May 5, 2011

190 years ago
1821

Died on this date
Napoleon I, 51. Emperor of the French, 1804-1814, 1815. Napoleon Bonaparte, a native of Corsica, was one of the most famous military leaders in history, with achievements too numerous to mention here. He held various offices, including First Consul of France from 1899 until he proclaimed himself Emperor in 1804. Emperor Napoleon was forced to abdicate in 1814 and was exiled to the island of Elba. He escaped in 1815 and returned to power in March, beginning the period of rule known as the Hundred Days. Emperor Napoleon's forces were defeated in the Battle of Waterloo on June 18, 1815, and he abdicated four days later in favour of his son Napoleon II. Napoleon I was exiled again, this time to the island of Saint Helena, from which he did not escape. The cause of his death was officially listed as stomach cancer, although there have been accusations that he was the victim of arsenic poisoning.

Journalism
The Manchester Guardian, now The Guardian, published its first edition.

120 years ago
1891

Born on this date
Jack McCandless. U.S. baseball player. Mr. McCandless was an outfielder with the Baltimore Terrapins (1914-1915), batting .217 with 5 home runs and 35 runs batted in in 128 games. He played 188 games in 3 seasons in the minor leagues (1916-1917, 1920), hitting .264 with 5 home runs. Mr. McCandless died on August 17, 1961 at the age of 70.

Americana
Carnegie Hall, then known as Music Hall, opened in New York City, with Pyotr Tchaikovsky the guest conductor.

110 years ago
1901

Baseball
Billy Gilbert batted 5 for 7 with a double, triple 3 runs, and 5 runs batted in to help the Milwaukee Brewers rout the Chicago White Stockings 21-7 at Lloyd Street Grounds in Milwaukee. Losing pitcher Bob Patterson (2-2) pitched 9 innings, facing 57 batters and giving up 25 hits and 14 earned runs.

100 years ago
1911

Born on this date
Gilles Grangier. French film director and screenwriter. Mr. Grangier directed 55 movies and several television series from 1943-1985. He died on April 27, 1996, eight days before his 85th birthday.

90 years ago
1921

Died on this date
Alfred Hermann Fried, 56. Austrian journalist and activist. Mr. Fried spent much of his life in Germany, and co-founded Deutsche Friedensgesellschaft (German Peace Society) in 1892, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1911, sharing the award with Tobias Asser of the Netherlands.

80 years ago
1931

Died on this date
Glen Kidston, 32. U.K. military officer, auto racing driver, and aviator. Lieutenant Commander Kidston served with the Royal Navy in World War I, and tested submarines in the 1920s. He teamed with Woolf Barnato to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1930, and completed a record breaking flight from Netheravon, Wiltshire to Cape Town, South Africa in April 1931, covering the distance in 6½ days. However, Mr. Kidston was killed on the return journey when his borrowed de Havilland Puss Moth broke up in mid-air while flying through a dust storm over the Drakensberg mountains.

Politics and government
William Walsh was installed as Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta; he served until October 1, 1936.

70 years ago
1941

Theatre
There Shall Be No Night by Robert E. Sherwood was awarded the 1941 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Journalism
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch was awarded the 1941 Pulitzer Prize for Meritorious Public Service by a newspaper; Westbrook Pegler of the New York World-Telegram won in the category of General Reporting, and Reuben Maury of the New York Daily News won for Editorial Writing. A group award was given in the category of General Correspondence to American news reporters in the war zones of Europe, Asia, and Africa since the beginning of World War II.

War
The U.K. Royal Air Force claimed that its bombers had scored direct hits on the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau in a raid on Brest. Reports from London stated that the United Kingdom had rejected an offer from Turkey to mediate the Anglo-Iraqi War.

Defense
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered "a substantial increase in heavy bomber construction." The U.S. House of Representatives debate on seizure of alien ships precipitated a dispute over the prospect of convoying supplies to Britain.

World events
Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie returned to Addis Ababa after five years of exile in Bath, England.

Politics and government
General Isaias Medina Angarita took office as President of Venezuela.

Medicine
Dr. Martin H. Dawson of Columbia University, addressing a medical meeting in Atlantic City, New Jersey, described a new chemical substance known as penicillin. He said the substance, developed from a special strain of mold in bread and Roquefort cheese, may prove more useful than the sulfanilamides.

Oil
British and American companies in the Netherlands East Indies renewed their contracts to supply Japan with 1.8 million tons per year.

Business
Sheffield Farms Company Inc., Borden Company, and four of their affiliates were indicted on charges of violating the Sherman Antitrust Act by selling milk at higher prices than those charged by their affiliates.

60 years ago
1951

Hit parade
U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Mockin’ Bird Hill--Les Paul and Mary Ford (3rd week at #1)
--Patti Page
2 If--Perry Como
3 Be My Love--Mario Lanza
4 On Top of Old Smoky--The Weavers and Terry Gilkyson
--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra
5 How High the Moon--Les Paul and Mary Ford
6 Would I Love You (Love You, Love You)--Patti Page
7 The Syncopated Clock--Leroy Anderson and his "Pops" Concert Orchestra
8 I Apologize--Billy Eckstine
9 Beautiful Brown Eyes--Rosemary Clooney
10 Aba Daba Honeymoon--Debbie Reynolds and Carleton Carpenter

Singles entering the chart were Sound Off (The Buckworth Chant) by Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra (#21); Unless, with versions by Eddie Fisher; and Guy Mitchell (#30); Kentucky Waltz by Rosemary Clooney (#33); and September Song by Stan Kenton and his Orchestra (#38).

War
General Douglas MacArthur concluded three days of testimony before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, accusing the administration of President Harry Truman of "softness" in Korea at a heavy cost in American lives.

Defense
The U.S.A. and Iceland signed a pact in Reykjavik authorizing the stationing of American troops in Iceland under the North Atlantic Treaty.

U.S. President Truman appointed a 12-member Defense Advicory Board to consult periodically with the Civil Defense Administration on policy.

Politics and government
Pakistan protested the convocation of a Kashmiri constituent assembly, claiming that the move violated the United Nations Security Council's March 30, 1951 resolution on Kashmir.

Agriculture
The Yugoslavian government reduced state deliveries from independent peasants, who still controlled 75% of of the country's farmland, in an effort to increase food production.

Horse racing
Count Turf, with Conn McCreary up, won the 77th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville in a time of 2:02 3/5. Royal Mustang placed second and Ruhe finished third in the 20-horse field.





Baseball
The Salem Senators edged the Victoria Athletics 1-0 in 23 innings in a Western International League game in Victoria. Losing pitcher Roland Smith lasted the entire game.

50 years ago
1961

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Blue Moon--The Marcels

The Twilight Zone, on CBS
Tonight’s episode: Shadow Play, starring Dennis Weaver and Harry Townes

Space
The United States entered the manned space race with the U.S.S.R. when Mercury-Redstone 3, with Alan Shepard aboard, lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, for a 15-minute suborbital flight.







Politics and government
U.S. President John F. Kennedy addressed space, a nuclear test ban, national service, and other issues in a news conference at the State Department auditorium in Washington.



40 years ago
1971

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Double Barrel--Dave and Ansil Collins (2nd week at #1)

Boxing
Former world welterweight and middleweight champion Emile Griffith (69-11) won a 10-round majority decision over Ernie Lopez (42-8-1) in a middleweight bout at Nevada Sports Palace in Las Vegas.

Basketball
ABA
Finals
Kentucky 125 @ Utah 138 (Utah led best-of-seven series 2-0)

Zelmo Beaty scored 40 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to lead the Stars over the Colonels before 13,208 fans at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. Dan Issel scored 40 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for Kentucky.

30 years ago
1981

Died on this date
Bobby Sands, 27. Northern Irish terrorist. Mr. Sands, a member of the provisional Irish Republican Army, helped to plan the 1976 bombing of the Balmoral Furniture Company in Dunmurry, which was followed by a gun battle with the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). He was arrested while trying to escape and sentenced to 14 years in prison for firearms possession. Mr. Sands died 66 days after beginning a hunger strike in Maze Prison in Northern Ireland, and 26 days after winning a by-election to represent Fermanagh and South Tyrone in the British House of Commons.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Semi-Finals
New York Islanders 5 @ New York Rangers 2 (Islanders won best-of-seven series 4-0)
Calgary 4 @ Minnesota 7 (Minnesota led best-of-seven series 3-1)

Dino Ciccarelli scored 3 goals to lead the North Stars over the Flames at Metropolitan Sports Center in Bloomington.

Basketball
NBA
Finals
Houston 95 @ Boston 98 (Boston led best-of-seven series 1-0)

Larry Bird scored 18 points, grabbed 21 rebounds, and added 9 assists to help the Celtics come back from an 81-76 deficit after 3 quarters to defeat the Rockets before 15,320 fans at Boston Garden. Houston's Robert Reid led all scorers with 27 points.



25 years ago
1986

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup Playoffs
Prince of Wales Conference Finals
Montreal 4 @ New York Rangers 3 (OT) (Montreal led best-of-seven series 3-0)

20 years ago
1991

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Trippin'--Push Push (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Joyride--Roxette (5th week at #1)

Austria's Top 10 (ض3)
1 Joyride--Roxette (6th week at #1)
2 No Coke--Dr. Alban
3 Secret Love--Bee Gees
4 How to Dance--Bingoboys featuring Princessa
5 Blue Hotel--Chris Isaak
6 Sister Soul & Mr. Beat--Beat 4 Feet featuring Kim Cooper
7 Should I Stay or Should I Go--The Clash
8 Kränk di net--Jazz Gitti & Her Disco Killers
9 Crazy--Seal
10 Rhythm of My Heart--Rod Stewart

Singles entering the chart were Lucifer by Blue System (#17); It's Too Late by Quartz introducing Dina Carroll (#21); and Mega Mix by Snap! (#29).

Protest
Riots broke out in Washington, D.C., after a rookie police officer shot a Salvadoran man in the chest.

Baseball
The Reno Silver Sox scored 15 runs in one inning on their way to a 20-8 win over the High Desert Mavericks in a California League game. Reno first baseman Dodd Johnson drove in 5 runs with a home run, double, and single in the big inning.

10 years ago
2001

Died on this date
Clifton Hillegass, 83. U.S. publisher. Mr. Hillegass bought the American rights to the Canadian study guides known as Coles Notes in 1958, with the U.S. version becoming known as CliffsNotes. He died 17 days after his 83rd birthday.

Horse racing
Monarchos, with Jorge Chavez aboard, won the 127th running of the Kentucky Derby before 154,210 fans at Churchill Downs in Louisville in a time of 1:59.97, second only to Secretariat in 1973 as the fastest time ever in a Kentucky Derby. Invisible Ink, a 55-1 longshot, placed second, 4¾ lengths behind the winner. Congaree finished third in the 17-horse field.



Baseball
The Chicago Cubs scored 8 runs in each of the 7th and 8th innings as they routed the Los Angeles Dodgers 20-1 before 38,468 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Sammy Sosa, Todd Hundley, and Julio Zuleta hit home runs for the Cubs. Mr. Zuleta’s home run was a 3-run pinch homer in the 7th inning.

Dave McCarty drew a base on balls with 1 out in the bottom of the 12th inning and Dee Brown followed with a home run to give the Kansas City Royals a 12-10 win over the Minnesota Twins before 17,052 fans at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.