SANDY KOZEL

On this day in 1944, Paris, France, was liberated by Allied forces
ending four years of German occupation.

Captain Matthew Webb (above) swam from Dover, England, to
Calais, France making him the first person to swim the English
Channel on this day in 1875. The feat took about 22 hours.

Engraving depicting the completion of the ‘First Swim Across The English Channel”.

It was on this day in 1985.

Kinsey died on this in 1956 at the age of 62. The cause of death was reported to be a heart ailment and pneumonia.

Sean Connery as agent Bond, James Bond.

Sir Thomas Sean Connery is 87 years old today.

Iconic Scottish actor Sean Connery starred as secret agent 007
James Bond in seven films from 1962 to 1983, including Dr. No,
From Russia with Love and Goldfinger. He earned an Academy
Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the 1987 gangster
film The Untouchables and also played prominent roles in the
films The Hunt for Red October (1990), The Rock (1996), and
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). 

Elvis Costello (Declan Patrick MacManus) is 63 years old today.

Singer-songwriter Elvis Costello has contributed to the proto-new wave and
punk movements with such songs as "Pump it Up" and "Allison." He released
his debut album My Aim is True in 1976. His group Elvis Costello and the
Attractions were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.

Leonard Bernstein  (August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990)

Leonard Bernstein was an American composer, conductor, author, music lecturer,
and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the US to
receive worldwide acclaim. According to music critic Donal Henahan, he was
"one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American
history."      

Bruce Springsteen‘s album "Born to Run" was released on this day 
in 1975.

Born to Run is the third studio album by singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. The
album was a commercial success, peaking at number three on the Billboard 200
and eventually selling six million copies in the U.S. It has since been considered
y critics to be one of the greatest albums in popular music.

Camille Bohannon

U.S. military forces attacked a terrorist camp in Afghanistan and a chemical plant in Sudan. Both targets were chosen for cruise
missile strikes due to their connection with Osama bin Laden.

On this day in 1968, the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact
nations began invading Czechoslovakia to crush the "Prague
Spring" liberalization.

NASA’S Voyager 2 was launched by the United States on this day
in 1977. The spacecraft was carrying a 12 inch copper phonograph record containing greetings in dozens of languages, samples of
music and sounds of nature.

Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008)

Singer and songwriter Isaac Hayes co-founded the soul music label
Stax Records alongside David Porter in the 1960s. He and Porter
wrote the popular 1967 song "Soul Man" for the duo Sam & Dave.

Hayes also earned recognition for his Academy Award-winning original
song "Theme from Shaft" for the 1971 film Shaft.

He began singing at his local church at age five and eventually taught
himself how to play the piano, organ, flute, and saxophone.

Robert Anthony Plant is 69 years old today.

Iconic rock star Robert Plant gained fame as the vocalist and songwriter
of the classic rock band Led Zeppelin, known for such hits as "Stairway
to Heaven" and "When the Levee Breaks." He was named the #1 Lead
Singer of All Time by Rolling Stone Magazine in 2011. He was once
in training to become an accountant before becoming involved in
the blues scene.

 
   
Drummer Ring Starr (above) first performed as a member of the Beatles at
a dance for the Horticultural Society at Port Sunlight, U.K. He said the
drums were not his.   

Ringo Starr (Richard Starkey) turned 77 on July 7.

Two guitar legends from left: James Burton and Glen Campbell are 
seen during a 1963 recording session. They were both members of
a group of L.A. studio musicians in the 1960’s dubbed, The Wrecking
Crew. Burton will turn 78 August 21. We lost Glen Campbell Tuesday
to Alzheimer’s Disease.

SANDY KOZEL

On this day in 1945 a B-29 bomber, known as the Enola Gay, dropped the
first atomic bomb on an inhabited area. The bomb named "Little Boy" was
dropped over the center of Hiroshima, Japan. An estimated 140,000 people
were killed.

Pictured is a mockup of "Little Boy," the atomic bomb that was
dropped that morning on Hiroshima.

The Voting Rights Act was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson 
on this day in 1965.

Pope Paul VI (Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini)
(September 26, 1897 – August 6, 1978)

Sir Alexander Fleming (August 6, 1881 – March 11, 1955) 

Scottish biologist, pharmacologist, and botanist Alexander Fleming 
shared the 1945 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for helping
to discover the antibiotic substance penicillin in 1928. His discovery
marked the start of modes antibiotics, which changed the medical
world forever. He worked in shipping before going to medical school
at the recommendation of his brother.