Today in History: Monday, June 28, 2021

Television and Radio:
The “Quiz Kids” was heard on NBC radio for the first time in 1940. It aired as a summer replacement show for “Alec Templeton Time” and continued on radio for the next 13 years…“Amos ‘N’ Andy,” starring Alvin Childress and Spencer Williams and based on the radio show of the same name, debuted on CBS in 1951. Ongoing protests by civil rights groups such as the NAACP for fostering racial stereotypes resulted the show being canceled just two seasons into its run…In 1973, NBC introduced the summer variety series, “The Helen Reddy Show.” It was the temporary replacement for “The Flip Wilson Show.”

News:
In 1969, a series of violent confrontations between police and gay rights activists began outside the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City. The riots helped launch an international gay rights movement…Six-year-old Elián González returned to Cuba from the U.S. with his father in 2000. The child had been the center of an international custody dispute…The bald eagle was removed from the U.S. list of endangered and threatened species in 2007.

Sports:
In 1997, Mike Tyson was disqualified for biting Evander Holyfield’s ear after three rounds of their WBA heavyweight title fight in Las Vegas.

Celebrity Birthdays:
Legendary director Mel Brooks is 95; comedian John Byner is 84; actor Bruce Davison (“X-Men”) is 75; Oscar winner Kathy Bates is 73; actress Alice Krige is 67; actress Jessica Hecht (“Friends,” ″The Single Guy”) is 56; actress Mary Stuart Masterson is 55; actor John Cusack (“Say Anything”) is also 55; actor Gil Bellows (“Ally McBeal”) is 54; “The Neighborhood” star Tichina Arnold is 52; former child star Danielle Brisebois (“Archie Bunker’s Place”) is also 52; actor Steve Burton (“The Young and the Restless”) is 51; “American Idol” and “Dancing With the Stars” contestant Kellie Pickler is 35.

-Did You Know?:
“Amos ‘N’ Andy” was one of the first television series to be filmed with a multi-camera setup before “I Love Lucy” used the technique. After the show was canceled with 65 episodes, CBS wanted to syndicate the reruns but needed more shows. And that led to an additional 13 episodes produced for first-run syndication.