June 18, 2009

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Irma Tovar!

580 years ago
1429

War
French forces under the leadership of Joan of Arc defeated the main English army under Sir John Fastolf at the Battle of Patay in France, turning the tide of the Hundred Years' War.

240 years ago
1769

Born on this date
Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh. Irish-born U.K. politician. Lord Castlereagh, a Whig from 1790-1795 and a Tory from 1795 on, held various offices, including Chief Secretary for Ireland (1798-1801); Leader of the House of Commons (1812-1822) and Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1812-1822). As Chief Secretary for Ireland, he was involved in putting down the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and securing the passage of the Irish Act of Union of 1800. As Foreign Secretary, Lord Castlereagh failed to prevent the War of 1812, but was successful in forging an alliance of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte's enemies and then achieving an enduring peace settlement. He eventually became very unpopular in Britain for supporting measures that repressed reform, and committed suicide by slashing his throat on August 12, 1822 at the age of 53.

210 years ago
1799

War
In the Action of 18 June 1799, a French frigate squadron led by Contre-Admiral Jean-Baptiste Perrée that was returning to Toulon from Syria was captured by the British fleet under Lord Keith off Toulon.

140 years ago
1869

Economics and finance
The Merchants Bank of Halifax, founded in 1864, was incorporated; it changed its name to The Royal Bank of Canada in 1901.

100 years ago
1909

Baseball
At Cincinnati's Palace of the Fans, a night game was played between a local amateur team and one from Newport‚ Kentucky. The lighting was provided by George Cahill, who was moving from city to city demonstrating his lighting system on five towers.

90 years ago
1919

Died on this date
Thomas Green, 51. U.K. police officer. Station-Sergeant Green died several hours after being clubbed on the head by Canadian Army Private Allan MacMaster, a leader in a riot of Canadian soldiers stationed at Woodcote Camp on Epsom Downs, England, who were unhappy at not yet being sent home, seven months after the World War I armistice.

70 years ago
1939

Died on this date
Murphy Currie, 45. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Currie played 6 games, all in relief, with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1916, posting a 0-0 record with an earned run average of 1.88. He was 8-7 with a 3.92 ERA in 21 games in the minor leagues in 1914-1915.

Baseball
Dizzy Dean and Bill Lee were the respective winning pitchers as the Chicago Cubs swept a doubleheader from the Brooklyn Dodgers 1-0 and 9-1 before 27,192 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Gabby Hartnett's home run with 1 out in the bottom of the 5th inning provided the scoring, and was the second and last hit off losing pitcher Luke Hamlin. Rip Russell had a double and 2 singles, with 2 runs and 3 runs batted in for the Cubs in the second game.

The Cincinnati Reds scored 9 runs in the first 2 innings en route to a 12-6 win over the Boston Bees in the first game of a doubleheader before 27,106 fans at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Cincinnati leadoff hitter Billy Werber batted 5 for 5 with 2 doubles, 2 runs, and 2 runs batted in. Art Jacobs, 36, pitched the 9th inning for the Reds, allowing 2 hits, a base on balls, and a run--earned--in getting the save in his only major league game, four days after the Reds had obtained him in a trade with the Cleveland Indians. Lou Fette pitched a 1-hitter for the Bees as they won the second game 5-0, with Harry Craft's single with 1 out in the bottom of the 5th inning the only Cincinnati hit.

Pinch hitter Lou Finney singled home Johnny Peacock with 1 out in the bottom of the 8th inning to break a 4-4 tie as the Boston Red Sox edged the Cleveland Indians 5-4 in the first game of a doubleheader before 32,000 fans at Fenway Park in Boston, with Fritz Ostermueller pitching a 10-hit complete game to win the pitching matchup over Bob Feller. Ted Williams' 3-run double in the 5th inning provided the deciding margin as the Red Sox completed the sweep with a 5-3 win in the second game, which was called after 8 innings because of a Sunday curfew. Lefty Grove pitched a 9-hit complete game to win the pitching matchup over Willis Hudlin.

The Detroit Tigers scored 5 runs in the 5th inning as they beat the New York Yankees 8-5 before 32,679 fans at Yankee Stadium. Schoolboy Rowe pitched an 8-hit complete game victory, while New York starter Bump Hadley was rocked for 10 hits and 7 runs--all earned--in 4 1/3 innings to take his first loss of the season after 6 straight wins.

The Chicago White Sox scored 5 runs in the top of the 4th inning to overcome a 5-1 deficit, and there was no further scoring as they edged the Philadelphia Athletics 6-5 in the first game of a doubleheader before 10,165 fans at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Ted Lyons pitched a 9-hit complete game to improve his 1939 record to 7-1, while Philadelphia starting pitcher allowed 6 runs--5 earned--in 3 1/3 innings to fall to 0-5. Bob Johnson batted 3 for 3 with a home run, double, base on balls, 4 runs, and 2 runs batted in, and Sam Chapman added 4 RBIs with a single and a home run to help the Athletics win 9-4 in the second game, which was played in 1 hour 15 minutes. Nelson Potter pitched a 6-hit complete game victory.

60 years ago
1949

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): (I'd Like to Get You on a) Slow Boat to China--Kay Kyser and his Orchestra (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard) (Best Seller): Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra (6th week at #1)

U.S. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra (3rd week at #1)
--Bing Crosby
--Burl Ives
2 Again--Gordon Jenkins and his Orchestra
--Mel Torme
--Vic Damone
--Doris Day and the Mellomen
3 Forever and Ever--Russ Morgan and his Orchestra
--Perry Como
4 "A" You're Adorable (The Alphabet Song)--Perry Como with the Fontane Sisters
--Jo Stafford and Gordon MacRae
5 Some Enchanted Evening--Perry Como
--Bing Crosby
6 Baby, it's Cold Outside--Margaret Whiting and Johnny Mercer
--Dinah Shore and Buddy Clark
--Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five
7 Cruising Down the River--Russ Morgan and his Orchestra
8 Careless Hands--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
--Bing Crosby
--Mel Torme
9 Bali Ha'i--Perry Como
--Peggy Lee
--Bing Crosby
10 A Wonderful Guy--Margaret Whiting

Singles entering the chart were the version of Baby, it's Cold Outside by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five; the version of Bali Ha'i by Bing Crosby; The Huckle-Buck, with versions by Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra; and Frank Sinatra (#23); Room Full of Roses, with versions by Sammy Kaye and his “Swing And Sway” Orchestra; and Dick Haymes (#37); and Lover's Gold, with versions by Dinah Shore; and Gordon MacRae (#38). The version of Bali Ha'i by Bing Crosby was the other side of Some Enchanted Evening.

On the radio
Tales of Fatima, starring Basil Rathbone, on CBS
Tonight’s episode: Death Sits with the Baby

World events
The Hungarian government announced the arrest of former Foreign Minister Laszlo Rajk and 19 other officials accused of espionage and "Trotskyist" activities. A court in Budapest handed down prison sentences of six months-three years for seven Zionist leaders convicted of helping Jews emigrate illegally to Israel.

Politics and government
A majority of U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities members objected to the demand of Chairman John Wood (Democrat--Georgia) for an investigation of textbooks used by 71 U.S. colleges and 48 state education boards.

Labour
Ford Motor Company rejected a United Auto Workers of America demand for wage and pension increases, declaring that "the economy is in a downward trend."

Track and field
NCAA
The University of Southern California won the team title in a competition in Los Angeles.

60 years ago
1959

On television tonight
The Lawless Years, starring James Gregory, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Marie Walters Story



Died on this date
Ethel Barrymore, 79. U.S. actress. Miss Barrymore, the sister of actors Lionel and John Barrymore, was known as "The First Lady of the American Theatre," with a career spanning six decades. She began appearing in movies in 1914, but her best-known movie roles came in her later years, winning an Academy Award for her supporting performance in None but the Lonely Heart (1944). Miss Barrymore died after suffering from cardiovascular disease for some time.

Married on this date
French actors Jacques Charrier and Brigitte Bardot were married in Louveciennes, France.

Television
The first live telecast from Great Britain to Canada took place when the departure of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip from London to begin a tour of Canada was broadcast by CBMT, Montreal's English-language Canadian Broadcasting Corporation station.

Canadiana
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip arrived at Torbay Airport in St. John's, Newfoundland to start a 45-day Canadian tour.



Diplomacy
French officials welcomed U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower's offer to meet with French President Charles de Gaulle, saying that such a meeting would be essential as a prerequisite for any East-West summit.

Politics and government
Premier Ernest Manning led his Social Credit Party to its seventh consecutive majority government in the Alberta provincial election. The SCs took 61 of 65 seats in the Legislative Assembly, an increase of 24 seats from the most recent election in 1955. The Progressive Conservatives, Liberals, and the PC-Liberal coalition each won a seat, and Ronald Ansley was elected as an independent Social Credit candidate in Leduc. PC leader Cam Kirby and Liberal leader Grant MacEwan both lost their seats. The Liberals had won 15 seats in 1955, and the PCs had won 3. The change in electoral representation partly resulted from switching to the first-past-the-post voting system, abandoning the preferential and single transferable voting system that had been in place since the 1920s. Social Credit also received 55.69% of the vote, 9.27% more than in 1955.

African Democratic Rally leader Francois Tombalaye was named Prime Minister of Chad.

Protest
A general strike called by Spanish Communists to demonstrate political opposition to the regime of Generalissimo Francisco Franco failed to materialize, due to the refusal of non-Communist anti-Franco groups to participate.

Education
A special three-judge U.S. federal court declared unconstitutional the Arkansas law under which Governor Orval Faubus had closed Little Rock's public high schools in 1958.

40 years ago
1969

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (Record Retailer): The Ballad of John and Yoko--The Beatles (2nd week at #1)

At the movies
The Maltese Bippy, directed by Norman Panama, and starring Dan Rowan and Dick Martin, opened in theatres.

War
In a magazine article, former United States Secretary of Defense Clark Clifford called for an announcement by President Richard Nixon that he would scale down military operations in Vietnam and schedule the withdrawal of all ground troops by the end of 1970.

Politics and government
Fianna Fáil, led by Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Jack Lynch, retained their majority of seats in the Dáil Éireann in the Irish general election. Fianna Fáil won 75 of 144 seats, unchanged from their total before the election. Fine Gael, led by Liam Cosgrave, increased their total from 46 seats to 50. The Labour Party, led by Brendan Corish, dropped from 19 seats to 18.

From his back row seat, freshman United States Senator Charles Goodell, a Republican from New York, launched a personal attack on the leader of his own party, accusing Senator Everett Dirksen of thwarting the democratic process by blocking the nomination of Dr. John Knowles as Assistant Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare.

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Lay Your Love on Me--Racey (7th week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Kimi no Asa--Satoshi Kishida

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Born to Be Alive--Patrick Hernández (2nd week at #1)

Diplomacy
In Vienna, U.S. President Jimmy Carter and U.S.S.R. leader Leonid Brezhnev signed SALT-II, the first arms reduction treaty between the superpowers. The treaty dealt largely with the limitation of nuclear weapon launchers. Mr. Carter, on arrival back in Washington, immediately addressed a joint session of Congress on the need to ratify the treaty. He claimed that SALT-II was "not a favor we are doing for the Soviet Union," but was rather "a deliberate, calculated move we are making as a matter of self-interest--a move that happens to serve the goals both of security and of survival, that strengthens both the military position of the United States and the cause of world peace." Lt. Gen. Edward Rowny, the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff representative on the negotiation team, expressed concern that the treaty gave the Soviets a 3 to 1 advantage in the number of thermonuclear warheads on their land-based missiles.

Politics and government
Brian Peckford, who had recently succeeded retiring Frank Moores as Premier of Newfoundland, led his Progressive Conservative Party to its third consecutive victory in the Newfoundland provincial election. The PCs took 33 of 52 seats in the House of Assembly, an increase of 3 over the most recent election in 1975. The Liberals, led by former federal cabinet minister Don Jamieson, took the remaining 19 seats, also an increase of 3. Mr. Jamieson had won his party's leadership just a month earlier, after the 1979 federal election. There was one more seat than in 1955, and the Reform Liberal Party, which had elected 4 members in 1975, had dissolved in 1977.

Health
The United States Supreme Court ruled that the federal government had the right to ban Laetrile, a drug believed by some to be a cure for cancer.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Winnipeg (0-2) 12 @ Ottawa (1-1) 13

Baseball
Billy Martin, fired as manager of the New York Yankees the previous July, was brought back as manager, replacing Bob Lemon, who had replaced him. The Yankees, in third place in the American League East Division at the time Mr. Lemon took over, came back to win the World Series in 1978, in no small part as a result of Mr. lemon's calming influence. After 65 games in 1979, they were mired in fourth place with a record of 34-31, so owner George Steinbrenner decided that his team needed Mr. Martin's fiery personality again.

25 years ago
1984

World events
In Nicaragua, five former national guardsmen were sentenced to 30 years in prison for the 1980 murders of four American churchwomen.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department reported that the balance of payments deficit for the first quarter of 1984 was a record $19.41 billion.

Golf
Fuzzy Zoeller defeated Greg Norman 67-75 in an 18-hole playoff to win the U.S. Open at Mamaroneck, New York. First prize money was $94,000.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Ottawa (2-1) 37 @ Toronto (1-2) 11
Saskatchewan (1-3) 18 @ British Columbia (3-0) 24

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): If You Don't Know Me by Now--Simply Red (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: The Look--Roxette (4th week at #1)

Died on this date
I. F. Stone, 81. U.S. journalist. Born Isidor Feinstein, Mr. Stone was known for expressing liberal views through his newsletter I.F. Stone's Weekly, published from 1953-1971. Mr. Stone's method of journalism was to pore through official government documents in order to spot things that most people would ignore. He has been accused of having acted as an agent for the U.S.S.R.--especially from 1936-1939--but the allegations are disputed.

Politics and government
Green Party and socialist candidates captured a small majority of the 518 seats in the European Parliament on the concluding day of elections. The Greens increased their membership from 20 seats to 39. In the United Kingdom, Labour won more seats than the country's ruling Conservatives.

Candidates associated with the trade union movement Solidarity captured 99 of 100 seats in runoff elections for Poland's Senate, and all 161 seats allotted to non-Communist candidates in the 460-member Sejm (lower house).

Golf
Curtis Strange shot an even par 70 in the final round to win the U.S. Open at the East Course of Oak Hill Country Club in Pittsfield, New York with a 2-under-par score of 278, 1 stroke ahead of Chip Beck, Mark McCumber, and Ian Woosnam. It was the second straight U.S. Open win for Mr. Strange, the first time the feat had been accomplished since Ben Hogan had won in 1950 and 1951. First prize money was $200,000.



10 years ago
1999

Diplomacy
The summit of the Group of Eight (G8) nations began in Cologne, Germany. Protests around the world took place, and the one in London, England attracted more than 4,000 marchers and 300 cyclists. Violence ensued: 42 protesters were arrested, and four police officers were injured.

War
Investigators for the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia arrived in the province of Kosovo. Russian and NATO representatives concluded talks, agreeing that Russia would have areas of control within the French, German, and U.S. sectors.

Law
The United States House of Representatives voted 280-147 to reject a bill that would have imposed new restrictions on sales of guns.

Basketball
NBA
Finals
New York 67 @ San Antonio 80 (San Antonio led best-of-seven series 2-0)

Tim Duncan scored 25 points and added 15 rebounds and 3 assists to lead the Spurs over the Knickerbockers before 39,554 fans at the Alamodome. Latrell Sprewell led New York scorers with 26 points.