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Television
“The Krypton Factor,” the game show based on a British format that tested contestants’ mental and physical abilities, premiered on ABC in 1981. It was hosted by Dick Clark and ran for just five weeks.
Documentary miniseries “Watergate,“ based on the book “Watergate: The Corruption and Fall of Richard Nixon” by the former correspondent for the Washington Times, Fred Emery, premiered on Discovery in 1994. The five-part series, a co-production with BBC America, was the first film to offer a comprehensive look at one of Washington’s biggest scandals.
Movies
“Who’s That Girl” starring Madonna and Griffin Dunne premiered in 1987. The title song, performed by Madonna, reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100…“Crazy Rich Asians,” the first Hollywood film to feature the majority of the cast of Chinese descent in a modern setting since “The Joy Luck Club” opened in Los Angeles on this day in 1993. It starred Constance Wu, Henry Golding and Michelle Yeoh. And it resulted in Constance Wu publicly complaining about the renewal of her then ABC sitcom, “Fresh Off the Boat.”
Music:
Barbra Streisand recorded “Broadway Album” in 1985…Garth Brooks recorded a free concert in NYC’s Central Park for HBO, later releasing it as “Garth: Live from Central Park” in 1997.
Kesha released her “Tik Tok” single in 2009, which was named the Billboard Song of the Year in 2010… Reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart: “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart” by The Bee Gees in 1971; “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” by Elton John and Kiki Dee in 1976; “Slow Motion” by Juvenile featuring Soulja Slim in 2004.
Books:
“Eclipse,“ the third book in Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight Saga” was published by Little Brown in 2007. The initial print run was for one million copies.
News:
Philippe Petit performed a high wire act between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City in 1974…. Nike first launched its “Just Do It” advertising campaign in 1988.
Sports:
Yogi Berra, Sandy Koufax, Lefty Gomez, Early Wynn, Josh Gibson, Will Harridge, Buck Leonard and Ross Youngs were inducted into Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972…The Orlando Magic signed NBA No. 1 draft pick Shaquille O’Neal in 1992…Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith, John Randle, Russ Grimm, Rickey Jackson, Floyd Little and Dick LeBeau were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010…American swimmer Katie Ledecky set a new world record with a time of 3:56.46 to win the gold medal in the women’s 400m freestyle at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016.
Celebrity Birthdays
Author and radio host Garrison Keillor (“A Prairie Home Companion”) is 82; actor John Glover (“Smallville”) is 80; actor David Rasche (“Sledge Hammer!”) is also 80; “Seinfeld” star Wayne Knight (Newman) is 69; Iron Maiden lead singer Bruce Dickinson is 66; “The X-Files” star David Duchovny is 64; actor Harold Perrineau (“Lost”) is 61; actor Michael Shannon (“Boardwalk Empire”) is 50; Oscar winner Charlize Theron is 49; All-Star hockey player Sidney Crosby is 37.
Did You Know?
Wayne Knight as Newman had the biggest role of any of the secondary supporting characters on “Seinfeld.“ He appeared in 45 episodes.
Following the success of “Crazy Rich Asians,“ Constance Wu tweeted a slew of angry comments following the announcement of the renewal of her ABC sitcom, “Fresh Off the Boat,“ in 2019. “I love ‘Fresh Off the Boat,'” she later wrote in a statement. “I was temporarily upset not because I hate the show but because its renewal meant I had to give up another project that I was really passionate about. So my dismayed social media replies were more about that other project and not about ‘Fresh Off the Boat.'” Ultimately, “Fresh Off the Boat” was canceled after that now final season and Constance Wu was put out of her misery.
