June 17, 2009

770 years ago
1239

Born on this date
Edward I. King of England, 1272-1307. Edward I was the eldest son of King Henry III, and succeeded him on the throne. Edward led a number of military campaigns and building projects, while exacting a heavy tax burden on the English people. He was the king who expelled Jews from England in 1290. Edward I died of dysentery on July 7, 1307 at the age of 68 while on his way to lead troops into battle against Robert the Bruce of Scotland, and was succeeded as king by his son Edward II.

430 years ago
1579

Americana
Sir Francis Drake claimed a land he called Nova Albion (modern California) for England.

220 years ago
1789

Politics and government
The Third Estate in France--bourgeoisie and labourers representing 97% of the population--declared itself the National Assembly and undertook to frame a constitution.

170 years ago
1839

Died on this date
William Bentinck, 64. U.K. military officer and politician. Lieutenant-General Lord Bentinck served in the Peninsular War and commanded British troops in Sicily. He was Governor of Madras (1803-1807); Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William (1828-1833); and Governor-General of India (1828-1835), where he abolished suttee and thuggee, and suppressed female infanticide and human sacrifices. Lord Bentinck died in Paris.

Religion
King Kamehameha III of Hawaii issued the edict of toleration, giving Roman Catholics the freedom to worship in the Hawaiian Islands; the Hawaii Catholic Church and the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace were established as a result.

140 years ago
1869

Politics and government
Former Newfoundland Governor Anthony Musgrave was appointed Governor of British Columbia.

100 years ago
1909

Born on this date
Ralph Winters. Canadian-born U.S. film editor. Mr. Winters, a native of Toronto, won Academy Awards for King Solomon's Mines (1950) and Ben-Hur (1959), and was nominated for Academy Awards for four other films. He worked on 12 movies directed by Blake Edwards. Mr. Winters died on February 26, 2004 at the age of 94.

Elmer L. Andersen. U.S. politician. Mr. Andersen, a Republican, was a member of the Minnesota Senate from 1949-1958, and was Governor of Minnesota from 1961-1963, championing liberal initiatives in fields such as education and the environment. He lost his 1962 bid for re-election in 1962 by 91 votes to Democratic opponent and Lieutenant-Governor Karl Rolvaag. Mr. Andersen died on November 15, 2004 at the age of 95.

90 years ago
1919

Protest
400 Canadian Army soldiers who were stationed at Woodcote Camp on Epsom Downs in England, unhappy at still being overseas seven months after the World War I armistice, went on a rampage in Epsom, Surrey, and attacked the police station. Station-Sergeant Thomas Green, 51, was clubbed on the head by Private Allan MacMaster, and died early the next day without regaining consciousness.

Labour
Government agents arrested and jailed 10 leaders of the Winnipeg Central Strike Committee--including future Co-operative Commonwealth Federation leader J. S. Woodsworth--and 2 propagandists from the newly-formed One Big Union.

80 years ago
1929

Disasters
The town of Murchison, New Zealand was rocked by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake, killing 17 people; at the time it was New Zealand's worst natural disaster.

75 years ago
1934

World events
At the University of Marburg, German Vice Chancellor Franz von Papen delivered a speech in which he called for the restoration of some freedoms, an end to calls for a "second revolution," and an end to SA violence in the streets. Mr. Papen said that "The government [must be] mindful of the old maxim 'only weaklings suffer no criticism'" and that "No organization, no propaganda, however excellent, can alone maintain confidence in the long run." The Vice Chancellor's bold speech incensed Chancellor Adolf Hitler, and its publication was suppressed by the Propaganda Ministry.

Baseball
Led by the pitching of the Dean brothers, the St. Louis Cardinals swept a doubleheader from the Philadelphia Phillies. Paul "Daffy" Dean improved his record to 8-0 as he pitched a 5-hitter in the opener, winning 6-0. Older brother Dizzy then came on in relief and won 7-5 in a game called because of rain after 8 innings. It was Dizzy Dean's 9th win of the season.

70 years ago
1939

Died on this date
Allen Sothoron, 46. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Sothoron played with the St. Louis Browns (1914-1915, 1917-1921); Boston Red Sox (1921); Cleveland Indians (1921-1922); and St. Louis Cardinals (1924-1926), compiling a record of 91-99 with an earned run average of 3.31. His best season was 1919, when he was 20-13 with an ERA of 2.20, fifth in the American League in both categories. Mr. Sothoron ended his major league playing acreer with the Cardinals' first World Series championship team in 1926. He managed the Browns for 8 games in 1933 between the resignation of Bill Killefer and the hiring of Rogers Hornsby, leading the team to a 2-6 record. Mr. Sothoron died after a series of illnesses, apparently brought on by heavy drinking.

Eugen Weidmann, 31. German-born French criminal. Mr. Weidmann was executed outside the prison Saint-Pierre in Versailles for six murders committed in 1937, becoming the last person to be publicly guillotined in France.

60 years ago
1949

On television tonight
Your Show Time, hosted and narrated by Arthur Shields, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, starring Kirby Grant and Kristine Miller

World events
Chinese Communist authorities reopened the port of Shanghai to world shipping after a four-day search for Nationalist mines.

Crime
U.S. government prosecutors rested their case in the perjury trial of former U.S. State Department employee Alger Hiss in New York as U.S. Federal Court Judge Samuel Kaufman denied a defense motion to dismiss Mr. Hiss's indictment. Testifying at her espionage trial in Washington, U.S. Justice Department employee Judith Coplon accused her superior of "planting" incriminating documents in her purse following the discovery of her romance with Soviet engineer Valentin Gubitchev.

Academia
The University of Kentucky announced an end to segregation of Negro students.

Economics and finance
U.S. Economic Cooperation Administrator Paul Hoffman criticized the Argentine-British commercial agreement for restricting free trade, and threatened to cut off Marshall Plan aid to the United Kingdom if both countries adhered to the pact.

Business
The International Chamber of Commerce concluded a five-day meeting in Quebec after urging the extension of free trade and opposing the restriction on cartels and state control of business.

50 years ago
1959

At the movies
The Horse Soldiers, directed by John Ford, and starring John Wayne and William Holden, received its premiere screening in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Defense
U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower offered to meet with French President Charles de Gaulle to discuss France's refusal to permit stockpiling of U.S. nuclear weapons on French territory.

World events
Southern Rhodesian security police arrested 79 suspected members of the African National Congress.

Politics and government
Taoiseach (Prime Minister) and Fianna Fáil candidate Éamon de Valera was elected President of Ireland, taking 56.3% of the vote to 43.7% for Fine Gael candidate Seán Mac Eoin. A referendum proposed by Mr. de Valera to replace the electoral system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote with first-past-the-post voting was defeated 52.8%-48.2%.

Japanese Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi named a new cabinet in preparation for a political fight over pending revision of the U.S.-Japan security treaty.

Scandal
In Liberace v Daily Mirror, a court in London awarded U.S. concert pianist Wladziu "Lee" Liberace £8,000, ruling that London Daily Mirror columnist William Connor, writing under the name Cassandra, had libeled Mr. Liberace by implying that he was homosexual, an accusation that Mr. Liberace hotly denied. After Mr. Liberace's death in 1987, the Daily Mirror attempted to get a reversal of the verdict and a refund of the damages.

A U.S. federal grand jury in New York indicted former Teamsters union President Dave Beck, two business executives, and three companies on charges of violating the Taft-Hartley Act's prohibition against company payoffs to union leaders.

40 years ago
1969

Hit parade
#1 single in Switzerland (Swiss Hitparade): The Ballad of John and Yoko--The Beatles (2nd week at #1)

War
Apbia mountain in South Vietnam, popularly known as "Hamburger Hill," which had been taken by U.S. and South Vietnamese forces the previous month, was reportedly occupied again by about 1,000 North Vietnamese soldiers.

Arab artillery units made an unusual attack on a tourist centre at the northern end of the Dead Sea and killed a 25-year-old American woman. Four other civilians were injured.

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Baby it's You--Promises (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Music Box Dancer--Frank Mills (5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Duffy Lewis, 91. U.S. baseball player. George Edward Lewis played left field with the Boston Red Sox (1910-1917); New York Yankees (1919-1920); and Washington Nationals (1921), batting .284 with 38 home runs and 793 runs batted in in 1,459 games. With Tris Speaker in center field and Harry Hooper in right field, the outfield trio helped the Red Sox win World Series championships in 1912, 1915, and 1918. Mr. Lewis was so good at playing the 10-foot incline in front of the left field wall in Fenway Park that the incline was known as "Duffy's Cliff."

Lou Frizzell, 59. U.S. actor and composer. Mr. Frizzell was the music director of the Japanese-American internment camp in Manzanar, California during World War II, and wrote music for various plays in which he acted, while appearing in various plays, movies, and television programs, usually in minor character roles. He died after a lengthy illness, a week after his 59th birthday.

Diplomacy
U.S. President Jimmy Carter and U.S.S.R. leader Leonid Brezhnev continued their summit in Vienna. Mr. Brezhnev gave Mr. Carter a written and oral assurance that production of the Soviet TU-22M supersonic bomber would not exceed 30 per year. Mr. Brezhnev warned that the SALT-II agreement could collapse if the treaty was amended or changed during the ratification process, with "grave and even dangerous consequences for our relations and for the situation in the world as a whole."

Politics and government
The Sandanistas in Nicaragua announced the composition of a provisional government to succeed the regime of President Anastasio Somoza. The junta was described as mainly moderate, with few--but important--FSLN representatives.

Golf
Hale Irwin shot a 4-over-par 75, including a double bogey on the 17th hole and a bogey on the 18th, but still won the U.S. Open at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, 2 strokes ahead of Jerry Pate. First prize money was $50,000.



25 years ago
1984

Died on this date
Swale, 3. U.S. race horse. The Kentucky Derby winner dropped dead while being hosed down after a routine workout just eight days after winning the Belmont Stakes.

Golf
Fuzzy Zoeller and Greg Norman were tied for the lead after four rounds of the U.S. Open at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, New York, necessitating an 18-hole playoff the next day.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Montreal (2-1) 30 @ Hamilton (1-2) 17

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (FIMI): When the Night Comes--Joe Cocker

#1 single in Flanders (Ultratop 50): Anne--Clouseau

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): No More Boleros--Gerard Joling

#1 single in France (SNEP): Johnny, Johnny Come Home--Avalanche (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (BMRB): Sealed with a Kiss--Jason Donovan (2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 I'll Be Loving You (Forever)--New Kids on the Block
2 Wind Beneath My Wings--Bette Midler
3 Every Little Step--Bobby Brown
4 Satisfied--Richard Marx
5 Buffalo Stance--Neneh Cherry
6 Baby Don't Forget My Number--Milli Vanilli
7 Good Thing--Fine Young Cannibals
8 Close My Eyes Forever--Lita Ford (Duet with Ozzy Osbourne)
9 This Time I Know it's for Real--Donna Summer
10 Cry--Waterfront

Singles entering the chart were Batdance by Prince (#53); No More Rhyme by Debbie Gibson (#66); Sacred Emotion by Donny Osmond (#70); Friends by Jody Watley with Eric B. & Rakim (#76); Love Train by Holly Johnson (#82); Cover of Love by Michael Damian (#84); Angel Eyes by the Jeff Healey Band (#85); Dancing in Heaven (Orbital Be-Bop) by Q-feel (#96); and Trouble Me by 10,000 Maniacs (#98). Batdance was from the movie Batman (1989).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Wind Beneath My Wings--Bette Midler (2nd week at #1)
2 Every Little Step--Bobby Brown
3 Satisfied--Richard Marx
4 Buffalo Stance--Neneh Cherry
5 I'll Be Loving You (Forvever)--New Kids on the Block
6 Good Thing--Fine Young Cannibals
7 Rock On--Michael Damian
8 Soldier of Love--Donny Osmond
9 Patience--Guns n' Roses
10 Baby Don't Forget My Number--Milli Vanilli

Singles entering the chart were Batdance by Prince (#60); No More Rhyme by Debbie Gibson (#68); Sacred Emotion by Donny Osmond (#75); Calling it Love by Animotion (#80); and Pop Song 89 by R.E.M. (#86).

10 years ago
1999

Died on this date
Basil Hume, 76. U.K. clergyman. Cardinal Hume was ordained a Benedictine Roman Catholic priest in 1950; he was appointed Archbishop of Westminster in February 1976, and became a cardinal three months later. He helped to popularize Catholicism in the United Kingdom, and enjoyed friendly relations with Queen Elizabeth II. Cardinal Hume died of cancer.

Stanley Faulder, 61. Canadian-born U.S. criminal. Mr. Faulder, a native of Jasper, Alberta, was convicted in 1977 and sentenced to death for the 1975 murder in Texas of 75-year-old Inez Scarborough Phillips during a robbery in her house. He was executed by lethal injection in Huntsville, Texas despite diplomatic complaints by the Canadian government, becoming the first Canadian executed in the U.S.A. since 1952.

War
British Foreign Minister Geoff Hoon said that 10,000 ethnic Albanians might have been killed by Serbs in Yugoslavia.

Law
The United States House of Representatives passed a juvenile crime bill. It would provide $1.5 billion more to states to deal with crimes by minors. Anyone at least 14 years of age could be tried as an adult. An amendment was approved that would allow the Ten Commandments to be displayed in schools and government buildings. An amendment to the gun bill that would allow only a 24-hour background check when someone purchased a gun at a gun show was approved by a vote of 218-211.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Buffalo 0 @ Dallas 2 (Dallas led best-of-seven series 3-2)

Darryl Sydor's powerplay goal at 2:23 of the 2nd period proved to be enough as the Stars shut out the Sabres before 17,001 fans at Reunion Arena. Pat Verbeek scored an insurance goal with 4:39 remaining in regulation time, while Ed Belfour made 23 saves to win the goaltending duel over Dominik Hasek.