What Happened On
Clinton-Lewinsky Affair - The Blue Dress
February 28, 1997
Monica Lewinsky claims that she performed oral sex on U.S. President Bill Clinton while wearing a blue dress. She would later turn over the blue dress to the FBI who determined that semen stains on it were from Clinton. This evidence prompted Clinton's famous "What the meaning of 'IS' is" in defense of previous claims that he did not have sexual relations with Lewinsky.
David Koresh - Waco Killings
February 28, 1993
Four federal agents and six Branch Davidian members are killed in a shootout when the ATF attempted to execute a search warrant relating to alleged sexual abuse charges and illegal weapons violations. This led to a 51-day standoff that ultimately ended in the Waco disaster, in which 76 cult members were killed, including leader David Koresh who claimed to be Jesus Christ.
Diff'rent Strokes Robber
February 28, 1991
Dana Plato, who played Kimberly Drummond on the TV show Diff'rent Strokes (1978-86), robs a video store with a pellet gun stealing $164. She returned to the scene of the crime 15 minutes later and was promptly identified and arrested. She was given five years probation, which she violated in 1992 by forging a prescription for Diazepam.
M*A*S*H Goodbye, Farewell and Amen
February 28, 1983
The final episode of the TV series M*A*S*H is watched by a record 106 million viewers. The episode was originally written for 90 minutes. But, a brush fire broke out at the set in Malibu Creek State Park. The fire was filmed and worked into the script, adding an extra 30 minutes making it two hours long.
California Gold Rush
February 28, 1849
The first prospectors for the Gold Rush of '49 arrive in San Francisco. Gold was discovered by James Marshall on Sutter's Mill the previous year. Over 300,000 people, known as "forty-niners" (from year 1849), would go to California to seek their fortune.
U.S. President Saved by Drinking
February 28, 1844
U.S. President John Tyler is almost killed when the newly-built war steamer USS Princeton fires one of its guns. The gun exploded killing Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur, Secretary of the Navy Thomas W. Gilmer, David Gardiner, and three others. Tyler was supposed to be present, but had stopped on the way for drinks.
David Gardiner's daughter Julia was also on board. Julia had previously turned down Tyler's marriage proposals, but Tyler's comforting of her through this tragedy won her consent to be wed. Julia in later years spoke of how Tyler's quiet strength sustained her through her grief. Tyler became the first U.S. President to elope when he and Julia wed four months later.
Don't Ask, Don't Tell
February 28, 1994
"Don't ask, don't tell" becomes the official U.S. policy on military service by gays, bisexuals, and lesbians. It prohibited discriminating against closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while barring openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual persons from military service. It prohibited people who "demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts" from serving in the U.S. armed forces, because their presence "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability." It remained in effect until 2011 when gays were allowed to serve openly in the military.
Long Arms Save Dolphin
February 28, 1978
Basketball player Clifford Ray assists in an operation at Marine World in California by using his long arms to retrieve a large screw swallowed by a dolphin.
First Televised Collegiate Basketball Game
February 28, 1940
W2XBS of New York City broadcast a game between Pittsburgh and Fordham.
Territory of Colorado
February 28, 1861
The Territory of Colorado is established by the U.S. Congress.
University of Pittsburgh
February 28, 1787
The Pittsburgh Academy is founded. It became University of Pittsburgh in 1908.
Birthdays
Founder of the Rolling Stones
Brian Jones (Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones)
Born February 28, 1942 d. 1969
British Hall of Fame singer, guitarist. He was the founder, rhythm/lead guitarist, and original leader of The Rolling Stones. In 1962, he placed an advertisement in the May 2nd edition of Jazz News inviting musicians to audition for a new R&B group. The first to join was pianist Ian Stewart, soon followed by Mick Jagger and Jagger's childhood friend Keith Richards.
Jones drowned in the swimming pool at his home. He had left the band less than a month earlier after drug and alcohol problems had made him increasingly less reliable in the studio.
Tara Calico
Born February 28, 1969
American kidnapping victim. She disappeared from near her home in New Mexico in September 1988 when she was 19 years old. The following June, a Polaroid photo of an unidentified bound and gagged woman and boy was found in a parking lot in Florida. The woman in the photo is believed to be Tara Calico. The type of film used was not available until after May 1989, eight months after she disappeared. Also shown in the photo was a copy of V.C. Andrews' My Sweet Audrina, said to be one of Calico's favorite books and the woman in the photo had a scar on her leg similar to one Calico had. The boy has never been identified. Neither of the victims have been found.
The photo was shown on national crime shows such as A Current Affair, Unsolved Mysteries, and America's Most Wanted and has also been profiled on The Oprah Winfrey Show and 48 Hours.
Bernadette Peters (Bernadette Lazzara)
Born February 28, 1948
American Tony-winning actress. Stage: Song and Dance (1985, Tony). Film: The Jerk (1979).
Stephanie Beacham
Born February 28, 1947
British actress. TV: The Colbys (Sable Colby).
Frank Bonner
Born February 28, 1942 d. 2021
American actor. TV: WKRP in Cincinnati (1978-82, Herb Tarlek).
Mario Andretti
Born February 28, 1940
Italian-born American auto racer, Indianapolis 500 winner. He is only person named "Driver of the Year" in three decades (1967, 1978, 1984). the only driver to win the Daytona 500, Indy 500, and Formula One world title, and the oldest person to win an Indy race (1993, age 53).
Tommy Tune
Born February 28, 1939
American Tony-winning choreographer, singer, dancer. He Directed and choreographed Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1978).
Gavin MacLeod
Born February 28, 1931 d. 2021
American actor. TV: The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-77, Murray Slaughter), The Love Boat (1977-87, Capt. Stubing), and McHale's Navy (1962-64, "Happy" Haines).
Bettye Ackerman
Born February 28, 1924 d. 2006
American actress. TV: Ben Casey (1961-66, Dr. Maggie Graham).
Charles Durning
Born February 28, 1923 d. 2012
American Tony-winning actor. TV: Evening Shade (Dr. Elldrige). He was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, and Purple Heart for his service during WWII.
Mostel in Fiddler on the Roof
Mostel in Fiddler on the Roof
Zero Mostel
Born February 28, 1915 d. 1977
American actor, singer. Stage: Fiddler on the Roof (1964, as Tevye singing If I Were a Rich Man).
Sir Peter Brian Medawar
Born February 28, 1915 d. 1987
British Nobel-winning medical scientist. He was co-winner of a 1960 Nobel Prize for his work on skin grafting.
Milton Caniff
Born February 28, 1907 d. 1988
American cartoonist. Creator of Terry and the Pirates (1934) and Steve Canyon (1947).
Linus Carl Pauling
Born February 28, 1901 d. 1994
American Nobel-winning chemist and vitamin C advocate. He also won a Nobel Peace Prize.
Victor Louis Berger
Born February 28, 1860 d. 1929
Transylvanian-born American politician. He was the first socialist elected to the U.S. Congress (1910, House of Representatives for Wisconsin) and was one of the founders of the Socialist Party (1900).
Charles Blondin (Jean Francois Gravelet)
Born February 28, 1824 d. 1897
French acrobat, aerialist. He was the first to cross Niagara Falls on a tightrope (1859). A crowd of over 100,000 people watched. He also crossed it other times blindfolded, pushing a wheelbarrow, carrying a man on his back, and on stilts.
Sir John Tenniel
Born February 28, 1820 d. 1914
English illustrator. He illustrated Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking-Glass (1871). He was also principal political cartoonist for Punch magazine for over 50 years.
Deaths
Jane Russell in The Outlaw (1943)
Jane Russell in The Outlaw (1943)
Jane Russell
Died February 28, 2011 b. 1921
American actress, full-figured gal. Bob Hope once joked, "Culture is the ability to describe Jane Russell without moving your hands." Film: Gentleman Prefer Blondes (1953) and Gentlemen Marry Brunettes (1955).
Paul Harvey (Paul Harvey Aurandt)
Died February 28, 2009 b. 1918
American radio commentator. "Hello Americans, I'm Paul Harvey… And now for the rest of the story" (1952-2008). Known for his conservative views, Harvey was a friend and supporter of J. Edgar Hoover and Senator Joseph McCarthy.
Ruby Keeler (Ethel Hilda Keeler)
Died February 28, 1993 b. 1909
American dancer, actress. She frequently co-starred with Dick Powell. Film: 42nd Street (1933).
Richard Willard Armour
Died February 28, 1989 b. 1906
American author, poet. Writings: It All Started With Eve (1956).
Armour wrote humorous poems that were featured in newspapers as Armour's Armory.
Poem: "Middle Age is a time of life, that a man first notices in his wife."
Charita Bauer
Died February 28, 1985 b. 1922
American Emmy-winning actress. TV and radio: The Guiding Light (Bert Bauer, which she played for 35 years).
Philip Ahn (Pil Lip Ahn)
Died February 28, 1978 b. 1905
American actor. He was the first Asian-American film actor to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. TV: Kung Fu (1972-75, Master Kan).
Eddie "Rochester" Anderson
Died February 28, 1977 b. 1905
American actor. TV: The Jack Benny Program (1950-65, Benny's valet Rochester). Radio: The Jack Benny Program (1937-55, making Anderson the first Black American to have a regular role on a nationwide radio program).
Henry Robinson Luce
Died February 28, 1967 b. 1898
American publisher. Founded Time (1922), Fortune (1930), Life (1936), and Sports Illustrated (1954) magazines.