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December 14, 1969 –Michael Jackson and the rest of The Jackson 5 made their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on this date. The Jackson Five performed Sly and the Family Stone’s Stand, Smokey Robinson’s Who’s Loving You, and their first hit single I Want You Back.

Christmas trees are known to have been popular in Germany as far back as the sixteenth century. In England, they became popular after Queen Victoria’s husband Albert, who came from Germany, made a tree part of the celebrations at Windsor Castle. In the United States, the earliest known mention of a Christmas tree is inContinue reading “More useless Christmas trivia”

The ‘supposed‘ charity event – the 15th annual Santa-con in NYC today. (It may be the 17th one, but who cares, I don’t.) The amateur drinkers (in various states of holiday undress) are once again back in Manhattan this year: they will be in Midtown and Lower Manhattan, stating at 10 AM. I can takeContinue reading “Just stay indoors today – it better for your blood pressure”

December 13, 2003 –Shake it like a polaroid! Outkast’s single Hey Ya! hit #1 on the Billboard charts on this date. Andre 3000 wrote the first version of the song around 1999, and it almost made it onto their 2000 album Stankonia. At the time the song was called Thank God For Mom And Dad.Continue reading “Do kids even know why you had to shake it?”

December 13, 1975 –Richard Pryor hosted NBC-TV’s Saturday Night Live on this date. Fearing Pryor would say things that were too offensive for television at the time, the show was placed on seven-second delay for the very first time As mentioned in the opening sketch, Pryor requested that Garrett Morris say “Live from New York,Continue reading “I can remember seeing this show when it first aired”

December 13, 1956 –The comeback film for Ingrid Bergman, Anastasia, co-starring Yul Brynner, Helen Hayes, and Akim Tamiroff opened in the US, on this date. This movie was based on the story of Anna Anderson, a woman who claimed to be the Grand Duchess Anastasia. It was later discovered that, in fact, she was notContinue reading “Anastasia premiered”

December 12, 1980 –Whip It earned Devo a gold record on this date. It is the first distinction of its kind for any song about masturbation to earn a gold record. Well, whip it good! When MTV launched in 1981, they had very few videos to choose from. Some European and Australian artists had beenContinue reading “No, the song is not about masturbation”

December 12, 1966 – Supermarionation was on full display when Thunderbirds are GO, based on the successful TV series, was released in the UK on this date. While the film received good reviews, it was not a box office success. The first feature film to be shot using the Livingston Electronic Viewfinder Unit, also knownContinue reading “Thunderbirds are GO premiered”

(It might give them ideas.)December 12, 1954BBC Television aired the landmark adaptation of George Orwell’sNineteen Eighty-Four on this date. It was the most expensive drama produced to date. Unusually for a British TV production of that era, this story survives as a telerecording. At the time, the majority of television was transmitted live, and mostContinue reading “Thank God they don’t read in DC –”

ACME would like to bring you another in a series of holiday safety tips: Holiday tip No. 195 – Giants monsters are attracted to bright lights and decorations, so please turn off your lights and stay inside!