This Week In History: September 28 – October 4

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

World News & the American Experience:

1971 – Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida opened.

1974 – Watergate cover-up trial opened in Washington DC.

1975 – Bill authorizes admission of women to military academies.

Movies & TV:

1949 – “My Friend Irma” is the first of 12 films starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis.

1951 – “The Red Skelton Show” debuted on NBC-TV.

1953 – “Make Room for Daddy,” starring Danny Thomas, premiered on ABC-TV.

1954 – “A Star is Born” starring Judy Garland & James Mason premiered at theaters.

1954 – “Father Knows Best” debuted on TV.

1955 – “Honeymooners” premiered on television.

1955 – “Mickey Mouse Club” debuted.

1957 – “Leave It to Beaver,” debuted on CBS.

1959 – Rod Serling’s “Twilight Zone” premiered on CBS-TV.

1960 – “My Three Sons,” starring Fred MacMurray, premiered on ABC-TV for the first time.

1960 – Flintstones premiered as the first prime-time animation show on TV.

1961 – “Doctor Kildare,” debuted on NBC-TV.

1961 – “Dick Van Dyke Show” premiered on CBS-TV

1961 – “Mr. Ed” premiered this week.

1962 – “Roy Rogers & Dale Evans Show,” debuted on ABC-TV.

1962 – Johnny Carson hosted his first “Tonight Show” with Joan Crawford as the guest.

1963 – “Judy Garland Show,” debuted on CBS-TV.

1963 – “My Favorite Martian,” starring Ray Walston, premiered on CBS-TV.

1976 – “Alice,” debuted on CBS-TV.

1982 – “Cheers” premiered on NBC-TV.

1985 – “MacGyver,” starring Richard Dean Anderson, debuted on ABC-TV.

Music & Radio:

1935 – “The Adventures of Dick Tracy” was heard for the first time on the Mutual Radio Network.

1939 – “Captain Midnight” was broadcast for the first time on the Mutual Radio Network.

1940 – The radio quiz show, “Double or Nothing,” was first heard on the Mutual Radio Network.

1946 – “Adventures of Sam Spade” debuted on CBS Radio.

1957 – “Honeycomb,” by Jimmie Rodgers hit #1.

1962 – Barbra Streisand signs her first recording contract with Columbia.

1963 – “Little Deuce Coupe” by The Beach Boys peaked at #15.

1963 – The Rolling Stones started their first big UK tour as the opening act for Bo Diddley & Everly Brothers.

1967 – Pink Floyd’s first US tour began.

1968 – “Hey Jude” by the Beatles was #1 on the charts for nine weeks.

1973 – “We’re An American Band” by Grand Funk reached #1.

1974 – “Rock Me Gently” by Andy Kim peaked at #1.

The Arts:

1950 – The first strip of Charlie Brown, called “Li’l Folks,” (later “Peanuts”) was printed in 9 papers.

1962 – “My Fair Lady” closed after a run of 6½ years on Broadway, breaking the record for the longest-running musical of all time.

1983 – “A Chorus Line” became longest running Broadway show at 3,389 performances.

Celebrity Headlines:

1930 – Bing Crosby married Dixie Lee.

1955 – James Dean died of injuries suffered in a car crash. He was 24 when the fatal crash took place in Cholame, CA at the intersection of Routes 46 and 41.

1968 – Janis Joplin announced she was leaving “Big Brother & Holding Co.”

1976 – Jerry Lee Lewis, attempting to shoot soda bottles, hit his bass player Norman Owens twice in the chest. He survived.

Sports:

1955 – The World Series was broadcast in color for the first time on NBC. The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the New York Yankees 4-3.

1960 – Baseball legend Ted Williams hit his final homer #521 on his last at bat.

1971 – Billie Jean King became the first female athlete to win $100,000.

1977 – Muhammad Ali beat Ernie Shavers to win the Heavyweight Boxing Championship. It was broadcast from Madison Square Garden and was the most-watched fight in television history.

Technology & Inventions:

1950 – The Telephone Answering Machine was created by Bell Laboratories. It was not made available to the public for many years.

Famous Birthdays:

1934 – Brigitte Bardot, actress

1935 – Jerry Lee Lewis, musician

1938 – Ben E. King, musician

1941 – Chubby Checker, singer

1954 – Barry Williams, actor (Greg-Brady Bunch)

1954 – Stevie Ray Vaughan, musician