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March 31, 1957 –The original version of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, starring Julie Andrews, aired live in color on CBS on this date (only black-and-white kinescopes exist today.) The only production of the Rodgers and Hammerstein version to be telecast while Oscar Hammerstein was still alive. He died in 1960, five years before the secondContinue reading “Impossible for a plain yellow pumpkin to become a golden carriage.”

Crayola Crayons have been around for 121 years. The Crayola brand was born in 1903 when cousins Edwin Binney and C. Harold Smith released the their first crayon box with its eight-count box that was sold for only a nickel. March 31 marks National Crayon Day. The average child will go through hundreds of crayonsContinue reading “For those not celebrating Easter”

Happy Easter everybody! We’ve spoken about Ishtar before: there is an ancient story about Tammuz (also known as Attis, Osiris, Dionysus, Adonis, Orpheus or Jesus – you’ll get the idea) who was born of a virgin, died, was reborn. He was the lover of Ishtar. The festival associated with Tammuz began as a day ofContinue reading “Every day is a renewal, every morning the daily miracle.”

March 30, 1909 –…The city seen from the Queensboro Bridge, is always the city seen for the first time, in its first wild promise of all the mystery and the beauty in the world…. – F Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby The Queensboro Bridge (originally known as Blackwell’s Island Bridge, affectionately known as the 59thContinue reading “The Blackwell’s Island Bridge opened”

March 30, 1979 –Norah Jones was born in New York City, on this date. Her father is the Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar, but Norah never lives with him. Raised by her mom, the concert promoter Sue Jones, she grows up in Texas before venturing back to New York to pursue music in 1999.

March 30, 1967 –The Beatles visited Michael Cooper’s London photographic studio on this date and shot the most iconic album cover ever created. The cover of Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was designed by Peter Blake and put together by Peter Blake and Jann Haworth, who painstakingly combed through hundreds of photos for monthsContinue reading “It was 57 years ago today …”

March 30, 1981 –Hugh Hudson’s historical drama about the 1924 Olympics, Chariots of Fire, starring Ben Cross and Ian Charleson opened in London on this date. In real life, Lord David Bughley (Lord Lindsay in this movie) was the first man to do the Great Court Run, not Harold Abrahams. It was changed because producerContinue reading “Chariots of Fire premiered”

March 30, 1964 –This game show is celebrating its’ 60th anniversary on this date? Pens down. Merv Griffin’s game show Jeopardy! made its debut on television. He sold the rights for the show to Coca-Cola for $250 million in 1986. The show was hosted by Art Fleming until 1975. It resurfaced in syndication in 1984Continue reading “Your answer MUST be in the form of a question”

Today is Holy Saturday (in Latin: Sabbatum Sanctum); it’s also known as the Great Sabbath, Great Virgil, Black Saturday, or Easter Eve. You kids today are soft; we used to have to fast the entire day today. Today is the last day of Lent – you have one more day of having to give upContinue reading “The Great Silence”

March 29, 1969 –Blood, Sweat & Tears’ second, eponymous album went to the No. 1 position on the Billboard Charts on this date. Blood, Sweat & Tears was formed in 1967 by Al Kooper after leaving the group Blues Project. Four of their eight members played horns, which defined their sound. Their 1968 album ChildContinue reading “Blood, Sweat & Tears topped the charts”