Fidel Castro – Time Rewind

On This Day April 17

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On This Day April 20

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Celebrity Birthdays

1909 – Legendary jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton (d. 2002)

1937 – Actor and LGBTQ rights advocate George Takei, best known as Lieutenant Sulu from the “Star Trek” TV and movie series

1941 – Actor Ryan O’Neal (“Love Story,” “What’s Up Doc,” “Paper Moon,” “The Main Event”)

1949 – Oscar, Emmy, Tony and Golden Globe-winning actress Jessica Lange (“King Kong,” “Tootsie,” “Frances,” “Country,” “Grey Gardens,” “American Horror Story,” “Feud”)

1951 – Grammy-winning R&B singer-songwriter Luther Vandross (“Never Too Much,” “Here and Now,” “Any Love,” “Power of Love/Love Power,” “Dance with My Father”) (d. 2005)

1964 – Actor Andy Serkis, who played Gollum in “The Lord of the Rings” movie trilogy and Caesar in “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”. He also had roles in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”,”Star Wars: The Last Jedi”, “Avengers: Age of Ultron” and “Black Panther”

1964 – Actor Crispin Glover, best known for playing George McFly in the “Back to the Future” movie franchise

1972 – Model-turned-actress and reality TV star Carmen Electra (“Baywatch,” “Meet the Spartans,” “Epic Movie,” “Cheaper by the Dozen 2”)

History Highlights

1912 – With 27,000 people in the stands, the Boston Red Sox play their first game at Fenway Park and defeat the New York Highlanders (later renamed the Yankees) by a score of 7-6 in 11 innings.

1916 – The first National League game played at Chicago’s Wrigley Field (then Weeghman Park) sees the Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-6 in 11 innings. A bear cub is in attendance at the ballpark, which becomes known as Cubs Park in 1920 after the Wrigley family purchases the team from Weeghman. It is named Wrigley Field in 1926 in honor of William Wrigley Jr., the club’s owner.

1971 – The U.S. Supreme Court upholds the practice of busing to desegregate schools, ruling in the case of Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education. Two years later, the high court makes a second ruling restricting the use of busing, concluding that students could only be bused across district lines if there was evidence that multiple districts had implemented deliberately discriminatory policies.

1977 – The comedy “Annie Hall” opens, starring director Woody Allen and Diane Keaton. The film goes on to win Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress and Best Original Screenplay.

1980 – The Castro regime announces that all Cubans wishing to emigrate to the U.S. are free to board boats at the port of Mariel west of Havana, launching the Mariel Boatlift.

1999 – The school day at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado is shattered by deadly gunfire. Two seniors fatally shoot 12 students and a teacher before taking their own lives. Twenty-three others are injured in what ushers in a wave of U.S. school shootings over the next two decades.

Musical Milestones

1957 – Elvis Presley is on top of Billboard’s Best Sellers in Stores chart for a second week with “All Shook Up.” The track remains at No. 1 for eight weeks and becomes the biggest single of 1957, selling more than two million copies.

1963 – The Chiffons wrap up a four-week domination of the pop chart with “He’s So Fine.”

1968 – “Honey,” by Bobby Goldsboro, is in the middle of a five-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1970 – The New York Times reports that Catholic and Protestant youth groups have adopted The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine as a religious symbol and formed so called “submarine churches.” These churches featured the outline of a yellow submarine with a small cross on its periscope as their symbol. It is displayed alongside peace signs, flowers and other popular emblems of the period.

1974 – “TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia),” by MFSB featuring the Three Degrees, claims the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks.

1991 – Wilson Phillips’ “You’re in Love” is No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1996 – Céline Dion’s Grammy-winning “Because You Loved Me” continues a six-week ride atop the U.S. singles chart. The track is from the 1996 movie “Up Close and Personal,” starring Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer.

2002 – Ashanti launches a 10-week run on top of the pop chart with “Foolish,” off her self-titled debut album.

2013 – Bruno Mars kicks off a week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “When I Was Your Man.”

On This Day February 16

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Celebrity Birthdays

1935 – Musician, record producer and U.S. Congressman Sonny Bono, best known as half of the Sonny & Cher pop duo (d. 1998)

1952 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter James Ingram (“One Hundred Ways,” “Baby Come to Me,” “Yah Mo B There,” “I Don’t Have the Heart”) (d. 2019)

1957 – Emmy and Grammy-winning actor LeVar Burton (“Roots,” “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” “Reading Rainbow”)

1958 – Grammy-winning rapper and actor Ice-T, born Tracy Marrow (“New Jack City,” “Ricochet,” “Law & Order SVU”)

1959 – Retired tennis champion and sports commentator John McEnroe

1964 – Actor Christopher Eccleston (“28 Days Later,” “Thor: The Dark World,” “Doctor Who”)

History Highlights

1923 – English archaeologist Howard Carter opens the tomb of the ancient Egyptian ruler King Tutankhamen.

1959 – Fidel Castro is sworn in as prime minister of Cuba after leading a guerrilla campaign that forced right-wing dictator Fulgencio Batista into exile.

1968 – The nation’s first 911 emergency telephone system goes into service in Haleyville, Alabama. Today, across the U.S., an estimated 240 million calls a year are made to 911.

1984 – Bill Johnson becomes the first American man to win an Olympic gold medal in downhill skiing, a sport long dominated by European athletes.

Musical Milestones

1959 – “Stagger Lee,” by Lloyd Price, is in the middle of a four-week run at No. 1 on the pop chart.

1964 – The Beatles are guests on “The Ed Sullivan Show” for a second time, with this broadcast originating from the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida. CBS gave away 4,500 tickets, however the hotel could only accommodate 2,600 people.

1974 – A Bob Dylan album reaches the top of the Billboard album chart for the first time. “Planet Waves,” featuring a collaboration with The Band, holds the top spot for four weeks.

1975 – After a four-season run as half of “The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour,” Cher gets her own weekly variety show on CBS, simply called “Cher.” The series features guests like Elton John, Bette Midler, David Bowie, Bill Cosby, the Smothers Brothers, George Burns, Steve Martin and more.

1980 – “Do That to Me One More Time” becomes the Captain & Tennille’s second No. 1 single.

1985 – “Careless Whisper,” by Wham! featuring George Michael, tops the Billboard singles chart and stays there for three weeks.

1991 – “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now),” by C+C Music Factory featuring Freedom Williams and Martha Wash begins its seconmd and final week on top of the pop chart.

2002 – Usher begins his fifth and final week atop the Billboard Hot 100 with “U Got It Bad.”

2008 – “Low,” by Flo-Rida featuring T-Pain, is in the middle of 10 weeks as a No. 1 single.

On This Day January 3

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Celebrity Birthdays

1892 – English writer and poet J. R. R. Tolkien (“The Hobbit,” “Lord of the Rings”) (d. 1973)

1926 – Record producer-arranger George Martin, known as the “Fifth Beatle” (d. 2016)

1930 – Actor-director Robert Loggia (“Scarface,” “Big,” “Jagged Edge,” “Independence Day,” “Lost Highway,” “The Sopranos”) (d. 2015)

1932 – Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Dabney Coleman, (“9 to 5,” “Tootsie,” “WarGames,” “Buffalo Bill,” “Boardwalk Empire,” “Rules Don’t Apply”)

1950 – Actress Victoria Principal, best known for her role as Pam Ewing in the hit series “Dallas”

1956 – Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actor-producer-director Mel Gibson (“Mad Max,” “Braveheart,” the “Lethal Weapon” movie series, “The Patriot,” “The Passion of the Christ,” “The Beaver,” “Hacksaw Ridge”)

1981 – Star NFL quarterback Eli Manning of the New York Giants

History Highlights

1938 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his former law partner, Basil O’Connor, establish the March of Dimes (originally known as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis) to battle polio, the disease FDR contracted at the age of 39 that prevented him from ever walking on his own again.

1961 – The U.S. severs diplomatic relations with Cuba two years after Fidel Castro seized control of the island nation 90 miles off the coast of Florida.

1967 – Jack Ruby, the Dallas nightclub owner who killed the alleged assassin of President John F. Kennedy, dies of cancer in a Dallas hospital. The Texas Court of Appeals had recently overturned Ruby’s death sentence for the murder of Lee Harvey Oswald and was scheduled to grant him a new trial.

1969 – Apollo 8 astronauts William Anders, Frank Borman and Jim Lovell grace the cover of TIME magazine as “Men of the Year” for becoming the first humans to orbit the moon. During their mission, the trio also captured the iconic “Earthrise” image of planet Earth hovering above the lunar surface. They were hailed for bringing a hopeful conclusion to 1968 — a year filled with social strife that included the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy.

1990 – Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega surrenders to U.S. military troops to face charges of drug trafficking.

1993 – The Buffalo Bills stage the greatest comeback in NFL history. Backup quarterback Frank Reich leads the Bills to an improbable 41-38 overtime victory over the Houston Oilers in an AFC wild card playoff game that would forever be known to football fans as “The Comeback.” In Houston, however, it was referred to as “The Choke.”

Musical Milestones

1970 – The Beatles record their last song as a group — George Harrison’s “I, Me, Mine” — which appears on the “Let It Be” album.

1970 – “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” by B.J. Thomas, begins a four-week domination of the singles chart. The song is featured in the film “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” starring Robert Redford and Paul Newman.

1976 – S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y NIGHT! Scotland’s Bay City Rollers hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Saturday Night.”

1981 – Less than four weeks after his assassination outside his Manhattan apartment building, John Lennon has the first No. 1 single of 1981 with “(Just Like) Starting Over.”

1987 – Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

1987 – The Bangles claim the top spot on the singles chart with “Walk Like an Egyptian.”

1998 – Elton John’s tribute to the late Princess Diana, “Candle in the Wind 1997,” enters its 13th week as a No. 1 single.

2004 – OutKast rules the Billboard Hot 100 with “Hey Ya!” The track ultimately holds the top spot for nine weeks and goes on to win a Best Urban/Alternative Performance Grammy Award.

On This Day January 1

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Celebrity Birthdays

1735 – American Revolution patriot Paul Revere (d. 1818)

1919 – Author J. D. Salinger, best known for his critically acclaimed novel “The Catcher in the Rye” (d. 2010)

1938 – Tony-winning actor Frank Langella (“Dracula,” “Dave,” “Frost/Nixon,” “Unknown”)

1942 – Country Joe McDonald, lead singer of the 60s psychedelic rock group Country Joe & the Fish

1943 – Actor-comedian Don Novello, best known as Father Guido Salducci on “Saturday Night Live”

1958 – Rapper Grandmaster Flash, born Joseph Saddler, considered one of the pioneers of hip-hop DJing, cutting and mixing

1969 – Actor Morris Chestnut (“Boyz n the Hood,” “The Best Man,” “Ladder 49”)

History Highlights

1818 – Mary Shelley’s classic “Frankenstein” is published.

1863 – President Abraham Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation aimed at abolishing slavery in the U.S.

1942 – The United Nations is created when U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill issue a declaration, signed by representatives of 26 countries, vowing to form an international postwar peacekeeping organization.

1959 – Cuban President Fulgencio Batista is overthrown by Fidel Castro’s rebel forces during the Cuban Revolution. Amid celebration and chaos in the capitol of Havana, the U.S. is left to determine how best to deal with the radical Castro and brewing anti-Americanism in Cuba.

1971 – A ban on cigarette advertising on American television takes effect, with the last commercial (for Virginia Slims) broadcast on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” at 11:50 p.m.

1994 – The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) takes effect between Canada, the United States and Mexico. Former President George H.W. Bush signed the NAFTA agreement in 1992 before leaving office.

Musical Milestones

1953 – One of America’s first country music superstars, Hank Williams, dies at the age of 29, but leaves a lasting legacy that continues to influence artists of all musical genres.

1959 – Country music legend Johnny Cash (a.k.a. “The Man in Black”) plays his first of many free concerts at California’s San Quentin Prison. The captive audience of inmates included future country music great Merle Haggard , who, at 19, was serving time for grand theft auto and armed robbery.

1962 – From the “Ooops” file: The Beatles audition for London record company Decca on the same day as Brian Poole & the Tremeloes. Decca tells The Beatles, “guitar groups are on their way out,” and signs the Tremeloes.

1966 – Simon & Garfunkel are No. 1 on the singles chart with “The Sounds of Silence.”

1977 – Rod Stewart begins his eighth and final week on top of the pop chart with “Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright).”

1983 – Hall & Oates dominate the Billboard Hot 100 for a third week with “Maneater.”

2000 – “Smooth,” by Santana featuring Rob Thomas, scores its ninth week on top of the Billboard Hot 100. The track will spend one more week at No. 1 and later capture three Grammy Awards: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

On This Day September 28

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Celebrity Birthdays

1934 – Actress-model-animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot

1938 – Legendary soul singer Ben E. King (“Stand by Me,” “This Magic Moment,” “Spanish Harlem”) (d. 2015)

1950 – Screenwriter-director John Sayles (“Return of the Secaucus 7,” “Passion Fish.” “Lone Star,” “Men With Guns”)

1964 – Actress-comedian and political activist Janeane Garofalo (“The Ben Stiller Show,” “Reality Bites,” “The Independent,” “Bad Parents”)

1967 – Oscar-winning actress-producer Mira Sorvino (“Mighty Aphrodite,” “Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion,” “Mimic,” “The Replacement Killers,” “Summer of Sam,” “Human Trafficking”)

1968 – Actress Naomi Watts (“Mulholland Drive,” “The Ring,” “I Heart Huckabees,” “King Kong,” “J. Edgar,” “The Impossible,” “Birdman”)

1987 – Actress-singer Hilary Duff (“Lizzie McGuire,” “Cheaper By The Dozen,” “A Cinderella Story,” “Metamorphosis,” “War, Inc.”)

History Highlights

1928 – A landmark event in modern medicine takes place as young Scottish bacteriologist Sir Alexander Fleming accidentally discovers penicillin — one of the world’s first antibiotics. It means that doctors finally have a tool that could completely cure their patients of deadly infectious diseases.

1941 – Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox plays a double-header against the Philadelphia Athletics on the last day of the regular season and gets six hits in eight trips to the plate, to boost his batting average to .406 and become the first player since Bill Terry in 1930 to hit .400.

1960 – Boston Red Sox star Ted Williams thrills fans at Fenway Park when he hits a dramatic home run in the last at-bat of his 21-year career. He becomes the last player to hit .400 in a season. In 1966, Williams is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

1965 – Six years after leading the Cuban Revolution and four years after the failed U.S.-backed Bay of Pigs Invasion, Fidel Castro announces that any Cuban wishing to leave the island was free to do so.

1980 – Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos” premieres on PBS, becoming the most-viewed television series to date.

1982 – The first of seven deaths from cyanide-laced Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules is reported near Chicago. The case terrifies Americans and changes the way we buy and consume over-the-counter medications.

1989 – Former Philippines president Ferdinand Marcos, whose corrupt regime spanned 20 years, dies in exile in Hawaii.

Musical Milestones

1963 – Bobby Vinton is in the middle of a three-week domination of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Blue Velvet.”

1968 – The Beatles begin nine weeks on top of the singles chart with “Hey Jude.” With a running time of just over seven minutes, the track remains the lengthiest No. 1 single ever and is beloved by radio DJs around the world as the ultimate bathroom break song.

1974 – “Rock Me Gently,” by Andy Kim, is the hottest song on the radio.

1985 – “Money for Nothing,” by Dire Straits, is in the midst of a three-week run as a Billboard chart-topper. Sting lends his talents to the track as a background vocalist. The song captures a Grammy for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the 28th Annual Grammy Awards in 1986.

1991 – Jazz great Miles Davis dies at the age of 65.

1991 – Color Me Badd is in its second and final week on top of the singles chart with “I Adore Mi Amor.”

1996 – Los Del Rio dominate Top 40 radio as their smash, “Macarena,” continues its 14-week reign over the Billboard Hot 100.

2002 – “Dilemma,” by Nelly featuring Kelly Rowland, kicks off its seventh week as a No. 1 single.

2013 – Miley Cyrus kicks off two weeks on top of the pop chart with “Wrecking Ball.”

On this Day August 13

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Celebrity Birthdays

1860 – Markswoman and Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show star Annie Oakley (d. 1926)

1899 – Legendary director Alfred Hitchcock, nicknamed the “Master of Suspense” (“Psycho,” “Rear Window,” “North by Northwest,” “Vertigo,” “Dial M for Murder,” “The Birds”) (d. 1980)

1926 – Former Cuban President Fidel Castro (d. 2016)

1929 – Actor Pat Harrington, Jr., most recognized as building superintendent Dwayne Schneider on the CBS sitcom “One Day at a Time” (d. 2016)

1930 – Internationally acclaimed Hawaiian entertainer Don Ho, most remembered for his 1966 hit single “Tiny Bubbles” (d. 2007)

1949 – French high wire artist Philippe Petit, famous for his 1974 World Trade Center high-wire walk

1951- Singer-songwriter Dan Fogelberg (“The Power of Gold,” “Longer”) (d. 2007)

1959 – Former “Partridge Family” co-star and talk show host Danny Bonaduce

1962 – Actor John Slattery, best known for his portrayal of Roger Sterling in the “Mad Men” TV series

History Highlights

1907 – The first taxicab hits the streets of New York City.

1942 – Walt Disney’s classic animated film “Bambi” premieres at New York’s Radio City Music Hall. It becomes Disney’s fifth animated feature.

1948 – Responding to heightened Soviet pressure on western Berlin, U.S. and British planes airlift a record amount of supplies into sections of the city under American and British control. Pilots had to navigate weather so bad that the day became known as “Black Friday.”

1961 – Berlin, Germany becomes a divided city, as East German soldiers lay barbed wire and bricks to prevent residents of the Soviet-controlled eastern part of the city from fleeing to the democratically controlled western section. The Berlin Wall becomes one of the most iconic symbols of the Cold War.

1981 – President Ronald Reagan signs the Economic Recovery Tax Act (ERTA), an historic package of tax and budget reductions that sets the tone for his administration’s overall economic policy, often referred to as “Reaganomics.”

1995 – Former New York Yankees slugger and Baseball Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle dies of liver cancer at the age of 63.

Musical Milestones

1964 – The Supremes record “Baby Love,” which climbs to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 that fall, becoming the Motown sensation’s second chart-topper.

1965 – The Beatles touch down at New York’s Kennedy International Airport for their second North American tour, which includes their now-legendary performance before nearly 56,000 fans at Shea Stadium.

1966 – “Summer in the City,” by The Lovin’ Spoonful, begins three weeks as a No. 1 single. It is the first song ever produced that features a jack-hammer sound effect.

1975 – Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band begin their “Born to Run” tour at New York’s Bottom Line night club.

1977 – Bachman-Turner Overdrive (BTO), the band that gave us “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” and “Let It Ride,” breaks up.

1977 – Andy Gibb begins his third and final week on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “I Just Want to Be Your Everything.”

1980 – Devo releases the new wave/synth-pop single “Whip It,” which climbs as high as No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song continues to get heavy airplay today on 80s and new wave-format radio stations.

1982 – Soul singer Joe Tex dies at his home in Navasota, Texas, following a heart attack at the age of 49. He had nine Top 40 hits during his music career, including the 1972 No. 2 single. “I Gotcha.”

1983 – The Police are in the midst of an eight-week domination of the pop chart with “Every Breath You Take,” off their Grammy-winning “Synchronicity” album.

1994 – “Stay (I Missed You),” by Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories, is in the middle of a three-week run on top of the Billboard Hot 100. The single earns Loeb the distinction of being the first artist to have a No. 1 hit before even being signed to a record label.

2005 – Mariah Carey rules the pop chart with “We Belong Together,” off her “The Emancipation of Mimi” album.