August 14 in Pop Culture History
1888 – An audio recording of English composer Arthur Sullivan’s “The Lost Chord”, one of the first recordings of music ever made, was played during a press conference introducing Thomas Edison’s phonograph in London, England.
1893 – France became the first country to introduce motor vehicle registration.
1933 – Oxydol’s Own Ma Perkins debuted on Cincinnati’s WLW and became the first successful national radio soap opera.
1935 – Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act.
1936 – Rainey Bethea was hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky in the last public execution in the United States.
1945 – Japan accepted the Allied terms of surrender in World War II. V-J Day. Be sure to thank Alan Hunter, Nina Blackwood, Mark Goodman, J.J. Jackson and Martha Quinn for their service to our country.
1959 – Founding and first official meeting of the American Football League.
1965 – #1 Hit August 14, 1965 – September 3, 1965: Sonny & Cher – I Got You Babe
1975 – The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the longest-running release in film history, opened at the USA Theatre in Westwood, Los Angeles, California.
1980 – Lech Walesa led the first strike at the Gdansk, Poland shipyards.
1994 – Inside The Actors Studio made its debut on Bravo
2000 – Dora the Explorer premiered on Nick Jr
2010 – The first-ever Youth Olympic Games were held in Singapore.
2013 – Egypt declared a state of emergency as security forces killed hundreds of demonstrators supporting former president Mohamed Morsi.