November 13, 2010

850 years ago
1160

Married on this date
King Louis VII of France married Adela of Champagne; she was crowned as queen consort the same day.

250 years ago
1760

Born on this date
Jiaqing. Emperor of China, 1796-1820. Jiaqing, born Yongyan, was the seventh emperor of the Qing dynasty, and acceded to the throne upon the abdication of his father Qianlong. He opposed Christianity, and curbed the smuggling of opium into China. Emperor Jiaqing was very fat, and died, possibly of a stroke, on September 2, 1820 at the age of 59. He was succeeded by his son Daoguang.

240 years ago
1770

Died on this date
George Grenville, 58. Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, 1763-1765. Mr. Grenville, a Whig, represented Buckingham in the House of Commons from 1741 until his death. He held several offices before becoming Prime Minister upon the resignation of Lord Bute. Mr. Grenville's government attempted to curb spending, and implemented the Stamp Act, which aroused great opposition in the American colonies. Mr. Grenville's relations with his colleagues, including his brother-in-law William Pitt the Elder, led to his dismissal by King George III. Mr. Grenville tried to avoid partisanship in his later years, and reconciled with Mr. Pitt.

230 years ago
1780

Born on this date
Ranjit Singh. Maharajah of Punjab, 1801-1839. Majarajah Ranjit Singh was the founder of the Sikh Empire, that existed from 1799-1849. He died on June 27, 1839 at the age of 58, and was succeeded as Maharajah by his son Kharak Singh.

160 years ago
1850

Born on this date
Robert Louis Stevenson. U.K. author. Mr. Stevenson was one of the most famous writers of the 19th century. His most famous works were the novels Treasure Island (1883); Kidnapped (1886); and Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886). Mr. Stevenson died of an apparent cerebral hemorrhage on December 3, 1894 at the age of 44.

110 years ago
1900

Born on this date
David Marshall Williams. U.S. criminal and firearms designer. Mr. Williams was a moonshiner in North Carolina who served eight years in prison for the second-degree murder of a deputy sheriff. While in prison, he developed his skills in designing rifles, receiving several patents. Mr. Williams designed the floating chamber and the short-stroke piston, and his designs were used by several firearms companies in addition to the U.S. Ordnance Department during World War II. He was the subject of the movie Carbine Williams (1952), starring James Stewart. Mr. Williams died on January 8, 1975 at the age of 74, after years of declining health.

100 years ago
1910

Born on this date
William Bradford Huie. U.S. journalist. Mr. Huie, a native of Hartselle, Alabama, wrote fiction and non-fiction, with most of his books being about World War II or the Negro civil rights movement in the 1950s and '60s. He wrote articles for The American Mercury, and served as the magazine's editor from 1950-1952. His books included The Execution of Private Slovik (1954); The Americanization of Emily (1959); and Three Lives for Mississippi (1965). Mr. Huie died of a heart attack on November 20, 1986, a week after his 76th birthday.

Pat Reid. Indian-born U.K. military officer and author. Major Reid served with the British Army during World War II and was a prisoner of war at Colditz Castle in Germany. He was one of the few POWs to escape Colditz, crossing into neutral Switzerland in October 1942 and remaining there until after the war. Maj. Reid wrote about his experiences in the books The Colditz Story (1952) and The Latter Days (1953). He served at the British embassy in Turkey (1946-1949) and was Chief Administrator for the Organisation for European Economic Cooperation in Paris until 1952. Maj. Reid died on May 22, 1990 at the age of 79.

70 years ago
1940

At the movies
Walt Disney's animated musical film Fantasia received its premiere screening at New York's Broadway Theatre, on the first night of a roadshow.

War
Japanese troops were reported standing by at Hainan, Haiphong, and Kwangchow awaiting orders for new operations in southern Asia, presumably in French Indochina or the Netherlands East Indies.

Diplomacy
The government of Martinique announced the "consolidation of good relations" with the United States following U.S. Navy Rear Admiral John Greenslade's visit from November 2-5.

U.S. Ambassador to France William Bullitt submitted his resignation.

Politics and government
General Juan Almazan, self-styled President-elect of Mexico, denied in New York receiving Axis support in his attempts to obtain the presidency of Mexico.

Defense
U.S. Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles stated that the U.S.A. "has never sought directly or indirectly" to obtain bases in Uruguay.

Oil
Royal Dutch, Japanese Mitsui, and American Standard-Vacuum companies signed an agreement in Batavia, Netherlands East Indies, under which Japan would receive 1.8 million tons of oil per year.

Education
The New York City Board of Education adopted the Coudert-McLaughlin Law, which permitted principals to release public school children from their classrooms for an hour per week for outside religious instruction at their parents' request.

Sport
The U.S. Army team won the International Military Perpetual Challenge Trophy in the final event at the National Horse Show in New York for the second straight year.

Baseball
Cincinnati Reds' first baseman Frank McCormick was named the National League's Most Valuable Player for 1940. Mr. McCormick batted .309 with 19 home runs and 127 runs batted in as the Reds won their second straight pennant before beating the Detroit Tigers in 7 games to win their first World Series championship since 1919.

60 years ago
1950

On television tonight
Lights Out, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Waxwork, starring John Beal and Nelson Olmsted

Died on this date
Rafael Simón Urbina López, 53. Venezuelan rebel. Mr. Urbina led guerrilla activity against President Juan Vicente Gómez in the 1920s; an unsuccessful coup attempt in 1929 resulted in his exile in Mexico, and another attempted coup in Venezuela in 1931 ended in failure. Mr. Urbina returned to Venezuela in 1936, but was exiled again in the 1940s. He returned to Venezuela again following the 1948 coup d'état, and installed Captain Carlos Delgado Chalbaud as President. Mr. Urbina and his nephew Domingo Urbina led a group that kidnapped President Chalbaud in Caracas with the apparent intention of overthrowing him, but several hours after the kidnapping resulted in Capt. Chalbaud's death, Rafael Urbina was shot to death by government forces while being transferred from one prison to another.

Carlos Delgado Chalbaud, 41. President of Venezuela, 1948-1950. Captain Chalbaud was a career military officer who was associated with the group that deposed President Isaías Medina Angarita in 1945, and was Minister of Defense in the subsequent cabinets of Presidents Rómulo Betancourt and Rómulo Gallegos. Capt. Chalbaud led the coup that overthrew President Gallegos, and served as President of the junta until he was kidnapped by a group led by Rafael Urbina. The kidnapping, apparently intended just to depose President Chalbaud, resulted in his assassination. He was succeeded as President by Germán Suárez Flamerich.

War
Tibet appealed to the United Nations for help against the Chinese Communist invasion, which it called "a clear case of aggression."

Crime
Chemical engineer Abraham Brothman and his office associate, Miriam Moskowitz, on charges of attempting to obstruct justice in the case of Harry Gold and others accused of atomic espionage.

Disasters
A Canadian Curtiss-Reid DC 4 crashed at Grenoble, France, killing all 58 passengers.

n style="font-weight:bold;">Football
CRU
WIFU
Finals
Edmonton 6 @ Winnipeg 29 (Winnipeg won best-of-three series 2-1)

The Blue Bombers outrushed the Eskimos 324 yards to 46 as they won easily before 8,500 fans at Osborne Stadium. Bill Stukus, playing his last game, scored the lone Edmonton touchdown, converted by his brother Annis.

50 years ago
1960

Transportation
Edmonton International Airport opened at midnight.

Football
NFL
Pittsburgh (2-5-1) 24 @ New York (5-1-1) 27
Washington (1-4-2) 13 @ Philadelphia (6-1) 19
St. Louis (4-4) 27 @ Cleveland (5-2) 28
Los Angeles (2-5-1) 10 @ Detroit (3-4) 12
Dallas (0-8) 7 @ Green Bay (5-2) 41
Baltimore (6-2) 24 @ Chicago (3-3-1) 20

AFL
Denver (4-5) 7 @ Dallas (5-4) 34
Buffalo (3-6) 7 @ Oakland (5-5) 20
Houston (6-3) 21 @ Los Angeles (6-3) 24

Baseball
A team of Japanese All-Stars scored 2 runs in the bottom of the 9th inning to defeat the San Francisco Giants 3-2 before 18,000 fans in Shizuoka, concluding the Giants' 16-game tour of Japan. The All-Stars opened the scoring in the 5th inning with a run against San Francisco pitcher George Maranda, but the Giants tied the game in the 6th, and took the lead in the top of the 9th on a home run by Felipe Alou. The Giants concluded the tour with a record of 11-4-1.

40 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Lola--The Kinks (6th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): New World in the Morning--Roger Whittaker

South Africa's Top 10 (Springbok Radio)
1 Burning Bridges--The Mike Curb Congregation (5th week at #1)
2 Cracklin' Rosie--Neil Diamond
3 Candida--Dawn
4 Cha-La-La, I Need You--Shuffles
5 Me and My Life--The Tremeloes
6 Like I Do--Barbara Ray and the 5th Association
7 Montego Bay--Bobby Bloom
8 All the Tears in the World--Dave Mills
9 Mademoiselle Ninette--Michael Holm
10 Brown Eyes--Chris Andrews

Singles entering the chart were Paranoid by Black Sabbath (#16); Woodstock by Matthews Southern Comfort (#17); Band of Gold by Freda Payne (#18); Melody Man by Petula Clark (#19); and Indiana Wants Me by R. Dean Taylor (#20).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 I Think I Love You--The Partridge Family (2nd week at #1)
2 Fire and Rain--James Taylor
3 Gypsy Woman--Brian Hyland
4 We've Only Just Begun--Carpenters
5 Share the Land/Bus Rider--The Guess Who
6 And the Grass Won't Pay No Mind--Mark Lindsay
7 It Don't Matter to Me--Bread
8 See Me, Feel Me--The Who
9 The Tears of a Clown--Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
10 Heed the Call--Kenny Rogers and the First Edition

Singles entering the chart were He Ain't Heavy...He's My Brother by Neil Diamond (#27); Domino by Van Morrison (#29); and One Less Bell to Answer by the 5th Dimension (#30).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKVN)
1 Fire and Rain--James Taylor (2nd week at #1)
2 Gypsy Woman--Brian Hyland
3 Share the Land/Bus Rider--The Guess Who
4 Cry Me a River--Joe Cocker
5 I'll Be There--The Jackson 5
6 It Don't Matter to Me--Bread
7 The Tears of a Clown--Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
8 Lola--The Kinks
9 After Midnight--Eric Clapton
10 Heaven Help Us All--Stevie Wonder

Singles entering the chart were Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin (#27); Stoned Love by the Supremes (#28); He Ain't Heavy...He's My Brother by Neil Diamond (#29); and Be My Baby by Andy Kim (#30).

Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Lola--The Kinks (2nd week at #1)
2 El Condor Pasa--Simon & Garfunkel
3 It's Only Make Believe--Glen Campbell
4 God, Love and Rock & Roll (We Believe)--Teegarden & Van Winkle
5 We've Only Just Begun--Carpenters
6 Heed the Call--Kenny Rogers and the First Edition
7 Green-Eyed Lady--Sugarloaf
8 I Think I Love You--The Partridge Family
9 Gypsy Woman--Brian Hyland
10 Share the Land--The Guess Who

World events
Rightist army leaders led by Defense Minister Lieutenant General Hafez al-Assad, 40, took control of Syria in a bloodless coup, jailing the leaders of the ousted civilian government, a rival faction of the ruling Baath party.

30 years ago
1980

Diplomacy
Griffin Bell, head of the U.S. delegation at the Madrid Conference on human rights, criticized the Soviets for their intervention in Afghanistan and curtailment of human rights. Support for this criticism also came from West Germany, Great Britain, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, and Luxembourg. Mr. Bell also accused the U.S.S.R. of jamming radio broadcasts; preventing Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union; and the imprisonment of Soviet dissidents. Willy Brandt of West Germany urged the conference to put aside differences and carry détente into the 1980s.

U.S. Secretary of State Edmund Muskie appealed to President Jimmy Carter to increase the amount of grain that could be sold on credit to Poland in 1980-81 from $670 million to $900 million.

25 years ago
1985

Diplomacy
U.S.S.R. President Mikhail Gorbachev called the U.S.A.'s proposed Strategic Defense Initiative the central issue of the forthcoming summit with U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Mr. Gorbachev viewed SDI as having offensive capabilities.

Britannica
Charles and Diana, the Prince and Princess of Wales, flew back to England, ending a vacation in Australia and the United States that had begun on October 27.

Disasters
About 23,000 people were killed when the volcano Nevado del Ruiz erupted in northern Colombia.

10 years ago
2000

Journalism The Canadian music trade magazine RPM, which began with the issue of February 24, 1964, published its last issue.

World events
Eight people were killed and at least 22 wounded when a small group of special-forces soldiers staged an abortive mutiny at Fijian Military Forces headquarters. Nine of the rebels were facing court martial for their alleged involvement in the May 19 coup attempt led by George Speight.

Scandal
Philippine President Joseph Estrada was impeached by the House of Representatives on charges of corruption, bribery, graft, and betrayal of trust, among others.

Crime
Newly declassified and released U.S. documents implicated former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet in the murders of Chilean socialist Orlando Letelier and his American secretary, Ronni Moffitt, by a car-bomb in Washington, D.C. in 1976. The documents included a cable from Gen. Pinochet to Paraguayan President Alfredo Stroessner asking him to provide fake Paraguayan passports for two agents of the Chilean secret police in order to get them into the United States. Mr. Stroessner complied. The United States barred the two men, but they did later enter successfully under Chilean passports with false names, were eventually convicted of involvement in the murders, and were imprisoned in the United States.