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March 20th
43BC - Born this day, Ovid, Roman poet. 1413 - Died this day, Henry IV, aged 46, following a stroke at Westminster Abbey. 1819 - The famous and still very elegant and exclusive Burlington Arcade opened for shoppers in London. 1852 - On this date in 1852, Harriet Beecher Stowe's anti-slavery novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin, was published. The novel sold 300,000 copies within three months and was so widely read that when President Abraham Lincoln met Stowe in 1862, he reportedly said, "So this is the little lady who made this big war." Stowe was born in 1811, the seventh child of the famous Congregationalist minister Lyman Beecher. She studied at private schools in Connecticut, then taught in Hartford from 1827 until her father moved to Cincinnati in 1832. She accompanied him and continued to teach while writing stories and essays. In 1836, she married Calvin Ellis Stowe, with whom she had seven children. She published her first book, Mayflower, in 1843. While living in Cincinnati, Stowe encountered fugitive slaves and the Underground Railroad. Later, she wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin in reaction to recently tightened fugitive slave laws. The book had a major influence on the way the American public viewed slavery. The book established Stowe's reputation as a woman of letters. She travelled to England in 1853, where she was welcomed as a literary hero. Along with Ralph Waldo Emerson, she became one of the original contributors to The Atlantic, which launched in November 1857. In 1863, when Lincoln announced the end of slavery, she danced in the streets. Stowe continued to write throughout her life and died in 1896. 1917 - Born this day, Dame Vera Lynn, British singer, the 'forces sweetheart' of World War II (WWII) with We'll meet again and White Cliffs of Dover, and in 1952 Auf Wiederseh'n, Sweetheart. She was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1975. 1934 - Britain's 'war-winning invention', radar, was first demonstrated by Rudolf Kuhnold, Chief of the German Navy Signals Research Department on this day. 1937 - Born this day, Jerry Reed, singer (Amos Moses). 1943 - Born this day, Claire Spottiswoode, former Gas watchdog. 1945 - Born this day, Tim Yeo, Conservative politician. 1950 - Born this day, William Hurt, actor. 1950 - Born this day, Carl Palmer, drummer, Atomic Rooster, 1971 UK No.4 single The Devil's Answer, with Emerson Lake and Palmer, 1977 UK No.2 single Fanfare For The Common Man, and Asia, 1982 US No.4 single Heat Of The Moment. 1955 - In New York, the premiere of the film The Blackboard Jungle - a tough drama about a high school teacher's battle with surly students. It starred Glenn Ford and young actor Sidney Poitier. Rock Around The Clock by Bill Haley and the Comets was played over the end credits of the film, thus ensuring the chart success of the record and making it a multi-million seller. 1956 - Born this day, Fonso Martin, Steel Pulse, 1978 UK No.35 Prodigal Son. 1957 - Born this day, Spike Lee, actor, director. 1957 - Born this day, Theresa Russell, actress. 1958 - Born this day, Holly Hunter, actress. 1959 - Bobby Rydell made his first TV appearance, on ABC-TV's American Bandstand. 1959 - Born this day, Dave Beasant, footballer. 1959 - Born this day, Ian Rossiter, drums, Stereo MC's, 1992 UK No.12 single Step It Up. 1959 - Born this day, Richard Drummie, Go West, 1985 UK No.5 single We Close Our Eyes. 1960 - Elvis Presley had his first post-Army recording session. It included Stuck On You. 1960 - Born this day, Paul Anka's song about Annette Funicello, Puppy Love, hit the top ten on the US pop charts. 1961 - Elvis Presley started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with Surrender, his fifth No.1 of the 60's. It also made No.1 in the UK. 1961 - Born this day, Slim Jim Phantom, drums, The Stray Cats, 1980 UK No.9 single Runaway Boys, 1983 US No.3 single Stray Cat Strut. 1961 - Ricky Nelson recorded Hello Mary Lou. 1963 - George Hamilton IV recorded Abilene. 1964 - The Pink Panther with Capucine was released. 1965 - The first of a twice nightly UK package tour kicked of at London's Finsbury Park Astoria featuring Stevie Wonder, The Miracles, Martha & The Vandellas, The Supremes and The Temptations. 1967 - Born this day, David Shuttleworth, drums, Terrorvision, 1999 UK No.2 single Tequila. 1968 - Born this day, Paul Merson, footballer. (Aston Villa). 1968 - Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich had their only UK No.1 single with Legend Of Xanadu. 1968 - Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Richie Furay and Jim Mesina, were arrested in Los Angeles for 'being at a place where it is suspected marijuana is being used'. Clapton was later found innocent, the others paid small fines. 1968 - The Forget-Me-Knot, Diana Rigg's last episode of The Avengers, aired in the US. 1968 - Born this day, Fredrik Schönfeldt, guitar, The Wannadies, 1996 UK No.18 single You And Me Song. 1969 - John Lennon and Yoko Ono were married at the British Consulate Office in Gibraltar. 1970 - David and Angela Bowie were married at Beckenham Registry Office. They divorced in 1980. (subject of the Rolling Stones' tune, Angie four years later). 1971 - At their own expense the Stones placed full page advertisements in all the UK's music papers disclaiming any connection with the release of the Decca album Stone Age saying, 'in our opinion the content is below the standard we try to keep'. 1971 - Janis Joplin started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with the Kris Kristofferson's Me And Bobby McGee. Janis died the year before on 10 April aged 27. (Another source says - On this date in 1971, Janis Joplin's Me & Bobby McGee entered the Billboard charts (it will eventually reach #1)). 1971 - T Rex scored their first UK No.1 single with Hot Love. 1972 - Born this day, Greg Searle, oarsman. 1972 - Born this day, Shellie Poole, Alisha's Attic, daughter of 60's musician Brian Poole, 1996 UK No.14 I Am I Feel. 1973 - Born this day, Jane March, actress. 1974 - An attempt to kidnap Princess Anne was made by a gunman who fired six shots, then tried to drag her from her car in The Mall. He was later charged with attempted murder. 1976 - Born this day, Chester Bennington, vocals, Linkin Park, 2002 US No.2 and UK No.4 single In The End, 2002 US No.2 and 2001 UK No.4 album Hybrid Theory. 1976 - Status Quo started a three week run at No.1 on the UK chart with their third No.1 album Blue For You. The bands record label set up a deal with Levi Jeans, advertising in over 6,000 clothes shops to help promote the album. 1977 - Lou Reed was banned from appearing at the London Palladium because of his punk image. 1977 - T Rex played their final ever gig when they appeared at The Locarno in Portsmouth. 1980 - 28 year-old Joseph Riviera held up the Asylum Records office in New York and demanded to see either Jackson Browne or The Eagles, wanting them to finance his trucking operation, he surrended when told that neither act was in the office. 1980 - The pirate radio station Radio Caroline sank after 16 years on the air. It was aboard the ship Mi Amigo. 1981 - Soft Cell, B-Movie and Depeche Mode were at The Lyceum, London, tickets were £3. 1982 - Joan Jett And The Blackhearts started a seven week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with I Love Rock 'n' Roll, it was a No.4 hit in the UK. The song had been a B-side from 60's band The Arrows. 1982 - The Jam went to No.1 on the UK chart with their sixth album The Gift. 1988 - Died this day, Gil Evans, jazz musician, at the age of 75. 1989 - The IRA killed two top Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) officers. 1990 - Gloria Estefans tour bus was rammed by a tractor trailer on the way to a concert, Emilio Estefan and their son Nayib were injured and Gloria suffered a serious back injury which required an operation two days later. 1991 - Michael Jackson signed a $60 million contract with Sony, the richest deal in recording history. 1991 - Michael Heseltine announced the end of the unpopular Poll Tax. 1991 - Died this day, Eric Clapton's 4 year son Coner, when he fell from a 53rd floor window where he was staying with his mother in New York. 1993 - Shaggy was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with O' Carolina. 1995 - Ten people died and 5,500 were affected by a nerve gas attack on the Tokyo underground system. It was blamed on the Aun Shinri Kyo religious sect. 1997 - Singer Mark Morrison was being investigated by the police after they discovered he had sent a friend to carry out his community service, a sentence he was given after being involved in a fight. 2000 - The Queen faced a major scare in Australia after an armed man was arrested as he tried to breach security an hour before a Royal visit. 2001 - Jon, Paul and Bradley from pop group S Club 7 were apprehended by police as they walked through Covent Garden openly smoking a marijuana joint. They were taken to Charring Cross police station where they were held for four hours. 2002 - MPs staged an emergency debate on the deployment of 1,700 Royal Marines to Afghanistan to root out remaining al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters. 2002 - The Sun newspaper reported that Robbie Williams had become a priest. He was ordained via the Internet by the non-denominational Universal Ministries and officiated the wedding of Billy Morrison from rock band The Cult and Jennifer Holliday. 2003 - The second Gulf War began with a missile attack directed at Saddam Hussein and his family. |
Trivia
Trivia - petty details or considerations, matters or things that are very unimportant, inconsequential, or nonessential; trifles; trivialities.
Trivial - of very little importance or value; insignificant: "Don't bother me with trivial matters." Trivially - unimportant, nugatory, slight, immaterial, inconsequential, frivolous, trifling.