Today in Entertainment History: “Sukiyaki” hit number one

On June 15, 1963, “Sukiyaki” by Kyu Sakamoto topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was the first Japanese song to go to number one in the U.S.

In 1964, Peter and Gordon arrived for their first U.S. tour.

In 1965, Bob Dylan recorded the song “Like A Rolling Stone” at Columbia Records’ studios in New York.

In 1966, The Beatles released “Yesterday and Today” with its controversial “butcher” sleeve: a photo of The Beatles surrounded by bloody baby doll parts. The cover was changed to a more conventional photo, and the butcher version became a collector’s item.

In 1967, guitarist Peter Green left John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers to form Fleetwood Mac. Green abruptly left the band in 1970.

In 1982, bassist Pete Farndon quit The Pretenders, one day before guitarist James Honeyman-Scott died.

In 1992, Bruce Springsteen kicked off a summer tour in Stockholm. It was his first tour without the E Street Band.

In 1995, Jewish leaders demanded an apology from Michael Jackson over his song “They Don’t Care About Us,” which contained anti-Semitic slang words.

In 1996, jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald died at her home in Beverly Hills, California. She was 78.

Today’s Birthdays: Singer Ruby Nash Garnett of Ruby and the Romantics is 88. Guitarist Leo Nocentelli of The Meters is 76. Actor Simon Callow (“Amadeus,” ″Shakespeare in Love”) is 73. Singer Russell Hitchcock of Air Supply is 73. Singer Steve Walsh (Kansas) is 71. Country singer Terri Gibbs is 68. Actor Jim Belushi is 68. Actor Julie Hagerty (“Airplane”) is 67. Actor Polly Draper (“thirtysomething”) is 67. Guitarist Brad Gillis of Night Ranger is 65. Actor Eileen Davidson (“The Young and the Restless,” “Days of Our Lives”) is 63. Drummer Scott Rockenfield of Queensryche is 59. Actor Helen Hunt is 59. Actor Courteney Cox (“Friends”) is 58. Guitarist Tony Ardoin of River Road is 58. Guitarist Michael Britt of Lonestar is 56. Drummer Rob Mitchell of Sixpence None The Richer is 56. Rapper-actor Ice Cube is 53. Actor Leah Remini (LEE’-uh REH’-muh-nee) (“King of Queens”) is 52. Actor Jake Busey (“Starship Troopers”) is 51. Trombone player T-Bone Willy of Save Ferris is 50. Actor Neil Patrick Harris (“How I Met Your Mother,” ″Doogie Howser, M.D.”) is 49. Actor Greg Vaughan (“Days of Our Lives,” “General Hospital”) is 49. Actor Elizabeth Reaser (“Twilight”) is 47. Singer Dryden Mitchell of Alien Ant Farm is 46. Former child actor Christopher Castle (“Step By Step,” ″Beethoven” films) is 42. Guitarist Billy Martin of Good Charlotte is 41. Actor Jordi Vilasuso (“The Young and the Restless”) is 41. Guitarist Wayne Sermon of Imagine Dragons is 38. Actor Denzel Whitaker is 32. Actor Sterling Jerins (“The Conjuring” films) is 18.

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