August 3, 2010

1,940 years ago
70

War
Fires resulting from the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem were extinguished.

550 years ago
1460

Died on this date
James II, 29. King of Scotland, 1437-1460. James II acceded to the throne upon the assassination of his father James I, and lived under a regency until he came of age at the age of 19, when he married 15-year-old Mary of Guelders, daughter of the Duke of Gelderland. He had to fight against the Douglases to control his kingdom; he murdered William Douglas, 8th Earl of Douglas in 1452, and finally defeated them in the Battle of Arkinholm in 1455. James II was a popular king, socializing with commoners and encouraging learning. He initiated the siege of Roxburgh Castle, and was accidentally killed when he was standing near a cannon and it exploded, with a piece of it shattering his thigh. King James II was succeeded on the throne by his son James III.

War
The siege of Roxburgh Castle--one of the last Scottish castles still held by the English after the Wars of Independence--ended with its recapture by Scottish troops despite the death of King James II.

290 years ago
1720

Died on this date
Anthonie Heinsius, 78. Dutch politician. Mr. Heinsius was Grand Pensionary of Holland (1689-1720), serving as the Dutch Republic's political leader after William III became King of England. Mr. Heinsius died in office, and was succeeded by Isaac van Hoornbeek.

240 years ago
1770

Born on this date
Friedrich Wilhelm III. King of Prussia, 1797-1840. Friedrich Wilhelm III acceded to the throne upon the death of his father Friedrich Wilhelm II, and ruled Prussia during the Napoleonic Wars. He was forced to steer a careful course between France and her enemies, and was in a subservient position to France following major defeats in the battles of Jena and Auerstadt in 1806. King Friedrich William III's major interest was the reform and unification of Prussia's Protestant churches. His wife Louise was his most important political adviser, and Queen Louise was a beloved national figure before and after her death at the age of 34 in 1810. King Friedrich Wilhelm III died from a fever on August 2, 1840 at the age of 69, and was succeeded by his son Friedrich Wilhelm IV.

170 years ago
1840

Born on this date
John Bigham, 1st Viscount Mersey. U.K. jurist and politician. Mr. Bigham was a successful lawyer who, as a Liberal Unionist, represented Liverpool Exchange in the House of Commons (1895-1897), leaving politics when he was appointed a Queen's Bench justice. He was elevated to the peerage in 1910, becoming Viscount Mersey in 1916. Baron Mersey was best known for heading the inquiry commission into the sinking of RMS Titanic in 1912. He presided over several other maritime disaster inquiries, including the sinkings of RMS Empress of Ireland (1914) and RMS Lusitania (1915). Viscount Mersey worked into his 80s despite increasing deafness, and died on September 3, 1929, a month after his 89th birthday.

150 years ago
1860

Born on this date
William Kennedy Dickson. French-born U.K. inventor. Mr. Dickson moved to the United States as a young man and worked under Thomas Edison at the latter's laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. Mr. Dickson invented the Kinetoscope, an early motion picture viewing machine, the first completed version of which was unveiled in 1893. Mr. Dickson also appeared in short films that were shown on his machine, including Dickson Greeting (1891) and The Dickson Experimental Sound Film (1894 or 1895). He spent his last years in England, and died on September 28, 1935. Mr. Dickson's contributions to cinema weren't publicly credited until the 1960s.

Canadiana
H.R.H. Albert Edward, Prince of Wales visited Saint John, New Brunswick and stayed at the “Duke of Kent Lodge” (Chipman House). The next day, he departed for Fredericton on board the steamer Forest Queen, accompanied by 117 guests.

110 years ago
1900

Born on this date
Ernie Pyle. U.S. journalist. Mr. Pyle was the most famous American war correspondent of World War II, and won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting in 1944. He was killed on Ie Shima at the age of 44 on April 18, 1945 during the Battle of Okinawa, when he was hit by a machine gun bullet.

John T. Scopes. U.S. teacher. Mr. Scopes was a high school football coach and substitute teacher in Dayton, Tennessee who was recruited by local businessmen and the American Civil Liberties Union to challenge a state law prohibiting the teaching of evolution in public schools. In the celebrated "Scopes monkey trial," Mr. Scopes was convicted of violating the law, and was fined $100. The conviction overturned on appeal in 1927 on a technicality, and Mr. Scopes admitted to a reporter that he hadn't actually broken the law and that his lawyers had coached his students in their testimony. Mr. Scopes completed graduate studies in geology at the University of Chicago, and worked for United Production Corporation--later known as United Gas Corporation--in Houston until 1940 and then in Shreveport, Louisiana, where he died of cancer on October 21, 1970 at the age of 70.

Business
The Firestone Tire and Rubber Company was founded by Harvey Firestone in Akron, Ohio.

90 years ago
1920

Died on this date
Peeter Süda, 37. Estonian musician and composer. Mr. Süda was an organist whose compositions consisted mainly of polyphonic organ music, sometimes with folk influences.

70 years ago
1940

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): I'll Never Smile Again--Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra (vocal refrain by Frank Sinatra and the Pied Pipers) (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Willard Hershberger, 30. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Hershberger, a backup catcher with the Cincinnati Reds, was hitting .309 and was seeing considerable playing time while starting catcher Ernie Lombardi was injured. On July 31 the Reds were leading the New York Giants 4-1 with 2 out in the 9th inning, and pitcher Bucky Walters got 2 strikes on each of the next 4 batters, but Harry Danning and Burgess Whitehead each hit home runs with a runner on base, and the Giants won 5-4. Mr. Hershberger, whose father had committed suicide in 1929, blamed himself for calling the wrong pitches. On August 3, the Reds were in Boston to play a doubleheader against the Bees. Mr. Hershberger was scheduled to play in the second game, but when he didn’t show up between games, Reds’ travelling secretary Gabe Paul placed a call to his room at the Copley Plaza Hotel. The call went unanswered, and Mr. Paul dispatched Dan Cohen, a friend of Mr. Hershberger’s, to the hotel to get him. Mr. Cohen found Mr. Hershberger slumped over the bathtub with his throat slashed. He was the only active major league player to commit suicide during the season. In 160 major league games from 1938-1940, Mr. Hershberger batted .316 with no home runs and 70 runs batted in.

War
Italian forces invaded British Somaliland.

Diplomacy
Japan protested the arrest in London of two Japanese nationals on charges of threatening British national security.

Politics and government
After an all-day conference with Republican party leaders at Colorado Springs, Republican U.S. presidential candidate Wendell Willkie said that his campaign expenditures would be limited to $2.5 million-$3 million.

Aviation
Lewin Borringer set an altitude record for gliders of 10,400 feet at Sun Valley, Idaho.

Baseball
The Cincinnati Reds and Boston Bees split their doubleheader before 7,895 fans at National League Park in Boston. The Reds won the first game 3-1 as Paul Derringer pitched an 11-hit complete game to win the pitchers' duel over Bill Posedel, who also went the distance in a game that was played in 1 hour and 33 minutes. Between games, the Reds were told by coach Hank Gowdy about Willard Hershberger's suicide, and the Braves scored 4 runs in the 2nd inning and won the second game 5-2 in 1 hour and 39 minutes.

60 years ago
1950

War
Further North Korean attacks reduced the foothold of American forces to an area averaging 50 miles wide and 90 miles long in southeastern Korea. The United Kingdom began recruiting men on short-term 18-month enlistments for service in Korea.

Diplomacy
The U.S. State Department cancelled the passport of singer Paul Robeson after he refused to surrender his passport on government demand.

Defense
Belgium promised in a memorandum to the United States that it would increase defense expenditures by $9.52 billion during the next three years because of the Korean War and the North Atlantic bloc's stepped-up defense program.

Economics and finance
U.S. President Harry Truman condemned the inclusion of the $100-million Spanish loan in the Marshall Plan section of the foreign aid appropriations bill.

60 years ago
1960

Africana
Niger gained its independence from France, with a government led by Prime Minister Hamani Diori.

Football
CFL/NFL
Pre-season
Pittsburgh (NFL) (1-0) 43 @ Toronto (1-1) 16

23,570 were at CNE Stadium to see the game, played half under American rules and half under Canadian rules.

Baseball
Cleveland Indians’ general manager Frank Lane and Detroit Tigers’ general manager Bill DeWitt traded field managers. The Indians, who had a record of 49-46, traded Joe Gordon to the Tigers for Jimmy Dykes. The Tigers were 44-52 under Mr. Dykes.

40 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Up Around the Bend/Run Through the Jungle--Creedence Clearwater Revival (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Ai wa Kizutsuki Yasuku--Hide & Rosanna

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Un Rayo De Sol--Los Diablos (10th week at #1)

Crime
U.S. President Richard Nixon, addressing a news conference during a meeting of law enforcement officials in Denver, inadvertently created a furor when he referred to Charles Manson, then on trial for murder, as "guilty, directly or indirectly, of eight murders without reason." Later, back in Washington, Mr. Nixon said, "My remarks were in the context of my expression of a tendency on the part of some to glamorize those identified with a crime. The last thing I would do is prejudice the legal rights of any person in any circumstances." By way of setting "the record straight," he said, "I do not know and did not intend to speculate as to whether the Tate defendants are guilty in fact or not. All of the facts in the case have not yet been presented. The defendants should be presumed to be innocent at this stage of the trial."



Defense
As a Soviet ship hovered nearby, the U.S. nuclear submarine James Madison successfully launched a dummy multi-warhead missile in the first underwater firing of a Poseidon missile, 30 miles east of Cape Kennedy, Florida. A collision was narrowly averted when the Soviet ship cut in front of a U.S. destroyer in an attempt to grab 10 wedge-shaped pieces of blast-resistant material that had protected the MIRV (multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle) in the launching tube. The Poseidon’s support ship retrieved 9 of the bobbing pieces and it was believed the Russians might have gotten the other on the far side of their ship, unobserved by the Americans.

Environment
Witnesses from the U.S. Army told Congress that lethal gas had been leaking from many of the rockets scheduled to be dumped into the Atlantic Ocean later in the month.

Disasters
Hurricane Celia hit southern Texas, killing 11 people in the Corpus Christi area.

30 years ago
1980

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Locomotion--Ritz (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Donna Musica--Collage

Died on this date
Bill Hubbell, 83. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Hubbell played with the New York Giants (1919-1920); Philadelphia Phillies (1920-1925); and Brooklyn Robins (1925), compiling a record of 40-63 with an earned run average of 4.68 in 204 games, batting .172 with 1 home run and 16 runs batted in in 205 games. He played over 302 games in 10 seasons in the minor leagues (1918-1932), winning at least 89 and losing at least 88. Mr. Hubbell suffered a fractured skull on May 27, 1922 when hit by a line drive, but was out of hospital within a week, and continued his career with a steel plate in his head protecting the affected area.

World events
Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini claimed that the 171 Iranian men being held without charge in a U.S. federal prison in Otisville, New York and 20 women being held in a New York City detention facility were being tortured. They had been arrested outside the White House on July 27 on charges of disorderly conduct while scuffling with police and anti-Khomeini demonstrators, and had refused to identify themselves. They were being held while U.S. immigration officials attempted to identify them and determine whether they were illegal aliens.

Terrorism
The police chief of Bologna, Italy said that he was "95% or even more sure" that the previous day’s explosion at the city’s main train station that had killed 85 people was the work of terrorists.

Auto racing
CART
Bobby Unser won the Kent Oil 150 at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, New York; it was his third win of the season. Rick Mears finished second and Danny Ongais third in the 21-car field.

Baseball
Al Kaline, Duke Snider, Chuck Klein, and Tom Yawkey were inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

25 years ago
1985

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (FIMI): A View to a Kill--Duran Duran (6th week at #1)

#1 single in Flanders (Ultratop 50): Dancing in the Dark--Bruce Springsteen (5th week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): I'm on Fire--Bruce Springsteen (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)--Eurythmics

#1 single in the U.K.: Into the Groove--Madonna

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Shout--Tears for Fears

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Everytime You Go Away--Paul Young (2nd week at #1)
2 Shout--Tears for Fears
3 You Give Good Love--Whitney Houston
4 Raspberry Beret--Prince and the Revolution
5 If You Love Somebody Set Them Free--Sting
6 A View to a Kill--Duran Duran
7 The Power of Love--Huey Lewis and the News
8 Never Surrender--Corey Hart
9 Glory Days--Bruce Springsteen
10 Would I Lie to You?--Eurythmics

Singles entering the chart were There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart) by Eurythmics (#71); I Got You Babe by UB40 with Chrissie Hynde (#83); Oh Sheila by Ready for the World (#84); Jesse by Julian Lennon (#85); Abadabadango by Kim Carnes (#86); It's Gettin' Late by the Beach Boys (#87); Tonight It's You by Cheap Trick (#88); In and Out of Love by Bon Jovi (#89); and Sweet, Sweet Baby (I'm Falling) by Lone Justice (#90).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Everytime You Go Away--Paul Young
2 Never Surrender--Corey Hart
3 19--Paul Hardcastle
4 You Spin Me Around (Like a Record)--Dead or Alive
5 If You Love Somebody Set Them Free--Sting
6 Walking On Sunshine--Katrina and the Waves
7 In My House--Mary Jane Girls
8 Walk of Life--Dire Straits
9 The Goonies 'R' Good Enough--Cyndi Lauper
10 Fresh--Kool & The Gang

Singles entering the chart were Do You Want Crying by Katrina and the Waves (#87); Shame by the Motels (#90); Mona with the Children by Doug Cameron (#95); and What Do I Know? by Saga (#96).

Football
CFL
Saskatchewan (2-2) 30 @ Calgary (0-4) 17

Joe Paopao handed off to Craig Ellis for one touchdown and passed to Michael Elarms for another as the Roughriders overcame a 16-7 1st-quarter deficit. Dave Ridgway converted both Saskatchewan touchdowns and added 4 field goals and 3 singles. Joe Barnes completed 2 touchdown passes to slotback Danny Barrett in the 1st quarter to give the Stampeders the lead, but the 16,089 fans at McMahon Stadium grew increasingly restless as Mr. Barnes had difficulty moving the team after that. J.T. Hay converted both Calgary touchdowns and added 3 singles.



20 years ago
1990

At the movies
Metropolitan, written and directed by Whit Stillman and starring Carolyn Farina, Edward Clements, Chris Eigeman, and Taylor Nichols, went into general release after previously being screened at various festivals.



Died on this date
Betty Amann, 85. German-born U.S. actress. Miss Amann appeared in movies such as The Kick-Off (1926); Asphalt (1929); The White Devil (1930); Rich and Strange (1931); and Isle of Forgotten Sins (1943).

War
U.S.S.R. Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze and U.S. Secretary of State James Baker issued a joint statement condemning the previous day’s invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. Iraqi forces were now massing along the Saudi Arabian border. The Arab League opposed the "aggression" against Kuwait, but the resolution was supported by only 14 of the league’s 21 members.

Economics and finance
The United States Labor department reported that the unemployment rate had increased in July from 5.2% to 5.5%. The largest monthly increase in four years was taken as a sign that the country might already be in a recession.

Weather
A weather station in Leicestershire recorded a temperature of 99 F (37.1 C), the highest temperature ever known in Britain.

Football
CFL
Hamilton (1-3) 35 @ Calgary (3-0-1) 40

Danny Barrett threw touchdown passes to Eddie Brown and Brock Smith, and Keyvan Jenkins rushed 13 times for 112 yards, including a 29-yard touchdown, as the Stampeders came back from a 25-10 third-quarter deficit to defeat the Tiger-Cats before 23,687 fans at McMahon Stadium. Mark McLoughlin added 3 converts, 5 field goals, and 2 singles to complete the Calgary scoring. Hamilton quarterback Todd Dillon completed 27 of 42 passes for 360 yards and 4 touchdowns. Tiger-Cat touchdowns were scored by Wally Zatylny, Sam Loucks, Earl Winfield, and Derrick McAdoo. It was the only CFL game for Hamilton defensive lineman Lee Jones.

Baseball
Sil Campusano singled with 2 out in the 9th inning to break up Doug Drabek’s bid for a no-hitter as the Pittsburgh Pirates blanked the Philadelphia Phillies 11-0 before 36,057 fans at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

The New York Mets scored 3 runs in the top of the 9th inning to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 before 38,087 fans at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

The Chicago Cubs scored 8 runs off starting pitcher Mark Gardner in 1+ innings and coasted to a 10-4 win over the Montreal Expos before 33,318 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

The Boston Red Sox scored 7 runs in the 1st inning on their way to a 14-5 win over the Detroit Tigers before 34,713 fans at Fenway Park in Boston. Detroit stating and losing pitcher Jeff Robinson allowed all 7 batters he faced to score. Cecil Fielder hit his 34th home run of the season for Detroit.

The Baltimore Orioles scored 8 runs in the first 3 innings as they routed the Kansas City Royals 14-1 before 39,756 fans at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Cal Ripken hit 2 home runs for the Orioles, including a 3-run homer to open the scoring in the 1st inning.

The New York Yankees scored 4 unearned runs--the last 3 coming on a home run by Mel Hall--in the bottom of the 8th inning and beat the Cleveland Indians 6-4 before 27,945 fans at Yankee Stadium. The rally began with an error by Cleveland shortstop Felix Fermin after the first 2 New York batters made outs.

The Texas Rangers scored 7 runs in the 7th inning as they beat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-1 before 23,728 fans at Arlington Stadium.

The Minnesota Twins scored 4 unearned runs in the top of the 13th inning to defeat the Seattle Mariners 6-2 before 13,818 fans at the Kingdome in Seattle.

The California Angels blew a 6-0 lead after 5 innings and lost 8-6 to the Oakland Athletics before 45,457 fans at Anaheim Stadium.

10 years ago
2000

Politics and government
Texas Governor George W. Bush was nominated by the Republican National Convention at First Union Center in Philadelphia as the party's nominee for President of the United States in the November election.



Defense
Armed Canadian soldiers dropped from helicopters to take charge of the American cargo ship GTS Katie, loaded with Canadian military equipment, which was refusing to complete its delivery because of a dispute over payment. The ship was escorted from an area off the coast of Newfoundland to port in Quebec by two warships.

Crime
The 16-year-old youth known as Mafiaboy, accused of hacking into and paralyzing major web sites such as those of CNN and Yahoo earlier in the year, pleaded not guilty in Montreal on more than 60 new charges.

Nine South Korean sailors sobbed with relief in a Victoria, British Columbia courtroom after they were acquitted of smuggling a boatload of Chinese migrants into Canada.

Football
CFL
Saskatchewan (0-4-1) 7 @ Montreal (5-0) 62

Mike Pringle rushed 16 times for 71 yards and 4 touchdowns, and Anthony Calvillo threw 2 touchdown passes to Alfonzo Browning to lead the Alouettes. 19,461 fans at Molson Stadium saw Sylvain Girard return a blocked punt 20 yards for a touchdown, with another Montreal score coming when Winston October returned a missed field goal 110 yards. Dion Tyler rushed 1 yards for the Roughriders’ only touchdown. The Alouettes led 41-7 at halftime.