From left: President Richard M. Nixon and Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley went to the White House to volunteer his services to President Nixon
on fighting the nation’s drug problems. He gave Nixon a chrome-plated Colt .45
pistol and Nixon gave Elvis a Narcotics Bureau badge (shown below).
The song “Barbara Ann” peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1
in Cash Box and Record World. It also topped the charts in Germany,
Switzerland and Norway. It was The Beach Boys’ biggest hit in Italy,
reaching the #4 position.
The song “Calendar Girl” was a success for Neil Sedaka,
peaking at number-four on the Billboard chart. Recording
of the song required 26 takes over a three-hour period. The
music was composed by Sedaka and the lyrics by Howard
Greenfield who got the inspiration for the song title from an
old movie listing in a TV Guide magazine.
Neil Sedaka turned 76 on March 13th.
Elizabeth Ruth "Betty" Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973)
Betty Grable was a WWII pinup girl who became known for having the most
beautiful legs in Hollywood. She appeared in How to Marry a Millionaire in
1953. Grable made her film debut in 1929 at the age of 12 as a chorus girl
in the film Happy Days. Her legs were reported to have been insured for
$1,000,000. Betty Grable married band leader Harry James in 1943.
1952
The song "Crimson and Clover" spent 16 weeks on the U.S. charts, reaching number one here and other countries. The single has sold
5 million copies, making it Tommy James and the Shondells’ best-
selling song. In 2006, Pitchfork Media named it the 57th best song
of the 1960s.
Tommy James (Thomas Gregory Jackson) turned
68 in April.
