August 17, 2012

70 years ago
1942

At the movies
Berlin Correspondent, directed by Eugene Forde, and starring Virginia Gilmore, Dana Andrews, and Mona Maris, received its premiere screening.



War
U.S. Marines raided the Japanese-held Pacific island of Makin.

50 years ago
1962

Died on this date
Peter Fechter, 18. German youth. Mr. Fechter was shot and killed by guards at the Berlin Wall, which sparked riots.

Boxing
Davey Moore (57-6-1) retained his world featherweight title with a technical knockout of Olif Maeki (8-2-1) at 2:45 of the 2nd round before 25,000 fans at Olympic Stadion in Helsinki. Mr. Maeki was knocked down 3 times.

40 years ago
1972

Football
CFL
Winnipeg (2-1) 39 @ British Columbia (1-3) 7

Defensive back Pete Ribbins made 4 interceptions to help the Blue Bombers rout the Lions at Empire Stadium in Vancouver.

30 years ago
1982

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): I Love Rock 'N' Roll--Joan Jett & the Blackhearts (3rd week at #1)

Died on this date
Barney Phillips, 68. U.S. actor. Mr. Phillips, born Bernard Philip Ofner, was a character actor in radio, television, and films in a career spanning almost 50 years. He played Sergeant Ed Jacobs in 11 episodes of the television series Dragnet (1952-1953), and provided the voice of the title character in the animated television series Shazzan! (1967-1969). Mr. Phillips died of cancer.

Space
Three Soviet cosmonauts docked their Soyuz T-5 spacecraft with the Salyut 7 space station that had been in Earth orbit since May 13.

Society
The United States Senate approved revisions to the immigration laws, offering amnesty to millions of illegal aliens who had entered the country before January 1, 1980. In addition, all job applicants would be required to show prospective employers their identification papers to prove that they were either citizens or authorized aliens.

25 years ago
1987

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): The Loco-Motion--Kylie Minogue (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Clarence Brown, 97. U.S. film director. Mr. Brown directed 53 movies, including several that starred Greta Garbo. His films included The Eagle (1925); Flesh and the Devil (1927); A Woman of Affairs (1928); Romance (1930); Anna Christie (1930); A Free Soul (1931); Anna Karenina (1935); The Rains Came (1939); The Human Comedy (1943); The White Cliffs of Dover (1944); National Velvet (1944); The Yearling (1946); Intruder in the Dust (1949); and Angels in the Outfield (1951). Mr. Brown was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director five times, but never won.

Rudolf Hess, 93. German Nazi politician. Mr. Hess was Adolf Hitler's deputy in the Nazi regime in the 1930s and early 1940s. He was captured in Scotland in 1941 after flying solo on an apparent attempt at a peace mission. Tried at Nuremberg after World War II, he was sentenced to life in Spandau Prison in Berlin. The Soviets always refused permission for Mr. Hess to be released, and he was the prison's only inmate for the last 30 years of his life, which ended when he reportedly committed suicide.

20 years ago
1992

Died on this date
Michael Ralph, 32. Canadian soldier. A member of 22 Field Squadron, Sgt. Ralph was killed by a land mine during operations in Croatia and became the first soldier with the United Nations Protection Force to be killed in Operation Harmony, the Canadian participation in Bosnia and Croatia.

Politics and government
The Republican National Convention opened in Houston. Pat Buchanan, who had opposed President George Bush for renomination as the party’s 1992 candidate for President of the United States, endorsed Mr. Bush in a fiery speech. Former President Ronald Reagan then delivered an excellent speech in what turned out to be his last major public appearance.





Baseball
Kevin Gross pitched a no-hitter as the Los Angeles Dodgers blanked the San Francisco Giants 2-0 at Dodger Stadium.