December 2, 2010

500 years ago
1510

Died on this date
Muhammad Shaybani, 58 or 59. Khan of Bukhara, 1500-1510. Shaybani Khan consolidated various Uzbek tribes and established the Shaybanid Dynasty of the Khanate of Bukhara after conquering the city in 1506. He was killed in the Battle of Marv, and was succeeded as Khan by Kochkunju Muhammad bin Abul-Khayr Khan.

War
Safavid Empire forces led by Shah Ismail I defeated Uzbek forces led by Shaybani Khan in the Battle of Marv in Turkmenistan.

170 years ago
1840

Politics and government
Voting in the U.S. presidential election, which had begun on October 30, concluded. Whig Party candidate William Henry Harrison won with 234 electoral votes to 60 for incumbent President and Democratic Party candidate Martin Van Buren. In the popular vote, Mr. Harrison received 1,274,624 (53.1%) to 1,127,781 (46.9%) for Mr. Van Buren. Liberty Party candidate James G. Birney received 7,069 votes. Mr. Harrison had John Tyler as his vice presidential candidate, while the Democrats had refused to renominate Vice President Richard M. Johnson, and Mr. Van Buren had campaigned without a running mate. The electoral votes for the Democratic candidates were split among Mr. Johnson (48); Littleton W. Tazewell (11); and James K. Polk (1).

160 years ago
1850

Politics and government
U.S. President Millard Fillmore delivered his first State of the Union message to Congress since succeeding the late Zachary Taylor.

80 years ago
1930

Politics and government
U.S. President Herbert Hoover delivered his annual State of the Union message to Congress. He proposed a $150- million (equivalent to $2,296,000,000 in 2019) public works program to help generate jobs and stimulate the economy.

70 years ago
1940

War
German bombers attacked the English city of Bristol, while Southampton dug itself out after a destructive three-day raid. An estimated 60,000 German soldiers joined the approximately 500,000 already in Romania, crossing Slovakia and Hungary in troop trains.

Diplomacy
The Inter-American Maritime Conference in Washington ended after resolutions were adopted urging creation of a permanent body to watch over hemishpere shipping and the establishment of a permanent conference.

Defense
The U.S. National Defense Advisory Commission's priorities board announced that commercial airlines had agreed to restrict their demand for engines and parts.

Politics and government
U.S. Representative Martin Dies (Democrat--Texas), chairman of the Hoouse Committee on Un-American Activities, declared that his committee's disclosures of fifth column activities had not been "premature," as President Franklin D. Roosevelt indicated, but should have been made by the government long before.

Economics and finance
Canadian Finance Minister J.L. Ilsley introduced in Parliament a wartime measure designed to save $5-$6 million per month in foreign exchange for war material purchases in the United States by banning selected imports--mostly luxuries--from the U.S.

The United Kingdom and Spain signed a commercial agreement releasing several hundred thousand pounds of Spanish credits frozen in London for purchases in the sterling area.

The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate monetary committees gave a unanimous "vote of confidence" to the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt on its proposal to extend a $100-million credit to China.

Law
The United States House of Representatives passed and sent to the White House the Walter-Logan bill, subjecting rules and regulations of federal agencies to judicial review.

Boxing
Lou Salica (51-10-12) retained his world bantamweight title with a technical knockout of Small Montana (79-16-9) at 1:30 of the 3rd round at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. Mr. Salica knocked his Filipino challenger down 4 times in the 1st round, 4 times in the 2nd round, and twice in the 3rd before referee Billy Burke stopped the fight.

60 years ago
1950

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Mona Lisa--Dennis Day; Nat "King" Cole (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): The Thing--Phil Harris (Best Seller--1st week at #1; Disc Jockey--1st week at #1); Harbor Lights--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra with Tony Alamo and the Kaydets (Jukebox--3rd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Harbor Lights--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra with Tony Alamo and the Kaydets (4th week at #1)
--Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
--Ray Anthony and his Orchestra
--Bing Crosby
2 All My Love (Bolero)--Patti Page
--Percy Faith and his Orchestra
--Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
--Bing Crosby
3 Nevertheless (I’m in Love with You)--Paul Weston and his Orchestra
--The Mills Brothers
--Ralph Flanagan and his Orchestra
--Ray Anthony and his Orchestra
4 Thinking of You--Don Cherry
--Eddie Fisher
5 A Bushel and a Peck--Perry Como and Betty Hutton
--Margaret Whiting and Jimmy Wakely
6 Goodnight Irene--Gordon Jenkins and his Orchestra and the Weavers
--Frank Sinatra
7 I’ll Never Be Free--Kay Starr and Tennessee Ernie
8 Mona Lisa--Nat "King" Cole
--Victor Young and his Orchestra (Don Cherry, vocal)
--Art Lund
9 Can Anyone Explain? (No, No, No!)--The Ames Brothers
10 Patricia--Perry Como

Singles entering the chart were The Thing by Phil Harris (#20); If I Were a Bell by Frankie Laine (#32); Mommy, Won’t You Buy a Baby Brother? by Spike Jones and his City Slickers (#37); and Frosty the Snowman by Gene Autry (#38).

Died on this date
Dinu Lipatti, 33. Romanian musician and composer. Mr. Lipatti was a concert pianist who began performing as a child and composing in his teens. His career was interrupted by World War II, which eventually led him to flee to Geneva, and later by Hodgkin's disease, which led to his death. Mr. Lipatti's compositions consisted mainly of works for piano.

War
The Battle of the Ch'ongch'on River ended with a decisive Chinese victory, as United Nations forces were completely expelled from North Korea. Commander-in-Chief of the United Nations Command General Douglas MacArthur estimated that 500,000 Chinese troops were in Korea in "two great echelons," over half already in battle and the rest moving up from the Yalu River.

Diplomacy
Bulgaria opened its border with Turkey to Muslims wishing to leave the country.

Economics and finance
The United Nations General Assembly approved a $50-million relief program for Arab refugees from Palestine, to last through June 1952.

Football
NCAA
Navy defeated Army for the first time since 1943, beating the Cadets 14-2 before 101,000 fans at Municipal Stadium in Philadelphia.



50 years ago
1960

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): It's Now or Never--Elvis Presley (5th week at #1)

On television tonight
The Twilight Zone, on CBS
Tonight’s episode: The Lateness of the Hour, starring Inger Stevens, John Hoyt, and Irene Tedrow

This was the first of six episodes to be done on videotape instead of film in order to cut costs. They were transferred to film for broadcast, but shown in the original format when released on VHS and DVD.

Space
The Soviet satellite Sputnik 6 burned up the day after launch after entering Earth’s atmosphere "along a non-calculated trajectory after a signal was given for it to return to earth." The five-ton satellite contained two dogs, other insects, animals, and plants, and its purpose was reportedly one of medical, biological, and physics studies in preparation for manned space flight.

Religion
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Most Reverend Geoffrey Fisher, met with Pope John XXIII at the Vatican for about an hour; it was the first time in more than 500 years that a head of the Church of England had visited a pope. Spokesmen for both churches stressed the cordiality of the meeting and the potential value of the contacts established. However, a Vatican press service communiqué said that the conversation did not cover the subject of church unity (which I find very hard to believe).

World events
The White House announced that U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower had authorized the use of up to $1 million for relief and resettlement of Cuban refugees in Miami and other southern Florida areas. The money was to come from the president’s $150-million special contingency fund under an amendment to the Mutual Security Act providing that any part of the fund could be used "to encourage the hopes and aspiration of peoples who have been enslaved by communism." The move was denounced by Cuban government officials as "a new aggression," and welcomed by authorities in Florida, where refugees were arriving at the rate of 1,000 per week.

Politics and government
The first interprovincial conference of Canada's provincial premiers opened in Quebec City, to discuss national cooperation at the provincial level.

Labour
The Canadian Parliament passed an act halting the national rail strike; it continued rail service until May 15, 1961.

40 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): I Hear You Knocking--Dave Edmunds

Terrorism
British Trade Commissioner James Cross, who had been kidnapped from his Montreal residence by FLQ terrorists on October 5, was discovered by police after they surrounded the house where he was held captive.

Environment
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was established.

Law
The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a 1926 law against the teaching of evolution in the state’s public schools. The last such legislation remaining in the United States, it was similar to the Tennessee law that was the basis for the famous Scopes trial in 1925.

Religion
Pope Paul VI continued his visit to Australia with another full day in Sydney, where his activities included an address to the Australian Council of Churches.

Disasters
Floods from heavy rains left 50 dead and hundreds homeless in Caratinga, Brazil.

30 years ago
1980

Died on this date
Romain Gary, 66. Lithuanian-born French author. Mr. Gary, born Roman Kacew, moved to France with his mother at the age of 14. He wrote more than 30 novels under his own name and several pseudonyms, and wrote the screenplay for The Longest Day (1962). Mr. Gary was married to actress Jean Seberg from 1962-1970, and committed suicide by shooting himself, 15 months after Miss Seberg committed suicide. His left a note saying that his suicide was because he felt unable to produce more literary works.

Abominations
Four female American Roman Catholic missionaries were raped and murdered by five members of the El Salvador National Guard. The murdered women were involved in an international humanitarian aid mission which was accused by El Salvador's Revolutionary Government Junta of fomenting political opposition.

Diplomacy
Syria presented a list of demands to Jordan, among them the demand that King Hussein of Jordan recognize the Palestinian Liberation Organization as the sole representative of the Palestinian people. It was also reported that Syria had begun removing some of its troops from the Jordanian border, allegedly on the advice of the Soviet Union.

Politics and government
The Polish Communist party dismissed four members of the Politburo, consolidating the power of party leader Stanislaw Kania. The U.S. administration of President Jimmy Carter warned that intervention in Poland by any outside power would affect U.S.-U.S.S.R. relations.

Howard Baker of Tennessee was chosen by his fellow Republican party Senators to be the new majority leader in the United States Senate when the new Senate would take office on January 3, 1981. Mr. Baker would be replacing Democrat Robert Byrd of West Virginia.

25 years ago
1985

World events
A civilian court in the Philippines acquitted 26 defendants of charges related to the 1983 assassination of political opposition leader Benigno Aquino as he deplaned at Manila airport after returning from exile in the United States. The accused men--the most prominent of whom was General Fabian Ver, chief of staff of the armed forces--were also cleared of any charges in the death of Rolando Galman, who had been shot at the airport by soldiers, allegedly--according to the military--after shooting Mr. Aquino. The judges, who were appointees of President Ferdinand Marcos, had ruled as inadmissible some key testimony that was damaging to the defense. In 1984, an independent fact-finding committee had concluded unanimously that the military had planned and carried out the killings; four of five members of the panel had concluded that Gen. Ver had covered up the crime. The court’s verdict was denounced by opposition leaders and Jaime Cardinal Sin, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Manila.

Politics and government
Nine years of rule by the Parti Quebecois in Quebec ended when the Liberals won 99 of 124 National Assembly seats in the provincial election. The victory climaxed a comeback by Liberal party leader Robert Bourassa, who had been Premier of Quebec from 1970-1976, but had resigned as party leader after losing the 1976 election to the PQ.

Scandal
General Dynamics Corporation and four of its current and former executives were indicted for allegedly conspiring to defraud the United States Army on a weapons contract. The indictment asserted that the company and the individuals had charged to other U.S. accounts $7.5 million in cost overruns on a prototype DIVAD (Division Air Defense) Sergeant York mobile antiaircraft gun. Production of the weapon was subsequently cancelled by the Defense Department. The company and the individuals, who were also accused of submitting false statements to the government, denied any wrongdoing.

Business
Canadian Treasury Board President Robert de Cotret announced that the federal government was selling de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. to the U.S. Boeing Corporation for $155 million.

Football
NFL
Chicago 24 @ Miami 38

Dan Marino’s passing led the Dolphins as they handed the Bears their only loss of the season.

20 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Ice Ice Baby--Vanilla Ice

#1 single in Switzerland: I've Been Thinking About You--Londonbeat (5th week at #1)

Austria's Top 10 (Ö3)
1 I've Been Thinking About You--Londonbeat (4th week at #1)
2 Keep on Running--Milli Vanilli
3 I'm Your Baby Tonight--Whitney Houston
4 Ich hab' geträumt von dir--Matthias Reim
5 Sadeness Part I--Enigma
6 Crazy for You--David Hasselhoff
7 Ice Ice Baby--Vanilla Ice
8 The Invisible Man--Dance with a Stranger
9 The Joker--Steve Miller Band
10 Blaze of Glory--Jon Bon Jovi

Singles entering the chart were Einer geht um die Welt by Erste Allgemeine Verunsicherung (#26); and What Time is Love? (Live at Trancentral) by the KLF (#28).

Died on this date
Aaron Copland, 90. U.S. composer. Mr. Copland’s compositions include Billy the Kid (1938); Quiet City (1940); Rodeo (1942); Lincoln Portrait (1942); and Fanfare for the Common Man (1942). Appalachian Spring, a collaboration with choreographer Martha Graham, won the Pulitzer Prize for music in 1945. He also composed scores for several movies, including Our Town (1940) and The Red Pony (1949). His score for The Heiress won the Academy Award for 1949. Mr. Copland died of Alzheimer's disease and respiratory failure, 18 days after his 90th birthday.

Jack Britton, 71. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Britton was a third baseman with the Birmingham Black Barons (1944-1948) and Indianapolis Clowns (1950) of the Negro American League, batting .249 with 1 home run and 36 runs batted in. He played in the minor leagues with the Winnipeg Buffaloes (1950) and Elmwood Giants (1951) of the Manitoba-Dakota League, and with the Hankyu Braves of the Japanese Pacific League (1952-1953), batting .293 with 5 home runs and 95 runs batted in in 194 games in Japan. Mr. Britton and pitcher Jimmy Newberry, his teammate with Hankyu in 1952, were the first American Negroes to play professionally in Japan.

Music
Fleetwood Mac performed at the Edmonton Coliseum to good reviews.

World events
Chadian rebel leader General Idris Deby, a French-trained professional soldier, entered the capital city of Ndjamena, the day after President Hissene Habre had fled into exile in Cameroon. Gen. Deby was a former aide to Mr. Habre.

Politics and government
The Christian Democratic Union, the party of Chancellor Helmut Kohl, finished first in the first general election to the Bundestag since the reunification of Germany. Mr. Kohl’s party and its allies retained their majority in the Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, with the CDU taking 319 of 662 seats, 13 short of a majority. The opposition Social Democratic Party had its poorest showing since 1957, winning 239 seats. In the area that had been East Germany, the party of Democratic Socialism, the successor to the Communist Party, polled 10% of the vote and captured 17 seats in the Bundestag. The Green Party, which went into the election with 48 seats, dropped to 8.

Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced that his government would set up a joint Senate-House of Commons committee to study how to reform the process of amending Canada’s constitution. The 17-member committee, made up of 10 Progressive Conservatives, 5 Liberals, and 2 New Democratic Party members, would hold public hearings to study the time-limit and public-involvememt problems in the constitutional amending process. Mr. Mulroney promised that "the legitimate and reasonable aspirations of Quebec or any other province will never again be held hostage to an inadequate and inflexible process," alluding to criticisms of the amending process that were highlighted after the failure of the Meech Lake Accord in June. The committee was expected to work in cooperation with Keith Spicer’s Citizens’ Forum, that was studying broader questions of Canadian national unity.

10 years ago
2000

Died on this date
Gail Fisher, 65. U.S. actress. Miss Fisher appeared in numerous television programs, but was best known for playing secretary Peggy Fair in the series Mannix (1968-1975), for which she was nominated for Emmy Awards from 1970-1973, winning in 1970. She died of reported kidney failure.

Space
The U.S. space shuttle Endeavor docked with the International Space Station, and the five-man crew, commanded by Navy Commander Brent Jett, Jr. (and including Canadian space veteran Marc Garneau), subsequently attached large electricity-generating solar panels to the space station.

Politics and government
The day after Vicente Fox had been sworn in as President of Mexico and had ordered federal army troops to begin pulling out of the province of Chiapas, the separatist Zapatista National Liberation Army said that it was ready to resume peace negotiations with the government.

Football
CIAU
Vanier Cup @ SkyDome, Toronto
Ottawa 42 Regina 39

Quarterback Phill Cote led Ottawa to its first Vanier Cup win since 1975, and won the Ted Morris Memorial Trophy as the game’s most valuable player. The Gee-Gees barely held off a late rally by the Rams, who were making their first Vanier Cup appearance, and had started the season by losing their first 4 games before winning their last 4 to make the playoffs in the West.



NCAA
Navy 30 Army 28 @ PSINet Stadium, Baltimore