The Daily Dose/August 10, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
Leading Off
Notes from around our human experience.
ALREADY WITH THE DRY, TECHNICAL MATTER: Monday in our popular On This Date segment we ran an item on The Judds being at #1 on Billboard’s country chart in 1986 with Rockin’ With the Rhythm of the Rain. We noted it was the 58th of 87 consecutive country #1s that spent only one week at the top, which is pretty obscure trivia even by our standards.
Curiosity Kills Cats: That tidbit was not given to us – even if it was we would have checked it out anyway – we went and found it out. First, we noticed that all #1 songs prior to this one in 1986 had spent a week at #1 and it was a simple matter to find out that all remaining country #1s in 1986 had only spent a week at the top. Well, like any good researcher we wondered how many consecutive #1s had only spent a week at the top and some counting on the 1985 and 1987 charts showed that number to be 87 and you don’t have to be Casey Kasem to know that is an extraordinarily high figure, even for that era in country music when songs seldom spent more than a week at the top.
All right, we strongly suspected this would be a record for a major Billboard singles (pop, soul, country) chart but we wanted to know for sure and it’s important to us that everything you read here, especially chart data, be correct. Not suspected to be correct but correct, which means you put the work in to know for sure.
Seek And Ye Shall Find: So we did, and a check of a list of every Billboard pop, soul and country #1 song showed it was, in fact, a record and it wasn’t particularly close, either.
Oh Jesus H: The next closest string of consecutive #1 songs spending only a week at the top was twelve, done on the Hot 100 in 1975, which means our equally strong suspicion that 1986 was the only time in a calendar year all #1 songs spent only a week at #1 proved to be correct, too.
The Bottom Line: It’s difficult – and perhaps not even particularly desirable – to have a greater interest in Billboard chart drivel than we do, so our hope is you at least find our findings tolerable and, perhaps, even moderately interesting. Because Lord knows we aren’t going to stop providing it.
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow and a guest share a laugh – well, a chuckle – at the front desk. Today’s Diary.
– Is this your favorite key, sir? Would you like me to reuse it???
– Naw…But it was a good key…It let me in my room every time.This was moderately funny and I stood there staring at the key with the same awe you might give a lunar sample.
– You know, we could retire it and put it in the Key Hall of Fame…
– No, just put it back in general rotation…Let others benefit from it.
I bowed slightly.
– You are gracious, sir.
———
Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device.
Columns, books, shopping lists, click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.
———
On This Date
The long march to today.
In 1628 – The Swedish warship Vasa sinks in Stockholm harbor 20 minutes and roughly half a nautical mile into her maiden voyage. The ship was too top-heavy to sail, a condition known at the time, but disregarded after no one had the courage to tell King Gustavus Adolphus. The bronze cannon were reclaimed in the 17th-century and the ship itself was raised in 1961 and remains a popular tourist attraction
In 1889 – Mickey Welch of the New York Giants becomes the first pinch-hitter in major league history in a 9-6 victory of the Indianapolis Hoosiers. Welch batted for Hank O’Day in the 5th inning and struck out. Though not known for sure, it is presumed O’Day was injured because rules of the day did not otherwise allow for substitutes. The following season, Welch would become the third major league pitcher to win 300 games while later O’Day would go on to a long career as National League umpire.
In 1968 – Johnny Cash is at #1 on Billboard’s country chart – then known as the Hot Country Singles chart – for the fourth and final consecutive week with Folsom Prison Blues. It was the eighth of 13 #1 country songs for Cash and the song also peaked at #32 on the Hot 100. The song was recorded live at California’s Folsom State Prison the previous January and the studio version of the song was both a country and pop Top 10 hit in 1956.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
The secret of happiness is action, the exercise of energy in a way suited to a man’s nature and circumstances.
Will Durant
The Story of Civilization, Vol II: The Life of Greece.
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.
The first athlete to win four gold medals at one Olympics was Carl Schumann of Germany, who won three gymnastics gold medals and one Greco-Roman wrestling gold medal at the 1896 Athens Games. While 19 other athletes have won gold medals in different sports at the Summer Games, Schumann remains the only one to win them in gymnastics and wrestling.
Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.
For how many years were the Indianapolis Hoosiers in the National League? – Answer next time!
Go Gaylon! Visit Gaylon on Facebook here.
