August 4, 2008

430 years ago
1578

War
Moroccan forces defeat Portuguese forces in the Battle of Al Kasr al Kebir in northern Morocco. King Sebastian of Portugal, 24, was killed in the battle, leaving his elderly uncle, Cardinal Henry, as his heir, and initiating a succession crisis in Portugal.

225 years ago
1783

Disasters
Mount Asama erupted in Japan, killing about 1,400 people and causing a famine resulting in an additional 20,000 deaths.

80 years ago
1928

At the movies
The Bush Cinderella, written and directed by Rudall Hayward, and starring Dale Austen, opened in theatres in New Zealand.



Britannica
20,000 people in Denby, Dale, England partook of a 3½-ton pie that was 16 feet long and 5 feet wide, containing a ton of potatoes and 4 bullocks. The crust was made of 1,120 pounds of flour, and the dish was steel.

Disasters
Hydrochloric (muriatic) acid, used to clean the bar, was mistaken for "applejack" brandy, and killed three men and injured another in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

70 years ago
1938

Died on this date
Pearl White, 49. U.S. actress. Miss White appeared in plays and silent films, and was best known as the star of the 20-chapter movie serial The Perils of Pauline (1914). She died of liver disease, perhaps the result of years of heavy drinking.

60 years ago
1948

War
Greek government troops reported clearing Communist guerrillas from the Smolika area in northeastern Greece, restricting main guerrilla forces to a 30-mile front on the Albanian border.

Politics and government
The South Korean National Assembly approved President Syngman Rhee's appointment of General Lee Bum Suk as Prime Minister and Defense Minister; other cabinet appointments were also announced.

U.S. Senate Republican Party leaders dropped anti-poll tax legislation from the current session's order of business, bowing to a filibuster by Southern Senators.

The U.S. Navy and Commerce Departments refused to supply files on former Commerce Dept. official William Remington to the Senate Expenditures subcommittee, four days after Mr. Remington had testified before the subcommittee, denying allegations of confessed Communist spy Elizabeth Bentley that he had furnished her with classified information.

Health
The U.S. Public Health Service reported new polio outbreaks in North Carolina, Texas, and California, and revealed that the incidence of the disease was increasing in other states as well.

Economics and finance
The price of hogs on Chicago's livestock market rose to a record $31.50 per hundredweight.

Labour
The Metropolitan Opera in New York cancelled its 1948-49 season after three of the 12 unions representing the organization's employees refused to accept contracts on the previous season's terms.

50 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Poor Little Fool--Ricky Nelson (Best Seller--1st week at #1; Hot 100--1st week at #1)

Died on this date
Robert Moore, 6. Canadian crime victim. Robert was apparently bludgeoned to death with a hammer by his father Richard, 42, an associate professor of sociology at the University of Alberta. Professor Moore was taken to the provincial hospital at Oliver following his arrest.

War
Greek Cypriot guerrilla commander George Grivas declared a truce with Turkish Cypriots and British security forces.

Politics and government
A U.S. Court of Appeals in New York unanimously reversed the 1956 conviction of six Communist leaders on grounds that the government had failed to prove that the accused had urged people to "do something" rather than merely to "believe in something."

Golf
Ken Venturi won the Chicago Open.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Hamilton (0-2) 7 @ Edmonton (1-0) 9

Joe Mobra's 32-yard field goal with 44 seconds remaining in the game gave the Eskimos their win over the defending Grey Cup champion Tiger-Cats at Clarke Stadium. The Eskimos rushed for 320 yards, including 176 by Johnny Bright and 124 by Normie Kwong, but their only touchdown came on a pass from Jackie Parker to Joe-Bob Smith. Bernie Faloney passed to Ron Howell for the Hamilton TD.

40 years ago
1968

War
Israel conducted a three-hour air raid on Arab guerrilla bases 10 miles inside Jordan, during which both countries exchanged tank and artillery fire across the Jordan River.

World events
Alphonse Massamba-Debat was recalled as President of Republic of Congo--Brazzaville, the day after being deposed by a left-wing military coup reportedly led by paratroop commander Captain Marien Ngouabi.

Transportation
Finland reopened the Saimaa Canal; the waterway between Saimaa Lake and the Gulf of Finland had been taken by the U.S.S.R. during the Winter War of 1939-1940.

Golf
Jack Nicklaus won the Western Open in Chicago with a total score of 273. First prize money was $26,000.

Football
CFL
Winnipeg (0-2) 8 @ Saskatchewan (2-0) 27

30 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (4th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (16th week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): En chantant--Michel Sardou (3rd week at #1)

Journalism
New York Times reporter M.A. Farber was jailed for contempt of court for refusing to turn over his files on his investigation of the suspicious deaths of 13 patients at a New Jersey hospital in 1965 and 1966. The files were subpoenaed by the defense in the trial of Dr. Mario Jascalevich, who was charged with murder as an outgrowth of Mr. Farber's interest in the case. Also that day, The New York Times began to pay a fine of $5,000 per day for refusing to turn over its files on the case, as well as an additional $1,000-per-day fine levelled against Mr. Farber.

Labour
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that unemployment had risen to 6.2% for July, up from 5.7% in June.

Business
Molson Brewery acquired the Montréal Canadiens of the National Hockey League for $20 million.

Disasters
41 disabled people died when their bus plunged into Lac d'Argent in the Eastern Townships of Quebec in the worst single-vehicle and bus accident in Canadian history.

Three days of floods and 30 inches of rain caused by tropical storm Amelia had ravaged central Texas, resulting in at least 26 deaths.

25 years ago
1983

Hit parade
Canada's top 30
1 Never Gonna Let You Go--Sergio Mendes
2 Every Breath You Take--The Police
3 Baby Jane--Rod Stewart
4 1999--Prince
5 Hot Girls in Love--Loverboy
6 Maniac--Michael Sembello
7 Is There Something I Should Know--Duran Duran
8 China Girl--David Bowie
9 It's a Mistake--Men at Work
10 Wanna Be Starting Something--Michael Jackson
11 Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)--Eurythmics
12 Change--Tears for fears
13 Rock and Roll is King--Electric Light Orchestra
14 Human Touch--Rick Springfield
15 Video Kids--Prototype
16 Stand Back--Stevie Nicks
17 Come Dancing--The Kinks
18 She Works Hard for the Money--Donna Summer
19 All This Love--Debarge
20 Stop in the Name of Love--The Hollies
21 Wishing--A Flock of Seagulls
22 I'm Still Standing--Elton John
23 Tell Her About It--Billy Joel
24 Take Me to Heart--Quarterflash
25 Best Years of Our Lives--Mens Room
26 Human Nature--Michael Jackson
27 Mistake--Mike Oldfield
28 Rise Up--Parachute Club
29 Our House--Madness
30 The Haunting--The Front

Defense
At a meeting at the White House, U.S. President Ronald Reagan praised Zairian President Mobutu Sese Seko for sending airplanes and 1,000 troops to the aid of Chad. The U.S. State Department said that Mr. Reagan had increased the package of economic aid to Chad from $10 million to $25 million to "provide the government of Chad with a reasonable chance to defend itself against Libyan escalation."

War
Fighting within the Palestine Liberation Organization temporarily ended withe the beginning of a cease-fire.

Oddities
In a baseball game between the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto, New York outfielder Dave Winfield threw a baseball back toward the infield, only to have the ball strike a seagull, killing it instantly. Toronto police charged Mr. Winfield with unnecessary cruelty to an animal.

20 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Gimme Hope Jo'anna--Eddy Grant (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Yé ké yé ké--Mory Kanté (3rd week at #1)

Scandal
U.S. Congressman Mario Biaggi (Democrat--New York) was convicted in Federal District Court in New York City of racketeering, conspiracy and extortion in connection with a scandal involving Wedtech Corporation in the Bronx. Mr. Biaggi had obtained Wedtech stock worth about $1.8 million in return for lobbying on the company's behalf. Five other defendants, including Wedtech's founder, John Mariotta, were convicted of various felony counts. Former Bronx Borough president Stanley Simon was also among those convicted. Mr. Biaggi announced his resignation from the House of Representatives the next day, effective immediately.

Football
CFL
Saskatchewan (3-1) 27 @ Edmonton (3-1) 43

Tracy Ham threw 3 touchdown passes to Jim Sandusky to help the Eskimos defeat the Roughriders before 35,383 fans at Commonwealth Stadium. Chris Skinner rushed 55 yards and Blake Marshall rushed 18 yards for the other Edmonton TDs.

10 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Yuri Artyukhin, 68. U.S.S.R. cosmonaut. Colonel Artyukhin was a Soviet Air Force pilot and engineer who joined the space program in 1963. He would have been among the crew of the Voskhod 3 mission if it hadn't been cancelled, and finally did go into space as the Flight Engineer of the Soyuz 14 mission to the Salyut 3 space station in 1974. In later years, Col. Artyukhin helped to develop the space station Buran. He died of cancer.

Politics and government
The Governments of British Columbia, Canada and the Nisga’a Indians settled a land claim. Nearly 2,000 square kilometres of land in the Nass River valley was officially recognized as Nisga’a, and a 300,000-cubic decameter water reserve was also created. The agreement also created the Bear Glacier Provincial Park. It was the first formal treaty signed by a First Nation in British Columbia since the Douglas Treaties in 1854, and was given Royal Assent on April 13, 2000.

The government of Quebec signed an agreement on the management of natural resources among the Algonquins of Lac-Simon, Kitcisakik and Barrière Lake. As part of a tour of the Algonquin territories, Minister Guy Chevrette signed three agreements promoting the development and development of forest resources (Lac-Simon and Kitcisakik), as well as an agreement on the development of Lake Barriere community.