9/22 Entertainment History

“Don and I are infamous for our split, but we’re closer than most brothers. Harmony singing requires that you enlarge yourself, not use any kind of suppression. Harmony is the ultimate love.”
~Phil Everly

“It’s not me and it’s not him. It’s the two of us together. I sing the lead and so I can drift off. Then we’ll come back in together and the whole thing happens again. It amazes me sometimes.”
~Don Everly

“I honestly believe I’ve spent the last 40 years, on every record I’ve been part of for somebody else, trying to be an Everly. I’ve spent my whole life chasing that beautiful, beautiful blend.”
~Vince Gill

ROCK & ROLL HISTORY

1975 – The Bee Gees released Nights On Broadway.
The single from their Main Course album peaked at #7 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1983 – The Everly Brothers, after not speaking to each other for 10 years following a bitter breakup, reunited at The Royal Albert Hall in London.

1985 – The first Farm Aid benefit concert was held in Champaign, Illinois, to raise money for family farmers in the United States. Organized by Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young, the concert raised over $9 million.
An all-star cast of performers included Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Alabama, Charlie Daniels, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Roger McGuinn, Johnny Cash, John Fogerty, John Denver, Glen Campbell and Roger Miller.

MOVIE/TV HISTORY

1957 – Maverick premiered on ABC.
Eight episodes into the first season, James Garner – who played Bret Maverick – was joined by Jack Kelly as his brother Bart, and from that point on, Garner and Kelly alternated leads from week to week, sometimes teaming up for the occasional two-brother episode.

1958 – Peter Gunn premiered on NBC. The series lasted three years.
The series is probably best remembered today for its music, including the iconic Peter Gunn Theme, composed by Henry Mancini.

1964 – The Man From U.N.C.L.E. debuted on NBC.
David McCallum and Robert Vaughn played Illya Kuryakin and Napoleon Solo, two agents who worked for a secret international counterespionage and law-enforcement agency called U.N.C.L.E. (United Network Command for Law and Enforcement).
The series – co-starring Leo G. Carroll as Alexander Waverly, the British head of the organization – ran for four seasons.

1964 – The musical Fiddler On The Roof opened at the Imperial Theater on Broadway.
It was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning nine, including Best Musical, score, book, direction and choreography, and acting awards for Zero Mostel and Maria Karnilova (both shown above).
The original production ran for a total of 3,242 performances.

1976 – Charlie’s Angels premiered on ABC. It lasted five seasons.

1982 – Family Ties debuted on NBC.
The series, which focused primarily on the relationship between young Republican Alex P. Keaton (Michael J. Fox) and his ex-hippie parents, Steven and Elyse Keaton (Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter-Birney) lasted seven seasons.

1987 – Dan Rowan (Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In) died of lymphoma at the age of 65.

1989 – Baywatch premiered on NBC.
The series was canceled after one season but was saved when it was picked up on a syndication basis. It continued to run until 2001.

1989 – Irving Berlin (composer of ‘God Bless America’, ‘White Christmas’, ‘There’s No Business Like Show Business’, and hundreds more) died of natural causes at the age of 101.

1994 – Friends premiered on NBC, beginning a 10-year run. Along the way, the series was nominated for 62 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning six.
Jennifer Aniston and Lisa Kudrow were the only main cast members to win an Emmy, while Courtney Cox was the only member never nominated.

2003 – Gordon Jump (best known as the clueless radio station manager Arthur “Big Guy” Carlson in the TV series WKRP in Cincinnati) died from pulmonary fibrosis, leading to respiratory failure. He was 71.

SPORTS HISTORY

1927 – The night of the long count: Jack Dempsey failed to return to a neutral corner after knocking down champ Gene Tunney in a title match in Chicago.
Dempsey waited five seconds before heading to the neutral corner, at which point the referee began the 10-count as the rules dictated. As the referee reached nine seconds, Tunney got back up to his feet.
He had actually been down for 14 seconds. Tunney went on to win the bout in a 10-round decision.

1966 – The New York Yankees, mired in 10th place in the American League, drew a record low crowd of 413 fans at Yankee Stadium (which had a capacity of 65,000).
WPIX announcer Red Barber asked the TV cameras to pan the empty stands as he commented on the low attendance. Although denied the camera shots on orders from the Yankees’ head of media relations, he said, “I don’t know what the paid attendance is today, but whatever it is, it is the smallest crowd in the history of Yankee Stadium, and this crowd is the story, not the game.”
A week later, Barber was told his contract wouldn’t be renewed after 12 seasons with the team.

2015 – Yogi Berra died at the age of 90.
The Hall of Fame catcher played 19 seasons (all but the last for the New York Yankees) and is widely regarded as one of the greatest catchers in baseball history.
Berra was also known for his Yogi-isms, such as “It ain’t over ’til it’s over”, “You can observe a lot by watching” and “Always go to other people’s funerals; otherwise they won’t go to yours.”

Compiled by Ray Lemire ©2005-2020 RayLemire.com / Streamingoldies.com. All Rights Reserved.