Today in History: August 1, America gets its MTV

Today is Saturday, Aug. 1, the 213th day of 2026. There are 152 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On August 1, 1981, MTV began its American broadcast; the first music video aired on the new cable TV network was “Video Killed the Radio Star,” by The Buggles.

Also on this date:

In 1876, Colorado was admitted as the 38th state in the Union, less than a month after the US Centennial (earning it the nickname “the Centennial State”).

In 1907, a week-long boys’ camping event began on Brownsea Island in southern England, organized by Robert Baden-Powell; the event is now marked as the beginning of the Scout Movement.

In 1936, Adolf Hitler presided over the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in Berlin .

In 1944, an uprising broke out in Warsaw, Poland, against Nazi occupation; the revolt lasted two months before collapsing.

In 1957, the United States and Canada announced they had agreed to create the North American Air Defense Command (NORAD).

In 1966, Charles Joseph Whitman, 25, went on an armed rampage at the University of Texas in Austin that killed 14 people, most of whom were shot by Whitman while he was perched in the clock tower of the main campus building.

In 1971, The Concert for Bangladesh, an all-star benefit organized by George Harrison of The Beatles and sitar player Ravi Shankar, was held at Madison Square Garden in New York.

In 2001, Pro Bowl tackle Korey Stringer, 27, died of heat stroke, a day after collapsing at the Minnesota Vikings’ training camp on the hottest day of the year.

In 2004, the Ycuá Bolaños supermarket fire in Asuncion, Paraguay killed more than 400 people.

In 2007, the eight-lane Interstate 35W bridge, a major Minneapolis artery, collapsed into the Mississippi River during the evening rush hour, killing 13 people.

In 2008, 11 international climbers were killed on the world's second-tallest mountain, K2, after an ice avalanche swept away some and stranded others. Dozens of deaths have been recorded since 1939 on the mountain, which some regard as more challenging to mountaineers than the world's tallest peak, Mount Everest.

In 2014, a medical examiner ruled that a New York City police officer’s chokehold caused the death of Eric Garner, whose videotaped arrest and final pleas of “I can’t breathe!” had sparked outrage. Officer Daniel Pantaleo, who restrained Garner, was fired in 2019 but never charged with a crime.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Giancarlo Giannini is 84. Basketball Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams is 76. Blues musician Robert Cray is 73. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum is 70. Rock singer Joe Elliott (Def Leppard) is 67. Rapper Chuck D (Public Enemy) is 66. Actor John Carroll Lynch is 63. Rock singer Adam Duritz (Counting Crows) is 62. Film director Sam Mendes is 61. Actor Tempestt Bledsoe is 53. Football Hall of Famer Edgerrin James is 48. Actor Jason Momoa is 47.