May 25 in Pop Culture History

1878 – Gilbert and Sullivan’s comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore opened at the Opera Comique in London.

1935 – At Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Babe Ruth hit his 714th (and final) home run.

1961 – President John F. Kennedy declared, “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space program in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important in the long-range exploration of space, and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish.”

1968 – The Saint Louis Gateway Arch was dedicated.

1977 – Star Wars opened Memorial Day weekend, marking the biggest entertainment juggernaut in modern popular culture.

1977 – Chinese government removed the ban on the works of William Shakespeare, the biggest entertainment juggernaut in the Elizabethan era.

1985 # 1 Hit May 25, 1985 – June 7, 1985: Wham! – Everything She Wants

1986 – Hands Across America took place.

1991 # 1 Hit May 25, 1991 – June 7, 1991: Mariah Carey – I Don’t Wanna Cry

1992 – Jay Leno debuted as the new host of The Tonight Show.

1994 – George Swanson was buried in Brush Creek Cemetery in the driver’s seat of his 1984 white Corvette in Hempfield County, Pennsylvania.

1996 – Sublime singer/guitarist Bradley Nowel died from a heroin overdose. He was not 27

2005 – Carrie Underwood won season four of America Idol on FOX.

2011- Oprah Winfrey hosted the final episode of her syndicated daytime show.