June 8, 2010

200 years ago
1810

Born on this date
Robert Schumann. German composer. Mr. Schumann, a native of Zwickau, Saxony, wrote such works as Symphonic Etudes for Piano; Carnaval; Davidsbundlertanze; Symphony No. 1 in B Flat Major ("Spring"); and Arabeske. He was of a rather nervous disposition, and this got worse as the years went on. He was removed to a private asylum in 1854, and died on July 29, 1856 at the age of 46.

130 years ago
1880

Politics and government
The U.S. Republican National Convention concluded at Exposition Hall in Chicago. U.S. Representative James A. Garfield (Ohio) was nominated as the party's 1880 U.S. presidential candidate on the 36th ballot, receiving 399 votes to 306 for former President U.S. Grant, 42 for U.S. Senator James G. Blaine (Maine), and 3 for U.S. Treasury Secretary John Sherman. Party chairman Chester Arthur was nominated for Vice President on the first ballot, receiving 468 of 751 votes.

110 years ago
1900

Born on this date
Lena Baker. U.S. convicted criminal. Ms. Baker, a Negress from Georgia, worked as a maid to support her family. In 1944, she began working for Ernest Knight, an older white man who had broken his leg. Mr. Knight kept Ms. Baker in a condition of virtual slavery, and committed multiple sexual assaults against her. One night, an argument between the two escalated, and she shot him while they were struggling over his gun. Ms. Baker reported the incident to police and claimed to have acted in self-defense, but an all-white, all-male jury convicted her of capital murder on the first day of her trial. She was executed in the electric chair at Georgia State Prison on March 5, 1945 at the age of 44. In 2005, the Georgia Parole Board granted Ms. Baker a full and unconditional posthumous pardon.

Society
The Prince Edward Island House of Assembly passed Canada's first prohibition law.

100 years ago
1910

Born on this date
John W. Campbell. U.S. journalist and author. Mr. Campbell wrote science fiction stories under his own name and pseudonyms such as Don A. Stuart. His best-known fiction was the novella Who Goes There? (1938), which was adapted into the movie The Thing from Another World (1951) and two remakes. Mr. Campbell had his greatest impact as editor of Astounding Science Fiction (later renamed Analog Science Fiction and Fact) from 1937 until his death from heart failure on July 11, 1971 at the age of 61.

90 years ago
1920

Politics and government
The U.S. Republican National Convention opened at the Chicago Coliseum.

Baseball
The Boston Braves sold second baseman Johnny Rawlings to the Philadelphia Phillies. He was batting 0 for 3 with 2 runs batted in in 5 games with Boston in 1920.

George Burns led off the bottom of the 8th with a double and advanced to third base on an error by left fielder Pat Duncan, and scored on another error by Mr. Duncan on a ball hit by Dave Bancroft to break a 4-4 tie as the New York Giants defeated the Cincinnati Reds 5-4 before 12,000 fans at the Polo Grounds in New York. Cincinnati catcher Ivy Wingo was ejected after arguing that the ball hit by Mr. Burns was foul; the argument went on so long that Cincinnati center fielder Edd Roush laid down in center field and fell asleep. When third baseman Heinie Groh woke him up, Mr. Roush was ejected by umpire Barry McCormick.

The New York Yankees scored 6 runs in the 7th inning and 4 in the 9th as they overcame a 6-3 deficit to defeat the Detroit Tigers 13-6 at Navin Field in Detroit. New York starting pitcher George Mogridge doubled home 3 runs in his only plate appearance; he was relieved by Bob Shawkey (7-5), who allowed 6 hits and 2 runs--both earned--in 6.2 innings to get the win, and batted 2 for 3 with a sacrifice, run, and 3 runs batted in. Every New York batter had at least 1 hit.

70 years ago
1940

Died on this date
Frederick Converse, 69. U.S. composer. Mr. Converse wrote five symphonies and four operas, but is best known for works such as the symphonic poems The Mystic Trumpeter (1904) and Flivver Ten Million (1927).

War
The Royal Canadian Air Force's No. 1 Fighter Squadron left Montreal for Britain. The British carrier Glorious was sunk and the German battle cruiser Scharnhorst was severely damaged in a naval battle off the coast of Norway, as Operation Alphabet, the evacuation of Allied forces from Narvik, was completed. The German army northeast of Paris launched a full-scale offensive.

Law
The Cuban Constituent Assembly completed work on a new constitution, including all policies favoured by president-elect Fulgencio Batista, to take effect on September 15, 1940.

Politics and government
Supporters of former U.S. President Herbert Hoover started a drive in Mr. Hoover's home town of Palo Alto, California to have him drafted as the Republican Party's 1940 nominee for President of the United States at the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia later in the month.

Medicine
Dr. Robert A. Milliken of California Institute of Technology reported rapid progress in the treatment of cancerous tumours.

Horse racing
Bimelech, with F.A. Smith aboard, won the 72nd running of the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park, New York in a time of 2:29 3/5. Your Chance placed second.

Track and field
Fred Wolcott set a world record of 22.5 seconds in the 220-yard low hurdles at Princeton University.

Baseball
Harry Craft hit for the cycle, added a single, and scored 4 runs, and Frank McCormick scored 5 runs as the Cincinnati Reds whipped the Brooklyn Dodgers 23-2 before 10,075 fans at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Brooklyn relief pitcher Carl Doyle gave up 16 hits and 14 runs in just 4 innings, and hit 4 batters.

60 years ago
1950

At the movies
The Sleeping City, directed by George Sherman, and starring Richard Conte and Coleen Gray, opened in theatres in London.





Died on this date
Ledell Titcomb, 83. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Titcomb played with the Philadelphia Quakers (1886); Philadelphia Athletics (1887); New York Giants (1887-1889); and Rochester Broncos (1890), compiling a record of 30-29 with an earned run average of 3.47 in 63 games. He pitched a no-hitter on September 15, 1890, but his best season was 1888, when he was 14-8 with a 2.24 ERA in 23 games. Mr. Titcomb died of heart failure.

Diplomacy
West German officials denounced the East German-Polish border agreement as "traitorous." The U.S.A. claimed that no final disposition on the Oder-Neisse boundary could be made until a German-Allied peace treaty was reached.

Defense
Thomas Blamey became the only Australian to attain the rank of field marshal.

Politics and government
Jean Duvieusart took office as Prime Minister of Belgium, four days after his Christian Social Party, a Roman Catholic party, won a narrow majority in the Belgian general election. The Christian Social Party was the only party to favour the return to the throne of King Leopold III.

A special U.S. federal grand jury investigating subversion indicted Commerce Department economist William Remington on a charge of perjury, claiming that he lied in denying that he had ever been a member of the Communist Party.

Society
The U.S. Senate passed and sent to President Harry Truman a bill allowing 132,000 Japanese aliens living in the United States and Hawaii to become naturalized American citizens.

Medicine
Dr. Samuel Thompson of New York Medical College reported the insertion of talcum powder between the heart and its covering sac as a treatment for coronary occlusion. Talc imitated the are and stimulated increased blood flow.

Baseball
The day after beating the St. Louis Browns 20-4, the Boston Red Sox whipped the Browns 29-4 before 5,105 fans at Fenway Park in Boston in the most lopsided major league game of the 20th century. The Red Sox set a single-game record with 58 total bases. Leadoff hitter Clyde Vollmer batted 8 times in 8 innings--the only time that happened in major league history. Bobby Doerr had 3 home runs and 8 runs batted in; Walt Dropo had 2 homers, 7 RBIs, and 5 runs; Ted Williams had 2 homers and 5 RBIs. All three homered in the 8th inning. Al Zarilla had 4 doubles and a single, and pitcher Chuck Stobbs (4-1) drew 4 bases on balls in 4 innings, and pitched an 8-hit complete game victory.

The New York Yankees scored 7 runs in the 6th inning as they beat the Detroit Tigers 11-4 before 62,264 fans at Yankee Stadium. Joe Collins and Jerry Coleman each drove in 3 runs for the Yankees, and winning pitcher Tommy Byrne (7-1) tripled in a run and scored in the 8th.

Johnny Ostrowski drew a base on balls to lead off the bottom of the 9th inning and scored from second base on a 1-out single by winning pitcher Mickey Harris (2-1) to give the Washington Nationals a 7-6 win over the Cleveland Indans before 16,589 fans at Griffith Stadium in Washington. The Indians opened the scoring with a grand slam by Al Rosen in the 1st inning, but the Nationals scored 5 in the 3rd to take a 6-4 lead.

The St. Louis Cardinals allowed 4 runs in the top of the 1st inning, but responded with 8 runs in the bottom of the 1st, and went on to rout the Boston Braves 18-6 before 11,417 fans at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Fred Martin (2-0), who relieved starting pitcher Harry Brecheen with 1 out in the top of the 1st, allowed 13 hits and 2 runs--both earned--in 8.2 innings to get the win, and singled home a run and scored in the bottom of the 1st. Johnny Sain (8-4) allowed 5 hits, 2 bases on balls, and 7 runs--all earned--in 0.2 innings to take the loss.

50 years ago
1960

Politics and government
Premier Tommy Douglas led his governing Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) to a fifth consecutive majority government in the Saskatchewan provincial election. The CCF took 37 of 55 seats in the Legislative Assembly, an increase of 1 from the most recent election in 1956. The Liberal Party, led by Ross Thatcher, won 17 seats, and another seat was declared void.

40 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Spirit in the Sky--Norman Greenbaum (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Keiko no Yume wa--Yoru Hiraku (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Un Rayo De Sol--Los Diablos (2nd week at #1)

On the radio
The Challenge of Space, on Springbok Radio
Tonight’s episode: Commander’s Privilege

Died on this date
Abraham Maslow, 62. U.S. psychologist. Dr. Maslow was one of the seminal figures in the branch of psychotherapy known as humanistic psychology, which emphasizes man's capacity for goodness, creativity, and freedom. In contrast to the theorists who emphasized abnormal or neurotic personalities, Dr. Maslow's research was along the lines of what made well-adjusted people well-adjusted. He was famous for his "hierarchy of needs:" People begin with the desire to satisfy physiologic needs (e.g. hunger, thirst), then move up through safety needs (e.g., avoidance of pain or anxiety; desire for security); Belongingness and love needs (e.g., affection, intimacy); esteem needs (self-respect, adequacy, mastery, competence); and finally, the need for self-actualization (to be what one fully can be). By his own admission, Dr. Maslow had met very few people who he believed had become self-actualized. The Maslow hierarchy of needs is exactly the opposite of the words of the Lord Jesus Christ: Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you (Matthew 6:33). Christian apologist Rabi Maharaj put it well when he quoted Isaiah 14:14b--"I will be like the most High"--and said that Satan was the first being to get into self-actualization. It's been said that at the end of his life Dr. Maslow was heading in the direction of what today would be called New Age beliefs; given his belief in human potential, that sounds like a logical progression. He died of a heart attack suffered while jogging.

Politics and government
Four years after he was installed as President of Argentina by a military coup d’etat, Lieutenant General Juan Carlos Ongania was forced to resign the presidency after Argentina’s military commanders announced that he had been deposed after a 10-hour holdout.

Labour
Major league baseball management and players agreed to a new standard player contract. Among the victories for players was a raise in the minimum yearly salary from $10,000 to $12,000.

Disasters
Seven Green Berets were killed in a premature explosion of TNT on a training range at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

30 years ago
1980

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Stomp!--The Brothers Johnson (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Boat on the River--Styx (7th week at #1)

War
Two days of fighting between Bengali immigrants and native tribal people in the Indian states of Assam and Tripura concluded with the deaths of at least 350 Bengali immigrants.

Auto racing
CRL
Bobby Unser won the 150-mile Gould Rex Mays Classic at the Milwaukee Mile.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Calgary 13 (1-0) @ Saskatchewan (0-1) 12

Baseball
The St. Louis Cardinals fired manager Ken Boyer between games of a doubleheader loss to the Montreal Expos before 46,871 fans at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, replacing him with coach Jack Krol. The Cardinals were 18-34 after the two games, the worst record in the major leagues. Whitey Herzog was hired the next day as the team’s manager. The Expos scored 5 runs in the first 3 innings and won the first game 6-4. John Littlefield, the second of five St. Louis pitchers, allowed 2 hits and no runs, striking out 1 batter and walking none in 3 innings, batting 0 for 1 in his major league debut. Andre Dawson batted 5 for 5 with a double, 3 runs, and 2 runs batted in to lead the Expos to a 9-4 win in Mr. Krol's game as St. Louis manager. Montreal third baseman Brad Mills batted 1 for 3 with a base on balls, making 3 assists and an error in his first major league game. Steve Rogers (7-5) and Ross Grimsley (2-3) were the respective winning pitchers.

Dan Driessen led off the bottom of the 2nd inning with a home run for the game's only run as the Cincinnati Reds edged the San Diego Padres 1-0 before 26,272 fans at Riverfront Stadium in Kansas City. Charlie Leibrandt (5-3) pitched a 3-hitter to outduel Randy Jones (4-5).

Shortstop Johnnie LeMaster made an error on a ground ball by Rafael Landestoy with 1 out in the bottom of the 9th inning, allowing pinch runner Julio Gonzalez to score from second base and give the Houston Astros a 5-4 win over the San Francisco Giants before 28,327 fans at the Astrodome.

The Minnesota Twins scored 4 unearned runs in the bottom of the 4th inning as they beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-1 in the first game of a doubleheader before 17,869 fans at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington. Barry Bonnell doubled home Joe Cannon and Roy Howell with 1 out in the top of the 13th to break a 4-4 tie as the Blue Jays won the second game 6-4.

25 years ago
1985

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (FIMI): We are the World--USA for Africa (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Flanders (Ultratop 50): Let it Swing--Bobbysocks!

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): Don't You (Forget About Me)--Simple Minds (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): I'm on Fire/Born in the U.S.A.--Bruce Springsteen

#1 single in the U.K.: 19--Paul Hardcastle (5th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Everybody Wants to Rule the World--Tears for Fears

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Everybody Wants to Rule the World--Tears for Fears
2 Everything She Wants--Wham!
3 Axel F--Harold Faltermeyer
4 Don't You (Forget About Me)--Simple Minds
5 Suddenly--Billy Ocean
6 We are the World--USA for Africa
7 In My House--Mary Jane Girls
8 Things Can Only Get Better--Howard Jones
9 Heaven--Bryan Adams
10 Fresh--Kool & The Gang

Singles entering the chart were If You Love Somebody Set Them Free by Sting (#34); Never Surrender by Corey Hart (#58); Get it On by Power Station (#60); (Closest Thing To) Perfect by Jermaine Jackson (#83); State of the Heart by Rick Springfield (#85); Rock Me Tonight (For Old Times Sake) by Freddie Jackson (#86); Make it Better (Forget About Me) by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (#87); I Wonder If I Take You Home by Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam with Full Force (#89); and Call Me by Go West (#90).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Everybody Wants to Rule the World--Tears for Fears
2 Don't You (Forget About Me)--Simple Minds
3 Everything She Wants--Wham!
4 Crazy for You--Madonna
5 Rhythm of the Night--DeBarge
6 Smooth Operator--Sade
7 Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody--David Lee Roth
8 Obsession--Animotion
9 Angel--Madonna
10 We are the World--USA for Africa

Singles entering the chart were Glory Days by Bruce Springsteen (#69); Getcha Back by the Beach Boys (#75); Just as I Am by Air Supply (#81); I'll Be Waiting for You by Doug and the Slugs (#84); In the Night Machine by Baron Longfellow (#92); and It Must Be Heaven by Mercy Mercy (#94).

Horse racing
Creme Fraiche, with Eddie Maple up, won the 117th running of the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park, New York in a time of 2:27.0.



Tennis
Chris Evert defeated Martina Navratilova 6-3, 6-7, 7-5 to win the women’s finals at the French Open, temporarily regaining the world’s #1 ranking.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Ottawa (0-1) 10 @ Montreal (1-0) 34

20 years ago
1990

Diplomacy
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, in a joint press conference with Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev while on a visit to the U.S.S.R., praised Mr. Gorbachev’s reform programs as "the most exciting, the biggest, the most historic in Europe for a very long time."

Politics and government
Two days of voting began in Czechoslovakia’s first free elections in more than 40 years.

Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir announced that he had succeeded in forming a cabinet composed of members of Mr. Shamir’s Likud Party and several small nationalist and religious parties. It appeared likely that the new government would resist any concessions to reach a peace agreement with the Palestinians. Ariel Sharon, an outspoken hardliner, was named housing minister and overseer of the influx of Jews from the U.S.S.R. The new government went on record as favouring expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied territories.

10 years ago
2000

Died on this date
Jeff MacNelly, 52. U.S. cartoonist. Mr. MacNelly created the comic strip Shoe in 1977 and the comic panel Pluggers in 1993, and was also an editorial cartoonist. He died of lymphoma.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Dallas 1 @ New Jersey 0 (3 OT) (New Jersey led best-of-seven series 3-2)

Brett Hull flipped the puck toward the New Jersey goal, and Mike Modano tipped it past Martin Brodeur at 6:21 of the 3rd overtime period in the fourth-longest game in finals’ history. Dallas goalie Ed Belfour made 48 saves, while Mr. Brodeur made 40 saves for New Jersey.