This week!
The Disney animated classic film Lady and the Tramp first aired on television in 1988. The opening scene, in which Darling unwraps a hatbox and finds Lady inside, was based on an actual incident in Walt Disney’s life! After forgetting a dinner date with his wife, Walt similarly surprised her with a puppy and was, of course, forgiven!
The copyright for “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” was registered in 1908. Lyricist Jack Norworth said the inspiration came to him after he passed an advertisement for baseball while riding the New York City subway—he had never even been to a major league game!
Silver screen legend Audrey Hepburn was born in Brussels, Belgium, in 1929. Growing up, Hepburn suffered under the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, an experience that prompted the Emmy, Tony, Grammy and twotime Oscar award-winning actress to serve as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF for years!
New York City’s famous concert venue Carnegie Hall opened in 1891. It was renowned for its flawless acoustics until renovations were completed in 1986. Concertgoers complained the sound had been altered for the worse—and they were right! Nearly a decade later, a slab of concrete was found beneath the stage. Once removed, the venue’s impeccable sound was restored!
They said it couldn’t be done—until 25-year-old medical student Roger Bannister ran the first under-four-minute mile in 1954. His time: 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds. Today’s record, held by Morocco’s Hicham El Guerrouj, is 3 minutes and 43 seconds. Run in 1999, it has yet to be beaten!
After 10 years of record-breaking ratings, NBC’S television sitcom Friends aired its final episode in 2004. Once taping wrapped, each cast member was given a keepsake Friends yearbook and a piece of the sidewalk from outside the studio’s Central Perk coffee shop!