October 17 in Pop Culture History
1091 – The London Tornado of 1091 destroyed many buildings, and killed two people.
1860 – First Open (Golf) Championship (referred to in the US as the British Open).
1919 – Radio Corporation of America (RCA) incorporated.
1931 – Al Capone was convicted of income tax evasion.
1956 – The first commercial nuclear power station is officially opened in Sellafield, Cumbria, England.
1956 – Donald Byrne and Bobby Fischer played a game of chess labeled The Game of the Century. Fischer beat Byrne.
1958 – An Evening With Fred Astaire premiered, it was one the first “special” programs on television, and won nine Emmy Awards.
1960 – #1 Hit October 17, 1960 – October 23, 1960: The Drifters – Save the Last Dance for Me
1964 – #1 Hit October 17, 1964 – October 30, 1964: Manfred Mann – Do Wah Diddy Diddy
1965 – The 1964/65 New York World’s Fair closed. Over 51 million people had attended the event.
1966 – All of NBC’s news programming began airing in full-color.
1970 – #1 Hit October 17, 1970 – November 20, 1970: The Jackson 5 – I’ll Be There
1973 – OPEC imposed an oil embargo against a number of Western countries.
1979 – The Department of Education Organization Act was signed into law, creating the US Department of Education and US Department of Health and Human Services.
1979 – Mother Teresa won the Nobel Peace Prize.
1981 – #1 Hit October 17, 1981 – November 6, 1981: Christopher Cross – Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)
1987 – #1 Hit October 17, 1987 – October 23, 1987: Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam – Lost in Emotion
1989 (Earthquake) The Lome Prieta earthquake interrupted Game 3 of the World Series
1998 – #1 Hit October 17, 1998 – November 13, 1998: Barenaked Ladies – One Week
2005 – The Colbert Report premiered on Comedy Central
2007 – Storm Chasers debuted on The Discovery Channel
2008 – Ghost Adventures premiered on The Travel Channel