The longest running television Christmas special debuted tonight on NBC in 1964. “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” used stop motion animation by Rankin/Bass. The original airing of the special didn’t have Santa stopping at the Island of Misfit Toys to pick up the misfits, but it was added in for the second year. “Fame and Fortune” was cut from the show by CBS in 1998 due to commercial restraints.
The day after the Rolling Stones album “Let It Bleed” was released, the Stones flew to California to play a free concert. The concert at Altamont became famous because four people were killed, including an 18-year old black man named Meredith Hunter. Hunter was stabbed to death by a Hell’s Angel. The Hell’s Angels had been hired by the Stones as security for the concert, which also featured Jefferson Airplane, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and Santana.
The Altamont concert came a year to the day after the Stones had released their ninth studio album, “Beggars Banquet,” which many critics hailed as their return to their roots and the beginning of their best run of albums. “Sympathy For The Devil,” “Street Fighting Man,” “Jigsaw Puzzle,” “No Expectations,” and “Salt Of The Earth” are all classics from the album. Watch the link to “Sympathy” and you can tell Jagger knew that trouble was brewing at Altamont.
It was today in 1865 that the 13th Amendment took affect in the United States, banning slavery. As all of us who saw, “Lincoln” know, the Amendment was passed by the House on January 31, 1965.
The very first edition of Encyclopaedia Britannica came out today in 1768. It used to be the only way any of us got our “big reports” done in school. It’s now called “google” and it weighs a lot less.
Woody Allen made a musical? “Everyone Says I Love You” came out today in 1996 and it was pretty damn good.
— Bill Hubbell