21 MARCH
In Music History
1990 The sitcom Sydney premieres on CBS, starring Valerie Bertinelli and a pre-Friends Matthew Perry. Bertinelli's husband Eddie Van Halen provides the theme song: "Finish What Ya Started."
1990 Tony Orlando is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6385 Hollywood Boulevard.
1988 Lynyrd Skynyrd release Southern by the Grace of God, their second live album. It features music recorded in 1987 in what was supposed to be a one-time touring tribute to band members who died in a 1977 plane wreck that seemingly ended the band. Four years later, an updated Lynyrd Skynyrd lineup records new material and begins touring again regularly.
1987 Club Nouveau's poppy cover of the Bill Withers song "Lean On Me" hits #1 on the Hot 100. The original hit the top spot in 1972.
1987 Dean Martin's son Dean Paul Martin (of Dino, Desi & Billy) dies in a plane crash in California's San Bernardino Mountains at the age of 35 while serving in the Air National Guard.
1983 Pink Floyd's last album with Roger Waters, The Final Cut, is released in the UK.
1982 Little Johnny Jones, with Donny Osmond in the lead role, opens on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre and closes after just one heavily panned performance. Osmond's career withers, but is revived in 1989 with the hit "Soldier Of Love" and in 1992 with a six-year run starring in the touring production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
1980 Deryck Whibley (frontman for Sum 41) is born in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada.
1978 Carole King's third husband, Rick Evers, dies of a drug overdose after working on Carole's album Welcome Home, which was released two months later. Evers had co-writing credits on three songs from the album and appears on the cover with King.
1976 After playing a show in Rochester, New York, David Bowie is arrested on charges of marijuana possession when police raid his hotel room. Iggy Pop and two others are also arrested. His hearing takes place on April 20 (4/20!), and the charges are dropped.
1976 The French actress Claudine Longet, ex-wife of Andy Williams, shoots her live-in lover, the famed skier Spider Sabich, at his home in Aspen, Colorado. The shooting is ruled an accident, and Longet is sentenced to 30 days in jail for criminal negligence. Her case inspires the Rolling Stones song "Claudine."
1970 Faces release First Step.
1968 Andrew Copeland (rhythm guitarist for Sister Hazel) is born in Gainesville, Florida.
1967 Keith "Maxim" Palmer (of The Prodigy) is born in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England.
1967 Jonas Berggren (of Ace Of Base) is born in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Man In Motion Tour Inspires A #1 Hit
1985In Vancouver, the Canadian wheelchair athlete Rick Hansen begins his "Man In Motion" tour to raise money for spinal cord research. Inspired by his quest, fellow Canadian David Foster works with John Parr to write a tribute song to Hansen for the film St. Elmo's Fire.
Read more21 MARCH
Featured Events
2008 Beach Boys founding members Mike Love and Al Jardine settle a lawsuit Love filed in 2003, claiming Jardine was touring under variations of the group name, to which Love owns the rights. The settlement leads to a reunion of the group in 2012 for their 50th anniversary.
2000 With the release of their third album, No Strings Attached, 'N Sync smashes the Backstreet Boys' record for first-week sales with 2.4 million copies sold - almost double the amount BSB garnered with their 1999 album, Millennium. 'N Sync's record holds for 15 years until Adele pushes more than 3 million units of 25.More
1997 The movie Selena debuts in theaters, chronicling the life of the late Tejano singer, who was murdered two years earlier by the former president of her fan club. Jennifer Lopez is lauded for her breakout performance in the title role, which inspires her to pursue a singing career of her own.
1994 Bruce Springsteen wins an Oscar for the song "Streets of Philadelphia" from the Tom Hanks movie Philadelphia.
1952 Cleveland stakes a claim on rock history when the Moondog Coronation Ball is held at the Cleveland Arena. Organized by the WJW DJ Alan Freed ("Moondog" on the air), it is widely considered the first rock concert. It may also be one of the shortest, as it is shut down after one song.More
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