Today in History and Celebrity Birthdays

Celebrity Birthdays for July 18: Olympic gold medal figure skater Tenley Albright is 90. Director Paul Verhoeven ("Basic Instinct," ''Showgirls") is 87. Keyboard wizard Brian Auger is 86. Singer Dion DiMucci is 86. Actor James Brolin is 85.

Today in Music History for July 18: In 1903, Canadian soprano Beatrice LaPalme made her Covent Garden debut. She was a last-minute substitute in the role of "Musetta" in a gala performance of "La Boheme" attended by King Edward VII.

Today in History for July 18: On this date: In A.D. 64, the Great Fire of Rome began. In 1536, the English Parliament passed an act declaring the authority of the pope void in England. In 1739, a census put Canada's population at 42,701.

Celebrity Birthdays for July 17: Sportscaster Verne Lundquist is 85. Singer-actress Gale Garnett is 83. Musician Wolfgang Flür of Kraftwerk is 78. Queen Camilla, the former Duchess of Cornwall, is 78. Bassist Geezer Butler of Black Sabbath is 76.

Today in History for July 17: On this date: In 1505, future church reformer, Martin Luther entered the Augustinian monastic order at Erfurt in present day eastern Germany. He was 21. In 1674, the second census of Canada showed a population of 6,705.

Today in Music History for July 17: In 1674, Isaac Watts, innovative pioneer of modern English hymn writing, was born.

Celebrity Birthdays for July 16: Singer William Bell is 86. International Tennis Hall-of-Famer Margaret Court is 83. NFL coach-turned analyst Jimmy Johnson is 82. Actor-singer Ruben Blades is 77. Violinist Pinchas Zukerman is 77.

Today in Music History for July 16: In 1952, Stewart Copeland, drummer with the rock band "The Police," was born in Alexandria, Va.

Today in History for July 16: On this date: In 622, Prophet Mohammad fled from Mecca, where he was despised and persecuted, to the northern city of Medina, marking the day of beginning of Hegira, the Islamic calendar.

Celebrity Birthdays for July 15: Actor Patrick Wayne is 86. Singer Millie Jackson is 81. Guitarist-singer Peter Lewis of Moby Grape is 80. Singer Linda Ronstadt is 79. Drummer Artimus Pyle (Lynyrd Skynyrd) is 77.