Drewsky1211

Franz Werfel died on this day 79 years ago, aged 54. - Werfel would publish his first book- a collection of poems called Der Weltfreund (Friend to the World), and would quickly befriend notable figures such as Franz Kafka and Martin Buber. - Werfel would serve in World War I as a phone operator for Austria-Hungary. After being reassigned to the propaganda department in 1917, Werfel would meet Alma Mahler Gropius- then married to Walter Gropius- and would have an affair which led to the birth of a bastard son named Martin (who sadly died at less than a year old). Alma and Walter would divorce in 1920, and she married Franz in 1929. - In 1933, Werfel would publish The Forty Days of Musa Dagh, a novel that would bring global attention to the Armenian genocide of 1915. The book would be banned in Nazi Germany- not due to the contents revolving around a genocide, but because Werfel was Jewish. - Franz and Alma Werfel would flee Germany in 1938, going to France before settling in the United States in 1940. There, in 1941, he would write his most well-known novel, The Song of Bernadette (a novel about the visions of Bernadette Soubirous). It would quickly be adapted into a movie (in 1943). - Franz died of heart failure shortly after the end of World War II- Alma would live for another 19 years.

Macaulay Culkin is 44.

8/25/2024 57 Roy Orbison - You Got It 55 New Order - Blue Monday 88 52 Queen - I Want It All +1 47 Transvision Vamp - Baby I Don’t Care 47 Aztec Camera — Somewhere In My Heart 36 Womack & Womack - Teardrops  28 Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car +1 27 Donna Summer - This Time I Know It’s For Real 25 Madonna - Cherish 23 Jeff Wayne - The Eve Of The War (Ben Liebrand Remix) 21 Kim Wilde - You Came 19 Vanessa Paradis - Joe Le Taxi 16 Sydney Youngblood — If Only I Could -2 11 Paula Abdul - Straight Up +2 10 Soul II Soul - Get a Life -4

8/25/2024 30 Tennessee Ernie Ford — Sixteen Tons +4 28 The Teenagers ft. Frankie Lymon — Why Do Fools Fall In Love 27 The Crickets — That’ll Be The Day 24 Doris Day — Que Sera Sera 22 Elvis Presley — All Shook Up 22 Paul Anka — Diana 21 Lonnie Donegan — Cumberland Gap 20 Dean Martin — Memories Are Made Of This 20 Johnnie Ray — Just Walking In The Rain 20 Guy Mitchell — Singing The Blues 20 Tommy Steele & The Steelmen — Singing The Blues 20 Frankie Vaughan — The Garden Of Eden 20 Tab Hunter — Young Love 20 Guy Mitchell & Jimmy Carroll — Rock-A-Billy 20 Andy Williams — Butterfly 20 Johnnie Ray — Yes Tonight, Josephine 20 Lonnie Donegan — Puttin’ On The Style / Gamblin’ Man 18 Winifred Atwell — The Poor People Of Paris 16 Anne Shelton — Lay Down Your Arms 14 Frankie Laine — A Woman In Love 14 Kay Starr — Rock And Roll Waltz 14 Dreamweavers — It’s Almost Tomorrow 12 Ronnie Hilton — No Other Love 08 Pat Boone — I’ll Be Home -4 06 Harry Belafonte — Mary’s Boy Child -2

Henry Morgan died on this day 336 years ago, aged 53. - Morgan was Welsh, with his birth name being "Harri". - How Morgan got to the Caribbean remains unknown, though some theories suggest he joined the navy to attack Spanish settlements, as some claim he was a crew member of the privateer Christopher Myngs. By 1663 he was a captain who led raids on Spanish Cuba, Mexico, and Panama, seizing items of monetary value from several cities- to the Spanish, he was a notorious pirate, but to the English he was a skilled naval commander. - Morgan would be knighted for his service in 1674, and shortly afterwards he would be appointed the lieutenant governor of Jamaica. Morgan was also a member of Jamaica's House of Assembly, serving until 1683. - Morgan was also a notorious slaveowner, running three different sugar plantations, as well as attacking settlements of Jamaican Maroons (slaves who had escaped to freedom- fortunately some would retreat deep into the mountains and remain hidden). - Following his death in 1688, Morgan would receive a state funeral- his grave, however, was destroyed by an earthquake in 1692. In modern times, Morgan is most well-known as the mascot for Captain Morgan brand rum:

Gene Simmons is 75.

Alex Xydias dead at 102.

8/24/2024 51 Roy Orbison - You Got It 51 New Order - Blue Monday 88 44 Queen - I Want It All +1 40 Womack & Womack - Teardrops 40 Aztec Camera — Somewhere In My Heart 37 Transvision Vamp - Baby I Don’t Care 30 Vanessa Paradis - Joe Le Taxi 27 Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car +1 26 Donna Summer - This Time I Know It’s For Real 24 Jeff Wayne - The Eve Of The War (Ben Liebrand Remix) 23 Madonna - Cherish 21 Kim Wilde - You Came 20 Sydney Youngblood - If Only I Could 20 Soul II Soul - Get a Life 18 Sabrina - Boys (Summertime Love) 13 Paula Abdul - Straight Up +2 12 Danny Wilson - Mary’s Prayer -3 9 Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance -3

8/24/2024 62 Bill Haley & His Comets — Rock Around The Clock +2 58 Rosemary Clooney & The Mellomen — Mambo Italiano +1 51 Tony Bennett — Stranger In Paradise 41 Rosemary Clooney — This Ole House 33 Prez Prado & His Orchestra — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White +1 30 Johnston Brothers — Hernando’s Hideaway 28 Eddie Calvert — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White 25 Jimmy Young — The Man From Laramie 24 Alma Cogan — Dreamboat -6

Peggy Shippen died on this day 220 years ago, aged 44. - Born to a prominent Pennsylvania family, Shippen met Benedict Arnold in 1778. The two of them married the following year. - Shippen was a Loyalist (an American citizen who supported the British in the Revolution), and she was friends with general John Andre prior to meeting her husband. Peggy and John would manage to coax Benedict into weakening the defenses of the fort at West Point in New York. - When Andre was captured, Peggy would assist her husband in escaping before George Washington was set to arrive at their home (Washington was unaware of Arnold's treason and was just heading there to have breakfast with him). After burning papers implicating Benedict, Peggy Arnold feigned insanity in front of Washington by stripping nearly-naked, screaming incoherently, and claiming Washington was conspiring to murder the Arnolds' baby son Edward. - After the incident, Peggy would escape with the help of her father, taking a boat to New York City to meet with her husband, before they sailed to the United Kingdom. Queen Charlotte would gift her an annual payment of 100 pounds (over 20,000 pounds today), with historians calling her the highest-paid spy in the American Revolution. - After Benedict died in 1801, Peggy would have to sell her home and many of her belongings to pay for the massive financial debts he had accumulated, and died three years later from some kind of cancer.

Steve Guttenberg is 66.

8/23/2024 49 New Order - Blue Monday 88 46 Roy Orbison - You Got It 40 Queen - I Want It All +2 37 Vanessa Paradis - Joe Le Taxi 37 Aztec Camera — Somewhere In My Heart 34 Transvision Vamp - Baby I Don’t Care 31 Womack & Womack - Teardrops 26 Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car +1 26 Paula Abdul - Straight Up +1 25 Madonna - Cherish 24 Donna Summer - This Time I Know It’s For Real 23 Jeff Wayne - The Eve Of The War (Ben Liebrand Remix) 22 Sabrina - Boys (Summertime Love) 21 Danny Wilson - Mary’s Prayer 21 Kim Wilde - You Came 20 Sydney Youngblood - If Only I Could 20 Soul II Soul - Get a Life 13 Everything But The Girl - I Don’t Want to Talk About It 11 Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance -4 06 Lynne Hamilton - On The Inside -2

8/23/2024 56 Bill Haley & His Comets — Rock Around The Clock +2 47 Rosemary Clooney & The Mellomen — Mambo Italiano 43 Tony Bennett — Stranger In Paradise 35 Jimmy Young — The Man From Laramie 33 Johnston Brothers — Hernando’s Hideaway 32 Prez Prado & His Orchestra — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White +2 31 Rosemary Clooney — This Ole House 30 Eddie Calvert — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White 26 Alma Cogan — Dreamboat -3 24 Doris Day — Secret Love 20 Johnnie Ray — Such A Night 05 Jimmy Young — Unchained Melody -3

Yevgeny Prigozhin died on this day a year ago, aged 62. - As a young adult, Prigozhin joined a street gang to make ends meet, and spent nine years in prison for his crimes. - After his release in 1990, Prigozhin decided to begin a hot dog business, investing in grocery stores. In 1995 he opened his first restaurant, Old Customs House, in Saint Petersburg. This was followed in 1997 with New Island- notably built on a large boat floating in the Vyatka River. Several heads of state dined at the latter, such as George W. Bush, Jacques Chirac, and (most important in his life) Vladimir Putin. - Prigozhin and Putin would become friends with each other, and his catering company would soon receive government contracts to serve schools and federal workers. However, Prigozhin was known for his corrupt business practices, and it is believed that a company he was affiliated with caused a dysentery outbreak in 2019 by selling tainted food to a school in Moscow. Prigozhin's wealth was believed to have been over 1 billion rubles (about 11 million US dollars). - Prigozhin is most well-known for founding the private military company Wagner Group. He founded it in 2014 to assist Russian guerrilla groups in Ukraine's Donbas region, and he would also establish ties with several African nations to align them with Russian global interests. Wagner Group (and Prigozhin himself) would come to international prominence following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, amassing over 50,000 mercenary fighters (many of which were convicted prisoners), and Prigozhin was often seen as a warlord. - Throughout the war, Prigozhin would soon have a falling out with the Russian Ministry of Defense- while he agreed with the invasion, he disagreed with their practices, seeing them as ineffectual. In June of 2023, Prigozhin led a rebellion against Russian forces, having claimed that the military attacked Wagner Group positions after he refused to sign a contract that would've made Wagner Group subordinate to the military. The rebellion failed, and two months later, Prigozhin would die in a plane crash- believed to have been caused by a bomb loaded aboard the plane.

Rick Springfield is 75.

8/22/2024 48 Bill Haley & His Comets — Rock Around The Clock +2 41 Rosemary Clooney & The Mellomen — Mambo Italiano +1 35 Johnston Brothers — Hernando’s Hideaway 32 Rosemary Clooney — This Ole House 31 Tony Bennett — Stranger In Paradise 31 Jimmy Young — The Man From Laramie 28 Prez Prado & His Orchestra — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White +1 27 Doris Day — Secret Love 24 Alma Cogan — Dreamboat 23 Johnnie Ray — Such A Night 22 Eddie Calvert — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White 21 David Whitfield with Mantovani & His Orchestra — Cara Mia 18 Tennessee Ernie Ford — Give Me Your Word 18 Jimmy Young — Unchained Melody 14 Frank Sinatra — Three Coins In The Fountain 07 Dickie Valentine — The Finger Of Suspicion 00 Winifred Atwell — Let’s Have Another Party (Or Not) -6

8/22/2024 40 Roy Orbison - You Got It 39 New Order - Blue Monday 88 36 Queen - I Want It All +3 35 Aztec Camera — Somewhere In My Heart 34 Transvision Vamp - Baby I Don’t Care 30 Vanessa Paradis - Joe Le Taxi 27 Madonna - Cherish 25 Womack & Womack - Teardrops 24 Sabrina - Boys (Summertime Love) 24 Paula Abdul - Straight Up +1 23 Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance 22 Donna Summer - This Time I Know It’s For Real 21 Jeff Wayne - The Eve Of The War (Ben Liebrand Remix) 21 Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car 21 Kim Wilde - You Came 20 Everything But The Girl - I Don’t Want to Talk About It 20 Sydney Youngblood - If Only I Could 20 Soul II Soul - Get a Life 19 Danny Wilson - Mary’s Prayer 18 Chris de Burgh - Missing You 17 B.V.S.M.P. - I Need You 16 Lynne Hamilton - On The Inside 06 Bananarama & Lananeeneenoonoo - Help! -3 06 Taylor Dayne - Tell It to My Heart -3

Pope Nicholas III died on this day 744 years ago, aged 64. - Nicholas' birth name was Giovanni Orsini; he was born into an ancient family and was related to several popes and Doges of Venice. - Nicholas was made a cardinal at the very young age of 28 by Pope Innocent IV. In 1262, Pope Urban IV appointed Nicholas as the first-ever Grand Inquisitor against heresy cases. - Nicholas was elected pope in 1277 after the death of Pope John XXI. His papacy was mostly unremarkable (mostly acting as a mediator in the affairs of European kings), although he was well-known for his nepotism. Nicholas would appoint three of his close relatives (his brother, his nephew, and another I couldn't find out about) as cardinals, which was the subject of some thirteenth-century political cartoonists, depicting the relatives as small bears (a pun on his last name, which meant "bearlike"). - Nicholas died after a little under three years as pope, being succeeded by Pope Martin IV. He was posthumously depicted in Dante's Inferno in the third layer of the Eighth Circle of Hell for committing simony (Dante believed Nicholas gave his relatives money upon naming them cardinals).

Kristen Wiig is 51.

8/21/2024 37 New Order - Blue Monday 88 35 Roy Orbison - You got it 30 Aztec Camera — Somewhere In My Heart 29 Queen - I Want It All +3 28 Vanessa Paradis - Joe Le Taxi 27 Transvision Vamp - Baby I Don’t Care 25 Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance 24 Danny Wilson - Mary’s Prayer 24 Womack & Womack - Teardrops 23 Sabrina - Boys (Summertime Love) 22 Paula Abdul - Straight Up 21 Donna Summer - This Time I Know It’s For Real 21 Jeff Wayne - The Eve Of The War (Ben Liebrand Remix) 21 Madonna - Cherish 21 Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car +1 20 Everything But The Girl - I Don’t Want to Talk About It 20 Kim Wilde - You Came 20 B.V.S.M.P. - I Need You 20 Chris de Burgh - Missing You 20 Bananarama & Lananeeneenoonoo - Help! 20 Lynne Hamilton - On The Inside 20 Sydney Youngblood - If Only I Could 20 Soul II Soul - Get a Life 14 Rebel MC & Double Trouble - Street Tuff 14 Iron Maiden - Can I Play With Madness 14 Taylor Dayne - Tell It to My Heart 0 Krush - Death Penalty -6

8/21/2024 41 Bill Haley & His Comets — Rock Around The Clock +2 32 Rosemary Clooney & The Mellomen — Mambo Italiano +1 30 Tony Bennett — Stranger In Paradise 27 Rosemary Clooney — This Ole House 27 Johnston Brothers — Hernando’s Hideaway 27 Doris Day — Secret Love 26 Jimmy Young — The Man From Laramie 25 Perez Prado & His Orchestra — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White +1 23 Alma Cogan — Dreamboat 22 Eddie Calvert — Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White 21 Frank Sinatra — Three Coins In The Fountain 21 David Whitfield with Mantovani & His Orchestra — Cara Mia 21 Johnnie Ray — Such A Night 20 Kitty Kallen — Little Things Mean A Lot 18 Tennessee Ernie Ford — Give Me Your Word 17 Winifred Atwell — Let’s Have Another Party 17 Vera Lynn — My Son, My Son 15 Jimmy Young — Unchained Melody 12 Dickie Valentine — The Finger Of Suspicion -3 8 Ruby Murray — Softly Softly -3

Baldwin II of Jerusalem died on this day 893 years ago, aged 56. - Born in France as the son of the count of Rethel, Baldwin would participate in the First Crusade, notably being one of the leaders in the campaign to take Bethlehem. - Baldwin was made the count of Edessa (a crusader state in modern Syria) in 1100, and would marry the daughter of an Armenian nobleman in order to appease his new subjects. - In 1104, Baldwin would be captured by Turkic soldiers and would be held for ransom for four years. As part of the conditions of his release, Baldwin had to free most of the Muslim prisoners within Edessa, and allow them to practice their religion (which included allowing them to build a mosque). - Baldwin was willed as the secondary heir to the throne of Jerusalem following the death of Baldwin I- Baldwin I's planned heir (his brother Eustace III of Boulougne) was unable to go there from France. Baldwin II would continue fighting against Abbasid Turks, and was captured again in 1123 (while he was planning to practice his falconry)- being released the next year. - Baldwin died after a 13-year reign. His successors were a joint couple- his daughter Melisende, and son-in-law Fulk of Anjou (Fulk and his previous wife were the paternal grandparents of Henry II of England).

Bo Burnham is 34.

8/20/2024 69 Queen - A Kind of Magic  67 The Bangles - Walk Like an Egyptian 64 The Damned - Eloise 37 Heart - Alone -4 31 Michael Jackson - Bad +4 0 The Housemartins — Happy Hour -2

8/20/2024 50 Kay Starr — Comes A-Long A-Love 49 Frankie Laine — I Believe 48 Perry Como & The Ramblers — Don’t Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes 41 Mantovani & His Orchestra — The Song From Moulin Rouge +4 10 Frankie Laine — Hey Joe! -4 0 Guy Mitchell — Look At That Go -2