November 6, 2010

220 years ago
1790

Died on this date
James Bowdoin, 64. U.S. politician. Mr. Bowdoin was president of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress executive council from 1775-1777 and Governor of Massachusetts from 1785-1787. He died of "putrid fever and dysentery."

150 years ago
1860

Politics and government
Republican Party candidate Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States. He took 180 electoral votes to 84 for Democratic Party candidates John C. Breckinridge (72) and Stephen Douglas (12) and 39 for Union Party candidate John Bell. In the popular vote, Mr. Lincoln took 1,865,593 votes (39.8%); Mr. Douglas 1,382,713 (29.5%); Mr. Breckinridge 848,356 (18.1%); and Mr. Bell 592,906 (12.6%).

130 years ago
1880

Born on this date
Yoshisuke Aikawa. Japanese automobile executive. Mr. Aikawa founded the Nissan zaibatsu (conglomerate) in 1928, and served as its president from 1931-1945. He died on February 13, 1967 at the age of 86.

110 years ago
1900

Born on this date
Ida Lou Anderson. U.S. broadcasting professor. Miss Anderson taught at Washington State College from 1926 through the 1930s; her prize student was Edward R. Murrow, who went on to become one of the most famous newscasters in history. Miss Anderson was disabled by polio in childhood; she was forced to retire at an early age, and died of complications from polio on September 16, 1941 at the age of 40.

War
The Canadian Mounted Rifles, the Royal Canadian Dragoons, and one section of "D" Battery, Royal Canadian Field Artillery, with two 12-pounder guns, joined a strong British column in South Africa who rode south out of the eastern Transvaal town of Belfast in the early morning to disperse a large Boer commando group camping about 30 kilometres to the south near the Komati River. After forcing the Boers back across the river, the British and Canadians camped for the night near a farm named Leliefontein.

Politics and government
William McKinley, representing the Republican Party, was re-elected President of the United States, winning his second straight election over William Jennings Bryan, who was the nominee of both the Democratic and Populist Parties. Mr. McKinley captured 292 electoral votes to 155 for Mr. Bryan. Mr. McKinley received 7.21 million votes (51.7%) to 6.36 million (45.5%) for Mr. Bryan.

70 years ago
1940

War
London had its 300th alarm and suffered one of the most destructive bombings of World War II, lasting nearly 14 hours. British bomber squadrons began arriving in Greece. Yugoslavian reports said that Greek troops had surrounded five Italian regiments and were attempting to force their surrender.

Diplomacy
The U.S.A. formed a committee on communications, chaired by Nelson Rockefeller, to spend more than $3 million from President Franklin D. Roosevelt's special defense fund for cultural activities in Latin America to fight Nazi propaganda.

Chile claimed all Antarctic territory between 53 and 90 degrees west longitude, including the base established by U.S. Navy Admiral Richard Byrd.

Defense
Reports indicated that accords had been reached by the United States with virtually all Latin American republics for the use of naval and air bases.

The U.S. Selective Service reported that several hundred thousand men had volunteered for a year's military service, making it unlikely that conscription would be needed to fill the first quota.

The U.S. War Department awarded a $122,323,020 contract for more than 4,000 Pratt & Whitney airplane engines to the Ford Motor Company. It was the first defense contract given to Ford and one of the largest yet made.

Politics and government
Former South African Prime Minister General J.B.M. Hertzog, who had advocated a separate peace with Germany, resigned as leader of the reunited Nationalist Party.

60 years ago
1950

On television tonight
Lights Out, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Half-Pint Flask, starring John Carradine and Kent Smith

At the movies
Gone to Earth, written, produced, and directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, and starring Jennifer Jones, David Farrar, and Cyril Cusack, opened in theatres in the United Kingdom.



Radio
A Radio Daily poll of radio and television editors named Jack Benny as the best male and Eve Arden as the best female performer of the year.

Television
The same Radio Daily poll named Sid Caesar as the best male and Faye Emerson as the best female performer of the year.

War
Commander-in-Chief of the United Nations Command General Douglas MacArthur notified the UN that "UN forces are meeting a new foe...Chinese Communist military units deployed for action against the forces of the United Nations Command."

Diplomacy
The People's Republic of China demanded that India withdraw her troops from guard posts maintained along the Indian Tibetan trade route since 1906.

Politics and government
Exercising its powers to replace local officials, the French government ousted 4 Communist mayors and 29 Communist deputy mayors of Paris districts.

The Cuban House of Representatives issued a resolution demanding Puerto Rico's independence.

Business
General Motors voted a $223-million dividend disbursement to 430,540 stockholders, a U.S. corporate record.

50 years ago
1960

Transportation
Canadian Pacific Railways Locomotive A-l-e no. 29, 4-4-0, built in 1887, pulled a special excursion train from Montreal to St-Lin, Québec, in CP's last steam locomotive trip.

Football
NFL
Pittsburgh (2-4-1) 7 @ Philadelphia (5-1) 34
Green Bay (4-2) 24 @ Baltimore (5-2) 38
Washington (1-3-2) 7 @ St. Louis (4-3) 44
Los Angeles (2-4-1) 38 @ Dallas (0-7) 13
Detroit (2-4) 24 @ San Francisco (3-4) 0

AFL
Dallas (4-4) 45 @ Buffalo (3-5) 28
Houston (6-2) 45 @ Denver (4-4) 25

40 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Lola--The Kinks (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Band of Gold--Freda Payne (6th week at #1)

South Africa's Top 10 (Springbok Radio)
1 Burning Bridges--The Mike Curb Congregation (4th week at #1)
2 Cracklin' Rosie--Neil Diamond
3 Cha-La-La, I Need You--Shuffles
4 Candida--Dawn
5 Mademoiselle Ninette--Michael Holm
6 Brown Eyes--Chris Andrews
7 Lookin' Out My Back Door--Creedence Clearwater Revival
8 Like I Do--Barbara Ray and the 5th Association
9 Montego Bay--Bobby Bloom
10 Ain't Love a Funny Thing--Sam Evans

Singles entering the chart were Looky Looky by Giorgio (#19); and A Time for Us (Love Theme from "Romeo and Juliet") by Jody Wayne (#20).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 I Think I Love You--The Partridge Family
2 We've Only Just Begun--Carpenters
3 Gypsy Woman--Brian Hyland
4 I'll Be There--The Jackson 5
5 Fire and Rain--James Taylor
6 Lola--The Kinks
7 It Don't Matter to Me--Bread
8 El Condor Pasa--Simon & Garfunkel
9 And the Grass Won't Pay No Mind--Mark Lindsay
10 See Me, Feel Me--The Who

Singles entering the chart were You Don't Have to Say You Love Me by Elvis Presley (#24); Be My Baby by Andy Kim (#26); Heaven Help Us All by Stevie Wonder (#28); Beautiful Second Hand Man by Ginette Reno (#29); and No Matter What by Badfinger (#30).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKVN)
1 Fire and Rain--James Taylor
2 I'll Be There--The Jackson 5
3 Lola--The Kinks
4 Cry Me a River--Joe Cocker
5 My Home Town--The Seeds of Time
6 Share the Land/Bus Rider--The Guess Who
7 Gypsy Woman--Brian Hyland
8 It Don't Matter to Me--Bread
9 Somebody's Been Sleeping--100 Proof Aged in Soul
10 Closer to Home--Grand Funk Railroad

Singles entering the chart were Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is? by Chicago (#25); Domino by Van Morrison (#26); Black Magic Woman by Santana (#28); Only Love Can Break You Heart by Neil Young (#29); and Still Water (Love) by the Four Tops (#30).

Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Lola--The Kinks
2 El Condor Pasa--Simon & Garfunkel
3 Yellow River--Christie
4 God, Love and Rock & Roll (We Believe)--Teegarden & Van Winkle
5 Green-Eyed Lady--Sugarloaf
6 Ain't that Tellin' You People--The Original Caste
7 Cracklin' Rosie--Neil Diamond
8 Me and Bobby McGee--Gordon Lightfoot
9 Heed the Call--Kenny Rogers and the First Edition
10 Share the Land--The Guess Who

On television tonight
The Interns, on CBS
Tonight's episode: The Oath



Terrorism
Montréal police raided the hiding place of the FLQ's Chewier cell, and arrested Bernard Lortie for the kidnapping and murder of Québec Labour Minister Pierre Laporte in October.

War
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan declared that the extension of the Middle East cease-fire was less restrictive than the original truce because the United Nations General Assembly resolution that initiated it did not ban new military construction in the truce zone.

Diplomacy
Italy and the People's Republic of China announced an agreement calling for the establishment of diplomatic relations between the countries.

Environment
The U.S. administration of President Richard Nixon announced the nomination of William Ruckelshaus as head of the new Environmental Protection Agency. Mr. Ruckelshaus stated his opposition to the withdrawal of tax exemptions from public-interest groups that filed suit against alleged polluters.

Economics and finance
The United States Labor Department reported that the national unemployment rate had risen to 5.6% in October, up 0.1% from September.

30 years ago
1980

Politics and government
U.S. President-elect Ronald Reagan announced that William Casey, former head of the Security and Exchange Commission, would serve as chairman of his Transition Executive Committee, and Edwin Meese as its director. Mr. Reagan also vowed to move as swiftly as possible to carry out his economic program, calling for tax cuts, a federal hiring freeze, and reduction in government spending. He indicated that he would not interfere with President Jimmy Carter’s administration in such matters as freeing the hostages from the U.S. embassy in Iran or communicating with the Soviets.

Crime
Mark Felt and Edward Miller, two former officials of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, were convicted of conspiring to violate the constitutional rights of American citizens. They authorized FBI agents to break into homes secretly and without search warrants while hunting for bomb suspects in 1972 and 1973. Five homes in New York and New Jersey, belonging to relatives and acquaintances of members of the terrorist organization Weather Underground, had been entered illegally. Many years later, Mr. Felt publicly claimed to be "Deep Throat," the secret source of revelations regarding the Watergate scandal that was reported by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in The Washington Post.

25 years ago
1985

Terrorism
60 Colombian rebels with the M-19 movement seized the Palace of Justice in Bogota and took more than 300 people hostage.

Crime
The espionage trial of Richard Miller, a former agent of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, ended in a hung jury. Mr. Miller had been accused of involvement in a plot with a Soviet émigré couple who had already pled guilty to espionage.

Diplomacy
Former Soviet KGB defector-turned-undefector Vitaly Yurchenko returned to the U.S.S.R., leaving U.S. authorities to wonder about the validity of the information he had provided.

Defense
U.S. President Ronald Reagan emphasized that he would not bargain away his plans for research on the Strategic Defense Initiative, the shield that--if it worked--would protect the United States from incoming Soviet missiles.

Economics and finance
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 1400 for the first time.

20 years ago
1990

Politics and government
In midterm U.S. elections, the Democratic Party made small gains in both the Senate and House of Representatives. The only Senate seat to change parties was in Minnesota, where Democrat Paul Wellstone defeated Republican incumbent Rudy Boschwitz, leaving the Democrats with a 56-44 lead. The Democrats picked up 8 seats in the House of Representatives to increase their lead to 267-167, with one independent--socialist Bernie Sanders in Vermont. About 96% of the incumbents seeking re-election were successful; only 15 lost. In gubernatorial elections, both major parties lost a state, as Alaskan Independence Party candidate Wally Hickel and A Connecticut Party candidate Lowell Weicker--both former Republicans--won in their respective states.



Nawaz Sharif was sworn in as Prime Minister of Pakistan, replacing Benazir Bhutto, who had been dismissed on August 27 amidst accusations of corruption. Mr. Sharif was elected by the new 217-seat National Assembly that had been sworn in three days earlier. Mrs. Bhutto addressed the Assembly and denounced the interim government, calling for dismissal of corruption charges against herself and members of her administration.

The Quebec Commission on the Political and Constitutional Future of Quebec, chaired by Michel Belanger and Jean Campeau, began six weeks of hearings. It had been asked by Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa to examine whether Quebec should remain linked to Canada politically and economically, and whether a political link was necessary to support economic ties.

10 years ago
2000

Hit parade
Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Music--Madonna (9th week at #1)
2 With Arms Wide Open--Creed
3 She Bangs--Ricky Martin
4 Most Girls--Pink
5 Shape of My Heart--Backstreet Boys
6 Everybody Wants to Be Like You--Snow
7 Pinch Me--Barenaked Ladies
8 This I Promise You--'N Sync
9 Kryptonite--3 Doors Down
10 Come on Over (All I Want is You)--Christina Aguilera

Singles entering the chart were Stronger by Britney Spears (#41); WWW.Nevergetoveryou by Prozzak (#42); and Gravity by soulDecision (#59). This was the last chart published by RPM.

Died on this date
L. Sprague de Camp, 92. U.S. writer. Mr. de Camp was an aeronautical engineer who became a writer of science fiction and non-fiction in a career spanning six decades. His novel Lest Darkness Fall (1939) is considered a defining work in the genre of alternate history. Mr. de Camp was also a prominent skeptic of claims for the supernatural, and was an early member of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal. He died three weeks before his 93rd birthday.

Bob Burns, 79. U.S. football player and coach. Mr. Burns played fullback and quarterback for the University of South Dakota Coyotes (1939-1942). He was head coach at Augustana College (1956-1961) and USD (1962), compiling a record of 29-29-2, and leading the Vikings to the North Central Conference championship in 1959.

Medicine
Conjoined twins, known as Jodie and Mary, who had been born on August 8 to parents in Malta, began undergoing a 20-hour operation at St. Mary’s Hospital in Manchester, England to separate them. Doctors believed that both twins would die within six months of birth unless separated. The parents, both Roman Catholics, objected to the operation, but doctors sought a court order to proceed with the operation, and prevailed.