Today in History: Wednesday, June 26, 2024

Television:
“The Garry Moore Show” debuted on CBS in 1950. It was initially broadcast in the Monday to Friday 7 p.m. half-hour and the roster of talent appearing on the variety series included Carol Burnett, Durward Kirby, Marion Lorne,Dorothy Loudon, Allen Funt and John Byner.

The beat did not do on: Sonny and Cher were divorced in 1975, which did not bode well for their solo careers as variety show hosts…ABC half-hour daytime drama “Loving” debuted in 1983. It ran through Nov. 10, 1995 and was replaced by spin-off “The City.”

On the second season finale of NBC’s “Seinfeld” in 1991, George’s (Jason Alexander) comments get a busboy fired from a restaurant while Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) frantically tries to get her old boyfriend out of her place and to the airport.

Movies:
Roger Moore starred in both the eleventh and twelfth James Bond films “Moonraker” and “For Your Eyes Only.” The former, opened in British theaters in 1979; the latter, opened in American theaters in 1981. The theme song to “For Your Eyes Only” (with the same title) was performed by Sheena Easton (who appeared in the film’s opening credits) and became a Top-10 hit in several countries including the U.S. and the United Kingdom….Military comedy “Stripes”, starring Bill Murray, Harold Ramis and John Candy, opened in theaters in 1981.

“Dragnet”, the movie version of the classic TV drama, opened in theaters in 1987. It starred Tom Hanks and Dan Aykroyd.

Music:
Elvis Presley sang for the last time in pubic in Indianapolis in 1977.

Sports:
The Cleveland Cavaliers selected St. Vincent-St. Mary’s (Akron, OH) high school basketball star LeBron James as the first overall pick of the NBA Draft in 2003. James is considered one of the greatest players in basketball history, as an 19-time (to-date) NBA All-Star with ten NBA Finals appearances (winner of 4, including one for the Cavaliers in 2016 and one for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020) and a 4-time NBA Most Valuable Player…Legendary sports anchor Bob Ley announced his retirement from ESPN in 2019 after 39 years at the network.

Celebrity Birthdays:
Singer Billy Davis Jr. is 86; singer Brenda Holloway is 78; actor Michael Paul Chan (“The Closer”) is 74; actor Robert Davi (“Profiler”) is 73; musician Mick Jones of The Clash is 69; actor Gedde Watanabe (“Sixteen Candles”) is 69; singer Chris Isaak is 68; singer Patty Smyth is 67; Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe is 56; three actors turn 54: “Will & Grace” star Sean Hayes, “NCIS: Los Angeles” star Chris O’Donnell and Nick Offerman from “Parks and Recreation;” writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson (“Boogie Nights”) is 54; New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter is 50; singer Gretchen Wilson is 50; former NFL quarterback Chad Pennington is 48; OneRepublic singer-songwriter Ryan Tedder is 45; former NFL MVP quarterback Michael Vick is 44; actor Jason Schwartznan (“Rushmore”) is 44; actress Aubrey Plaza (“Parks and Recreation”) is 40; Nickelodeon star Jennette McCurdy is 32; pop singer Ariana Grande is 31.

Did You Know?:
“The Sonny Comedy Revue,” headlined by Sonny Bono, lasted three months on ABC in the fall of 1974; while “Cher” on CBS limped along from February 16, 1975 to January 4, 1976. It was too little, too late when the divorced couple reunited for “The Sonny & Cher Show” on CBS in February 1976, which ended in the summer of 1977.