Tuesday, January 3, 2006

 

Spotlight: Happy 80th birthday to George Martin. Often referred to as the fifth Beatle, Martin produced most of The Beatles' records and was responsible for arranging most of their songs. When he was in his teens, Martin taught himself to play piano by ear. Much later he studied composition and classical music orchestration. The youngest head of an EMI label, Parlophone, Martin was not impressed when he auditioned The Beatles in 1962, but they worked together to make recording history. In 1996, Martin was knighted and received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999.

Quote: "There are only two kinds of music – good and bad." – Sir George Martin

Word of the day: prolific: able to produce in abundance; Martin is said to be England's most prolific record producer. (© )

Today's News:

• Bird Flu: CDC says US isn't ready (story)
• Intel: new logo to revamp image (story)
• Doug Flutie: hits first drop kick in 64 years (story)

Today's History:

• the Curse of the Bambino: began with sale of Babe Ruth by the Red Sox to the Yankees (1920)
• March of Dimes: charity to fight polio was founded by FDR (1938)
• Alaska: territory once known as Seward's Folly became the 49th and largest state (1959)

Today's Birthdays:

• J.R.R. Tolkien: writer, The Lord of the Rings trilogy (1892-1973)
• Clement Attlee: British PM (1883-1967)
• Mel Gibson: actor/director, Mad Max and Lethal Weapon films, Braveheart, The Passion of the Christ (50)