Wednesday, July 11, 2012 

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS:

• Richie Sambora (lead guitarist, Bon Jovi) (53)
• Giorgio Armani (Fashion designer) (78)
• Sela Ward (actress, CSI: NY, Sisters, Once And Again) (56)
• Bruce McGill (actor, Animal House, Silkwood, MacGyver, My Cousin Vinny, The Sum Of All Fears) (62)
• Leon Spinks (former heavyweight boxing champion) (59)
• Tab Hunter (singer, "Young Love") (81)
• Bonnie Pointer (singer, the Pointer Sisters) (62)
• Peter Brown (singer, "Dance With Me") (59)
• Myra Gale Brown (she married her second cousin Jerry Lee Lewis at the age of 13) (68)
• Jeff Corwin (animal expert and TV host) (45)
• Suzanne Vega (singer, "Tom's Diner," "Luka") (53)
• Justin Chambers (actor, Dr. Alex Karev on Grey's Anatomy) (42)
• Nadya Suleman (Octomom) (37, disputed)
• Scott Shriner (bassist, Weezer) (47)
• Lil Kim (rapper) (37)

ON THIS DAY:

• 1798, the U.S. Marine Corps was officially established by an act of Congress.
• 1804, Aaron Burr, former vice-president of the United States, mortally wounded former Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton in a duel over political rivalry and accusations.Hamilton died the next day.
• 1859 A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is published.
• 1899, Author E.B. White (Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little) is born. He dies in 1985.
• 1914, in his major league debut, Boston Red Sox pitcher Babe Ruth beat the Indians by the score of 4-3.
• 1920, Actor Yul Brynner (The Ten Commandments, The King and I, The Magnificent Seven, Westworld) is born. He dies in 1985.
• 1955, the U.S. Air Force Academy was dedicated inColorado Springs.
• 1964, "House Of The Rising Sun" by the Animals hits Number One on theU.K. pop chart.
• 1964, "No Particular Place To Go" by Chuck Berry peaks at Number 10 on the pop chart.
• 1964, the first 7-11 convenience store opened. The store got its name from its extended hours, from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
• 1966, The TV series The Newlywed Game debuts.
• 1969, "Honky Tonk Women" by the Rolling Stones is released.
• 1970, "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)" by Three Dog Night hits Number One on the pop chart, where it stays for two weeks.
• 1970, "Ride Captain Ride" by Blues Image peaks at Number Four on the pop chart.
• 1970, The soundtrack to the movie Woodstock hits Number One on the album chart, where it stays for four weeks.
• 1975, Fleetwood Mac by Fleetwood Mac is released.
• 1977, the Medal Of Freedom was awarded posthumously to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in a White House ceremony.
• 1979, Neil Young's Rust Never Sleeps album is released, the same day that the Rust Never Sleeps film premieres.
• 1979, The Skylab space station re-enters Earth's atmosphere from its orbit. Much of the vessel burns up during re-entry, with the remaining debris scattered acrossAustralia and theIndian Ocean.
• 1987, "Alone" by Heart hits Number One on the pop chart, where it will stay for three weeks.
• 1989, Actor Laurence Olivier (Spartacus, Marathon Man, The Boys From Brazil) dies at age 82.
• 1992 "Remedy" by the Black Crowes peaks at Number 48 on the pop chart.
• 1994 Porn superstar Savannah, whose real name was Shannon Wilsey, dies at the age of 23.
• 1994 The self-titled debut album from Van Halen is certified eight-times platinum, while their 1984 is certified seven-times platinum.
• 1995, R.E.M. singer-bassist Mike Mills has abdominal surgery to remove an intestinal tumor.
• 1995, Twenty years after the fall of Saigon, President Bill Clinton established full diplomatic relations withVietnam.
• 2000 Lars Ulrich of Metallica testifies before a Senate panel against services like Napster that allow people to trade music for free over the Internet.
• 2000 Limp Bizkit kicks off its Napster-sponsored Back To Basics tour inDetroit.
• 2000 The Motley Crue album New Tattoo is released.
• 2003 U2 frontman Bono is awarded an honorary Doctor In Laws degree fromTrinityCollege inDublin, in recognition of his humanitarian work on behalf of world poverty andThird World debt relief.
• 2005 Chevelle issues a statement on the departure of bassist Joe Loeffler, saying, "We've spent 10 great years building Chevelle, but irreconcilable differences have led to an unfortunate parting of ways between Joe and the band."
• 2006 British trio Muse releases its fourth album, Black Holes and Revelations.
• 2006 Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke issues his first solo album, titled The Eraser.
• 2007 Velvet Revolver's second album, Libertad, debuts at Number Five on the Billboard album chart, selling 92,000 copies in its first week of release.