June 10, 2008

170 years ago
1838

Abominations
10 Europeans and an African massacred as many as 30 unarmed Aborigines at Myall Creek, near Bingara, Murchison County, in northern New South Wales.

140 years ago
1868

Died on this date
Mihailo Obrenović III, 44. Prince of Serbia, 1839-1842, 1860-1868. Prince Mihailo succeeded his elder brother Milan Obrenović II, but was deposed after three years by a coup that installed Aleksandar Karađorđević on the throne. After years in exile, Prince Mihailo was restored to power, where he governed as an absolute but benevolent monarch. He was travelling through the park of Košutnjak in a carriage, near his country residence on the outskirts of Belgrade, with his mistress Katarina Konstantinović and her mother Princess Anka Obrenović, 47, when they were all shot by Kosta Karađorđević. Prince Mihailo and Princess Anka were killed, while Katarina survived. Prince Mihailo was succeeded on the throne by his cousin Milan IV.

130 years ago
1878

Politics and government
The League of Prizren was officially founded "to struggle in arms to defend the wholeness of the territories of Albania." It was established to oppose the decisions of the Congress of Berlin and the Treaty of San Stefano, as a consequence of which the Albanian lands in Balkans were being partitioned and given to the neighbor states of Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece.

110 years ago
1898

War
U.S. Marines landed at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, to begin combat in the Spanish-American War.

100 years ago
1908

Born on this date
Robert Eddison. Japanese-born U.K. actor. Mr. Eddison was a character actor on stage, screen, and television for more than 60 years, known for his mellifluously resonant, baritone voice. He played Grail Knight in the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). Mr. Eddison died on December 14, 1991 at the age of 83.

90 years ago
1918

Died on this date
Arrigo Boito, 76. Italian writer and composer. Mr. Boito was best known for his libretti for Giuseppe Verdi's operas Otello and Falstaff, and his own opera Mefistofele (1868/1875).

War
The Austro-Hungarian battleship SMS Szent István sank off the Croatian coast after being torpedoed by an Italian MAS motorboat.



75 years ago
1933

Golf
Johnny Goodman won the U.S. Open, becoming the last amateur (so far) to win the tournament.

60 years ago
1948

Died on this date
Lewis Schwellenbach, 53. U.S. politician. Mr. Schwellenbach, a Democrat, represented Washington in the U.S. Senate from 1935-1940. He served as a district court judge in Washington from 1940-1945 before returning to politics as U.S. Secretary of Labor in the administration of President Harry Truman from 1945 until his death from a sudden illness. The Labor Department became more active under Mr. Schwellenbach than it had been under his predecessors, and he tried to use his judicial temperament to negotiate agreements.

Aviation
U.S. Air Force Secretary Stuart Symington announced that Captain Charles Yeager had repeatedly broken the sound barrier in a rocket-powerd bell X-1 at an altitude of 35,000 feet.

Politics and government
Turkish Prime Minister Hasan Saka reorganized his cabinet, following parliamentary criticism of the government for food shortages and other economic difficulties. The new cabinet included more politicians from the "progressive" wing of the governing Republican People's Party.

Labour
U.S. Federal Judge T. Alan Goldsborough signed a preliminary injunction against a nationwide railroad strike by three unions, replacing a temporary restraining order which was due to expire the next day.

United Steel Workers of America President Philip Murray filed a petition in U.S. federal court in Chicago challenging the consitutionality of the Taft-Hartley Act provision requiring union officials to file affidavits certifying that they were not Communists.

Boxing
Tony Zale (67-17-2) knocked out Rocky Graziano (47-8-5) at 1:08 of the 3rd round to regain the world middleweight title at Ruppert Stadium in Newark.



Baseball
Monty Kennedy of the Minneapolis Millers pitched a no-hitter against the Louisville Colonels in an American Association game.

50 years ago
1958

At the movies
A Movie, a short collage of found footage assembled by Bruce Conner, received its premiere screening at the East and West Gallery in San Francisco as part of a reception for Mr. Conner's first solo art show.

Died on this date
Angelina Weld Grimké, 78. U.S. writer. Miss Grimké was partly of Negro ancestry and came to prominence during the Harlem Renaissance. She achieved success with her anti-lynching play Rachel (1916), which was performed with an all-Negro cast.

Space
General Samuel Anderson, director of the U.S. Air Research and Development Command, said that the Air Force would tray to shoot a rocket to the Moon in August and would attempt two more lunar probes in the autumn of 1958.

War
Druze tribesmen led by Kamal Jumblatt attacked the Barduk area southeast of Beirut in an attempt to cut the Beirut-Damascus highway.

Defense
Canadian Prime Minister John Diefenbaker informed Parliament that the U.S. Strategic Air Command had been given permission to base tanker aircraft in Canada.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization Council met in Paris for discussions of the Cyprus problem, but refused to take any stand on the Greek-Turkish dispute.

British Defense Minister Duncan Sandys proposed that a World Security Authority be created under the United Nations to supervise disarmament, prevent rearmament, and deal with any future aggression.

Politics and government
The All-Algeria Committee of Public Safety demanded that French Prime Minister Charles de Gaulle suppress the French political party system and form a "real government of public safety" in France.

Scandal
Staff workers with the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Legislative Oversight reported that industrialist Bernard Goldfine had paid about $2,000 in bills for White House chief of staff Sherman Adams at a Boston hotel and that Mr. Adams had interceded with federal agencies on Mr. Goldfine's behalf.

40 years ago
1968

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Hoshikage no Waltz--Masao Sen (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Delilah--Tom Jones

On the radio
De fires tegn (The Sign of Four), starring Jorgen Reenberg as Sherlock Holmes and Keld Markuslund as Dr. Watson, on Danmarks Radio

War
General William Westmoreland turned over command of U.S. forces in Vietnam to his former deputy, Gen. Creighton Abrams. Gen. Westmoreland left the next day to assume his new duties as U.S. Army Chief of Staff.

40 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (Hit Parade Italia): Stayin' Alive--Bee Gees (6th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland: Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (BMRB): Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (5th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): You're the One that I Want--John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John

Netherlands Top 10 (De Nederlandse Top 40)
1 Rivers of Babylon/Brown Girl in the Ring--Boney M. (7th week at #1)
2 Lady McCorey--BZN
3 Ça Plane pour Moi--Plastic Bertrand
4 Eagle/Thank You for the Music--ABBA
5 Substitute--Clout
6 Met de Vlam in de Pijp--Henk Wijngaard
7 If You Can't Give Me Love--Suzi Quatro
8 Night Fever--Bee Gees
9 Golden Years of Rock 'n Roll--Long Tall Ernie and the Shakers
10 I'm Always Touched by Your Presence, Dear--Blondie

Singles entering the chart were Miss You by the Rolling Stones (#16); Piece of the Rock by Mother's Finest (#22); Joost Mag het Weten by Het Nederlands Artiestenkoor (#24); Mary Rose by Vader Abraham (#28); Oh Carol by Smokie (#32); and If I Can't Have You by Yvonne Elliman (#35).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Shadow Dancing--Andy Gibb (2nd week at #1)
2 Too Much, Too Little, Too Late--Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams
3 You're the One that I Want--John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John
4 Baker Street--Gerry Rafferty
5 Baby Hold On--Eddie Money
6 Feels So Good--Chuck Mangione
7 It's a Heartache--Bonnie Tyler
8 With a Little Luck--Wings
9 The Closer I Get to You--Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway
10 Love is Like Oxygen--Sweet

Singles entering the chart were Copacabana (At the Copa) by Barry Manilow (#65); I'm Not Gonna Let it Bother Me Tonight by Atlanta Rhythm Section (#69); Songbird by Barbra Streisand (#86); You Can't Dance by England Dan & John Ford Coley (#87); So Hard Livin' Without You by Airwaves (#88); Stay by Jackson Browne (#89); You're a Part of Me by Gene Cotton with Kim Carnes (#90); Rivers of Babylon by Boney M. (#92); This Magic Moment by Richie Furay (#97); and Midnight Light by LeBlanc & Carr (#98).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 With a Little Luck--Wings (3rd week at #1)
2 You're the One that I Want--John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John
3 Too Much, Too Little, Too Late--Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams
4 Shadow Dancing--Andy Gibb
5 The Closer I Get to You--Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway
6 Disco Inferno--The Trammps
7 Baby Hold On--Eddie Money
8 Feels So Good--Chuck Mangione
9 Imaginary Lover--Atlanta Rhythm Section
10 Night Fever--Bee Gees

Singles entering the chart were Darlin' by Paul Davis (#90); Miss You by the Rolling Stones (#91); Grease by Frankie Valli (#96); Survival by Marc Jordan (#97); Take Me to the Next Phase by the Isley Brothers (#99); and Runaway by Jefferson Starship (#100).

Horse racing
Affirmed, with Steve Cauthen up, narrowly finished ahead of Alydar for the third straight race, winning the 110th running of the Belmont Stakes before 65,417 fans at Belmont Park, New York in a time of 2:26 4/5 to win the Triple Crown, becoming the third horse to accomplish the feat in the past six years. Mr. Cauthen, 18, became the youngest jockey to win the Triple Crown.



25 years ago
1983

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Beat It--Michael Jackson (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Juliet--Robin Gibb (2nd week at #1)

Politics and government
The candidates for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada made their speeches at the party's leadership convention. Former Prime Minister Joe Clark was attempting to hang onto his position against challenges from businessman Brian Mulroney, former Finance Minister John Crosbie, and hockey executive Peter Pocklington, among others.

Former Republican U.S. Congressman and independent presidential candidate John Anderson said that he was planning to form a new political party, rejecting the Republican and Democratic Parties as captives of special interests and unwilling to experiment with new ideas.

Diplomacy
U.S. envoy to Latin America Richard Stone met with Nicaraguan leaders and said that their support for guerrilla movements in other countries was the major problem in American-Nicaraguan relations. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said that he was willing to make a settlement with the U.S. but not with rebel groups inside Nicaragua.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department reported that retail sales had increased 2.1% in May, while the Labor Department reported that prices paid by producers for finished goods had edged upward 0.3% in May.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Ottawa (0-1) 4 @ Montreal (1-0) 14
Hamilton (0-1) 6 @ Toronto (1-0) 24
Calgary (1-0) 26 @ Winnipeg (0-1) 4
British Columbia (1-0) 52 @ Edmonton (0-1) 20

The Lions overcame an early deficit to defeat the Eskimos at Commonwealth Stadium. The Eskimos dressed 81 players, including five quarterbacks, four of whom (Warren Moon, Matt Dunigan, Mike Williams, and Victor McGee) played.

20 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Ella, Elle L'a--France Gall (4th week at #1)

Died on this date
Louis L'Amour, 80. U.S. author. Mr. L'Amour, born Louis LaMoore, wrote about 100 novels, as well as short stories and non-fiction. He was mainly known for Western novels, but also wrote historical fiction and science fiction.

10 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Hammond Innes, 83. U.K. author. Mr. Innes was known for thriller novels, often set at sea. His novels included The Trojan Horse (1940) and The Wreck of the Mary Deare (1956).

Jim Hearn, 77. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Hearn played with the St. Louis Cardinals (1947-1950); New York Giants (1950-1956); and Philadelphia Phillies (1957-1959), compiling a record of 109-89 with an earned run average of 3.81 in 396 games, and batting .141 with 9 home runs and 36 runs batted in in 403 games. He led the National League in earned run average in 1950 (2.49), and was a member of the Giants' National League championship (1951) and World Series championship (1954) teams. Mr. Hearn managed the unusual feat of hitting two inside-the-park home runs in his major league career, including one in a game on July 9, 1955 in which he also hit a home run outside the park.

Basketball
NBA
Finals
Utah 82 @ Chicago 86 (Chicago led best-of-seven series 3-1)