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June 21st Today in History
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Famous People & Celebrities Born on June 21st:
- Mariette Hartley
(1940) - Actress.
- Jim Breuer
(1967) - Saturday Night Live (1995-1998) as the "Goat Boy" and other characters. Flicks: Half Baked (1998).
- Martha Washington
(1732) - A bathing suit once worn by America's first first lady is on display at Virginia's Mount Vernon Museum. The long-sleeved, long-skirted garment is made of homespun linen, covered with a white-and-blue checkered pattern. The not-so-sexy swimsuit contains lead weights stitched into the hem to keep the suit from billowing in the water. On an unrelated note: The first hotel built exclusively for women was named the "Martha Washington Hotel." It opened in New York City in 1903. A fever caused Mrs. Washington to become irrational shortly before she died. She believed her slaves were trying to kill her with poison so she locked her bedroom door and refused to eat. She died at the age of 69 on May 22, 1802.
- Jane Russell
(1921) - Actress and former bra model. A 1950s-era movie magazine described Russell's breasts as "...hanging over the screen like storm clouds over a landscape." Billionaire Howard Hughes discovered Russell while she was working as a receptionist for his dentist. He hired her as an actress for his film studio and even designed a special seamless cantilevered bra to show off her boobs. The device was supposed to have been used in the 1941 film The Outlaw, but Jane didn't like the special bra so she wore her own and used Kleenex to hide the seams. During a World War II publicity shoot in Santa Barbara, the city was shelled by a Japanese submarine. Russell's publicist claimed Jane was the real target of the Japanese shells because she was a "national treasure."
- Juliette Lewis
(1973) - She once dated Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt. Lewis has 11 brothers and sisters. She became legally emancipated at the age of 14 to sidestep child labor laws which prevent young actors from working more than five hours per school day. Lewis dropped out of high school at 15, complaining that "If you're forced to study, you're not going to learn." Lewis flicks: Aurora Borealis (2004), Starsky & Hutch (2004), Blueberry (2004), Old School (2003), Enough (2002), Claire's Hat (2001), My Louisiana Sky (2001), Gaudi Afternoon (2000), Room to Rent (2000), The Basketball Diaries (1995), Natural Born Killers (1994), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Kalifornia (1993), Cape Fear (1991).
- Prince William
(1982) - The future King of England can also be a royal pain in the butt. When William was a wee lad, he often engaged in battles in the royal bathroom when Prince Charles tried to give him a bath. William would rebel by flushing his father's shoes down the toilet, breaking bathroom fixtures and even throwing temper tantrums. These days, the prince has calmed down considerably, but he still has a wild side: his dorm room at Eton College reportedly is covered with posters of sexy stars including Pamela Anderson Lee. Just in case you're wondering, Prince William says that although he's been known to wear briefs, he prefers boxer shorts.
- Maureen Stapleton
(1925) - Actress.
- Lalo Schifrin
(1932) - The Buenos Aires-born composer is best known for his Mission: Impossible theme. The theme was released as a single in 1968 and stayed on the "Hot 100" chart for 14 weeks. U2 drummer Larry Mullen and bandmate Adam Clayton recorded the theme for the 1996 Mission: Impossible movie which starred Tom Cruise. Schifrin also composed the music for the classic TV series Mannix, Starsky and Hutch, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Big Valley and Petrocelli. Flicks: Rush Hour (1998), Tango (1998), The Amityville Horror (1979), Dirty Harry (1971), THX 1138 (1970), Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows (1968), Cool Hand Luke (1967), Once a Thief (1965), The Cincinnati Kid (1965).
- Bernie Kopell
(1933) - Played Dr. Adam Bricker on The Love Boat. Also played Conrad Siegfried, the leader of K.A.O.S., on Get Smart.
- Ron Ely
(1938) - Played Tarzan on the TV series.
- Ray Davies
(1944) - Lead singer with The Kinks. In 1970 Davies was forced to fly 6,000 miles to re-record the lyrics of the song, "Lola." It seems the BBC refused to air "Lola" because one line made a reference to a brand name: Coca-Cola. So Davies changed the words of the offending line from I met her in a club down in old Soho where they drink champagne and it tastes just like COCA COLA. to I met her in a club down in old Soho where they drink champagne and it tastes just like CHERRY COLA.
- Meredith Baxter
(1947) - Actress. Family Ties.
- Michael Gross
(1947) - Played the father on Family Ties. Gross shares the same birthday with Family Ties co-star Meredith Baxter.
- Joey Kramer
(1950) - Aerosmith.
- Nils Lofgren
(1951) - Former E Street Band guitarist.
- Kathy Mattea
(1959) - Country singer. "18 Wheels and a Dozen Roses."
- Doug Savant
(1964) - Played Matt Fielding, the gay character on Melrose Place.
- Larry Wachowski
(1965) - Wachowski and his brother, Andy, wrote the screenplays for Matrix.
Famous and Noteworthy Events on June 21st:
(1788) - New Hampshire became the 9th state. State Nickname: Granite State. State Bird: Purple finch. Born in New Hampshire: Mary Baker Eddy (founded Christian Science Church); Christa McAuliffe (teacher/astronaut); Alan Shepard (astronaut); Daniel Webster (statesman).
(1879) - Retailer Frank Woolworth opened the world's first 5 and dime store. The shop was located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Four months earlier, Woolworth had opened a 5-cent store in Utica, New York. It was a complete flop, but his "upscale" 5 and dime store in Lancaster was a success and thrived. The six-story Woolworth building eventually featured ornate stone work, a spectacular roof garden, marble floors, palm trees and mahogany counters. Woolworth and his brother soon became multi-millionaires with a nationwide chain of stores. When Woolworth died in 1919, the chain owned 1,081 stores and annual sales were $119 million. Unfortunately, in the 1960s, the stores couldn't keep up with newcomers including WalMart and K-Mart. In 1997 Woolworth's shut down all of its remaining stores and laid off 9,100 employees.
(1982) - John Hinckley, Jr., the man who shot President Reagan and three others in 1981, was found not guilty by reason of insanity.
(1945) - Japanese forces on Okinawa surrendered after more than two months of battle. More than 100,000 Japanese died and almost 13,000 Americans were killed. The Battle of Okinawa began on April 1 when the Tenth Army landed on Higashi Beach. On April 18, Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper columnist Ernie Pyle was killed while covering the battle. As the days progressed, the Marines took northern Okinawa, Sugar Loaf Hill and the capital city of Okinawa -- at the time the largest city ever taken by the Marines. On this day in 1945, Maj. Gen. Roy Geiger announced the island was "secured."
(1948) - The first 33 1/3 long-playing 12-inch vinyl records became available to the public. The albums sold for $4.85. Columbia Records introduced the first "Vinylite" LP which could hold 23 minutes on each side. One of the first LPs was a recording of the original cast of the Broadway musical, South Pacific. (The Edison Company did manufacture a 12-inch platter in 1926, but it played at 80 r.p.m, was a quarter-inch thick and weighed 1 1/2 pounds.)
(1975) - "Love Will Keep Us Together" by the Captain & Tennille was the No. 1 song.
(1989) - The United States Supreme Court ruled that anyone can legally burn the American flag as a form of expression.
(1990) - A 7.7 earthquake in Iran killed more than 40,000 people, injured more than 100,000 and left half a million people homeless. Aftershocks from the quake continued for days.
MORE HISTORIC BIRTHS & EVENTS IN JUNE :
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