Today in History: Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Television
Pebbles turns 60! ABC’s “The Flintsones” welcomed baby Pebbles in 1963. Yabba Dabba Doo!…A multi-car accident kept the doctors occupied on the 150th episode of NBC’s “ER” in 2001…HBO’s “Sex and the City” concluded its six season run in 2004. A total of 94 episodes were produced, plus two follow-up theatrical movies and the current reboot “And Just Like That…” on HBO Max (with Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis)…Also in 2004, “Super Millionaire“, the spin-off of “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?”, began a 5-night stint on ABC. Hosted by Regis Philbin, the top prize offered was $10 million…The series finale of “The O.C.” aired on Fox in 2007. The teen soap opera that starred Ben McKenzie, Adam Brody, Mischa Barton, Rachel Bilson, Tate Donovan and Peter Gallagher ran for four seasons…”CSI: NY“, the second spin-off from the “CSI” franchise, concluded its nine-season run on CBS in 2013. The forensic procedural drama starred Gary Sinise, Sela Ward, Hill Harper, and Melina Kanakaredes…Comedy “About A Boy“, based on the bestselling Nick Hornby novel and 2002 Hugh Grant feature film of the same name, debuted on NBC following their night’s coverage of the Winter Olympics from Sochi Russia in 2014. David Walton portrayed a well-to-do single bachelor who eventually befriends an 11-year old boy who is the son of a single mom (Minnie Driver), all who reside next door to each other. The series only ran for two seasons…Actor Jussie Smollett was suspended (and eventually fired) from Fox drama  “Empire” in 2019 after he made false claims about a racist and homophobic attack.

Movies:
“It Happened One Night” directed by Frank Capra and starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert opened at Radio City Music Hall in 1934. It won five Oscars – Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay…“The Little Colonel” starring Shirley Temple, Lionel Barrymore and Bill Robinson opened in theaters in 1935. The film was the first of four cinematic pairings between Temple and Robinson, and featured the duo’s famous staircase tap dance…”Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” was the winner of four Oscars including Best Picture at the 87th Academy Awards in 2015. The award recipients for acting were Eddie Redmayne (for “The Theory of Everything”), Julianne Moore (for “Still Alice”), J.K. Simmons (for “Whiplash”) and Patricia Arquette (for “Boyhood”). During Arquette’s acceptance speech, she pushed for wage equality for women, famously prompting a seated Meryl Streep to openly and strongly agree with her as she pointed to the stage and yelled “Yes! Yes!”

Music:
Reaching No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart: “Pick Up The Pieces” by Average White Band in 1975; “Wannabe” by Spice Girls in 1997… “Ray of Light“, the seventh studio album by Madonna, was released in 1998… Jay-Z became the first rapper to be inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame (alongside Max Martin, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis) in 2017.
 
News
Dolly the Sheep, the world’s first cloned mammal (from an adult cell) was announced by the Roslin Institute in Scotland in 1997.

Sports:
Wilt Chamberlain set an NBA record with 34 free throw attempts in 1962…In what is often observed as the biggest hockey contest in U.S. history, the United States defeated the heavily-favored Soviet Union 4-3 in the semifinal of the men’s ice hockey tournament at the Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, N.Y. in 1980. The game is famously labeled as the “Miracle on Ice” based on play-by-play announcer Al Michaels‘ legendary call of “Do you believe in miracles? YES!” A 2004 feature film about the U.S. victory was entitled “Miracle” and it starred Kurt Russell as Olympic head coach Herb Brooks.

Celebrity Birthdays:
Actor Paul Dooley (“Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”) is 95; NBA legend Julius Erving is 73; actress Julie Walters (“Educating Rita”) is also 73; actor Kyle MacLachlan (“Twin Peaks”) is 64; former “SNL” star Rachel Dratch is 57; actor Paul Lieberstein (Toby from “The Office”) is 56; actress Jeri Ryan (“Star Trek: Voyager”) is 55; TV host Clinton Kelly (“The Chew”) is 54; actor Thomas Jane (“Hung”) is 54; Broadway Star Lea Salonga is 52; singer James Blunt is 49; Current daytime talk show host Drew Barrymore is 48.

Did You Know?
The birth of Pebbles on “The Flintstones” in the episode titled “The Blessed Event” was in the middle of its six-season run (at episode No. 83). The animated sitcom concluded on April 1, 1966 after 166 episodes. Of course, there have been countless Saturday morning spin-off series ever since. Fox had announced it was reviving “The Flintstones” in primetime under the guidance of “Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane in 2013, but ultimately decided not to move forward.