April 23, 2010

590 years ago
1420

Born on this date
George of Poděbrady. King of Bohemia, 1458-1471. Jiří (George) was a leader of the Hussites--followers of the pre-Reformation Protestant Jan Huss--who was elected King by the estates of Bohemia following the death of King Ladislaus I. Jiří was an early promoter of European unity, proposing a treaty among all Christian powers. King Jiří died on March 22, 1471 at the age of 50, and was succeeded on the throne by Vladislaus II.

350 years ago
1660

War
Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, Elector Frederick William I of Brandenburg, and King John II of Poland signed the Treaty of Oliva, making peace among Sweden, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Habsburgs, and Brandenburg-Prussia. It was one of the treaties ending the Second Northern War (1655-1660).

325 years ago
1685

Britannica
James II was crowned King of England at Westminster.

150 years ago
1860

Politics and government
The U.S. Democratic National Convention opened at South Carolina Institute Hall in Charleston.

120 years ago
1890

Canadiana
In New Brunswick, the rapidly-growing railway town of Moncton was re-incorporated as the province's third city, while the town of Grand Falls was incorporated.

110 years ago
1900

Born on this date
Jim Bottomley. U.S. baseball player and manager. "Sunny Jim" was a first baseman with the St. Louis Cardinals (1922-1932); Cincinnati Reds (1933-1935); and St. Louis Browns (1936-1937), batting .310 with 219 home runs and 1,422 runs batted in in 1,9991 games. He helped the Cardinals win World Series championships in 1926 and 1931, as well as National League pennants in 1928 and 1930, but batted only .200 with 1 homer and 10 RBIs in 24 World Series games. Mr. Bottomley led the NL in games played (153) and hits (227) and tied for the lead in doubles (44) in 1925, while batting .367. In 1926 he led the league in doubles (40) and RBIs (120), and in 1928 led the NL in triples (20) and RBIs (136), while tying for the lead in home runs (31). Mr. Bottomley is probably best known as the first major league player to drive in 12 runs in a game, which he did against the Brooklyn Robins on September 16, 1924. He managed the Browns for the last half of the 1937 season, posting a 21-56-1 record, and managed briefly in the minor leagues. Mr. Bottomley died of a heart attack on December 11, 1959 at the age of 59. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974 by the Veterans Committee; his selection was one of several cited by critics who accused the Veterans Committee of cronyism in their selections in the early-mid 1970s.

90 years ago
1920

Politics and government
The Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) was founded in Ankara. The assembly denounced the government of Sultan Mehmed VI and announced the preparation of a temporary constitution.

70 years ago
1940

War
Canadian and French troops in Norway seized the town of Gratangen, 25 miles north of Narvik, from German forces. Egyptian Prime Minister Aly Maher Pasha reaffirmed his country's stand on the Allied side in the European war. Poland and Norway were represented for the first time at the Allied War Council in Paris.

Diplomacy
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Joseph Grew asked the Japanese Foreign Office to alleviate the blockade of Tientsin, China to relieve Americans there.

Defense
The United States and Chile agreed that an American military aviation mission would be sent to Santiago to advise the Chilean air force.

Politics and government
Delegates opposing a third term for Franklin D. Roosevelt as President of the United States gained victories in the Pennsylvania Democratic Party primary.

Law
U.S. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt warned against hasty U.S. defense legislation that would curtail civil liberties.

Disasters
198 people died in a fire at the Rhythm Night Club in Natchez, Mississippi.

60 years ago
1950

Died on this date
Bill Hallman, 74. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Hallman, the nephew of major league infielder Bill Hallman, was an outfielder with the Milwaukee Brewers (1901); Chicago White Sox (1903); and Pittsburgh Pirates (1906-1907), batting .235 with 3 home runs and 86 runs batted in in 319 games. He played 16 seasons in the minor leagues from 1894-1914.

War
Nationalist Chinese President Chiang Kai-shek ordered the evacuation of Nationalist forces from Hainan as Communists entered Hoichow, the island's capital.

Abominations
The official U.S. Berlin newspaper Die Neue Zeitung reported that the U.S.S.R. was moving native farmers out of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania, and replacing them with Russians to prevent a resurgence of Baltic nationalism.

Religion
The American Council for Judaism concluded a three-day meeting in Cincinnati by attacking Zionism in the United States.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
New York 3 @ Detroit 4 (2 OT) (Detroit won best-of-seven series 4-3)

Pete Babando scored his second goal of the game at 8:31 of the 2nd overtime period at Olympia Stadium to give the Red Wings their first Stanley Cup championship in seven years. The Rangers didn’t reach the finals again until 1972, and didn’t win the Stanley Cup again until 1994.



Basketball
NBA
Finals
Syracuse 95 @ Minneapolis 110 (Minneapolis won best-of-seven series 4-2)

George Mikan scored 40 points to lead the Lakers over the Nationals before 9,812 fans at Minneapolis Auditorium; it was the Lakers' second straight championship, and the first since the Basketball Association of America and National Basketball League had merged after the 1948-49 season. Dolph Schayes led Syracuse scorers with 23 points.

50 years ago
1960

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): He'll Have to Go--Jim Reeves

#1 single in Italy: Marina--Rocco Granata and the International Quintet (4th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Banjo Boy--Jan & Kjeld (8th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): My Old Man's a Dustman--Lonnie Donegan (5th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Stuck on You--Elvis Presley
2 The Theme from "A Summer Place"--Percy Faith and his Orchestra
3 Greenfields--The Brothers Four
4 White Silver Sands--Bill Black's Combo
5 Puppy Love--Paul Anka
6 He’ll Have to Go--Jim Reeves
7 Sink the Bismarck--Johnny Horton
8 I Love the Way You Love--Marv Johnson
9 Sweet Nothin's--Brenda Lee
10 Footsteps--Steve Lawrence

Singles entering the chart were Cathy's Clown (#55)/Always it's You (#83) by the Everly Brothers; When You Wish Upon a Star by Dion and the Belmonts (#61); Burning Bridges (#68)/Oh, Little One (#74) by Jack Scott; Got a Girl by the Four Preps (#72); No If's--No And's (#75)/For Love (#84) by Lloyd Price and his Orchestra; Tell Me that You Love Me (#77)/Before I Grow Too Old (#91) by Fats Domino; Right by My Side (#79)/Young Emotions (#99) by Ricky Nelson; All I Could Do was Cry by Etta James (#90); How Deep is the Ocean by Miss Toni Fisher (#97); and Another Sleepless Night by Jimmy Clanton (#100).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CFUN)
1 Stuck on You--Elvis Presley (3rd week at #1)
2 Step by Step--The Crests
3 Stairway to Heaven--Neil Sedaka
4 Cradle of Love--Johnny Preston
5 Sixteen Reasons--Connie Stevens
6 Footsteps--Steve Lawrence
7 Let the Little Girl Dance--Billy Bland
8 Rockin' Rollin' Ocean--Hank Snow
9 The Old Lamplighter--The Browns
10 Got a Girl--The Four Preps

Singles entering the chart were Just a Closer Walk with Thee by Jimmie Rodgers (#41); Hither and Thither and Yon by Brook Benton (#44); Beautiful Obsession by Sir Chauncey (#50); Starlight by Johnny Mathis (#51); Right by My Side by Ricky Nelson (#52); Just One Time by Don Gibson (#53); Smilin' Bill McCall by Johnny Cash (#55); Paper Roses by Anita Bryant (#56); You Understand Me by Sam Cooke (#57); Swingin' School by Bobby Rydell (#58); The Madison Time by the Ray Bryant Combo (with Eddie Morrison) (#59); and The Madison by Al Brown's Tunetoppers (#60). Swingin' School was from the movie Because They're Young (1960).

40 years ago
1970

War
U.S. President Richard Nixon abolished draft deferments for fathers and for men with occupations considered to be in the national interest.

South Vietnam, with the "approval" of the United States, shipped rifles and ammunition captured from Communist forces to aid the Cambodians fighting North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces. Cambodian President Lon Nol had made a personal appeal to U.S. President Richard Nixon for help.

Abominations
Andorran Co-Prince Georges Pompidou and acting Co-Prince Ramon Malla Call signed a decree giving women in the principality the right to vote.

Academia
Yale University President Kingman Brewster, Jr. provoked a storm of criticism when he said he was "skeptical of the ability of black revolutionaries to achieve a fair trial anywhere in the United States," and that he was "appalled and ashamed" that such a situation had developed.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Semi-Finals
Chicago 2 @ Boston 5 (Boston led best-of-seven series 3-0)
St. Louis 2 @ Pittsburgh 3 (St. Louis led best-of-seven series 2-1)

30 years ago
1980

World events
The United States Justice Department warned that boat owners faced stiff penalties and fines of up to $1,000 for every Cuban citizen that they ferried to the United States. The Cuban-Americans left for Cuba anyway, and the port of Mariel was clogged with small fishing boats picking up Cubans who wanted to flee to the United States.

Diplomacy
Canada announced that it was following the lead of the nine European Economic Community countries in imposing diplomatic sanctions against Iran.

Olympics
18 amateur athletes, a coach, and a member of the United States Olympic Committee’s executive board brought a class-action suit in the U.S. District Court in Washington, challenging the USOC’s authority to ban the athletes’ participation in the 1980 Summer Olympics scheduled to be held in Moscow.

Baseball
Bruce Kison (1-2) came within 2 outs of a no-hitter, giving up just a double to Ken Landreaux with 1 out in the 9th inning, as the California Angels routed the Minnesota Twins 17-0 before 4,772 fans at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington. The Angels scored 7 unearned runs in the top of the 9th.

30 years ago
1985

Died on this date
Sam Ervin, 88. U.S. politician. Mr. Ervin, a Democrat, represented North Carolina in the United States Senate from 1954-1974. He was best known for his role as Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, better known as the Senate Watergate Committee, which spent most of its time investigating the June 1972 break-in at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C. and the subsequent cover-up. The hearings received much television coverage, and Sen. Ervin's folksy manner made him a folk hero.

Popular culture
Coca-Cola introduced the "new" Coke, which had a sweeter taste than the "old" Coke. This blogger tried it for the first time a month later and didn't like it. This opinion was shared by millions, and the old taste was brought back under the name "Coke Classic" in July.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Division Finals
Montreal 6 @ Quebec 7 (OT) (Quebec led best-of-seven series 2-1)
Philadelphia 5 @ New York Islanders 3 (Philadelphia led best-of-seven series 3-0)
Chicago 5 @ Minnesota 3 (Chicago led best-of-seven series 2-1)
Edmonton 5 @ Winnipeg 4 (Edmonton led best-of-seven series 3-0)

20 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Roman Hikō (浪漫飛行)--Kome Kome Club

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Nothing Compares 2 U--Sinéad O'Connor (8th week at #1)

Died on this date
Paulette Goddard, 79. U.S. actress. Miss Goddard, born Marion Levy, was best known for her roles in such movies as Modern Times (1936); The Women (1939); The Great Dictator (1940); and So Proudly We Hail! (1943).

Protest
Heavily-armed Mohawk Warriors, who supported the gambling operations going on at Akwesasne-St. Regis Reserve near Cornwall, Ontario, overran blockades that had been set up by anti-gambling protesters, and destroyed about 25 cars parked nearby. An explosive device was also fired at the Mohawk police station on the Canadian side of the border. Georges Erasmus, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, called on U.S. authorities to restrain the Warriors. New York Governor Mario Cuomo said that he would not order state troopers to intervene in an "internal" Indian dispute.

Politics and government
A spokesman for the government of Manitoba said that New Brunswick Premier Frank McKenna’s solution to the impasse over the Meech Lake Canadian constitutional accord did not satisfy his province’s concern about the need for Senate reform.

Abominations
U.S. President George Bush signed into law the Hate Crimes Statistics Act, under which records would be kept of crimes committed by people motivated by racial, ethnic, or sexual prejudice. "Sexual orientation" was included, marking the first time in American history that a federal law included a classification to protect sodomites.

Diplomacy
U.S. President George Bush thanked Syrian President Hafez-al-Assad for his role in helping to secure U.S. hostage Robert Polhill’s release from his Shiite captors in Lebanon the previous day.

10 years ago
2000

Journalism
12 newspapers in Iran were shut down by court order for supposedly publishing articles defaming Islam.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Conference Quarter-Finals
St. Louis 6 @ San Jose 2 (Best-of-seven series tied 3-3)

Baseball
Bernie Williams and Jorge Posada became the first teammates in major league history to hit a home run from each side of the plate in the same game as the New York Yankees defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 10-7 before 20,485 fans at SkyDome in Toronto. The Yankees scored 7 runs in the 4th inning. Jose Cruz, who had hit 2 home runs for the Blue Jays the previous day, led off the game with a home run for the second straight game.