Jiles Perry "J. P." Richardson, Jr. (October 24, 1930 – February 3, 1959)
While Richardson was a D.J. at KTRM radio in Beaumont, Texas, he saw some
college students doing a dance called The Bop, and that’s when he decided to
call himself…”The Big Bopper”.
Steve Roland "Pre" Prefontaine (January 25, 1951 – May 30, 1975)
Born in Coos Bay, Oregon, Prefontaine was a long-distance runner who
set seven national records before an untimely death in a car accident. He
played football and basketball before discovering cross country in eighth
grade. He was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1983.
Martin Luther King, Jr., (January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968)
This day was established as a holiday in numerous cities and states beginning
in 1971, and as a U.S. federal holiday in 1986.
