March 9, 2009

150 years ago
1859

Born on this date
Lloyd Wheaton Bowers. U.S. politician. Mr. Bowers was general counsel for the Chicago & North Western Railway Company from 1893 until he was appointed United States Solicitor General in the administration of President William Howard Taft in 1909. Mr. Bowers died on September 9, 1910, after just 17 months in office.

110 years ago
1899

Hockey
Exhibition
Montreal Shamrocks 4 @ Halifax Crescents 2

70 years ago
1939

Died on this date
Gladys Frazin, 38. U.S. actress. Miss Frazin appeared in plays and in nine movies from 1924-1931. She suffered from depression, and committed suicide by throwing herself out of her apartment window.

60 years ago
1949

Died on this date
Charles Bennett, 78. U.K. runner. Mr. Bennett, the "Shapwick Express," was the first British track athlete to win an Olympic gold medal, winning in the men's 1500-metre run and the 5000-metre team race at the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris, while taking a silver medal in the 4000-metre steeplechase.

Politics and government
Provincial council elections in South Africa resulted in a victory for the National Party, gaining 86 seats to 78 for the Unity Party.

50 years ago
1959

Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Mariquilla--José Luís y su Guitarra (4th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 Venus--Frankie Avalon
2 Charlie Brown--The Coasters
3 Stagger Lee--Lloyd Price
4 Donna--Ritchie Valens
5 Alvin's Harmonica--David Seville and the Chipmunks
6 I've Had It--The Bell Notes
7 It's Just a Matter of Time--Brook Benton
8 Petite Fleur (Little Flower)--Chris Barber's Jazz Band
9 I Cried a Tear--LaVerne Baker
10 16 Candles--The Crests

Singles entering the chart were Come Softly to Me by the Fleetwoods (#55); Everybody Likes to Cha Cha Cha by Sam Cooke (#66); Guitar Boogie Shuffle by the Virtues (#81); Ballad of a Girl and Boy by the Graduates (#85); This Should Go On Forever by Rod Bernard (#86); I Go Ape by Neil Sedaka (#90); No Regrets by Jimmy Barnes (#91); I Kneel at Your Throne by Joe Medlin (#93); Because You're Young by Jimmie Rodgers (#94); Teardrops on Your Letter by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters (#95); I Can't Sit Down by Marie and Rex (#96); Piove (Ciao, Ciao Bambina) by Domenico Modugno (#97); Chip Off the Old Block by Eddy Arnold (#99); and Oh Why by the Teddy Bears (#100).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKWX)
1 The All American Boy--Bill Parsons (5th week at #1)
2 Peter Gunn--Ray Anthony and his Orchestra
3 I've Had It--The Bell Notes
4 Charlie Brown--The Coasters
5 The Lonely One--Duane Eddy and the Rebels
6 Goodbye Baby--Jack Scott
7 Stagger Lee--Lloyd Price
8 Alvin's Harmonica--David Seville and the Chipmunks
9 Petite Fleur (Little Flower)--Chris Barber's Jazz Band
10 Venus--Frankie Avalon

Singles entering the chart were Guitar Boogie Shuffle by the Virtues (#44); Because You're Young by Jimmie Rodgers (#46, charting with its other side, I'm Never Gonna Tell); It Doesn't Matter Anymore by Buddy Holly (#45); This Should Go On Forever by Rod Bernard (#51); The Hanging Tree by Marty Robbins (#52); Moonlight Serenade by the Rivieras (#54); French Foreign Legion by Frank Sinatra (#55); I Go Ape by Neil Sedaka (#56); Sorry (I Ran All the Way Home) by the Impalas (#59); and Catch a Little Moonbeam, with version by the Rinky Dinks; and Doc Burch (#60).

Died on this date
William Denman, 86. U.S. judge. Judge Denman served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 1935-1957, and was Chief Judge from 1948-1957. He was Senior Judge on the Court from 1957 until he committed suicide, reportedly out of despondency over the recent death of his wife.

Arthur Goetze, 57. U.S. businessman. Mr. Goetze was president of Western Electric Company.

World events
The Iraqi government announced in Baghdad that the "attempted mutiny" led by Colonel Abdel Wahab Shawaf had been suppressed and that loyal army forces were in control of the Mosul area.

Diplomacy
U.S.S.R. Premier Nikita Khrushchev conferred in East Berlin with West German socialist leader Erich Ollenhauer. West Berlin Mayor Willy Brandt, on orders of the West Berlin Parliament, declined an invitation to join the talks.

Popular Culture
The Barbie doll, created by Ruth Handler and named for her daughter Barbara, made its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York.

Disasters
A U.S. district court in Houston ruled that the French Line and the French government were both liable in the April 16, 1947 Texas City, Texas explosion in which at least 581 people had been killed at at least 200 left missing. The incident had begun with a fire aboard the French-registered vessel SS Grandcamp--docked in port--leading to a detonation of her cargo of ammonium nitrate, and subsequent fires and other explosions in other ships and oil storage facilities.

40 years ago
1969

Died on this date
Abel Munem Riad, 49. U.A.R. military officer. General Riad served with the Egyptian Army for 32 years, and was appointed Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces in 1967. He commanded Jordanian forces in the Six-Day War in 1967. Gen. Riad was killed while inspecting front-line positions near the city of Ismailia during fighting between Egyptian and Israeli forces along the Suez Canal.

Journalism
Virulent anti-Chinese propaganda rolled from the Soviet presses. Pravda said that the recent border clash marked "China's final transformation into a force hostile to the Socialist countries."

Golf
Ken Still took home $23,000 for winning the Florida Citrus Open in Orlando.

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Y.M.C.A.--Village People (5th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Heart of Glass--Blondie (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): Born to Be Alive--Patrick Hernandez (2nd week at #1)

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in Finland (Finnish Singles Chart): Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart--Marc Almond featuring Gene Pitney

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Too Many Broken Hearts--Jason Donovan

Died on this date
Robert Mapplethorpe, 42. U.S. photographer. Mr. Mapplethorpe was a sodomite whose most infamous work celebrated sodomy and sparked debate over public funding of the arts. He died of AIDS.

Politics and government
The United States Senate voted 53-47 to reject former Senator John Tower as President George Bush's nominee for U.S. Secretary of Defense. It was only the ninth time--and the first time in 30 years--that a cabinet nominee had been rejected. The main objection to Mr. Tower had been his history of drinking. All but three Democratic Senators voted against Mr. Tower, while Nancy Kassebaum (Kansas) was the only Republican Senator to vote against him.

World events
The U.S.S.R. officially submitted to the jurisdiction of the World Court.

Protest
The Chinese government ordered all tourists out of the Tibetan capital of Lhasa, two days after imposing martial law to curb several days of protests led by Buddhist monks and nuns in support of Tibetan independence. Officially, 16 people were killed in the clashes, but Tibetans told Westerners that the death toll could be as high as 100.

Scandal
Charles Gardner, a former vice president of Unisys Corporation, a major contractor with the United States Defense Department, pled guilty in a U.S. federal court in Alexandria, Virginia to tax evasion, bribing a federal official, and making false statements.

Law
The California state Senate passed a bill barring the sale, possession, or manufacture of semiautomatic assault weapons. The bill was a reaction to the killing of five California schoolchildren in January.

Business
Eastern Airlines filed for bankruptcy, five days after the airline's machinists had gone on strike, supported by pilots and flight attendants.

10 years ago
1999

Died on this date
Harry Somers, 73. Canadian composer. Mr. Somers, a native of Toronto, was a classical pianist who eventually turned to composing. He composed instrumental and vocal works in various styles and received numerous commissions. Mr. Somers' best-known work was probably the opera Louis Riel (1967), which was commissioned for Canada's centennial.

Politics and government
Former Tennessee Governor Lamar Alexander announced his candidacy for the 2000 Republican Party U.S. presidential nomination. Mr. Alexander had also been a candidate for the nomination in 1996.