History Blog

January 24

Happy Birthday RIP Ernest Borgnine(Ermes Borgnino 1917–2012) Sharon Tate(1943–1969) John Belushi(1949–1982) ;  Neil Diamond–73 Aaron Neville–73 Yakov Smirnoff(Pokhis)–63 Nastassja Nakszynski–55 Mary Lou Retton–46 Matthew Lillard–44 Edward “Ed” Helms–40 ; 1908 – The first Boy Scout troop was organized in England by Robert Baden-Powell. ; 1984 – The first Apple Macintosh goes on sale.

January 23

Happy Birthday RIP Frances “Bay” Goffman(1919–2011) ; “Sonny Chiba”(Sadaho Maeda 千葉 真)–75 Gilbert “Gil” Gerard–71 Rutger Hauer–70 Anita Pointer–66 Richard Dean Anderson–64 Antonio Villaraigosa(Villar Jr.)–61 Richard Finch–60 Princess Caroline Grimaldi of Monaco–57 Mariska Hargitay–50 Lisa Snowdon–42 Tiffani Thiessen–40 ; 1789 – Georgetown College, the first Catholic University in the US, is founded in Georgetown, Maryland(now Washington D.C.) ;  1977 – The TV mini-series “Roots,” based on the Alex Haley novel, began airing on ABC.

January 22

Happy Birthday RIP David Llewelyn Wark Griffith(1875–1948) Sam Cooke(1931–1964) Wilfred “Bill” Bixby III(1934–1993) ; “Piper Laurie”(Rosetta Jacobs)–82 John Hurt–74 Stephen “Steve” Perry–65 Linda Blair–55 Diane Lane–49 Gabriel Macht–42 Paul Balthazar Getty–39 Nicholas Simmons–25 ; 1968 – “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In” premiered on NBC. ; 1973 – the Supreme Court handed down its Roe vs. Wade decision, which legalized abortion.

January 21

Happy Birthday RIP Christian Dior(1905–1957) Alfred “Benny” Hill(1924–1992) Aristotelis “Telly” Savalas(1922–1994) “Wolfman Jack”(Robert Smith 1938–1995) ; Jack Nicklaus–74 José Plácido Domingo Embil–73 Morris Mac Davis–72 “Billy Ocean”(Leslie Charles)–64 “Robby Benson”(Robin Segal)–58 Virginia “Geena” Davis–58 Emma Bunton–38 ; 1915 – The first Kiwanis Club was founded, in Detroit. ; 2003 – The Census Bureau announced that Hispanics had surpassed blacks as America’s largest minority group.

January 20

Happy Birthday RIP “George Burns”(Nathan Birnbaum 1896–1996) Patricia Neal(1926–2010) Jackson DeForest Kelley(1920–1999) Ottis “Slim” Whitman Jr.(1923–2013) ; Arthur “Arte” Johnson–85 Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin Jr.–84 David Lynch–68 William “Bill” Maher Jr.–58 Lorenzo Lamas–56 James Denton–51 Rainn Wilson–48 Melissa Rivers(Rosenberg)–46 “Skeet Ulrich”(Bryan Trout)–45 ; 1920 – The American Civil Liberties Union is founded.

January 19

Happy Birthday RIP Edgar Allan Poe(1809–1849) Janis Joplin(1943–1970) Jean Stapleton(Murray 1923–2013) Phillip Everly(1939–2014) ; Nathalie “Tippi” Hedren–84 Dolly Parton–68 Desi Arnaz Jr.(Desiderio Arnaz IV)–61 Catherine “Katey” Sagal–60 Paul Rodriguez–59 Robert Palmer–55 Robert “William” Ragsdale–53 Shawn Wayans–43 Benjamin Ayres–37 Jodie Sweetin–32 ; 1955 – A presidential news conference was filmed for TV for the first time, with the permission of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. ; 1935 – Coopers Inc. sells the world’s first men’s briefs

January 18

Happy Birthday RIP Thomas Watson(1854–1934) “Cary Grant”(Archibald Leach 1904–1986) “Danny Kaye”(David Kaminski 1913–1987) ; Thomas “Tom” Bailey–60 Kevin Costner–59 David “Dave” Attell–49 Derek Richardson–38 Jason Segel–35 Antonio Rodrigo Guirao Díaz–34 ; 1886 – Modern hockey is born with the formation of The Hockey Association in England ; 1919 – Bentley Motors Limited is founded

January 17

Happy Birthday RIP Eartha Kitt(Keith 1927–2008) Andy Kaufman(1949–1984) ; Betty White(Ludden)–92 James Earl Jones–83 Maurice “Maury” Povich–75 “Muhammad Ali”(Cassius Clay)–72 Paul Young–58 Broderick “Steve” Harvey–57 Susanna Hoffs–55 Jim Carrey–52 Michelle Obama–50 Naveen Andrews–45 Robert Ritchie(“Kid Rock”)–43 ; 1893 – Hawaii’s monarchy was overthrown as a group of businessmen and sugar planters forced Queen Liliuokalani to abdicate.

January 16

Happy Birthday RIP Henry “Harry” Carey(1878–1947) Ethel Merman(Zimmerman 1908–1984) Aaliyah Haughton(1979–2001) ; Anthony “A.J.” Foyt–79 Ronnie Milsap–71 John Carpenter–66 Deborrah “Debbie” Allen–64 Helen “Sade” Adu–55 David Al-Chokhachy(Chokachi)–46 Jonathan Mangum–43 Katherine “Kate” Moss–40 ; 1964 – The musical “Hello, Dolly!” starring Carol Channing opened on Broadway, beginning a run of 2,844 performances.

January 15

Happy Birthday RIP Martin Luther King(1929–1968) Lloyd Bridges(1913–1998) ; Andrea Martin–67 Maria Molina(“Charo”)–63 James Nesbitt–49 Lisa Lisa Velez-47 Charles “Chad” Lowe–46 Eddie Cahill–36 ; 1889 – The Coca-Cola Company, then known as the Pemberton Medicine Company, is incorporated in Atlanta, Georgia. ; 2001 Wikipedia, a web-based encyclopedia, made its debut.