Tuesday, February 19, 2013

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS:

• Prince Andrew (Queen Elizabeth II's second son, Sarah "Fergie"Ferguson's ex-husband) (53)
• Justine Bateman (actress, Mallory Keaton of TV's Family Ties) (47)
• Jeff Daniels (actor, Speed, Dumb and Dumber, Radio Days, Something Wild, The Purple Rose Of Cairo, Terms Of Endearment, The Hours, Gods And Generals, The Newsroom, Looper) (58)
• Benicio Del Toro (actor, License To Kill, The Usual Suspects, 21 Grams, Sin City, Che, The Wolf Man, Savages, Best Supporting Actor Oscar winner for his role in Traffic) (46)
• Haylie Duff (actress-songwriter, sister of Hillary Duff) (28)
• Smokey Robinson (R&B singer and songwriter) (73)
• Lou Christie ("Lightnin' Strikes," "Rhapsody in the Rain," "The Gypsy Cried") (70)
• Amy Tan (writer, producer, The Joy Luck Club) (61)
• Michael Nader (actor, Dynasty, All My Children, As The World Turns) (68)
• Seal (singer, "Kiss From A Rose") (50)
• Tony Iommi (guitarist, Black Sabbath) (65)
• Bluey Maunick (jazz musician, Incognito) (56)
• Steve Nieve (keyboardist, Elvis Costello & the Attractions, Elvis Costello & the Imposters) (55)
• Ray Winstone (actor, The Departed, The Proposition, Fool's Gold, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) (56)

ON THIS DAY:

• 1878, Thomas Edison received a patent for his cylinder phonograph, what he called a "speaking machine," that he'd invented three months earlier.
• 1881,Kansas led prohibition by being the first state to make alcoholic beverages illegal.
• 1913, the first prize was inserted into a Cracker Jack box.
• 1924 Actor Lee Marvin (The Wild One, Bad Day At Black Rock, The Dirty Dozen) is born. He dies in 1987.
• 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed an executive order during World War II, giving the military the authority to relocate and intern Japanese-Americans for the duration of World War II to prevent sabotage.
• 1942, The New York Yankees announce 5,000 uniformed soldiers will be admitted free at each of their upcoming home games.
• 1945, 30,000 U.S. Marines landed on Iwo Jima during World War II, beginning a month-long battle to take the Japanese-held island.
• 1961, Grateful Dead singer-guitarist Jerry Garcia is thrown through the windshield of a car he's riding in with some friends when it goes off the road and flips. He suffers a broken collarbone and some bruises, but one person is killed, and Garcia later tells journalist David Gans, "I had this feeling that my life had been spared to do something."
• 1974, the American Music Awards, Dick Clark's answer to the Grammys, first aired.
• 1977, "Blinded By The Light" by Manfred Mann's Earth Band, a cover of the Bruce Springsteen song, hits Number One on the pop chart.
• 1980, AC/DC vocalist Bon Scott dies at age 33.
• 1985, Cherry Coke appears for the first time in cans and bottles.
• 1987, The first anti-smoking ad starring Yul Brynner aired. The controversial ad was pre-recorded -- Brynner had died of lung cancer in 1985.
• 1993 Nirvana's Insecticide album is certified gold.
• 1995, Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee marries Baywatch actress Pamela Anderson. They divorce in 1998.
• 1997 A New York judge dismisses a $7 million lawsuit a fan filed against Motley Crue for hearing loss suffered at one of their concerts. The judge said the fan knew the concert would be loud going into it.
• 1997, the United States Tennis Association announced that the new stadium being built at the National Tennis Center in New York City would be named in honor of tennis great Arthur Ashe. Ashe died of AIDS in 1993 after contracting the disease from a blood transfusion during a heart operation 10 years earlier.
• 1998 Marilyn Manson makes his first appearance on Late Show With David Letterman.
• 1999 Metallica's double-disc collection of cover tunes, Garage Inc., is certified quadruple platinum.
• 2000 Texas Governor George W. Bush defeats Senator John McCain inSouth Carolina's crucial Republican primary.
• 2002 Creed performs at theOlympicsMedalPlaza inSalt Lake City,Utah, as part of the Winter Olympics festivities.
• 2002 Incubus announces the Honda Civic tour. Singer Brandon Boyd claims that he survived a car accident because he was driving a Honda.
• 2004 A civil lawsuit accusing Marilyn Manson of sexual assault is settled and dismissed. Security guard Joshua Keasler sued for sexual assault and emotional distress after Manson reportedly approached him during a July 2001 show inDetroit, wrapped his legs around him, and gyrated against his head while wearing only a leather thong.
• 2004 Linkin Park announces the third Projekt Revolution tour, which will feature Korn and Snoop Dogg in addition toLinkinPark and others.
• 2008, Fidel Castro resigns as President of Cuba.