February 6, 2008

260 years ago
1748

Born on this date
Adam Weishaupt. German philosopher. Dr. Weishaupt was a Jesuit-educated law professor and rationalist philosopher who founded the secret society known as the Illuminati in 1776 and joined the Masonic lodge in 1777. The Jesuit order was suppressed by Pope Clement IV in 1773, and the Illuminati, along with Freemasonry and other secret societies, were outlawed by Elector of Bavaria Charles Theodore from 1784-1790. The Illuminati's alleged continuing existence and influence remain the subject of debate. Dr. Weishaupt died on November 18, 1830 at the age of 82.

80 years ago
1928

Aviation
French aviators Dieudonne Costes and Joseph Lebrix, nearing the end of their transatlantic flight, flew from New Orleans, Louisiana to Montgomery, Alabama.

50 years ago
1958

Disasters
British European Airways Flight 609, a charter flight carrying the Manchester United football club, supporters, and journalists, crashed on its third attempt to take off from a slush-covered runway at the Munich-Reim Airport in Munich, West Germany. Of the 44 passengers and crew on board, 23 died. The team was returning from a European Cup match in Belgrade against the Yugoslavian team Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade). The game had ended in a 3-3 draw, with Man U winning the aggregate 5-4. Manchester United had been one of the favourites to win the European Cup. Manager Matt Busby had opted for young players, and the team was known as Busby's Babes. Eight United players and three United staff members were among the dead, and two more players were injured so seriously that they were unable to resume their careers. An investigation ultimately blamed the crash on the buildup of slush toward the end of the runway, which caused the plane to decelerate, preventing a safe takeoff speed. Operating limits were imposed for the amount of slush buildup permitted on runways.

40 years ago
1968

Olympics
The Winter Olympic Games opened in Grenoble, France.

30 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Mull of Kintyre--Wings (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): UFO--Pink Lady (8th week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Credo--Elsa Baeza (6th week at #1)

Hockey
NHL
St. Louis 0 @ Philadelphia 2

A snowstorm held the crowd at the Spectrum to 3,725 as the hometown Flyers beat the Blues. Bernie Parent faced just 11 shots in getting the shutout, while Rick MacLeish and Paul Holmgren scored the goals.

20 years ago
1988

Died on this date
Barclay Plager, 46. Canadian-born hockey player and coach. After a number of years in the minors, Mr. Plager got the opportunity to play in the NHL in the expansion of 1967 when he was acquired by the St. Louis Blues. He played defense for the Blues for 10 years, and was their head coach from 1977-1979. He was an assistant coach with the Blues for most of the 1980s (and, briefly, head coach again in 1983), a position he held at the time of his death. A brain tumour shortened his life and coaching career, and his jersey #8 was retired by the Blues in an on-ice ceremony on March 24, 1981. For a number of years, Barclay's younger brothers Bob and Bill were teammates of his with the Blues. Barclay Plager played in four NHL All-Star games (1970, '71, '73, '74). He also had success in the Central Hockey League before and after his NHL career. He was voted the league's outstanding defenseman with the Omaha Knights in 1963-64, and as playing coach for the Kansas City Blues in 1976-77, won the Tommy Ivan Award as the CHL's Most Valuable Player. He was also a member of the Edmonton Flyers in the Western Hockey League in 1962-63, the Flyers' last season.

10 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Carl Wilson, 51. U.S. musician. Mr. Wilson was the lead guitarist with the Beach Boys. His guitar playing helped to establish the Beach Boys' early surf music sound, and his singing contributed to their vocal sound. The youngest of the Wilson brothers (Brian was 4 1/2 years older, Dennis 2 years older), his first lead vocal was on Pom Pom Play Girl, from the 1964 album Shut Down Volume 2. Older brother Brian eventually realized that Carl possessed a great voice, and started to write more songs for him, such as Girl Don't Tell Me. Carl's most notable lead vocals included those on God Only Knows and Good Vibrations, both from 1966, and I Can Hear Music, which he also produced, which was a hit in 1969. Besides the "angelic" singing style that he employed on those songs, he could also sing in a harder-edged style, which was particularly evident on the Wild Honey album, released late in 1967. In the early 1970s, Carl began to develop as a songwriter. Some of his most notable compositions were Long Promised Road and Feel Flows, both of which appeared on the 1971 album Surf's Up, and The Trader, from the 1973 album Holland. Carl was in demand as a background singer on other people's records in the mid-'70s; he can be clearly heard on Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me by Elton John, and Wishing You Were Here by Chicago, both from 1974. Carl took ill with lung cancer in 1997, and David Marks, who had been the Beach Boys' rhythm guitarist in 1962-1963, rejoined the group as Carl's replacement on tour. Brian's 1998 album Imagination was dedicated to Carl's memory. Carl's voice appeared one more time in a duet with Brian on Brian's 2004 album Gettin' In Over My Head, on a previously-unreleased cut (recorded in the mid-'90s) called Soul Searchin'.