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Wednesday, January 25, 2017

January 25, 1949

It's the final Wayback Wednesday for January, and this time around, choosing a topic was not quite so easy.  I really had to dig deep to come up with a topic that was suitable for today, and given that we're smack dab in the middle of awards season, I thought today's subject would be appropriate.

For now though...let's see what else happened on this date in history.

41 - Claudius is accepted as Roman Emperor by the Roman Senate

1533 - Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn get married in secret

1554 - The city of Sao Paulo, Brazil is founded

1791 - The British Parliament passes the Constitutional Act of 1791 which divides the Province of Quebec into Upper Canada and Lower Canada

1858 - Felix Mendelssohn's "The Wedding March" is performed at the wedding ceremony of Queen Victoria's daughter - immediately becomes a popular song to be played at subsequent weddings all over the world

1881 - The Oriental Telephone Company is founded by Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison

1882 - British writer Virginia Woolf (d. 1941) is born in Kensington, Middlesex, England

1890 - Nellie Bly completes her around-the-world journey after 72 days

1924 - The Opening Ceremonies for the very first Winter Olympics take place in Chamonix, France

1931 - Actor Dean Jones (d. 2015) is born in Decatur, Alabama

1936 - Actress Diana Hyland (d. 1977) is born in Cleveland Heights, Ohio

1937 - The soap opera "The Guiding Light" debuts on radio ; it would later switch to television format from 1952 until the show's cancellation in 2009

1938 - Singer Etta James (d. 2012) is born in Los Angeles, California

1942 - Thailand declares war on both the United Kingdom and the United States during World War II

1947 - American gangster Al Capone dies at the age of 48

1960 - As a result of the "payola" scandal, the National Association of Broadcasters threaten to fine disc jockeys who accept monetary gifts in exchange for playing certain records

1964 - The sports company Nike is founded under the original name of "Blue Ribbon Sports"

1971 - Charles Manson is found guilty of the Tate-LaBianca murders, along with three of his followers

1990 - Actress Ava Gardner dies at the age of 67

1992 - Color Me Badd's "All 4 Love" reaches the top of the Billboard charts

1993 - Two die and three are wounded during a shooting outside the CIA Headquarters in Langley, Virginia

1996 - The creator of the rock musical "Rent" - Jonathan Larson - dies at the age of 35

1999 - At least one thousand are killed when a powerful 6.0 earthquake strikes Colombia

2011 - The first wave of the Egyptian Revolution begins

And celebrating a birthday this 25th of January are the following famous faces; Arvid Carlsson, Tobe Hooper, Leigh Taylor-Young, Dave Walker, Doc Bundy, Andy Cox, Jenifer Lewis, Stephen Chbosky, Ana Ortiz, Robert Budreau, Emily Haines, Mia Kirshner, and Alicia Keys!

And yes...the list is that short.  I'm guessing January 25 is a slow day in the world of Hollywood.

But as you will see in today's feature date presentation, January 25 was a very special day in the world of entertainment.



Or, at least January 25, 1949 was anyway.

So, as I mentioned before, whenever a new year comes, we're soon bombarded with awards shows on television.  Now, granted, I'm really only interested in one of these awards ceremonies.  I've watched the Grammy Awards every year since 1988, and that's one tradition that I will not give up no matter how depressing the music scene gets.  And those awards are coming up very soon - within the next couple of weeks or so.

We've already experienced the People's Choice Awards, which are given to the people by the people.  And we've also experienced the Golden Globes, which brought us Meryl Streep's much talked about acceptance speech.  And just recently the nominations for the Academy Awards were first announced.  Needless to say, the choices for 2017 are definitely more diverse than 2016 and even 2015.  Those awards will be coming up about a month from now.

But did you know that it was sixty-eight years ago today that an awards ceremony held its inaugural ceremony?  A ceremony that initially started off as an opportunity to build the image of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences?  A ceremony that was first held in January even though these days we now have to wait until mid-September before we see any stars get handed the coveted statuette.



It was designed to be a celebration of television and honoured the best of the small screen.  Though, given that the first edition of the Primetime Emmy Awards was held in 1949, admittedly there weren't very many options to bestow awards to.

In fact, when the Emmy Awards were first handed out, there were only six awards given out!  And I happen to have a list of all of the winners right below. 

MOST POPULAR TELEVISION PROGRAM:  Pantomime Quiz
BEST FILM MADE FOR TELEVISION:  The Necklace
MOST OUTSTANDING TELEVISION PERSONALITY: Shirley Dinsdale
STATION AWARD:  KTLA
SPECIAL AWARD:  Louis McManus (the designer of the Emmy Award)
TECHNICAL AWARD:  Charles Mesak and Don Lee for "Phasefinder"

Yes, believe it or not, there was once a time in which only one person would win an award for acting or hosting in a television program.  The first time that a Best Actor and Best Actress award was handed out was two years later in 1951.  And can you believe that there was only one technical award handed out?  These days, you have creative Emmy Awards for almost every possible occupation from lighting and set design to directing!  The Emmy Awards have really come a long way, haven't they?

Now, part of the reason why so few categories existed back in the day was because there wasn't a whole lot of options to choose from.  But another reason was that an entire section of the country was excluded that first year.  Only shows that were produced in California - specifically the Los Angeles area - were eligible.  It certainly was a slap in the face to non-California studios, particularly those based out of New York City and Chicago.  Thankfully the rules were changed to include all regions of the country not long after.

And here's some trivia for you.  I mentioned earlier that Louis McManus was the man responsible for designing the Emmy statue.  Well, would you believe that he wasn't even given his own statue design as an award?  He was instead given a plaque that paid acknowledgement to the fact that he created the Emmy statue.  I don't know...it seems like it would be sort of a slap in the face for him to create an award and then not win one.  But I suppose nothing really stopped him from making his own.

Whatever the case, the Primetime Emmy Awards have been a huge part of television for almost seven decades now.  And beginning in 1973, a second Emmy ceremony was launched for actors, actresses, talk show hosts, and game show hosts whose programs aired during the day.  Mind you, the decline of soap operas in favour of reality programming and syndicated programs have diminished the Daytime Emmy Awards, but as of 2017, the show is still going on.

And for many actors who have either gotten their big break on television or who currently work on television, the Emmy Award is definitely a coveted prize to earn. 

And today the Emmy Award turns 68 years old!  You never looked so bright and shiny, Emmy!

Monday, January 23, 2017

Hey, People...Leave Them Kids Alone!

Okay, I'm going to start this blog off by posting a link to a site that has GREATLY helped me the last day or so.

The site is called SOCIAL FIXER, and it allows people to block certain posts on social media that they do NOT want to see.  INCLUDING POLITICAL POSTS.

You know, I'm not even American, and I am already sick of American politics.  Prior to my finding this beautiful site that allows me to filter my newsfeed to eliminate most political posts (sadly, it does not filter out memes), it was getting to the point where I had to wade through 99% of Trump, Clinton, Trudeau, and Wynne postings just to get to the good stuff.

It's not as though I don't care about politics.  I actually have some strong opinions about them.  I just don't share them on my own Facebook timeline because I don't really want to advertise them for fear of getting attacked or bullied by those who don't agree with them.

I don't have an issue with disagreements.  They happen all the time.  I do have an issue with people attacking other people with insults, foul language, and veiled threats.  To me, that's not showing that you're passionate about politics.  Instead, you're passionate about ruining someone else's day or making people feel bad for not agreeing with you.  As Daffy Duck would say...that's despicable.  And those attitudes are one reason why I sought out the political blocker on my own Facebook page.  I don't have any interest in seeing people lose it against each other because of a difference of opinion, or people labeling an entire group of people with foul insults because they are protesting the current President of the United States, or instigators who purposely poke the bear with a stick just to start a fight online.

Perhaps some of the most disgusting behaviour that I have seen over the last couple of days involves one little boy...and it's this boy that has sparked today's PCA Life Lesson. 



As if I really need a reason to post a life lesson about how wrong it is to bully a child - especially when you're an adult that is doing it.  And yet, that's exactly what I saw, and that's the very reason why I turned off all politics from my Facebook page.

(DISCLAIMER:  I'm happy to report that none of my contacts on my FB page were responsible for it, aside from posting public links to stories where some people in the general public DID say these things.)

As I was saying, bullying a child is not okay under any circumstances.  And to prove my point, I present to you this photo.



The photo is of now President Donald Trump and his youngest son, Barron.  I believe Barron is around the 10-11 year old mark.  I'm not quite sure.  He's a handsome kid though.  I can see why the Trump family would be proud of him. 

I mean, granted, I still don't believe that America made the right choice in electing Donald Trump president, and I could spend an hour telling people exactly why I don't trust him...but I can do that without bringing his wife or five children into the argument.  They are not responsible for the things that Donald Trump says or tweets, so they should be kept off the table.

Which is why I think it's deplorable that people are starting to use their "keyboard courage" to attack Barron Trump for things that are absolutely ridiculous.



Now, when I say "attack", I tend not to think of the posts on Instagram that "Modern Family" star Julie Bowen posted during the inauguration.  In those posts, she capped pictures of Barron looking disinterested and captioning them with comments about him wishing he had his Gameboy with him.  To me, I can see the humour behind it (even though several others did not), mainly because I don't believe she was trying to be malicious about it...and because if I were Barron Trump and I was at the inauguration, I'd probably want my Nintendo DS too!  I mean, let's face it.  At 10, I had the worst attention span when it came to important events where I had to sit down a lot and listen to adults speak for several hours.  I nearly fell asleep at my sister's wedding when I was eight!  So yeah, I'm going to give Julie Bowen a pass on this one, though I think she'll probably think twice before posting anything about the Trumps on Instagram again.

Now, the comments that Saturday Night Live writer Kate Rich made on the other hand...yeah, I'm not even going to post what she wrote because it is so obnoxious and cruel.  And in EXTREMELY poor taste!  Let's just say that she found a way to incorporate the words "Barron Trump" and "school shooting" into one very bitter tweet.  And, yes, I see the irony in complaining about Kate Rich's tweet when Barron's father is the king of poorly written tweets himself (Seriously, if somebody can find a way to disable his Twitter privileges, that would be the first step in lessening the divide between Americans).  But the point is that an adult like Kate Rich making comments like that towards a ten year old boy is absolutely disgusting, and shame on her for even suggesting such a thing. 

Not long after posting that tweet, Rich was barraged by negative comments from people who felt the same way that I did, and she deleted it three hours later.  But by that time, the damage was already done.  I hope that tweet was worth it.



And don't even get me started on the claims that Rosie O'Donnell made about Barron Trump supposedly having autism.  Firstly, what difference does it make if he does?  Absolutely none whatsoever.  Secondly, who made Rosie O'Donnell a medical expert on diagnosing autism?  She is not a doctor.  And thirdly, we all know that O'Donnell and Trump have hated each other since the days when Rosie was a panelist on "The View".  I'm thinking that her comments were less about Barron's well being and more about her trying to attack Trump once more.  I don't think either side in the O'Donnell/Trump war behaved like adults during the whole brouhaha, but O'Donnell really should have known better than to go after his children the way that she has.  Queen of Nice, no more.

And honestly...if you're an adult making fun of a child - whether they're in the public eye or the kid down the street...it's absolutely shameful.  And I say this because I know what it's like to be a child and be made fun of by adults for things that are so superficial.  It hurts, it's not a good feeling, and it makes it difficult for that child to trust any adult.

And I would have that opinion no matter what.  Whether it is Barron Trump, Sasha and Malia Obama, Chelsea Clinton, Jenna and Barbara Bush or anybody...no adult has the right to bully any child.

NOBODY.

Friday, January 20, 2017

Jem Reviewed: Episode 44 - Rock 'n' Roll Express

I don't even want to summarize last week's episode of Jem Reviewed, as right now it's a contender for the worst episode of the series ever.  I certainly wish that this week's episode is much better.



It is time for Episode 44: Rock 'N' Roll Express.  I get the feeling that this episode involves trains.

Huh, what do you know?  I'm right.  Hopefully this episode doesn't end up as much of a trainwreck as the last one.



It appears as though Jem and the Holograms are about to go on tour again, but this time around there are a couple of things that they're doing differently.  First, they plan on doing a cross country tour via train to visit all of the small towns along the way to give people who may not be able to get to the big cities to hear them perform.  And all of the money raised for the concert will be donated to charity.  That's actually a neat idea, but it's too bad the people of Hawaii get screwed. 

And secondly, all of the Starlight girls are boarding the train as well to help with the set up, as well as getting a first hand look at the sights that the United States has to offer.  Also a great idea.



Oh, and Rio's tagging along.  Um...yay?  Oh, well.  Two out of three good things.



The first destination on the Jem and the Holograms train tour is Rock Canyon, Arizona.  And to celebrate the launch of the tour, Jem and the Holograms sing a song about taking a train.



"This song's so lame, this song's so lame, this song's so laaaaaaame."  Okay, seriously, what did they use to write this song?  Those poetry fridge magnets?  Definitely a contender for Jem's WORST song.  I just hope they sing better songs on the road!



Speaking of which, we go ahead to Rock Canyon where a man is being thrown out of the police station by the town sheriff.  This man doesn't have a name, but I guarantee you that he will be appearing in this episode a lot...and he's not exactly who you'd call a friend.  In fact, he's kind of a required outside antagonist that is not a Misfit. 



The first thing he sees when he leaves the police station is a banner advertising the Jem and the Holograms concert, and when he asks a bunch of people in crowd what is going on, they inform him all about the concert and how it's for charity.  You can instantly see the dollar signs popping into his eyes upon hearing that news.



Sure enough, when the train pulls up at the Rock Canyon train station, our resident criminal comes up to the train with a cup of coffee in each hand.  He notices one of the security guards leaving one of the train cars and hands him one of the cups.  Now, if some strange man handed me a cup of Tim Horton's coffee out of the blue, I might be slightly suspicious - especially since I can't stand coffee.  But our guard happily downs the beverage and is fine.  Well, for a few minutes anyway.



By the time Rio comes back to check on him, he's already passed out and moaning about his stomach.  Okay, so our criminal drugged him.  But he'll be okay because nobody ever dies on Jem and...



...OH MY GOD!  Is that a body bag they're carrying out?  He really did die?!?  Wow.  And here's Rio nonchalantly asking for another guard because the other guard got food poisoning.  Um, he's in a body bag.  HE'S DEAD!  Sheesh, this is why I hate Rio.  He's jealous, he's pushy, and he does not care at all about the recently departed.  I mean, sure, they make it out like the guard is still sick and alive, but why the scene with a BODY BAG?  Seriously, this scene is just badly executed.  But hey, we have no time to mourn the deceased.  Mesaville, New Mexico is waiting!



As the train speeds towards New Mexico, Ashley is in a foul mood.  She explains to Raya that she hates being responsible for all of the band's musical instruments and wishes she could do something else.  To Raya's credit (and one of the many reasons I love Raya), she tries to boost Ashley up by telling her how important a job she has and how she should look at the extra responsibility as proof that they trust her. 

But before Ashley and Raya can continue their talk, they are nearly decapitated by a low flying plane.  Fortunately, both of them survive.



Of course, it doesn't take long to figure out what is going on.  Of course, the Misfits have heard about Jem's train tour and they plan on derailing their success by throwing leaflets advertising their own concert.  Great, way to throw litter all over America, ladies.



But it sort of backfires on the Misfits in a huge way.  You see, the Misfits' pilot is flying at so many weird angles that the engine actually stalls midway through the flight and it sends the plane crashing down towards the ground.  But don't worry...unlike our poor security guard back in Rock Canyon, the Misfits survive their plane crash.  Unfortunately, their plane does not.

At this point, Jem has reverted back to her Jerrica form, and Jerrica turns to Rio and makes the grim realization that she has to take the Misfits along with them.  Oh, this ought to be a fun experience.



Well, at least Jerrica thought ahead and put the Misfits in the dining car.  Having all of them stuff their faces with food is a sure fire way to get them to shut up.



Well, at least until Jetta begins to make a little mischief and throws a dollop of mashed potatoes all over Roxy.  This prompts Roxy to throw food all over Pizzazz, who in turn throws an entire steak at Stormer.  Before you know it, the Misfits are in a full on food fight, and it takes a visibly frustrated Rio to stop the melee once and for all.



He does this by locking the Misfits in a separate car, which infuriates all of them immensely.  Though given that the car seems to be covered entirely in windows, I would think he did them a favour.  The scenery views would be incredible!



But Jetta decides that they are going to get back onto the right side of the train by climbing up through a hatch in the ceiling of the car.  Um...are you NUTS?  The train's going a hundred miles an hour and you think you can walk across the train top to another car? 



At least Stormer sees the danger in that, but the other three Misfits are braindead common sense wise, and they all decide to follow Jetta's plan.  It's too bad that as they all make it to the outside of the train, Stormer notices that they are about to go through a railroad tunnel.  So, the question is...if Train A is speeding by at 100 mph with four Misfits on top of the train, how long will it take for all four Misfits to get decapitated by the tunnel?



Well, we never do find the answer to that question because they all leap off the train and land in the middle of a pond.  The good news is all four survive.  The bad news is...they're now stranded in the middle of a New Mexico desert.  Whatever will they do now?



Oh look...they just happen to run into a group of Native Americans on horses.  Yeah, that's not a contrived plot point, is it?  Whatever the case, the Misfits really pile on the sob stories about how they had to jump off the train, and they need to get back on.  Stormer herself remarks that it takes a lot to survive, which sparks the cue for a song first heard in Episode 20.



Though, I'll be the first one to admit...while the song still rocks out hard, I HATE the remake of the video.  It's not as fun as watching Kimber nearly get eaten by a spider, or Jem swinging over a pit of crocodiles.



Somehow, the Misfits manage to catch up to the speeding train and as soon as Raya spots them, she pulls the emergency brake to slow the train down.  The Misfits board the train, and the Native Americans are left feeling used when the Misfits won't even give them the autographs that they were promised.  Seriously, Misfits, you're starting to tread back into "you suck" territory.

Shortly after, the train pulls into the Mesaville station where a large crowd of people have gathered to watch the show.  And this is where things start to kick into high gear.



For one, that replacement guard that Rio called for back in Rock Canyon is here.  But the guard happens to be that criminal that caused the "death" of the previous guard.  My question is...where did he get a uniform so quickly?

As well, the Misfits plan to repay the kindness of the Holograms by sabotaging their show.  See, this is why nobody trusts you Misfits.  You are always sticking it to the people who actually tried to help you.  Jerks.



It seems as though the Misfits are getting their chance though.  Rio and Ashley get into a fight over Ashley's duty to watch over the equipment, and Ashley storms off in a huff.  I don't blame Ashley.  Rio can be a jackass at times. 



But with Ashley out of the way, it doesn't stop the Misfits from sticking Kimber's keyboard keys together, snapping Raya's drumsticks in half, and loosening some of the strings on Aja and Shana's guitars.  Stormer points out that Jem's been nice to them and that she doesn't feel right doing it as she is working on destroying Jem's microphone.  See, Stormer?  This is why nobody takes you seriously.  This is why your brother wants you out of the Misfits!



As to be expected, the Holograms equipment breaks apart as they start the concert, and Jem is embarrassed to have to postpone the show because of it.  Even worse, Rio seems to go off on a rant, blaming Ashley for everything!  Okay, seriously, Rio?  Ashley's thirteen.  And secondly, she's fiercely loyal to Jem now.  Rio, take a seat.  Take SEVERAL seats.



Besides, Jerrica (man, she changes clothes faster than an America's Next Top Model contestant) defends Ashley to Rio, so that goes to show just how much of a jerk Rio is.  And why is he still on the show?



Of course, the Misfits aren't happy that the Holograms plan on continuing with the show, so they must find another way to get back at them.  When they spot the engineers leaving to go on a coffee break, they come up with the idea to board the engine compartment and start the train up while Rio goes into town to fix the instruments.  Never mind the fact that none of them know how to DRIVE a train.  Oh, and while all this is going on, our friendly neighbourhood thief has found his way to the car where all the charity money is kept.  There's really nothing stopping him from grabbing all the loot he wants.  Well, except for Roxy finding a way to pull the lever that starts the train.  The train leaves with such force that it causes Jem and the Holograms to fall down on the ground...



...and it destroys the platform that Rio is standing on, leaving him behind at the Mesaville train station!  That...can't be good.



Even worse, the Misfits realize that they can't control the train...especially since clumsy Jetta has gotten her boot wedged in between the controls!  Okay, seriously, why is Jetta even on this episode...she is the one who has caused all of this trouble!  Such an annoying character.

So, here's the situation.  The train is out of control thanks to the Misfits.  A criminal is aboard, as are Jem and the Holograms and a baker's dozen Starlight Girls assuming that Laura Holloway is still with them.  And, not one of them thought to pull the emergency brake?  I mean, come on.  My dad worked for a railroad for thirty-one years!  I've had train safety drilled into my head from the time I was three years old!  Seriously, these Misfits should have known better.



Of course, we always have to make Rio the hero of the story because his ego is in need of massaging.  Seriously, at this point, I'd almost welcome a Jem/Eric Raymond pairing.  But Rio happens to steal a motorcycle and thinks that he can use it to catch up to the train that is rapidly gaining speed.  I'm sure he makes it, but come on...this is getting silly.



Even sillier is the fact that the criminal somehow wanders into the same car where the Misfits happen to be and actually helps get Jetta's stuck foot free.  I must say, I don't know what crimes he was convicted of in the past, but he seems like a nice guy here.  A nice guy who steals from charity, mind you, but still nice.  In fact, he actually comes up with the idea that I suggested earlier.  Pull the emergency brake!  Unfortunately, he pulls it so hard that it breaks off in his hand.  Sheesh, when was the last time the engine was inspected?  1977?



At this point, Rio has caught up to the runaway train and leaps off the motorcycle to the caboose where Jem and the Holograms are.  Once inside, he orders Shana to pull the emergency brake, not realizing that the Misfits and the fake security guard have broken it.



And in a scene that seems to be tacked on, at another railroad station, two workers discover that a man in his underwear has been locked in a closet and tied up.  Before they question each other about any fetishes they might have, the tied up man explains that someone knocked him out and tied him up, stealing his clothes in the process.  We don't need to guess who the culprit is.  But before anything else can be said, the word about the runaway train hits the station, and everyone is concerned.  If the train gets too fast, the possibility of it derailing could occur.  And if the train derails, anyone on board could end up dead.  The situation has just been made critical.



Rio isn't willing to give up though.  Even though many of the train cars are locked from the inside, he's willing to climb over top of the train cars to reach the engine room.  Why not?  The Misfits did it, why not him?  Who cares about train safety anyway?



After a brief scare in which Rio accidentally falls off the train, he recovers and inches his way towards the engine car.  He manages to get inside where he is shocked to find the Misfits and fake security guard.  Security guard explains that he tried to stop the train, but the brake handle snapped.  This does not faze Rio one bit as he unscrews the panel containing the emergency brake and pulls down on the nub that is remaining.  It's slow going, but Rio successfully manages to make the train slow down and come to stop at the next station.  This is great news, but I feel bad for the people of Mesaville who got screwed out of a concert.  



The criminal who tried to steal the money is arrested and taken to jail again...and in payment for nearly killing them, the Misfits are sentenced to be the Holograms' personal servants for the rest of the tour - of course, the Misfits would have gotten away with it had Stormer not blabbed the Misfits plan to sabotage the concert.  I guess this proves that you can't completely harden Stormer's heart or conscience.



And we end this...rather weird episode with the Jem and the Holograms song "All Across The Country".  I mean, seriously, after the first half of Season 2, is THIS what we can expect for the rest of the season?  I mean, come on...



Maybe next week will be better.  After all, they're celebrating Mardi Gras there.  Though something tells me we won't be seeing Kimber taking it all off for some green, gold, and purple beads.

Oh, before I leave, this week's Jem Trivia.  There's 65 episodes of Jem total, but there's evidence of there being a top secret 66th episode in existence.  Of course it was never filmed or animated, but if you look at the production numbers for each episode, there is no listing for episode 27, and episode 65 is actually labelled as episode 66.  I'm wondering if the first season was supposed to be 27 episodes long and sandwiched in between Glitter and Gold and The Talent Search.  Or maybe that episode would be the one in which Jem reveals herself to Rio.  We'll never know, but the speculation is interesting to wonder.

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

January 18, 1955

It's time for another edition of Wayback Wednesday!  And today's entry will pay homage to a man who has been in the acting industry for over three decades!  That's your only clue for now.  Let's hop right into the events that took place on January 18!

474 - Leo II, then aged seven, succeeds Leo I as Byzantine emperor

1535 - Francisco Pizarro founds the city of Lima, Peru

1778 - James Cook is reportedly the first European to discover the Hawaiian islands

1886 - Modern hockey is born with the formation of the Hockey Association in England

1896 - H.L. Smith demonstrates the very first X-ray generator

1904 - Actor Cary Grant (d. 1986) is born in Horfield, Bristol, England

1911 - Actor/singer Danny Kaye (d. 1987) is born in Brooklyn, New York

1919 - The Paris Peace Conference opens in Versailles, France

1940 - Race car driver Pedro Rodriguez (d. 1971) is born in Mexico City, Mexico

1941 - Soul singer David Ruffin (d. 1991) is born in Meridian, Mississippi

1950 - Race car driver Gilles Villeneuve (d. 1982) is born in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada

1952 - "The Three Stooges" star Curly Howard dies at the age of 48

1958 - The first African-Canadian hockey player - Willie O'Ree - makes his debut on the Boston Bruins

1967 - Albert DeSalvo - known as the infamous "Boston Strangler" is convicted and sentenced to life in prison

1977 - A group of scientists discover a strain of bacteria that is linked to the cause of Legionnaires' Disease

1983 - The International Olympic Committee restores Jim Thorpe's Olympic medals and gives them to his surviving family members

1986 - "That's What Friends Are For" - a song performed by Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, and Elton John - reaches #1 on the Billboard charts

1990 - Political scandal takes place with Marion Barry - then Mayor of Washington D.C. - is arrested by the FBI on charges of drug possession

1993 - For the first time since the day was created, all fifty states observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day

1997 - Adriana Caselotti - the voice of Snow White - passes away at the age of 80

2002 - The Sierra Leone Civil War ends

2003 - Canberra, Australia is devastated by wildfires which destroy more than 500 homes

2016 - Eagles singer/songwriter Glenn Frey dies at the age of 67

And happy birthday to the following famous faces turning one year older!  David Bellamy, Denise Bombardier, Bobby Goldsboro, Paul Freeman, Brett Hudson, Peter Moon, Tom Bailey, Ted DiBiase, Mark Rylance, Mark Messier, Jeff Yagher, Virgil Hill, Dave Bautista, Jesse L. Martin, Jonathan Davis, Seamus O'Regan, Burnie Burns, Luther Dickinson, Crispian Mills, Estelle, Jason Segel, Samantha Mumba, Kristy Lee Cook, Benji Schwimmer, and Ronnie Day.

Okay, so what day are we flashing back to this week?



Ah, January 18, 1955.  That'd be 62 years ago.  And it was on this date that a modern Hollywood legend was born.  Some projects he's done have been brilliant, and others have been washouts.  But through it all, he's managed to survive and thrive.



And today, actor Kevin Costner turns 62 years old!  I know.  I don't believe it either.

So, to celebrate this actor's birthday...I thought I would attempt to post 62 trivia facts about this star.  I don't know if I can do it, but I'll give it my best shot!  Here we go!

1 - Kevin's middle name is Michael.

2 - He was born in Lynwood, California.



3 - He is a two-time Academy Award winner.

4 - He is the youngest of three children.

5 - His older brother died in childbirth.

6 - He has seven children.

7 - He has been married twice.

8 - His first wife, Cindy, once played the role of Snow White at Disneyland.

9 - Kevin himself worked at Disneyland before he became famous, working as a skipper for the Jungle Cruise ride.

10 - He has switched political party allegiances, going from Republican to Democrat to Independent.

11 - He was chosen as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World by People Magazine in 1990 and 1991.

12 - He starred in the 1983 movie "The Big Chill", but his scenes were notoriously cut out of the movie.

13 - He was a member of the Delta Chi fraternity.

14 - He is one of the few Hollywood stars who has NEVER done a sequel to any of his movies.

15 - Though he has starred in two movies about John F. Kennedy - he did not play JFK in either film.

16 - Turned down a role in "Platoon" because he didn't want to insult his eldest brother - a Vietnam war veteran.

17 - He owns a ranch outside of Aspen, Colorado.



18 - His 1995 film "Waterworld" is considered to be one of the biggest film failures of all time.

19 - He is one of the few actors to have won both an Academy Award and a Golden Raspberry Award.



20 - He directed the 1990 film, "Dances With Wolves", which earned him the Academy Award for Best Director.

21 - He used to play golf with President Ronald Reagan.

22 - He founded a country/rock band called "Kevin Costner and Modern West".

23 - Following the 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech, he publicly called for stricter gun laws and tighter gun control.

24 - His starsign is Capricorn.



25 - His first major role in a motion picture was 1985's "Fandango".

26 - His first reported film role was in a forgettable film called "Sizzle Beach, U.S.A.".

27 - Many of Costner's films feature the theme of baseball - "Bull Durham", "Field of Dreams", "For Love of the Game", etc.

28 - He did his own horseback riding in the movie "The Postman".

29 - Was almost cast for Kevin Spacey's role in the movie "American Beauty".



30 - His role in "Bull Durham" was originally written for Kurt Russell.

31 - Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in August 2003.

32 - He was a speaker at the funeral of Whitney Houston, his former co-star on "The Bodyguard".



33 - Costner based his performance in "The Bodyguard" after Steve McQueen, even cutting his hair to resemble his look.

34 - Whitney Houston reportedly gave Costner singing lessons in exchange for him giving her acting lessons.

35 - Kevin Costner's production company spent a quarter of a million dollars on animatronic buffalo for scenes shot for "Dances With Wolves" to avoid animal cruelty charges.

36 - Kevin Costner spent money out of his own pocket to keep the budget for "Dances With Wolves" in place.

37 - It took Costner five years to make "Dances With Wolves".

38 - Though the finished cut of "Dances With Wolves" was three hours long, the initial run of the film was five and a half hours!  Costner worked with the editing team to cut the film down so that it would be suitable for screening in theatres.

39 - For his role in "The Untouchables", Costner underwent police tactic and weapons training using 1950s guidelines.

40 - Kevin Costner spent $22 million of his own money on the 1995 film "Waterworld".

41 - He spent 157 days on the set of "Waterworld", filming six days a week.

42 - Kevin Costner had a falling out with long time friend and collaborator Kevin Reynolds during the filming of "Waterworld", but had patched things up when Reynolds and Costner worked together in the 2012 miniseries "Hatfields & McCoys".



43 - Costner wanted to use an English accent in the film "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves", but was convinced not to.

44 - Although not confirmed, it was rumoured that Costner had several of Alan Rickman's scenes axed from "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" because he was worried that Rickman would upstage him.

45 - Kevin Costner had a full-frontal nude scene in the film "For Love of the Game", but it was cut after audiences reportedly responded with laughter.

46 - He was inducted into the Irish-American Baseball Hall of Fame in 2008.

47 - At the time that "The Postman" was filmed, all of Kevin's children made appearances in the film.

48 - He did all of his own stunts in the 1987 film "No Way Out".



49 - When cast for the role of Jim Garrison in "JFK", Costner did extensive research, including meeting the man himself!

50 - Interestingly enough, Costner nearly turned down the role of Jim Garrison.

51 - Kevin dyed his hair grey specifically for the role he played in "JFK".

52 - In the 1996 movie "Tin Cup", Costner plays most of his own golf scenes.

53 - Is very good friends with Don Johnson.

54 - Won a Primetime Emmy Award in 2012 for his work in "Hatfields & McCoys".

55 - In 2007, Costner was named ceremonial Grand Marshal of the NASCAR Cup Series' Auto Club 500.

56 - He serves on an honourary board for the National World War I Museum in Kansas City.

57 - During filming of a scene in "Message in a Bottle", actor Steve Mellor accidentally bloodied Costner's lip.

58 - He is 6'1" (which coincidentally happens to be my height as well).

59 - He graduated from Villa Park High School as the Class of 1973.

60 - Kevin Costner was supposed to take the lead in the film "Air Force One", but he couldn't because he was busy working on "The Postman".  He would later call up Harrison Ford and offered him the role.

61 - Is a supporter of Arsenal Football Club.

62 - His favourite genre of movie is Western, which could explain his love for making movies that have Western themes!

And there you have it.  One piece of trivia for every one of Kevin Costner's 62 years!  Happy birthday, Kevin!