Author Archives: dcaligari

June 6, 1972David Bowie released The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars on this date. Ziggy Stardust is a character Bowie created with the help of his then-wife, Angela. The character’s name was inspired by the ‘60s psychobilly musician, Legendary Stardust Cowboy. Bowie performed under the Stardust persona for aboutContinue reading “Ziggy Stardust went on sale”

June 6, 1999 –Australian filmmaker Baz Luhrmann went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen), on this date. Actor Lee Perry read the narrative. The backing is the choral version of ‘Everybody’s Free (To Feel Good)‘, a 1991 song by Rozalla, used in the film William Shakespeare’s Romeo +Continue reading “(Attention Class of 2023)”

June 5, 1956 –Elvis Presley appeared on Milton Berle’s TV show on this date. His undulating hip movements during the song Hound Dog cause quite a national controversy. (Once again kids – place one hand upon the screen and the other upon your ‘afflicted‘ region. Feel the healing powers of St. Elvis emanate throughout yourContinue reading “Elvis debuted Hound Dog”

June 5, 1961 –Roy Orbison’s record Running Scared reached the number one position on the charts, on this date. This was the last song Roy Orbison ever sung live. His final performance was on December 4, 1988, just two days before his sudden passing, at a Cleveland-area venue. As was his usual habit, Orbison closedContinue reading “Running Scared topped the charts”

June 5, 1975 –… Come on you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine!… During the Wish You Were Here recording sessions on this date, Syd Barrett just happens to wander into Abbey Road studio while Pink Floyd were mixing Shine On You Crazy Diamond, a song written about Barrett. At first, none of Syd’sContinue reading “The last time the band saw Syd”

Do you have anything else to do today? Perhaps you should do it. Today is Dead Duck Day, an annual event celebrated at the Natural History Museum in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It’s the anniversary of the first known observation of homosexual necrophilia in the mallard duck. Now that you know, you may go about yourContinue reading “I actually hope you are not celebrating the day”

June 4, 1974 –Ten Cent Beer Night was an ill-fated promotion held by the Cleveland Indians during a game against the Texas Rangers at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, on this date. Cleveland sold an estimated 60,000 cups of beer to the 25,134 in attendance. Most sober fans departed early, leaving an increasingly drunk and unruly mobContinue reading “Nothing good comes from cheap beer”

The Freemasons were officially founded in London on June 4, 1717. The Freemasons are not a secret society of assassins. They do not have Cesar Borgia’s head preserved in an urn filled with grappa. They were not responsible for the French Revolution. They did not kidnap Anastasia Romanov. They are not in control of theContinue reading “Not as bad as the Illuminati but …”

June 4, 1984 –Bruce Springsteen released his seventh studio album, Born in the USA on this date. The original title was Vietnam. The director Paul Schrader sent Springsteen a script for a movie called Born In The U.S.A., about a rock band struggling with life and religion. This gave Bruce the idea for the newContinue reading “Born in the USA went on sale”

June 4, 1982 –Paramount released the epic Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (which should have been titled, Battle of the Outrageous Toups) opened on this date. It is a Star Trek running gag that there is a Federation embargo against Romulan ale, but this still doesn’t prevent resourceful people like Dr. McCoy (usingContinue reading “Yet another Star Trek movie premiered”