December 28, 2009

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Heather Pick!

350 years ago
1659

War
Maratha Empire forces defeated Adil Shahi forces in the Battle of Kolhapur in India.

220 years ago
1789

Born on this date
Catharine Sedgwick. U.S. authoress. Miss Sedgwick was popular from the 1820s through the 1850s, writing novels and short stories featuring heroines who combined American patriotism with rebellion against Puritan conventions. She died on July 31, 1867 at the age of 77.

150 years ago
1859

Died on this date
Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, 59. U.K. historian and politician. Lord Macaulay was best known for the five-volume The History of England from the Accession of James the Second (1848-1861), which promulgated the Whig view of history as a story of progress from superstition and oppression toward greater liberty and enlightenment. He served on the Supreme Council of India (1834-1838), and issued his Minute on Indian Education (1835), urging Western education on India. Lord Macaulay's other offices included Secretary at War (1839-1841) and Paymaster General (1846-1848). He died of a heart attack.

140 years ago
1869

Technology
William F. Semple patented chewing gum.

130 years ago
1879

Disasters
Gales plunged a railway bridge and passenger train on the Tay Bridge over the Silvery Tay, near Dundee, Scotland, into icy waters, killing 75. The bridge collapsed after the central spans gave way.

90 years ago
1919

Died on this date
Johannes Rydberg, 65. Swedish physicist. Professor Rydberg was known for devising the Rydberg formula, in 1888, which is used to describe the wavelengths of photons (of light and other electromagnetic radiation) emitted by changes in the energy level of an electron in a hydrogen atom. He died after several years of declining health.

80 years ago
1929

Born on this date
Terry Sawchuk. Canadian hockey goaltender. Mr. Sawchuk played 21 seasons in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings (1949-55; 1957-64; 1968-69); Boston Bruins (1955-57); Toronto Maple Leafs (1964-67); Los Angeles Kings (1967-68); and New York Rangers (1969-70). He played for 4 Stanley Cup championship teams (Detroit, 1952; 1954; 1955; Toronto, 1967), and made the first or second NHL all-star team seven times. In his first 5 full seasons (1950-55), he never had a goals against average of higher than 1.98. Probably the peak of his career was the 1951-52 season, when he played all 70 regular season games, recording 12 shutouts, and added 4 shutouts and posted a goals against average of 0.62 as the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup with an 8-game sweep of the 2 playoff rounds. Mr. Sawchuk’s total of 103 regular season shutouts seemed unbeatable until Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils passed him in December 2009. Mr. Sawchuk was still active with the New York Rangers when he died on May 31, 1970, reportedly after being injured during a bout of "horseplay" with teammate Ron Stewart shortly after the Rangers had been eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs in the first round.

70 years ago
1939

60 years ago
1949

On the radio
The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring Ben Wright and Eric Snowden
Tonight’s episode: The Case of the Bandaged Bridegroom

Died on this date
Hervey Allen, 60. U.S. author. Mr. Allen was best known for his novel Anthony Adverse (1933). He had completed the first three novels in a series about colonial America titled The Disinherited when he died of a heart attack, 20 days after his 60th birthday.

Jack Lovelock, 39. N.Z. runner and physician. Dr. Lovelock set a British Empire record for the one-mile run in 1932, and set a world record of 4:07.36 in the mile in 1933. He won the gold medal in the mile at the 1934 British Empire Games in London, and won the gold medal in the men's 1,500-metre run at the Summer Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936. Dr. Lovelock was thrown from a horse in 1940, and was thereafter subject to attacks of dizziness. He served in the Royal Army Medical Corps during World War II, and moved to the United States after the war, practicing medicine at Manhattan Hospital in New York City. Dr. Lovelock fell onto subway tracks while waiting for a train, apparently after suffering another dizzy spell, and was killed, eight days before his 40th birthday.

Diplomacy
U.S. President Harry Truman announced American recognition of the United States of Indonesia, appointing H. Merle Cochran as the first U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia.

Hungary freed American Joint Distribution Committee official Isrel Jacobson after questioning him for several days on suspicion of espionage.

Politics and government
Syrian President Hashem al-Atassi appointed a new cabinet, excluding representation of the People's Party and other politicians accused by the Army of favouring union with Iraq.

Medicine
The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission announced plans for a series of one-week courses for physicians on the hazards of atomic warfare.

Economics and finance
France abolished quotas on most food and manufactured items.

Business
Sears, Roebuck issued its annual catalogue, with price reductions averaging 10%. Proctor & Gamble reduced household soap prices by 4%.

Labour
The Southern Coal Producers Association filed an unfair practices suit against the United Mine Workers of America with the National Labor Relations Board, accusing the union of violating the Taft-Hartley Act by refusing to bargain in good faith and seeking to impose union-shop conditions.

50 years ago
1959

Hit parade
Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): La Canción de Orfeo--Gloria Lasso

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 Why--Frankie Avalon
2 El Paso--Marty Robbins
3 The Big Hurt--Miss Toni Fisher
4 It's Time to Cry--Paul Anka
5 Way Down Yonder in New Orleans--Freddie Cannon
6 Heartaches by the Number--Guy Mitchell
7 Among My Souvenirs--Connie Francis
8 Mack the Knife--Bobby Darin
9 Hound Dog Man--Fabian
10 Pretty Blue Eyes--Steve Lawrence

Singles entering the chart were He'll Have to Go by Jim Reeves (#58); Mary Don't You Weep by Stonewall Jackson (#61); No Love Have I by Webb Pierce (#67); Where or When by Dion and the Belmonts (#72); Down by the Station by the Four Preps (#78); Bonnie Came Back by Duane Eddy and the Rebels (#83); Handy Man by Jimmy Jones (#87); Promise Me a Rose (A Slight Detail) (#88)/Do-Re-Mi (#94) by Anita Bryant; Lonely Blue Boy by Conway Twitty (#89); Honey Hush by Joe Turner (#91); Little Things Mean a Lot by Joni James (#93); Harlem Nocturne by the Viscounts (#98); The Sound of Music by Patti Page (#99); and Darling Lorraine by the Knockouts (#100). The Sound of Music was the title song of the musical.

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKWX)
1 El Paso--Marty Robbins (2nd week at #1)
2 Heartaches by the Number--Guy Mitchell
3 The Big Hurt--Miss Toni Fisher
4 Hound Dog Man/This Friendly World--Fabian
5 Marina--Willy Alberti
--Rocco Granata and the International Quintet
6 Living Doll--Cliff Richard and the Drifters
--David Hill
7 In the Mood--Ernie Fields Orchestra
8 Pretty Blue Eyes--Steve Lawrence
9 Among My Souvenirs/God Bless America--Connie Francis
10 Mack the Knife--Bobby Darin

Singles entering the chart were Clouds by the Spacemen (#30); Where or When by Dion and the Belmonts (#34); How About That? by Dee Clark (#39); Let's Try Again by Clyde McPhatter (#44); Little Coco Palm by Jerry Wallace (#45); The Golden Rule by 'Cile Turner (#49); Tracy's Theme by Spencer Ross (#50); He'll Have to Go by Jim Reeves (#51); Climb Ev'ry Mountain by Tony Bennett (#52); All in Good Time by the Nelson Trio (#54); Honeymoon Song by Manuel (#55); There's Still Time Brother by Bill Courtney (#56); Christopher Sunday/China Doll by the Ames Brothers (#57); 'Til Tomorrow by the Four Aces (#58); You Deserve by Peggy Lee (#59); and Until Tomorrow by Richard Wolfe (#60). Tracy's Theme was from the made-for-television movie The Philadelphia Story (1959); Spencer Ross was a pseudonym of Robert Mersey.

Died on this date
Ante Pavelić, 70. Croatian military officer and politician. General Pavelić founded the Croatian fascist nationalist organization Ustaše in 1929, and governed the "Independent State of Croatia"--a Nazi-Fascist puppet state--using the title of Poglavnik from 1941-1945. He was responsible for assassinations--including King Alexander I of Yugoslavia in 1934--and genocides against Serbs, Jews, and other peoples. Gen. Pavelić was able to escape Europe after World War II and fled to Argentina, where he organized a Croatian government-in-exile. He was severely wounded in an assassination attempt in 1957 and eventually moved to Spain, where he died of the effects of his wounds.

Movies
The New York Film Critics Circle announced its awards for 1959, naming Ben-Hur as Best Picture. The other winners were: Director--Fred Zinnemann (The Nun's Story); Actor--James Stewart (Anatomy of a Murder); Actress--Audrey Hepburn (The Nun's Story); Screenplay--Wendell Mayes (Anatomy of a Murder); Foreign Language Film--The 400 Blows.

War
The U.S.S.R. charged that a South Korean warship had attacked an unarmed Soviet hydrographic vessel 30 miles off the east coast of North Korea and 36 miles north of the demarcation line.

Protest
African crowds in Leopoldville protested the arrival of King Baudoin of Belgium on an inspection tour.

Economics and finance
Quebec Labour Minister Antonio Barrette announced an increase in the province's minimum wage effective January 1, 1960. The increase brought the minimum wage to 69c per hour in the Montreal region, 62c for the Quebec region, and 57c for small cities, for an overall increase of 15c per hour.

Business
The U.S. Justice Department sued in a U.S. federal court in New York to upset alleged price-fixing and exclusive representation agreements made by French automobile manufacturers Renault and Peugeot with 16 import firms in the United States.

40 years ago
1969

Football
NFL
Eastern Conference Championship
Cleveland 38 @ Dallas 14

Bill Nelsen completed 18 of 27 passes for 219 yards and a touchdown as the Century Division champion Browns easily beat the Capitol Division champion Cowboys in front of a disappointed crowd of 69,321 at the Cotton Bowl (see videos here and here). Bo Scott scored twice on 2-yard runs, and Leroy Kelly rushed 1 yard for a Cleveland touchdown. Mr. Nelsen threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Milt Morin, and Walt Sumner returned an interception 88 yards for another Cleveland touchdown. Don Cockroft converted all 5 and added a field goal. Dallas quarterback Craig Morton rushed 2 yards for a touchdown, and backup quarterback Roger Staubach completed a 5-yard touchdown pass to Lance Rentzel late in the game for another touchdown, both of which were converted by Mike Clark. Mr. Morton had a terrible game, completing just 8 of 24 passes for 92 yards and 2 interceptions, while Mr. Staubach was 4 for 5 for 44 yards. Paul Warfield of the Browns led all receivers with 8 receptions for 99 yards, while Mr. Kelly rushed 19 times for 66 yards.

30 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Oh! Susie--Secret Service (11th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Maybe--Thom Pace (7th week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): Video Killed the Radio Star--The Buggles (7th week at #1)

War
15,000 more Soviet troops entered Afghanistan, two days after an initial force of 5,000 had invaded. Two overland routes were used by several mechanized Soviet divisions to cross the border. Soviet President Leonid Brezhnev sent a cable to U.S. President Jimmy Carter in which he said that Afghanistan had invited the U.S.S.R. to intervene.

Politics and government
U.S. President Jimmy Carter announced his withdrawal from a forum with his rivals for the 1980 Democratic Party U.S. presidential nomination that had been scheduled for January 7 in Des Moines prior to the Iowa caucus on January 21. Mr. Carter said that the hostage crisis in Iran made an appearance at a partisan political event inappropriate. California Governor Jerry Brown and Senator Ted Kennedy charged that President Carter had withdrawn in order to keep attention away from them and from economic issues.

Lord Soames, British Governor General of Rhodesia, who had been commissioned to guide the country to majority Negro rule, set national elections for February 1980.

Oil
Several countries, including Venezuela, Libya, Indonesia, and Iraq, announced price increases of 10-15%. Experts estimated the aggregate increases in prices for the month at about 8%, making the increase for the year of 1979 approximately 80%.

Hockey
NHL
Edmonton 5 Vancouver 3

25 years ago
1984

On television today
The Edge of Night, the only soap opera that this blogger ever regularly watched, was broadcast for the last time on ABC. The show had its origin with the Perry Mason radio series; when the move was made to television, it split into two shows. Perry Mason emphasized the legal and crime-solving aspects of the show, while The Edge of Night which made its television debut on April 2, 1956, remained as a soap opera, although with more of an emphasis on crime and mystery than the usual soap opera. The show moved to ABC on December 1, 1975. From 1968-1983 the head writer was Henry Slesar, who had written scripts for Alfred Hitchcock’s TV shows, as well as stories for Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. Mr. Slesar won an Emmy Award for his efforts in 1974. The series was carried for many years in Canada on CBC, but that network broadcast its last episode on September 10, 1982. If I’m not mistaken, The Edge of Night was the last soap opera to occupy a half-hour time slot.

20 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Ryyd-joulu--Bat & Ryyd (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Finland (Finnish Singles Chart): Pump Up the Jam--Technotronic (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Do They Know It's Christmas?--Band Aid II (3rd week at #1)

Canada's Top 10 singles of 1989
1 Straight Up--Paula Abdul
2 She Drives Me Crazy--Fine Young Cannibals
3 The Look--Roxette
4 Like a Prayer--Madonna
5 Wild Thing--Tone Loc
6 Buffalo Stance--Neneh Cherry
7 On Our Own--Bobby Brown
8 Wind Beneath My Wings--Bette Midler
9 Cold Hearted--Paula Abdul
10 You Got It--Roy Orbison

Canada's Top 10 albums of 1989
1 The Raw & the Cooked--Fine Young Cannibals
2 Forever Your Girl--Paula Abdul
3 Girl You Know it's True--Milli Vanilli
4 Like a Prayer--Madonna
5 Volume One--Traveling Wilburys
6 Don't be Cruel--Bobby Brown
7 Appetite for Destruction--Guns 'n' Roses
8 Full Moon Fever--Tom Petty
9 Alannah Myles--Alannah Myles
10 Mystery Girl--Roy Orbison

Died on this date
Hermann Oberth, 95. Austro-Hungarian born German physicist and engineer. Dr. Oberth was one of the founders of modern rocketry, with his short book Die Rakete zu den Planetenräumen (By Rocket into Planetary Space) (1923) one of the most influential works in the field. A young Wernher von Braun was one of his assistants in the early 1930s.

Politics and government
The Parliament of Czechoslovakia elected Alexander Dubcek as its speaker.

10 years ago
1999

Died on this date
Clayton Moore, 85. U.S. actor. Mr. Moore, a bit player in movies for a decade, became famous playing the Lone Ranger on television (1949-1952, 1954-1957). He was fired from the series in a salary dispute in 1952, but was brought back two years later. Mr. Moore also played the character in two feature films. He died of a heart attack.