Author Archives: dcaligari

February 4, 1977 –Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours album was released 49 years ago on this date. Many of the songs on the album show a darker side in the lyrics. It’s asking you to move on, leave the singer alone. Fleetwood Mac was experiencing the shatter of all of their emotional ties with not one, notContinue reading “Bunkies, we are old”

On February 4, 2008, at 00:00 GMT, NASA transmitted the Beatles song Across The Universe in the direction of the star Polaris, 431 light years from Earth. The transmission was made using a 70m antenna in the DSN’s Madrid Deep Space Communication Complex, located outside of Madrid, Spain. It was done with an “X band”Continue reading “The Beatles in space”

February 3, 1959 –The Day the Music Died: Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper were on a tour called “Winter Dance Party” tour. The musicians were traveling from venue to venue on tour buses. A small plane carrying The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson), Buddy Holly and Richie Valens crashed near Mason City, Iowa,Continue reading “But February made me shiver”

February 3, 1978 –The comedy, The One and Only, starring Henry Winkler, and directed by Carl Reiner was released on this date. Henry Winkler first became aware of the script for this movie when he ran into actor Dustin Hoffman in a doorway of a New York building. Hoffman talked for about three minutes aboutContinue reading “The One and Only premiered”

February 3, 1932 – Paramount Pictures released Josef von Sternberg’s Shanghai Express, starring Marlene Dietrich, Clive Brook and Anna Mae Wong in Los Angeles on this date. It was Josef von Sternberg’s intention to have the style of the film should reflect the rhythm of a train journey. This explains the film’s tight pace andContinue reading “It took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lily.”

February 3, 1951 – Another great Sylvester cartoon, Canned Feud, premiered on this date. This cartoon is particularly violent for the series and for a Sylvester cartoon in particular.

February 3, 1973 –Elton John’ song Crocodile Rock became his first US Billboard Hot 100 hit on this date. Elton’s lyricist Bernie Taupin told Esquire in 2011 that this song is “a strange dichotomy because I don’t mind having created it, but it’s not something I would listen to.”.

February 2, 1973 –The regular run of the musical series, Burt Sugarman’s The Midnight Special premiered on NBC-TV on this date. Also among the acts that appears on that first show were The Byrds, Ike and Tina Turner Revue, Rare Earth and George Carlin.

February 2, 1971 –The animated special based on the Harry Nilsson album, The Point!, originally voiced by Dustin Hoffman, Paul Frees, June Foray, and Mike Lookinland premiered as an ABC Movie of the Week, on this date. Although that version was only licensed for the initial airing, a few different narrations followed, including Alan ThickeContinue reading “Why so many versions?”