May 18, 2008

960 years ago
1048

Born on this date
Omar Khayyam. Persian polymath. Mr. Khayyam was a mathematician, astronomer, historian, philosopher, and poet. He was notable for his work on the classification and solution of cubic equations, where he provided geometric solutions by the intersection of conics. As an astronomer, Mr. Khayyam designed the Jalali calendar, a solar calendar with a very precise 33-year intercalation cycle that provided the basis for the Persian calendar that is still in use after nearly a millennium. In 1079 he accurately calculated the length of a year. Quatrains attributed to Mr. Khayyam were collected and published in an English translation as Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam (1859) He died on December 4, 1131 at the age of 83.

275 years ago
1733

Died on this date
Georg Bohm, 71. German organist and composer. Mr. Böhm's most important contribution to North German keyboard music was the chorale partita, a large-scale composition consisting of several variations on a particular chorale melody. He effectively invented the genre, writing several partitas of varying lengths and on diverse tunes. Johann Sebastian Bach was heavily influenced by the music of Mr. Bohm, and wrote partitas of his own.

120 years ago
1888

Baseball
George Borchers of the Chicago Colts pitched a 5-inning shutout in his major league debut‚ winning 13-0 over the Boston Beaneaters‚ to increase the Colts’ lead in the National League to 3 games.

110 years ago
1898

Baseball
Chicago Orphans’ pitcher Walter Thornton had a bad control day as he hit 3 consecutive batters in the 4th inning in an 11-4 loss to the St. Louis Browns. Willie Sudhoff was the winning pitcher‚ while former Chicago Colts’ player George Decker had 4 hits. Mr. Thornton's 3 HBPs in a row was a major league record.

100 years ago
1908

Baseball
Coming back against the Cincinnati Reds‚ New York Giants’ ace Christy Mathewson was pounded for 15 hits and 9 runs in 7 innings to lose 9-5‚ his third loss in a week.

90 years ago
1918

Born on this date
Rufe Gentry. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Gentry played with the Detroit Tigers (1943-1944, 1946-1948), compiling a record of 13-17 with an earned run average of 4.37 in 48 games, batting .184 with no home runs and 10 runs batted in. He died on July 3, 1997 at the age of 79.

Died on this date
Toivo Kuula, 34. Finnish conductor and composer. Mr. Kuula was known for his choral and vocal works. His major work was considered to be the Stabat Mater, which was unfinished at the time of his death. Mr. Kuula was mortally wounded by a bullet fired during a quarrel that happened in front of the Hotel Seurahuone in conjunction with the first victory celebration of the white victory in the Finnish Civil War.

Disasters
A TNT explosion in a chemical factory in Oakdale, Pennsylvania killed 200.

80 years ago
1928

Politics and government
U.S. President Calvin Coolidge vetoed eight bills, including one giving a 10% ($6 million per year) raise in salaries of night postal workers. President Coolidge also vetoed a measure providing for fuel light and fixtures for all fourth-class postmasters of the country.

Law
The New Jersey Supreme Court voided an Atlantic City ordinance forbidding the eating of ice cream on the Boardwalk.

75 years ago
1933

Law
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Tennessee Valley Act (TVA), enabling the federal government to build dams.

Baseball
The first major league All-Star Game was announced for July 6 at Comiskey Park, to be played as part of the Chicago World's Fair celebration, sponsored by the Chicago Tribune. Fans were to pick the players.

70 years ago
1938

Politics and government
Prime Minister J.B.M. Hertzog led his United Party to another majority government in the South African general election. The UP won 111 seats in the House of Assembly, a decline of 25 from the most recent election in 1933. The Purified National Party, led by D.F. Malan, finished second with 27 seats, while the Dominion Party, led by Charles Stallard, finished third with 8 seats.

Baseball
Wes Ferrell of the Washington Nationals pitched and batted to defeat the Detroit Tigers 5-1 at Briggs Stadium. Mr. Ferrell belted a mammoth home run, while his batterymate, brother Rick Ferrell, went hitless.

After Bobo Newsom equalled the American League record with 6 consecutive strikeouts‚ Joe DiMaggio hit his second home run of the game‚ and Mr. Newsom and the St. Louis Browns lost to the New York Yankees 11-7. Mr. DiMaggio drove in 5 runs, and winning pitcher Lefty Gomez knocked in 3.

60 years ago
1948

On the radio
The Casebook of Gregory Hood, starring Elliott Lewis, on MBS

At the movies
Another Part of the Forest, starring Fredric March, Florence Eldridge, Dan Duryea, and Edmond O'Brien, opened in theatres.

Died on this date
Frank Schneiberg, 68. U.S.. baseball pitcher. Mr. Schneiberg made his only major league appearance for the Brooklyn Superbas on June 8, 1910, giving up 5 hits, 4 bases on balls, and 7 earned runs in 1 inning of relief.

War
Saudi Arabia joined the invasion of Israel. The Arab Legion captured a fort on Mt. Scopus.

Baseball
The lowly Chicago Cubs edged the Philadelphia Phillies 3-2 as Johnny Schmitz outduelled young Curt Simmons. 4 Phillie errors let in all 3 Cub runs.

An International League game in Jersey City drew less than 1‚700 on a night that a New York Giants' telecast was being received in 600 bars in New Jersey. The minor leagues‚ especially in the East‚ were getting testy over the impact of the major leagues’ open television policy.

50 years ago
1958

On television tonight
Alfred Hitchcock Presents on CBS
Tonight’s episode: Post Mortem, starring Joanna Moore and Steve Forrest. Directed by Arthur Hiller.

Baseball
Cleveland Indians’ outfielder Carroll Hardy pinch hit for Roger Maris and responded with his first major league career home run, a three-run shot off Billy Pierce, to give the Indians a 7-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox. With the Boston Red Sox, Hardy went on to pinch hit for Ted Williams on September 20, 1960, and also for rookie Carl Yastrzemski on May 31, 1961, making him the only player to go in for both future Hall of Famers.

The New York Yankees scored 5 runs in the 4th inning off Pedro Ramos to top the Washington Senators 5-2.

40 years ago
1968

Hit parade


World events
President Charles de Gaulle rushed back from a state visit to Romania to find France in a state of economic paralysis not far from civil war.

War
The Paris peace talks between the United States and North Vietnam continued, with no progress.

Protest
The United States Defense department reported that the use of federal troops in the April riots following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. cost $5,375,400. Altogether 35,890 soldiers, Marines, and National Guardsmen were deployed in Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Chicago, with 22,074 soldiers on standby.

Horse racing
Forward Pass, with Ismael Valenzuela up, won the 93rd running of the Preakness Stakes in 1:56 4/5. Out of the Way placed second.

Baseball
Frank Howard of the Washington Senators tied an American League record by hitting a home run in his sixth consecutive game. With a pair of home runs against Detroit Tigers ace Mickey Lolich, Howard had 10 homers in his last 6 games, also an AL record. Detroit’s Al Kaline hit his 307th home run, surpassing Hank Greenberg’s career total as a Tiger.

Bill Mazeroski of the Pittsburgh Pirates played his 392nd straight game, setting a record for National League second basemen, in an 8-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds.

Don Drysdale of the Los Angeles Dodgers posted his second consecutive shutout‚ 1-0 over the Houston Astros.

30 years ago
1978

At the movies
The Buddy Holly Story, starring Gary Busey, opened in theatres.

Abominations
Italy legalized abortion.

World events
Soviet physicist Yuri Orlov was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment and five years’ internal exile for "anti-Soviet agitation." He had been in the forefront of a group monitoring Soviet compliance with the 1975 Helsinki accord on human rights. The U.S. State Department, the U.S. scientific community, the British Labour Party, the French government, and the Italian Communist party newspaper strongly condemned the trial and the sentence. Dr. Orlov had not been allowed to call defense witnesses.

Army troops in the Dominican Republic interrupted the vote count in the national elections.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Montreal 0 @ Boston 4 (montreal led best-of-seven series 2-1)

Gary Doak’s goal just 59 seconds into the game stood up as the winner as the Bruins shut out the Canadiens at the Boston Garden.

Baseball
Lenny Randle was 3 for 3 with 3 walks and 5 runs scored to lead the New York Mets to an 8-7 win over the Atlanta Braves at Shea Stadium. Mr. Randle walked in the 10th and came around to score the winning run.

25 years ago
1983

Baseball
At Memorial Stadium, Rich Dotson of the Chicago White Sox pitched a one-hitter against the Baltimore Orioles, but lost 1-0. Baltimore's lone hit was Dan Ford's eighth-inning home run. Storm Davis (7 1/3 innings) and Tippy Martinez (1 1/3 innings) combined in the four-hit shutout, with Mr. Martinez taking the win.

20 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Maybe We're About to Fall in Love--Tommy Nilsson (4th week at #1)

Died on this date
Daws Butler, 71. U.S. actor. Mr. Butler provided the voices for many cartoon characters, including Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, Peter Potamus, and Wally Gator.

War
The first convoy of 1,200 Soviet soldiers coming home from Afghanistan crossed into Soviet territory.

Diplomacy
U.S. Vice-President George Bush, referring to attempts by the administration of President Ronald Reagan to cut a deal to remove General Manuel Noriega from power in Panama, said that he would not bargain with terrorists or drug dealers.

The United States Senate voted 91-6 to reject a challenge by Republican Senator Jesse Helms of North Carolina to the legality of the INF treaty on the assertion that Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev did not have the power as secretary of the Communist Party to sign the treaty.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Boston 1 @ Edmonton 2 (Edmonton led best-of-seven series 1-0)

Basketball
NBA
Eastern Conference
Semi-Finals
Atlanta 112 @ Boston 104 (Atlanta led best-of-seven series 3-2)
Chicago 95 @ Detroit 102 (Detroit won best-of-seven series 4-1)

10 years ago
1998

Law
A U.S. court ruled 6-3 that television stations had editorial discretion to exclude from debates fringe or minority-party candidates who had little chance of election, provided that the decision was not based on the candidates’ views.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Western Conference
Semi-Finals
St. Louis 3 @ Detroit 1 (Detroit led best-of-seven series 3-2)

Basketball
NBA
Western Conference
Finals
Los Angeles Lakers 95 @ Utah 99 (Utah led best-of-seven series 2-0)

Baseball
Due to drastic payroll cuts reducing the World Series champions’ effectiveness, two class-action lawsuits were filed against the Florida Marlins: one for breach of contract and the other accusing the team of false advertising.

At Veterans Stadium, Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals hit 3 2-run home runs in a 10-8 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. It was the second time this season and fourth time in his career that Mr. McGwire had hit 3 home runs in a game. He also became the 10th player in major league history to have 2 3-home run games in a season.

With a 6-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays became only the second first-year expansion team in major league history to sweep four-game series on the road. The 1993 Colorado Rockies, who did it against the Los Angeles Dodgers, was the other team to accomplish this feat.

Mike Blowers of the Oakland Athletics hit for the cycle and had 4 runs batted in in the Athletics’ 14-0 win over the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Mr. Blowers homered in the 2nd inning‚ doubled in the 5th‚ singled in the 7th‚ and tripled in the 8th to become only the second player in franchise history to hit for the cycle.