October 22, 2009

320 years ago
1689

Born on this date
João V. King of Portugal, 1706-1750. João V, known as "The Magnanimous" and the "Portuguese Sun King," acceded to the throne upon the death of his father Pedro II. He ruled as an absolute monarch, spending large amounts of money on architectural works and international embassies. He intervened in the affairs of other European nations, and pursued an expansionist policy, with significant territorial gains in America and India. João V died of dropsy on July 31, 1750 at the age of 60, and was succeeded by his son José I.

200 years ago
1809

Born on this date
Volney Howard. U.S. politician and judge. Mr. Howard was a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1836. He moved to the Republic of Texas in the 1840s and served as Attorney General of Texas for six months in 1846. Mr. Howard represented Texas' 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1849-1853, and then moved to California after being appointed to the state's Land Commission by President Franklin Pierce. He practiced law in San Francisco, Sacramento, and Los Angeles, serving as the latter's District Attorney from 1864-1867. Mr. Howard became a judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court in 1879; ill health led him to serve only one term and to decline a nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. He died on May 14, 1889 at the age of 79.

150 years ago
1859

Died on this date
Ludwig "Louis" Spohr, 75. German composer. Mr. Spohr was a concert violinist, but was better known as a composer, bridging the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras. He wrote 10 symphonies, 10 operas, 18 violin concertos, and various other instrumental and vocal works. Mr. Spohr invented the violin chinrest and devised the orchestral rehearsal mark. He was popular in his own time, but his works fell into obscurity after his death. A revival of interest in Mr. Spohr's works occurred in the late 20th century.

War
Spain declared war on Morocco.

120 years ago
1889

Baseball
World Series
New York Giants 7 @ Brooklyn Bridegrooms 8 (Brooklyn led best-of-eleven series 2-1)

The Bridegrooms jumped out to a 6-2 lead and narrowly held on to defeat the Giants before 5,181 fans at Washington Park. Umpire John Gaffney called the game because of darkness in the top of the 9th inning with the Giants having the bases loaded and one out.

80 years ago
1929

Died on this date
Walt Lerian, 26. U.S. baseball and basketball player. "Peck" Lerian was a starting guard with the Hagerstown Elks professional basketball team in the 1920s, and the starting catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1928 and 1929, batting .246 with 8 home runs and 51 runs batted in in 201 games. A lifelong resident of Baltimore, he was standing on a street corner in that city when he was hit by a runaway truck and pinned against a brick wall for more than an hour before he could be rescued. He died several hours later.

60 years ago
1949

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): It's a Big, Wide, Wonderful World--Buddy Clark; Larry Green (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard) (Best Seller): That Lucky Old Sun--Frankie Laine (4th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 That Lucky Old Sun--Frankie Laine
--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra
2 You're Breaking My Heart--Vic Damone
--Buddy Clark
--The Ink Spots
3 Jealous Heart--Al Morgan
4 Someday (You’ll Want Me to Want You)--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra
--The Mills Brothers
5 Room Full of Roses--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
--Eddy Howard and his Orchestra
--Dick Haymes
6 Maybe it's Because--Dick Haymes
--Eddy Howard and his Orchestra
7 Some Enchanted Evening--Perry Como
--Bing Crosby
8 Hop-Scotch Polka (Scotch Hot)--Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
--Art Mooney and his Orchestra
9 I Never See Maggie Alone--Kenny Roberts
10 Whispering Hope--Jo Stafford and Gordon MacRae

Singles entering the chart were Tell Me Why by Eddy Howard and his Orchestra (#35) and The Last Mile Home by Jo Stafford (#36). Tell Me Why was the B-side of Maybe it's Because.

Politics and government
The U.S. House of Representatives Un-American Activities Committee issued a report charging that the Congress of American Women was a Communist front group.

Protest
Colombian President Mariano Ospina Perez banned all political and labour demonstrations for the duration of the current presidential campaign.

Agriculture
Japan's Agriculture Ministry reported a record post-World War II rice crop of 325 million bushels.

Disasters
An express train en route from Gdansk to Warsaw derailed near Nowy Dwor, killing 200 passengers.

Football
CRU
IRFU
Montreal (6-4) 22 @ Hamilton (0-10) 6
Ottawa (9-1) 24 @ Toronto (5-5) 13

WIFU
Winnipeg (2-10) 6 @ Edmonton (4-7) 13
Saskatchewan (7-5) 9 @ Calgary (10-1) 6

ORFU
Toronto (1-8) 5 @ Sarnia (6-3) 34
Hamilton (7-2) 5 @ Windsor (4-5) 3

Ken Sluman and Don Simon scored touchdowns and Mr. Sluman added a single for the Eskimos as they beat the Blue Bombers before 7,000 fans at Clarke Stadium. Pat West converted both Edmonton touchdowns.

The Roughriders’ win at Mewata Stadium ended the Stampeders’ regular season winning streak at 22 games going back to the beginning of the 1948 season. Including post-season games, the Stampeders had a 25-game undefeated streak going into the game.

60 years ago
1959

On television tonight
The Untouchables, starring Robert Stack, on ABC
Tonight's episode: Ma Barker and Her Boys, with guest stars Claire Trevor and Vaughn Taylor

Died on this date
Joe Cahill, 68. Australian politician. Mr. Cahill, a member of the Labour Party, was first elected to the Parliament of New South Wales in 1925. He was a backbencher for many years, eventually being appointed to the cabinet, where his posts included Minister for Local Government (1944-1952) and Deputy Premier (1949-1952). Mr. Cahill succeeded James McGirr as Premier of New South Wales in 1952, and led the Labour party to electoral victories in 1953, 1956, and 1959. His government was known for infrastructure development, including commissioning the Sydney Opera House and the Cahill Expressway. Mr. Cahill died in office of a heart attack, and was succeeded by Deputy Premier Bob Heffron.

Literature
Italian poet Salvatore Quasimodo was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his lyrical poetry, which with classical fire expresses the tragic experience of life in our own times."

Defense
The Western European Union agreed to remove surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles for anti-aircraft defense from the 1948 Brussels Treaty list of weapons prohibited for West German manufacture.

Labour
U.S. meat packers ended their 35-city strike against Swift and Company, agreeing to a two-year package giving most workers an immediate 8½c raise in hourly wages and improvements in fringe benefits.

40 years ago
1969

On television tonight
Then Came Bronson, starring Michael Parks, on NBC
Tonight's episode: Tonight's episode: Amid Splinters of the Thunderbolt

At the movies
The Sterile Cuckoo, directed by Alan J. Pakula and starring Liza Minnelli and Wendell Burton, opened in theatres. A story about a college romance in the mid-1960s, The Sterile Cuckoo is surprisingly moving, and Miss Minnelli (in her first starring role) and Mr. Burton are one of my favourite cinematic romantic pairings. The oft-repeated theme song, Come Saturday Morning (performed by The Sandpipers), was nominated for the Academy Award, and was a top-20 pop hit in the spring of 1970.

Politics and government
Lebanese Prime Minister Rashid Karami resigned following clashed between Lebanese troops and Palestinian guerrillas in southern Lebanon. A military communiqué said that the "regrettable" clashes resulted from an attempt by the guerrillas to move into a populated area in violation of an agreement to avoid these areas lest civilians be endangered.

The Supreme Council of the Federation of Arab Emirates elected Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Mihayan of Abu Dhabi to a two-year term as the Federation's first President.

War
U.S. Defense Secretary Melvin Laird declared his opposition to any American cease-fire in Vietnam that was not part of a broader agreement with the North Vietnamese. Although he declared that he was expressing a personal view, Mr. Laird’s statement was taken as a Nixon administration reaction to Congressional proposals that the United States adopt a cease-fire and "stand fast" position in Vietnam.

Society
A joint legislative committee was told that as a result of Operation Intercept--the U.S. federal government’s attempt to restrict the flow of marijuana from Mexico--heroin sales had jumped in New York City. An expert testified that the price of marijuana had been driven so high by the federal operation that heroin had been competitive with it.

Economics and finance
The United States Labor Department reported that prices in September had risen by 0.5%.

Baseball
Bill Rigney was named manager of the Minnesota Twins, succeeding the fired Billy Martin. He had managed the New York/San Francisco Giants (1956-1960) and the Los Angeles/California Angels (1961-1969). He was fired after the Angels started the 1969 season with an 11-28 record. Mr. Martin, who had been with the organization since 1961 but was in his first season as manager of the Twins, had led the club to the American League West Division pennant with a record of 97-65, but had been fired by owner Calvin Griffith because of his off-field behaviour, which included frequent drunkenness and getting into fights with pitcher Dave Boswell and travelling secretary Howard Fox.

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Born to Be Alive--Patrick Hernandez (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Sexual Violet No. 1--Masahiro Kuwana (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Me Llamas--José Luis Perales (2nd week at #1)

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Ricky Ray!

Died on this date
Nadia Boulanger, 92. French composer, conductor, and teacher. Miss Boulanger was a concert pianist and organist, who began conducting in 1912. She composed various instrumental and choral works, but was primarily known as a music teacher, with a list of prominent students too numerous to mention.

Jesse Bishop, 46. U.S. criminal. Mr. Bishop murdered David Ballard, 22, in a Las Vegas casino on December 20, 1977 during a robbery attempt. He resisted all offers from public defenders and other lawyers to save his life, and was put to death in the gas chamber in Carson City, Nevada. Mr. Bishop was the third person to be executed in the U.S.A. in the previous 12 years, and the second in 1979.

World events
Muhammad Reza Pahlevi, the deposed Shah of Iran, was allowed into the United States for medical treatment.

Israel’s highest court ordered the dismantling of Elon Moreh, a disputed outpost in the occupied West Bank set up on land seized from Arab owners. In the first ruling against Israel’s settlement policy, the justices stated that the outpost had no security justification.

Business
Exxon Corporation reported that its profits for the third quarter of 1979 had risen 119% to a record $1.15 billion. Retail prices had risen substantially in 1979 and had offset a decrease in the volume of oils sold, as the U.S. suffered a shortage of oil products in the third quarter. Exxon’s controller, Ulysses LaGrange, defended the profit increase by saying that some of it came from two extraordinary circumstances: new tax legislation in Britain that meant a one-time gain of $200 million; and an improvement in the dollar exchange rate that reduced the company’s exchange loss by $51 million. Most of the rest of the profit, according to Mr. LaGrange, came from refining and marketing operations in Europe and income from new crude sources in the North Sea and Malaysia.

25 years ago
1984

Politics and government
Campaigning in California, U.S. President Ronald Reagan posed next to a B-1 bomber to emphasize his support for a weapon that his Democratic opponent Walter Mondale opposed.

Oil
Ministers of eight oil-producing nations met informally in Geneva in advance of a formal emergency session of OPEC, but Nigeria declined to take part.

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Swing the Mood--Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Lambada--Kaoma (9th week at #1)

Died on this date
Ewan MacColl, 74. U.K. musician. Mr. MacColl, born James Henry Miller, was a Communist playwright and singer-songwriter who was best known for writing the songs The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and Dirty Old Town.

Jacob Wetterling, 11. U.S. crime victim. Jacob Wetterling was kidnapped from his home in St. Joseph, Minnesota, and his fate remained a mystery until September 1, 2016, when bones were found in a pasture near Paynesville, Minnesota, 30 miles from the abduction, and identified as those of Jacob. The location of the bones was revealed by Danny Heinrich, who confessed five days later to Jacob's abduction and murder, as well as the earlier abduction and sexual assault of another boy, Jared Scheierl. Mr. Heinrich revealed the location of Jacob's remains as part of a plea bargain on child pornography charges.

Auto racing
Alain Prost of France won the Formula One world championship in the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka when his McLaren teammate and rival for the title, Ayrton Senna of Brazil, crossed the finish line first, but was disqualified for getting an illegal push-start after running into Mr. Prost's car and taking him out of the race.

Football
CFL
Hamilton (10-6) 32 @ Ottawa (2-14) 22
Edmonton (14-2) 34 @ Winnipeg (7-9) 11
Calgary (10-6) 23 @ Saskatchewan (8-8) 17

The Tiger-Cats came back from a 14-0 deficit to defeat the Rough Riders before 14,416 disappointed fans at Lansdowne Park. Derrick McAdoo rushed 18 times for 60 yards and 2 touchdowns for Hamilton, and quarterback Todd Dillon threw a touchdown pass to Earl Winfield. Ottawa was playing without quarterback Damon Allen, who was out with a season-ending injury, and his replacement, Tony Kimbrough, suffered a season-ending injury in this game.

Jerry Kauric kicked 4 field goals, 3 converts, and a single to go over 200 points for the season, breaking Dave Cutler's Eskimo single-season record of 195 from 1977. Tracy Ham rushed for 1 Edmonton touchdown and passed to Tony Hunter for another, while Rick Worman threw a touchdown pass to Chris Johnstone. Winnipeg quarterback Sean Salisbury completed 25 of 44 passes for 304 yards, but threw 3 interceptions, and the Blue Bombers failed to score a touchdown. The Eskimos' defense held Ricky Blake to just 22 yards on 13 carries. 23,590 fans at Winnipeg Stadium saw the defending Grey Cup champions lose their fifth straight game. 22-year-old Julia Van Der Zweep was introduced as Miss Winnipeg Blue Bomber for 1989.



Calgary defensive end Stu Laird blocked a Terry Baker punt late in the 2nd quarter, and defensive back Junior Thurman picked it up on the 1-yard line and scored a touchdown as the Stampeders overcame an early 10-0 deficit and scored 22 straight points at Taylor Field in Regina before a crowd of 25,200. Stampeder quarterback Danny Barrett completed just 11 of 27 passes for 172 yards, but he hooked up with Larry Willis for a 70-yard touchdown in the 3rd quarter. The Roughriders were led by Tim McCray, who carried 12 times for 70 yards and caught 8 passes for 90 and a touchdown.

Baseball
Nippon Series
Yomiuri Giants 3 @ Kintetsu Buffaloes 6 (Kintetsu led best-of-seven series 2-0)

The Giants broke a 0-0 tie with 2 runs in the top of the 6th inning, but the Buffaloes scored 2 in the bottom of the 6th and 4 in the 7th as they won before 24,207 fans at Fujiidera Stadium in Osaka.

10 years ago
1999

War
Scores of people were reported killed and hundreds injured when Russian bombs fell on Grozny, the capital of the rebellious province of Chechnya.

Crime
Former French cabinet minister Maurice Papon, 89, an official in the Vichy France government during World War II, began serving a sentence for crimes against humanity for having ordered the deportation of 1,690 Jews from Bordeaux to Drancy internment camp during World War II.

Politics and government
Fulfilling French author Jacques Ellul’s prediction of never-ending campaigns, five candidates for the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States in 2000 participated in the campaign’s first debate in Durham, New Hampshire. Texas Governor George W. Bush wasn’t among the participants. The candidates concentrated their fire on President Bill Clinton’s foreign policy.

Oddities
A veteran parachutist plunged to her death when her chute failed to open while jumping off the top of 3,200-foot El Capitan in Yosemite National Park in California to protest park rules banning such jumps because they weren’t safe.

Football
CFL
Winnipeg (5-11) 22 @ Toronto (8-8) 32

The Argonauts scored 24 points in the second quarter and led 31-6 at halftime before 23,632 at SkyDome. Darren Joseph, Mookie Mitchell, and Ryan Terry scored Toronto touchdowns. Mr. Terry carried 23 times for 106 yards. The Argonaut defense held the Blue Bombers to just 17 yards rushing; running back Deland McCullough carried 9 times for just 6 yards. Winnipeg's Milt Stegall caught 6 passes for 73 yards, but suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. Harold Nash returned an interception 72 yards for a Winnipeg touchdown in the third quarter, while Kerwin Bell completed a 12-yard touchdown pass to Bruce Boyko in the fourth quarter for the other Blue Bomber touchdown. The win clinched a playoff spot for Toronto.