Mel Brooks
Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

HAPPY BIRTHDAY
H. Ross Perot (businessman) is 78
- Former presidential candidate

Bruce Johnston (musician) is 67
- Lead vocalist for The Beach Boys

Julia Duffy (actress) is 57
"Allison" on Designing Women

Lorrie Morgan (country singer) is 49
- First female country singer to have three consecutive platinum records

Yancey Arias (actor) is 37
"Miguel" in Kingpin

Tobey Maguire (actor) is 34
"Spiderman" and "Peter Parker" in Spiderman

Leigh Nash (singer) is 32
- Frontman of Sixpence None the Richer

Drake Bell (actor) is 22
"Drake Parker" on Drake & Josh

Madylin Sweeten (actress) is 17
"Ally Barone" on Everybody Loves Raymond

Saturday, June 28th
Mel Brooks (comedian-director) is 82
- Creator and director for The Producers

Dave Knights (bassist) is 63
- Bassist for Procol Harum

Bruce Davison (actor) is 62
"Senator Robert Kelly" in X-Men

Kathy Bates (actress) is 60
"Molly Brown" in Titanic

Alice Krige (actress) is 54
"Maddie" on Deadwood

John Elway (football player) is 48
- Former player for the Denver Broncos

Jessica Hecht (actress) is 43
"Susan" on Friends

Saul Davies (guitarist-violinist) is 43
- Guitarist/violinist for James

Mary Stuart Masterson (actress) is 42
"Dr. Rebecca Hendrix" on Law & Order: SVU

John Cusack (actor) is 42
"Lloyd Dobler" in Say Anything

Gil Bellows (actor) is 41
"Tommy" from The Shawshank Redemption

Danielle Brisebois (actress) is 39
"Stephanie Mills" on All in the Family

Steve Burton (actor) is 38
"Jason Quartermaine" on General Hospital

Tichina Arnold (actress) is 37
"Rochelle Rock" on Everybody Hates Chris

Tim Nordwind (bassist) is 32
- Bassist for OK Go

Kellie Pickler (singer) is 22
- Country singer and former American Idol contestant

Sunday, June 29th
Robert Evans (producer) is 78
­- Produced The Godfather

Gary Busey (actor) is 64
"Buddy Holly" in The Buddy Holly Story

Richard Lewis (comedian) is 61
- Has a reoccurring role on Curb Your Enthusiasm

Ian Paice (drummer) is 60
- Drummer for Deep Purple

Fred Grandy (actor/congressman/radio host) is 60
"Burl 'Gopher' Smith" on The Love Boat

Don Dokken (singer) is 55
- Frontman for Dokken

Colin Hay (singer) is 55
- Singer for Men at Work

Maria Conchita Alonso (actress) is 51
"Ariela" in Kingpin

Evelyn "Champagne" King (singer) is 48
- Best known for disco classic "Shame"

Sharon Lawrence (actress) is 47
"Sylvia" on NYPD Blue

Stedman Pearson (singer) is 44
- Singer for Five Star

DJ Shadow (rapper) is 36
- From Davis, California

Todd Sansom (country guitarist) is 30
­- Guitarist for Marshall Dyllon

Nicole Scherzinger (singer) is 30
- Lead singer for the Pussycat Dolls

ON JUNE 27th...
In 1967...Rolling Stone frontman Mick Jagger appeared in court following a February drug-raid on Keith Richards' home.  A judge ruled that his defense was not admissible, and the singer was found guilty by a jury for unlawful possession of four Benzedrine tablets.  Jagger claimed he bought the pills in Italy legally.  He spent a night in jail.

In 1970...The English band Smile decided to change their name to Queen. 

In 1970...Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young released "Ohio" in response to the Kent State shootings on May 18th.

In 1971...The Beach Boys and The Allman Brothers Band performed the final concert at New York City's Fillmore East.

In 1976...After much legal wrangling, John Lennon finally received his green card.

In 1978...UNICEF picked Kansas as their first musical ambassadors of goodwill.

In 1989...Tom Jones was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

In 1989...The Who performed their rock opera Tommy at Radio City Music Hall in New York to benefit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a children's charity.

In 1991...Carlos Santana was arrested in Houston, Texas for possession of marijuana.

In 1993...Lyle Lovett married Julia Roberts.

In 1993...In concert, Don Henley dedicated his cover of "It's Not Easy Being Green" to President Clinton.

In 1996...The Olympic torch was carried through Nashville by Billy Ray Cyrus.

In 2000...Canadian punk rockers Sum 41 released their debut album Half Hour of Power.

In 2003...The Flaming Lips settled with Cat Stevens after it was discovered their song "Flight Test" had a more than casual resemblance to Steven's '70s hit "Father and Son."

In 2005...TheSupreme Court ruled that file-sharing networks are liable for copyright infringements when they create and distribute software that allows users to illegally swap MP3s. The ruling came in the case of MGM v. file-sharing company Grokster.

In 2006...Guns N' Roses star Axl Rose was arrested after brawling with a hotel security guard in Stockholm. It was alleged that Rose bit the guard's leg.

ON JUNE 28TH...
In 1965...The Beach Boys released their tenth album in three years, Summer Days (and Summer Nights). 

In 1969...Neil Diamond released his future number-four song, "Sweet Caroline." 

In 1969...Pink Floyd began their sessions for "Embryo."  The song later appeared on a label sampler called Picnic.

In 1972...Pink Floyd released their soundtrack Obscured by Clouds.

In 1975...Roger Waters spat on the audience during a Pink Floyd performance.  He later wrote The Wall about the experience. 

In 1975...Cher married Gregg Allman. They would separate nine days later.

In 1975...David Bowie released "Fame," which became his first American number one song.

In 1980...Roy Orbison and Emmylou Harris hit the country chart with "That Lovin' You Feelin' Again."

In 1986...Wham! played their farewell concert at London's Wembley Stadium.

In 1989...The Pet Shop Boys kicked off their first tour with a show in Hong Kong.

In 1990...At a concert in Liverpool, Paul McCartney performed John Lennon's "Strawberry Fields Forever," "Help!" and "Give Peace a Chance" live in public for the first time.

In 1991...Paul McCartney premiered his Liverpool Oratorio at the city's Anglican Cathedral.

In 1993...Bjork released her solo debut called Debut. 

In 1994...David Lee Roth kicked off a solo tour in Los Angeles.

In 1997...George Harrison had an operation to remove a growth from his neck.  The tumor proved to be benign.

In 2002...The Glastonbury Festival kicked off in the U-K.  Although the farmland site was ringed with a hi-tech wall to keep out trespassers, there were reports that festival goers got mugged for their tickets.

In 2002...Eminem's purple 1999 Ford Mustang convertible went on sale on eBay.

In 2002...ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons, newly ordained as "the Reverend Willie G," performed the honors at the Houston wedding of George Thorogood & the Destroyers guitarist Jim Suhler and Lauri Bradshaw.

In 2003...DMX was arrested at a show on the Caribbean island of St. Kitts on obscenity charges. The rap star demanded an apology from police, saying he had permission to use foul language provided it was part of a song lyric.

In 2003...Metallica headlined the first day of Denmark's Roskilde festival. Other performers include the Polyphonic Spree and Interpol.

In 2005...Kanye West won Best Male Hip-Hop Artist and Video of the Year for "Jesus Walks" at the BET Awards. The reunited Fugees performed at the show.

In 2005...Avril Lavigne and Sum 41's Deryck Whibley a
announced their engagement. Whibley popped the question during Lavigne's European tour.

In 2006...A warrant was issued for DMX's arrest after the rapper failed to turn up to a New York court hearing to face charges of driving without a license and not wearing a seatbelt.

ON JUNE 29TH...
In 1966...500 police officers were needed to contain the crowd when The Beatles played Tokyo.

In 1967...Two days after Mick Jagger was found guilty of drug possession and jailed, Keith Richards went to trial on similar charges stemming from a raid on his home. The judge found him guilty of allowing his house to be used for smoking cannabis and sentenced him to a year in jail. Jagger was also sentenced to three months in jail. Their sentences were later suspended following a public outcry.

In 1968...Pink Floyd released A Saucerful of Secrets. The band celebrated by performing a free show in London's Hyde Park with Jethro Tull, Roy Harper, and T. Rex.

In 1969...The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their last concert together at the Denver Pop Festival in Mile High Stadium.

In 1974...There was a change in the lineup of Rush as Neal Peart replaced John Rustey on the drum stool.

In 1975...Folk singer Tim Buckley, the father of Jeff Buckley, died of a heroin overdose.

In 1975...In Oakland, California, Elton John joined The Doobie Brothers on stage to duet on "Listen to the Music." Then, when The Eagles tried to play their set, John crashed their party to duet on another song.

In 1978...Peter Frampton was seriously injured in a car accident in the Bahamas.

In 1985...Mick Jagger and David Bowie recorded "Dancing in the Street" in a mere 12 hours. The single later went to number seven in the United States.

In 1991...Skid Row's Slave to the Grind went straight into the album chart at number one.

In 1994...Barbra Streisand reaped 16-million dollars for a series of Madison Square Garden shows, which set a record for the largest-grossing concert stand.

In 1998...George Harrison announced that he was having treatments for throat cancer and said, "I'm not going to die on you folks just yet."

In 1999...Jewel forgot the words to "Little Sister" while performing in Mountain View, California, so she read them from a CD booklet held up by a fan.

In 2000...Rolling Stones guitarist Ron Wood checked into a rehab center to treat alcohol addiction. It was believed Wood was hoping to dry out in time for a Rolling Stones world tour.

In 2000...Vandals pulled Ronnie Van Zant's casket out of the Lynyrd Skynyrd mausoleum, but were unable to open it. Guitarist Steve Gaines' ashes were also spilled during the rampage. Both Van Zant and Gaines were killed in a 1977 plane crash.

In 2006...DMX was sentenced to jail in White Plains, New York after he was a no show at a traffic violation hearing. Bail for the rap superstar was set at 25-thousand dollars.

DEEP THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEKEND
You might think that the favorite plant of the porcupine is the cactus, but it's thinking like that that has almost ruined this country.

"Deep Thoughts... for the Weekend" courtesy of Jack Handey (as seen on Saturday Night Live)