18
Featured Events
1992Sister Souljah, a rapper associated with the group Public Enemy, is quoted in The Washington Post saying, "If black people kill black people every day, why not have a week and kill white people?" It becomes a big moment in American politics when Bill Clinton denounces the comment, risking support from black voters. Clinton goes on to win the presidential election.
1981After nearly 20 years with Motown Records, Diana Ross leaves the label and signs a record $20 million contract with RCA. Her hit duet "Endless Love" is released on Motown in August even though she has left the label.
1978The Buddy Holly Story, starring Gary Busey as Holly, is released in the US.
18
In Music History
2014Italian-American singer Jerry Vale dies at home in Palm Desert, California, at age 83.
2006Andy Capps (drummer for Built To Spill) is found dead at age 37 in his Idaho home. No cause of death is given.
2004Clint Warwick (original bassist for The Moody Blues) dies at age 63 of liver disease.
2004Jazz drummer Elvin Jones (of The John Coltrane Quartet) dies of heart failure at age 76.
2002The Barry Manilow Ultimate Manilowspecial airs on CBS.
1999Jamaican record producer Augustus Pablo, known for his influential 1976 album King Tubbys Meets Rockers Uptown, dies at age 44 of a collapsed lung.
1996Brad Nowell of Sublime marries Troy Dendekker, the mother of his son, Jakob. He dies of a drug overdose a week later.
1995Bette Midler stars in the Seinfeld episode "The Understudy."
1982Actor/singer Eric West is born Eric Rosa in New York City. Records the single "Can You Help Me?" in 2002, which becomes a huge hit in Latin America.
1980Drummer Peter Criss leaves Kiss. He is replaced by Eric Carr, but returns to the band (along with Ace Frehley) in 1996.
1975The Bay City Rollers appear at BBC Radio "Fun Day" at the Mallory Park racetrack in Leicestershire, England, where they are set to perform on an island in the middle of a lake. When throngs of fans try to swim to the Rollers, mayhem ensues and they never get to perform.
Joy Division Singer Ian Curtis Commits Suicide
1980
Battling epilepsy and depression, Joy Division lead singer Ian Curtis hangs himself at his home in England.
Curtis's death culminates a lengthy struggle with depression. He has made two prior attempts on his own life, cutting his wrists and - just a month earlier - overdosing on his epilepsy medication. The singer has long suffered in silence with epilepsy, keeping it secret even from the other band members until he had a serious fit in December 1978 on the way home from a performance.
His unique convulsive dancing style echoes the effects of his seizures, blurring the lines between performance and pain. His condition is exacerbated by flashing lights, over-stimulation and alcohol consumption, all of which are closely associated with life on the road. Medication prescribed by his doctor results in wild mood swings that seriously affect his mental health and personal relationships.
Suspecting her husband of having an affair with Belgian journalist Annik Honoré and struggling to come to terms with his increasingly erratic behavior, Curtis's wife Deborah has commenced divorce proceedings. While she is away at work, and their young daughter Natalie is staying with her parents, he listens to Iggy Pop's album The Idiot (1977) and writes her a long letter, saying "I just can't cope any more."
His body is found in the morning by Deborah in their tiny kitchen, hanged with the line from a clothes airer. He is cremated the following day, his memorial stone inscribed with the date of his death and the title of Joy Division's best known song "Love Will Tear Us Apart."
His unique convulsive dancing style echoes the effects of his seizures, blurring the lines between performance and pain. His condition is exacerbated by flashing lights, over-stimulation and alcohol consumption, all of which are closely associated with life on the road. Medication prescribed by his doctor results in wild mood swings that seriously affect his mental health and personal relationships.
Suspecting her husband of having an affair with Belgian journalist Annik Honoré and struggling to come to terms with his increasingly erratic behavior, Curtis's wife Deborah has commenced divorce proceedings. While she is away at work, and their young daughter Natalie is staying with her parents, he listens to Iggy Pop's album The Idiot (1977) and writes her a long letter, saying "I just can't cope any more."
His body is found in the morning by Deborah in their tiny kitchen, hanged with the line from a clothes airer. He is cremated the following day, his memorial stone inscribed with the date of his death and the title of Joy Division's best known song "Love Will Tear Us Apart."
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