Mel Phillips Now And Then...

Monday, December 22, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1864] Merry Christmas: During the Civil War, Union General William T. Sherman sends a message to President Abraham Lincoln from Georgia, saying "I beg to present you as a Christmas gift, the city of Savannah"...
1882] Lighting by Edison: The first string of Christmas tree lights is created by Thomas Edison...
1937] It will really be great when it's finished: The Lincoln Tunnel, connecting Manhattan and New Jersey opens to traffic...
1965] Premiered on this date: "Dr. Zhivago" starring Omar Sharif and Julie Christie...
1968] Wedding Bells: Julie Nixon and David Eisenhower exchange wedding vows...2000] Madonna is no longer a virgin when she and Brit movie director Guy Richie bed, uh wed. You know the rest of the story...
1976] Curtains: The last "Let's Make A Deal" airs. Several attempts since weren't successful until Drew Carey took over as host last year...
1984] Subway vigilante: New York City resident Bernhard Goetz shoots 4 youths on a Manhattan subway, claiming they were about the rob him. Much to popular belief, the youths armed with screw drivers did not wish the "subway vigilante" Merry Christmas when he went berserk screaming "I'm a Chanukah boy, I'm a Chanukah boy. Take that"...
1995] "Happy Trails": Lawrence Berk, founder of Berklee College of Music dies of natural causes at 87 in Boston...2002] Joe Strummer, lead singer of The Clash dies suddenly of a congenital heart defect at 50...
2001] Hot foot: Richard C. Reid, a passenger of an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami, tries to ignite explosives in his shoes, but is subdued by flight attendants and fellow passengers who point to the flashing "no smoking" sign...
2005] Strikeout: New York transit workers end their three-day strike without a new contract. The union head who forced the strike is fired...For more on December 22nd: C L I C K:

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Friday, December 19, 2008

(Weekend Edition) December 19 - 21, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1620] The Pilgrims are coming, the Pilgrims are coming: The Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower go ashore for the first time at present-day Plymouth (12/21)...
1880] Premiered on this date: Broadway officially becomes "The Great White Way" when the lights go on for the first time (12/20)...1946] Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life" starring James Stewart and Donna Reed is previewed for charity at the Globe Theatre in Times Square (12/20). The next day is the official world premiere. The movie won't become a hit until it reaches TV...1967] "The Graduate" starring Anne Bancroft and introducing Dustin Hoffman premieres (12/20)...1981] "Dream Girls" opens at the Imperial Theater on Broadway (12/20) and 25 years later (2006) the movie opens...
1945] "Happy Trails": General George S. Patton dies in Germany from injuries suffered in a car accident. Patton was 60 (12/21)...1973] Bobby Darin passes away following surgery to repair a faulty heart valve. Darin was just 37 (12/20)...1996] Astronomer Carl Sagan goes to a galaxy, billions and billions of light years away at 62. Sagan suffered from a rare bone marrow disease (12/20)...1999] Legendary Country Music star Hank Snow dies from natural causes at 85 (12/20)...2000] Former New York City Mayor John Lindsay dies from Parkinson's disease and pneumonia at 79 (12/19)...2005] Mob boss Vincent "The Chin" Gigante dies in a Springfield (MO) federal prison at 77 (12/19)...
1970] Elvis the drug czar: Richard M. Nixon has a meeting in the Oval Office about fighting drugs with Elvis Presley, who will die from an overdose of drugs (12/21)...
1978] Guilty as charged: Police in Des Plaines (IL) arrest John Wayne Gacy Jr. and begin unearthing the remains of 33 men and boys that Gacy will be convicted of murdering (12/21). Gacy is executed by lethal injection in May, 1994...1996] After two years of denials, House Speaker Newt Gingrich admits violating House ethic rules (12/21). He is soon replaced as House Speaker...
1980] Silent Night: No announcers are allowed in a Don Ohlmeyer experiment during the Jets-Dolphins game on NBC-TV, won by the Jets 24-17 (12/20). I remember how refreshing it was and they kept the parabolic crowd mics open so you felt like you were at the game. It's time for this experiment to return...
1987] All Paul Simon all the time: Presidential candidate Paul Simon introduces singer Paul Simon on 'Saturday Night Live' (12/19). Will the real Paul Simon please stand up...
1988] Terrorism in the sky: 270 are killed when a Pan Am Boeing 747 explodes over Lockerbie, Scotland. A terrorist attack is responsible for one of the worst air tragedies ever (12/21)...
1990] Bo knows: Bo Jackson becomes the first athlete to be chosen for All-Star games in both baseball and football when he's selected to the NFL Pro Bowl (12/19). Had he not gotten hurt he would of been one of the all-time greats in both sports...
2002] This is justice?: Citing new DNA evidence, a judge throws out the convictions of 5 young men for the 1989 attack on the 'Central Park Jogger' who was raped and left for dead (12/19). Miraculously she survives...For more on December 19: C L I C K:

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Thursday, December 18, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1865] Set me free why don't you babe: Slavery is abolished in the United States when the 13th Amendment is declared in effect...
1892] Premiered on this date: Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker Suite" publicly premieres in St. Petersburg, Russia...
1956] Debuted on this date: "To Tell The Truth" on CBS-TV. The first edition of the classic game show runs until 1968 when it goes into syndication from '69 to '78 and then off and on through 2002...1966] Dr. Seuss' "How The Grinch Stole Christmas", a special on CBS-TV...
1969] 'Nay' on capital punishment: Britain's Parliament abolishes the death penalty, something New Jersey did one year ago...
1975] "D-I-V-O-R-C-E": Rod Stewart and Faces divorce when Rod goes solo. They have since reunited from time-to-time...
1980] "Happy Trails": Former Soviet Premier Alexei N. Kosygin dies from a heart attack at 76...1997] SNL comedian Chris Farley becomes the shows' latest tragedy when he overdoses on morphine and cocaine in Chicago at 33...
1983] Wedding Bells: Keith Richards, on his 40th birthday, and model Patti Hansen rock down the aisle. 1984] Jamie Lee Curtis and Christopher Guest tie the knot (both couples are still married)...
1987] Guilty as charged: Ivan F. Boesky is sentenced to 3 years in prison for insider trading...2003] Michael Jackson is charged with 7 counts of molesting a child under 14 and two counts of supplying the child with "an intoxicating agent" a.k.a. 'Jesus Juice'...2003] A judge in Seattle sentences confessed 'Green River' killer, Gary Ridgeway, to 48 consecutive life terms, one each for every murder he allegedly committed and confessed to...
1999] Out of her tree: Environmental activist Julia "Butterfly" Hill comes down after spending two years living atop an ancient redwood in Humboldt County (CA) to protest logging...
2006] Rumsfeld 'resigns': Donald Rumsfeld spends his last day in office as Secretary of Defense. Robert Gates is nominated by George W. Bush as his replacement. Gates will keep his job in the new Obama administration...For more on December 18th: C L I C K:

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Wednesday, December 17, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1903] The Wright Stuff: Orville and Wilbur Wright make the first successful flight in history at 10:35 a.m. at Kitty Hawk (NC). The biplane stays airborne for 12 seconds and covers 120 feet on its maiden flight...
1959] Blasted beach: "On The Beach" which shows life after a nuclear holocaust, premieres in New York City and becomes the first movie to debut simultaneously in major cities worldwide, 18 cities in all, including Moscow...
1964] How about that?: Just six weeks after CBS buys controlling interest in the New York Yankees, the 'Voice of the Yankees', Mel Allen is fired. Allen was play-by-play man since 1940...
1969] UF what?: The U.S. Air Force closes its 'Project: Blue Book' by concluding there's no evidence of UFOs, as a mysterious flying disc hovers overhead...
1969] TV History: Tiny Tim and Miss Vicki (Budinger) are married on "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson". An estimated 50 million viewers see the couple tip toe through the tulips...
1975] Beware of people named 'Squeaky': Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme is sentenced to life in prison for her attempt on the life of President Gerald R. Ford...
1976] Super!: WTCG-TV in Atlanta becomes WTBS, uplinking with a satellite to become the first TV Super Station, blanketing the United States...
1989] "D'oh!" Debut: "The Simpsons" debuts in its own time slot on Sunday nights (Fox). The animated classic was first introduced on "The Tracey Ullman Show" on April 19, 1987...
1994] Wedding Bells: Richie Sambora and Heather Locklear rock down the aisle (to Bon Jovi music, of course). Heather files for divorce in February of 2006...
2006] 'Happy Trails': Former major league pitcher (Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers) Larry Sherry, dies after a long battle with cancer, at 71...For more on December 17th: C L I C K:

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Tuesday, December 16, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1773] Tea it up: The Boston Tea Party takes place as American colonists board a British ship and dump more than 300 chests of tea in Boston Harbor to protest tea taxes. This might explain why the water in Boston Harbor is described as "orange pekoe with specks of green tea and chamomile" in color...
1905] Published on this date: Variety Magazine hits the newsstands to 'Boffo'! reviews...
1960] Staten Island Supercrash: A United Air Lines DC-8 and a TWA Super Constellation collide over Staten Island, killing 134...
1972] Unbeaten and Untied: The Miami Dolphins become the 1st NFL team to go unbeaten and untied in a 14-game regular season. The 2007 Patriots beat that record, going 18-0. Miami's season streak reaches 17 after they win the Super Bowl...
1973] Slice and dice: Buffalo's O.J. Simpson knifes his way through the NFL to become the 1st runner in history to gain over 2,000 yards in a season when he runs for 200 yards against the Jets. Jet coach Weeb Ewbank loses his lunch and then announces his retirement...
1982] Reborn: Tom Seaver becomes a Met again after a trade with Cincinnati...1983] Yogi Berra is named Yankee manager for the second time...
1985] The steak was cold, too: Organized crime chief Paul Castellano is gunned down outside Sparks Steakhouse on 2nd Avenue in Manhattan as he's set up by the mob...
1997] "Happy Trails": Singer Nicolette Larson dies from brain swelling at 45...2007] Singer Dan Fogelberg passes away at 56 from complications caused by prostate cancer...
1998] Desert Fox: The U.S. and Britain begin a major four-day bombing campaign on Iraqi targets, in response to Iraq's continued failure to comply with U.N. Security Council resolutions as well as their interference with U.N. Special Commission inspectors...
2000] Breaking the color barrier: President-elect George W. Bush selects Colin Powell to be the 1st African-American secretary of state...For more on December 16th: C L I C K:

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Monday, December 15, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1791] Right on: The Bill of Rights, the 1st 10 amendments to the U.S. constitution, takes effect following ratification by Virginia (the state)...
1890] "Happy Trails": Sioux Indian Chief Sitting Bull and 11 other tribe members are killed by the Native American police in Grand River (SD). Sitting Bull was 59...1944] Bandleader Glenn Miller, 40, disappears over the English Channel in a thick fog. Miller was in a U.S. Army plane...1966] Walt Disney dies from cardiac arrest at 65. Contrary to popular belief, Disney's body was not frozen...2001] Ledendary R&B singer and disc jockey Rufus Thomas passes away from a heart attack at 84...
1939] Premiered on this date: "Gone With The Wind", starring Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh has its world premiere at Loew's Grand Theater in Atlanta...
1961] Guilty as charged: Former Nazi official Adolf Eichmann is sentenced to death by an Israeli court. Eichman is hanged in 1962...1988] James Brown is sentenced to a 6-year jail term for leading police on a late-night chase. He will be released on February 27, 1991...
1982] Curtains: Paul "Bear" Bryant announces his retirement as coach of the University of Alabama football team. Bryant was the winningest college football coach in history at the time. The Bear will suffer a fatal heart attack at 69, one month later...1993] John Williams conducts the Boston Pops for the final time...
1982] Signed, sealed, delivered: Bill Parcells becomes the Giants 12th head coach and press conferences will never be the same...
1985] Wedding Bells: Sylvester Stallone and Brigitte Nelson shadow box down the aisle. This marriage ends in a KO in the 18th month...1990] Rod Stewart asks Rachel Hunter, do ya think I'm sexy? Apparently she does. She marries him. Not believing in quickie divorces, the couple's divorce becomes official in November of 2006...2004] Sprint and Nextel tie the $35 billion knot...
2003] Proof is in the DNA pudding: The late Senator Strom Thurmond's family acknowledges Essie Mae Washington-Williams' claim that she was Thurmond's illegitimate mixed-race daughter...
2005] Election Day: Millions of Iraqis turn out to choose a parliament in a mostly peaceful election...
2007] HGH to the rescue: Yankee pitcher Andy Pettitte admits using human growth hormone to recover from an elbow injury, two days after the release of the Mitchell Report. People become suspicious when they see Pettitte with two left elbows...For more on December 15th: C L I C K:

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Friday, December 12, 2008

(Weekend Edition) December 12 - 14, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1799] "Happy Trails": George Washington dies from a throat infection at his home in Mount Vernon (VA) at 67 (12/14)...1963] Dinah Washington dies from a drug overdose at 39 (12/14)...1999] "Catch 22" author Joseph Heller passes away from a heart attack at 76 (12/12)...2002] Former Lovin' Spoonful guitarist Zal Yanovsky is the victim of a heart attack at 57 (12/13)...2006] Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegun, injured in a fall at a Rolling Stones concert in October, slips into a coma and dies at 83 (12/14)...2006] Actor Peter Boyle passes away from multiple myeloma and heart disease at 71 (12/12)...2007] Ike Turner overdoses on cocaine at 76 (12/12)...
1843] Scrooge sighting: Charles Dickens publishes the classic, "A Christmas Carol" (12/13)...
1896] The roots of Radio: Guglielmo Marconi gives the public the first demonstration of radio at London's Toynbee Hall. The following year he establishes the Wireless Telegraph and Signal Company Ltd. in Chelmsford, England (12/12)...
1915] Debuted on this date: Francis Albert Sinatra is born in Hoboken (NJ) which would have made 'Old Blue Eyes' 93 today (12/12)...1925] The first motel, the "Motel Inn" opens in San Luis Obispo (CA) (12/12)...1946] Tide detergent is introduced (12/12)...1955] The Tappan Zee Bridge opens to traffic (12/14)...1977] "Saturday Night Fever" starring John Travolta has its world premiere (12/14)...
1930] Ground rule double: Baseball changes the rule on balls bouncing into the stands in fair territory, from a home run to a double. One rule not changed is a ball hitting the head of an outfielder and going into the stands in fair territory. That's still a home run. Ask Jose Canseco (12/12)...
1975] Guilty as charged: Sara Jane Moore pleads guilty to an assassination attempt on the life of President Gerald R. Ford (12/12)...1989] Leona ("Queen of Mean") Helmsley is fined $7 million and sentenced to 4 years in prison for tax evasion (12/12)...2004] A jury in Redwood (CA) recommends the death penalty for Scott Peterson for the murders of his wife and unborn child (12/13). Peterson remains on death row at San Quentin...
1982] John Deere to the rescue: Mark Henderson uses a John Deere tractor to clear a spot in the snow for John Smith's 33-yard field goal, giving the Patriots a 3-0 win over the Miami Dolphins at Schaefer Stadium in Foxborough. This game became known as the "Snow Plow Game" (12/12)...
2000] Dubya wins: George W. Bush claims the presidency 36 days after Election Day when Al Gore concedes defeat (12/13)...
2003] Gotcha: Saddam Hussein is found hiding in a hole (12/13)...
2007] A bad report card: The Mitchell Report lists the names of 89 major league baseball players that presumably used anabolic steroids and human growth hormons. The biggest names mentioned are Roger Clemens and Miguel Tejada (12/13)...For more on December 12 - 14: Click:

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Thursday, December 11, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1936] Wedding Bells: Britain's King Edward VIII abdicates the throne in order to marry American divorcee Wallis Warfield Simpson. Now, that's love...1957] Jerry Lee Lewis secretly marries his 13-year old, third-cousin Myra Gale Brown. It's 'The Killer's' third marriage, the first for Myra Gale...1985] GE agrees to buy RCA for $6.3 billion. Included in the deal is NBC Radio & TV, some old RCA mics, transmitter tubes and Don Pardo's first contract, written on parchment...
1946] A useful UN organization: UNICEF (UN International Children's Fund) is established to provide relief to children in countries devastated by war...
1951] Yankee Clipper docks: Joe DiMaggio retires after a 13-year career with the Yankees. DiMag is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955. His last year marked the career start of another HOFer, Mickey Mantle (who played right field and wore #6 before switching to #7)...
1964] "Happy Trails": Sam Cooke is fatally shot at the Hacienda Motel in LA under mysterious circumstances. The legendary singer would have been 34 in one month...2006] The oldest (authenticated) woman in the world, Elizabeth Borden, dies at 116. No reason was given for her death but without her vices she would have lived a longer life...
1975] A steal of a deal: In two separate trades the Yankees pick up: Willie Randolph, Mickey Rivers and Ed Fiqueroa in exchange for bupkes...
1981] Curtains: Muhammad Ali fights his last fight, losing to Trevor Berbick. Ali retires with a 56-5 record with 37 KO's...
1982] Battle of the Behemoths: Ralph Sampson and Patrick Ewing put on a show as Sampson leads Virginia to a 68-63 victory over Georgetown. Sampson knocks down 23 with 16 rebounds and 7 blocked shots. Ewing's stats: 16, 8 and 5. Sampson is drafted #1 by Houston in 1983, Ewing #1 with that famous and controversial lottery pick by the Knicks in 1985...
1990] 'You're Fired': That's what Ivana tells Donald Trump. The marriage lasted 12 years...
1991] Questionable Acquittal: A West Palm Beach jury acquits William Kennedy Smith of sexual assault and battery, rejecting the allegations of Patricia Bowman...
2000] Pay-Rod: Alex Rodriguez agrees (who wouldn't) to a $252 million deal with Texas (still paying a chunk of that money). It's the most lucrative sports contract in history. About a year ago, he signed a 10-year deal for about $315 million with the Yankees. He still hasn't been on a team that wins the World Series...For more on December 11th: C L I C K:

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Wednesday, December 10, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1896] His honor: Swedish chemist Alfred Bernhard Nobel, who invented dynamite, dies in Italy. The Nobel Prize was instituted in his honor...
1939] Hitting the million mark: The NFL's attendance exceeds 1 million in a season for the first time...
1953] Published on this date: Hugh Hefner publishes the first Playboy (featuring a photo of Marilyn Monroe) with an initial investment of $7,600...
1958] The first commercial jet: 111 passengers fly from New York to Miami on a National Airlines Boeing 707...
1962] Cover boy: Frank Gifford of the New York Giants is featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated...
1967] "Happy Trails": 26-year old Otis Redding is killed along with most of the Bar-Kays in a small plane crash in Wisconsin...1996] Country music star Faron Young dies from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at 64...1999] Rick Danko of The Band dies in his sleep at 56...2005] Richard Pryor dies from cardiac arrest at 65...2005] Former Senator Eugene McCarthy passes away from natural causes at 89...
1971] Worst baseball trade: That's what Joseph (N.Y.Times) Durso calls it. The Mets send Nolan Ryan to the Angels for Jim Fregosi. Ryan pitches his way into the Baseball Hall of Fame with 7 no-hitters and the strikeout record while Fregosi hits .232 in his brief career with Mets...
1983] Jetting away: The Steelers beat the Jets 34-7 in the last NFL game played at Shea Stadium. The final baseball game was played by the Mets at the end of the 2008 season. The Mets will open the 2009 season at Citi Field...
1991] The end of a radio era: WNEW-AM signs off at 1130 on the dial, becoming Bloomberg business radio WBBR. Knowing this is coming, WQXR earlier adapts a similar WNEW style format as WQEW on December 2, 1991...
1998] Up, Up and Away: Six astronauts open the doors to the new international space station 250 miles above the Earth's surface...For more on December 10th: C L I C K:

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Tuesday, December 9, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1793] Stop the presses: 'The American Minerva' becomes New York's first daily newspaper. It's founded by Noah Webster who gives us our first dictionary...
1907] Sealing the deal: Christmas Seals go on sale for the first time...
1940] The first FM radio timebuy: The Longines Watch Company signs the first FM radio advertising contract with experimental W2XOR in New York City...
1958] Birchers rejoice: The 'John Birch Society' is formed in Indianapolis (IN) by Robert H.W. Welch Jr. and 11 others, as an anti-communist society...
1967] Wedding Bells: Lyndon Johnson's daughter Lynda (Bird) marries Marine, Charles Robb in the White House. Robb will become Governor of Virginia. They celebrate their 41st anniversary today...
1975] Drop Dead New York: President Gerald Ford signs a $2.3 billion seasonal loan authorization to prevent New York City from defaulting despite his "Drop Dead" message to New York...
1977] Face-off: The Lakers Kermit Washington punches Rudy Tomjanovich in the face during a game. Tomjanovich would need facial reconstruction and collects $2 million from the Lakers in a settlement. Washington is fined $10,000 and suspended for 60 days...
1979] 'Happy Trails': Religious broadcaster Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen dies from natural causes at 84...1981] Orioles lead singer Sonny Til dies from a heart attack at 51...
1990] Vote for me: Lech Walesa wins Poland's 1st direct presidential election in the country's history...
1992] Royal separation: Britain's Prince Charles and Princess Diana announce their separation...For more on December 9th: C L I C K:

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Monday, December 8, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1776] What did Delaware?: General George Washington crosses the Delaware River with retreating American Revolutionary Army troops, from New Jersey to Pennsylvania, apparently in only one boat...
1863] Reconstruction: President Abraham Lincoln announces plans for Reconstruction of the South...
1940] Scalped: The Chicago Bears annihilate the Washington Redskins 73-0. It's not only the biggest one-sided score in NFL history but the Bears were forced by officials to run for their final extra point because there was only one football left...
1941] U.S. enters WWII: The U.S. enters World War II as Congress declares war against Japan one day after the attack on Pearl Harbor...
1952] TV history is made: For the first time a pregnancy is used on TV's "I Love Lucy"...
1964] "Happy Trails": Actor William Bendix dies of lobar pneumonia at 58...1978] Former Israeli prime minister Golda Meir passes away from cancer in Jerusalem at 80...1982] Singer Marty Robbins dies from heart failure at 57...
1980] Rock & Roll Tragedy: John Lennon is fatally shot by Mark David Chapman...
1987] Nuking the nukes: President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev sign a treaty calling for destruction of intermediate-range nuclear missiles...
1993] Thanks Bubba: President Bill Clinton signs into law the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)...
2000] Counting hands: The Florida Supreme Court order an immediate hand count of about 45,000 disputed presidential ballots...For more on December 8th: C L I C K:

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Friday, December 5, 2008

(Weekend Edition) December 5 - 7, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1865] Ratifying: The 13th amendment is ratified, abolishing slavery (12/6)...
1908] Numb3rs: The University of Pittsburgh Panthers are the first college football team to put numbers on their jerseys (12/5). When I was program director at KQV, I could see the Pittsburgh U. tower through my apartment window. The school is located in a section called Oakland...
1923] On the Radio: Calvin Coolidge becomes the first president to deliver a radio address. Cal addressed a joint session of Congress (12/6)...
1941] The Day of Infamy: Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, putting us into WWII. Some 2,400 Americans are killed, 200 wounded. Much of our Pacific Fleet is destroyed along with more than 200 planes. FDR calls it "a day of infamy" (12/7)...
1988] "Happy Trails": Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer Roy Orbison dies from a heart attack while visiting his mother near Nashville. Orbison was 52 (12/6)...
1991] Bad timing: Richard Speck who murdered 8 student nurses in Chicago in 1966, dies from a heart attack in prison at 50 (12/5). Why couldn't this have happened in 1965???
1993] The 5:33 from Hell: Colin Ferguson murders 6 and injures 19 others on the 5:33 p.m. Hicksville local of the LIRR. Ferguson is currently drawing on his Attica jail cell wall with crayons, something he will continue to do for the next 200 years (12/7)...
1996] Greenspanning and spinning: Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan sends everyone scratching their heads after his famous "irriational exuberance" speech about the stock market and whether or not it was overvalued (12/5). Greenspan turns out to be overvalued...
2002] Sticky fingers: Actress Winona Ryder is sentenced to community service for stealing more than $5,500 worth of merchandise from Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills (12/6)...
2006] Trans fixed: New York becomes the first city in the nation to ban artery clogging trans fats at restaurants (12/5)...For more on December 5 -7: C L I C K:

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Thursday, December 4, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1783] Say goodnight Gracie: General George Washington bids farewell to his officers by raising a tankard or two at Fraunces Tavern in lower Manhattan. The tavern is still there and open for business...
1978] Her Mayoress: Diane Feinstein becomes San Francisco's first woman mayor when she's named to replace George Moscone who was murdered...
1980] Guardsmen from hell: The bodies of four American nuns slain in El Salvador just days before, are found. Five national guardsmen are later convicted of murder...
1987] D-I-V-O-R-C-E eventually: Madonna files for divorce from Sean Penn but changes her mind. She files for good in January, 1988, ending their love-hate marriage. These two sat in front of me at a movie. They were ushered in when the theater went dark. Madonna was wearing Sean all night. I was tempted to whisper "get a room"...
1990] We are here to pump...you up: Due to the Persian Gulf crisis, gas prices sky-rocket to: $1.60 a gallon in New York City. Outrageous!!!
1991] Please release me: AP correspondent Terry Anderson is released as a hostage in Lebanon after nearly 7 years in captivity...
1993] "Happy Trails": Frank Zappa dies at 52 from prostate cancer. Frank was a nice guy who would often ask for imports from my office at CBS International. He was very knowledgeable and loved all kinds of music...
1995] Dumb and dumber: Michael Jackson appears with legendary mime Marcel Marceau at a NYC press conference promoting Jackson's special on HBO...
1997] I started to choke: The NBA suspends Latrell Sprewell of the Golden State Warriors for one year for choking and threatening to kill his coach, P.J. Carlesimo. What, you can't do that?...
2001] FREEZE: The U.S. freezes the financial assets of organizations allegedly linked to the terrorist group Hamas...

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Wednesday, December 3, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1833] Boys and girls together: Oberlin College (OH) opens as the first co-educational school of higher education in the U.S...
1931] Debuted on this date: Plop-plop, fizz-fizz: Alka Seltzer makes its debut. Enter 'Speedy'...1950] Paul Harvey begins his national radio broadcast...
1949] Lucky and good: Notre Dame stretches its unbeaten streak to 4 seasons and 38 games by beating the Kyle Rote SMU Mustangs 27-20. The Irish win their 7th national title...
1961] How do you do: The Beatles meet Brian Epstein for the first time in his record shop in Liverpool...
1967] Have a heart: Dr. Christian Barnard performs the first human heart transplant. Patient Louis Washkansky lives for 18 days with his new heart...
1967] Curtains: The famed 20th Century Limited luxury train, completes its final run from New York City to Chicago...
1968] How low can you go?: The major league pitching mound is lowered from 15 inches to 10 to get more offense in the game. It works...
1979] Concert catastrophe: 11 fans are crushed to death at Cincinnati's Riverfront Coliseum before a concert by The Who. Laws will change to prevent "first-come, first-served" seating in the future...
1994] "Happy Trails": AIDS activist Elizabeth Glaser, wife of actor Paul Michael Glaser, dies at 47 after she and her two children were infected after a blood transfusion. Daughter Ariel will also succumb to the disease but son Jake survives...
2002] You can run but you can't hide: Thousands of files show that the Archdiocese of Boston protected clergy after sex and drug charges are released...

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Tuesday, December 2, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1901] Patent no longer pending: Gillette patents the first disposable razor...
1927] Debuted on this date: Ford rolls out their Model A, the successor to the Model T. It sold for $385...1969] Boeing shows off its 747 jumbo jet for the media...
1956] Next stop Boston: San Francisco University's Bill Russell stars as the USA picks up a gold medal in basketball with an 89-55 trouncing of Russia at the Melbourne (Australia) Olympics (and we all know where he will star next)...
1961] I'm your leader: Fidel Castro declares himself a Marxist-Leninist who will lead Cuba to Communism. He will also lead them to ruin...
1967] "Happy Trails": New York City's Cardinal, Francis Spellman dies from natural causes at 78...
1982] The beat goes on: Retired dentist Barney Clark receives the first artificial heart. Clark will live for 112 days...
1992] Musical call letters: WQEW replaces WQXR on 1560 in New York. WQEW adapts a nostalgia music WNEW-AM type format that won't be successful...
1994] Guilty as charged: "Hollywood Madam" Heidi Fleiss is convicted in Los Angeles on 3 counts of "pandering". Charlie Sheen loses Heidi's phone number...
1998] It's only money: Microsoft Corp. chairman Bill Gates donates $100 million to immunize children in developing countries, something that Gates continues to do...
2001] Chapter 11: Enron Corp. files for chapter 11 after Dynergy walks away from a $8.4 billion buyout. It's the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history...

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Monday, December 1, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1824] Flip a coin: With no candidate receiving a majority of the vote in the Electoral College, the House of Representatives decides that John Quincy Adams is chosen over Andrew Jackson and Henry Clay...
1914] First in service: The first service station opens in Pittsburgh...
1917] Boy's Town: Father Edward Flanagan opens "Boy's Town" in Nebraska, a farm village designed for wayward boys. In 1979 it became co-ed. The Hollies' hit "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" was written as a tribute to Boys Town...
1924] Hockey, eh?: The 1st pro hockey game in the U.S. is played at the Boston Arena with the Bruins beating the Montreal Maroons (not Morons) 2-1. Both teams had just joined the 7-year old NHL. Boston became the 1st U.S. team...
1955] No more 'back of the bus': Rosa Parks refuses to give her seat on a bus to a white man in Montgomery (AL), marking a milestone in the civil rights movement...
1969] There's a draft in here: Charles Rangel will be happy to note that the U.S. government held its 1st draft lottery since WWII...
1973] "Happy Trails": David Ben-Gurion, founding father of Israel and its first prime minister dies from natural causes at 87...
1992] Guilty as charged: In Mineola (LI) Amy Fisher is sentenced to 5 to 15 years for the shooting and serious wounding of Mary Jo Buttafuoco. The 'Long Island Lolita' was having an affair with Mary Jo's husband Joey. Amy is now out and frankly we don't care where Joey is...
1997] No choke: Golden State's Latrell Sprewell chokes in practice...chokes his coach (P.J. Carlesimo) that is. He's suspended for one year and the remainder of his 4-year, $23 million contract was terminated. Sprewell's career ended in 2004. Carlesimo is still coaching...
1997] The name game: Westinghouse formally changes its name to CBS...For more on December 1st: C L I C K:

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Wednesday, November 26, 2008

(Thanksgiving Edition) November 26 - 30, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1582] Wedding Bells: Young Will Shakespeare having already asked Anne Hathaway, "wouldst thou taketh thine hand in holy matrimony" and gotten a "yea, merrily", walks down the aisle with Anne as Bard and Bardess tie the knot poetically (11/28)...1940] Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz conga down the aisle to a latin beat (11/30)...1960] Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee become America's favorite married couple when they swing down the aisle (12/1). Sadly they will divorce in 1967...1982] Miles Davis and Cecily Tyson tie the knot in an on again/off again marriage until Davis' death (11/26)...1993] Another odd couple work their way down the aisle as James Carville and Mary Matalin marry (11/26)...
1789] 1st Thanksgiving: A day of Thanksgiving is set aside by President George Washington to observe the adoption of the U.S. Constitution (11/26)...
1910] A New York original: The original Pennsylvania Station opens to the public, where the 8th Avenue Post Office is now located. One day that location may house a new Penn Station (11/27)...
1925] Debuted on this date: The longest running live music show debuts on WSM Nashville when host George Dewey Hay invites an 83-year old Civil War veteran to play fiddle for an hour. The 'WSM Barn Dance' begins (11/28). In 1927 its name is changed to the "Grand Ole Opry". Willie Nelson will make his debut 39 years to the date that the 'Barn Dance' debuted (1964)...1939] New York's LaGuardia Airport begins operations as a plane from Chicago lands at 12:01 a.m. (11/30)...1942] "Casablanca" starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman debuts at the Hollywood Theater in Manhattan (11/26)...1948] "Kukla, Fran and Ollie" debuts on NBC-TV (11/29)...
1934] A Thanksgiving Day tradition begins: The Detroit Lions begin an annual NFL tradition, dropping a 19-16 decision to da Bearsss. It was the first NFL game aired on national radio. Brent Mus-sorry, Graham McNamee did the play-by-play (11/29). A Lions win over Tennessee would be Detroit's first win this season...
1942] Down in flames: A devastating and deadly fire destroys the Cocoanut Grove night club in Boston, taking nearly 500 lives (11/28)...
1948] Get the picture?: The first Polaroid camera is sold (11/28). Today that camera would be worth a fortune...
1978] City Hall massacre: San Francisco mayor George Moscone and City Hall Supervisor Harvey Milk, a gay rights activist, are shot to death inside City Hall by former Supervisor Dan White (11/27). Sean Penn plays Milk ina soon-to-be released movie of the event...
1981] "Happy Trails": Natalie Wood drowns in a boating accident off Santa Catalina Island at the age of 43. Natalie who was with husband R.J. (Wagner) and Christopher Walken, could not swim (11/29)...1986] Leading man Cary Grant dies of a stroke at 82 (11/29)...1994] 1960s war protester Jerry Rubin dies two weeks after being hit by a car. Rubin was 56 (11/28)...1996] After performing on stage, Tiny Tim collapses and dies from congestive heart failure at 71 (11/30)...2001] Beatle George Harrison loses his battle with cancer at 58 (11/29)...2007] Washington Redskins free safety Sean Taylor, 24, is murdered in his Miami home (11/27)...2007] Daredevil motorcycle rider Evel Knievel passes away from a terminal lung disease at 69 (11/30)...
2003] A presidential turkey delivery: George Bush plays commander-in-chief and brings Thanksgiving turkey to our troops in a clandestine trip to Iraq (11/27)...For more on November 26 -30th: C L I C K:

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Tuesday, November 25, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1783] Buh bye: The British evacuate New York, their last military position in the U.S. during the Revolutionary War ("the British are going...the British are going")...
1940] Debuted on this date: Woody Woodpecker in "Knock Knock"...
1944] "Happy Trails": Baseball commissioner Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis dies from natural causes at 78...1974] Former U.N. Secretary-General U Thant dies from lung cancer at 65...1987] Chicago's first black mayor, Harold Washington dies of a heart attack at 65...
1947] Hollywood 10: Movie studio executives meeting in New York agree to blacklist the "Hollywood 10" who were cited a day earlier and jailed for contempt of Congress for failing to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee...
1963] Laid to rest: The body of President John F. Kennedy at Arlington National Cemetery...
1980] No mas, no mas: Sugar Ray Leonard defeats Roberto Duran for the welterweight crown after Duran pleads "no mas, no mas" in the 8th round, ending the fight...
1986] An affair to remember: The Iran-Contra affair erupts as President Reagan and Attorney General Edwin Meese reveal that profits from secret arms sales to Iran had been diverted to Nicaraguan rebels...
1999] Elian gets his 15 minutes: 6-year old Cuban refugee Elian Gonzalez is rescued by a pair of sport fishermen off the coast of Florida. The saga of Elian begins...
2002] Colors of the rainbow follow: President Bush signs legislation creating the Department of Homeland Security and appoints Tom Ridge to be its head...
2003] Guilty as charged: Yemen arrests Mohammed Hamdi al-Ahdal, a top al-Qaida member suspected of masterminding the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole. Al-Ahdal is later convicted and sentenced to 37 months in prison. Who was the judge, Lance Ito??? For more on November 25th: C L I C K:

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Monday, November 24, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1859] The Grandfather of "Cavemen": British naturalist Charles Darwin publishes "On the Origin of Species" which explains his theory of evolution...
1871] The Grandfather of the NRA: The National Rifle Association is incorporated and its first president is Major General Ambrose E. Burnside...
1953] One by one: New Brooklyn Dodger manager Walter Alston signs the 1st of 23-one year contracts...
1963] Live from Dallas: Jack Ruby shoots and mortally wounds Lee Harvey Oswald, the accused assassin of President Kennedy. This happened live on television - still hard to believe...
1963] The games must go on ?: The NBA, NHL and AFL cancel their scheduled games, the NFL does not. Pete Rozelle considered this his worst decision as NFL commissioner...
1969] Guilty as charged: Lt. William Calley is charged with the massacre of over 100 civilians in My Lai, Vietnam in March, 1968...
1971] AWOL with ransom: Hijacker D.B. Cooper parachutes from a Northwest flight over Washington State with $200,000 in ransom. His fate is still unknown...
1985] "Happy Trails": Big Joe Turner dies of a heart attack at 74...1991] Freddie Mercury of Queen dies of AIDS at 45...
1998] Wedding Bells: AOL confirms that its buying Netscape for $10 billion...
2003] Death sentence: A jury in Virginia Beach, VA, sentences John Allen Muhammad to death for the Washington-area sniper shootings...

For more on November 24th: C L I C K: http://melphillipsnowandthen.com

Friday, November 21, 2008

(Weekend Edition) November 21 -23, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1877] Talking Machine: Thomas A. Edison announces the invention of the phonograph or as he calls it, his "talking machine." (11/21)...
1889] Jukebox Saturday Night every night: The first jukebox goes into service at the Palais Royal Saloon in San Francisco. Owned by developer Louis T. Glass, the box contains an Edison tinfoil phonograph with 4 listening tubes. A nickel bought a few minutes of music. The jukebox took in a whopping $1,000 in 6 months (11/23)...
1963] A day we'd all like to forget but never will: John Fitzgerald Kennedy is gunned down in Dallas. A day we always remember what we were doing at the time. I was recording a Canada Dry spot at WMID, Atlantic City. LBJ is sworn in as our next president (11/22)...
1980] "Happy Trails": Aging blonde bombshell Mae West suffers a fatal stroke at 87 (11/22)...1997] INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence, 37, is found hanging in his Sydney, Australia hotel suite (11/22)...
1980] Up in flames: A fire at the MGM Grand Hotel-Casino in Las Vegas kills 87 (11/21)...
1982] Wedding Bells: Joni Mitchell marries her bass player Larry Klein and then paves paradise on her honeymoon (11/21)...1983] New York Rangers star Ron Greschner checks model Carol Alt into the matrimony boards. Greschner goes to the penalty box in 1996 (11/21)...1987] Demi Moore and Bruce Willis rock down the aisle. They divorce in 2000 when Demi discovers where Ashton Kutcher lives. She robs his cradle in 2005 (11/21)...
1984] Hail Mary: Doug Flutie connects with roomie Gerard Phelan and Boston College defeats Miami 47-45 in one of the greatest college football games of all-time (11/23) Bernie Kosar was the Miami QB...
1998] Dr. Death: "60 Minutes" airs videotape of Dr. Jack Kevorkian administering lethal drugs illegally to a terminally ill patient (11/22)...
2005] Nightline goodnight: Ted Koppel hosts his final edition of ABC News' "Nightline" (11/22)...
2006] Spy snuffing: Former KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko dies in London from radiation poisoning after making a deathbed statement blaming Russian President Vladimir Putin (11/23)...For more on November 21 -23: C L I C K:

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Thursday, November 20, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1928] Debuted on this date: The Boston Bruins lose to Montreal 1-0 as the Boston Garden makes its debut...
1947] Wedding Bells: Britain's future queen, Princess Elizabeth marries Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh in Westminster Abbey. Celebrating their 61st anniversary, the Duke in addition to being known as the current queen's husband is officially known as her "consort" or as the Duke puts it, "I felt like I'd been turned into an amoeba."...
1960] Knocked into Monday: Frank Gifford is leveled by the Eagles Chuck Bednarik in a blind-sided hit that will wind up ending the career of the Giants star running back. The Eagles clinch the Eastern Conference title. As a reward Gifford will wind up with Kathie Lee...
1962] MVP...MVP...MVP: Mickey Mantle wins his 3rd American League MVP award...
1977] Record-breaking running backs: Walter Payton runs for 275 yards in a 10-7 Bears win over Minnesota, breaking the single-game rushing record held by O.J. Simpson (273 in 1976). In 2000, Emmitt Smith of Dallas breaks Payton's record...
1982] Youngest SNL host: That would be 7-year old Drew Barrymore...
1982] Adding insult to injury: In the most bizarre ending of any football game, California beats Stanford 25-20 on a 5-lateral, 55-yard kickoff return that goes into the Cardinal band, standing in the end zone...
1983] The night of "The Day After": An estimated 100 million viewers watch the controversial ABC-TV movie, "The Day After" depicting a nuclear holocaust...
1994] Rock and Roll transplant: David Crosby receives a liver transplant...
2003] Book 'em Dano: Michael Jackson is booked on suspicion of child molestation in Santa Barbara (CA). He will be acquitted of the charges...For more on November 20th: C L I C K:

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Wednesday, November 19, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1863] Four Score, for sure: President Abraham Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address as he dedicates a national cemetery at the Civil War battlefield in Pennsylvania...
1954] What a wreck: Sammy Davis, Jr. losses an eye in a serious auto crash in San Bernardino (CA)...
1954] Two tolls, no waiting: Two automatic toll machines are installed on the Garden State Parkway. Now there's just one big toll when you get off the Parkway...
1959] Rama Lama Ding Dong: The Ford Motor Company halts production of the Edsel...
1966] Hanging them up: Future Hall of Fame pitcher, Sandy Koufax announces his retirement from baseball, one month shy of his 32nd birthday, due to arm problems. Koufax simply dominated his era...
1969] Fly me to the Moon: Apollo XII astronauts Charles Conrad and Alan Bean make man's second lunar landing...
1985] A Geneva treat: Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev meet for the first time as they begin their summit in Geneva...
1998] A Starr is born: Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr lays out his evidence against President Bill Clinton during a daylong appearance before the House Judiciary Committee...
2001] MVP...MVP...MVP...MVP: Barry Bonds wins his 4th MVP award (he'll win 3 more). Wasn't this the year they said Bonds started using the 'clear cream'???
2004] Fight Night: In one of sports ugliest days, after a fight breaks out on the floor, Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson of the Pacers charge into the stands and fight with fans during an NBA game in Detroit. Officials end the Pacers' 97-82 win with 45.9 ticks left. Fines and suspensions follow. Fan John Green who tossed his drink at Artest, was banned for life in Detroit and hefty fines are levied at Artest, Jackson and others...For more on November 19th: C L I C K:

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Tuesday, November 18, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1928] Mickey debuts: The 1st successful sound-synchronized animated cartoon premiers in New York City. It's Walt Disney's "Steamboat Willie" starring Mickey Mouse...
1959] Also Premiering on this date: William Wyler's "Ben Hur" at a Loew's Theater in Times Square...2005] "Walk The Line", the story of Johnny Cash opens...
1969] 'Happy Trails': Kennedy patriarch, Joseph P. Kennedy dies in Hyannis Port (MA) at 81. Kennedy had suffered a massive stroke 8 years earlier. 1994] Cab Calloway dies in a Delaware nursing home of a stroke at 86...
1978] The horror of Jonestown: People's Temple leader Jim Jones forces his followers to commit mass suicide in Jonestown, Guyana by drinking a cyanide-laced fruit-flavored concoction. Only about a dozen escape. The final death toll: 913, including 276 children. Jones is fatally shot in the head...
1987] Pink slips are on the way: CBS Inc. agrees to sell its record division to SONY Corporation for about $2 billion...
1990] Wedding Bells: Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall tie the knot in Bali. They will have 2 children during their 9 year marriage which breaks up after allegations that Mick fathered a child with Brazilian model Luciana Morad. 2006] Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are married in Italy...
1991] Free at last: Shiite Muslim kidnappers in Lebanon free Anglican Church envoy Terry Waite and educator Thomas Sutherland...
1999] Guilty as charged: A jury in Jasper (TX) convicts Shawn Allen Berry of murder for his role in the dragging death of James Byrd Jr., but spare him the death penalty...
2002] A new call for arms inspection: U.N. arms inspectors return to Iraq after a four-year hiatus. They call on Saddam Hussein's government to cooperate with their search for weapons of mass destruction. You know the rest of this story...
2003] Right to marry: The Massachusetts Supreme Court Judicial Court rules 4-3 that the state constitution guarantees gay couples the right to marry...For more on November 18th: C L I C K:

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Monday, November 17, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1934] Wedding Bells: Lyndon B. Johnson marries Claudia Alta Taylor, but you know her as "Lady Bird"...
1956] A Hollywood ending: Jim Brown finishes his college career at Syracuse by running for 6 touchdowns and kicking 7 extra points in a 61-7 massacre of Colgate...
1968] Heidi Ho: NBC-TV switches from an exciting Jets-Oakland game to "Heidi". Here's what we didn't see: The Raiders score 2 TD's in 9 seconds to hold on to a 43-32 win over the Jets. The final score is shown in a crawl over, what else ? "Heidi"...
1973] I'm not a crook: President Richard Nixon tells an AP managing editors meeting in Orlando (FL) that "people have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I'm not a crook." In front of a news organization's meeting ? Nice timing Mr. President...
1985] Debuted on this date: Howard Stern on K-Rock (WXRK)...
1997] The Joe Gibbs Academy: To graduate, you get elected to the Hall of Fame and then come back. NHL great Mario Lemieux gets inducted into the NHL Hall of Fame and then returns to play and eventually get into ownership of the Pittsburgh Penguins...
2003] Guilty as charged: John Allen Muhammad is convicted of two counts of capital murder in the Washington (D.C.)-area sniper shootings. He is awaiting execution in Virginia...
2003] This I swear: Action actor Arnold Schwarzenegger is sworn in as the 38th Governor of California. Just call him 'The Governator'...
2006] Kramer goes off: Former 'Seinfeld' star Michael Richards unleashes a barrage of racial slurs during a stand-up routine at the Laugh Factory...
2006] 'Happy Trails': Hall of Fame college football coach Bo Schembechler dies at 77...For more on November 17th: CLICK:

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Friday, November 14, 2008

(Weekend Edition) November 14 - 16, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1889] Whoa Nellie: New York World reporter Nellie Bly a.k.a. Elizabeth Cochrane begins an attempt to surpass the fictitious journey of Jules Verne's Phineas Fogg by traveling around the world in less than 80 days. Bly does it in 72 days, 6 hours and 11 minutes in January and records a new song called "Around the World in 72 days, 6 hours and 11 minutes" (11/14)...
1926] Debuted on this date: The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) debuts with a radio network of 24 stations. The first network boadcast is a 4-hour special featuring live big band music from the Waldorf Astoria (11/15)...
1957] The streak ends: Dick Lynch scampers around right end for a touchdown, ending Oklahoma's streak of 47 consecutive wins. Notre Dame beats the #1 ranked Sooners 7-0 in Norman (OK) (11/16)...
1959] The birth of The Pats: William "Billy" Sullivan Jr. and a group of Boston businessmen is awarded the 8th and final franchise in the American Football League (AFL). The Boston Patriots are born (11/16)...
1960] "Happy Trails": Clark Gable dies of a heart attack at 59 (11/16)...1961] House speaker Sam Rayburn is the victim of cancer at 79 (11/16)...
1967] MVP x 3: The Red Sox' Carl Yastrzemski wins the AL MVP in the best individual season performance by a player I've ever seen - this includes watching Mantle & Maris in New York. Yaz wins the Triple Crown (batting average, home runs & runs batted in) title. No one has done it since (11/15)...
1972] Wedding Bells: Britain's Princess Anne marries commoner Capt. Mark Phillips at Westminster Abbey (11/14). They divorce in 1992 and the Princess will re-marry...1981] Luke marries Laura on "General Hospital" before a TV audience of 16 million viewers (11/16)...1987] Lenny Kravitz and Lisa Bonet rock down the aisle (11/16). They separate in 1990 and divorce in 1993...1996] Michael Jackson and mother-for-hire Deborah Rowe make it official (11/14)...1998] Carmen Electra and Dennis Rodman marry but there's some debate over who wore the bridal gown (11/14). The marriage ends in 9 days. So what took so long???
1986] It's a family affair: The Doubleday Publishing Company agrees to sell the Mets to Nelson Doubleday & Fred Wilpon for $80.7 million (11/14). The publishing company bought the team for a then-record $21.1 million in 1980. Citibank bought the naming rights for Citi Field, which opens in 2009 for $20 million a year for 20 years...
1993] Guilty as charged: A judge in Mineola (LI) sentences Joey Buttafuocco to 6 months in jail for the statutory rape of Amy Fisher who shot and wounded Joey's wife Mary Jo (11/15)...
2004] McGrieved: New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey leaves office 3 months after resigning due to a gay extra-marital affair. State Senator Richard Codey takes over as interim Governor (11/15)...

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Thursday, November 13, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1789] Death and Taxes: Benjamin Franklin writes in a letter to a friend, "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes"...
1942] 18 with a bullet: The minimum draft age is lowered from 21 to 18...
1960] Wedding Bells: Sammy Davis Jr. and Swedish actress May Britt walk down the aisle. The pair will stay in wedded bliss for 8 years...
1968] Premiered on this date: "Yellow Submarine", the animated movie...1997] The Disney musical "The Lion King" opens on Broadway...
1974] "Happy Trails": Karen Silkwood, 28, a technician and union activist from Oklahoma who inspired a movie of her life, is killed in a suspicious car crash...
1979] Vote for the "Gipper": Former California Governor Ronald Reagan announces his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination while visiting New York...
1979] 'Chocolate Thunder': 76er Darryl Dawkins shatters a fiberglass backboard doing a monster dunk in Kansas City and starts a new fad that provides ESPN with about a million 'Sports Update' show opens...
1993] Top of the charts: Top-ranked Florida State and #2 Notre Dame (both 9-0) stage a showdown in South Bend with the 'Fighting Irish' prevailing 31-24. The Irish go to number one but lose the following weekend to Boston College and Florida State will win the national championship with a victory over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl...
1998] Hush money: Bill Clinton agrees to pay Paula Jones $850,000 ending the four-year legal battle over her sexual harassment lawsuit against him. Clinton does not admit guilt or apologize...
1999] First Brit champ: Lenox Lewis becomes the first British heavyweight champion of the world by winning a unanimous decision over Evander Holyfield...

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Wednesday, November 12, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1920] Here come de judge: Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis is elected baseball's first commissioner which brings a smile to Shorty Long's face wherever he is...
1931] A 'Nessie' sighting: The first known photo of the 'Loch Ness Monster' is taken...
1940] Premiered on this date: "Fantasia", not the singer, the Walt Disney masterpiece...
1948] Guilty as charged: Former Japanese premier Hideki Tojo and several other WWII Japanese leaders are sentenced to death by a war crimes tribunal...1996] Jonathan Schmitz, 26, is convicted of second-degree murder for shooting Scott Amedure, a gay man who'd revealed a crush on Schmitz on a "Jenny Jones" TV show. Schmitz is serving a 20-25 year prison term...1997] Ramzi Yousef is found guilty of masterminding the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center. Yousef is serving a sentence of life without parole...2004] Scott Peterson is sentenced to death for murdering his pregnant wife, Laci, and dumping her body in San Francisco Bay. Peterson remains on death row...
1954] Closed for renovations: Ellis Island closes after processing more than 20 million immigrants since opening in New York Harbor in 1892...
1987] AIDS ban banned: The AMA issues a policy statement saying it was unethical for a doctor to refuse to treat someone solely because that person has AIDS or is HIV-positive...
1993] "Happy Trails": H.R. Haldeman, a former Nixon White House chief of staff, dies of undisclosed causes at 67...
1998] Wedding Bells: Daimler-Benz, Chrysler and baby Daimler-Chrysler unite...
2001] Belle Harbor hell: American Airlines flight 587 crashes in Belle Harbor, Queens shortly after taking off in perfect weather, from JFK, taking more than 260 lives...
2006] Breaking a record: Gerald R. Ford surpasses Ronald Reagan as the longest-lived U.S. president at 93 years and 121 days. Ford will pass away the following month...

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Tuesday, November 11, 2008

(Veterans Day) Tuesday, November 11, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1918] Armistice Day: World War I ends when the Allies and Germany sign an armistice a.k.a. "Armistice Day". Many countries refer to Veterans Day as Remembrance Day...
1921] Dedication Day: The Tomb of the Unknowns is dedicated at Arlington Cemetary by U.S. President Warren Harding...
1938] The Philadelphia Flyers take note: Kate Smith sings Irving Berlin's "God Bless America" for the 1st time on network radio...
1940] Debuted on this date: The Jeep, manufactured for the war effort...
1972] 'Happy Trails': Berry Oakley (Allman Brothers) is killed in a motorcycle accident one year and 13 days after Duane Allman met the same fate - and just 3 blocks away. Oakley was 24...2004] Palestinian leader, controversial Yasser Arafat dies in Paris at 75. Israel does not sing 'Happy Trails'...
1984] The gift that keeps on giving: President Ronald Reagan accepts the Vietnam Veterans Memorial as a gift to the nation from the Vietnam Memorial Fund...
1986] Wedding Bells: Sperry Rand and Burroughs walk down the aisle with their baby "Unisys" becoming the second largest computer company...
1993] Dedication Day II: A bronze statue is dedicated in Washington (D.C.) to honor more than 11,000 American women who served in the Vietnam War...
1996] The Wall that heals: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund unveils "The Wall that Heals", a half-scale replica of the memorial that will tour communities throughout the U.S...
2002] MVP x 5: Barry Bonds wins the MVP award for an unprecedented fifth time...

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Monday, November 10, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1775] Semper Fi: The U.S. Marines are organized under authority of the Continental Congress...
1871] Dr. Livingstone, I presume?: Journalist-explorer Henry M. Stanley finds missing Scottish missionary David Livingstone in central Africa and delivers his famous greeting: "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" to which Livingstone replies: "And you arrrrrre?"...
1954] Dedicated to the ones we love: The Iwo Jima Memorial is dedicated in Arlington (VA)...
1969] Debuted on this date: 'Sesame Street' on PBS...
1975] Down with the ship: The ore-hauling ship Edmund Fitzgerald sinks during a storm in Lake Superior with all 29 crew members on board (leading to the hit by Gordon Lightfoot, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" or as one CBS-FM caller asked: "Can you play the 'Wreck of Ella Fitzgerald?")...
1980] Cabnapping: CBS-TV network anchor Dan Rather claims he was kidnapped in a cab but it turns out that Rather refused to pay the driver for the ride (leading to the R.E.M hit: "What's the cab fare Kenneth?")...
1982] Memorialized: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is opened in Washington (D.C.)...
1984] Comeback Terps: Backup Maryland QB Frank Reich stages one of the greatest comebacks in college football history, throwing 6 TD passes in the 2nd half and overcoming a 31-0 deficit as the Terps beat Miami 42-40...
1993] With malice toward none: John Wayne Bobbitt is acquitted on the charge of marital sexual assault against his wife Lorena Bobbitt (a.k.a. "The blade") who is later acquitted of malicious wounding of her husband. Apparently cutting off one's genitals is not malicious enough in Virginia...
1997] Wedding Bells: WorldCom Inc. and MCI Communications Corp. walk down the $37 billion dollar aisle, link by link and chip by chip...

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Friday, November 7, 2008

(Weekend Edition) November 7 - 9, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1938] Kristallnacht: Nazi troops and sympathizers destroy and loot Jewish buinesses, burn synagogues and kill 91 Jews. They also round up 25,000 in an event known as 'Kristallnacht' or 'Night of Broken Glass' (11/9)...
1944] FDR IV: Franklin D. Roosevelt wins an unprecedented 4th term as president (11/7)...
1953] Supes Rule: Somehow the Supreme Court upholds a 1922 ruling that major league baseball does not come within the scope of federal antitrust laws (11/9). Were there 9 justices named Ito???
1960] Election daze: Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy defeats Richard M. Nixon for the presidency. The age of 'Camelot' dawns (11/8)...1962] Nixon who fails in his bid to become Governor of California, tells reporters, "You won't have me to kick around anymore." (11/7)...1967] Carl Stokes becomes the first black mayor of a major city (Cleveland) (11/7)...2000] Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes the first first lady to win public office by winning a Senate seat from NY (11/7)...
1962] "Happy Trails": Former 'first lady' Eleanor Roosevelt dies of bone marrow tuberculosis at 78 (11/7)...1980] Steve McQueen dies at 50 from a heart attack following cancer surgery (11/7)...2003] Veteran actor Art Carney passes away from natural causes at 85 (11/9)...2006] "60 Minutes" reporter Ed Bradley is a victim of leukemia at 65 (11/9)...
1965] Premiered on this date: The Pillsbury Dough Boy...1965] "Days Of Our Lives" debuts on NBC-TV (11/8)...
1965] Lights out: The great northeast blackout turns the lights out in 9 states and two provinces of Canada. It affects 25 million people for more than 13 hours (11/9)...
1968] 'D-I-V-O-R-C-E': Cynthia Powell Lennon is granted a divorce from John Lennon after 6 years of marriage (11/8)...1982] Liz Taylor chalks up divorce number 7. John Warner is the latest victim (11/7)...
1970] Record breaker: New Orleans placekicker Tom Dempsey, born without toes on his kicking foot, kicks a record setting 63-yard field goal (11/8). In 1998 Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos ties Dempsey with his 63-yard boot, no doubt aided by Denver's mile-high altitude...
1989] Wall? What wall?: Happy Germans dance on top of the Berlin Wall as Communist East Germany opens its borders, allowing citizens to travel freely to the west (11/9)...For more on November 7 - 9:

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Thursday, November 6, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1869] Tee for two: Rutgers beats Princeton 6-4 at New Brunswick (NJ) in the first college football game. There were 25 players on each side, touchdowns were worth one point and the game resembled soccer more than football...
1923] A patented shave: Colonel Jacob Schick patents the first electric shaver...
1935] The birth of FM: Edwin H. Armstrong announces the development of FM broadcasting. Bless you Edwin H. Armstrong...
1956] Election Day results: President Dwight David Eisenhower is re-elected with a victory over Adlai E. Stevenson...2001] Michael Bloomberg defeats Mark Green in the New York City mayoral election...2005] Bloomberg is re-elected, beating Fernando Ferrer and because of his arrogance, Bloomberg will be eligible for a third term in 2009...
1967] Premiered on this date: Phil Donahue begins his TV talk show in Dayton (OH) and stays on the air for over 25 years with it...
1973] Body snatcher: Singer Gram Parsons' manager Phil Kaufman is fined $300 for stealing Parsons' body from LAX. Kaufman claims it was Parsons wish to be cremated...
1995] Banned in Cleveland: Browns' owner Art Modell announces a plan to move the team to Baltimore. It gets worse when the Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl...
1995] Leaving his Mark in New York: The Rangers' Mark Messier scores his 500th NHL goal against Calgary...
1995] Michael leaves his mark: Michael Jordan scores 50 points for the 29th time in his NBA career...
2002] Gotcha: A jury in Beverly Hills convicts Winona Ryder of stealing $5,500 worth of merchandise from Saks Fifth Avenue. Winona is placed on probation for 3 years...

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Wednesday, November 5, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1895] Patented: George B. Selden of Rochester (NY) receives the first U.S. patent for an automobile...
1935] Premiered on this date: The game of Monopoly is introduced by Parker Brothers...
1940] Election results: Franklin D. Roosevelt wins an unprecedented 3rd term but will be the last president to do so by a new law that limits presidents to two terms...1946] 29-year old Boston Democrat John F. Kennedy is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives...1968] Republican Richard M. Nixon wins the presidency over VP Hubert H. Humphrey and George Wallace...1996] Voters return Bill Clinton to the White House for a second term as Clinton beats Dole...
1960] "Happy Trails": Johnny Horton, 33, is killed in an auto accident in Texas...1989] Pianist Vladimir Horowitz dies of a heart attack at 86...
1981] Busted: Former Miami Dolphin running back Mercury Morris is sentenced to 20 years for drug trafficking and possession of cocaine...
1982] Put it in the books: The Nets put the Cleveland Cavaliers in the record books when they hand the Cavs their 24th consecutive loss, 99-91...
1990] Gunned down: Jewish Defense League Rabbi Meir Kahane, 58, is shot to death after a speech in Manhattan. His assassin, an Egyptian, is later sentenced to life in prison. Many believe Kahane was the first victim of Al Qaida...
1994] The new champ is the old champ: George Foreman becomes boxing's oldest heavyweight champ at 45 by knocking out Michael Moorer in the 10th round...
1994] Former presidential announcement: Former President Ronald Reagan discloses he has Alzheimer's disease...
1998] Former presidential offspring: A study shows strong genetic evidence that Thomas Jefferson fathered at least one child by his slave, Sally Hemmings...

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Tuesday, November 4, 2008

(Election Day Edition) November 4, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1842] Wedding Bells: Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd rock down the aisle...
1922] King Tut sighting: The entrance to King Tutankhamen's tomb is discovered (by Steve Martin?) in Egypt...
1924] Madam Governor: Nellie T. Ross (Wyoming) is elected the nation's 1st woman Governor, chosen to serve the remaining term of her husband William who died in office...
1955] "Happy Trails": Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young dies of natural causes at 88...
1971] Hangin' up his sneakers: NBA great, Elgin Baylor of the Lakers announces his retirement because of knee problems...
1979] Hostage Crisis Day 1: Militants storm the U.S. Embassy in Tehran as the Iranian Hostage Crisis begins (52 hostages will be held for the next 14 months)...
1980] Reagan romp: Ronald Reagan wins the White House, defeating Jimmy Carter soundly...
1991] Reagan retirement: Presidents Nixon, Ford, Carter and Bush help Reagan dedicate his Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley (CA)...
1995] Cut down: Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated by a Jewish extremist after speaking at a peace rally in Tel Aviv...
2007] Record breaker: Antonio Cromartie of the San Diego Chargers breaks the record for the longest play in NFL history with a 109-yard missed field goal return...

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Monday, November 3, 2008

10 Timeline Memories:

1961] Batday: The Boston Patriots beat the Dallas Texans 28-21 at Braves Field when a fan sneaks onto the field and bats away Dallas QB Cotton Davidson's pass into the end zone as time runs out. The play stands, the Patriots win (we love these endings especially when the home team wins. Remember when that convict on work patrol cleared a spot on the field for a winning field goal ? Then there's the "tuck rule" imposed to favor Tom Brady in a big game against Oakland. We love this stuff...
1971] Premiered on this date: "Play Misty For Me" starring Clint Eastwood. Every disc jockey's worst nightmare...1978] "Different Strokes" begins for 8 successful seasons...
1979] Wedding Bells: James Taylor and Carly Simon tie the knot in Carly's Manhattan apartment. Sadly they separate in 1982 and divorce in 1983...
1986] Breaking the story: A Lebanese magazine breaks the story of U.S. arms sales to Iran, which exposes the Iran-Contra affair...
1988] Breaking the nose: Geraldo Rivera breaks his nose in an on-camera brawl with skinheads. I didn't know who to root for in this fight...
1992] Two big winners on Election Day: Bill Clinton is elected our 42nd President, defeating President George H.W. Bush (and) Illinois Democrat Carol Moseley-Braun becomes the 1st black woman elected to the U.S. Senate...
1994] Guilty as charged: Susan Smith is arrested for drowning her two young sons, 9 days after claiming the children had been kidnapped. She's still serving life without parole in prison...
1999] Guilty as charged II: Aaron McKinney is convicted of murder in the beating of gay Wyoming college student Matthew Shepard. McKinney and Russell Henderson are each serving life in prison for the 1998 murder...
2004] A political first: Hamid Karzai is declared the winner of Afghanistan's first-ever presidential election...
2005] Scooter is busted: VP Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby pleads not guilty to a five-count felony indictment in the CIA leak case. Libby is convicted and sentenced to 30-months in prison but 'W' commutes his sentence...For more on November 3rd: CLICK:

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