October 20, 2009

340 years ago
1669

Born on this date
Johann Nicolaus Bach. German musician and composer. Mr. Bach, the eldest son of Johann Christoph Bach and second cousin of Johann Sebastian Bach, was a church organist whose few surviving works include a mass and two choral preludes. He died on November 4, 1753 at the age of 84.

250 years ago
1759

Born on this date
Chauncey Goodrich. U.S. politician. Mr. Goodrich, a Federalist, represented Connecticut in the United States House of Representatives from 1795-1801 and in the Senate from 1807-1813. He resigned from the Senate to serve as Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut, and died in office on August 18, 1815 at the age of 55.

190 years ago
1819

Born on this date
Báb. Iranian religious leader. The Báb, born Siyyid `Alí Muhammad Shírází, founded Bábism, and was one of the central figures of the Bahá'í Faith. He was a merchant in Iran who, at the age of 24, claimed to be a messenger of God. The Báb promoted the idea that there is one incorporeal, unknown, and incomprehensible God, who manifests his will in a series of personages known as Manifestatons of God. The Báb is believed by Bahá'í adherents to have been a forerunner of Bahá'u'lláh, founder of the Bahá'í Faith. The Báb was held under house arrest in Saudi Arabia from 1845-1846, and was arrested in Iran in 1848 and convicted of blasphemy. He was imprisoned until his execution by firing squad on July 9, 1850 at the age of 30.

150 years ago
1859

Born on this date
John Dewey. U.S. educational philosopher and psychologist. Dr. Dewey taught at the University of Chicago (1894-1904) and Columbia University (1904-1930), and was perhaps the most influential educational theorist of the 20th century, promoting the importance of producing a result rather than the impartation of knowledge. Dr. Dewey was an atheist who believed in the importance of democracy, and supported various "progressive" causes. He was associated with the philosophy of pragmatism, and was one of the founders of functional psychology. He died of pneumonia on June 1, 1952 at the age of 92, after years of declining health.

80 years ago
1929

At the movies
The Phantom in the House, directed by Phil Rosen, and starring Ricardo Cortez, Nancy Welford, Henry B. Walthall, and Grace Valentine, opened in theatres.



Football
NFL
Orange (2-1-2) 19 @ Boston (1-2) 13
Frankford (3-2-1) 0 @ New York (3-0-1) 32
Buffalo (0-4-1) 7 @ Providence (2-1-1) 7
Minneapolis (1-3) 0 @ Green Bay (5-0) 24
Chicago Cardinals (1-2-1) 0 @ Chicago Bears (3-1-1) 0

75 years ago
1934

Football
CRU
IRFU
Ottawa (1-2) 6 @ Montreal (1-1-1) 4
Hamilton (2-0-1) 17 @ Toronto (1-2) 9

ARU
Calgary 8 @ University of Alberta (4-0) 18

Pete Rule returned a fumble for a touchdown in the 1st quarter, Hal Richard rushed for a TD after the recovery of a Calgary fumble in the 4th quarter, and Guy Morton returned an interception 95 yards for a touchdown late in the game for the Golden Bears as they beat the Altomahs at Varsity Stadium in Edmonton to clinch the Alberta championship for the first time since 1925. Between the last two U of A touchdowns, Mr. Laven scored the Calgary TD.

70 years ago
1939

Religion
Pope Pius XII published his first major encyclical, Summi Pontificatus ("On the Unity of Human Society").

60 years ago
1949

War
South Korean forces reported the loss of an important hilltop on Ongin Peninsula north of the partition boundary after a five-day battle with North Korean troops.

Diplomacy
The United Nations General Assembly chose Yugoslavia to replace Ukraine as the non-permanent Eastern European representative on the Security Council despite strong Soviet opposition.

Defense
U.S. Army General Omar Bradley completed two days of testimony before the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, attacking Navy criticism of U.S. military strategy and accusing high Navy officers of causing "infinite harm" to America's world position.

Archaeology
John Trevor of the International Council of Religious Education reported the discovery of a scroll from the apocryphal Book of Lamech in a cave near the Dead Sea.

Labour
The Canadian Seamen's Union called off its 6½-month-old strike against East Coast shippers, charging the government with "persecuting" strikers by refusing to pay them unemployment insurance.

50 years ago
1959

On television tonight
Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond, hosted by John Newland, on ABC
Tonight's episode: Night of the Kill, starring Fred Beir, Ann McCrea, Dennis Holmes, and John Marley



War
Communist Chinese forces attacked Indian patrols in the Ladakh area of Kashmir, 45 miles west of the Kashmiri-Tibetan border in traditionally Indian territory.

Protest
Kenyan police dispersed 5,000 Africans demonstrating in downtown Nairobi in support of nationalist leader Tom Mboya.

World events
Fidel Castro's former brother-in-law Rafael Diaz Belard revealed in New York that he headed a White Rose movement dedicated to the overthrow of Mr. Castro's Cuban government.

Labour
International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union President Harry Bridges became the first U.S. labour leader to defy the 1959 Labor Reform Act when he refused to comply with Labor Secretary James Mitchell's request that he report on Communists and ex-convicts in the union.

Boxing
World featherweight champion Davey Moore (38-5-1) scored a technical knockout of British featherweight champion Bobby Neill (25-4) with 5 seconds remaining in the 1st round of a non-title bout at Empire Pool, Wembley, London. Mr. Neill was knocked down 4 times.

40 years ago
1969

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Ningyō no Ie--Mieko Hirota

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): In The Ghetto--Elvis Presley (3rd week at #1)

On the radio
A Book at Bedtime, on BBC 4
Tonight's episode: The Hound of the Baskervilles, Part 1, read by Nigel Stock

Diplomacy
The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the International Labor Organization to honour its international activity over a span of 50 years.

Football
AFL
Houston (3-3) 17 @ New York (4-2) 26

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in Zimbabwe Rhodesia (Lyons Maid): Some Girls--The Raiders (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (Hit Parade Italia): Soli--Adriano Celentano (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland: Message in a Bottle--The Police

#1 single in the U.K. (BMRB): Video Killed the Radio Star--The Buggles

Netherlands Top 10 (De Nederlandse Top 40)
1 A Brand New Day--The Wiz Stars featuring Diana Ross & Michael Jackson (3rd week at #1)
2 Arumbai/Air Mata Tumpa--Massada
3 Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough--Michael Jackson
4 Sail On--Commodores
5 We Belong to the Night--Ellen Foley
6 Surf City/Dead Man's Curve--Jan & Dean
7 Sure Know Something--Kiss
8 If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body Would You Hold it Against Me--Bellamy-Brothers
9 Quiereme Mucho--Julio Iglesias
10 Whatever You Want--Status Quo

Singles entering the chart were Knock on Wood by Amii Stewart (#22); My Forbidden Lover by Chic (#26); Strut Your Funky Stuff by Frantique (#27); Tu Sei L'unica Donna Per Me by Alan Sorrenti (#28); and On Stage: Them Heavy People by Kate Bush (#30).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 Rise--Herb Alpert
2 Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough--Michael Jackson
3 Pop Muzik--M
4 Sail On--Commodores
5 I'll Never Love this Way Again--Dionne Warwick
6 Dim All the Lights--Donna Summer
7 Sad Eyes--Robert John
8 My Sharona--The Knack
9 Heartache Tonight--Eagles
10 Still--Commodores

Singles entering the chart were No More Tears (Enough is Enough) by Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer (#59); Cool Change by Little River Band (#73); Confusion by Electric Light Orchestra (#75); We Don't Talk Anymore by Cliff Richard (#79); In the Stone by Earth, Wind & Fire (#80); This is It by Kenny Loggins (#82); Escape (The Pina Colada Song) by Rupert Holmes (#85); Do That to Me One More Time by the Captain & Tennille (#86); Train, Train by Blackfoot (#89); She's Got a Whole Number by Keith Herman (#90); It's a Disco Night (Rock Don't Stop) by the Isley Brothers (#93); and Since You've Been Gone by Cherie and Marie Currie (#95).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Sail On--Commodores
2 Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough--Michael Jackson
3 Rise--Herb Alpert
4 Sad Eyes--Robert John
5 Pop Muzik--M
6 My Sharona--The Knack
7 Dim All the Lights--Donna Summer
8 I'll Never Love this Way Again--Dionne Warwick
9 Heartache Tonight--Eagles
10 You Decorated My Life--Kenny Rogers

Singles entering the chart were No More Tears (Enough is Enough) by Barbra Streisand/Donna Summer (#57); Cool Change by Little River Band (#68); We Don't Talk Anymore by Cliff Richard (#75); Do That to Me One More Time by the Captain & Tennille (#84); Cruisin' by Smokey Robinson (#85); Highway to Hell by AC/DC (#87); Escape (The Pina Colada Song) by Rupert Holmes (#88); and Train, Train by Blackfoot (#89).

Canada's top 10 (RPM)
1 Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)--Robert Palmer (2nd week at #1)
2 Lead Me On--Maxine Nightingale
3 Sad Eyes--Robert John
4 Pop Muzik--M
5 The Devil Went Down to Georgia--The Charlie Daniels Band
6 Don't Bring Me Down--Electric Light Orchestra
7 Sail On--Commodores
8 Lonesome Loser--Little River Band
9 I'll Never Love this Way Again--Dionne Warwick
10 My Sharona--The Knack

Singles entering the chart were Dream Police by Cheap Trick (#74); All I Can Do by the Cars (#80); Gotta Go Home by Boney M. (#82); The Stranger by Jo Ann Brooks (#84); Take the Long Way Home by Supertramp (#87); Victim of Love by Elton John (#94); Fins by Jimmy Buffett (#98); You're Only Lonely by J.D. Souther (#99); and What Cha Gonna Do with My Lovin' by Stephanie Mills (#100).

Disasters
Police in Tarbes, France reported 21 dead and 32 injured in the collision of a train with a bus that was carrying a group of Spaniards who had visited the nearby shrine at Lourdes.

Football
CFL
Toronto (5-9) 11 @ Montreal (9-4-1) 25
Calgary (10-4) 37 @ British Columbia (9-4-1) 32

David Green rushed 25 times for 212 yards and 3 touchdowns to lead the Alouettes to their win before 37,690 at Olympic Stadium. John O’Leary carried 14 times for 117 yards as the Alouettes amassed 352 yards rushing. Toronto’s touchdown came on a 4-yard pass from Tony Adams to Peter Muller in the second quarter.

25,301 fans at Empire Stadium in Vancouver saw the Lions blow 2 big leads in losing to the Stampeders. Touchdowns by Leon Bright (78-yard punt return) and Harry Holt (10-yard rush) helped the Lions build a 20-5 lead in the second quarter. Calgary quarterback Ken Johnson completed a 25-yard touchdown pass to Kelvin Kirk in the third quarter, but a 2-yard touchdown run by John Henry White, converted by Lui Passaglia, gave B.C. a 30-15 lead late in the quarter. The momentum immediately swung in favour of Calgary when Mr. Kirk returned Mr. Passaglia’s kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, Mr. White fumbled, and Terry Irvin returned it 65 yards for another Stampeder touchdown; Mr. Johnson passed to Willie Armstead for a 2-point convert to tie the game 30-30. Mr. Johnson completed a 12-yard touchdown pass to Tom Forzani to put Calgary ahead, and then Mr. Forzani conceded a safety touch on the game’s final play.

CIAU
St. Francis Xavier (4-2) 15 @ St. Mary’s (4-2) 21
Prince Edward Island (1-5) 13 @ Mount Allison (1-5) 15
Acadia (5-1) 33 @ New Brunswick (3-3) 32
Concordia (1-5) 29 @ Quebec at Trois Rivieres (0-6) 17
McGill (3-3) 6 @ Queen’s (5-1) 17
Carleton (4-2) 16 @ Ottawa (5-1) 28
Windsor (3-3-1) 23 @ Wilfrid Laurier (6-0-1) 23
York (3-3) 21 @ McMaster (0-7) 19
Guelph (3-4) 12 @ Western Ontario (5-1) 15
Alberta (4-3) 6 @ Saskatchewan (2-5) 23

Gene Wall rushed for 179 yards and a touchdown, and Jim Manz rushed for 126 yards and another touchdown to lead the Huskies to their win over the Golden Bears on a snow-covered field at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon. Saskatchewan’s other touchdown came on a 45-yard fumble return by Cal Maj in the 4th quarter on a pass from Alberta quarterback Jaimie Crawford to Sean Kehoe, which the Golden Bears thought was incomplete. The Golden Bears broke up the shutout late in the game on a 1-yard run by Mr. Crawford, set up by a 37-yard pass to Kerry O’Connor.

Hockey
NHL
New York Rangers 4 @ Montreal 5
Toronto 2 Vancouver 0

25 years ago
1984

Economics and finance
The government of China announced plans to cut back on its control over the nation’s economy. Under the new program, a million state-owned enterprises would have greater independence and would be obliged to compete with each other in order to let prices be determined by the marketplace. The new environment would be created in the urban areas, and would follow the introduction of incentives for China’s 800 million peasants. The Communist Central Committee said that the changes would be introduced gradually under the supervision of the cabinet.

Terrorism
U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed a law allocating $336 million to enhance security at U.S. embassies around the world.

Football
CFL
Ottawa (4-11) 14 @ Hamilton (5-9-1) 20
British Columbia (11-3-1) 41 @ Calgary (6-10) 13

Bernie Ruoff kicked 4 field goals, a convert, and a single to lead the Tiger-Cats to their win before 18,101 at Ivor Wynne Stadium. Steve Stapler scored the only Hamilton touchdown on an 83-yard pass from Dieter Brock in the 2nd quarter. Former Tiger-Cat Keith Baker scored both Ottawa touchdowns on passes from J.C. Watts.

Merv Fernandez caught 10 passes for 182 yards and 3 touchdowns in the Lions’ win at McMahon Stadium. The touchdowns gave Mr. Fernandez 17 for the season, tying the CFL single-season record for touchdowns on pass receptions. Ned Armour scored the other B.C. touchdown on a pass from Tim Cowan, who completed 26 of 37 passes for 374 yards. J.T. Hay kicked 4 field goals and a single for the Stampeders, who failed to score a touchdown in their final game of the season. The 23,260 fans saw the Stampeders honour retired receiver Tom Forzani at halftime. His #22 was retired when Tom Scott, who had been wearing the number all season, took the jersey off and wore #26 for the 2nd half. Mr. Scott caught 5 passes for 49 yards; the 5 catches gave him 649 for his CFL career, leaving him 1 short of Tommy-Joe Coffey’s record. That’s as close as Mr. Scott got, because it turned out to be his last regular season game.



CIAU
Calgary (5-1) 22 @ Alberta (5-1) 31
Manitoba (0-7) 10 @ British Columbia (3-4) 33

The undefeated Dinosaurs had defeated the Golden Bears 43-37 in Calgary earlier in the season, nearly blowing a 43-2 lead. The Alberta defense stopped a last-minute Calgary drive at the 1-yard line with 1 second left, preserving a margin of victory that would give the Golden Bears home field for the WIFL championship playoff game in the event that the teams finished tied for first place. Tony Spoletini’s 1-yard touchdown run, converted by Brian DeMug, had brought the Dinosaurs to within 9 points. Jeff Funtasz led the Golden Bears with 28 carries for 146 yards and 2 touchdowns. Corrado Filice rushed 4 yards for his first CIAU touchdown, and Scott Smith scored the other Alberta touchdown on an 18-yard pass from Mark Denesiuk. Calgary quarterback Lew Lawrick threw 37 yards to Jeff Pronk for a touchdown, and ran 5 yards for the other Dinosaur major. 2,138 fans witnessed the excitement at Varsity Stadium in Edmonton.

The Thunderbirds erupted for 3 touchdowns in the last 4 minutes of the game to clinch their victory over the Bisons at Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver.

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Lambada--Kaoma (5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Anthony Quayle, 76. U.K. actor. Sir Anthony was known in Britain as a prominent stage actor, and internationally for his roles in movies such as The Wrong Man (1956); Ice Cold in Alex (1958); The Guns of Navarone (1961); and Lawrence of Arabia (1962).

Scandal
U.S. District Judge Alcee Hastings of Florida was convicted of eight articles of impeachment by the United States Senate, which had the effect of removing him from the bench. Mr. Hastings, the sixth federal judge to be so removed, had been acquitted in 1983 of accepting a bribe in a case before him. However, a federal judicial panel found "clear and convincing evidence" in 1987 that Mr. Hastings had conspired to accept the bribe.

U.S. Representative Robert Garcia (Democrat--New York) and his wife Jane Lee were found guilty of extortion and conspiracy in the last trial to grow out of the Wedtech investigation. Prosecutors charged that Mr. Garcia, who represented the district in which the company was located, had demanded payoffs from Wedtech. Mrs. Garcia had been accused of receiving payoffs from the company totalling more than $75,000. More than 20 prominent people had been convicted in the scandal.

Hockey
NHL
Boston 3 Edmonton 0

10 years ago
1999

Died on this date
Calvin Griffith, 87. Canadian-born U.S. baseball executive. Mr. Griffith, born Calvin Griffith Robertson in Montreal, moved to live with his aunt and uncle in the United States at the age of 11; his uncle was Clark Griffith, owner of the Washington Nationals. Calvin took his surname and assumed control of the Nationals upon the death of Clark Griffith in 1955. He changed the team's name back to Senators in 1957, and moved the team to Minnesota in 1961, renaming them the Twins. Under Mr. Griffith's ownership, the Twins won the American League pennant in 1965, taking the Los Angeles Dodgers to the limit before losing the World Series in 7 games. The Twins came close to winning the pennant in 1967, and won AL West Division pennants in 1969 and 1970. After that, they tended to play mediocre ball, never winning more than 85 games in a season until 1988, four years after Mr. Griffith had sold the team. On September 26, 1978, Mr. Griffith attracted national attention when he made a speech to the Lions Club in Waseca, Minnesota. Apparently drunk, Mr. Griffith said that he'd moved the team to the twin cities because of the low black population of Minnesota; that blacks were more disposed to attending wrestling matches than baseball games; that Rod Carew had been a "damn fool" to sign a contract the year before that paid him $170,000 per year; that catcher Butch Wynegar's .229 batting average in 1978 was the result of spending too much time chasing his new wife around the bedroom during spring training than chasing baseballs; and that Mr. Wynegar would have been better off staying single and picking up women for one-night stands because "love comes pretty cheap for ballplayers these days and they should take advantage of it." When Mr. Griffith sold the Twins, it was the end of an era: he was the last major league baseball owner for whom the baseball club was his only business.

Jack Lynch, 82. Taoiseach of Ireland, 1966-1973, 1977-1979. Mr. Lynch was a hurling and football (soccer) star before entering politics. He was a member of Fianna Fáil, and sat as a Teachta Dála (Member of Parliament) for various Cork ridings from 1948-1981. Mr. Lynch held several cabinet posts before leading Fianna Fáil from 1966-1979; his tenure as Taoiseach was interrupted by electoral defeat in 1973, but he led the Opposition until Fianna Fáil regained power in the 1977 election. Mr. Lynch's grip on power began to slip, and he resigned as Taoiseach and party leader in 1979.

Politics and government
The People’s Consultative Assembly in Indonesia elected Abdurrahman Wahid as the country’s new President. Megawati Sukarnoputri, daughter of former President Sukarno, had been favoured to win, but lost to Mr. Wahid 373-313. Incumbent President B.J. Habibie, who had been seeking re-election, withdrew from the race earlier in the day. The legislature also approved the result of an August referendum in which East Timor in effect voted for independence.

Elizabeth Dole, short of money and well behind front-runner George W. Bush in public opinion polls, announced her withdrawal from the contest for the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States in 2000.

Law
A Quebec judge struck down provisions in Quebec's language law requiring prominence for French on commercial signs, ruling that a sign outside an antiques store in Knowlton did not violate the law even though its French and English lettering were of equal size.