ED DANAHUE

Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy declared war on the United States on
this day in 1941. The U.S in turn declared war on the two countries.

The series Magnum, P.I. ran from this day in 1980 to 1988 during
its first-run broadcast on the CBS television network.  According
to the Nielsen ratings, the series consistently ranked in the top
twenty TV programs during the first five years of its original run.

The cast from left: Tom Selleck, Larry Manetti, John Hillerman, and
Roger E, Mosley.

A 1982 Ferrari 308 GTSi, driven by Tom Selleck and Larry Manetti in
TV series "Magnum P.I." is on display in the Petersen Automotive Museum.

 
Thomas William Selleck turned 73 January 29.

CAMILLE BOHANNON

Kirk Douglas (Issur Danielovitch) is 102 years old today.

Legendary movie actor Kirk Douglas starred in 20,000 Leagues Under the
Sea (1954), Paths of  Glory (1957), Gunfight at the O.K Corral (1957), and
Spartacus (1960). Kirk Douglas became a legend on the silver screen,
receiving the Academy Honorary Award in 1996. He was a successful
competitive wrestler while in college and served in the U.S. Navy.

1956

JOHN BELMONT

In Cape Town, South Africa on this day in 1967, a team of surgeons headed by Dr. Christian Barnard (above), performed the first human
heart transplant on Louis Washkansky. Washkansky only lived 18
days.

Louis Waskhansky after undergoing the world’s first successful heart transplant.

On this day in 1964 the Free Speech Movement on the Berkeley
campus of the University of California culminated with the arrest
of some 800 student demonstrators.

Mario Savio, leader of the Berkeley Free Speech Movement, speaks
to assembled students on the campus at the University of California, Berkeley.

Effigy of Governor Pat Brown hanging outside an off-
campus student resident hall after the December 3rd
arrests.

John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is 70 years old today.

Rock ‘n’ roll performer “Ozzy” Osbourne gained fame as the lead singer
of Black Sabbath and became known as the Prince of Darkness and the
Godfather of Heavy Metal.

ED DANAHUE

On this day in 1955, Rosa Parks, a black seamstress in Montgomery,
AL, refused to give up her seat to a white man. Mrs. Parks was
arrested marking a milestone in the civil rights movement in the U.S.

The bus, restored to the 1955 condition of Ms. Parks’ historic ride, is
located in the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan.

Rosa Louise McCauley Parks (February 4, 1913 – October 24, 2005)

Heywood "Woody" Allen (Allan Stewart Konigsberg) is 83 today.

Iconic writer and director Woody Allen is known for his unique blend of
comedy and style. His most celebrated films include Annie Hall (1977),
Manhattan (1979), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), Deconstructing Harry
(1997), and Midnight in Paris (2011). He performed card and magic tricks
in his youth and underwent the legal process of changing his name to
Heywood Allen when he was 17.

             
1989                                           1998

ROSS SIMPSON

On this day in 1973, Rose Mary Woods, told a federal court she was 
responsible for the 18-1/2 minute gap in a key Watergate tape. She demonstrates the stretch (above) that supposedly led to the deletion
on the tape. Woods was Nixon‘s personal secretary from his days in
Congress in 1951, through the end of his political career.

The motion picture "Casablanca" had its world premiere at the Hollywood Theater in New York City on this day in 1942.

A behind the scenes production still from “Casablanca”

The famous hangar 2 featured in the last scenes of "Casablanca,"
(below) as it looks today at Van Nuys Airport. It was built in 1928.