January 29, 2009

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Ken Dies!

890 years ago
1119

Died on this date
Gelasius II, 54-59. Roman Catholic Pope, 1118-1119. Gelasius II, born Giovanni Caetani, succeeded Paschall II, but spent much of his papacy in exile as a result of a dispute with Holy Roman Emperor Henry V over the issue of investiture. Gelasius II fled Rome in March 1118, but excommunicated Emperor Henry and Antipope Gregory VII, and returned to Rome in July 1118. He held a synod at Vienne in January 1119 and was planning to hold a general council to decide the issue of investiture when he died, one year and five days after taking office. Gelasius II was succeeded by Callixtus II.

260 years ago
1749

Born on this date
Christian VII. King of Denmark and Norway, 1766-1808. Christian VII succeeded his father Frederick V on the throne, but was beset by severe mental problems--perhaps schizophrenia--and was king in name only for most of his reign. He died of a stroke on March 13, 1808 at the age of 59, and was succeeded by his son Frederick VI.

190 years ago
1819

Britannica
Lieutenant-Governor of Bencoolen Stamford Raffles made a brief survey of the Karamun Islands before landed on the island of Singapore, establishing a post at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula.

180 years ago
1829

Academia
McGill University, built with the legacy and property from fur trader James McGill, opened in Montréal.

175 years ago
1834

Labour
U.S. President Andrew Jackson ordered the first use of U.S. federal soldiers to suppress a labour dispute.

110 years ago
1899

Died on this date
Alfred Sisley, 59. French-born U.K. artist. Mr. Sisley, born in Paris to English parents, was an Impressionist landscape painter who spent most of his life in France, and died there of throat cancer.

75 years ago
1934

Died on this date
Fritz Haber, 75. German chemist. Dr. Haber won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1918 for his development for synthesizing ammonia, important for fertilizers and explosives. While Dr. Haber's work in the production of fertilizer has helped in the feeding of much of the world's population, he's also been criticized as the "father of chemical warfare" for his work in the development of chlorine and other poisonous gases in World War I. Although Dr. Haber was Jewish, the Nazis offered him funding to continue his research in weapons, but he left the country, and died of heart failure in Basel, Switzerland, while on his way to live in what is now Israel.

60 years ago
1949

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Buttons and Bows--Dinah Shore and the Happy Valley Boys; Gene Autry (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard) (Best Seller): A Little Bird Told Me--Evelyn Knight and the Stardusters (2nd week at #1)

U.S. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Buttons and Bows--Dinah Shore and the Happy Valley Boys (12th week at #1)
--The Dinning Sisters
2 A Little Bird Told Me--Evelyn Knight and the Stardusters
--Blue Lu Barker
--Paula Watson
3 On a Slow Boat to China--Kay Kyser Orchestra
--Freddy Martin and his Orchestra
--Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
--Eddy Howard and his Orchestra
--Art Lund
4 My Darling, My Darling--Jo Stafford and Gordon MacRae with the Starlighters
--Doris Day and Buddy Clark
5 Far Away Places--Margaret Whiting and the Crew Chiefs
--Bing Crosby
--Perry Como
6 You were Only Fooling (While I was Falling in Love)--Blue Barron and his Orchestra
--The Ink Spots
--Kay Starr
7 Lavender Blue (Dilly Dilly)--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
--Dinah Shore
8 Cuanto la Gusta--Carmen Miranda and the Andrews Sisters
9 The Pussy Cat Song (Nyow! Nyot Nyow!)--Patty Andrews and Bob Crosby
--Perry Como with the Fontane Sisters
10 Maybe You'll Be There--Gordon Jenkins and his Orchestra

Singles entering the chart were Red Roses for a Blue Lady, with versions by Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra; and Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians (#23); Wabash Blues by Pee Wee Hunt and his Orchestra (#29); and Tarra Ta-Larra Ta-Lar by Bing Crosby (#35).

On the radio
Tales of Fatima, starring Basil Rathbone, on CBS
Tonight's episode: The Frozen Forest

War
The Greek government rejected the peace discussion offer of Communist guerrillas.

Defense
The U.S. Navy's fastest and most powerful cruiser, the USS Newport News, was commissioned in Newport News, Virginia.

Labour
The administration of U.S. President Harry Truman issued its proposed National Labor Relations Act of 1949, to replace the Taft-Hartley Act. The measure eliminated several provisions of the existing law, including prohibition of the closed shop and affidavit requirements for union officials.

50 years ago
1959

Died on this date
Winifred Brunton, 78. U.K. artist. Mrs. Brunton, the wife of Egyptologist Guy Brunton, accompanied him on his archaeological digs, and painted portraits of Egyptian monarchs, which were published in the books Kings and Queens of Ancient Egypt (1926) and Kings and Queens of Ancient Egypt (1926). She died in South Africa.

Music
The first Melodifestivalen, an annual Swedish music competition that determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, was held in Stockholm.

Diplomacy
Liberia proposed the formation of a loosely-connected organization of independent African nations, to be known as the Associated States of Africa.

Politics and government
In the wake of the National Council's refusal to approve his 1959 budget, Prince Rainier III suspended the Monacan constitution and resumed full personal power.

Ignoring a suggestion by Rep. James Roosevelt that the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities be abolished, the House voted $327,000 for the committee's continued work.

Weather
Dense fog - the worst in seven years - brought road, rail, and air transport in many parts of England and Wales to a virtual standstill.

Agriculture
Arguing in a special message to Congress that "the price-support and production-control program has not worked," U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower disclosed plans for the United States and "other surplus-producing nations" to seek ways of "using [surplus] food for peace."

Business
Following a meeting in Washington with Canadian Justice Minister E. Davie Fulton, U.S. Attorney General William Rogers announced U.S. agreement to consult with the Canadian government before bringing anti-trust actions against American firms operating in Canada.

Basketball
NCAA
Adolph Rupp, who had been coach at the University of Kentucky since 1930, won his 600th game there, then an NCAA record. He coached until 1972, and retired with 876 victories and four national titles.

40 years ago
1969

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (Record Retailer): Albatross--Fleetwood Mac

Australia's top 10 (Go-Set)
1 Eloise--Barry Ryan
2 Going Up the Country--Canned Heat
3 Lily the Pink--The Scaffold
4 White Room--Cream
5 Hey Jude/Revolution--The Beatles
6 I Started a Joke/Kilburn Towers--The Bee Gees
7 Love Child--Diana Ross and the Supremes
8 Chewy Chewy--Ohio Express
9 Son-of-a Preacher Man--Dusty Springfield
10 Scarborough Fair--Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66

Singles entering the chart were Just Lovin' You by Lynn Rodgers (#33); I am the Urban Spaceman by the Bonzo Dog Doodah Band (#37); I'm Gonna Make You Love Me/A Place in the Sun by Diana Ross and the Supremes & the Temptations (#38); and A Minute of Your Time by Tom Jones (#39).

Died on this date
Allen Dulles, 75. U.S. diplomat and spymaster. Mr. Dulles, the younger brother of U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, held various diplomatic posts before joining the office of Strategic Services at the beginning of World War II. The OSS eventually became the Central Intelligence Agency, and Mr. Dulles served as Deputy Director of Central Intelligence (1951-1953) and Director of Central Intelligence (1953-1961). He and other CIA officials were forced to resign on November 29, 1961, amid increasing criticism of the agency's performance. Mr. Dulles served on the Warren Commission (1963-1964) that investigated the November 22, 1963 assassination of President Kennedy, and died of influenza and pneumonia.

Personal
I was one of the grade 2 boys invited to Ken Dies' 8th birthday party, and came away with a nickel that had been placed in the cake. A fun time was had by all.

Protest
Canadian and West Indian students occupied the computer centre of Sir George Williams University (today part of Concordia University) in Montreal to protest alleged racism on campus by a biology professor. The protest ended on February 11, 1969, but not until computers had been vandalized.

Boxing
Zora Folley (77-10-6) scored a technical knockout of Sonny Moore (21-31-2) at 2:54 of the 4th round of a heavyweight bout at the Silver Slipper in Las Vegas when referee Harold Krause stopped the fight because of a cut inside Mr. Moore's mouth. Mr. Moore was a last-minute substitute for Tommy Fields.

Jose Gonzalez (35-14-2) won a 10-round decision over Tito Marshall (37-20-8) in a light heavyweight fight at Sunnyside Garden, Queens, New York.

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?--Rod Stewart

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Champion--Alice

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Tú--Umberto Tozzi (9th week at #1)

Diplomacy
U.S. President Jimmy Carter welcomed Chinese Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping to the White House to begin two days of talks.

Religion
Pope John Paul II continued his Latin American visit, visiting a children's hospital and addressing representatives of Roman Catholic organizations in Mexico City, and holding mass in Oaxaca.

Labour
The strike of British truckers ended when an arbitration panel recommended a pay increase of 20.75%, amid government fears of the inflationary precedent of such a wage settlement.

Football
NFL
Pro Bowl @ Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
NFC 13 AFC 7

Roger Staubach of the Dallas Cowboys completed a 19-yard touchdown pass to fellow Cowboy Tony Hill in the 3rd quarter to give the NFC its win before 38,333 fans. Mr. Staubach completed 9 of 15 passes for 125 yards.

25 years ago
1984

Hit parade
#1 single in France: Flashdance...What a Feeling--Irene Cara (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Jenseits von Eden--Nino de Angelo

On television tonight
The Four Seasons, based on the 1981 movie of the same name, debuted as a series on CBS. Alan Alda, who wrote and directed the film, introduced the first episode of the TV series.

Defense
A study released by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization showed that the rate of growth of Soviet military spending had slowed between 1976 and 1982. The U.S.S.R. accused the U.S.A. of violating arms control agreements.

Hockey
NHL
Montreal 7 @ Boston 2

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Angel of Harlem--U2

#1 single in Switzerland: Bring Me Edelweiss--Edelweiss (3rd week at #1)

Died on this date
Mandel Kramer, 72. U.S. actor. Mr. Kramer appeared in numerous radio programs, but was perhaps best known as the lat actor to play the title character in Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar (1961-1962). He played police chief Bill Marceau in the television soap opera The Edge of Night (1959-1979).

Diplomacy
Hungary became the first Eastern Bloc nation to establish diplomatic relations with South Korea.

Baseball
The game-winning run batted in was dropped as a statistic, after 9 seasons. The career leader in game-winning RBIs was Keith Hernandez, with 129.

10 years ago
1999

Died on this date
Lili St. Cyr, 80. U.S. stripper. Miss St. Cyr, born Willis Marie Van Schaack, was a popular burlesque performer from the late 1930s through the mid-'60s, achieving her greatest fame in the 1940s and '50s, when she was based in Montreal. Miss St. Cyr's act resulted in a couple of highly-publicized criminal trials, but she was acquitted both times of violating public morals.