"KENNETH, WHAT IS THE FREQUENCY?"

In 1986, CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather was mugged by a man in Manhattan who repeatedly asked, "Kenneth, what is the frequency?"

On October 4, 1986, Dan Rather was the victim of an unprovoked attack by a man who punched him from behind and demanded to know, "Kenneth, what is the frequency?" As the assailant pummeled and kicked Rather, he kept repeating the question over and over again.

The story entered popular lore and remained unsolved for some time. The phrase soon became the subject of many jokes and slang for a confused or clueless person. The incident inspired a song called "Kenneth, What's the Frequency?" by the band Game Theory in 1987. In October 1990, the phrase "What's the frequency, Kenneth?" appeared in an issue of the Daniel Clowe’s comic Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron. In 1994 the band R.E.M. released the hit song "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" on the album Monster.

In 1997, a TV critic writing in the New York Daily News solved the mystery, and published a photo of the alleged assailant, William Tager. Rather confirmed the story and Tager also admitted assaulting Rather. Tager is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence for killing a NBC stagehand in 1994.

A December 2001 issue of Harper's Magazine speculated that postmodern fiction writer Donald Barthelme had somehow orchestrated the attack citing unusual passages in his writing, including the phrase "What is the frequency?", a recurring character named Kenneth, and a short story about a pompous editor named Lather. The article was adapted into two plays, both entitled "Kenneth, What Is the Frequency?"

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Rather and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What's_the_Frequency,_Kenneth%3F

Dan Rather was anchor of the CBS Evening News for 24 years (1981 – 2005).

Dan Rather sings "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" with R.E.M. at Madison Square Garden (as seen on The Late Show with David Letterman)

Additional links about this topic:

http://www.ratherbiased.com/bizarre.htm

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2001/12/0075777

http://www.citizenparanoid.net/?p=81

http://www.microwaves101.com/encyclopedia/frequency.cfm

http://www.spike.com/video/whats-frequency/2478584

RED M&MS

Red colored M&M's were discontinued for 11 years from 1976 to 1985 after the FDA banned as Red Dye No. 2, despite the fact that M&M's did not contain the dye - the action was purely to satisfy worried consumers.

M&M's (named after their makers Forrest Mars and Bruce Murries) are colorful button-shaped candies with candy shells that surround a chocolate filling. Originated in the United States in 1941, the product, known to “melt in your mouth, not in your hand,” features many different colored M&Ms (although the coloring does not actually affect the taste)

In 1976, the red M&M’s were replaced with orange-colored versions after the FDA banned amaranth (also known as Red Dye No. 2). Many consumers protested, and a student at the University of Tennessee started a society for the “Restoration and Preservation of Red M&M's.”

Eventually the company relented and red candies were reintroduced in 1985 (orange remained).

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M&M's and http://www.foodreference.com/html/artmandms.html

When M&M’s started, the chocolates were made in five colors: red, yellow, brown, green, and violet and served in a cardboard tube. In 1948, the cardboard packaging was replaced by the black cellophane packaging and in 1950, a black "M'" was first imprinted on the candies. It was changed to white in 1954.

In the 90’s, M&M's replaced their animated characters with computer animated "spokescandies" in their commercials. These include the team of the cynical and sardonic "Red" (originally voiced by Jon Lovitz, thereafter Billy West), who is the mascot for milk chocolate M&M's (he stands alongside the happy and gullible "Yellow," originally voiced by John Goodman, thereafter J.K. Simmons, the mascot for peanut M&M's).

Additional links about this topic:

http://www.mms.com/us/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaranth

http://www.candyfavorites.com/Red-M-amp-M-s-reg-pr-1021.html

http://adamfratino.com/writing/red-mm-poster

http://www.mymms.com/merchandise/

WHO SHOT J.R.?

In the cliffhanger scene of the second season of the television show Dallas, the character J. R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) was shot by an unknown individual leading to the question that plagued fans the summer of 1980 - “Who shot J.R.?”

The episode was broadcast on March 21, 1980 and capped off a season where J.R. has angered nearly everyone in the state of Texas. Someone comes into his office late at night and shoots him twice. Viewers had to wait all summer (and most of the autumn due to an actors' strike), to learn whether J.R. would survive, and which of his many enemies was responsible.

Already a hit, the cliffhanger drove the show to pop-culture success: t-shirts were printed saying "Who Shot J.R.?" or "I Shot J.R."; betting parlors took bets on who pulled the trigger; a session of the Turkish parliament was suspended so legislators could watch the next episode.

On November 21, 1980, the third season premier revealed Kristin Shepard (Mary Crosby) as the shooter. Kristin was J.R.'s scheming sister-in-law and mistress, who shot him in a fit of anger. J.R. didn't press charges as Kristin claimed she was pregnant with his child as a result of their affair. The episode became the highest rated television show in US history at the time. It was estimated that 83 million people watched.

The success of this 1980 stunt helped popularize the practice of ending a television season with a cliffhanger.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_shot_J.R.%3F

The original cast of Dallas in 1978. Larry Hagman is top right in the cowboy hat. Mary Crosby would join the show in 1979.

Larry Hagman as J.R. Ewing, an amoral oil baron in the show Dallas

The iconic moment when J.R. is shot

Additional links about this topic:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas_(TV_series)

http://newamerican4109.blogspot.com/2010/01/who-shot-jr.html

http://wapedia.mobi/en/J.R._Ewing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cliffhanger

http://www.tv.com/dallas/show/543/summary.html

LORD OF THE FLIES

Lord of the Flies is the first novel by Nobel Prize-winning author William Golding. Published in 1954, the book portrays a group of British schoolboys stuck on an island and their descent into savagery. In 2005, the novel was chosen by Time magazine as one of the one hundred best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005.

In the book, a British plane crashes on an isolated island with the only survivors being male children below age thirteen. Two dominant boys emerge: Ralph and Jack, the head of a choir group that was among the survivors. Ralph is voted chief and asserts two goals: have fun and work toward rescue by maintaining a constant fire signal. For a time the boys work together while erecting shelters, gathering food and water, and keeping the fire going. Jack organizes his choir group into the group's "hunters," who are responsible for hunting for meat and maintaining the fire.

The boys also find a conch shell that, when first blown, calls the children to an assembly. The boy agree that only the boy holding the conch may speak and it should be passed around to those who wish to voice their opinion. The conch symbolizes democracy and civility and order within the group.

Order quickly deteriorates as the boys turn lazy and idle. At one point, Jack summons his hunters to hunt down a wild pig, leading a ship to miss them when the smoke signal is not maintained. Around the same time, many begin to believe that the island is inhabited by a monster (“the beast”). After Ralph and Jack falsely confirm the beast's existence, the children split into two groups: Ralph's group focuses on preserving the signal fire and Jack’s focuses on hunting.

Jack's tribe gradually becomes more animalistic, blindly murdering a fellow child who they mistake as the beast. Following the murder, they raid Ralph's camp to steal a kid’s glasses to make a fire. Ralph's tribe attempts to get the glasses back and in the ensuing confrontation another child is murdered.

Following the conflict, Jack leads his tribe on a manhunt for Ralph. During the pursuit the island foliage is set ablaze, which has the unintended consequence of attracting the attention of a nearby warship. A naval officer lands on the island, bringing the children's fighting to an abrupt halt. In the final scene, although now certain that he will be rescued after all, Ralph cries.

The title of the book is a reference to Simon, a part of Ralph's tribe, who finds the head of the hunters' dead pig on a stick, left as an offering to the beast. Simon envisions the pig head, swarming with scavenging flies, as the "Lord of the Flies" and believes that it is talking to him.

Lord of the Flies initially sold fewer than three thousand copies in the US, but soon became a bestseller and by the early 1960s was required reading in many schools and colleges. In recent years, the television series Lost has drawn many of its initial plot devices and themes from Lord of the Flies.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_the_Flies

The original cover of Lord of the Flies

Lord of the Flies Author William Golding

Additional links about this topic:

http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/flies/

http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/Lord-of-the-Flies.id-64.html

http://lordoftheflies.org/

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/flies/

http://summarycentral.tripod.com/thelordoftheflies.htm

LIONEL RITCHIE

Lionel Richie is a singer, songwriter and record producer who has sold more than 100 million records.

Ritchie began his musical career as a singer and saxophonist with the Commodores a band that would become established as a popular soul group with hits like "Machine Gun", "Brick House", "Easy", "Three Times a Lady" and "Sail On."

In 1982 he released his self-titled debut containing three hit singles, "Truly," "You Are" and "My Love.” The album hit #3 on the music charts and sold over 4 million copies. His follow up album, Can't Slow Down, sold over twice as many copies and won two Grammy Awards including Album Of The Year. It also spawned the number one hit "All Night Long."

Several hits followed including "Hello," "Stuck On You,” "Running With the Night," and "Penny Lover.”

In 1985 Richie wrote and performed the song "Say You, Say Me" for the film White Nights, winning an Oscar for his efforts. The next year, Richie released Dancing on the Ceiling which produced hits "Say You, Say Me,” "Dancing on the Ceiling," "Ballerina Girl" and "Se La."

In later years, Richie gained notoriety in the 2000's as the adopted father of reality TV star Nicole Ritchie.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionel_Richie

The cover of Ritchie's debut album, Lionel Ritchie.

In 1985 Ritchie collaborated with Michael Jackson to write the charity single "We Are the World." Ritchie was the first artist heard on the track (seen here signing with Stevie Wonder). The 25th Anniversary recording would see him replaced by Justin Bieber.

The video to the Lionel Ritchie classic, "Dancing on the Ceiling."

Additional links about this topic:

http://www.lionelrichie.com/

http://www6.islandrecords.com/site/artist_home.php?artist_id=342

http://80music.about.com/od/artistsqu/tp/toprichiesongs.htm

http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/artist/Lionel+Richie/a/albums.htm

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=lionel+ritchie&x=0&y=0

CHEERS

Set in a fictional Boston bar, Cheers featured a group of locals that meet at their local bar - named "Cheers" - to drink, relax, chat and have fun. The sitcom ran for eleven seasons, from 1982 to 1993, on NBC.

Cheers revolved around Sam Malone (Ted Danson), a retired baseball player and owner of the bar and the locals that frequented the place: Diane Chambers (Shelley Long), waitress and graduate student; know-it-all postman Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger); unemployed accountant Norm Peterson (George Wendt); waitress and tough-girl Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman); and bartender Ernie "Coach" Pantusso (Nicholas Colasanto). Psychiatrist Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) and (future ex) wife Lillith (Bebe Neuwirth) would join the cast in 1984 and 1986 respectively. Woody Harrelson joined as “Woody” Boyd after Nicholas Colasanto passed away in 1985. Kirstie Alley joined the cast as Rebecca Howe when Shelley Long left in 1987.

The show's main theme in its early seasons was the romance between the intellectual waitress Diane and bar owner Sam. After Long left the show, the focus shifted to Sam's new relationship with neurotic corporate climber Rebecca. Both relationships featured multi-episode "will they or won't they" sexual tension.

The highly rated sitcom earned a top-ten rating during eight of its eleven seasons along with 28 Emmy Awards from a then-record 117 nominations.

The bar in Cheers was styled after The Bull & Finch Pub in Boston. The owner agreed let producers shoot exterior and interior shots for just $1. The bar became a tourist attraction that draws in nearly a million visitors annually. It has been renamed “Cheers” and in 1997 was listed as the 42nd busiest outlet in the American food and beverage industry.

Following the ending of Cheers, the character Frasier Crane was spun-off into his own successful show, Frasier.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheers

The original cast of Cheers: Sam and Diane stand at the top; Coach and Carla in the middle; Cliff and Norm seated

In eleven season, Norm Peterson (George Wendt) rarely left his usual bar stool at the bar. Norm-isms would become an iconic part of the shows (Example: "Can I pour you a draft, Mr. Peterson?" "A little early, isn't it Woody?" "For a beer?" "No, for stupid questions.")

Cheers’ opening title sequence with the famous refrain, "Where Everybody Knows Your Name."

Additional links about this topic:

http://www.tv.com/cheers/show/66/summary.html

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083399/

http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/04/07/five-biggest-cheers-mysteries/

http://www.amazon.com/Cheers-TV-Television-DVD/b?ie=UTF8&node=13414511

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1982678/cheers_the_best_tv_show_of_the_80s.html

THE CATCHER IN THE RYE

Written in 1951 by J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye is considered one of the best English-language novels written in the 20th century. The story is popular among adolescent readers for its themes of teenage confusion, angst, sexuality, alienation, and rebellion.

The Catcher in the Rye stars protagonist and antihero, Holden Caulfield, and his experiences in New York City following his expulsion from his college prep school. In the book, Holden shares encounters he has had with students and faculty whom he criticizes as being superficial, or, as he says, "phony." After being expelled (for poor grades), Holden takes a train to New York where he spends three days, characterized largely by drunkenness and loneliness.

The book also features Holden’s younger sister Phoebe, and the fantasy Holden shares with her is the basis for the book’s title: Holden pictures himself as the guardian of children running and playing in a rye field on the edge of a cliff. His job is to catch the children if they wander close to the brink; to be a "catcher in the rye.”

The book is known for its immense amount of profanity and its portrayal of sexuality and teenage angst. Because of this, controversy has followed the book since it was published: In 1960 a teacher was fired for assigning the novel in class; Between 1961 and 1982, The Catcher in the Rye was the most censored book in high schools and libraries in the United States.

Around 250,000 copies are sold each year, with total sales of more than sixty-five million.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Catcher_in_the_Rye

The original cover of The Cather in the Rye.

Author J.D. Salinger. The success of The Catcher in the Rye led to public attention and scrutiny leading Salinger to become a reclusive, publishing new work less frequently. His last published work appeared in The New Yorker on June 19, 1965. Salinger died of natural causes in January 2010.

Additional links about this topic:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/books/29salinger.html

http://www.allreaders.com/Topics/info_774.asp

http://www.bellmore-merrick.k12.ny.us/catcher2.html

http://kclibrary.lonestar.edu/catcher.htm

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Catcher-in-the-Rye/J-D-Salinger/e/9780316769488

HALLEY'S COMET

Halley's Comet is the best-known comet, visible from Earth every 75 to 76 years.

Halley’s (rhymes with “daily’s”) Comet is the only short-period comet (a comet with an orbit lasting 200 years or less; long-period comet’s orbit for thousands of years) that is clearly visible to the naked eye from Earth.

Writer Mark Twain was born in 1835, two weeks after the comet passed Earth. In his autobiography he stated: “I came in with Halley's Comet in 1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it. It will be the greatest disappointment of my life if I don't go out with Halley's Comet. The Almighty has said, no doubt: 'Now here are these two unaccountable freaks; they came in together, they must go out together.'” Twain died in 1910, the day following the comet's closest approach to Earth.

Halley was last visible in 1986. That year it was observed in detail by spacecraft, providing the first observational data on the structure of a comet. These observations supported the "dirty snowball" model – that a comet was composed of a mixture of volatile ices (water, carbon dioxide and ammonia) and dust.

The next predicted view of Halley's Comet from Earth will be July 28, 2061,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halley's_Comet

A close up of Halley's Comet

Halley's Comet, as seen from Earth, in 1986

An artist rendering of Mark Twain's birthplace in Missouri (1835), his home in Connecticut (1910) and Halley's Comet

ALL IN THE FAMILY

Created by Norman Lear, All in the Family broke television ground in its depiction of issues previously considered unsuitable for network television comedies including racism, homosexuality, rape, breast cancer, menopause and impotence.

The show centered on Archie Bunker (played by Carroll O'Connor), a working-class, outspoken bigot who was dismissive of anyone not in agreement with his view of the world. His wife Edith (Jean Stapleton) was a sweet, understanding, if somewhat naive woman. They had one child, Gloria (Sally Struthers), who was married to college student Mike “Meathead” Stivic (Rob Reiner). For much of the series, the Stivics live in the Bunkers' home to save money. When Mike finally graduates college, the Stivics move to the house next door, offered to them by George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley), the Bunkers' former neighbor (George and his wife Louise would spin-off into their own show, The Jeffersons, in 1975).

The main plot points of the show revolved around Mike, who was part of the counterculture of the 1960s, and Archie’s clash between the two generations. The show was notorious for featuring language and epithets previously absent from television (i.e. "fag," "hebe,” and "spic")

The sitcom ran for on CBS from 1971 to 1979, ranking #1 the first five years and winning numerous Emmys, becoming the first of three sitcoms in which all the lead actors (O'Connor, Stapleton, Struthers, and Reiner) won Emmy Awards (the other two are The Golden Girls and Will & Grace). 2002’s TV Guide's “50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time” ranked the show as #4.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_in_the_Family

The cast of All in the Family. Carroll O'Connor as Archie on the right.

Each episode began with Archie and Edith singing "Those Were the Days," the show's theme song.

A famous episode of All in the Family, where Sammy Davis Jr. guest stars as himself. His famous "kiss" comes towards the end of the clip, around 9:30.

KENNY ROGERS

Over five decades, Kenny Rogers has recorded 65 albums, had more than 70 hit singles and has sold over 120 million records. In 1986, he was voted "Favorite Singer of All-Time" by readers of USA Today and People Magazine.

Rogers received notoriety in 1976 when he released his second album, the self-titled Kenny Rogers, featuring the hit single "Lucille" (the song reached number one in 12 countries). The follow up album, 1978’s The Gambler, provided more hits including “The Gambler” and "Coward of the County."

"The Gambler" won Rogers the Grammy award for best male country vocal performance. It was one of five consecutive songs by Rogers to hit #1 on the Billboard country music charts and was the theme song used for Rogers' long running television movie series of the same name, in which he stars as a fictional professional poker player.

Rogers' 2000 single, "Buy Me a Rose," made him, at 61, the oldest artist in the history of country music to reach number one (the record was broken in 2003, when 70-year-old Willie Nelson had a number one hit)

Other hits include "Lady," "Ruby Don't Take Your Love to Town," "She Believes in Me," "Islands in the Stream," "We've Got Tonight," and "Buy Me A Rose."

Rogers has also had success with his fast-food chain, Kenny Rogers Roasters, a chicken and ribs place (similar to Boston Market) that was famously lampooned on Seinfeld.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenny_Rogers

Kenny Rogers as Brady Hawkes in the television movie series, The Gambler

The cover of Kenny Rogers' 1979 solo album, Kenny

Kenny Rogers' classic hit, "The Gambler"

THE ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT ON RONALD REGAN

The assassination attempt on Ronald Regan occurred in 1981, just 69 days into his presidency. Ronald Reagan was the first United States president to survive being shot in an assassination attempt.

While leaving a speaking engagement in DC, President Reagan was shot and wounded by John Hinckley, Jr. The motivation behind Hinckley's attack stemmed from an obsession with actress Jodie Foster after seeing her in the film Taxi Driver. Hinckley was convinced that by becoming a national figure he would be Foster's equal.

On March 30th, Hinckley emerged from a crowd of admirers and fired six shots at the President. Hinckley’s final bullet ricocheted off the side of a limousine, hitting the President and puncturing his lung.

Although no formal presidential succession took place, Secretary of State Alexander Haig famously stated that he was "in control here," although he was not in the line of succession of the President (Vice President George H. W. Bush was on a plane to DC, hence Haig’s comment).

The attack seriously wounded the President's Press Secretary, James Brady, who sustained a serious head wound and became permanently disabled. Brady became a leading advocate of gun control and, in 1993, The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (aka The Brady Bill) was passed, instituting federal background checks on firearm purchasers in the United States.

Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity and has remained confined to a psychiatric facility since. After his trial, he wrote that the shooting was "the greatest love offering in the history of the world,” and did not indicate any regrets.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reagan_assassination_attempt

Regan, moments before the shooting.

The chaos that ensued moments after the shots were fired.

Footage of the assassination attempt.

SIMON & GARFUNKEL

Simon & Garfunkel are among the most popular recording artists of the 1960s and are inductees in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel met in elementary school. The duo rose to fame in 1965, backed by their hit single "The Sounds of Silence.”

In 1967, Simon & Garfunkel contributed heavily to the soundtrack to the film The Graduate, including the hit “Mrs. Robinson.” The soundtrack instantly rose to number one and "Mrs. Robinson" was named Record of the Year.

Their last album, Bridge Over Troubled Water was released in 1970. The album became one of the best-selling records of the decade and was named Grammy Album and Record Of The Year. The title track won that years Grammy for Song Of The Year.

Other hits include "Homeward Bound," "A Hazy Shade of Winter," "The Boxer," and "Cecilia."

The duo split in 1970, reuniting on several occasions, most famously for 1981's The Concert in Central Park, which attracted about 500,000 people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_%26_Garfunkel

Paul Simon (left) and Art Garfunkel in the late 1960's

A view of Central Park during Simon & Garfunkel's 1981 free outdoor concert.

The duo’s first hit, “The Sounds of Silence”