Today in History: Thursday, July 20, 2023

Television:
Dance show “The Arthur Murray Party” debuted on ABC in 1950. The show was hosted by dancers Arthur and Kathryn Murray, who each week performed a mystery dance and the viewer who correctly identified the dance would receive two free lessons at a local studio. It ultimately ran for 10 seasons, and appeared on the long-defunct DuMont network, CBS and NBC during its run…British actress Jane Asher shocked the live BBC TV audience (including McCartney himself) by announcing the end of her engagement with Beatle Paul McCartney in 1968…In 1969, news coverage followed astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Ed “Buzz” Aldrin landing on the moon. For the first time in history, humans set foot on another celestial body…Action drama “Human Target” starring Rick Springfield debuted on ABC in 1992. It aired for only seven episodes. In January 2010, it got rebooted by Fox with Mark Valley and Chi McBride as its stars. That version produced 24 episodes…Reality competition “So You Think You Can Dance” debuted on Fox in 2005. Created by “American Idol” producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, it was originally hosted by Lauren Sanchez with Lythgoe and Mary Murphy as initial judges. British children’s TV show emcee Cat Deeley took over as host in season two. Several past contestants went on to be professional dancers on “Dancing with the Stars” like Witney Carson, Lindsay Arnold and Artem Chigvintsev.

Movies
Two films opened in the U.S. in 1984: “Revenge of the Nerds” and “The Neverending Story“…Comedy “Midnight Run,” starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin, was released in 1988…Horror-comedy “Arachnophobia,” starring Jeff Daniels and John Goodman, had its nationwide release in 1990… “Spirited Away,“ which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003, was released in Japan in 2001.

Music:
Billboard published its 1st singles record chart in 1950, with Tommy Dorsey’s “I’ll Never Smile Again” #1 for the week… also reaching No. 1 on that chart: “Surf City” by Jan & Dean in 1963; “Unbelievable” by EMF (featuring sound bytes by Andrew “Dice” Clay) in 1991.

Sports
Hank Aaron hit his 755th and last home run off Angels Dick Drago in 1976…Legendary Australian golfer Greg Norman won his first major tournament at the British Open in 1986.

Celebrity Birthdays
Singer Kim Carnes is 78; guitarist Carlos Santana is 76; actress Donna Dixon (“Bosom Buddies”) is 66; actor Dean Winters (Allstate commercials) is 59; naturalist-conservationist Terri Irwin (widow of “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin) is also 59; actor Josh Holloway (“Lost”) is 54; actress Sandra Oh (“Killing Eve”) is 52; actor Omar Epps (“House”) is 50; actress Judy Greer is 48; 10-time NBA All Star Ray Allen is also 48; singer Elliott Yamin (“American Idol”) is 45; actor Charlie Korsmo (“Dick Tracy”, “What About Bob?”) is 45; supermodel Gisele Bundchen is 43; Julianne Hough of “Dancing With the Stars” is 35; Philadelphia 76ers point guard Ben Simmons is 27.

Did You Know?
Prior to her nine season role as Dr. Christina Yang on “Grey’s Anatomy” (from 2005-2014), Sandra Oh appeared on HBO’s “Arli$$” as Rita Wu from 1996 to 2002…Three far less successful sequels followed “Revenge of the Nerds”: “Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise” (1987), “Revenge of the Nerds III: The Next Generation” (1992), “Revenge of the Nerds IV: Nerds in Love” (1994). The last two were television films.