Tuesday, January 26, 2010

TODAY IS ... 26 JANUARY

TODAY IS ...
26 JANUARY
HOLIDAYS AND OBSERVANCES

Australia – Australia Day. 
Roman Empire – third day of the Sementivae in honor of Ceres and Terra. 
 Feast day of the following saints in the Roman Catholic Church: 
              Timothy and Titus
              Saint Paula
              Saint Alberic
              Saint Margaret of Hungary
Uganda – Liberation Day. 

India – Republic Day – One of only three national holidays in India, celebrated with pomp and pageantry with a military parade in New Delhi and across the rest of the nation. 
Dominican Republic: National Holiday (celebrating birth of Juan Pablo Duarte, one of the fathers of the republic).
BIRTHDAYS -
1993 - Cameron Bright - a Canadian actor who has appeared in numerous high profile roles in the films Godsend, Birth, Running Scared, Ultraviolet, X-Men: The Last Stand and Thank You for Smoking and appeared in The Twilight Saga: New Moon as Alec.
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1990 - Kherington Payne – an American dancer who played Alice in the remake of the movie Fame, which opened in theaters in September, 2009.
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1979 - Sara Rue - an American actress s best known for the roles she played as Carmen Ferrara on the comedy-drama Popular and Claude Casey on the sitcom Less Than Perfect. She also guest-starred on the show Will & Grace as Joyce, the sister of Grace Adler (Debra Messing)and on the show The Big Bang Theory as Stephanie Barnett, a girlfriend of Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki)
1971 - Dorian Gregory - an American actor most noted for playing Darryl Morris on the television show Charmed.
1961 – Li Cunxin - Chinese-Australian ballet dancer. Mao's Last Dancer was adapted into a 2009 feature film of the same name by director Bruce Beresford and writer Jan Sardi. It had its debut screening at the Toronto International Film Festival on 13 September 2009 and had premiere screenings in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Brisbane
1958  Ellen DeGeneres - - an American stand-up comedienne, television hostess and actress who hosts the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and is also a judge on American Idol, having joined the show in its ninth season.
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1958 - Anita Baker - an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter who has won eight Grammy Awards, and has four platinum albums and two gold albums to her credit.
1953  Lucinda Williams - - an American rock, folk, and country music singer and songwriter who in 1988 released her self-titled album, Lucinda Williams. This release featured "Passionate Kisses", a song later recorded by Mary Chapin Carpenter which garnered Lucinda her first Grammy Award for Best Country Song in 1994. Her greatest success came in 1998 with Car Wheels on a Gravel Road which presented a broader scope of songs that fused rock, blues, country, and Americana into a more distinctive style. It went gold and earned Lucinda another Grammy while being universally acclaimed by critics. She was named "America's best songwriter" by TIME magazine in 2002.
1949 - David Strathairn – an American actor who had his first high-profile leading role with George Clooney's Good Night, and Good Luck (2005) which it earned him an Oscar nomination for best actor. Strathairn has been in the movies and occasionally on television since his debut in John Sayles's The Return of the Secaucus 7 (1980).
1941 - Scott Glenn - actor: Apocalypse Now, The Right Stuff, Silverado, The Hunt for Red October, The Silence of the Lambs
1928 - Roger Vadim - director: Barbarella, Pretty Maids All in a Row, And God Created Woman
1925 - Paul Newman - Academy Award-winning actor: The Color of Money, [1986], Cool Hand Luke, Hud, The Sting, The Hudsucker Proxy, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Verdict, Exodus; director: Rachel, Rachel, Harry and Son; race car driver; salad dressing and spaghetti sauce maker
1925 - Joan Leslie - actress: Yankee Doodle Dandy, Rhapsody in Blue, Born to be Bad, High Sierra
1923 - Anne Jeffreys - actress: I Married an Angel, Dick Tracy [1945], Boys’ Night Out, General Hospital [soap], Clifford
1915 - William Hopper - actor: Rebel Without a Cause; Perry Mason
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OTHER EVENTS –
2009 - Leo Sayer is naturalized an Australian citizen
2008 -  Alicia Keys was at No.1 on the US album chart with her third album ‘As I Am.’ The album sold over 742,000 copies in its first week the largest ever first week sales for any female R&B artist.
2007 – The Rolling Stones topped the US music rich list for the second year running after making $150.6m (£76.2m) in 2006. Tim McGraw and Faith Hill were second in the poll with a combined fortune of $132m (£67.2m) and American country band Rascal Flatts appeared third, having earnt $110.5m (£56.2m) in the past year.
2006 – Ang lee’s Brokeback Mountain starring Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal and Randy Quaid opens in Australia. Based on the 'E. Annie Proulx' story about a forbidden and secretive relationship between two cowboys and their lives over the years.
2006 - Western Union discontinues use of its telegram service.
2005 - Condoleezza Rice is sworn in as U.S. Secretary of State, becoming the first African American woman to hold the post.
 
2003 – Justin Timberlake went to No.1 on the UK album chart with his debut solo album ‘Justified’, which went on to spend over a year on the UK chart.
2001 - In India, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake occurs. At least 20,085 people killed, 166,836 injured, approximately 339,000 buildings destroyed and 783,000 damaged in the Bhuj-Ahmadabad-Rajkot area and other parts of Gujarat. Felt throughout northern India, much of Pakistan, Bangladesh, and western Nepal.
1998 – In a big surprise upset at the American Music Awards, rapper Puff Daddy loses in all five categories in which he is nominated for an award.
1998 - 25th American Music Award: Spice Girls and Babyface win
1997 - 85th Australian Mens Tennis: Pete Sampras beats Carlos Moya (62 63 63)
1997 - "Ideal Husband" closes at Barrymore Theater New York City after 308 performances
1993 - West Indies defeat Australia by one run in 4th Test at Adelaide
1992 - 80th Australian Mens Tennis: Jim Courier beats S Edberg (63 36 64 62)
1991 - US act Surface went to No.1 on the US singles charts with 'The First Time'; it made No.60 in the UK.
1991 - Queen had their second UK No.1 with 'Innuendo'. It was the third longest No.1 song of all time behind The Beatles 'Hey Jude' and Simple Minds 'Belfast Child'. The flamenco guitar solo on the track was performed by Yes guitarist Steve Howe.
1991 - German duo Enigma went to No.1 on the UK album chart with 'MCMXC' featuring the UK No. 1 single 'Sadness Part 1'. Enigma were German Michael Creut and his wife Sandra.
1991 - Cher made a special video for the troops involved in Desert Storm during the gulf war. Cher's Video Canteen, featured Janet Jackson, Paul Simon, Van Halen and Bonnie Raitt.
1991 - 65th Australian Womens Tennis: Monica Seles beats J Novotna (57 63 61)
1991 - "Few Good Men" closes at Music Box Theater New York City after 497 performances
 1989 - Test debut of Mark Taylor, Australia v West Indies, Sydney
1989 - Rolf Harris is appointed a member of the Order of Australia
1989 - "Black and Blue" opens at Minskoff Theater New York City for 829 performances
1988 - Australia's 200th anniversary-parade of tall ships in Sydney Harbor
1988 - "Phantom of the Opera" opens at Majestic Theater New York City NY for 4,000+ performances
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1987 - 14th American Music Award: Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie and Alabama
1987 - “Things go better with Coke...” Coca-Cola was named the #1 soft drink in America. Pepsi-Cola was in the #2 position.
1985 - 42th Golden Globes Amadeus wins
1985 - Foreigner started a three-week run at No.1 on the UK album chart with 'Agent Provocateur'.
1984 – The Toy starring Richard Pryor, Jackie Gleason and Ned Beatty started screening in Australia. An underemployed reporter finds himself literally purchased as a toy for a rich spoiled brat.
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1984 - CBS television debuted Mickey Spillane's "Mike Hammer."
1983- The software LOTUS 1-2-3 premiered that helped make IBM’s PC into the most popular business computers in the US.
1981 - Sandeep Patil scores memorable 174 vs. Australia at Adelaide Oval
1981 - Blondie go platinum with Auto America LP.
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1980 - Prince made his TV debut on the US show American Bandstand.
1980 - 175,000 pay to hear Frank Sinatra sing in Rio de Janeiro!
1979 - The 'Gizmo' guitar synthesizer was first demonstrated.
1979 - Bob Dylan forms his own record label, called Accomplice.
1979 - "The Dukes of Hazzard" premieres on CBS-TV in the US
1975 - The BBC 'Omnibus' documentary 'Cracked Actor' a film about David Bowie was shown on UK TV.
1974 – Ringo Starr went to No.1 on the US singles chart with his version of the Johnny Burnette 1960 hit ‘Your Sixteen’, a No.3 hit in the UK.
1974 - Mud were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with the Nicky Chinn & Mike Chapman song 'Tiger Feet', the group's first of three UK No.1's.
1973 - Sweet were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Blockbuster'. The glam rockers only UK No.1 of 15 Top 40 hits.
1972 - Elvis Presley begins wearing one-piece jumpsuits during his gigs at the International Hotel, Las Vegas.
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1971 - Elvis Presley played the first night of a 31 date run at The Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas. Elvis played a 8.30pm and midnight shows on most days.
1970 - The Ourimbah rock festival, Australia's first, opens to an audience of 11,000.
1970 - Ringo Starr's film The Magic Christian premieres in Beverly Hills, CA.
1970 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “I Want You Back,” The Jackson 5.
1970 - John Lennon writes "Instant Karma!" in the morning and records it the same afternoon with producer Phil Spector and a backing "choir" assembled from pubcrawlers at London's Hatchetts Club. The single is mixed the same day and released just ten days later (hence the song's name).
1970 - Elvis Presley played the first night of a four-week engagement playing 2 shows every night at The International Hotel in Las Vegas.
1969 – In the midst of recording Let It Be at the Apple Studios, the Beatles lay down a series of rock ‘n’ roll covers, including “Shake Rattle And Roll,” “Kansas City,” “Miss Ann,” “Lawdy Miss Clawdy,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” “You Really Got A Hold On Me” and “Tracks Of My Tears.” They also work on “Let It Be” and “The Long and Winding Road.” Ringo spends the day composing “Octopus’s Garden” and the Beatles also hatch the idea to perform on the roof of their headquarters.
1967 - Otis Redding hits UK chart with Try a Little Tenderness
1966 - The Beaumont Children go missing from Glenelg Beach near Adelaide, South Australia.
1965 - During a Rolling Stones tour of Australia and New Zealand, guitarist Keith Richards had his shirt torn off after 50 fans invaded the stage during the gig at The Town Hall in Brisbane.
1964 - Four Seasons hit US chart with Walk Like a Man, their third No. 1
1963 - The Rooftop Singers started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Walk Right In’, a No.10 hit in the UK.
1963 - "Milk and Honey" closes at Martin Beck Theater New York City after 543 performances
1962 - Ranger program: Ranger 3 is launched to study the moon. The space probe later missed the moon by 22,000 miles (35,400 km).
1962 - Bishop Burke of Buffalo Catholic dioceses declares Chubby Checker's "Twist" is impure & bans it from all Catholic schools
1961 - Hayley Mills starred as Pollyanna with Jane Wyman, Richard Egan and Karl Madden when Pollyanna started screening in Australia. A young girl comes to an embittered town and confronts it's attitude with her determination to see the best in life.
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1961 - John F. Kennedy appoints Janet G. Travell to be his physician. This is the first time a woman holds this appointment.
1961 - Elvis Presley was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Are You Lonesome Tonight'. The singers sixth UK No.1. The single included a spoken passage loosely based on Shakespeare.
1961 - Buddy Holly enters UK chart with What to Do.
1957 - Buddy Holly and the Crickets make their second appearance on CBS' Ed Sullivan Show. Before the show Sullivan, who considered Holly's hit "Oh, Boy!" too "raunchy," forbids him from singing it on tonight's show. Holly refuses, causing Sullivan to limit Buddy to one song instead of two, sabotage him with bad lighting and sound, and mispronounce his name. Holly is visibly upset on the stage.
1956 – Robert Wise directed Helen of Troy starring Rossana Podestà, Jacques Sernas and Cedric Hardwicke which commenced screening in Australia. The Iliad's story of the Trojan war, told from the Trojan viewpoint
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1956 - Buddy Holly begins the first of three Decca Records sessions for famed producer Owen Bradley in Nashville.
1956 - 7th Winter Olympic games open in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy
1955 - Bill Haley's "Dim, Dim the Lights (I Want Some Atmosphere)" enters the US R&B charts
1950 - India promulgates its constitution forming a republic and Rajendra Prasad is sworn in as its first president Republic Day.
1945 - The Donald Duck film The Clock Watcher is released to theatres.

1939- The first day of shooting on the film Gone With the Wind.
1934- Hollywood producer Sam Goldwyn bought the rights to L. Frank Baum’s book the Wonderful Wizard of Oz to develop into a movie.
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1934 - The Apollo Theatre opened in New York City as a ‘Negro vaudeville theatre’. It became the showplace for many of the great black entertainers, singers, groups and instrumentalists in the country. If you made it... you played it... at the Apollo Theatre.
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1930 - Cleveland's Terminal Tower opens (52 stories)
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1926 - Television first demonstrated (John L Baird, London)
1922 - Ralph Vaughan Williams' "Pastoral Symphony" premiered in London.
1920 - Former Ford Motor Co. executive Henry Leland launches the Lincoln Motor Company which he later sold to his former employer.
1915 - Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado established
1907 - The Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk III is officially introduced into British Military Service, and remains the oldest military rifle still in official use.
1905 - The Cullinan diamond, weighing 114 lbs, was found by Captain Wells at the Premier Mine, near Pretoria, South Africa.
1788 - AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL DAY.- A small fleet of ships carrying 700 convicts and 200 soldiers and families lands in Australia at Sydney Cove. The aboriginal people met them on the beach with calls of "Warra-warra!" which means "Go Away!" After a century Australians began to form their unique character. The Aussie nickname for British people is Poms or Pommies. This was for the initials printed on British prison shirts POM- or Prisoner Of his Majesty. Another version has it that British sailors regularly picked the pomegranate trees clean of fruit to ward off scurvy.

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