February 9 Birthday
February 9, 1964: The Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. Seventy-three million people watched — 40% of the American population. It remains one of the most-watched broadcasts in television history. Ed Sullivan had spotted the band at Heathrow Airport, where they were returning from a tour and were met by thousands of screaming fans. He booked them for three appearances for $10,000 total. The show opened with "All My Loving" and closed with "I Want to Hold Your Hand." The crime rate in American cities reportedly dropped during the broadcast. Everything about the Beatles' arrival — the screaming, the Ed Sullivan numbers, the haircuts — has been analyzed for meaning. What it meant was that a generation found something that belonged to them and not their parents. In 1825, the House of Representatives elected John Quincy Adams as president after no candidate won a majority of the Electoral College. Andrew Jackson had won the most popular votes and the most electoral votes, but not a majority. The Twelfth Amendment sent the decision to the House. Henry Clay, who had finished fourth and was eliminated, threw his support to Adams. Adams won on the first ballot. He then appointed Clay as Secretary of State. Jackson called it a "corrupt bargain" and spent four years campaigning against it. He defeated Adams in a landslide in 1828. The Adams-Clay alliance was not corrupt by the standards of the era — it was politics — but the perception of corruption was a more powerful force than the reality. Carole King, born this day in 1942, wrote "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" at seventeen. It became a number-one hit for the Shirelles in 1960, making King the first woman to write a number-one single. She wrote or co-wrote 118 songs that appeared on the Billboard Hot 100. Her 1971 album Tapestry held the number-one position for fifteen consecutive weeks and stayed on the charts for over fifteen years — a record that has never been broken. Joe Pesci, born this day in 1943, was a child actor who released a comedy album at twenty-two, acted in B-movies, and managed a restaurant before Martin Scorsese cast him in Raging Bull. He has appeared in fewer than thirty films and has been nominated for two Oscars, winning for Goodfellas. He retired from acting in 1999 to run a restaurant, then came back for The Irishman twenty years later. People born on February 9 fall under the zodiac sign of Aquarius. The birthstone is Amethyst and the birth flower is Violet. Historical events on February 9 include 1825: House of Representatives elects John Quincy Adams president after Electoral College tie, 1900: Davis Cup tennis competition established, 1964: Beatles make first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show (73 million viewers). Famous people born on February 9 include Carole King (1942), Joe Pesci (1943), Mia Farrow (1945).