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understand
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impacts the now.

Follow our
daily timelime
of historical
events to
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role The Beatles
played in changing
the modern world.

1239--Edward I, the King of England (1272-1307), is born.

1579--Sir Francis Drake claims San Francisco Bay for England.

1885--The Statue of Liberty arrives in New York City aboard the French ship “Isere.”

1933--Vernon Presley marries Gladys Smith in Ponotoc, Mississippi. The birth of Elvis (and his twin brother Jesse) would follow in a year and a half.

1941--WNBT-TV in New York City, is granted the first construction permit to operate a commercial TV station in the US.

1961--The Beatles perform at the Top Ten Club, Reeperbahn, Hamburg, West Germany.

1963--The US Supreme Court rules against Bible reading and / or prayer in public schools.

1963--In Studio 5 of the BBC's Maida Vale Studios in London, The Beatles record the fourth "Pop Go the Beatles" radio program. This will be the last of the series, but it will be subsequently extended. The Beatles perform the songs I Saw Her Standing There, Anna, Boys, Chains, P.S. I Love You, and Twist and Shout. The program is broadcast on June 25, and the featured guests are The Bachelors.

1963--The Beatles are photographed by Dezo Hoffman during a London recording session for a "Pop Goes the Beatles" radio program, while dining at a restaurant, and in Delaware Road doing a little clowning around to celebrate Paul McCartney's 21st birthday on the following day.

1964--The Beatles, in Australia on their first world tour, perform two shows at Festival Hall, Melbourne, Australia. The second show is filmed for an hour-long television program, "The Beatles Sing for Shell," which is broadcast on July 1. (Shell Petroleum was the program sponsor).

1965--The Beatles in the recording studio (Studio Two, EMI Studios, London). The song Yesterday is completed with the overdubbing of an additional vocal track by Paul McCartney and of the string quartet brought in to augment the track. Needing a song for Ringo Starr to sing to replace the failed If You've Got Trouble, The Beatles select Act Naturally for Ringo's vocal contribution on the Help! album. They record 13 instrumental track takes of Act Naturally, and Ringo's vocal (along with Paul's backing vocal) is overdubbed onto the 13th take. Then The Beatles record the song Wait, in four takes. Wait will not be included on the Help! album; it is included on the following LP, Rubber Soul.

1965--General Sir William Oliver declares: “I know the Beatles deserve the Order of the British Empire,” while Jack Berg, Hector Dupuis, Stanley Ellis, Cyril Hearns, Douglas Moffit, Richard Pape, RAF Squadrom Leader Paul Pearson, David Evan Rees, and World War Veteran Col. George Wagg, return their MBEs in protest of The Beatles receiving theirs. This was the first recorded instance of anyone returning an MBE.

1965--The Kinks arrive in New York City to start their first US tour.

1966--The Beatles in the recording studio (Studio Two, EMI Studios, London). Recording final overdubs for Here, There and Everywhere and Got to Get You Into My Life.

1966--Paul McCartney buys a farm in Kintyre, Scotland.

1967--China becomes the world's fourth thermonuclear (H-bomb) power.

1969--The raunchy musical review "Oh! Calcutta!" (written by Kenneth Tynan) opens in New York. The script includes a comic “masturbation” scene called “Four In Hand,” based on a suggestion by John Lennon (the idea came from John’s recollections of the “circle jerks” he participated in with his teenaged mates in Liverpool).

1972--Five men working for the “Committee to Re-elect the President” are caught during a break-in at the Democratic National Headquarters at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C., precipitating one of the most heated political scandals in American history (leading to the resignation of President Nixon).

1974--At the Record Plant in New York, John Lennon starts the recording sessions for Wall and Bridges. Joining him are musicians Jesse Ed Davis, Kenny Ascher, Nicky Hopkins, Eddie Mottan, and Arthur Jenkins. Work begins on Whatever Gets You Through The Night, (with Elton John on organ, piano and harmony vocals), Beef Jerky, and Bless You. Later that night, Ringo Starr phones John at his hotel, asking him to write a new song for his next album. John obliges by writing (and making a demo recording of) Goodnight Vienna.

1986--Members of Elephant's Memory sue Yoko Ono and the Lennon estate for $104 million. They claim that Yoko was profiting improperly from record and video releases of "John Lennon: Live in New York City," which features Lennon's “One to One” charity concert. The suit alleges that Yoko faked playing keyboards at the concert (Yoko denied this). Since Elephant's Memory backed-up John Lennon for free, they feel entitled to some of the profits now being realized. Yoko, through her lawyers, requests that the "scandalous" lawsuit be thrown out of court as a "nuisance case" brought by "10th-rate backup musicians."

1989--Ringo Starr announces that he will tour again under the guise of "Ringo and the All-Starr Band." Members of the band will include Clarence Clemons, Joe Walsh, Billy Preston, and Nils Lofgren.

For more day-by-day history go to HistoryUnlimited.net