February 27, 2010

1,630 years ago
380

Religion
Roman Emperor Theodosius I and his co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II issued the Edict of Thessalonica, declaring Nicene Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire.

510 years ago
1500

Born on this date
João de Castro. Governor and Viceroy of Portuguese India, 1545-1548. Dom de Castro was a Portuguese nobleman who participated in the Siege of Tunis (1535) and an expedition to Suez in 1540, making a detailed map of the latter. In 1543 he was given a command to clear the Atlantic European seas of pirates, and was sent to India in 1545 as Governor, being appointed Viceroy in 1547. Dom de Castro took a great interest in Indian culture and religion, and was widely mourned upon his death in office, after a long illness, on June 6, 1548 at the age of 48.

450 years ago
1560

War
The Duke of Norfolk, representing Queen Elizabeth I of England, and the rebellious Scottish Lords of the Congregation negotiated the Treaty of Berwick, agreeing on the terms under which an English fleet and army would come to Scotland to expel the French troops who were defending the Regency of Mary of Guise.

310 years ago
1700

Exploration
English explorer William Dampier discovered the largest island in what is now known as the Bismarck Archipelago, and named it Nova Britannia (New Britain).

290 years ago
1720

Died on this date
Samuel Parris, 66 or 67. English-born American clergyman. Rev. Parris, a Puritan, was appointed minister of Salem, Massachusetts in 1689, and was serving in that capacity during the Salem witch trials in 1692. His daughter Betty and niece Abigail Williams, accused the Parris's slave Tituba of being a witch, which started the accusations that culminated in the trials. Rev. Parris took an active part in the prosecutions, many of them against people with whom he had disputes. In 1693, Rev. Parris was himself was charged by his parish for his part in the trials; he apologized in an essay in 1694, and was vindicated in a church council. Rev. Parris had a dispute with his congregation over parsonage land, and resigned his office in 1696, apparently returning to business in Boston. He held several other pastoral positions in Massachusetts in later years.

150 years ago
1860

Politics and government
Abraham Lincoln, candidate for the 1860 Republican Party U.S. presidential nomination, delivered a speech at Cooper Union in New York City. Before the speech, Mr. Lincoln posed for a portrait by famed photographer Matthew Brady.

140 years ago
1870

Japanica
The current flag of Japan was first adopted, as the national flag for Japanese merchant ships.

110 years ago
1900

War
British military leaders in South Africa received an unconditional notice of surrender from Boer General Piet Cronjé in the Battle of Paardeberg.

Politics and government
The British Labour Party was founded as the climax of a conference at Congregational Memorial Hall in London.

Soccer
Fußball-Club Bayern München was founded.

100 years ago
1910

Born on this date
Joan Bennett. U.S. actress. Miss Bennett appeared in more than 70 movies, but was probably best known for her co-starring roles in The Woman in the Window (1944) and Scarlet Street (1945). She died on December 7, 1990 at the age of 80.

Kelly Johnson. U.S. aeronautical engineer. Mr. Johnson designed over 40 aircraft, including the the Lockheed U-2 and Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. He died on December 21, 1990 at the age of 80.

Peter De Vries. U.S. author. Mr. De Vries wrote for The New Yorker magazine from 1944-1987. His novels, which combined comedy and tragedy and were influenced by his Calvinist upbringing, included The Tunnel of Love (1954); The Blood of the Lamb (1961); Reuben, Reuben (1964); and Witch's Milk (1968). Mr. De Vries died on September 28, 1993 at the age of 83.

80 years ago
1930

Boxing
Jack Sharkey (34-8-1) scored a technical knockout of British Empire champion Phil Scott (64-11-4) in the 3rd round at Madison Square Garden Stadium in Miami in an elimination bout for the vacant world heavyweight title. Mr. Scott, who had a history of winning bouts by disqualification, claimed to have been fouled, but referee Lou Magnolia disallowed the claim. An examination by physicians of Mr. Scott after the fight revealed a hip injury.



70 years ago
1940

On the radio



War
The U.S.S.R. reported the first Soviet success since Christmas 1939 on the Petsamo front in Finland.

Politics and government
The New York State Assembly passed a resolution petitioning the United States Congress to pass a law prohibiting a third term for any President.

Through his supporters, U.S. Vice President John Nance "Cactus Jack" Garner entered the race for New York delegates to the Democratic National Convention in the contest for the 1940 nomination for President of the United States.

Herman Laborde and Valentin Campa, president and secretary, respectively, of the Mexican Communist Party, were purged from the party.

Economics and finance
After months of negotiations, plans for the Inter-American Bank were finally approved by the Inter-American Financial and Economic Advisory Committee.

Science
Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discovered carbon-14.

70 years ago
1950

On television tonight
Lights Out, on NBC
Tonight's episode: Portrait of a Dead Man, starring Horace Braham and Richard Fraser

Literature
The Wall, a novel by John Hersey about the Warsaw Ghetto, was published in New York by Alfred A. Knopf.

Diplomacy
Canada and the United States signed a new 50-year treaty to preserve the scenic beauty of Niagara Falls, and increase the Niagara River power output.

The U.S. State Department forbade Americans to visit Bulgaria.

Defense
France asked the United States to give the pro-French Vietnamese government $30 million worth of military equipment.

Politics and government
Chilean President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla appointed a new cabinet to replace a 19-month-old emergency non-partisan government.

Iranian State Minister Ali Asghar Hemmat announced the dismissal of 60 high officials in the province of Azerbaijan for corruption and cruelty following the flight of 120,000 Azerbaijani peasants from mistreatment in their villages.

60 years ago
1960

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Boom Boom Baby--Crash Craddock (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Italy: Romantica--Tony Dallara (4th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Marina--Rocco Granata and the International Quintet (9th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Why--Anthony Newley (6th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 The Theme from "A Summer Place"--Percy Faith and his Orchestra
2 Handy Man--Jimmy Jones
3 Teen Angel--Mark Dinning
4 He'll Have to Go--Jim Reeves
5 Running Bear--Johnny Preston
6 What in the World's Come Over You--Jack Scott
7 Beyond the Sea--Bobby Darin
8 Wild One--Bobby Rydell
9 Baby (You've Got What it Takes)--Dinah Washington & Brook Benton
10 Let it Be Me--The Everly Brothers

Singles entering the chart were Mama (#58)/Teddy (#91) by Connie Francis; Sink the Bismark by Johnny Horton (#81); El Matador (#83)/Home from the Hill (#98) by the Kingston Trio; Greenfields by the Brothers Four (#93); White Silver Sands by Bill Black's Combo (#94); I Love the Way You Love by Marv Johnson (#95); Little Susie (Parts 1 and 2) by the Ray Bryant Trio (#96); Stolen Angel by the Scott Brothers (#97); Cindy by Teddy Vann (#99); Just One Time by Don Gibson (#100); Suddenly by Nickey De Matteo (also #100); and String Along by Fabian (also #100).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CFUN)
1 Handy Man--Jimmy Jones
2 Teen Angel--Mark Dinning
3 Beatnik Fly--Johnny and the Hurricanes
4 Wild One--Bobby Rydell
5 Bad Boy--Marty Wilde
6 What in the World's Come Over You--Jack Scott
5 Little Bitty Girl/Wild One--Bobby Rydell
7 Snake in the Garden--Gerry Howard
8 Puppy Love--Paul Anka
9 Terry--Leigh Bell
10 He'll Have to Go--Jim Reeves

Singles entering the chart were China Doll by the Ames Brothers (#32); Tamiami by Bill Haley and his Comets (#40); Crazy Arms by Bob Beckham (#45); I Don't Know What it Is by the Bluenotes (#50); Baby (You've Got What it Takes) by Dinah Washington & Brook Benton (#52); What Do You Want by Adam Faith (#55); Teen-Ex by the Browns (#56); Am I that Easy to Forget by Debbie Reynolds (#57); Mountain of Love by Harold Dorman (#58); Greenfields by the Brothers Four (#59); and This Magic Moment by the Drifters (#60). Teen-Ex was the B-side of The Old Lamplighter, which had yet to chart.

Olympics
Men's hockey @ Blyth Arena, Squaw Valley, California
Final Round
C.S.S.R. (2-2) 9 West Germany (0-4) 1
U.S.A. (4-0) 3 U.S.S.R. (2-1-1) 2
Canada (3-1) 6 Sweden (0-3-1) 5

František Vaněk scored 2 goals and 3 assists, and Miroslav Vlach added 2 goals to help Czechoslovakia rout West Germany.

Bill Christian scored the tying goal at 11:01 of the 2nd period and the winning goal with 5:01 remaining in the game as the Americans came back from a 2-1 1st-period deficit to defeat the Soviets.



Jim Connelly's second goal of the game, with 2:29 remaining in the game, climaxed a 4-goal 3rd period as the Canadians came back from a 4-1 1st-period deficit to defeat the Swedes. Mr. Connelly scored his first goal of the game with 3:19 remaining in the 2nd period to make the score 4-2, and Bobby Rousseau scored at 3:11 of the 3rd period to make the score 4-3. Harry Sinden scored with 8:43 remaining to tie the score, but Lars-Eric Lundvall scored his third goal of the game 2:38 later to give Sweden a 5-4 lead. Moe Benoit tied the score 5-5 with 4:28 remaining.

40 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Come and Get It--Badfinger (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)--Edison Lighthouse (4th week at #1)

South Africa's Top 10 (Springbok Radio)
1 Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head--B.J. Thomas
2 Pretty Belinda--Chris Andrews
3 All I Have to Do is Dream--Bobbie Gentry and Glen Campbell
4 Venus--Shocking Blue
5 Without Love (There is Nothing)--Tom Jones
6 Don't Cry Daddy--Elvis Presley
7 The Liquidator--The Harry J. All Stars
8 Someday We'll Be Together--Diana Ross and the Supremes
9 Whole Lotta Love--Led Zeppelin
10 Holly Holy--Neil Diamond

Singles entering the chart were Venus; Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes) by Edison Lighthouse (#16); and Two Little Boys by Rolf Harris (#20).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon & Garfunkel (2nd week at #1)
2 Travelin' Band/Who'll Stop the Rain--Creedence Clearwater Revival
3 Spirit in the Sky--Norman Greenbaum
4 He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother--Hollies
5 If I were a Carpenter--Johnny Cash and June Carter
6 I'll Never Fall in Love Again--Dionne Warwick
7 Ma Belle Amie--The Tee Set
8 I Must Have Been Blind--The Collectors
9 Give Me Just a Little More Time--The Chairmen of the Board
10 Arizona--Mark Lindsay

Singles entering the chart were Celebrate by Three Dog Night (#22); Come and Get It by Badfinger (#24); House of the Rising Sun by Frijid Pink (#26); My Elusive Dreams by Bobby Vinton (#28); As Feelings Go by Spring (#29); and Walking Through the Country by the Grass Roots (#30).

Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon & Garfunkel
2 Jennifer Tomkins--Street People
3 Ma Belle Amie--The Tee Set
4 The Rainmaker--Tom Northcott
5 Fancy--Bobbie Gentry
6 No Time--The Guess Who
7 Kentucky Rain--Elvis Presley
8 Who'll Stop the Rain/Travelin' Band--Creedence Clearwater Revival
9 Walk a Mile in My Shoes--Joe South and the Believers
10 Honey Come Back--Glen Campbell

Diplomacy
French President Georges Pompidou continued his visit to the United States with a tour of the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Kennedy, Florida.



The 14th ordinary session of the Organization of African Unity opened in Addis Ababa.

Protest
Students at the University of Manchester politely took over the administration building in a protest against the university’s files on students’ political activities. The U of M was the ninth of Britain’s 44 universities to have been the sites of demonstrations on the issue, with the occupation of the Manchester building the largest protest so far.

Disasters
A Ceylonese boat sank at Jaffna, drowning 61.

7 people were killed and 5 injured when a ski bus overturned near Saratoga Springs, New York.

30 years ago
1980

Died on this date
George Tobias, 78. U.S. actor. Mr. Tobias was a character actor in plays, movies, and television programs. He was best known for playing Abner Kravitz in the television comedy series Bewitched (1964-1971). Mr. Tobias died of cancer.

Terrorism
Leftist guerrillas seized the Dominican Republic’s embassy in Bogota, Colombia during a reception to mark the D.R.’s annual independence day. Dressed in joggers’ warmup suits with their weapons in gym bags, 17 guerrillas with the Movement of April 19 ran into the embassy. In the ensuing shootout with security guards, four people were wounded and one guerrilla killed. A large portion of Bogota’s diplomatic corps, including the U.S. ambassador and the papal nuncio, were taken hostage, as was the embassy staff. The guerrillas--subject along with other leftist groups to an intensive crackdown over the previous 18 months in which nearly 2,000 guerrilla suspects were seized--made the following demands: the release of political prisoners, including 311 from their movement; the publication in the main newspapers of the hostages’ countries of an April 19 manifesto; and payment of a $50-million ransom raised from the hostages’ countries. The April 19 Movement, also known as M-19, was a radical leftist (read: Marxist) group that had broken away from the youth movement of the National Popular Alliance of General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla after he was defeated in the presidential election of April 19, 1970. Some of Gen. Pinilla’s followers made accusations of fraud and turned to terrorism.

World events
Kabul was reported back to normal after several days of strikes in protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and subsequent arrests of protesters.

25 years ago
1985

Hockey
NHL
Montreal 4 Edmonton 1

20 years ago
1990

On television tonight
The Wonder Years, on ABC
Tonight's episode: The Glee Club

This was one of my favourite episodes.

Died on this date
Josephine Johnson, 79. U.S. authoress. Miss Johnson wrote several novels and numerous short stories. She won five O. Henry awards for her short stories, but is best known for being, at age 24, the youngest person to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, for her first novel, Now in November (1934).

Diplomacy
Recently-freed South African anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela went to Zambia to meet with African National Congress leaders, and was greeted by official delegations from many countries.

Politics and government
The Supreme Soviet of the U.S.S.R. gave its approval to President Mikhail Gorbachev’s proposal for a popularly elected president having broad executive powers.

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said that Contra rebels would have to demobilize before the Sandanistas yielded control of the army and police. Violetta Chamorro, who had defeated Mr. Ortega in the general election two days earlier, called on the Contras to disband to help speed the transfer of power.

10 years ago
2000

Soccer
CONCACAF Gold Cup
Final @ Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Canada 2 Colombia 0

Tournament organizers had been hoping for a final between the United States and Mexico, with an expected crowd of at least 70,000. However, they were disappointed by not only the matchup for the final, but by a steady rain, which kept the crowd closer to 7,000. It was the first time Canada had won the tournament, and may stand as the high point in the history of Canadian soccer. The cup itself is as big a trophy as I've ever seen.