October 20: This Day in Black History 1885: Jelly Roll Morton was born. He was a pioneering and inventive jazz and blues pianist, bandleader and composer. He passed in 1941 at age 50 from respiratory problems. 1895: Rex Ingram was born. He was an actor of stage, film and television. He passed away in 1969, aged 73. 1898: The 1st African American-owned insurance company, North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company was founded. 1901: Adelaide Hall was born. She was an American-born U.K.-based jazz singer and entertainer. Her career spanned more than seventy years. 1914: Fayard Nicholas was born. He was a choreographer, dancer and actor. He, along with his brother Harold, made up the Nicholas Brothers tap-dance duo who starred in several of the MGM musicals. He passed in 2006, aged 91. 1921: until her death and she was a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance. She passed in 1993, aged 92. 1932: Rosey Brown was born. He was a NFL Hall of Famer offensive lineman. He passed in 1932, aged 71. 1951: The Johnny Bright Incident occurred. It was a violent on-field assault against Bright, a black player, by Wilbanks Smith, a white player during a college football game held in Stillwater, OK. 1953: Bill Nunn was born. He is an actor who made his acting debut in Spike Lee’s ‘Do the Right Thing’ film. He has since been in over 50 films. He turns 60 today. 1955: Aaron Pryor turns 58 today. He is a former International Boxing Hall of Famer and World Jr. Welterweight Champion. 1958: ‘Rockin’ Robin’ by Bobby Day & the Satellites was the number one song this day. 1958: The Dubs recorded “Chapel of Dreams” (#74), their third and last pop hit. Surprisingly, none of their twenty-three superb singles ever charted R&B. 1958: Ivory Joe Hunter charted with “Yes, I Want You,” his twenty-first and final R&B hit, reaching #3. 1961: LaVern Baker, Johnnie & Joe, the Halos, Little Caesar & the Romans, the Mar-keys, the Starlets, and Wade Flemons performed at the Regal Theater in Chicago. 1971: Happy Birthday to Snoop who turns 42 today. He is a rapper, singer, songwriter and actor. 1985: Jennifer Freeman turns 28 today. She is an actress of film and television. 1990: James Ingram’s “I Don’t Have the Heart” hit #1 pop. The single was his first credited solo Top 40 hit: his previous seven Top 40 entries were all either duets or were uncredited. 1991: Because Ray Charles was on a United Nations blacklist for performing in South Africa more than a decade earlier, a Swedish concert promoter cancelled Ray’s scheduled concert there. 1991: Seal performed at Sunderland Empire in England at the beginning of a European tour, during which his touring truck was blown over in Sweden. A kindly butcher loaned the performer a van, and Seal continued on to his scheduled show in Denmark 1991: Two police officers and an armored car guard were killed during an armed robbery in Rockland County, NY, carried out by members of the BLA and Weather Underground. 2005: Grammy Award-winning singer and pianist Shirley Horn passed away at age 71. 2006: The heritage of the Tuskegee Airmen became a component of the classroom curriculum of the U.S. Air Force Officers Training School. 2007: Vivian Aplin-Brownlee passed away, aged 61. She was a former Washington Post editor who raised an early alarm over a Pulitzer Prize-winning story about an 8-year-old heroin addict who didn’t really exist. She was among the first group of black women to be hired and promoted in major newsrooms. 2007: Jim Mitchell passed away at age 60. He was a Pro Bowl tight end for the Atlanta Falcons in the ’60s and ’70s. 2012: Dave May passed away, aged 68. He was a onetime All-Star outfielder for the MLB Association.
Posted on: Sun, 20 Oct 2013 18:32:40 +0000
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