Entertainment History
On February 4, 1938, "Our Town," Thornton Wilder's play about
small-town life in America, opened on Broadway. In 1961, singer Johnny
Burnette underwent an emergency appendectomy in Los Angeles and was
forced to cancel a British tour. He's known for the hit "You're
Sixteen," which was on the Top 40 charts at the time. In 1969, Columbia
Records signed Johnny Winter to a five-year, $300,000 contract, which
was unprecedented for a new artist. In 1971, The Osmonds received their
first gold record, for "One Bad Apple. In 1983, singer Karen Carpenter
died of cardiac arrest in Downey, California, at age 32. She had
suffered from the eating disorder anorexia nervosa. In 1987, Liberace
died at his home in Palm Springs, California, of AIDS-related
complications. He was 67. In 1993, entertainer Ben Vereen was
discharged from a rehabilitation center in New Jersey. He had been
getting therapy for seven months after he was hit by a truck near his
home in Malibu, California. Today's birthdays: Actor Gary Conway
("Burke's Law") is 80. Drummer John Steel of The Animals is 75. Singer
Florence LaRue of the Fifth Dimension is 74. Singer Alice Cooper is 68.
Actor Michael Beck is 67. Actress Lisa Eichhorn is 64. Singer Tim Booth
of James is 56. Country singer Clint Black is 54. Guitarist Noodles of
The Offspring is 53. Country bassist Dave Buchanan of Yankee Grey is
50. "Daily Show" correspondent Rob Corddry is 45. TV personality
Nicolle Wallace ("The View") is 44. Bassist Rick Burch of Jimmy Eat
World is 41. Singer Natalie Imbruglia (im-BROO'-lee-uh) is 41. Rapper
Cam'ron is 40. Singer Gavin DeGraw is 39.
