brokeback Mountain.
2009 - Russia’s Central Bank said it would widen the ruble’s trading range to allow an effective 10 percent devaluation of the national currency.
2009 - U.S. President Barack Obama signed an executive order to close Guantanamo Bay prison within one year, fulfilling his campaign promise to close a facility that critics around the world said violates the rights of detainees. Obama also banned the CIA from operating secret prisons.
2010 - New movies in U.S. theatres: Extraordinary Measures, starring Harrison Ford, Brendan Fraser, Keri Russell and Courtney B. Vance; Creation, with Paul Bettany, Jennifer Connelly, Jeremy Northam, Toby Jones and Benedict Cumberbatch; Legion, starring Paul Bettany, Dennis Quaid, Tyrese Gibson, Doug Jones, Jon Tenney, Charles S. Dutton, Lucas Black, Kate Walsh, Adrianne Palicki, Kevin Durand and Willa Holland; Tooth Fairy, with Dwayne Johnson, Ashley Judd, Julie Andrews, Chase Ellison, andBilly Crystal; Drool, starring Laura Harring, Jill Marie Jones, Ashely Duggan Smith, Christopher Newhouse, Ruthie Austin and Oded Fehr; and To Save a Life, with Randy Wayne, Deja Kreutzberg, Joshua Weigel, Steven Crowder and D. David Morin.
2010 - Beijing issued a stinging response to criticism from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that China was jamming the free flow of words and ideas on the Internet. The statement accused the U.S. of damaging relations between the two countries by hoisting its ‘information imperialism’ on China.
2010 - Police in Mexico City rescued 150 ferrets from armed robbers after a high speed chase. 14 boxes of ferrets imported from the U.S. had been taken from a truck by robbers after it left the Mexico City airport. Why were the ferrets stolen? We’re still checking into that...
Birthdays January 22
1561 - Sir Francis Bacon
philosopher, writer: The Advancement of Learning, Novum Organum; died Apr 9, 1626
1788 - Lord (George) Byron
poet: Manfred, Cain, Don Juan; died Apr 19, 1824
1875 - D.W. (David Wark) Griffith
film producer, director: The Birth of a Nation; Los Angeles’ Griffith Park named for him; died July 23, 1948
1890 - Frederick Vinson
13th Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court; Congressman, WWII Director of War Mobilization; U.S. Secretary of the Treasury [1945]; died Sep 8, 1953
1904 - George Balanchine (Georgi Balanchivadze)
choreographer: Apollo, Orpheus, Firebird, Swan Lake, The Nutcracker; founded School of American Ballet and New York City Ballet; died Apr 30, 1983
1909 - Ann Sothern (Harriette Lake)
actress: Lady Be Good, Panama Hattie, The Whales of August, The Ann Sothern Show, voice of My Mother, the Car; died Mar 15, 2001
1909 - U Thant
statesman from Burma: United Nations Secretary-General [1961-1971]; died Nov 25, 1974
1915 - William Durnan
hockey: Montreal Canadiens, career: six Vezina Trophies, 34 shutouts, 2.36 goals-against average; died Oct 31, 1972
1918 - Elmer Lach
hockey: Montreal Canadiens, career: three Stanley Cups, 234 goals, 453 assists, Hart Trophy, Art Ross Trophy
1924 - J.J. (James Louis) Johnson
musician: trombone, composer, bandleader; one of first to use the trombone in modern jazz; died Feb 4, 2001
1927 - Lou Creekmur
Pro Football Hall of Famer: Detroit Lions: played in eight consecutive Pro Bowls; died July 5, 2009
1927 - Joe Perry
Pro Football Hall of Famer: SF 49ers, Baltimore Colts: career: 12,505 combined net yards, 9,723 yards rushing, 260 receptions, 513 points, three Pro Bowls
1931 - Sam Cooke
singer: You Send Me, Chain Gang, Wonderful World, A Change is Gonna Come; shot to death Dec 11, 1964
1931 - Galina Zybina
Russian Olympic Gold Medalist: women’s shot-put [1952]
1932 - Piper Laurie (Rosetta Jacobs)
actress: The Road to Galveston, twin Peaks, Rising Son, Children of a Lesser God, The Thorn Birds, Days of Wine and Roses, Carrie, The Hustler, Francis Goes to the Races
1934 - Bill (Wilfred Bailey) Bixby
actor: My Favorite Martian, The Courtship of Eddie’s Father, The Incredible Hulk, Fantasy Island, Rich Man Poor Man; died Nov 21, 1993
1935 - Seymour Cassel
actor: Bad Love, Indecent Proposal, Honeymoon in Vegas, **** Tracy, Sweet Bird of Youth, Eye of the Tiger, Double Exposure, Valentino, Faces
1937 - Joseph Wambaugh
LAPD officer, novelist: The New Centurions, The Blue Knight, The Onion Field, The Glitter Dome, Fugitive Nights: Danger in the Desert
1939 - Jeffrey L. Smith
chef; TV personality: The Frugal Gourmet
1939 - J.C. (Jean Claude) Tremblay
hockey: NHL: Montreal Canadiens; WHA: Quebec Nordiques
1940 - Addie Micki Harris
singer: group: The Shirelles: Dedicated to the One I Love, Tonight’s the Night, Will You Love Me Tomorrow, Soldier Boy; died of a heart attack after a performance in Atlanta, Georgia June 10, 1982 [42 years old]
1940 - John Hurt
actor: Wild Bill, Rob Roy, Spaceballs, 1984, The Elephant Man, Alien, Midnight Express, A Man for All Seasons
1945 - Michael Cristofer
playwright: The Witches of Eastwick, The Bonfire of the Vanities
1946 - Serge Savard
Hockey Hall of Famer: Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets: career: eight Stanley Cups, Conn Smythe Trophy, Bill Masterson Trophy
1948 - Bob Stein
football: Kansas City Chiefs, linebacker: Super Bowl IV
1949 - Mike (Ralph Michael) Caldwell
baseball: pitcher: SD Padres, SF Giants, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers [World Series: 1982]
1949 - Steve Perry
musician: drums: group: Radio Stars; Journey: Who’s Crying Now, Open Arms; solo: Oh Sherrie, Don’t Fight It [w/Kenny Loggins]
1950 - Bryant Salter
football: San Diego Chargers
1952 - Teddy Gentry
musician: guitar, songwriter, singer: group: Alabama: When It All Goes South, Will You Marry Me, God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You, Twentieth Century, Close Enough to Perfect
1954 - Chris Lemmon
actor: Thunder in Paradise series, Corporate Affairs, Weekend Warriors, Swing Shift, The Happy Hooker Goes to Hollywood; son of actor Jack Lemmon
1955 - John Wesley Shipp
actor: Second to Die, Road Rage, Deadly Web, Green Dolphin Beat, Baby of the Bride, The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter
1957 - Mike Bossy
Hockey Hall of Famer: NY Islanders: career: four Stanley Cups, 573 goals, 553 assists, Calder, Lady Byng, Conn Smythe Trophies
1959 - Linda Blair
actress: The Exorcist, Airport ’75, A Woman Obsessed, Bail Out
1960 - Michael Hutchence
singer: group: INXS: Suicide Blonde, Mistify, Need You Tonight, Never Tear Us Apart, Devil Inside, New Sensation, What You Need; died (suicide) Nov 22, 1997
1965 - Diane Lane
actress: Jack, Wild Bill, Oldest Confederate Widow Tells All, Judge Dredd, Chaplin, Lonesome Dove, The Cotton Club, Rumble Fish, A Little Romance
1965 - Brian McCardie
actor: Rob Roy, Murphy’s Law, Lilies, Solid Air, Beyond the City Limits, 200 Cigarettes, Speed 2: Cruise Control, The Ghost and the Darkness
1975 - (Paul) Balthazar Getty
actor: White Squall, Where the Day Takes You, Young Guns 2, Lord of the Flies; grandson of oil magnate, J. Paul Getty
1980 - Christopher Masterson
actor: Malcolm in the Middle, Intellectual Property, Scary Movie 2, Dragonheart: A New Beginning, American History X, My Best Friend’s Wedding
1981 - Beverley Mitchell
actress: 7th Heaven, The Crow: City of Angels, Killing Obsession, Sinatra, Children of the Bride
Chart Toppers January 22
1952Slowpoke - Pee Wee King
Sin (It’s No) - Eddy Howard
Shrimp Boats - Jo Stafford
Let Old Mother Nature Have Her Way - Carl Smith
1961Wonderland by Night - Bert Kaempfert
Exodus - Ferrante & Teicher
Calcutta - Lawrence Welk
North to Alaska - Johnny Horton
1970Raindrop Keep Fallin’ on My Head - B.J. Thomas
Venus - The Shocking Blue
I Want You Back - The Jackson 5
Baby, Baby (I Know You’re a Lady) - David Houston
1979Le Freak - Chic
Y.M.C.A. - Village People
Da Ya Think I’m Sexy? - Rod Stewart
I Really Got the Feeling - Dolly Parton
1988The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson
Need You Tonight - INXS
Could’ve Been - Tiffany
One Friend - Dan Seals
1997Un-Break My Heart - Toni Braxton
Don’t Let Go (Love) - En Vogue
I’m Still in Love with You - New Edition
It Matters to Me - Faith Hill
2006Stickwitu - *****cat Dolls
Check on It - Beyoncé Knowles
Don’t Forget About Us - Mariah Carey
Jesus, Take the Wheel - Carrie Underwood
Born On This Day 1931...Sam Cooke...R.I.P.
View attachment 9786
Saturday, January 22, 2011
SAY GOOD NIGHT, **** DAY
The NBC-TV show, Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, debuted “from beautiful downtown Burbank” on this night in 1968. (It received the official go-ahead after a successful pilot special that had aired in 1967.) The weekly show, produced by George Schlatter and Ed Friendly, then Paul Keyes, used 260 pages of jokes in each hour-long episode.
The first 14 shows earned Laugh-In (as it was commonly called) 4 Emmys. And “you bet your bippy,” Nielsen rated it #1 ... for two seasons.
Thanks to an ever-changing cast of regulars including the likes of Dan Rowan, **** Martin, Arte Johnson, Goldie Hawn, Ruth Buzzi, JoAnne Worley, Gary Owens, Alan Sues, Henry Gibson, Lily Tomlin, Richard Dawson, Judy Carne, President Richard Nixon (“Go ahead, sock it to me!”), the show became the highest-rated comedy series in TV history. Out of a list of 40, the only four to remain from the show’s inception to its finale were hosts, Dan Rowan and **** Martin; announcer, Gary Owens; and comedienne, Ruth Buzzi (famous for her bit as an old lady using her umbrella to whack the little old man who sat down next to her).
You may remember some of the skits:
Lily Tomlin as the nasal, irritating telephone operator; The Flying Fickle Finger of Fate Award; the joke wall with cast members throwing one-liners as they popped out of windows with buckets of water being thrown back; and the final single pair of clapping hands taking the show to its very last second of its weekly close.
Phrases like the aforementioned ‘Burbank’, ‘bippy’ and ‘sock it’ lines plus “Look that up in your Funk and Wagnalls” and “Here come da judge” became part of everyday conversation throughout the USA. The fast-paced, unstructured routines were a match for the climate of the country in the late 1960s. Laugh-In was innovative in its comedy style and has since been copied by many. Yet it wasn’t completely original (as if anything can be); being a mix of the slapstick of burlesque, the antics of the Keystone Cops and the topical satire of shows like That Was the Week That Was. In fact, the same shtick that worked for four decades for Burns and Allen, was working again; this time for Rowan and Martin:
“Say good night, ****.” “Good night ****.”
Events January 22
1879 - James Shields, who had previously served Illinois and Minnesota, began a term as a U.S. Senator from Missouri. He was the first Senator to serve three states.
1889 - The Columbia Phonograph Company was formed in Washington, DC.
1895 - The National Association of Manufacturers was organized in Cincinnati, OH. Let’s all make something today, in commemoration.
1907 - The Richard Strauss opera, Salome, was featured, with the Dance of the Seven Veils, at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. The opera was banned at the Met after one performance, but it was soon copied by vaudeville and strip-tease performers.
1931 - Clyde McCoy and his orchestra recorded Sugar Blues on this day. The tune became McCoy’s theme song, thanks to its popularity on Columbia Records, and later on Decca, selling over a million copies. (McCoy was said to be related to the feudin’ and a-fightin’ McCoys of Hatfield and McCoy fame.)
1944 - The U.S. 5th Army landed at Anzio, a beachhead south of Rome, Italy. The Germans sent eight divisions south from Rome to contain the invasion. The fighting went on for four months. The town of Carrocetto changed hands no less than 8 times as the Allies fought to break out and the Germans fought to contain them.
1946 - The Central Intelligence Group, which later became the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), was established by U.S. President Harry S Truman’s directive issued this day.
1947 - KTLA, Channel 5, in Hollywood, began operation as the first commercial television station west of the Mississippi River.
1952 - 29 people were killed, including former Secretary of War Robert P. Patterson, when an airliner hit an apartment building in Elizabeth, NJ. Seven of the dead were on ground.
1956 - Raymond Burr starred as Captain Lee Quince in the Fort Laramie debut on CBS radio. The program was said to be in “the Gunsmoke tradition.”
1957 - Suspected ‘Mad Bomber’ George P. Metesky was arrested in Waterbury, CT. Metesky was accused of planting more than thirty explosive devices in the New York City area.
1959 - The Coors Brewing Company of Golden, Colorado, began offering its beer in aluminum cans. Coors was the first American beverage company to manufacture and market its product in the new container.
1960 - Paul Pender beat Sugar Ray Robinson in a 15-round decision and gained international recognition as middleweight boxing champion.
1961 - 1960’s Olympic gold medalist and track star Wilma Rudolph set a world indoor mark in the women’s 60-yard dash. She ran the race in a speedy 6.9 seconds in a meet held in Los Angeles on this day.
1962 - Cleveland Indians pitcher Bob Feller was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.
1968 - Apollo 5 was launched. It was the was the first flight of the lunar module and as such was only a systems test. The lunar module separated successfully after two orbits. After four orbits the mission was over. Apollo 5 crashed into the Pacific several hundred kilometers southwest of Guam on Feb 12, 1968.
1973 - The U.S. Supreme Court struck down state laws that had restricted abortions during the first six months of pregnancy. The famous Roe vs. Wade case spawned the debate between a woman’s right to end her pregnancy and whether such an abortion is murder of an unborn child. The overheated debate continues and has caused radicals to bomb women’s reproductive health clinics, killing and injuring many.
1973 - George Foreman took the heavyweight boxing title away from ‘Smokin’ Joe Frazier in Kingston, Jamaica, mon. Actually, George didn’t just go up to Joe and say, “Gimme that!” He had to successfully punch his lights out in the boxing ring first.
1973- Former U.S. President Lyndon Baines Johnson died. He was 64 years old.
1976 - A bank robbery in Beirut netted a world record haul. Boxes of cash and other valuables taken from the British Bank of the Middle East in Bab Idriss were estimated to be worth some $50 million.
1979 - Abu Hassan (Ali Hassan Salameh), the alleged planner of the 1972 Munich raid, was killed by a bomb in Beirut.
1983 - The Steven Spielberg film, E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial, became the top movie moneymaker this day. In less than a year, E.T., the modern day, fairy tale, brought in $194 million in video rentals; replacing the previously #1 rented film, Star Wars. Something for E.T. to phone home about.
1984 - Super Bowl XVIII (at Tampa): Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington Redsking 9. The Redskins were slight favorites going into the game. Raiders’ QB Jim Plunkett and LB Matt Millen called their own plays. Plus lots of big plays and that ’83 defense, did the Redskins in. MVP: Raiders’ RB Marcus Allen. Tickets: $60.00.
1987 - Phil Donahue became the first talk show host to tape a show from inside the Soviet Union. Donahue appeared in Leningrad, Kiev and Moscow. The shows were seen by Russian TV audiences later in the year.
1989 - Super Bowl XXIII (at Miami): San Francisco 49ers 20, Cincinnati Bengals 16. In the brand new Joe Robbie Stadium, it was coach Bill Walsh vs. coach Sam Wyche, QB Joe Montana vs. QB Boomer Esiason. The score at halftime: 3-3. In the end, the 49ers got past the Bengals, but just barely. MVP: 49ers’ WR Jerry Rice. 49ers won their third Super Bowl. Some said the Bengals lost “the best Super Bowl ever played.” Tickets: $100.00.
1990 - A jury in Syracuse, NY convicted graduate student Robert T. Morris of federal computer tampering charges for unleashing a ‘worm’ that crippled a computer network. Morris was the first person to be convicted under a U.S. law designed to protect computer systems from malicious break-ins and viruses.
1991 - In the Gulf War: Iraq fired ten Scud missiles into Saudi Arabia. All were either intercepted or fell into unpopulated areas. In Tel Aviv, however, a Scud eluded the Patriot missile defense system and struck the city, killing three people.
1992 - Roberta Bondar was the first Canadian woman in space. She was a member of the crew of the space shuttle Discovery which blasted off this day.
1993 - On the 20th anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision, U.S. President Bill Clinton lifted a series of abortion restrictions imposed by his Republican predecessors. (On this day in 2001, President George Bush (II) reimposed those restrictions.)
1994 - Schindler’s List, Steven Spielberg’s drama about the Holocaust, won Golden Globes for best dramatic picture and best director.
1994 - Actor Telly Savalas (Kojak) died in Universal City, CA, a day after turning 70.
1995 - Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy died at the age of 104 at the family’s Cape Cod compound. She was the the daughter of Boston mayor John Francis Fitzgerald, known as ‘Honey Fitz’; the wife of U.S. Ambassador Joseph Kennedy; the mother of U.S. President John F. Kennedy; and mother of U.S. Senators Robert F. and Edward M. Kennedy.
1997 - Rhythm-and-blues singer Ron Holden, best known for his hit single Love You So, died in Mexico at age 57. Love You So was Holden’s only hit, reaching number seven on Billboard June 13, 1960.
1998 - “The Unabomber’s career is over,” said prosecutor Robert Cleary. Theodore Kaczynski had pleaded guilty to being the notorious Unabomber. Kaczynski made the guilty plea in Sacramento, California in return for a sentence of life in prison without parole. Kaczynski was charged with four bombings in 1985, 1993 and 1995 that killed two people and maimed two. But the plea bargain resolved all federal charges against him -- including those filed in New Jersey -- growing out of the 17-year string of 16 bombings that killed three people and injured 29.
1998 - Mary Bono, widow of singer/politician Sonny Bono, announced that she would run for the congressional seat held by her late husband -- to represent the 44th Congressional District in California, which includes Palm Springs.
1998 - U.S. President Bill Clinton struggled to defuse an explosive sex scandal involving him with a former White House intern.
1999 - Gloria opened in the U.S. “Gloria. Big Mouth. Big Attitude. But Who Knew She Had a Big Heart.” The movie, starring Sharon Stone, Jeremy Northam, Jean-Luke Figueroa, Cathy Moriarty, Mike Starr, Bonnie Bedelia and George C. Scott, was directed by Sidney Lumet.
2000 - Food writer and restaurant critic Craig Claiborne died at a New York hospital. He was 79 years old. In 1957 he became the food editor of The New York Times and wrote The New York Times Cook Book in 1961, which became the standard text for home cookery.
2001 - Four of the seven convicts who had broken out of a Texas prison the previous month were captured southwest of Denver; a fifth inmate killed himself. (The last two escapees were caught two days later.)
2002 - British diplomats were accused of spying on Russia using a fake rock. The device, planted in a Moscow park, received information electronically and later transmitted it to a hand-held computer.
2003 - World War-II cartoonist Bill Maudlin died in Newport Beach, CA. He was 81 years old. In 1945 Maudlin won a Pulitzer Prize for his war cartoons.
2004 - Actress, dancer Ann Miller died in Los Angeles at 80 years of age. She appeared in over forty motion pictures during her sixty-year career.
2004 - The Chinese New Year (Lunar Year 4702) ushered in the Year of the Monkey -- the Wood Monkey, to be exact. Each animal in the Chinese zodiac is represented by one of five ‘elements’ important to Chinese culture: wood, water, fire, earth and metal. The next Year of the Monkey happens in 2016, and that will be the year of the Fire Monkey.
2005 - Gazillionaire Donald Trump (58) married Slovenian model Melania Knauss (34) in a glamourous, glitzy ceremony.
2006 - Kobe Bryant scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in the Lakers’ 122-104 come-from-behind win in Los Angeles. Bryant’s total was the second highest in NBA history (after Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 points on March 2, 1962).
2007 - The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a California criminal sentencing law because it allowed judges to add years to prison terms based on the judge’s own own fact finding. The court ruled that only juries could determine the justifcation for imposing longer prison terms on state prisoners.
2008 - The New York City Board of Health ruled that restaurant chains must list the number of calories in everything on their menus.
2008 - Australian-born actor Heath Ledger was found dead in a Manhattan apartment. He was 28 years old. The NYC medical examiner said Ledger died of an accidental overdose of painkillers, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety medication and other prescription drugs. Ledger received an Oscar nomination for his role as a troubled gay cowboy in the 2006 film, Brokeback Mountain.
2009 - Russia’s Central Bank said it would widen the ruble’s trading range to allow an effective 10 percent devaluation of the national currency.
2009 - U.S. President Barack Obama signed an executive order to close Guantanamo Bay prison within one year, fulfilling his campaign promise to close a facility that critics around the world said violates the rights of detainees. Obama also banned the CIA from operating secret prisons.
2010 - New movies in U.S. theatres: Extraordinary Measures, starring Harrison Ford, Brendan Fraser, Keri Russell and Courtney B. Vance; Creation, with Paul Bettany, Jennifer Connelly, Jeremy Northam, Toby Jones and Benedict Cumberbatch; Legion, starring Paul Bettany, Dennis Quaid, Tyrese Gibson, Doug Jones, Jon Tenney, Charles S. Dutton, Lucas Black, Kate Walsh, Adrianne Palicki, Kevin Durand and Willa Holland; Tooth Fairy, with Dwayne Johnson, Ashley Judd, Julie Andrews, Chase Ellison, andBilly Crystal; Drool, starring Laura Harring, Jill Marie Jones, Ashely Duggan Smith, Christopher Newhouse, Ruthie Austin and Oded Fehr; and To Save a Life, with Randy Wayne, Deja Kreutzberg, Joshua Weigel, Steven Crowder and D. David Morin.
2010 - Beijing issued a stinging response to criticism from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that China was jamming the free flow of words and ideas on the Internet. The statement accused the U.S. of damaging relations between the two countries by hoisting its ‘information imperialism’ on China.
2010 - Police in Mexico City rescued 150 ferrets from armed robbers after a high speed chase. 14 boxes of ferrets imported from the U.S. had been taken from a truck by robbers after it left the Mexico City airport. Why were the ferrets stolen? We’re still checking into that...
Birthdays January 22
1561 - Sir Francis Bacon
philosopher, writer: The Advancement of Learning, Novum Organum; died Apr 9, 1626
1788 - Lord (George) Byron
poet: Manfred, Cain, Don Juan; died Apr 19, 1824
1875 - D.W. (David Wark) Griffith
film producer, director: The Birth of a Nation; Los Angeles’ Griffith Park named for him; died July 23, 1948
1890 - Frederick Vinson
13th Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court; Congressman, WWII Director of War Mobilization; U.S. Secretary of the Treasury [1945]; died Sep 8, 1953
1904 - George Balanchine (Georgi Balanchivadze)
choreographer: Apollo, Orpheus, Firebird, Swan Lake, The Nutcracker; founded School of American Ballet and New York City Ballet; died Apr 30, 1983
1909 - Ann Sothern (Harriette Lake)
actress: Lady Be Good, Panama Hattie, The Whales of August, The Ann Sothern Show, voice of My Mother, the Car; died Mar 15, 2001
1909 - U Thant
statesman from Burma: United Nations Secretary-General [1961-1971]; died Nov 25, 1974
1915 - William Durnan
hockey: Montreal Canadiens, career: six Vezina Trophies, 34 shutouts, 2.36 goals-against average; died Oct 31, 1972
1918 - Elmer Lach
hockey: Montreal Canadiens, career: three Stanley Cups, 234 goals, 453 assists, Hart Trophy, Art Ross Trophy
1924 - J.J. (James Louis) Johnson
musician: trombone, composer, bandleader; one of first to use the trombone in modern jazz; died Feb 4, 2001
1927 - Lou Creekmur
Pro Football Hall of Famer: Detroit Lions: played in eight consecutive Pro Bowls; died July 5, 2009
1927 - Joe Perry
Pro Football Hall of Famer: SF 49ers, Baltimore Colts: career: 12,505 combined net yards, 9,723 yards rushing, 260 receptions, 513 points, three Pro Bowls
1931 - Sam Cooke
singer: You Send Me, Chain Gang, Wonderful World, A Change is Gonna Come; shot to death Dec 11, 1964
1931 - Galina Zybina
Russian Olympic Gold Medalist: women’s shot-put [1952]
1932 - Piper Laurie (Rosetta Jacobs)
actress: The Road to Galveston, twin Peaks, Rising Son, Children of a Lesser God, The Thorn Birds, Days of Wine and Roses, Carrie, The Hustler, Francis Goes to the Races
1934 - Bill (Wilfred Bailey) Bixby
actor: My Favorite Martian, The Courtship of Eddie’s Father, The Incredible Hulk, Fantasy Island, Rich Man Poor Man; died Nov 21, 1993
1935 - Seymour Cassel
actor: Bad Love, Indecent Proposal, Honeymoon in Vegas, **** Tracy, Sweet Bird of Youth, Eye of the Tiger, Double Exposure, Valentino, Faces
1937 - Joseph Wambaugh
LAPD officer, novelist: The New Centurions, The Blue Knight, The Onion Field, The Glitter Dome, Fugitive Nights: Danger in the Desert
1939 - Jeffrey L. Smith
chef; TV personality: The Frugal Gourmet
1939 - J.C. (Jean Claude) Tremblay
hockey: NHL: Montreal Canadiens; WHA: Quebec Nordiques
1940 - Addie Micki Harris
singer: group: The Shirelles: Dedicated to the One I Love, Tonight’s the Night, Will You Love Me Tomorrow, Soldier Boy; died of a heart attack after a performance in Atlanta, Georgia June 10, 1982 [42 years old]
1940 - John Hurt
actor: Wild Bill, Rob Roy, Spaceballs, 1984, The Elephant Man, Alien, Midnight Express, A Man for All Seasons
1945 - Michael Cristofer
playwright: The Witches of Eastwick, The Bonfire of the Vanities
1946 - Serge Savard
Hockey Hall of Famer: Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets: career: eight Stanley Cups, Conn Smythe Trophy, Bill Masterson Trophy
1948 - Bob Stein
football: Kansas City Chiefs, linebacker: Super Bowl IV
1949 - Mike (Ralph Michael) Caldwell
baseball: pitcher: SD Padres, SF Giants, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers [World Series: 1982]
1949 - Steve Perry
musician: drums: group: Radio Stars; Journey: Who’s Crying Now, Open Arms; solo: Oh Sherrie, Don’t Fight It [w/Kenny Loggins]
1950 - Bryant Salter
football: San Diego Chargers
1952 - Teddy Gentry
musician: guitar, songwriter, singer: group: Alabama: When It All Goes South, Will You Marry Me, God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You, Twentieth Century, Close Enough to Perfect
1954 - Chris Lemmon
actor: Thunder in Paradise series, Corporate Affairs, Weekend Warriors, Swing Shift, The Happy Hooker Goes to Hollywood; son of actor Jack Lemmon
1955 - John Wesley Shipp
actor: Second to Die, Road Rage, Deadly Web, Green Dolphin Beat, Baby of the Bride, The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter
1957 - Mike Bossy
Hockey Hall of Famer: NY Islanders: career: four Stanley Cups, 573 goals, 553 assists, Calder, Lady Byng, Conn Smythe Trophies
1959 - Linda Blair
actress: The Exorcist, Airport ’75, A Woman Obsessed, Bail Out
1960 - Michael Hutchence
singer: group: INXS: Suicide Blonde, Mistify, Need You Tonight, Never Tear Us Apart, Devil Inside, New Sensation, What You Need; died (suicide) Nov 22, 1997
1965 - Diane Lane
actress: Jack, Wild Bill, Oldest Confederate Widow Tells All, Judge Dredd, Chaplin, Lonesome Dove, The Cotton Club, Rumble Fish, A Little Romance
1965 - Brian McCardie
actor: Rob Roy, Murphy’s Law, Lilies, Solid Air, Beyond the City Limits, 200 Cigarettes, Speed 2: Cruise Control, The Ghost and the Darkness
1975 - (Paul) Balthazar Getty
actor: White Squall, Where the Day Takes You, Young Guns 2, Lord of the Flies; grandson of oil magnate, J. Paul Getty
1980 - Christopher Masterson
actor: Malcolm in the Middle, Intellectual Property, Scary Movie 2, Dragonheart: A New Beginning, American History X, My Best Friend’s Wedding
1981 - Beverley Mitchell
actress: 7th Heaven, The Crow: City of Angels, Killing Obsession, Sinatra, Children of the Bride
Chart Toppers January 22
1952Slowpoke - Pee Wee King
Sin (It’s No) - Eddy Howard
Shrimp Boats - Jo Stafford
Let Old Mother Nature Have Her Way - Carl Smith
1961Wonderland by Night - Bert Kaempfert
Exodus - Ferrante & Teicher
Calcutta - Lawrence Welk
North to Alaska - Johnny Horton
1970Raindrop Keep Fallin’ on My Head - B.J. Thomas
Venus - The Shocking Blue
I Want You Back - The Jackson 5
Baby, Baby (I Know You’re a Lady) - David Houston
1979Le Freak - Chic
Y.M.C.A. - Village People
Da Ya Think I’m Sexy? - Rod Stewart
I Really Got the Feeling - Dolly Parton
1988The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson
Need You Tonight - INXS
Could’ve Been - Tiffany
One Friend - Dan Seals
1997Un-Break My Heart - Toni Braxton
Don’t Let Go (Love) - En Vogue
I’m Still in Love with You - New Edition
It Matters to Me - Faith Hill
2006Stickwitu - *****cat Dolls
Check on It - Beyoncé Knowles
Don’t Forget About Us - Mariah Carey
Jesus, Take the Wheel - Carrie Underwood
Born On This Day 1931...Sam Cooke...R.I.P.
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