Rock Almanac/Notable Events

May 21^st thru May 27^th

Tuesday May 21st

1881 Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross.

1927 Charles Lindbergh became the first person to fly across the Atlantic (from New York to Paris) in his The Spirit of St. Louis.

1932 Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean (from Newfoundland to Ireland).

1956 The first hydrogen bomb to be dropped by air exploded over the Bikini Atoll in the Pacific.

1968 Rolling Stone Brian Jones was arrested a second time for possession of cannabis in his London apartment.

1971 Free announced that they were splitting up. They would reform before the end of the year before breaking up for good in 1973.

1980 The Clash’s  Joe Strummer was arrested in Hamburg, Germany, after smashing his guitar over the head of a member of the audience; he was released after an alcohol test proved negative.

1983 David Bowie reached the top of the Billboard singles chart for the second time with  ‘Let’s Dance.’

1983 Def Leppard appeared on ‘American Bandstand,’ performing ‘Photograph’ & ‘Rock of Ages.’

1980 ‘Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,’ opened in theaters.

1990 The last episode of ‘Newhart’ aired. It's revealed that the entire series was a dream of Newhart’s character from his ‘70s series, ‘The Bob Newhart Show.’

1999 Susan Lucci finally won a Daytime Emmy on her 19th nomination.

1999 Paul Stanley kicked off a run as the title character in the Toronto production of ‘The Phantom of the Opera.’

2001 Bono and his wife Ali welcome a new baby boy, John, into their family.

2008 Steven Tyler checked into rehab, later claiming that it was related to the surgeries on his foot.

2010 Bono had emergency spinal surgery in Munich after suffering an injury while preparing for tour dates.

Birthdays-

1955 Stan Lynch, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers drummer

Wednesday May 22nd

1761 The first life insurance policy in the United States was issued in Philadelphia.

1939 Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini signed a "Pact Of Steel" committing Germany and Italy to a military alliance.

1947 The Truman Doctrine was approved by Congress, giving military and economic aid to Greece and Turkey in an effort to contain communism.

1964 President Lyndon Johnson announced the goals of his Great Society reforms to bring an "end to poverty and racial injustice" in America.

1965 The Beatles went to No. 1 on the singles chart for the 8th time with ‘Ticket to Ride,’ which spent one week on top.

1972 Richard Nixon arrived in Moscow, becoming the first President to visit the Soviet Union.

1971 The Rolling Stones’ 'Sticky Fingers' started a four-week run at No.1 on the album charts, the group's second No.1 album.

1980 An unknown thief broke into Electric Lady Studios in New York City and stole five Jimi Hendrix gold records.

1992 Johnny Carson hosted the last episode of his ‘Tonight Show’ run.

1997 A reunited Fleetwood Mac taped their MTV Unplugged special.

2011 Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer made his second guest voice appearance as himself on ‘The Simpsons.’

Birthdays:

1950 Bernie Taupin, songwriter with Elton John

Thursday May 23rd

1430 Joan Of Arc was captured by the Burgundians, who later sold her to the English.

1830 The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad began the first passenger service in the United States.

1873 Later known as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the North West Mounted Police force was formed in Canada.

1934 Outlaws Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were killed in a police shootout.

1962 Joe Pepitone of the New York Yankees set a major-league baseball record by hitting two home runs in one inning.

1969 The Who released their 4th album ‘Tommy,’ the first to be billed as a “rock opera.”

1970 Paul McCartney's debut solo album, 'McCartney', started a three-week run at No.1 on the album chart.

1974 George Harrison announced the launch of his own record label, ‘Dark Horse.’

1979 Tom Petty of the Heartbreakers, trying to get a new deal since his label ABC Records went out of business and was bought by MCA, filed for bankruptcy.

1990 Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason married Annette Lynton at London’s Chelsea Registry Office.

1987 The Doobie Brothers reunited for a Vietnam veterans benefit concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

2006 The king of Sweden presented the surviving members of Led Zeppelin and the daughter of John Bonham with the Polar Music Prize in Stockholm recognizing them as “great pioneers” of rock music.

Friday May 24th

1844 America's first telegraph line formally opened with inventor Samuel F. B. Morse transmitting the words "What hath God wrought!" in Morse code from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore.

1878 The first bicycle race held in America occurred in Boston.

1883 The Brooklyn Bridge, linking Brooklyn to Manhattan over New York City's East River, was opened to traffic.

1935 The first major-league baseball game to be played at night under lights saw the Cincinnati Reds defeat the Philadelphia Phillies 2-1 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati.

1968 Mick Jagger & Marianne Faithfull were arrested on charges of marijuana possession, the same day the Rolling Stones released ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’ in the U.K.

1969 The Beatles with Billy Preston started a five week run at No.1 on the singles chart with 'Get Back', the group's 17th U.S No.1.

1980 At the Roxy Club box office in L.A., Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford were on site selling Genesis tickets themselves.

1989 The movie ‘Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade,’ starring Harrison Ford, opened.

1991 Guns N’ Roses kicked off their ‘Use Your Illusion’ Tour at the Alpine Valley Music Theater in East Troy, WI. The tour lasted until July of 1993.

1992 Police in Montgomery were called when an impostor posing as Steve Miller left a hotel owing a $600 unpaid bill, he did however leave a $73 tip on a $8 drinks bill.

1995 The movie ‘Braveheart,’ starring Mel Gibson, opened.

2003 Paul McCartney made his first ever live performance in Russia when he appeared in-front of 20,000 fans in Red Square.

Birthdays-

1941 Bob Dylan, Singer-songwriter

1947 Albert Bouchard, drummer for Blue Oyster Cult
1969 Rich Robinson, guitarist for The Black Crowes

Saturday May 25th

1895 Playwright Oscar Wilde was convicted on a morals charge in London and sentenced to prison

1935 Babe Ruth hit his 714th home run on this day. The record held for 39 years.

1965 Muhammad Ali knocked out Sonny Liston one minute into the first round in their rematch for Ali's heavyweight title.

1969 The Oscar-winning movie ‘Midnight Cowboy,’ starring Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight, premiered with an "X" rating - the first major commercial film with this rating.

1977 ‘Star Wars’ opened in theaters.

1978 The Who performed a secret concert for fan club members at London’s Shepperton Film Studios for their documentary ‘The Kids Are Alright.’ This would be Keith Moon’s last performance with The Who.

1983 ‘Return Of The Jedi’ opened in theaters.

1986 Seven million Americans took part in "Hands Across America" in an attempt to from a human chain across the country from Los Angeles to New York to raise consciousness and money for the nation's homeless. They raised $24.5 million.

1990 Lou Gramm departed Foreigner. Gramm later re-joined Foreigner in 1992 before departing again in 2003.

1992 ‘The Tonight Show With Jay Leno’ debuted.

1999 ‘Home Improvement’ aired its series finale on ABC.

2000 Eddie Van Halen began "an outpatient clinical trial to prevent cancer" at the University Of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Birthdays-

1948 Klaus Meine, singer for The Scorpions

Sunday May 26th

1868 The Senate impeachment trial of President Andrew Johnson ended with his acquittal when the vote fell one short of the two-thirds required for conviction.

1896 The Dow Jones Industrial Average, co-founded by Charles Dow, first appears in The Wall Street Journal. The Dow Jones Industrial 12-stock average posts a 40.94 for the day.

1937 San Francisco Bay's Golden Gate Bridge opened.

1969 John Lennon & Yoko Ono began an eight day bed-in in room 1742 of The Hotel La Reine in Montreal to promote world peace.

1973 The Beatles compilation '1967-1970' (aka ‘The Blue Album’) went to No.1 on the charts.

1973 Deep Purple released the ‘Smoke on the Water’ single.

1973 The Edgar Winter Group went to No.1 on the singles chart with 'Frankenstein.'

1977 ‘Beatlemania’ opens in previews at the Winter Garden Theater on Broadway.

1993 Singapore lifted a ban on music by The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Chicago and Credence Clearwater Revival.

1994 Elvis Presley’s daughter Lisa Marie married Michael Jackson in the Dominican Republic. They divorced in January 1996.

1996 A fire at the home of Eric Clapton causes extensive damage. Firemen arrived on the scene to find Clapton braving the blaze to save his collection of guitars.

Birthdays-

1948 Stevie Nicks, Fleetwood Mac and solo singer

Monday May 27^th

1941 The British Navy sunk the German battleship Bismarck off France, with a loss of 2300 lives.

1987 At a U2 concert in Rome, the sound system is so loud that neighbors call emergency services claiming an earthquake struck.

1988 The first U.S. Monsters of Rock tour kicked off at the Alpine Valley Music Theater in East Troy, WI, featuring Van Halen, The Scorpions, and Metallica.

1994 ‘The Arsenio Hall Show’ aired for the last time.

1994 The Eagles kicked off their “Hell Freezes Over” reunion tour with a five night stand at the Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre in Irvine, CA.

1995 Actor Christopher Reeve was thrown from his horse during a jumping event in Virginia, leaving him paralyzed from the neck down.

1999 Rush became the first rock band to receive a star on the Canadian Walk of Fame in Toronto.

2008 Paul McCartney was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree from Yale University.

2010 Approximately 150 AC/DC fans needed treatment after complaining of burning eyes during a concert on the runway of Wels Airport, Wels, Austria. Doctors found that the fans were having allergic reactions to mulch spread on the runway to avoid mud after hours of rainfall.