February 20
Contributed by Pearleen Ang
BORN TODAY
1979 – Coy Bowles
1967 – Kurt Cobain (RIP)
1967 – Lili Taylor
1966 – Cindy Crawford
1963 – Ian Brown
1954 – Anthony Head
1951 – Kathie Baillie
1951 – Randy California (RIP)
1950 – Walter Becker (Steely Dan)
1946 – J. Geils
1946 – Sandy Duncan
1941 – Buffy Sainte-Marie
1940 – Barbara Ellis (The Fleetwoods)
1937 – Nancy Wilson
1929 – Amanda Blake (RIP)
1927 – Sidney Poitier
BORN TODAY
Ronnie Hilton (Born: January 26, 1926 / Died: February 21, 2001)
Clarence Nash (Born: December 7, 1904 / Died: February 20, 1985)
Bon Scott (Born: July 9, 1946 / Died: February 19, 1980)
MOVIES TODAY
1928 – Disney’s Oswald the Lucky Rabbit silent cartoon Africa Before Dark – in which Oswald is a big game hunter – is released. It is directed by Walt Disney and animated by Ub Iwerks.
1937 – The Disney short Moose Hunters, directed by Ben Sharpsteen, is released. Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy head out into the woods to hunt. But when Mickey lures one moose using a bush disguise, and the others lure another with a female moose decoy … there’s trouble when the two mighty moose meet!
1961 – Disney’s animated short Aquamania, featuring Goofy, is released. Mr. X (Goofy) buys a boat and inadvertantly enters a water skiing race. With the unexperienced Goofy, Jr. driving … chaos is sure to follow. (It will be nominated for an Academy Award.)
1963 – How the West Was Won – How the West Was Won was a massive commercial success. The film grossed $50 million worldwide. Setting off on a journey to the west in the 1830s, the Prescott family run into a man named Linus (James Stewart), who helps them fight off a pack of thieves.
1986 – 9½ Weeks (originally Nine ½ Weeks) – Starring Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke, it is based on the memoir of the same name by Elizabeth McNeill, about a New York City art gallery employee who has a brief yet intense affair with a mysterious Wall Street broker.
1987 – Square Dance – Gemma Dillard (Winona Ryder) is a 13-year-old country girl who lives with her Grandpa Dillard (Jason Robards). The story focuses on a series of bitter-sweet experiences that eventually return Gemma to the country.
MUSIC TODAY
1958 – Buddy Holly & the Crickets, the Everly Brothers, Bill Haley & the Comets, Jerry Lee Lewis and Jimmie Rodgers opened up the Big Gold Record Stars Tour in Florida.
1964 – The Bachelors scored a #1 U.K. hit with “Diane”.
1965 – One of The Top 100 Artists of the Rock Era* first appeared on the radio as the Moody Blues debuted on the chart with their first career single–“Go Now”.
1965 – The Temptations scored a third straight week at #1 on the R&B chart with the great song “My Girl”.
1965 – Gary Lewis & the Playboys had the new #1 song with “This Diamond Ring”.
1970 – John Lennon released the single “Instant Karma”.
1971 – Australian Helen Reddy first appeared on the radio with her first career hit–“I Don’t Know How to Love Him”. She had released “One Way Ticket” in 1968, but it failed to chart outside of her native country.
1971 – The Soundtrack to “Jesus Christ Superstar” moved to #1 on the Album chart.
1971 – Gordon Lightfoot reached #1 on the Adult chart with his first hit–“If You Could Read My Mind”.
1971 – The Temptations appeared to have another winner as “Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)” moved from 51 to 29.
1971 – The Osmonds remained the target at #1 for a second week with “One Bad Apple”, while “Knock Three Times” by Dawn was still second after falling from the top
1978 – ABBA had another #1 song in the U.K. with “Take A Chance On Me”.
1982 – Stevie Wonder notched his 14th #1 of his career on the R&B chart with “That Girl”, tying the Temptations for fourth all-time in the list for #1 R&B songs.
1982 – Barry Manilow hit #1 for the 12th time in 22 releases on the Adult Contemporary chart with “Somewhere Down The Road”.
1982 – Freeze-Frame had a lock on #1 on the Album chart for the J. Geils Band for a third week.
1982 – One of the great stories of the Rock Era, and a song that helped strengthen it–“I Love Rock ‘N Roll” by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, moved from #39 to #18.
1982 – “Centerfold” by the J. Geils Band held on to #1 for a third week with former #1 “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do)” by Hall & Oates #2 for a third week
1988 – Pebbles had the top R&B song with “Girlfriend”.
1988 – Expose took over at the top of the AC chart with “Seasons Change”. Expose made it a Daily Double by taking over at #1 overall with “Seasons Change”
1993 – Whitney Houston released the single “I Have Nothing”.
1993 – The compilation album of Buddy Holly and the Crickets, Words of Love, was the #1 album in the U.K., 34 years after Holly’s death.
1993 – Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle remained at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart for the fifth week with “A Whole New World (‘Aladdin’s’ Theme)”.
1993 – Whitney Houston remained at #1 for the 13th week with “I Will Always Love You”, tying Boyz II Men with their song “End Of The Road” for the Rock Era record at the time.
1994 – Tori Amos owned the top U.K. album with Under the Pink.
2002 – Alan Jackson had the top album with Drive
TV/RADIO TODAY
1949 – Ricky Nelson joined his parents, Ozzie and Harriet, on their radio show, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.
1959 – The TV series Walt Disney Presents airs “Elfago Baca: The Griswold Murder.” It is the 6th episode of a ten-part mini-series about a real-life gunman, lawman, lawyer, and politician of the American wild west.
1963 – The Beatles drove all night from Liverpool to London to perform “Love Me Do” and “Please Please Me” on the live lunchtime BBC radio show Parade of the Pops, an appearance that lasted just over four minutes. They then drove 160 miles for a concert that night at the Swimming Baths in Doncaster, Yorkshire.
1982 – “Beyond Witch Mountain” (a TV movie/pilot for a proposed series) airs on television. Based on the 1975 Disney live-action film Escape to Witch Mountain, it stars Eddie Albert (returning to play Jason O’Day from the original movie), Tracey Gold and Andy Freeman.
1986 – Stevie Wonder was a guest on The Cosby Show on NBC-TV.
1996 – The ABC-TV sitcom Roseanne debuts part 1 of “We’re Going to Disney World.” The Conner family decides to throw caution to the wind by spending Dan’s last paycheck from the shop on a vacation to Disney World.
1996 – Alan Jackson makes a guest appearance on “Home Improvement,” singing “Mercury Blues” on the fictitious handyman show “Tool Time”
2000 – The movie Little Richard was shown by ABC-TV.
OTHER IMPORTANT EVENTS...
1977 – At tonight’s Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, Stevie Wonder cleans up with a Best Album win (Songs In The Key Of Life) and Best Vocal Performance (“I Wish”). Most infamous is the Best New Artist award for the Starland Vocal Band, of “Afternoon Delight” fame, which is sometimes cited as the beginning of that award’s “curse” of quick anonymity.
1982 – Pat Benatar married her guitarist, Neil Geraldo in Maui, Hawai’i.
1991 – Bob Dylan received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammys.
1991 – At tonight’s Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, Bob Dylan receives the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award and gives the following puzzling speech, quoted here in its entirety: “Well, my daddy, he didn’t leave me much, you know he was a very simple man, but what he did tell me was this, he did say:
‘Son,’ he said…(long pause) …He say, ‘You know it’s possible to become so defiled in this world that your own father and mother will abandon you. And if that happens, God will always believe in your ability to mend your ways.’
1991 – “Where’ve You Been” earns two trophies during the 33rd annual Grammys in New York. Songwriters Don Henry and Jon Vezner win Best Country Song, while Kathy Mattea picks up Best Country Vocal Performance, Female,
1991 – The 33rd Grammy Awards are held at Radio City Music Hall. Best Recording for Children goes to The Little Mermaid—Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, written by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken.
1995 – AT&T and The Walt Disney Company announces the latest project in their 35-year association: the launch of the Indiana Jones Adventure, Disneyland’s exciting new thrill ride
1998 – The streets of Downtown Disney Pleasure Island are transformed into the French Quarter for a special five-night Mardi Gras celebration
1999 – Downtown Disney Pleasure Island presents The Gap Band performing on the West End Stage. 2003 – Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper of the syndicated television show “Ebert & Roeper” host the third annual Film Festival at sea aboard the Disney Wonder.