Marked This Day

Did you know that there used to be a Grammy category for Best Disco Recording? The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences watched as disco ruled the airwaves of the 70’s, but waited until 1980 to finally legitimize the genre with its own Grammy category. And on this very day, February 27th, in 1980 the first Grammy for Best Disco Recording was given to “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor. You can’t fault the Academy for giving the award to that song (though I’ll give a special shout out to MJ’s “Don’t Stop Till Get Enough”) as it was, and still is a party standard. But you know what didn’t survive? The Best Disco Recording category. Perhaps the Academy was afraid. Maybe even petrified. Whatever the case, 1980 was the only year that disco was awarded at the big dance. They just waited a little too long. Or not long enough. It would be like getting in on the Z. Cavaricci craze in the early 90s or flannel trend in the early 2000s. Just a tad too late people. Timing people. It’s eve...

On this day 1988 (though multiple sources claim 1984, but I’m sticking with the LA Times) Pak Awang, an 84-year-old witch doctor from Malaysia got married. I’ve written about marriages a few times. I’ve written about old people getting married. Older than Pak. I believe I’ve even written about people getting married multiple times. Everybody knows somebody who has been married multiple times. But usually that means like 3 times. Perhaps you know somebody who just doubled-down and is in the 4-10 range. And you kind of judge him/her a little bit, don’t you? But Pak? Pak don’t care 'bout your judgement. He was just a different dude. The type of dude that would get married at age 84 despite the fact he had been married 79 times before. 79 times. Pak don’t give up. I don’t even know how that’s numerically possible. I think it is the most amazing/ridiculous thing that I have ever heard, and I’ve written about the world record for the distance a champagne cork has traveled. Think about i...

On this day in 1990, Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac broke down during an interview with the BBC, lamenting the fact that she would never have children and that no man could stand her for long. Amazing to realize that a woman as powerful and artistic and brilliant as Stevie would have such classic regrets and self-doubts. This was a woman who was an integral cog in the wheel of Fleetwood Mac --probably its most famous member. I would venture to say the average person would recognize her name before Lindsey Buckingham’s. She wrote Landslide for Pete’s sake, which basically illustrates her whole dilemma. And here she was, despite all her success, distraught about her love life. Makes you realize that all people, no matter how famous or rich, can have regrets, and that most people don’t get every single thing they want in life. When you chose one thing, you are often also choosing not have another thing. Think of it as a less contrived, less cheesy, less ridiculous episode of The Bachelor ...

On this day in 1988, the United States Supreme Court unanimously voted to overturn a $200,000 settlement awarded to Rev. Jerry Falwell for his emotional distress over being satirized in Hustler magazine. If you wish to see this little drama unfold in a more detailed fashion feel free to watch The People Vs. Larry Flynt with Woody Harrelson and Courtney Love. I’ve seen bits and pieces, but I can’t remember if the movie contains the part I’d be most interested to know. How did Jerry Falwell come to find out he was parodied in a pornographic magazine. I’m sure it was a third-party news source that ran the story, but I’d still like to know who had the honor of telling the Reverend that Hustler had run a mock advertisement in their magazine detailing Jerry’s first sexual experience. How did that conversation go? I mean there are certain subjects you just know will be uncomfortable with certain people. Like talking about grabbing the paper towels off the top shelf while shopping with a mi...

On this day in 2014, Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his second Daytona 500, ten years after winning his first. Cause you can’t hate 88. Especially considering how big of an icon his father was in the racing world and how long it took Dale Sr. to win his first Daytona. Plus Jr. is a ginger. Not that being a ginger prohibits you from winning the Daytona 500, but there really aren’t many red-headed athletes out there. Bill Walton. Shaun White. Chuck Norris, if you count karate. That’s about it. You have to give Jr. some props. I’m giving him props, and I’ve never been big into NASCAR. Not that I think what they do doesn’t take skill and stamina. And the appeal of being able to bring your own alcohol into the event is a winner. So there are definitely some pluses to consider. I just never found the constant left turns for hours to be all that riveting. But maybe it’s one of those things you come to appreciate through time and persistence. Like beer. Or scotch. Which you could drink while watching ...

On this day in 1962, John Glenn became the 1st American to orbit the Earth in outer space aboard the Friendship 7 . He did so three times, and his little trip wasn’t without some hiccups, mainly being that the heat shield was loose, which sounds like a fairly important thing that you wouldn’t want being loose. Glenn made it back in one piece, although a little sweaty. I’ve always wondered if vehicle malfunctions cease to bother you after you’ve had one in space. I mean if John Glenn or Jim Lovell got a flat tire on the freeway after their experiences in space, would they still have been annoyed? At least a tad bit, I gotta think. No matter how many times you’ve been in space, no one wants to change a tire on the freeway. But I also think the element of danger wasn’t quite as prevalent for them. Sure, some drunken idiot could have crashed into them effectively ending all of their higher-motor functioning capability, but getting stranded in outer space or burning up reentering the Eart...

On this day last year, Facebook bought WhatsApp for 19 billion dollars. Being that I’d never heard of WhatsApp, or used it, or heard of other people using it, 19 billion dollars seemed a bit excessive to me. You could buy like all the teams in all the sports for 19 billion dollars. Maybe not all the teams, but close. You could probably have yourself cloned for 19 billion dollars. For 19 billion dollars you could make yourself the star of every new Star Wars movie (and probably retroactively plug yourself into all the old ones). You could commission a Neuralizer from Men in Black and wipe peoples' memories for fun. You could have your face added to Mt. Rushmore and have every history teacher in the country have to say, “And that’s Bob. He wasn’t a revered President, but he did have 19 billion dollars.” Or you could buy the largest internet messaging service because apparently the kids these days think text messages take too long or cost too much or whatever. And social media is all...