I dont’ know what you might be doing today, but 511 years ago today Michelangelo started working on his statue of David. He was 26 years old. When I was 26 years old I was excited for two for one beers at William’s Pub in Uptown, Minneapolis.

Advantage: Michelangelo.

Now see? Who said this site puts up nothing but scantily clad women? By the way, if they ever do another David and Goliath movie, here’s guessing Michael Fassbender has gotten too big for the part.

Nikita Khrushchev was appointed the Secretary General of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union today in 1953, just one day after  36-year old John F. Kennedy married 24-year old Jacqueline Bouvier. Khrushchev and Kennedy would become two of the main players at the height of the cold war.

The WHA officially formed on this day in 1971. Put together by promoters Dennis Murphy and Gary Davidson (the same two who formed the ABA), the renegade league looted the NHL for star players including Bobby Hull, Bernie Parent and Gerry Cheevers. Everyone of age recalls the Quebec Nordiques and the Cincinnati Stingers, but can you say you remember the Dayton Arrows or the Miami Screaming Eagles?

I don’t know if the inmates were huge NHL fans or not, but the Attica prison riots also happened today in 1971. The riots ended with 29 dead, 19 prisoners and 10 guards.

September 13 was a big day for two of the best baseball players of the 1960’s (or ever), Willie Mays hit his 500th HR today in 1965 and Frank Robinson got his 500th on the same day in 1971.

Fiona Apple was born today in 1977 and on her 3rd birthday the show Solid Gold debuted on national television. Solid Gold enjoyed a eight year run, counting down the top ten songs of the week accompanied by the Solid Gold Dancers. The show was a big deal in it’s infancy, but by the time MTV got rolling, it seemed like a relic. Apple, of course, is famous for starting an MTV awards speech with, “This world is bullshit…” Maybe she’d watched too much Solid Gold.

It was today in 1988 that Bon Jovi released the follow up album to their smash Slippery When Wet. New Jersey immediately hit the top of the charts and the album had five top 10 singles, more than any other hard rock album in history. Bad Medicine, I’ll Be There For You, Lay Your Hands on Me, Born to Be My Baby and Living in Sin made sure the Jersey boys weren’t going to be one-album wonders. For you deep trackers, Wild Is the Wind most certainly should have been a hit.

Finally, it was today in 1996 that Tupac Shakur died in Las Vegas, six days after being the victim of a drive-by shooting following a Mike Tyson fight outside the MGM Grand.

Come back tomorrow and I promise at least one scantily clad woman.

– Bill Hubbell