6 Year Anniversary Of The Death Of Singer/Actress Aaliyah

Aaliyah Dana Haughton (January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001), best known simply as Aaliyah, was an American singer, dancer, model and actress. Born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Detroit, Michigan from the age of 5, Aaliyah was introduced to audiences by R&B singer R. Kelly. Aaliyah became famous during the mid-1990s with several hit records from the songwriting/production team of Missy Elliott & Timbaland and their associate Steve "Static" Garrett. Aaliyah soon joined Timbaland's R&B and hip hop collective, the Superfriends Clique.

Aaliyah signed with her uncle Barry Hankerson's Blackground Records label in 1993 at the age of 14. She released her debut album, titled Age Ain't Nothing but a Number, in 1994 at the age of 15. R. Kelly, was a leading songwriter and producer on her debut album.

One In A Million, Aaliyah's second album, was chiefly written and produced by then-unknowns Missy Elliott and Timothy "Timbaland" Mosley. One in a Million was released on August 27, 1996 when Aaliyah was 17 years of age. The album became a landmark in Aaliyah's career, garnering her mass critical acclaim. The album was certified double-platinum within a year, making Aaliyah a major R&B star and igniting the successful careers of Missy Elliott and Timbaland.

In 2000, Aaliyah co-starred with Jet Li in the martial arts film Romeo Must Die, which debuted at number one at the box office. Aaliyah and Timbaland executive produced the film's soundtrack album and Aaliyah contributed four songs: "Are You Feelin' Me?," "I Don't Wanna," "Come Back in One Piece," a duet with rapper DMX, and the international number one hit "Try Again." Aaliyah made history once more when "Try Again" became the first song to ever reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 based solely on the strength of its radio airplay, without any single sales factored in.

Aaliyah's third studio album, the self-titled Aaliyah, was released on July 17, 2001. The album was an instant critical success. Aaliyah introduced a darker and edgier side to Aaliyah's music and was noted as having showcased her growth as an artist. Around the time of the album's recording and release she had been filming Queen of the Damned, which helped her show a dark and edgy side as her character was a deadly vampire villain. She also had just landed a role that was sure to make her an international film star: a part in the two sequels to The Matrix starring Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne.

On Saturday, August 25, 2001, at 6:49 pm (EST), just after completion of filming for the "Rock the Boat" video, Aaliyah and various members of her record company boarded a twin engine Cessna 402B (N8097W) at Marsh Harbour, Abaco Island, Bahamas to travel to Opa-Locka Airport near Miami, Florida. The plane crashed shortly after takeoff about 200 feet from the runway. Pilot Luis Morales III and all eight passengers, including 22 year-old Aaliyah, were killed in the aviation accident. According to findings from an inquest conducted by the coroner's office in the Bahamas, Aaliyah suffered from "severe burns and a blow to the head," in addition to severe shock. The coroner theorized that, even if Aaliyah had survived the crash, her recovery would have been virtually impossible given the severity of her injuries.




The private funeral for Aaliyah was held on August 31 at Saint Ignatius Loyola Roman Catholic Church in Manhattan, NYC. A public memorial for Aaliyah was held at Cipriani's on 42nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, NYC that same day and was open to the public for most of the day. I attended that memorial.




Aaliyah is missed and will always be remembered by her fans, friends and most importantly, by her family.


Rashad Haughton, Aaliyah's brother, wrote a special poem for his late sister.

Click here to read it on Aaliyah.com:

Forever Young








Sources:




CNN.com - Aaliyah funeral attracts fans, stars - August 31, 2001

CNN.com - U.S. investigators to probe Aaliyah crash - August 27, 2001

Aaliyah - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia











Aaliyah Videos:







I Don't Wanna









One In A Million









We Need A Resolution









More Than a Woman









Are You That Somebody










I Miss U (Aaliyah tribute video)

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30 Years Since We Lost 'The King': Elvis Presley

Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), was an American singer, musician and actor. He is a cultural icon, often known simply as Elvis; also "The King of Rock 'n' Roll", or simply "The King".

Throughout his career, he set records for concert attendance, television ratings and recordings sales. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in the history of popular music. His death, at the age of 42, shocked his fans worldwide.


In November 1948, the Presleys moved to Memphis, allegedly because Vernon — as well as needing work — had to escape the law for transporting "bootlegger" liquor. In 1949, they lived at Lauderdale Courts — a public housing development — in one of Memphis, Tennessee's poorer sections. Presley practiced guitar playing in the basement laundry room and also played in a five-piece band with other tenants.


On December 20, 1957, Presley received his army draft notice. Hal Wallis and Paramount Pictures had already spent $350,000 on Presley's latest film King Creole and they feared the consequences of suspending or canceling the project. The Memphis Draft Board granted Presley a deferment so the movie could be finished. On March 24, 1958, he was finally inducted and completed basic training at Fort Hood, Texas, before being posted to Friedberg, Germany.


Priscilla (née Beaulieu) had stayed with Presley during the 1960s (they had first met in Germany, when she was only fourteen). They married on May 1, 1967 in Las Vegas. A daughter, Lisa Marie, was born exactly nine months later.


Divorcing in 1973, Presley became increasingly isolated and overweight, with prescription drugs — apparently prescribed with little question — taking their toll on his health, mood and his stage act. As time progressed, Presley became even more obese — he would diet excessively and then binge eat.


Presley's final performance was in Indianapolis, IN at the Market Square Arena, (June 26, 1977). August 17, 1977, was to be the start of another tour. However, at "Graceland" the day before on August 16, 1977, Presley was found on the floor of his bathroom by fiancée, Ginger Alden. According to the medical investigator, Presley had "stumbled or crawled several feet before he died". He was officially pronounced dead from a heart attack reportedly brought on by prescription medicine abuse at 3:30 p.m. at the Baptist Memorial Hospital. The BioScience Laboratories report indicated the detection of fourteen drugs in Elvis' system, ten in significant quantity.

His funeral was a national media event. Hundreds of thousands of fans, the press and celebrities lined the streets hoping to see the open casket in "Graceland" or to witness the funeral. Among the mourners were Ann-Margret (who had remained close to Presley) and his ex-wife. U.S. President Jimmy Carter issued a statement.

Presley was buried at Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis, next to his mother. After an attempt to steal the body, his — and his mother's — remains were reburied at Graceland in Memphis, TN in the Meditation Gardens.


When Presley died, his finances were in sad shape. Led by ex-wife Priscilla Presley, the estate formed Elvis Presley Enterprises, opened Graceland to the public in 1982 and solidified the legal rights to make money on Elvis' name and image. Last year, Graceland took in $27 million in revenue, and the overall Elvis business brings in more than $40 million a year. That made him the second-highest grossing dead celebrity in 2006, behind only Nirvana 's Kurt Cobain, according to Forbes magazine.

Elvis remains an icon and a legend today, 30 years after his untimely death.

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Four Year Anniversary of The Northeast Blackout of 2003

On August 14th, 2003, four years ago today, shortly after 4 p.m., a blackout of over 2 days occurred, affecting much of the United States' Northeast area, including New York City and the surrounding areas. No matter what country blackouts occur in, they expose modern technological societies' dependence on electricity.

The events that led to the largest power failure in U.S. history began in Ohio, officials said, when several high-voltage transmission lines failed. Investigators said that an alarm that should have alerted power controllers also failed. These events triggered the shutdown of power lines and some 100 power plants across the North East and Canada. However, officials could not yet account for why the safety measures that should have isolated the power failures did not work.

An estimated 50 million people in Canada, Ohio, Michigan, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York lost electrical power at approximately 4:10 p.m. on Thursday, August 14, 2003. In New York City, subway trains shut down and thousands of riders had to be evacuated. All travel in and out of Penn Station and Grand Central Station ceased. Travel on New Jersey Transit, Metro-North, PATH trains, and the Long Island Rail Road and area airports came to a halt.

Millions of people walked out of their office buildings and tried to figure out how to get home. Tens of thousands of commuters and tourists had no where to go and ended up sleeping on city streets, buying what food and drinks they could from stores that stayed open. Many neighbors organized their own festivities, with outdoor parties extending late into the night.

The New York Stock Exchange opened on Friday morning, powered by a generator, but much of the city took a summer "snow day", with many businesses and summer school and day care programs closing for the day. All power was fully restored in the city by 9 p.m. on Friday; the Chelsea neighborhood in Manhattan was the last to see the lights go on. By 6 a.m. on Saturday, the subway system was running on its regular schedule.

By Sunday morning August 17, 2003, NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared that the city was back to normal.

The blackout of 2003 caused power in waste water treatment plants to go out, leading to their shutdown and consequent sewage spillage. Environmental effects of that were sea-life, beach, and tap-water contamination. The economic effect of the contamination was the costs of cleanup.


There were no riots, looting or serial killer in NYC during the blackout of the summer of 2003 as there was in the blackout of the summer of 1977.

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30 Year Anniversary Of The Summer Of 1977 In NYC: Son Of Sam and Citywide Blackout

30 years ago last week on August 10, 1977, Son Of Sam serial killer David Berkowitz was captured and arrested by New York City police officers after Berkowitz slipped up and was discovered by getting a parking ticket on his car in the Brooklyn neighborhood he was stalking out for his next vicious crime.

David Berkowitz joined the U.S. Army in 1971, and was active until 1974. He managed to avoid service in the Vietnam War, instead serving in both the U.S. and South Korea. Afterward, he toyed with Christianity and briefly and enthusiastically described himself as "born again".


Berkowitz, a resident of Yonkers, NY, was terrorizing all of NYC with his brutal murders in the nearby Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn between July 29, 1976 and July 31, 1977. The fear, paranoia and dread he created in NYC peaked during the brutal heatwave and citywide blackout on July 13 and July 14, 1977.

The shootings gained international press coverage and the media dubbed the shooter "The .44 Caliber Killer" after the type of gun he used to murder his victims. Many victims were attacked and killed in "Lover's Lane" type areas; many were shot while parked in their cars in these areas. Women who had long, dark hair were seemingly in direct danger of being targeted by the serial killer. In response, many women wore short, blond wigs. Some opted to cut their hair shorter and dye their hair blond to possibly decrease their chances of being attacked or killed.



Berkowitz claimed that the Hall & Oates song "Rich Girl" motivated the murders. But the song was not released until February of 1977, after the first four shootings had already taken place.


Berkowitz worked at several jobs, and was employed by the U.S. Postal Service at the time of his arrest.


The 1999 film Summer of Sam, directed by Spike Lee and set in 1977 NYC depicts the tensions that develop in a Bronx neighborhood in which residents start pointing fingers at anyone who doesn't fit in the crowd as suspects.


30 years later, New York City is a much different place.

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