September 15, 2008

1,340 years ago
668

Died on this date
Constans II, 37. Emperor of the Byzantine Empire, 641-668. Constans II, the son of Constantine III, ruled with his half-brother Heraklonas before becoming sole Emperor. He attempted to solve church disputes through compromise, and had mixed success in military matters. Constans II was assassinated in his bath by his chamberlain in Syracuse.

125 years ago
1883

Died on this date
Joseph Plateau, 81. Belgian physicist and mathematician. Dr. Plateau was best known for his 1832 invention of the Phenakistoscope, the first device to give the illusion of a moving image. He taught at the University of Ghent for many years, and died 29 days before his 82nd birthday.

120 years ago
1888

Born on this date
Antonio Ascari. Italian auto racing driver. Mr. Ascari began driving in top-level races in 1919. He won at Cremona in 1924, and won the Italian Grand Prix shortly thereafter. Mr. Ascari won the Belgian Grand Prix in 1925, but was killed in a crash in the Italian Grand Prix on July 26, 1925 at the age of 36. His son Alberto also became a Grand Prix driver, also dying in a crash at the age of 36.

100 years ago
1908

Born on this date
Kid Sheik. U.S. musician. Kid Sheik, whose real name was George Colar, was a jazz trumpeter from New Orleans who was a longtime performer with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. He died on November 7, 1996 at the age of 88.

Penny Singleton. U.S. actress. Miss Singleton, born Dorothy McNulty, played Blondie Bumstead in 26 movies from 1938-1950 and in a radio comedy series from 1939-1950. She also provided the voice for Jane Jetson in the animated television series The Jetsons (1962-1963, 1985-1987). Miss Singleton died on November 12, 2003 at the age of 95.

Politics and government
Charles Pelletier was installed as Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, serving until his death on April 29, 1911.

90 years ago
1918

War
Serbian, French, and Greek troops broke through the Bulgarian defenses at Dobro Pole on the Macedonian Front.

80 years ago
1928

Crime
A ransom of 20,000 pesos was paid, resulting in the release of American silver mine manager E.J. Bumstead, who had been kidnapped near Ixtlan, Mexico on August 28.

Disasters
16 people drowned when the steamship Manasso sank in a storm in Georgian Bay in Lake Huron.

70 years ago
1938

Died on this date
Thomas Wolfe, 37. U.S. author. Mr. Wolfe was known for his novels Look Homeward, Angel (1929); Of Time and the River (1935); and You Can't Go Home Again (1940). He died of pneumonia that developed into tuberculosis.

Boxing
World light heavyweight champion John Henry Lewis (99-10-5) won a 10-round majority decision over Jimmy Adamick (52-3-2) in a heavyweight bout at Convention Hall in Philadelphia.

Hockey
NHL
The Montreal Maroons sold Stew Evans, Cy Wentworth, Jimmy Ward, Bob Gracie, Herbie Cain, and Des Smith to the Montreal Canadiens, and the forward line of Baldy Northcott, Earl Robinson, and Russ Blinco to the Chicago Black Hawks. The Maroons had won the Stanley Cup as recently as 1935, but were now on the verge of folding.

Football
WIFU-U.S. college
Exhibition
Concordia College 7 @ Regina 14

2,500 fans at Park de Young saw the Roughriders defeat the Cobbers, who were from Moorhead, Minnesota, in a game played entirely under American rules.

60 years ago
1948

War
The Indian Army captured the towns of Jalna, Latur, Mominabad, Surriapet, and Narkatpalli as part of Operation Polo.

Diplomacy
Following a three-day conference in Paris, the U.S.A., U.K., U.S.S.R., and France referred their dispute over the disposition of former Italian colonies to the United Nations.

Defense
A North American F-86 Sabre, piloted by U.S. Air Force Major Richard L. Johnson, set the world aircraft speed record at 671 miles per hour (1,080 kilometres per hour).

Religion
The U.S. National Council of Cathoic Women concluded a five-day convention in New Orleans after urging the Supreme Court to reconsider its ruling against religious education in the public schools, and denouncing the Kinsey sex report as an "insult" to Americans.

Business
The U.S. Justice Department filed an antitrust suit against the Armour, Swift, Dudahy, and Wilson meat packing firms, accusing them of suppressing competition in their business, and demanding that they be split into 14 separate companies.

Football
IRFU
Montreal (1-3) 12 @ Hamilton (1-3) 13

50 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu (Volare)--Domenico Modugno (Best Seller--4th week at #1; Hot 100--4th week at #1)

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKWX)
1 Bird Dog--The Everly Brothers (3rd week at #1)
2 It's All in the Game--Tommy Edwards
3 Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu (Volare)--Domenico Modugno
4 Susie Darlin'--Robin Luke
5 It's Only Make Believe--Conway Twitty
6 Little Star--The Elegants
7 King Creole (EP)--Elvis Presley
8 My True Love--Jack Scott
9 The Wizard/Are You Really Mine--Jimmie Rodgers
10 Stupid Cupid--Connie Francis

Singles entering the chart were The Secret by Gordon MacRae (#48); Ten Commandments of Love by Harvey and the Moonglows (#51); Pussycat/No One But You by the Ames Brothers (#55); My Life by Chuck Willis (#56); Many a Time by Steve Lawrence (#57); I Wish by the Platters (#58); Hey Stella by the Crew Cuts (#59); and Up Until Now by Johnnie Ray (#60).

Died on this date
George "Snuffy" Stirnweiss, 39. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Stirnweiss was a second baseman with the New York Yankees (1943-1950); St. Louis Browns (1950); and Cleveland Indians (1951-1952), batting .268 with 29 home runs and 281 runs batted in in 1,028 games. His best years were 1944, when he batted .319--leading the American League in triples (16) and tying for the AL lead in runs (125); hits (205); and stolen bases (55), and 1945, when he led the AL in batting (.309); slugging (.476); runs (107); and hits (195) and tied for the lead in triples (22) and stolen bases (33). Mr. Stirnweiss was a member of World Series championship teams in 1943, 1947, and 1949. He worked in the banking sector after his playing days, and suffered a heart attack in 1957. Mr. Stirnweiss was one of the 48 passengers killed in the wreck of Central Railroad of New Jersey Train #3314.

World events
French Information Minister Jacques Soustelle narrowly escaped assassination when three Algerian terrorists shot at him in his car near the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

Canadiana
Cécile Langlois, 24, gave birth to a son in Montreal, becoming the first of the Dionne quintuplets to become a mother.

Law
In a brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, the Justice Department contended that the offshore boundaries of the five states bordering the Gulf of Mexico should be limited to three miles from their coast lines.

Economics and finance
The Commonwealth Economic Conference was held in Montréal.

Disasters
48 passengers were killed when three cars of Train #3314 of the Central Railroad of New Jersey drove through signals and fell through an open drawbridge into Newark Bay near Bayonne, New Jersey.

Boxing
George Chuvalo (15-2-1) knocked James J. Parker (30-7-4) down 3 times and finally out at 2:00 of the 1st round before 12,500 fans at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto to win the Canadian heavyweight title, which had been vacant since the retirement of Earl Walls three years earlier. It was Mr. Parker's last fight.

Football
CFL
WIFU
Calgary (4-3) 7 @ Saskatchewan (4-2) 30
Winnipeg (6-2) 19 @ British Columbia (0-8) 8

Frank Tripucka threw touchdown passes to Jack Hill, Mike Hagler, and Ken Carpenter to lead the Roughriders over the Stampeders before 13,012 fans at Taylor Field in Regina. Mr. Carpenter intercepted a Cotton Davidson pass in the 4th quarter and returned it 72 yards for another TD, all of which were converted by Mr. Hill. Harvey Wylie rushed 7 yards for the Calgary touchdown in the 4th quarter, converted by Doug Brown.

John Varone and Charlie Shepard rushed for touchdowns to help the Blue Bombers beat the Lions before 20,453 fans at Empire Stadium in Vancouver. Winnipeg quarterback Jim Van Pelt completed 10 of 13 passes for 188 yards and kicked a convert and 2 field goals. The Lions opened the scoring in the 1st quarter on a 55-yard touchdown pass from George Herring to Jerry Janes, converted by Ted Hunt. Mr. Herring punted for a single in the 4th quarter.

40 years ago
1968

Disasters
Three earthquakes rocked Jahrum, Iran, injuring dozens of people and trapping them in their homes.

One person was killed and 48 injured in a HemisFair monorail train crash in San Antonio.

Golf
Arnold Palmer won the Kemper Open in Sutton, Massachusetts with a total score of 276. First prize money was $30,000.

Football
CFL
Toronto (4-3) 23 @ Montreal (3-3) 8
Winnipeg (1-7) 3 @ Saskatchewan (6-2-1) 31

Bill Symons rushed for 138 yards and 2 touchdowns to help the Argonauts defeat the Alouettes before 27,214 fans at Autostade. Toronto quarterback Wally Gabler completed 16 of 25 passes for 237 yards, with Bobby Taylor catching 6 of his passes for 80 yards.

Jason Franci caught 2 touchdown passes, and Alan Ford and George Reed added touchdowns for the Roughriders as they routed the Blue Bombers before 16,136 fans at Taylor Field in Regina.

30 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (10th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): You're the One that I Want--John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John (4th week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): You're the One that I Want--John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John

Died on this date
Willy Messerschmitt, 80. German engineer. Mr. Messerschmitt was best known for designing the Messerschmitt Bf 109, the Luftwaffe's leading fighter plane during World War II. He spent two years in prison after the war for using slave labour and collaborating with the Nazis.

Robert Cliche, 57. Canadian politician and judge. Mr. Cliche, a native of Saint-Joseph-de-Beauce, Quebec, led the Quebec New Democratic Party in the mid-1960s, and ran unsuccessfully as an NDP candidate in the federal elections of 1965 and 1968. He was appointed a judge of the Provincial Court of Quebec in 1972, and from 1974-1975 chaired the Royal Commission investigating the exercise of trade-union freedom in Quebec's construction industry. Mr. Cliche died in Quebec City.

Bruce Montgomery, aka Edmund Crispin, 56. U.K. composer and author. Mr. Montgomery used his real name when he composed music, mainly consisting of church music and film scores. He wrote scores for many British comedy films in the 1940s and '50s, including the early movies in the Carry On series. Mr. Montgomery used the pseudonym Edmund Crispin when he wrote a series of crime novels and short stories in the 1940s and '50s featuring the detective Gervase Fen. Mr. Montgomery wrote little fiction and music after the 1950s; he was a heavy drinker, which led to his death, 17 days before his 57th birthday.

Jean-Luc Lafrenière, 11. Canadian accident victim. Master Lafrenière became the first school patrol officer in Canada to die in the line of duty when he was killed by a car in Ottawa.

War
Nicaraguan troops began rocket attacks against Sandanista Liberation Front strongholds in Leon, the country's second-largest city.

Terrorism
Astrid Proll, one of the most wanted members of the West German Baader-Meinhof gang, was detained in London.

Scandal
U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation agent Joseph Stabile was indicted in New York for lying to a grand jury in Brooklyn about a bribe he allegedly received from a member of the Mafia. He was charged with having lied about $10,000 he had received from John Caputo, reputedly a member of the Luchese family of the Mafia, to have gambling charges against him dismissed.

Oil
Syncrude Canada officially opened its 50,000-barrels-per-day Mildred Lake plan at Fort McMurray, Alberta, after five years of construction; it was then the world's largest oilsands production facility.

Labour
International Nickel Company workers in Sudbury, Ontario started a long and bitter strike (locally referred to as the Sudbury Strike of 1978); the strike ended on June 7, 1979 and had a catastrophic effect on the city's economy, but also spurred new economic development efforts.

Boxing
Muhammad Ali (56-3) became the first man to win the world heavyweight title on three separate occasions when he took the World Boxing Association title with a 15-round unanimous decision before 63,350 fans at Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans over Leon Spinks (7-1-1), who had taken the title from him on a split decision exactly seven months earlier. It turned out to be the last win of Mr. Ali's career.



Football
CIAU
Alberta (1-1) 7 @ Calgary (3-0) 30

Darrell Moir rushed for a touchdown and passed 18 yards to Grant Newell for another, while Harry Kruger returned a punt 46 yards for a TD to help the Dinosaurs beat the Golden Bears at McMahon Stadium. The only Alberta score came with 9 seconds remaining in the 1st half on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Dan McDermid to Marco Cyncar, converted by Mr. Cyncar.

25 years ago
1983

Hit parade
Canada's Top 30 (Weekly Music Magazine)
1 Human Nature--Michael Jackson
2 Human Touch--Rick Springfield
3 She Works Hard for the Money--Donna Summer
4 Tell Her About It--Billy Joel
5 Take Me to Heart--Quarterflash
6 Maniac--Michael Sembello
7 I'll Tumble 4 Ya--Culture Club
8 Don't Cry--Asia
9 (Keep Feeling) Fascination--The Human League
10 King of Pain--The Police
11 (She's) Sexy + 17--Stray Cats
12 China Girl--David Bowie
13 Rock and Roll is King--Electric Light Orchestra
14 Video Kids--Prototype
15 Making Love Out of Nothing at All--Air Supply
16 Through the Years--Tim Finn
17 Far from Over--Frank Stallone
18 Lawyers in Love--Jackson Browne
19 I Don't Wanna Dance--Eddy Grant
20 Kiss the Bride--Elton John
21 Promises, Promises--Naked Eyes
22 Islands in the Stream--Kenny Rogers with Dolly Parton
23 I Never Said I Loved You--Payola$ with Carole Pope
24 Queen of the Broken Hearts--Loverboy
25 True--Spandau Ballet
26 1999--Prince
27 This Time--Bryan Adams
28 What am I Gonna Do?--Rod Stewart
29 Sitting at the Wheel--The Moody Blues
30 Big Log--Robert Plant

Politics and government
Menachem Begin formally resigned as Prime Minister of Israel and was replaced by Foreign Minister Yitzhak Shamir.

Diplomacy
Governors Mario Cuomo of New York and Thomas Kean of New Jersey barred Soviet delegates to the upcoming United Nations General Assembly from landing at John F. Kennedy or Newark airports, and suggested that military bases would be better equipped to provide security for the diplomats, who might expect to encounter hostility from the public. The moves were in raction to the September 1 downing of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 over Soviet air space, with the losss of all 269 aboard.

War
Democratic Party members of the United States Senate, meeting in caucus under the leadership of Robert Byrd (West Virginia), voted 29-0 in favour of forcing President Ronald Reagan to seek authority under the War Powers Resolution to keep U.S. troops in Lebanon. The resolution required the president to withdraw troops within 60 days of hostilities unless Congress gave specific authority for them to remain--and even then, only if there was an immediate threat to the United States.

Defense
Two days after the United States House of Representatives had voted its approval, the U.S. Senate approved a $187.5-billion defense authorization bill that included funds for the MX missile, the B-1 bomber, and for the first time in 14 years, production of chemical warfare weapons.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department reported that the U.S. balance of payments stood at a record $9.71 billion in the second quarter of 1983, and Commerce Secretary Malcolm Baldridge predicted that the total for 1983 would also be a record.

25 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Im Nin'alu--Ofra Haza

#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): The Loco-Motion--Kylie Minogue (4th week at #1)

Edmonton's Top 10 (CKRA)
1 Make Me Lose Control--Eric Carmen
2 Don't Worry Be Happy--Bobby McFerrin
3 Perfect World--Huey Lewis and the News
4 Monkey--George Michael
5 I'll Always Love You--Taylor Dayne
6 Fast Car--Tracy Chapman
7 Better Be Home Soon--Crowded House
8 If it Isn't Love--New Edition
9 Nobody's Fool--Kenny Loggins
10 It Would Take a Miracle--Rick Astley

At the movies
Buster, directed by David Green, and starring Phil Collins and Julie Walters, received its premiere screening in the United Kingdom.





10 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Louis Rasminsky, 90. Canadian economist. Mr. Rasminsky, a native of Montreal, joined the Bank of Canada in 1940, and served as Governor of the Bank of Canada from 1961-1973. He was Canada's executive director at the International Monetary Fund from 1946-1962, and was also executive director at the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development from 1950-1962.