1953 Richard Fairbrass, singer for Right Said Fred, is born in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, England.
1951 David Coverdale is born in Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Redcar and Cleveland, England. After fronting Deep Purple from 1973-1976, he forms his own band, Whitesnake, in 1978.
1943 Toni Basil is born Antonia Christina Basilotta in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1930 Traditional pop singer Joni James is born Giovanna Carmella Babbo in Chicago, Illinois. Among other hits, she's known for her 1953 cover of "Your Cheatin' Heart."
The "Happy Birthday" copyright is ruled invalid, putting the song into the public domain.
Read more2018 Paul Simon closes out his farewell tour with a show in his hometown of Queens, New York.More
2003 Auditioning for the third season of American Idol, William Hung performs a lively, but stupefyingly bad rendition of the Ricky Martin hit "She Bangs."More
1994 Friends debuts on NBC, accompanied by a catchy theme song by The Rembrandts that becomes an unexpected hit.More
1985 The first Farm Aid concert plays in Champaign, Illinois, to benefit American farmers trying to survive amidst a national agricultural crisis.More
1974 The Muhammad Ali vs. George Foreman boxing match (the "Rumble In The Jungle") in Zaire is postponed, but a concert festival promoting the event goes on anyway, with Bill Withers, The Spinners and Celia Cruz performing along with the African artist Tabu Ley Rochereau.More
1964 The musical Fiddler on the Roof makes its Broadway debut at the Imperial Theatre.More
1958 Joan Jett is born Joan Marie Larkin near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, raised in Rockville, Maryland. After joining the music scene as the guitarist for the all-girl punk band The Runaways, she goes on to form Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. Their debut album is turned down by the first 23 record labels it is offered to, despite containing the future #1 hit "I Love Rock And Roll."
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