Author Archives: dcaligari

July 29, 1982 –Professional wrestler Jerry Lawler slapped actor Andy Kaufman in the face on the program Late Night with David Letterman, a staged event that prompted a several month ‘war’ between the two of them. It remains among the greatest Letterman moments of all time. The video went viral long before the Internet gaveContinue reading “Fisticuffs break out on The Letterman Show”

July 29, 1983 –NBC’s answer to MTV, Friday Night Videos, premiered on this date. The show, created by Dick Ebersol, had some big-name artists and videos, and there was a fun segment called Video Vote, which pitted two artists/videos against one another to see who fans enjoyed the most (submitting their votes via a 900Continue reading “Friday Night Videos first aired”

July 28, 1973 –Bill Graham produced the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen Rock Festival at the Watkins Glen International Raceway, that featured the Allman Brothers, the Band, and the Grateful Dead. The concert was estimated to have drawn some 650,000 people, The concert drew some 650,000 people, the single largest paying crowd in concert history.

July 28, 1948 – Bud and Lou’s biggest box-office success, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, opened on this date, (this was one of my favorite childhood films.) Bobby Barber was employed for the film as a “court jester“. It was his job to keep the energylevel up through a series of practical jokes and deliberatelyContinue reading “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein premiered”

July 28, 1957 –Jerry Lee Lewis appeared of TV for the first time when he performed on the Steve Allen Show on this date. Only a year earlier, Allen humiliated Elvis by making him appear in a tuxedo, singing Hound Dog to a dog, in an attempt to desexuallize Elvis‘ performance, Well, Jerry Lee LewisContinue reading “The naughty Jerry Lee’s first TV appearance”

July 28, 1945 – A US Army B-25 bomber crashes into the Empire State Building between the 78th and 79th floors. An engine plunges down an elevator shaft, sparking a fire in the basement. Eleven people in the building were killed, in addition to the three man bomber crew. Elevator operator Betty Lou Oliver survivedContinue reading “A plane crashed into the Empire State Building”

Today is Milk Chocolate Day. American eat on average 12 lbs of chocolate per year; The Swiss on the other hand eat a little more than 26 lbs a year (that works out to about 450 bars of chocolate.) If you don’t continually gorge on chocolate, the terrorist have won. (Psst, I’ve mentioned this beforeContinue reading “Why celebrate this in the middle of the summer?”

July 27, 1985 –Paul Young hits #1 with the single, Everytime You Go Away, a cover of a Hall & Oates song released in 1980. It’s the only Hall & Oates cover ever to make the Top 40. This song became one of the biggest hits with a grammar gaffe in the title. “Everytime” isContinue reading “Everytime You Go Away topped the charts”

July 27, 1940 –Bugs Bunny made his debut in a cartoon called A Wild Hare, on this day. Warner Brothers’ writers and animators set out to make a rabbit who would be the epitome of cool. They modeled bugs on Groucho Marx with a carrot instead of a cigar. Mel Blanc gave him a BrooklynContinue reading “Happy Birthday Bugs”

July 27, 1984 –Warner Bros. gift to an unsuspecting world, Purple Rain, starring Prince, opened on this date. Morris Day apparently had a substance abuse problem throughout production, and was high during most of filming. He often had to be almost literally dragged out of his room to the set. (you may put your armsContinue reading “Purple Rain premiered”