April 19 in Pop Culture History

1775 – The American Revolution began in Lexington, Massachusetts.

1892 -The first Duryea automobile was operated by pioneer manufacturer Charles E. Duryea in Springfield, Massachusetts.

1897 – The first Boston Marathon was held.

1919 – Leslie Irvin made the first successful voluntary free-fall parachute jump using a self-contained parachute.

1927 – Mae West is sentenced to ten days in jail for obscenity for her play Sex in New York. She served eight days with two days off for good behavior.

1956 – American actress Grace Kelly married Prince Rainier of Monaco.

1963 (Tornado) Cooch Behar, India.

1975 – India’s first satellite, Aryabhata, was launched.

1977 – The Amazing Spider-Man debuted on CBS.

1972 – Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope (Broadway Review) Opened on April 19, 1972, and closed on October 27, 1974

1980 – #1 Hit April 19, 1980 – May 30, 1980: Blondie – Call Me

1982 – NASA announced that the first black astronaut would be Guion S. Bluford, Jr., and the first woman astronaut would be Sally K. Ride.

1985 – Two hundred ATF and FBI agents laid siege to the compound of the neo-Nazi survivalist group The Covenant, The Sword, and the Arm of the Lord in Arkansas.

1986 – #1 Hit April 19, 1986 – May 2, 1986: Prince and the Revolution – Kiss

1987 – The Tracey Ullman Show featured a short with ‘The Simpsons.’

1993 – At Mount Carmel in Waco, Texas, the FBI launched a tear-gas assault on the Branch Davidian compound, ending with a fire that killed 81 members, including 22 children.

1995 – A massive truck bomb exploded outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, killing 168 people.

1996 – Mystery Science Theater 3000, The Substitute, Mrs. Winterbourne, and Celtic Pride were released in theaters.

2001 – The Producers (Musical) Opened on April 19, 2001, and closed on April 22, 2007

2009 – Cake Boss premiered on TLC.