This blog goes back a ways. Some of the younger viewers will see this as a time capsule while the older viewers will say “Hey, I remember that!” As I grow older, I tend to forget just how different things have been through my lifetime, so I thought a weekly “This Week in Pop History” blog would be fun.
So, March 15, 1970 – let’ start by seeing who is playing in Las Vegas: Jerry Lewis is at Caesars Palace, Don Ho is at the Flamingo, Wayne Newton is at the Frontier, Roger Miller is at the Riviera, and Flip Wilson is playing at the Sahara. No, Elvis was not there…yet.
The Beatles had just sent the world into a tailspin by announcing their breakup, but Ringo Starr was already recording his first solo, “It Don’t Come Easy.” He had a little help – George Harrison was playing the guitar.
Cable television was long away from being in mainstream in 1970, but Americans tuned into the network channels (CBS, NBC, and ABC) to see: Hee Haw, the Beverly Hillbillies (it would end its run in March 1971), Medical Center, Hawaii Five-O (“Book’em, Danno”), the Tonight Show (with Johnny Carson), the Nanny and the Professor, the Courtship of Eddie’s Father (starring Bill Bixby, who would become a staple of network television during the 70s), and Room 222.
What about pop music? See if you remember any of these hits that were charting on March 15, 1970: Bridge over Trouble Water (Simon & Garfunkel), Travelin’ Band (Creedence Clearwater Revival), Evil Ways (Santana), He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother (the Hollies), Kentucky Rain (Elvis Presley), Love Grows (Edison Lighthouse), Celebrate (Three Dog Night), No Time (The Guess Who), and Venus (Shocking Blue).
Well, if you don’t remember any of the pop music from 1970, maybe you remember the movies: Airport, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, Hellfighters, Paint Your Wagon, MASH, or Woodstock (the movie).
As for news, 14 Army officers were charged with misconduct in connection with the My Lai massacre and a postal strike that started in New York went nationwide. San Francisco Mayor Joseph Alioto proclaims March 21 the first Earth Day.