January 21, 2011

290 years ago
1721

Born on this date
James Murray. U.K. military officer and politician. General Murray served in the War of the Austrian Succession and the Seven Years' War. The latter led to his appointment as military Governor (1760) and civilian Governor (1763-1768) of Quebec, where he was known for his sympathetic treatment of French-Canadians. Gen. Murray was Lieutenant-Governor (1774-1778) and Governor (1778-1782) of Minorca, and Governor of Kingston-upon-Hull (1783). He died on June 18, 1794 at the age of 73.

150 years ago
1861

Politics and government
Jefferson Davis (Democrat--Mississippi) resigned from the United States Senate, 12 days after Mississippi voted to secede from the United States.

130 years ago
1881

Born on this date
Ernst Fast. Swedish runner. Mr. Fast was a long distance runner who won several Swedish championships from 1899-1905, and won a bronze medal in the marathon at the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris. He died on October 26, 1959 at the age of 78.

100 years ago
1911

Auto racing
The first Rallye Monte-Carlo began, with cars departing from six different starting points to arrive at Monte Carlo. Henri Rougier of France, departing from Paris, was declared the winner.

90 years ago
1921

Politics and government
The Partito Comunista d'Italia (PCI) (Communist Party of Italy) was founded in Livorno.

80 years ago
1931

Politics and government
Sir Isaac Isaacs was sworn in as the first Australian-born Governor-General of Australia.

70 years ago
1941

War
British and Australian troops began an assault on the Italian stronghold of Tobruk, Libya.

Defense
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt told a press conference that he was not considering using the U.S. Navy for convoys of ships to the United Kingdom. The U.S. State Department announced that the "moral embargo" dating back to December 2, 1939 on the shipment of planes to the U.S.S.R. had been lifted. Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Joseph P. Kennedy, testifying before the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, opposed the Lend-Lease bill "in its present form," and doubted that the U.K. would be able to defeat the Axis.

Diplomacy
Japanese Prime Minister Prince Fuminaro Konoye told the Diet that the creation of "a new order in East Asia" was the backbone of Japan's foreign policy.

Economics and finance
The United Kingdom signed trade pacts with the Belgian government-in-exile regarding the Congo, and with General Charles de Gaulle's Free French Council of Defense regarding the French Cameroons.

60 years ago
1951

War
A Gallup poll showed that 66% of Americans questioned favoured pulling U.S. troops out of Korea "as fast as possible."

Disasters
More than 3,000 Papuans were reported killed at the end of a three-day series of explosions which blew off the entire north face of New Guinea's volcanic Mount Lamington and destroyed 20 villages.

50 years ago
1961

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Are You Lonesome To-night?/I Gotta Know--Elvis Presley (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Italy: Il cielo in una stanza--Mina (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Ramona--Blue Diamonds (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (Dutch Top 40): Ramona--Blue Diamonds (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Poetry in Motion--Johnny Tillotson (3rd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Exodus--Ferrante and Teicher (2nd week at #1)
--[Mantovani & his Orchestra]
2 Will You Love Me Tomorrow--The Shirelles
3 Wonderland by Night--Bert Kaempfert and his Orchestra
--[Louis Prima]
--[Anita Bryant]
4 Are You Lonesome To-night?--Elvis Presley
5 Calcutta--Lawrence Welk and his Orchestra
6 Angel Baby--Rosie and the Originals
7 Rubber Ball--Bobby Vee
8 Corinna, Corinna--Ray Peterson
9 Shop Around--The Miracles
10 Last Date--Floyd Cramer

Singles entering the chart were My Last Date (With You) by Joni James (#54, charting with the version by Skeeter Davis); You Can Have Her by Roy Hamilton (#79); At Last by Etta James (#83); Chills and Fever by Ronnie Love (#85); Don't Believe Him, Donna by Lenny Miles (#86); Apache by Jorgen Ingmann and his Guitar (#87); Gee Whiz (Look at his Eyes) by Carla Thomas (#89); Sound-Off by Titus Turner (#91); Lost Love by H.B. Barnum (#92); Them that Got by Ray Charles (#93); Boo Hoo by Lloyd Price (#95); Where the Boys Are (#96)/No One (#100) by Connie Francis; Don't Worry by Marty Robbins (#98); Bye Bye Baby by Mary Wells (#99); The Most Beautiful Words by Della Reese (also #100); and And the Heavens Cried by Ronnie Savoy (also #100).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CFUN)
1 Calcutta--Lawrence Welk and his Orchestra
2 Calendar Girl--Neil Sedaka
3 Corinna, Corinna--Ray Peterson
4 Cool Operator--Sandy Nelson
5 (I Wanna) Love My Life Away--Gene Pitney
6 Pepe--Duane Eddy and the Rebels
7 Shop Around--The Miracles
8 Emotions--Brenda Lee
9 Take Time Out--Carl Dobkins, Jr.
10 Wonderland by Night--Bert Kaempfert and his Orchestra

Singles entering the chart were Baby Sittin' Boogie by Buzz Clifford (#14); The Magic Lamp by Floyd Robinson (#24, charting with its other side, Out of Gas); Apache by Jorgen Ingmann and his Guitar (#29); Jimmy's Girl by Johnny Tillotson (#32); Where the Boys Are by Connie Francis (#37); Wait a Minute by the Coasters (#39); Good Time Baby by Bobby Rydell (#41); The Story of My Love by Paul Anka (#44); Are You Teasing Me by Dave Burgess (#46); Because I Love You by Dee Clark (#47); My Empty Arms by Jackie Wilson (#49); and A Texan and a Girl from Mexico by Anita Bryant (#50). Jimmy's Girl was the A-side of (Little Sparrow) His True Love Said Goodbye, which had peaked at #36 on January 14 and was no longer on the chart.

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKWX)
1 Calendar Girl--Neil Sedaka (3rd week at #1)
2 Corinna, Corinna--Ray Peterson
3 Emotions--Brenda Lee
4 Wings of a Dove--Paul Clayton
5 Calcutta--Lawrence Welk and his Orchestra
6 Wonderland by Night--Bert Kaempfert and his Orchestra
7 (Ghost) Riders in the Sky--Ramrods
8 Are You Lonesome To-night?--Elvis Presley
9 Angel Baby--Rosie and the Originals
10 Cool Operator--Sandy Nelson

Singles entering the chart were Take Time Out by Carl Dobkins, Jr. (#30); The Exodus Song by Pat Boone (#35); Good Time Baby by Bobby Rydell (#36); Baby Sittin' Boogie by Buzz Clifford (#38); Ebony Eyes by the Everly Brothers (#39); and Dream Boy by Annette with the Afterbeats (#40). The Exodus Song was a vocal version, with words written by Mr. Boone, of the theme from the movie Exodus (1960).

On television tonight
The Roaring 20's, on ABC
Tonight's episode: Big Town Blues

Diplomacy
A Western plan to end the civil war in Laos by reviving the International Control Commission for Laos was presented to the Soviet Union by British Ambassador Sir Frank Roberts. The U.K. and U.S.S.R. had been co-chairs of the 1954 Geneva conference that ended the Indo-China war. The Geneva agreement set up the commission--composed of India, Poland, and Canada--which suspended its work in 1958 after being barred by Laos.

40 years ago
1971

Hit parade
#1 single in France (IFOP): My Sweet Lord--George Harrison (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Richard Russell, 73. U.S. politician. Mr. Russell, a Democrat, sat in the Georgia House of Representatives (1921-1931); was Governor of Georgia (1931-1933); and represented Georgia in the United States Senate for 38 years, until he died at Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington after a six-week battle with a respiratory infection complicated by chronic emphysema. Mr. Russell had been described by colleagues and President John F. Kennedy as "the most individually respected member of the Senate," and his last illness caused him to miss the opening session of the 92nd Senate--the first opening he had missed since entering the Senate on January 12, 1933. In his last official act, he had given aides a proxy to be used in behalf of Robert Byrd (Democrat--West Virginia) for his successful bid for the post of Senate Democratic whip.

Television
The current Emley Moor transmitting station, the tallest free-standing structure in the United Kingdom, began transmitting UHF broadcasts.

Politics and government
In a surprise move, U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy (Democrat--Massachusetts) as ousted as assistant majority leader (i.e., "whip") of the Senate by Robert Byrd of West Virginia as the Democrat-controlled 92nd Senate convened. The Democratic caucus voted 31-24 in favour of Mr. Byrd for the post.

War
The Paris peace talks between the U.S.A. and South Vietnam on one side and North Vietnam and the Viet Cong on the other side continued to be a stalemate. It was the 100th session of the talks, which had begun on January 25, 1969.

Crime
The United States Army dropped, on grounds of insufficient evidence, all charges against Specialist William F. Doherty related to his alleged involvement in the massacre of civilians in the South Vietnamese hamlet of My Lai on March 16, 1968.

Disasters
A French air force plane crashed in southern France while en route to Perrelatte from Paris, killing 21 people, including 13 of the country’s top military and civilian experts on nuclear weapons and atomic production.

30 years ago
1981

Hit parade
Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 (Just Like) Starting Over--John Lennon (7th week at #1)
2 The Tide is High--Blondie
3 Looking for Clues--Robert Palmer
4 De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da--The Police
5 I Got You--Split Enz
6 Passion--Rod Stewart
7 9 to 5--Dolly Parton
8 Every Woman in the World--Air Supply
9 Turn Me Loose--Loverboy
10 Teacher Teacher--Rockpile

The only single entering the chart was Keep on Loving You by REO Speedwagon (#20).

Terrorism
The 52 hostages who had been freed from the U.S. embassy in Tehran the previous day arrived in Wiesbaden, West Germany on their way home. They were welcomed there by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who, as he was leaving the presidency the day before, was appointed a special envoy by incoming President Ronald Reagan.





Business
The DeLorean Motor Company completed the first production car of the DMC DeLorean.

25 years ago
1986

Economics and finance
The Canadian House of Commons passed the sweeping tax changes that had been announced in Finance Minister Michael Wilson’s budget in May 1985. The changes included a $500,000 lifetime capital gains tax exemption and elimination of the Registered Home Ownership Plan.

20 years ago
1991

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Ai wa Katsu--(愛は勝つ)--Kan (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Raptori--Debi Gibson (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Germany (Media Control): Sadeness Part I--Enigma (11th week at #1)

War
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger met with Israeli leaders in Jerusalem and said they had agreed not to retaliate against Iraq for that country’s Scud missile attacks on Israel without first consulting the United States. Iraq said that it would disperse the growing number of Allied prisoners to strategic sites to discourage air attacks.

10 years ago
2001

Religion
Pope John Paul II appointed 37 new cardinals, a record at one time. 10 were from Latin American and three from the United States, including Avery Dulles, 82, a convert to Roman Catholicism and a Jesuit theologian at Fordham University, and the son of former U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles.