June 18, 1948 - Columbia Records displayed its new 33 1/3 long-playing record in New York City. The new format allowed 23 minutes per side as opposed to 3 minutes for a 78 RPM record. Columbia Records puts the needle down on history's first successful microgroove plastic, 12-inch, 33-1/3 LPs sparking a music-industry standard so strong that the digital age has yet to kill it