January 5, 2008

125 years ago
1883

Born on this date
Döme Sztójay. Prime Minister of Hungary, 1944. Mr. Sztójay, born Dimitrije Stojaković, was Hungarian Ambassador to Germany from 1935-1944. He forged strong ties with the Nazi regime. When German forces occupied Hungary in March 1944, Hungarian Regent Miklós Horthy named Mr. Sztójay as Prime Minister as an alternative to outright Nazi rule. Mr. Sztójay legalized the Arrow Cross party and increased the deportation of Hungarian Jews. Mr. Horthy was able to exert enough pressure to force Mr. Sztójay's resignation on August 29, 1944 in favour of Géza Lakatos. Mr. Sztójay fled Hungary when Soviet troops invaded in April 1945, but he was captured by American forces and returned to Hungary, where he was convicted of war crimes and executed in Budapest by a firing squad on August 22, 1948 at the age of 63.

75 years ago
1933

Died on this date
Calvin Coolidge, 60. 30th President of the United States, 1923-1929. The only president born on July 4, Coolidge attracted national attention in 1919 when he used his authority as Governor of Massachusetts to end the Boston police strike. He was chosen as Republican presidential candidate Warren G. Harding's running mate in 1920, and became Vice-President on March 4, 1921. When Mr. Harding died suddenly on August 2, 1923, Mr. Coolidge took the oath of office as President from his father, a Vermont Justice of the Peace. Mr. Coolidge won respect for his refusal to shield the members of the "Ohio Gang" from prosecution in the Teapot Dome oil lease scandal which had engulfed the Harding administration in 1923, and easily won re-election in 1924. Mr. Coolidge surprised the nation in 1927 when he announced "I do not choose to run for president in 1928." While he was in the White House, his son Calvin, Jr. died at the age of 16 from an infection, and it's been speculated that it was that tragedy that robbed Calvin, Sr. of his desire for another term. Mr. Coolidge was known as "Silent Cal" for his ability to hold his tongue. His most famous quote was "If you don't say anything, you won't be called on to repeat it." At a social function, a woman bet him she could get him to say more than two words. He replied, "You lose." Mr. Coolidge left office on March 4, 1929, and returned home to Massachusetts. His autobiography, published later that year, gave more space to the blacksmith who worked on his father's farm than to foreign policy. Calvin Coolidge died of natural causes at his home in Northampton. Mister, we could use a man like Calvin Coolidge again.

60 years ago
1948

Literature
The novel Raintree County by Ross Lockridge, Jr. was published by Houghton, Mifflin. The book had actually been released the previous day, and the initial press run sold out by the official publication day.

The non-fiction book Caste, Class and Race by Oliver Cox, winner of the George Washington Carver Award for its analysis of racial antagonism, was published by Doubleday.

Law
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a warrant was necessary to arrest and search a criminal suspect, reversing the conviction of a Buffalo, New York man found in possession of counterfeit gasoline ration coupons.

Economics and finance
Yugoslavian President Marshal Josip Broz Tito demanded the release of $70 million in gold deposited in the New York Federal Reserve Bank by the National Bank of Yugoslavia in 1941.

U.S. President Harry Truman and Treasury Secretary John Snyder endorsed the American Bankers Association plan for voluntary restrictions of bank credit to help curb inflation.

Labour
The New York Congress of Industrial Organizations voted to condemn former U.S. Vice President Henry Wallace's third-party U.S. presidential candidacy.

50 years ago
1958

On television tonight
Alfred Hitchcock Presents on CBS
Tonight's episode: The Percentage, starring Alex Nicol, Nita Talbot, and Don Keefer

War
Acting at the request of Cameroonian Premier Andre-Marie M'Bida, French Defense Minister Jacques Chaban-Delmas dispatched troops to the French Cameroons to crush an uprising by 800 members of the Communist-led Union des Populations du Cameroun.

Defense
The Rockefeller Fund Special Studies Project issued a report recommending "substantially increased defense expenditures" and "basic changes in our defense organization" to counter rapidly-increasing Soviet military strength.

Polish Foreign Minister Adam Rapacki said that Poland was willing to consider proposals for a nuclear-free zone in central Europe.

Protest
Venezuelan authorities arrested five Caracas priests for allegedly distributing leaflets urging a revolt against the government of President General Marcos Pérez Jiménez.

Economics and finance
Singaporean Chief Minister Lim Yew Hock appealed to the West for increased economic aid to help fight what he termed a Communist "war of subversion" against Singapore.

40 years ago
1968

Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Hello Goodbye--The Beatles
2 Daydream Believer--The Monkees
3 Next Plane to London--The Rose Garden
4 Bottle of Wine--The Fireballs
5 (The Lights Went Out In) Massachusetts--The Bee Gees
6 Dear Eloise--The Hollies
7 Peace of Mind--Paul Revere and the Raiders
8 Snoopy's Christmas--The Royal Guardsmen
9 Jezebel--The Witness Inc.
10 Different Drum--Stone Poneys
Pick of the Week: She Says--49th Parallel
New this week: To Give (The Reason I Live)--Frankie Valli
Counting Cracks in the Sidewalk--The Daisy Hill Puppy Farm
That's All Right--Brenda Lee
It's a Great Life--Trini Lopez
Pata Pata--Ray Bryant

Died on this date
Karl Kobelt, 76. President of the Swiss Confederation, 1946, 1952. Mr. Kobelt, a member of the Free Democratic Party, was a member of the Swiss Federal Council (1940-1954), and was also in charge of the Military Department during his time as President.

War
The government of Nigeria offered to stop all military action against the breakaway state of Biafra if the secessionists agreed to "discuss and negotiate" their differences with the Nigerian federal government.

Politics and government
Alexander Dubček came to power in Czechoslovakia, replacing Antonin Novotny as First Secretary of the Communist Party, beginning what became known as the "Prague Spring."

Protest
Pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Spock, 64, was the most prominent of five critics of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War who were indicted by a U.S. federal grand jury in Boston for conspiring to abet, aid, and counsel violations of the Selective Service Act. The others indicted were Rev. William Sloane Coffin, Jr. 43, chaplain of Yale University; novelist Mitchell Goodman, 44; Marcus Raskin, 33, of the Institute for Policy Studies; and Michael Ferber, 23, a graduate student at Harvard University.

30 years ago
1978

On television tonight
James at 15, starring Lance Kerwin, on NBC
Tonight's episode: Unrequited Love...Twice

20 years ago
1988

Died on this date
Pete Maravich, 40. U.S. basketball player. "Pistol Pete" was a guard with the Louisiana State Tigers from 1967-70; his 44.2 average points per game and 3,667 total points with LSU is an NCAA record that still stands. Mr. Maravich played in the National Basketball Association with the Atlanta Hawks (1970-74); New Orleans/Utah Jazz (1974-80), and Boston Celtics (1980), retiring because of knee injuries. He was a five-time NBA all-star in his 10-year career. Mr. Maravich was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1987 and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006. Mr. Maravich came to know Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour at the age of 35, and died in the arms of Dr. James Dobson while on a visit to the headquarters of Focus on the Family. His death was caused by a heart defect so rare (a missing left coronary artery) that it was said that only 2 of every 500 doctors would ever see it during the course of their careers. At the age of 25 Pistol Pete made the eerily prophetic comment that he didn't want to play 10 years in the NBA and die of a heart attack at the age of 40. Fortunately, when that event did happen, he entered into the presence of the Lord.

10 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Sonny Bono, 62. U.S. musician and politician. Salvatore Phillip Bono first achieved success as a songwriter was High School Dance, performed by Larry Williams as the B-side of Short Fat Fanny in 1957. He was best known for his marriage (1965-1975) to Cher Sarkisian. As Sonny & Cher, they recorded several hit singles from 1965-1967 and 1971-1972, and hosted The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour (1971-1974) and The Sonny & Cher Show (1976-1977). Mr. Bono was Mayor of Palm Springs, California from 1988-1992, and as a Republican, represented California's 44th District in the United States House of Representatives from 1993 until his death from injuries suffered in a skiing accident at South Lake Tahoe, Nevada. His current wife Mary filled the remainder of his Congressional term and was re-elected several times.