Today in History
Today is June 19.
This is the anniversary of the only married couple ever executed together in the United States. On this date in 1953, convicted spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were electrocuted at Sing Sing Prison in Ossining, N.Y. The time of their execution was pushed forward by several hours as to avoid conflict with the Jewish Sabbath.
It was on this date in 1987 that the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the 1981 Louisiana law that required schools in the state to teach "Creationism," or the creationist theory of human origin.
In the early years of the United States, the newly formed country was governed by something known as the "Articles of Confederation," in which states' rights were supreme over that of a centralized government. Realizing that wasn't working, on this date in 1787, delegates to the U.S. Constitutional Convention voted to strike down the Articles and form a new government. They ended up writing a new Constitution, too.
The early Christian church opened the general council of Nicaea on this date in 325. The meeting settled on the rules for computing the date on which Easter would be celebrated each year.
The first seeds of organized baseball were planted on this date in 1846 when two amateur baseball teams played under new rules at Hoboken, N.J. The New York Nine beat the Knickerbockers, 23-1.
Today's musical birthdays include the late Guy Lombardo, who was born in 1902; the late Lester Flatt in 1914; Tommy DeVito of the Four Seasons in 1936 (age 66); Elaine "Spanky" McFarlane of the 1960s folk-pop group Spanky and Our Gang in 1942 (age 60); Ann Wilson of Heart in 1951 (age 51); Larry Dunn, keyboardist with Earth Wind and Fire, in 1953 (age 49); Mark DeBarge of DeBarge in 1959 (age 43); and Paula Abdul in 1962 (age 40).
On this day in music history:
In 1957, Jerry Lee Lewis reached the pop charts with "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On."
In 1960, Loretta Lynn's first single, "Honky Tonk Girl," entered the charts.
In 1967, Beatle Paul McCartney -- having admitted in Life magazine that he'd taken LSD -- repeated the admission on television.
In 1977, the Sex Pistols' Paul Cook was mugged outside a London subway station. He suffered head wounds.
In 1982, Asia's first album hit No.1.
In 1984, tickets for Bruce Springsteen's 10-day stand at New York's Meadowlands went on sale. 202,000 were sold in 24 hours.
In 1987, Whitney Houston became the first female artist to debut at No.1 on Billboard's album chart -- with "Whitney," her second album.
Also in 1987, the Recording Industry Association of America reported that for the first time, sales of CDs surpassed vinyl albums in 1986.
In 1991, Jordan "New Kids On The Block" Knight allegedly ordered a bodyguard to punch a heckler outside a Boston nightclub. Knight was charged with assault and battery for hire, but the charges were dropped the following March.
In 1999, U2's Bono and fellow Irish rocker Bob Geldolf were among the 35,000 or so people who formed a human chain around a building in Cologne, Germany, where the G7 summit was being held. They called on the world leaders to cancel all outstanding debts owed by the world's poorest countries.
In 2000, members of David Bowie's online community, UltraStar's BowieNet hosted a private concert for the musician at New York's Roseland Ballroom. The show was Bowie's first-ever for BowieNet members.
Today's musical quiz:
Paul McCartney is one of the more financially astute rock musicians. With the inheritance of his late wife Linda's fortune, how much is McCartney estimated to be worth today?
Answer: About $1.1 billion.
We now return you to the present, already in progress.
This is the anniversary of the only married couple ever executed together in the United States. On this date in 1953, convicted spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were electrocuted at Sing Sing Prison in Ossining, N.Y. The time of their execution was pushed forward by several hours as to avoid conflict with the Jewish Sabbath.
It was on this date in 1987 that the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the 1981 Louisiana law that required schools in the state to teach "Creationism," or the creationist theory of human origin.
In the early years of the United States, the newly formed country was governed by something known as the "Articles of Confederation," in which states' rights were supreme over that of a centralized government. Realizing that wasn't working, on this date in 1787, delegates to the U.S. Constitutional Convention voted to strike down the Articles and form a new government. They ended up writing a new Constitution, too.
The early Christian church opened the general council of Nicaea on this date in 325. The meeting settled on the rules for computing the date on which Easter would be celebrated each year.
The first seeds of organized baseball were planted on this date in 1846 when two amateur baseball teams played under new rules at Hoboken, N.J. The New York Nine beat the Knickerbockers, 23-1.
Today's musical birthdays include the late Guy Lombardo, who was born in 1902; the late Lester Flatt in 1914; Tommy DeVito of the Four Seasons in 1936 (age 66); Elaine "Spanky" McFarlane of the 1960s folk-pop group Spanky and Our Gang in 1942 (age 60); Ann Wilson of Heart in 1951 (age 51); Larry Dunn, keyboardist with Earth Wind and Fire, in 1953 (age 49); Mark DeBarge of DeBarge in 1959 (age 43); and Paula Abdul in 1962 (age 40).
On this day in music history:
In 1957, Jerry Lee Lewis reached the pop charts with "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On."
In 1960, Loretta Lynn's first single, "Honky Tonk Girl," entered the charts.
In 1967, Beatle Paul McCartney -- having admitted in Life magazine that he'd taken LSD -- repeated the admission on television.
In 1977, the Sex Pistols' Paul Cook was mugged outside a London subway station. He suffered head wounds.
In 1982, Asia's first album hit No.1.
In 1984, tickets for Bruce Springsteen's 10-day stand at New York's Meadowlands went on sale. 202,000 were sold in 24 hours.
In 1987, Whitney Houston became the first female artist to debut at No.1 on Billboard's album chart -- with "Whitney," her second album.
Also in 1987, the Recording Industry Association of America reported that for the first time, sales of CDs surpassed vinyl albums in 1986.
In 1991, Jordan "New Kids On The Block" Knight allegedly ordered a bodyguard to punch a heckler outside a Boston nightclub. Knight was charged with assault and battery for hire, but the charges were dropped the following March.
In 1999, U2's Bono and fellow Irish rocker Bob Geldolf were among the 35,000 or so people who formed a human chain around a building in Cologne, Germany, where the G7 summit was being held. They called on the world leaders to cancel all outstanding debts owed by the world's poorest countries.
In 2000, members of David Bowie's online community, UltraStar's BowieNet hosted a private concert for the musician at New York's Roseland Ballroom. The show was Bowie's first-ever for BowieNet members.
Today's musical quiz:
Paul McCartney is one of the more financially astute rock musicians. With the inheritance of his late wife Linda's fortune, how much is McCartney estimated to be worth today?
Answer: About $1.1 billion.
We now return you to the present, already in progress.