On this day in pop culture history: ‘Even Stevens’ premiered

Before Shia LaBeouf was known for turning hitchhiking into performance art, making a paper bag the most-talked about red carpet accessory, and being an actual cannibal (well, at least in this awesome song), he was Louis Stevens.

16 years ago today, Even Stevens premiered on Disney Channel, making a star out of then 14-year-old LaBeouf.

The shenanigans of the Stevens family were on display on the Disney Channel for three seasons, plus The Even Stevens Movie, serving as the series finale.

Other notable June 17 happenings in pop culture history:

• 1964: The Supremes released the single “Where Did Our Love Go.” It was their first song to hit the top of the U.S. singles chart.

• 1967: Barbra Streisand sang for over 135,000 fans in New York”s Central Park. A recording of the free concert was released as her first live album, A Happening In Central Park.

• 1977: The much-maligned sequel to The Exorcist, Exorcist II: The Heretic opened in theaters. Linda Blair and Max von Sydow reprised their roles for the film, but Ellen Burstyn and director William Friedkin passed on returning.

• 1983: Richard Pryor became part of the Man of Steel”s cinematic legacy when Superman III opened in theaters.

• 1988: Dan Aykroyd-John Candy film The Great Outdoors opened in theaters.

• 1989: New Kids on the Block hit no. 1 on the Billboard singles chart with “I”ll Be Loving You (Forever).

• 1997: Blink-182 released their second studio album, Dude Ranch.

• 2004: Silent Hill 4: The Room, the fourth installment of the Silent Hill video games, was released in Japan. A North America and Europe release followed in September.

• 2012: The second season of Falling Skies premiered on TNT, taking place three months after the cliffhanger in the season 1 finale that had Noah Wyle”s Tom Mason boarding the alien spacecraft.

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