October 20 in Pop Culture History

October 20th History, Trivia, and Fun Facts

October 20th History Highlights

  • 1955The Return of The King, the third book of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, was released.
  • 1973 – Australia’s Sydney Opera House opened.
  • 1982 – 340 fans were killed at a game between the Soviet and Dutch soccer teams. Details were not released until years later
  • If you were born on October 20th,
    You were likely conceived the week of… January 27th (same year)

October 20th is…

Brandied Fruit Day
Sloth Day
World Osteoporosis Day

October 20th Birthday Quotes

“In making theories, always keep a window open so that you can throw one out if necessary.”
– Bela Lugosi

“I’m a straight lady, the best in Hollywood. There is an art to playing the straight role. You must build up your man, but never top him, never steal the laughs.”
– Margaret Dumont

“Whether it’s the best of times or the worst of times, it’s the only time we’ve got.”
– Art Buchwald

“It is evidently known, beyond contradiction, that New Orleans is the cradle of Jazz and I, myself, happened to be the creator in the year 1902.”
– Jelly Roll Morton

“I have never met a vampire personally, but I don’t know what might happen tomorrow.”
– Bela Lugosi

“The banjo am the instrument for me.”
– Grandpa Jones

“U don’t know where u goin’ unless u know where u come from.”
– Snoop Dogg

October 20th Birthdays

1882 – Margaret Dumont, American actress (died in 1965)
1882 – Bela Lugosi, Hungarian-American actor (died in 1956)
1885 – Jelly Roll Morton, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (died in 1941)
1894 – Olive Thomas, American model, and actress (died in 1920)
1907 – Arlene Francis, American actress and television personality (died in 2001)
1913 – Grandpa Jones, American singer-songwriter and banjo player (died in 1998)
1920 – Nick Cardy, American comic book illustrator (died in 2013)
1925 – Art Buchwald, American journalist (died in 2007)
1927 – Joyce Brothers, American psychologist and author (died in 2013)
1931 – Mickey Mantle, Baseball star (died in 1995)
1935 – Jerry Orbach, American actor, and singer (died in 2004)
1950 – Tom Petty, American singer-songwriter (died in 2017)
1958 – Viggo Mortensen, American-Danish actor
1971 – Snoop Dogg, American rapper
1979 – John Krasinski, American actor
1983 – Alona Tal, Israeli actress
1988 – Candice Swanepoel, South African supermodel

October 20th History

1720 – Caribbean pirate Calico Jack Rackham, one of the first pirates to use the “Jolly Roger”, was captured by the Royal Navy.

1803 – The United States Senate ratified the Louisiana Purchase.

1818 – The Convention of 1818 was signed between the US and the UK which settled the Canada/United States border on the 49th parallel for most of its length.

1873 – Yale, Princeton, Columbia, and Rutgers universities drafted the (American) Football rules.

1944 – Liquid natural gas exploded from storage tanks in Cleveland, killing 130 people.

1951 – CBS began using the “Eyeball” logo.

1962 – #1 Hit October 20, 1962 – November 2, 1962: Bobby “Boris” Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers – Monster Mash

1968 – Jacqueline Kennedy married Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis.

1973 – The Six Million Dollar Man debuted on ABC.

1973 – #1 Hit October 20, 1973 – October 26, 1973: The Rolling Stones – Angie

1977 – Lynyrd Skynyrd members Ronnie Van Zandt, Steve Gaines, and Cassie Gaines died in a plane crash. None were aged 27.

1979 – #1 Hit October 20, 1979 – November 2, 1979: Herb Alpert – Rise

1981 – Two police officers and a Brinks armored car guard are killed during an armed $1.6 million robbery in Rockland County, New York, carried out by members of the Black Liberation Army and Weather Underground.

1990 – #1 Hit October 20, 1990 – October 26, 1990: James Ingram – I Don’t Have the Heart

October 20, 1991 – Microsoft Windows 3.0 with Multimedia Extensions was released.

1991 – The Oakland Hills, California firestorm killed 25 people.

2001 – Concert For New York: A Tribute To Heroes was broadcast on VH1 and other networks. It raised funds for the families of those killed by the September 11 terrorist attacks.

October 20, 2006Return to Halloweentown aired on The Disney Channel

2011 – The National Transitional Council rebel forces captured (in hiding) Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in his hometown of Sirte.

October 20, 2016 – The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let’s Do the Time Warp Again aired live on FOX.

Today’s Random Trivia and Shower Thoughts

The difference between robbery and burglary is robbery is done with a victim present while burglary is performed when no victim is around.

“Short, sweet, and to the point” is a pretty roundabout way of saying “concise”.

Alfred Hitchcock’s, Psycho (1960) was the first mainstream American film ever to show a flushing toilet.

It’s okay to have voices inside of your head until they all start disagreeing with each other.

It’s not a “(grilled cheese) sandwich,” it’s a “grilled (cheese sandwich)”.

Every time I give my dogs a treat I’m always a little disappointed in them for not taking more time to thoroughly savor it.

Lucille Le Sueur was better known as Joan Crawford.

Beautiful people are shallow, nerds are ugly and the two are never friends. #moviecliches

It is a factoid that Sherlock Holmes hates Factoids.

Desi Arnez might be the most famous ex-husband of the 20th century.

Dezi Arnez- Real Name: Desiderio Albert Arnaz y De Acha III

Anderson Cooper spent two summers as an intern at the CIA.

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