Other Notable Birthdays
Ernest Hemingway (American Novelist)
July 21, 1899 - July 2, 1961
Birthplace: Oak Park, Illinois
Passed Away at Age 61 From a Self-Inflicted Gunshot Wound to the Head
* Died in His Ketchum, Idaho Home
Won the Nobel Peace Prize For Literature in 1954
Don Knotts (Actor)
July 21, 1924 - February 24, 2006
Birthplace: Morgantown, West Virginia
Passed Away at Age 81 From Pneumonia Related to Lung Cancer
* Best Known For Playing Mr. Furley on Three’s Company
Won 5 Emmy Awards For His Role as Barney Fife in the 1960's SitcomThe Andy Griffith Show
Janet Reno (Politician)
July 21, 1938 - November 7, 2016
Birthplace: Miami, Florida
Passed Away at Age 78 From Parkinson’s Disease
* Diagnosed in 1995
Reno Became the First Female United States Attorney General in 1993
Term: 1993 - 2001
Robin Williams (Actor and Comedian)
July 21, 1951 - August 11, 2014
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
Passed Away at Age 63 From Suicide by Hanging
* Gained Popularity From the TV Series Mork & Mindy (1978 - 1982)
Won an Academy Award in 1998 For His Role as Dr. Sean Maguire in Good Will Hunting
Dave Henderson “Hendu” (Baseball)
July 21, 1958 - December 27, 2015
Birthplace: Merced, California
Passed Away at Age 57 From a Heart Attack
MLB Seasons: 14
Position: Outfield
All-Star: 1991
World Series Champion: 1989 (Oakland A's)
Drafted in the First Round (26th Overall) of the 1977 Major League Baseball Draft by the Seattle Mariners
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Passed Away
(On This Day)
Jimmie Foxx (Baseball)
October 22, 1907 - July 21, 1967
Birthplace: Sudlerville, Maryland
Passed Away at Age 59 After Choking on a Piece of Food at a Miami, Florida Restaurant
MLB Seasons: 20
Position: First Base
All-Star: 9
Triple Crown: 1933
AL MVP: 3 (1932, 1933, 1938)
World Series Champion: 2 (1929, 1930) Philadelphia Athletics
Elected to the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame in 1951 (7th Ballot)
Lord Alfred Hayes (Wrestling)
August 8, 1928 - July 21, 2005
Birthplace: London, England
Passed Away at Age 76 From a Series of Strokes
* Recognized as One of the Greatest Wrestling Announcers of All-Time
Elected to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018
Dennis Green (Football Coach)
February 17, 1949 - July 21, 2016
Birthplace: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Passed Away at Age 67 From Cardiac Arrest
* The Head Coach For Stanford University From 1989 to 1991
The Head Coach of the Minnesota Vikings For 10 Seasons Making the Playoffs in 8 of Them
John Heard (Actor)
March 7, 1946 - July 21, 2017
Birthplace: Washington, D.C.
Passed Away at Age 71 From a Heart Attack
* Found Dead in a Palo Alto Hotel
Played Peter McCallister in the 1990 Film Home Alone
Tony Bennett (Singer)
August 3, 1926 - July 21, 2023
Birthplace: New York City
Passed Away at Age 96 From Alzheimer's Disease
* Best Known For the 1962 Song "I Left My Heart in San Francisco"
A 20x Grammy Award Winner
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80s Movies
(Released On This Day)
1989 - UHF
Director: Jay Levey
Starring: "Weird Al" Yankovic, Victoria Jackson, Michael Richards, Kevin McCarthy, David Bowe, Anthony Geary, Fran Drescher, Stanley Brock, Gedde Watanabe, Billy Barty, John Paragon and Trinidad Silva
Budget: $5 Million
Box Office: $6.1 Million
1989 - When Harry Met Sally…
Director: Rob Reiner
Starring: Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Carrie Fisher and Bruno Kirby
Budget: $16 Million
Box Office: $92.8 Million
1989 - Do the Right Things
Director: Spike Lee
Starring: Lee, Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, John Turturro and Samuel L. Jackson
Budget: $6 Million
Box Office: $37.3 Million
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80s Television
(On This Day)
1981 - Final Episode of Flo
Seasons: 2
Episodes: 29
Network: CBS
Spinoff From the TV Show, Alice
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80s Music
(Albums Released On This Day)
1980 - Chicago XIV
Chicago (12 Album)
Billboard Charts: #71
1980 - Live Seventy Nine (Live Album)
Hawkwind
1981 - You Want It You Got It
Bryan Adams (2nd Album)
Billboard Charts: #118
1983 - Burning Farm
Shonen Knife (3rd Album)
1984 - The Yellow and Black Attack (EP)
Stryper
1987 - Appetite for Destruction
Guns N' Roses (Debut Album)
Hit #1 on the US Billboard 200 Charts
* Also #1 in New Zealand
Over 30 Million Copies Sold Worldwide
1987 - Who's That Girl (Soundtrack)
Madonna
Billboard Charts: #7
Hit #1 in Germany and Netherlands
Over 6 Million Copies Sold Worldwide
1987 - Dangerous Attraction
Lion (Debut Album)
1987 - Dream Evil
Dio (4th Album)
Billboard Charts: #43
Reached #43 on the US Billboard 200 Charts
Singles Released
1986 - “Stuck With You"
Huey Lewis and the News
#1 Song in America from September 20 - October 10
* Also Hit #1 in Canada
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80s Sports
(On This Day)
1981 - Tony Garea and Rick Martel Beat The Moondogs to Win the WWF Tag Team Championship
Location: Allentown, Pennsylvania
1985 - Sandy Lyle (+2) Won The British Open
Prize: $65,000
Runner Up: Payne Stewart (+3)
Runner Up Prize: $43,000
Location: Sandwich, England
Course: Royal St George's Golf Club
1985 - Bernard Hinault (France) Won the Tour de France
1989 - Mike Tyson TKO’d Carl Williams 1:33 into the 1st Round to Retain the Heavyweight Championship
Location: Atlantic City, New Jersey
* Mike Tyson’s Last Fight From the 80s
Did You Know?
Mike Tyson Lost His Next Fight to Buster Douglas on February 11, 1990
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Other Notable Dates
(On July 21st)
1861 - The Confederate Army Won the First Major Battle of the Civil War
* Bull Run in Manassas Junction, Virginia
1865 - Wild Bill Hickok Shot and Killed Davis Tutt in the First Western Showdown
* In Springfield, Missouri
1873 - Jesse James and His Gang Successfully Pulled Off the First Train Robbery in the Old West
* In Adair, Iowa
1904 - Louis Rigolly (France) Became the First Man to Drive a Car 100 MPH
* Drove a 15-liter Gobron-Brillié in Ostend, Belgium
1925 - John T. Scopes (Biology Teacher) was Found Guilty for Teaching Human Evolution to His High School Students and Fined $100
* Known as the Scopes Trial In Dayton, Tennessee
1952 - A 7.3 Earthquake Hit Kern County in California
* 12 Killed and Hundreds Injured
1959 - Elijah Jerry "Pumpsie" Green Became the First African-American to Play For the Boston Red Sox
* The Red Sox Were the Last Team to Integrate
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Guns N' Roses Released Appetite For Destruction
July 21st in 80s History
In Other News
(On July 21st )
2005 - Four Attempted Bomb Attacks by Islamist Extremists Disrupt Part of London's Public Transport System
2011 - NASA's Space Shuttle Program Ended With the Landing of Space Shuttle Atlantis at NASA's Kennedy Space Center
* Mission STS-135
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#1 Songs in America
(July 21st)
1980 - "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me"
Billy Joel
7/19 - 8/1
1981 - "Bette Davis Eyes"
Kim Carnes
6/27 - 7/24
1982 - "Don't You Want Me"
The Human League
7/3 - 7/23
1983 - "Every Breath You Take"
The Police
7/9 - 9/2
1984 - "When Doves Cry"
Prince
7/7 - 8/10
1985 - "A View to Kill"
Duran Duran
7/13 - 7/26
1986 - "Invisible Touch"
Genesis
7/19 - 7/25
1987 - "Alone"
Heart
7/11 - 7/31
1988 - "The Flame"
Cheap Trick
7/9 - 7/22
1989 - "If You Don't Know Me By Now"
Simply Red
7/15 - 7/21
Click Here For More Music Fun Facts and Awards
Headlines
(July 21st)
1983 - The Coldest Temperature Ever Was Recorded in Vostok Station, Antarctica
Celcius: -89.2
Fahrenheit: -128.6
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1985 - Sandy Lyle (+2) Won the 114th British Open
Prize: $65,000
Runner Up: Payne Stewart (+1)
Runner Up Prize: $43,000
Location: Sandwich, England
Course: Royal St George's Golf Club
The British Open is Now Called The Open Championship
Fun Fact!
Sandy Lyle Won 2 Major Championships During His Career
The Masters: 1988
The Open Championship: 1985
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1987 - Guns N’ Roses Released Their Debut Album Appetite for Destruction
Billboard Charts: #1
* Also Hit #1 in New Zealand
The Highest Selling Debut Album of All Time With Over 30 Million Copies Sold Worldwide
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1989 - When Harry Met Sally … Premiered in Theaters
Director: Rob Reiner
Starring: Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Carrie Fisher and Bruno Kirby
Fun Fact!
Rob Reiner Became a Household Name From the Role of Michael “Meathead” Stivic on All in the Family From 1971 to 1979
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Happy 80s Birthdays
1948 - Art Hindle (Actor) Porky’s (Police Officer Ted)
Birthplace: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
1953 - Eric Bazilian (Singer) The Hooters
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1953 - Jeff Fatt (Australian Keyboardist) The Cockroaches
Birthplace: Casino, New South Wales, Australia
1955 - Taco (Indonesian Singer) “Puttin’ on the Ritz”
Birthplace: Jakarta, Indonesia
1957 - Jon Lovitz (Actor) SNL
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California
1960 - Lance Guest (Actor) The Last Starfighter (Alex)
Birthplace: Saratoga, California
1961 - Jim Martin (Guitarist) Faith No More
Birthplace: Hayward, California
1965 - Mike Bordick (Baseball)
Birthplace: Marquette, Michigan
Fun Fact!
Eric Bazilian Received His Bachelor of Science Degree in Physics From the University of Pennsylvania
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