DYR Today, December 25

“Born Today”

Charlie Chaplin (Born: April 16, 1889 / Died: December 25, 1977)
Dean Martin (Born June 7, 1915 / Died: December 25, 1995)
Juan Miro (Born: April 20, 1893 / Died: December 25, 1983)
James Brown (Born: May 3, 1933 / Died: December 25, 2006)
Birgit Nilsson (Born: May 17, 1918 / Died: December 25, 2005)
Eartha Kitt (Born: January 17, 1927 / Died: December 25, 2008)

1954 – Bing Crosby’s ‘White Christmas’ entered the Billboard Pop chart for the eleventh time. Bing’s rendition has sold over 100 million copies around the world, with at least 50 million sales as singles. It was the largest selling single in music history until it was surpassed by Elton John’s ‘Candle in the Wind 1997’.
1965 – Dave Clark Five went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Over And Over’. They became the 7th UK act of 1965 to score a US No.1 single.
1965 – The Beatles 6th album Rubber Soul started a nine-week run at No.1 on the UK chart. It spent a total of 42 week’s on the UK chart and was also a No.1 in the US.
1965 – The Rascals saw their first single–I Ain’t Gonna’ Eat Out My Heart Anymore” debut on the chart.
1971 – Melanie started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Brand New Key’, the first release on her new label Neighbourhood Records.
1976 – American MOR singer Johnny Mathis was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘When A Child Is Born’, the singers only UK No.1 and the Christmas hit of 1976.
1976 – “Car Wash” by Rose Royce was the new #1 on the R&B chart.

1976 – A new group from the Midwest first entered the chart as Kansas debuted with their first single “Carry On Wayward Son”.
1981 – Michael Jackson phoned Paul McCartney and suggested they write and record together, the first result being ‘The Girl Is Mine’. The song was a US No.2 & UK No.8 in 1982.
1982 – David Bowie had a No.3 UK hit with a duet with Bing Crosby, ‘Peace On Earth – Little Drummer Boy.’
1982 – Duran Duran debuted on the chart with their first single “Hungry Like The Wolf”
1993 – Mariah Carey was at #1 with “Hero”

1937 – Arturo Toscanini conducted the first broadcast of “Symphony of the Air” over NBC radio.
1939 – “A Christmas Carol,” by Charles Dickens, was read on CBS radio for the first time.
1964 – The Beatles recorded six songs for the BBC radio program Saturday Club in London: ‘Rock and Roll Music’, ‘I’m a Loser’, ‘Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby’, ‘I Feel Fine’, ‘Kansas City/Hey Hey Hey Hey’ and ‘She’s a Woman.’
1978 – ABBA’s appearance on The Mike Yarwood Christmas Show aired on BBC-TV in Britain.

1818 – “Silent Night” was performed for the first time, at the Church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorff, Austria.
1894 – The University of Chicago became the first Midwestern football team to play on the west coast. U.C. defeated Stanford, 24-4, in Palo Alto, CA.
1930 – The Mt. Van Hoevenberg bobsled run at Lake Placid, New York opened to the public. It was the first bobsled track of international specifications to open in the U.S. .
1950 – Dick Tracy married on Tess Truehart.
1962 – The Department of Commerce Census Clock in Washington, DC, recorded the U.S. population on this day as 188,000,000.
1989 – Former baseball player and manager Billy Martin died in a truck crash in Fenton, NY.
1998 – Seven days into their journey, Richard Branson, Steve Fossett and Per Lindstrand of Sweden gave up their attempt to make the first nonstop round-the-world balloon flight. They ditched near Hawaii.