History Blog

January 31

Happy Birthday RIP Tallulah Bankhead(1902–1968) Jackie Robinson(1919–1972) Jean Simmons(1929–2010) Suzanne Pleshette(1937–2008) ; Carol Channing–94 Philip Glass–78 Harry Wayne Casey(“KC”)–64 Anthony LaPaglia–56 Kelly Lynch–56 Amelia “Minnie” Driver–45 “Portia de Rossi”(Amanda Rogers)–42 Kerry Washington–38 “Johnny Castle”(Rocco Santini)–35 Justin Timberlake–34 Joel Courtney–19 ; 1865 – The United States Congress passes the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, abolishing slavery, submitting it to the states for ratification ; 1949 – The first TV daytime soap opera, “These Are My Children,” was broadcast by the NBC station in Chicago.