POP/ROCK - Feb. 19, 1987

As 50 schoolchildren cheered, musician Chuck Berry was honored at New York’s City Hall Wednesday as the premier figure of rock ‘n’ roll. City Council President Andrew Stein paid tribute to Berry in recognition of Black History Month by proclaiming it “Chuck Berry Day” in the Big Apple and saying he inspired the Rolling Stones and the Beatles. Berry said he didn’t recall “influencing anybody. I think some of my improvisations have stirred the hearts of some people.”