March 24, 2009

1,200 years ago
809

Died on this date
Harun al-Rashid, 53-56. Caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate, 786-809. Harun al-Rashid, the son of Caliph Al-Mahdi, ruled during the peak of the Islamic Golden Age. He established the Bayt al-Hikma ("House of Wisdom") library in Baghdad, and made Baghdad a centre of knowledge, culture and trade. He took ill and died soon after a revolt forced him to flee to Khorasan; his will divided the empire between his two sons.

180 years ago
1829

Politics and government
The Parliament of the United Kingdom passed the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, allowing Catholics to serve in Parliament.

140 years ago
1869

War
The last of Ngāti Ruanui Māori chief Riwha Titokowaru's forces surrendered to the New Zealand government, ending his uprising.

100 years ago
1909

Born on this date
Clyde Barrow. U.S. criminal. Mr. Barrow was a career criminal who met Bonnie Parker in 1930. Bonnie and Clyde became notorious for a series of bank robberies from 1932-1934, ending when they were ambushed and fatally gunned down by police on a rural road in Bienville Parish, Louisiana on May 23, 1934. Mr. Barrow was 25 at the time of his death.

Died on this date
John Millington Synge, 37. U.K. author, poet, and playwright. Mr. Synge, a native of Ireland, wrote mainly about working class Roman Catholics in rural Ireland. He was best known for his play The Playboy of the Western World (1907). Mr. Synge died of Hodgkin's disease, 23 days before his 38th birthday.

90 years ago
1919

World events
Former Austrian Emperor Charles I and his family left Austria for exile in Switzerland, escorted by Lieutenant Colonel Edward Lisle Strutt, commander of the small British guard detachment at Eckartsau.

Disasters
A terrible fire burned down the Sohmer Park amusement park at the corner of Panet and Notre-Dame East in Montreal. The amphitheater, the restaurant, the kiosk and all the other buildings were destroyed by the flames, with losses amounting to nearly $ 100,000. Sohmer Park opened in 1889, originally as a zoo before being transformed into a place of public amusement, hosting boxing, wrestling, political assemblies, concerts, or popular gatherings for summer or winter activities.

Hockey
Stanley Cup
Finals
Montreal 2 @ Seattle 7 (Seattle led best-of-five series 2-1)

Frank Foyston scored 4 goals to lead the Metropolitans over the Canadiens at Seattle Ice Arena in a game played under Pacific Coast Hockey Association rules. Mr. Foyston now had 8 goals in the series.

80 years ago
1929

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Semi-Finals
Toronto 0 @ New York Rangers 1 (New York led best-of-three series 1-0)

75 years ago
1934

Politics and government
The United States Congress passed the Tydings–McDuffie Act, allowing the Philippines to become a self-governing commonwealth.

60 years ago
1949

Movies
The Academy Awards for 1948 were presented at the Academy Theater in Hollywood. The winners included: Picture--Hamlet; Director--John Huston (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre); Actor--Laurence Olivier (Hamlet); Actress--Jane Wyman (Johnny Belinda); Supporting Actor--Walter Huston (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre); and Supporting Actress--Claire Trevor (Key Largo).

World events
A series of five espionage trials in Munich ended with 17 defendants convicted of spying for Czechoslovakia and Poland.

Politics and government
Marshal Aleksandr Vasilevsky succeeded Nikolai Bulganin as U.S.S.R. Defense Minister. Mr. Bulganin remained as Deputy Premier and a member of the Communist Party Politburo.

Medicine
Dr. Selman Waksman reported in Science that neomycin, a new antibiotic, was as effective as streptomycin in treating tuberculosis.

Economics and finance
The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly voted to defeat the veterans' pension bill sponsored by Rep. John Rankin (Democrat--Mississippi).

Labour
The U.S. House of Representatives Labor Committee approved the bill sponsored by the administration of President Harry Truman that was intended to replace the Taft-Hartley Act.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Semi-Finals
Toronto 3 @ Boston 2 (Toronto led best-of-seven series 2-0)
Montreal 4 @ Detroit 3 (OT) (Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)

Gerry Plamondon's third goal of the game, at 2:59 of the 1st overtime period, gave the Canadiens their win over the Red Wings at Olympia Stadium.

50 years ago
1959

On television tonight
Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond, on ABC
Tonight's episode: The Vision, starring Bruce Gordon, Pernell Roberts, and H.M. Wynant



Defense
Iraq formally withdrew from membership in the Baghdad Pact.

Terrorism
Cyprus Governor Sir Hugh Foot said that an amnesty would be granted to all Cypriots imprisoned for terrorist offenses, and to Greek and Turkish Cypriot terrorists still at large.

World events
Hong Kong sources reported that Communist Chinese Chairman Mao Tse-tung (Zedong) had swum the Yellow River near Wuhan seven times, presumably to answer doubts about his health.

Society
U.K. Colonial Secretary Alan Lennox-Boyd appointed a commission to investigate racial unrest in Nyasaland.

Environment
U.S. Atomic Energy Commission Chairman John McCone denied that his agency had suppressed information on fallout from nuclear weapons tests.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Semi-Finals
Toronto 1 @ Boston 5 (Boston led best-of-seven series 1-0)
Chicago 2 @ Montreal 4 (Montreal led best-of-seven series 1-0)

40 years ago
1969

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Blue Light Yokohama--Ayumi Ishida (7th week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Las Flechas Del Amor (Little Arrows)--Karina (2nd week at #1)

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Dizzy--Tommy Roe
2 Traces--Classics IV
3 Time of the Season--The Zombies
4 Indian Giver--1910 Fruitgum Co.
5 Proud Mary--Creedence Clearwater Revival
6 Things I'd Like to Say--The New Colony Six
7 This Girl's in Love with You--Dionne Warwick
8 Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon--Paul Revere and the Raiders
9 This Magic Moment--Jay and the Americans
10 Galveston--Glen Campbell

Singles entering the chart were It's Your Thing by the Isley Brothers (#72); Sweet Cherry Wine by Tommy James and the Shondells (#74); Where Do You Go To (My Lovely) by Peter Sarstedt (#76); It's Only Love by B.J. Thomas (#78); Don't Touch Me by Bettye Swann (#80); Mini-Skirt Minnie by Wilson Pickett (#84); Is it Something You've Got by Tyrone Davis (#86); Time is Tight by Booker T. & the M.G.'s (#88); I Still Love You by Jackie Wilson (#90); Sing a Simple Song by Sly & the Family Stone (#91); Ice Cream Song by the Dynamics (#92); The Chokin' Kind by Joe Simon (#93); Mercy by Ohio Express (#94); July You're a Woman by Pat Boone (#95); Zazueira by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass (#96); There Never was a Time by Jeannie C. Riley (#97); Idaho by the 4 Seasons (#98); In the Still of the Night by Paul Anka (#99); and Soul Pride (Part 1) by James Brown (#100).

On television tonight
Then Came Bronson, starring Michael Parks, Bonnie Bedelia, and Akim Tamiroff, on NBC

This made-for-television movie served as a pilot for the series, and was released in Europe as a theatrical film in 1970.



War
Egyptian and Israeli forces resumed artillery fire at each other across the Suez Canal.

Diplomacy
Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau began a two-day visit with U.S. President Richard Nixon in Washington. The two leaders discussed the anti-ballistic missile system; the North Atlantic Treaty organization; world problems; Canadian-American differences over wheat and oil; and student unrest and racial issues.

Politics and government
Bahjat Talhouni resigned as Prime Minister of Jordan; King Hussein appointed Foreign Minister Abdel Monem Rifai as his successor.

Economics and finance
Three weeks after the Bank of Canada raised its prime rate, eight of the nation's chartered banks followed suit by raising their prime lending rate from 7% to 7.5%. They also announced that as of April 1, interest paid on savings accounts would increase from 5.25% to 5.5%.

Statistics released revealed that textiles were the second-largest industry in Quebec. Textile mills provided 53,000 jobs, or about 60% of all jobs in this sector in Canada. In addition, the textile produced $900 million annually. In Quebec, the industry was divided into three branches: 1) synthetic and artificial textiles 2) yarns and fabrics 3) woolen fabrics.

Boxing
Jerry Quarry (31-2-4) won a 12-round unanimous decision over Buster Mathis (29-2) in a heavyweight bout at Madison Square Garden in New York. Mr. Mathis didn't fight again until November 1971.

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in Rhodesia (Lyons Maid): Too Much Heaven--Bee Gees (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (Hit Parade Italia): Tragedy--Bee Gees

#1 single in Ireland: I Will Survive--Gloria Gaynor (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (BMRB): I Will Survive--Gloria Gaynor (2nd week at #1)

Netherlands Top 10 (De Nederlandse Top 40)
1 Fire!--Pointer Sisters (3rd week at #1)
2 Lay Your Love on Me--Racey
3 Chiquitita--ABBA
4 Tragedy--Bee Gees
5 Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)--The Jacksons
6 The Runner--The Three Degrees
7 Ruthless Queen--Kayak
8 The Wild Places--Duncan Browne
9 Heart of Glass--Blondie
10 Mama Leone--Bino

Singles entering the chart were Lucky Number by Lene Lovich (#17); In the Navy by Village People (#19); Don't You Write Her Off by McGuinn, Clark & Hillman (#29); I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor (#30); Can You Feel the Force by Real Thing (#32); and Hop, Skip and Jump by Chalawa (#33).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 Tragedy--Bee Gees
2 I Will Survive--Gloria Gaynor
3 What a Fool Believes--The Doobie Brothers
4 Heaven Knows--Donna Summer with Brooklyn Dreams
5 Shake Your Groove Thing--Peaches & Herb
6 Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?--Rod Stewart
7 Sultans of Swing--Dire Straits
8 Fire--Pointer Sisters
9 What You Won't Do for Love--Bobby Caldwell
10 A Little More Love--Olivia Newton-John

Singles entering the chart were Bridge Over Troubled Water by Linda Clifford (#77); Just When I Needed You Most by Randy Vanwarmer (#81); Feelin' Satisfied by Boston (#83); Crazy Love by the Allman Brothers Band (#84); I Need Your Help Barry Manilow by Ray Stevens (#85); The Logical Song by Supertramp (#86); California Dreamin' by America (#88); Love Takes Time by Orleans (#89); and Saturday Night, Sunday Morning by Thelma Houston (#90).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Tragedy--Bee Gees (2nd week at #1)
2 Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?--Rod Stewart
3 What a Fool Believes--The Doobie Brothers
4 I Will Survive--Gloria Gaynor
5 Shake Your Groove Thing--Peaches & Herb
6 Heaven Knows--Donna Summer with Brooklyn Dreams
7 Sultans of Swing--Dire Straits
8 Fire--Pointer Sisters
9 Every Time I Think of You--The Babys
10 What You Won't Do for Love--Bobby Caldwell

Singles entering the chart were Bridge Over Troubled Water by Linda Clifford (#83); Love Takes Time by Orleans (#84); Feelin' Satisfied by Boston (#85); Crazy Love by the Allman Brothers Band (#86); I Need Your Help Barry Manilow by Ray Stevens (#87); Take it Back by the J. Geils Band (#88); California Dreamin' by America (#89); Good Times Roll by the Cars (#90); Saturday Night, Sunday Morning by Thelma Houston (#95); It Must Be Love by Alton McClain and Destiny (#96); Love and Desire (Part 1) by Arpeggio (#97); I Never Said I Love You by Orsa Lia (#98); Hot Number by Foxy (#99); and Walkin' the Fence by Couchois (#100).

Canada's top 10 (RPM)
1 Tragedy--Bee Gees
2 Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?--Rod Stewart
3 Heaven Knows--Donna Summer with Brooklyn Dreams
4 I Will Survive--Gloria Gaynor
5 A Little More Love--Olivia Newton-John
6 I Just Fall in Love Again--Anne Murray
7 Rasputin--Boney M.
8 The Gambler--Kenny Rogers
9 Don't Cry Out Loud--Melissa Manchester
10 No Tell Lover--Chicago

Singles entering the chart were Keep on Dancin' by Gary's Gang (#83); Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground) by the Jacksons (#89); Rubber Biscuit by the Blues Brothers (#91); Watch Out for Lucy by Eric Clapton and his Band (#93); Happiness by the Pointer Sisters (#94); It Hurts So Bad by Kim Carnes (#95); Love is the Answer by England Dan and John Ford Coley (#97); Elena by the Marc Tanner Band (#98); Can You Read My Mind by Maureen McGovern (#99); and Hard Times for Lovers by Judy Collins (#100).

Hockey
NHL
Washington 1 @ Montreal 3
Chicago 3 @ Toronto 3

25 years ago
1984

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Ci Sarà--Albano Carrisi; Romina Power (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Flanders (VRT Top 30): When The Lady Smiles--Golden Earring

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): Love Is a Battlefield--Pat Benatar (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): 99 Red Balloons--Nena (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K.: Hello--Lionel Richie

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Jump--Van Halen (5th week at #1)

U.S.A. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Girls Just Want to Have Fun--Cyndi Lauper (2nd week at #1)
2 Somebody's Watching Me--Rockwell
3 Footloose--Kenny Loggins
4 99 Luftballons--Nena
5 Jump--Van Halen
6 I Want a New Drug--Huey Lewis and the News
7 Here Comes the Rain Again--Eurythmics
8 Thriller--Michael Jackson
9 Automatic--Pointer Sisters
10 New Moon on Monday--Duran Duran

Singles entering the chart were The Longest Time by Billy Joel (#66); Breakdance by Irene Cara (#84); Catch Me I'm Falling by Real Life (#85); Love Me in a Special Way by DeBarge (#87); Hunters of the Night by Mr. Mister (#89); and It's My Life by Talk Talk (#90).

Canada's top 10 (RPM)
1 Jump--Van Halen (2nd week at #1)
2 99 Red Balloons--Nena
3 Girls Just Want to Have Fun--Cyndi Lauper
4 Thriller--Michael Jackson
5 Karma Chameleon--Culture Club
6 I Want a New Drug--Huey Lewis and the News
7 Here Comes the Rain Again--Eurythmics
8 Somebody's Watching Me--Rockwell
9 Red Red Wine--UB40
10 Rebel Yell--Billy Idol

Singles entering the chart were Hello by Lionel Richie (#42); You Might Think by the Cars (#44); Love Somebody by Rick Springfield (#45); They Don't Know by Tracey Ullman (#46); Sunshine Reggae by Laid Back (#48); and Never Never by Assembly (#50).

Died on this date
Sam Jaffe, 93. U.S. actor. Mr. Jaffe was a character actor in movies such as Lost Horizon (1937); Gunga Din (1939); The Asphalt Jungle (1950)--for which he was nominated for an Academy Award; and The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). He was blacklisted by Hollywood in the 1950s because of alleged Communist sympathies, but made a comeback with a supporting performance in Ben-Hur (1959). Mr. Jaffe was perhaps best known for playing the character Dr. David Zorba in the television series Ben Casey (1961-1965).

Weather
It hit 52 F in Edmonton, the most beautiful day of the year so far.

Hockey
NHL
Chicago 3 @ Toronto 7
St. Louis 7 @ Edmonton 1

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart--Marc Almond featuring Gene Pitney (4th week at #1)

Weather
It was warm enough in Edmonton for this blogger to wear shorts outside.

Environment
The U.S. tanker Exxon Valdez spilled 240,000 barrels (38,000 cubic metres) of petroleum after running aground in Prince William Sound in Alaska. It was the worst oil spill in American history. See also here.

Defense
U.S. President George Bush and leaders of the U.S. Congress from both the Democratic and Republican parties signed an agreement on continued aid to the Contras who were opposing the Sandanista regime in Nicaragua. Under the accord, which would have to be approved by both houses, the Contras would receive $4.5 million per month for food, clothing, shelter, and medical supplies through February 1990, by which time the Sandanista government had promised to hold elections. The aid would end if the Contras initiated military action prior to the scheduled elections.

10 years ago
1999

On television tonight
It's Like, You Know..., on ABC
Tonight's episode: Welcome to L.A., Part 1

This was the first episode of a situation comedy that was promoted as a Los Angeles equivalent to the New York-set Seinfeld. Among the cast were Chris Eigeman (co-star of Whit Stillman's movies Metropolitan (1990); Barcelona (1994); and The Last Days of Disco (1998)) and Jennifer Grey (co-star of Dirty Dancing (1987)). The show had some funny situations, but the characters didn't have the appeal of those in Seinfeld.

Died on this date
Birdie Tebbetts, 86. U.S. baseball player and manager. George Robert Tebbetts was a catcher with the Detroit Tigers (1936-1942, 1946-1947); Boston Red Sox (1947-1950); and Cleveland Indians (1951-1952), batting .270 with 38 home runs and 469 runs batted in in 1,162 games. He was regarded as an outstanding defensive catcher, probably the best in the American League in the late 1940s. Mr. Tebbetts managed the Indianapolis Indians of the American Association in 1953, and then managed the Cincinnati Redlegs (1954-1958); Milwaukee Braves (1961-1962); and Cleveland Indians (1963-1966), compiling a record of 748-705. He then served as a scout from 1968-1997 with the New York Mets; New York Yankees; Baltimore Orioles; and Florida Marlins.

War
NATO forces launched attacks on targets in Yugoslavia after Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic refused to sign a peace agreement regarding the future of the rebellious province of Kosovo. Targets in Serbia, Montenegro, and Kosovo were hit. Cruise missiles were fired from U.S. and British ships and submarines in the Adriatic Sea and from American B-52 bombers; other NATO warplanes attacked from bases in Italy. The participation of four German jets marked the first combat by German aircraft since the end of World War II. The United States reported that three Yugoslav MiG jets were shot down during the first night. U.S. President Bill Clinton said in an address that NATO sought to stop the Serbian offensive against civilians in Kosovo and to damage the Serbian military. Targets included radar and missile sites and command and communication centres. Russian President Boris Yeltsin denounced the attacks, and both Russia and China criticized the NATO offensive at the UN Security Council the next day. It was the war on Kosovo (a place that I, like millions of others, had never heard of before 1999) that killed patriotic feeling in me toward Canada. I felt ashamed (and still do) to live in a country that started a war, dropping bombs from a safe distance on people who had done nothing to us. Thanks to the Liberal government of Jean Chretien (or Cretin, as I call him), Canada became the aggressor in a war for the first time ever. It's worth noting that these Liberals are the type of people who consider themselves to be morally superior to those of us who believe that wars should only be fought if we have national interests at stake. These politically-correct one-worlders don't believe in something as crass as "national interests;" no, they believe in Canadian "values" instead. The result is that Trudeaupia (formerly Canada) now has no qualms about starting wars and killing innocent people. As for NATO, it was formed as a defensive alliance against an aggressive Soviet Union, and helped to prevent war for 40 years. When the Soviet Union disbanded at the end of 1991, NATO should have disbanded as well. However, NATO had to invent a reason to justify its continued existence, and like the firemen in Ray Bradbury's novel Fahrenheit 451, NATO ended up starting fires instead of preventing them. The Liberal war on Kosovo also led to the end of my membership in the Reform Party of Canada, then the official opposition. Under the leadership of Preston Manning, the Reformers went right along with the Liberals, refusing to call for a free vote or even for a debate in Parliament. A year later the Reform Party became the Canadian Alliance, and eventually merged with Progressive Conservatives (the bunch that the Reform Party was created to oppose) to become the Conservative Party of Canada. They're in power now, but in foreign affairs as in many other areas, the "Conservative" government is continuing the Liberal policy. This is one of a number of reasons why I no longer vote in federal elections.

Politics and government
The day after the assassination of Vice President Luis Maria Argaña, Paraguay's lower house of Congress voted to begin impeachment proceedings against President Raul Cubas Grau immediately for his defiance of a Supreme Court order to return Gen. Lino Cesar Oviedo to prison for planning a coup against then-President Juan Carlos Wasmosy in 1996. Six people were killed in riots calling for Mr. Cubas's ouster.

Rev. Jesse Jackson announced that he would not make a third attempt for the U.S. Democratic presidential nomination in 2000.

Law
An appellate committee of Great Britain's Law Lords ruled that the 1998 arrest of former Chilean President General Augusto Pinochet in England had been legal. The majority agreed that the international convention against torture applied to former heads of state.The issue of extradition to Spain remained unresolved.

Disasters
A Belgian truck carrying margarine and flour caught fire inside the Mont Blanc Tunnel; the resulting inferno killed 38 people.