J.C.'S Almanac September 26^th

1580 - Sir Francis Drake and the crew of the Golden Hind arrived home, having become the first Englishmen to sail around the world.  ...And, to discover that salt water shrinks your clothes.

1776 - New Jersey Passed A Law Forbidding The Practice Of Medicine Without A License, Except For Free Advice And Dentistry. 

1777 - British Troops Occupied Philadelphia In The American Revolution.

1789 - Thomas Jefferson was appointed America's 1st Secretary of State.  John Jay was appointed our 1st Chief Justice; Samuel Osgood began service as the 1st Postmaster-General; and Edmund Jennings was named the 1st Attorney General.

1820 - Pioneer Daniel Boone died in Missouri at the age of 85.

1831 - The first political party convention on a national basis took place in Baltimore as the Anti-Masonic Party nominated William Wirt of Maryland for President.

1839 - The Porco-Forte was unveiled in Cincinnati, OH.  It was a most unusual musical instrument consisting of 8 pigs that squealed different notes as the machine pinched their tails.

1887 - German Immigrant Emile Berliner Received A Patent For A New Machine Called The Gramophone.

1892 - The ‘March King’ was introduced to the general public. John Philip Sousa and his band played the Liberty Bell March in Plainfield, New Jersey.

1908 - An ad for the Edison Phonograph appeared in The Saturday Evening Post. The phonograph offered buyers free records by both the Democratic and Republican U.S. presidential candidates!

1914 - The Federal Trade Commission Was Established.

1928 - 23 Nations Signed The Kellogg-Briand Pact, Outlawing War.   .....Well, It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time.

1934 - The Queen Mary Luxury Cruise Ship Was Launched By Cunard Lines. The Retired Ship Is Now A Tourist Attraction In Long Beach, CA.

1937 - Blues Singer Bessie Smith died at the age of 42, from the loss of blood following a car wreck.  She had been turned away from a whites-only hospital at Coahoma, MS.  One of the country's earliest blues singers, Bessie gained a huge following of fans during the `20's and became known as the "Empress Of The Blues." A native of Chattanooga, TN, she ventured to New York at a young age, where she recorded the majority of her work and was accompanied by such outstanding musicians As Louis Armstrong, Fletcher Henderson & James P. Johnson.  Suffering from alcoholism, Smith became a lonely figure during the later part of her career and was buried in an unmarked grave in Philadelphia. A group of admirers, however, erected a headstone for the great singer in 1970. One of which was Janis Joplin, who said of Smith, "She Showed Me The Air And Taught Me How To Fill It.”

1950 - United Nations Troops In The North Korean War Recaptured The South Korean Capital Of Seoul From The North Koreans.

1954 - 1,172 People Lost Their Lives As The Japanese Ferry "Toya Maru" Sank In A Storm.

1955 - Following word that President Eisenhower had suffered a heart attack, the N.Y. Stock Exchange saw its worst price decline since 1929.

1955 - Debbie Reynolds & Eddie Fisher were married. In 1959 they were divorced.

1956 - Fats Domino debuted on the Pop Charts with "Blueberry Hill".

1956 - Elvis Presley's Birthplace, Tupelo, Mississippi, Declared September 26th "Elvis Presley Day," In Honor Of Its Hometown Hero.

1957 - The musical "West Side Story" opened at the Winter Garden Theatre in New York.

1959 - Typhoon "Vera" Hit Japan Near Honshu And Killed 4,466 People.

1960 - The first Kennedy-Nixon debate was televised.  It's said that Nixon's losing margin of 0.1% can be attributed to his poor make-up job in the first debate. ...Apparently voters didn't like his 5 o'clock shadow which was 2 o'clock shadow Pacific Time.

1961 - Roger Maris Of The New York Yankees Hit His 60th Home Run Of The Year In A Game Against Baltimore To Tie Babe Ruth's Single-Season Record.  The Baltimore Pitcher Was Jack Fisher, Who Served Up A Home Run To Ted Williams In His Final Major League At-Bat In 1960.  Maris Hit His 61st Homer On The Final Day Of The Season, But The Record Will Have An Asterisk Beside It Because Of The Expanded 162-Game Schedule.

1962 - The TV Comedy Series "The Beverly Hillbillies" Premiered On CBS.

1964 - The Kinks' "You Really Got Me" Was Released.

1964 – “Gilligan’s Island” began its 98-show run on CBS.

1966 - Japan Launched Its First Satellite Into Space.

1966 - New York Yankee broadcaster Red Barber was fired after 13 years for telling the truth!  The last-place Yankees were playing in front of the smallest crowd ever at Yankee Stadium - 413.  Barber wanted a camera shot of the 59,597 empty seats, but was denied by the club.  So Red told the TV viewers, "This Smallest Crowd Is The Story, Not The Ball Game." 

1968 - Rolling Stone member, Brian Jones, was fined after being found guilty of possession of cannabis.

1969 - Abbey Road Was Released.  It Was The Last Album That The Beatles Recorded Together.

1970 - Tamla-Motown Records announced that the Jackson 5 had sold 10 million singles world wide in 9 months.

1974 - John Lennon Released His Highly Acclaimed "Walls And Bridges" Album.  The Album Featured Such Hits As "Whatever Gets You Through The Night" And "No.9 Dream."  It Proved To Be His Last Album Of New Material For Almost 6 Years.  Until "Double Fantasy In 1980.

1978 - Waylon Jennings Was Awarded A Gold Album For "I've Always Been Crazy" L-P.

1979 - President Carter sent a note to Senator Edward Kennedy, his potential rival for the Democratic nomination, saying remarks he made in New York a day earlier were not meant as a reference to Chappaquiddick. Carter had said that as President, he had dealt with several crises, and "I Don't Think I Panicked."

1981 - Laker Airways Began Offering Bargain Flights Between New York And London, Triggering A General Round Of Price Cuts In Air Fares.

1981 - Nolan Ryan Of The Houston Astros Became The 1st Pitcher In Major League History To Pitch 5 Career No-Hitters When He Shut Out The L.A. Dodgers 5-0.

1981 - Bruce Dickinson joined Iron Maiden, Bruce had been the vocalist with Samson.

1983 - The Yacht Australia II defeated the Liberty to win the America's Cup - the 1st U.S. loss since the matches began in 1851, ending a 132-year winning streak.  Skipper Dennis Connor won it back the following year.

1984 - Jazz Drummer Shelley Manne Died At The Age Of 64.

1984 - An Appeals Court in Berlin affirmed an earlier verdict and cleared Paul McCartney in a paternity suit brought by the mother of Bettina Huebers. Bettina Long was thought to be McCartney's illegitimate daughter.

1984 - History was made at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. Neil Shicoff, lead tenor in the The Tales of Hoffmann, was unable to perform due to illness. His understudy, a chap named William Lewis, was a bit under the weather as well, and his voice began to falter during the performance. So, Kenneth Riegel was called in to sing the part from the orchestra pit while Mr. Lewis lip-synced the part on stage.

1984 - Liz Taylor starred in the season opener of the TV soap, Hotel. Despite incredibly biting bits from John Belushi on NBC’s Saturday Night Live regarding her plumpness at the time, viewers were quite amazed when Ms. Taylor appeared in a gown -- with a 24-inch waistline.

1985 – Shamu was born in Orlando, FL, she was the first killer whale to be born in captivity and survive. Her place of birth was Sea World.

1986 - Dallas, on CBS-TV, smashed NBC’s Miami Vice in the overnight ratings. The episode, from South Fork Ranch, had Bobby Ewing (Patrick Duffy) returning from the dead -- in the shower, no less! Pam Ewing (Victoria Principal) was a bit perplexed. So were the viewers.

1987 - Whitney Houston scored her 5th consecutive #1 single with "Didn't We Almost Have it All."

1988 - CBS Launched WTG Records, Headed By Jerry Greenberg.

1991 - "It's Been A Long Time" was filmed by Southside Johnny at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ.

1991 - A group of scientists, 4 men & 4 women began a 2-year stay inside Biosphere 2, a sealed structure in Oracle, AZ. They had planned to have no contact with the outside world; to grow their own food and live peacefully together as future pioneers in a harsh and alien world. Unfortunately, the outside world had to intervene a few times; to get rid of an ant invasion, to pump in oxygen, to tend to a health emergencies, to bring in forgotten necessities like makeup. The scientific team managed to last out the term, but they were half-crazy and half-starved when U.S. marshals led them out two years later.

1998 - Prince slipped and pulled a ligament while onstage in Atlantic City, NJ. The remainder of the U.S. tour was postponed.

2002 - Doug Supernaw was arrested outside a bar in Brenham, TX, after fighting with 5 police officers. He was charged with public intoxication, assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest. 

Birth Dates

1774 - John Chapman Johnny Appleseed" - Leominster, MA  He wandered about the countryside dressed in burlap and was regarded as a great medicine man by the Indians. He believed that all living things were sacred and traveled throughout the east and midwest planting apple seeds and raising saplings.  ...Johnny was known for the apple --like Dolly Parton is known for the pair!  ...he did weird things like wearing a tin plate for a hat.  Died March 11, 1845.

1888 – Thomas Stearns “T.S.” Eliot - St. Louis, MO – Poet, Playwright, Critic, one of the 20th century's most influential literary figures, eliot wrote of the hopelessness and alienation of modern man, awarded the Nobel prize for Literature in 1948.  Died on January 4, 1965.

1897 - Pope Paul VI (Giovanni Battista Montini) – Concesio, Italy - 262nd Pope. Elected Pope On June 21, 1963.  He Died On August 6, 1978.

1898 - George Gershwin – Brooklyn, NY – Composer, The darling of the Jazz Age, Gershwin began composing songs at the age of 15 and was soon making $35 a week playing piano for a music publisher. Best remembered for his Jazz Symphonies "Rhapsody In Blue" and "An American In Paris." His epitaph reads: "Here Lies George Gershwin, American Composer, American? Composer?"  Died July 11, 1937.

1914 - Jack LaLanne (Francois Henri LaLanne) – San Francisco, CA – Fitness, Exercise, Nutritional Expert, died January 23, 2011.

1925 – Martin David “Marty” Robbins - Glendale, AZ – Singer, Songwriter, Musician, his 1st #1 song was "Singing The Blues" in 1956.  The Fuzz Bass was born in his band (by lucky accident) during the recording of "Don't Worry." He Died December 8, 1982.

1926 - Julie London (Gayle Peck) – Santa Rosa, CA – Singer, Actress, died October 18, 2000.

1927 - Patrick O'Neal – Ocala, FL – Actor, TV, Stage, Film, Restaurateur, died September 9, 1994.

1933 – Donna Douglas (Doris Smith) – Pride, East Baton Rouge Parish, LA – Actress, Elly May Clampett “The Beverly Hillbillies.”

1937 – Floyd August “Gib” Guilbeau – Sunset, LA – Musician, Fiddle, Flying Burrito Brothers, Swamp Water, Nashville West

1941 - David Frizzell – El Dorado, AR – Singer, David Frizzell & Shelly West

1941 - Joseph Bauer – Memphis, TN – Musician, Drummer For The Youngbloods, died November 1983.

1942 - Kent McCord (Kent Franklin McWhirter) – Los Angeles, CA – Actor, "Adam-12"

1945 - Bryan Ferry – Durham, England – Singer, Songwriter, Keyboardist For Roxy Music.

1946 – Mary Beth Hurt – Marshalltown, IA - Actress

1947 - Lynn Rene Anderson - Grand Forks, ND – Singer, Equestrian, named female vocalist of the year in 1970 for her hit, "Rose Garden."

1947 - Jaclyn Ellen Smith – Houston, TX - Actress

1948 - Olivia Newton-John - Cambridge, England – Singer, Actress, Long Before She Got Physical, She Was Named CMA Female Vocalist Of The Year In 1974.

1954 - Craig Chaquico – Sacramento, CA – Musician, Jefferson Starship Guitarist.

1955 - Carlene Carter (Rebecca Carlene Smith) – Nashville, TN – Singer, Songwriter, daughter of Carl Smith and June Carter. 

1956 – Linda Carroll Hamilton – Salisbury, MD – Actress

1960 - Douglas Anderson “Doug” Supernaw - Bryan, TX – Singer, "Reno" and "I Don't Call Him Daddy." Supernaw was committed to a mental institution on July 2, 2007 per a ruling by a Brazos County, TX judge, after making bizarre statements in court, including claims of a "political economic conspiracy" against him, international kidnapping, being used as a marijuana "test monkey" by the government, and other wild accusations.

1962 - Melissa Sue Anderson – Berkeley, CA – Actress

1962 - Tracey Anne Thorn – Hertfordshire, England – Singer, Songwriter, Stern Bops, Marine Girls, Everything But the Girl.

1968 – Jim Caviezel (James Patrick Caviezel, Jr) – Mount Vernon, WA - Actor, Person of Interest

1981 – Serena Jameka Williams – Saginaw, MI – Tennis Pro

Q: What Rich And Famous Singer-Songwriter Owns The Publishing Rights To "Stormy Weather" and "Hello Dolly," As Well As The Soundtracks Of "Grease," "Mame," "Annie" and "A Chorus Line," among many others. 

A: Paul McCartney.

Q: During a Metropolitan Opera Tour of "Turandot," Soprano Birgit Nilsson held the high C in a duet longer than Franco Corelli. What did the tempermental tenor do to show his disapproval?

A: He bit her on the neck when he was supposed to give her a stage kiss.
 

Q: Where did pioneering American newspaperwoman Elizabeth Cochrane get her pseudonym Nellie Bly, the name she made famous when she circled the world faster than Phileas Fogg, hero of "Around The World In 80 Days"?

 A: From A Stephen Foster Song Called "Nellie Bly."