This Week In History: August 3 – August 9

Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s

American Experience:

1945 – An Atom Bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan.

1965 – President Lyndon B Johnson signs Voting Rights Act, guaranteeing voting rights for blacks

1974 – President Nixon admits he withheld information about the Watergate break-in. Later this week he resigns as President. Vice President Gerald Ford becomes the 38th President.

Movies & TV:

1930 – Betty Boop makes her first appearance in Max Fleischer’s animated cartoon Dizzy Dishes

1957 – American Bandstand with Dick Clark was picked up by ABC-TV. It aired for 30 years, until 1987.

1967 – Yvonne Craig has joined the “Batman” cast as Batgirl.

Music & Radio:

1939 – “Dinah Shore Show” premieres on NBC-radio.

1957 – “Diana” by Paul Anka (15 years old) spends nine weeks at #1.

1956 – Elvis Presley releases “Hound Dog.”

1968 – “Hello I Love You” by the Rolling Stones hits #1

1971 – Wings, Paul McCartney’s new band, was formed with Denny Laine, Denny Seilwell Linda McCartney.

1971 – The Bee Gees hit #1 with their single “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart.”

1974 – The band The Runaways were formed by Joan Jett.

1975 – Stevie Wonder signed a 13 million dollar contract with the record label Tamla/Motown. It was the recording industry’s largest contract at that time.

The Arts:

1961 – Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is on the Bestsellers list along with The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone

1989 – “Oh! Calcutta!” closes after 5959 performances at Edison Theater in New York City.

Celebrity Headlines:

1944 – Smokey the Bear becomes the spokesman for fire prevention.

1957 – Oliver Hardy, comedian of Laurel & Hardy, dies at 65.

1962 – Marilyn Monroe died in her Los Angeles home. She was 36 years old.

Sports:

1944 – 16 year old Tommy Brown plays shortstop for Dodgers.

1949 – The Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League combine to form the National Basketball Association.

Technology & Inventions:

1961 – IBM introduces the “Selectric,” an upgraded electric typewriter that moves the paper vertically only and has ink cartridges instead of ribbons. It can print 180 words per minute.

1977 – Radio Shack introduces the TRS-80 personal computer, priced at $399.

Famous Birthdays:

1930 – Neil Armstrong, astronaut

1937 – Dustin Hoffman, actor

1941 – Martha Stewart

1947 – Rick Derringer, singer/songwriter

1956 – Maureen McCormick, actress The Brady Bunch