Monday April the 14th

ON THIS DAY in 1912
at 11.40 pm, two young wireless radio operators at Cape Race, Newfoundland, Robert Hunston and James Goodwin heard the first distress call from the luxury liner RMS Titanic, en route to New York south of the Grand Banks. An iceberg had grazed the ship's side, popping iron rivets and shearing off a fatal number of hull plates below the waterline. The great ship, on its maiden voyage, sank just under three hours later. 1,517 passengers were lost at sea.

In 1922, Jeanette Vreeland sang the first radio concert from an airplane as she flew over New York City.

In 1925, the Chicago Cubs broadcast a regular season baseball game for the first time on radio station WGN Chicago.

In 1930, Robert Ripley overcame his shyness and a stutter to host the first of his nBelieve It Or Not radio programs on NBC, about strange and freakish facts.  The show would intrigue listeners on various networks for the next 18 years.

            
In 1941, the elegant cabaret singer Hildegarde recorded the standard Darling Je Vous Aime Beaucoup on Decca Records.  It took another 14 years, but Nat 'King' Cole turned the song into an even bigger hit, landing at number 7 on the pop music charts.

In 1942, the wildly popular Detroit radio priest, Father Charles E. Coughlin was censured for anti-Semitism.

In 1951, radio station CHWK Chilliwack moved from 1340 khz to 1230.

In 1955, Fats Domino's "Ain't That A Shame" was released.
          

In 1956, Ampex Corporation of Redwood City, Calif. demonstrated the first commercial magnetic tape recorder for sound and picture. The videotape machine had a price tag of $75,000. These early Ampex units were too large to fit in a small room. That's back when bigger was better.

In 1958, piano virtuoso Van Cliburn appeared on US national TV for the first time. He was on NBC's "The Tonight Show" with Jack Paar.

Also in 1958, little Laurie London reached the top spot on the music charts with "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands". The same day "Catch A Falling Star" by Perry Como became the first single certified as gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.

In 1959, the No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit was "Come Softly to Me,'' by The Fleetwoods.
            

In 1962, Bob Dylan recorded seven songs, including "Blowin' In The Wind," at Columbia Records studios in New York.

In 1963, the Beatles met the Rolling Stones after a Stones concert in Richmond, England.

In 1964, Motown released a duet record featuring Mary Wells and Marvin Gaye. Both sides -- "What's the Matter With You Baby" and "Once Upon a Time" -- became hits. Wells later said Motown used her name to bolster Gaye's standing with the pop audience.

In 1965, Millie Small appeared on ABC-TV's "Shindig!" and performed her song "My Boy Lollipop."

In 1967, the final "Where the Action Is" aired on ABC-TV.

          
Also in 1967, Herman's Hermits, featuring lead singer Peter Noone, went gold with the single, There's a Kind of Hush. It was a two-sided hit, with the flip-side, No Milk Today, also receiving considerable play.

In 1969, the musical "Oliver!" was named best picture at the Academy Awards.

Also in 1969, the Monkees' special, "33 and one-third Revolutions per Monkee,'' aired on NBC. The plot featured rock musicians Brian Auger and Julie Driscoll as mad scientists looking for something to rot the minds of young people.

In 1970, Stephen Stills broke his wrist in a car accident, resulting in the cancellation of a U-S tour by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. Stills drove into a parked vehicle while watching a police patrol car in his rear-view mirror.

In 1974, the No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit was "TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia),'' by MFSB featuring the Three Degrees. The song is the theme to the TV program "Soul Train.''

In 1976, Motown Records announced a 13 million-dollar contract renewal for Stevie Wonder. At the time, it was the largest contract ever negotiated.

In 1980, the No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit was "Call Me'' by Blondie. Billboard ranked the song as the No. 1 single of the year.

          
Again in 1980, Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run'' was named New Jersey's official song.

Also on this date in 1980, the first rock videocassette, a concert by Gary Numan, was released.

In 1983, Pete Farndon, bass guitarist with the rock group, the Pretenders, died of a drug overdose at his home in England. He was 30.

In 1984, Michael Jackson made a six-figure contribution to establish a 19-bed cancer research unit at a New York hospital.

In 1989, former Byrds Roger McGuinn, David Crosby and Chris Hillman filed suit in Tampa to prevent Michael Clarke from using the band's name. Clarke was the Byrds' original drummer. But the suit claimed Clarke did not contribute to the group's distinctive sound, and accused him of false advertising and deceptive trade practices.

              
Also on this date in 1989, Nova Scotia singer Rita MacNeil made her U-S concert debut in Boston. The show, at the 12-hundred-seat Berklee Performance Centre, was a near sell-out, with the audience giving her three standing ovations.

Still on this date in 1989, the second World Music Video Awards were telecast live via satellite from Toronto, New York, London, Munich, Moscow, Hong Kong and Australia. The show reached an estimated 750 million viewers in more than 50 countries. For the first time, the broadcast was seen throughout the Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc countries.

In 1990, rhythm-and-blues singer Thurston Harris died of a heart attack in Pomona, California at 58. His only major hit, and still a favourite oldie, was "Little Bitty Pretty One,'' which reached number six in 1957.

In 1992, pianist Sammy Price, known as the "King of Boogie Woogie," died at his Harlem home at 83. During his seven-decade career, Price played with such jazz and rhythm-and-blues giants as Sidney Bechet, Lester Young and King Curtis.

            
In 1993, Joan Baez performed for 700 people in the war-torn Bosnian capital of Sarajevo. Many fans wept as Baez sang "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" and John Lennon's anti-war song, "Imagine." The applause helped drown out the gunfire and sporadic shelling that continued throughout the concert.

In 1994, Ted Turner launched "Turner Classic Movies" as a cable TV channel on the exact centennial anniversary of the first public movie showing in New York City.

Also in 1994, drummer Paul Hester abruptly quit Crowded House following an Atlanta concert by the Australian group. Hester cited the grind of touring, and said he felt himself drifting away from fellow band members Neil Finn and Nick Seymour. He also complained that his song "Skin Feeling" was only grudgingly included on Crowded House's album "Together Alone." Hester committed suicide on March 26th, 2005 in Australia.

              
In 1995, Burl Ives, whom poet Carl Sandburg once called "the mightiest ballad singer of this or any other century," died at his home in Anacortes, Washington. He was 85. Ives' folk hits in the '50s and '60s included "The Blue Tail Fly," "Little Bitty Tear," "Funny Way of Laughin'" and "Holly, Jolly Christmas." He also gained fame as an actor, winning an Oscar in 1958 for his supporting role in "The Big Country." But he was best known for his stage and screen portrayals of "Big Daddy" in Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof."

In 1997, Ringo Starr debuted as the host of the VH1 program "Classic Albums."

In 1999, British entertainer Anthony Newley, best known for his 1960s stage hit "Stop the World -- I Want to Get Off,'' died of cancer at his Florida home. He was 67. Newley's showcase song in "Stop the World'' was "What Kind of Fool Am I?'' He also co-wrote the show's score, as well as "The Candy Man'' for Sammy Davis Junior and the James Bond movie theme "Goldfinger'' for Shirley Bassey.

Also in 1999, actress Ellen Corby, who played Grandma on CBSTV's The Waltons, died at age 87.

Again in 1999, the body of Tammy Wynette was exhumed and an autopsy performed in Nashville at the request of Wynette's husband George Richey.

Still in 1999, it was reported that Prince intended to re-record the entire catalog of his music and re-release it.

              
In 2002, B-C-based artists won three trophies each at the Juno Awards in St. John's, Newfoundland. Nanaimo's Diana Krall won for best artist, and best album and vocal jazz album for "The Look of Love.'' Vancouver rock group Nickelback won best group, best single for "How You Remind Me,'' and top rock album for "Silver Side Up.''


Today's Birthdays:

Actor Bradford Dillman (Falcon Crest, King's Crossing, Court Martial) is 78.  

Actor Jay Robinson (Days of Our Lives, Krofft Supershow) is 78.

Country singer Loretta Lynn is 73.

Actress Julie Christie (Separate Tables '83) is 68.

Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore is 63.

Actor John Shea (Lois and Clark, Mutant X) is 59.

Actor Brad Garrett (Everybody Loves Raymond, Till Death) is 48.

Actor Robert Carlyle (Hamish Macbeth) is 47.

Singer-guitarist John Bell of Widespread Panic is 46.

Drummer Barrett Martin (Screaming Trees) is 41.

Actor Anthony Michael Hall (Dead Zone) is 40.

Actor Adrien Brody (Annie McGuire, Sat. Night Live) is 35.

Singer David Miller of Il Divo is 35.

Rapper Da Brat is 34.

Actress Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) is 31.

Actress Vivien Cardone (Everwood) is 15.

Actress Abigail Breslin (Grey's Anatomy, Ghost Whisperer) is 12.


Chart Toppers

April 14

1944
It�s Love, Love, Love - The Guy Lombardo Orchestra (vocal: Skip Nelson)
I Love You - Bing Crosby
Besame Mucho - The Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra (vocal: Bob Eberly & Kitty Kallen
Too Late to Worry, Too Blue to Cry - Al Dexter

1952
Wheel of Fortune - Kay Starr
Anytime - Eddie Fisher
Tell Me Why - The Four Aces
(When You Feel like You�re in Love) Don�t Just Stand There - Carl Smith

1960
The Theme from "A Summer Place" - Percy Faith
Greenfields - The Brothers Four
Mama - Connie Francis
He�ll Have to Go - Jim Reeves

1968
Honey - Bobby Goldsboro
Young Girl - The Union Gap
Cry like a Baby - The Box Tops
You are My Treasure - Jack Greene

1976
Disco Lady - Johnnie Taylor
Let Your Love Flow - Bellamy Brothers
Right Back Where We Started From - Maxine Nightingale
�Til I Can Make It on My Own - Tammy Wynette

1984
Footloose - Kenny Loggins
Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) - Phil Collins
Hello - Lionel Richie
Thank God for the Radio - The Kendalls