October 30, 2012

200 years ago
1812

Politics and government
Voting began in the U.S. Presidential election. President James Madison, representing the Democratic-Republican party, was re-elected, taking 128 electoral votes to 89 for Federalist party candidate DeWitt Clinton. Elbridge Gerry was elected Vice-President.

150 years ago
1862

Died on this date
Ormsby M. Mitchel, 52 or 53. U.S. astronomer and military officer. Mr. Mitchel was a Major General in the Union Army in the U.S. Civil War. He died of a fever.

100 years ago
1912

Died on this date
James S. Sherman, 57. Vice-President of the United States, 1909-1912. A veteran Republican politician from Utica, New York, "Sunny Jim" Sherman was Vice-President to President William Howard Taft. He accepted renomination despite suffering from Bright's disease and died six days after his 57th birthday and six days before the presisdential election, thus avoiding humiliating defeat. Mr. Sherman remains the most recent U.S. Vice President to die in office.

90 years ago
1922

Politics and government
Benito Mussolini became Prime Minister of Italy.

80 years ago
1932

Politics and government
Arturo Alessandri was elected President of Chile, taking 54.8% of the vote to 17.7% for Marmaduque Grove, 13.8% for Héctor Rodríguez de la Sotta, 12.5% for Enrique Zañartu Prieto, and 1.2% for Elias Lafferte.

50 years ago
1962

On television tonight
The Untouchables, starring Robert Stack, on ABC
Tonight's episode: Bird in the Hand

40 years ago
1972

Music
The Oak Ridge Boys, then regarded as a gospel group, performed at the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton. Tickets were available at Gospel Supplies.

Politics and government
In the closest federal election in Canadian history, the Liberal government of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau was reduced from a majority to a minority, and was forced to seek support from the New Democratic Party to remain in power. The Liberals captured 109 of 264 seats in the House of Commons. The Progressive Conservatives, led by Robert Stanfield, took 107 seats. The New Democratic Party, led by David Lewis, won 31 seats; it was the party's best showing to date, and the NDP ended up with the balance of power. Social Credit took 15 seats, all in Quebec. Roch LaSalle, elected as a Progressive Conservative in 1968, was elected as an independent, and House Speaker Lucien Lamoureux, elected as a Liberal in 1968, was re-elected while running without a party affiliation. It was the first federal election in which the PCs took every seat in Alberta (19); one of the Alberta MPs elected for the first time was Joe Clark in Rocky Mountain House. Wally Firth of the NDP was elected to represent the Northwest Territories.

Anti-Marxist legislators in the opposition-controlled Chilean Congress began impeachment proceedings against four members of the cabinet of President Salvador Allende for “violations of the constitution.”

Terrorism
Four armed hijackers, including a father and his two teenage sons, shot their way on board an Eastern Airlines jet at Houston airport, killing a ticket agent and wounding a ground crewman, and forced the plane with 40 people aboard to fly them to Cuba. The hijackers were wanted in connection with a bank holdup in Alexandria, Virginia in which a policeman and bank manager had been killed. The bullet-riddled plane and its passengers were returned to Miami from Cuba as the U.S. attempted to obtain the return of the hijackers. The U.S. said it would invoke a 1904 extradition treaty with Cuba specifically calling for the return of fleeing murderers.

Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban denounced the previous day’s release by the Bavarian government of three of the Black September guerrillas who had participated in the murders of 11 members of the Israeli team at the recent Olympic games in Munich. West Germany had released the terrorists after two Arab terrorists armed with grenades had hijacked a Lufthansa jetliner with 20 people aboard over Turkey and had threatened to blow up the plane in midair. The freed guerrillas had been flown from Munich to Zagreb, Yugoslavia and had boarded the hijacked plane. The plane was then flown to Libya, where all were released. A West German official defended the release because 20 lives were at stake and all were convinced that the terrorists were serious about carrying out their threat.

War
Israeli planes raided four guerrilla bases within seven miles of Damascus. The attacks, described as “not necessarily” in retaliation for the previous day’s hijacking of a Lufthansa jetliner by Arab terrorists, were the first Israeli raids on commando camps in Syria in two weeks.

Disasters
In the U.S.A.’s worst rail disaster in 14 years, at least 44 people died and 230 were injured when a crowded commuter train plowed almost 75 feet into the rear of a new four-car double deck train in Chicago’s 27th Street Station, three miles south of the Loop, trapping hundreds of passengers in twisted debris. The trains were carrying more than 1,000 people to their jobs in the downtown area when the crash occurred.

21 people were killed and 70 injured when the Leipzig-Carlsbad express collided with an East German train in heavy fog near Karl Marx Stadt in southern East Germany.

All 27 aboard an Italian plane were killed in a crash near Bari.

30 years ago
1982

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K.: Do You Really Want to Hurt Me--Culture Club (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A.: (Billboard): Who Can it Be Now?--Men at Work

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Who Can it Be Now?--Men at Work (2nd week at #1)
2 Jack & Diane--John Cougar
3 Up Where We Belong--Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes
4 I Keep Forgettin'--Michael McDonald
5 Somebody's Baby--Jackson Browne
6 Heart Attack--Olivia Newton-John
7 You Can Do Magic--America
8 Eye in the Sky--Alan Parsons Project
9 Hold On--Santana
10 Break it to Me Gently--Juice Newton

Singles entering the chart were It's Raining Again by Supertramp (#44); Dirty Laundry by Don Henley (#64); Let's Go Dancin' by Kool & The Gang (#72); Sexual Healing by Marvin Gaye (#73); Africa by Toto (#76); Used to Be by Charlene and Stevie Wonder (#85); Shock the Monkey by Peter Gabriel (#87); I Wouldn't Beg for Water by Sheena Easton (#88); and The Message by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five (#98).

Canada’s Top 10 (RPM)
1 Down Under--Men at Work (2nd week at #1)
2 Heart Attack--Olivia Newton-John
3 The Look of Love--ABC
4 New World Man--Rush
5 Blue Eyes--Elton John
6 Hold On--Santana
7 Don't Fight It--Kenny Loggins and Steve Perry
8 I Will Always Love You--Dolly Parton
9 Jack & Diane--John Cougar
10 Hard to Say I'm Sorry--Chicago

Singles entering the chart were Truly by Lionel Richie (#41); It's Raining Again by Supertramp (#43); Get Closer by Linda Ronstadt (#44); Soldier by the Payolas (#45); Maneater by Daryl Hall & John Oates (#47); Muscles by Diana Ross (#48); Shadows of the Night by Pat Benatar (#49); and You Can Do Magic by America (#50).

Football
CFL
Saskatchewan (6-8-1) 36 @ Toronto (8-6-1) 41
Hamilton (7-7-1) 11 @ Edmonton (10-5) 14

Condredge Holloway passed for 3 touchdowns and rushed for another in the 2nd half as the Argonauts came back from a 22-11 halftime deficit to defeat the Roughriders before 30,927 fans at Exhibition Stadium. Mr. Holloway completed touchdown passes of 79 and 24 yards to Cedric Minter and 25 yards to Bob Bronk, while rushing 10 yards for his own touchdown. Mr. Minter scored the first Toronto major on a 3-yard rush in the 2nd quarter. Mr. Holloway completed 23 of 35 passes for 420 yards and rushed 7 times for 57. Saskatchewan quarterback Joe Adams completed 31 of 53 passes for 357 yards and 4 touchdowns, 2 to Ron Robinson and 1 each to Chris DeFrance and Joey Walters. Saskatchewan safety Ken McEachern opened the scoring with a 96-yard interception return for a touchdown in the 1st quarter. Toronto slotback took over the Argonauts’ kicking chores from rookie Dean Dorsey in the 2nd half, kicking 2 converts and a 13-yard field goal. Mike Washington of the Roughriders led all rushers with 103 yards on 14 carries. Toronto’s Terry Greer caught 9 passes for 147 yards, while Mr. Robinson led the Roughriders with 9 receptions for 114 yards.

Wide receiver Waddell Smith threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Tom Scott with 3:18 remaining in the game to give the Eskimos their win over the Tiger-Cats before 59,104 fans at Commonwealth Stadium, clinching a playoff spot and keeping their hopes of finishing first in the West Division alive. Edmonton quarterback Warren Moon completed 23 of 44 passes for 298 yards, but gave up 4 interceptions. Mark Bragagnolo rushed 1 yard for the only Hamilton touchdown in the 2nd quarter. The Tiger-Cats led 11-7 and appeared to be on the verge of putting the game away when Joe Hollimon intercepted a Tom Clements pass at his own 6-yard line and returned it 39 yards to put the Eskimos in position to drive for the winning score. Mr. Clements then moved the Tiger-Cats into field goal range, but Hamilton head coach Bud Riley, wanting a win instead of a tie to keep the Tiger-Cats’ first-place hopes alive in the East Division, opted to gamble on third down, and the gamble was unsuccessful. Brian Fryer of the Eskimos led all receivers with 115 yards on 9 catches, while Mr. Scott caught 8 for 104. Rocky DiPietro led the Tiger-Cats with 7 receptions for 102 yards. It was the first CFL game for Hamilton defensive back Felix Wright, who made an interception and returned it 8 yards. It was also the first game for Edmonton offensive lineman Dan Butcher, who was activated after Hector Pothier suffered cuts and bruises when he borrowed linemate Leo Blanchard’s mini-bike a few days before the game and crashed it. It was the last game for backup Edmonton running back Craig Mallender. The Eskimos honoured former quarterback Tom Wilkinson at halftime by making him the first player to have a plaque placed on the team’s Wall of Honour. There was a lengthy delay in the 3rd quarter when a power failure knocked out the lights on the east side of Commonwealth Stadium; it was still bright enough to see, but apparently not bright enough to show up on television.

CIAU
AUAA
Mount Allison (5-2) 58 St. Mary’s (0-7) 21
St. Francis Xavier (5-1) 14 Acadia (3-3) 10 (4-point game)

The X-Men’s win over the Axemen gave them 12 points in the
standings, 2 more than Mount Allison.

OQIFC
Semi-Finals
McGill 10 @ Concordia 35
Queen’s 31 @ Ottawa 30

OUAA
Semi-Finals
Toronto 28 @ McMaster 6
Western Ontario 26 @ Guelph 20

WIFL
Saskatchewan (3-5) 30 Calgary (3-5) 13
Manitoba (5-3) 26 @ Alberta (1-7) 17

Trailing 14-4 late in the 1st half at Clarke Stadium in Edmonton, the Bisons struck for 2 quick touchdowns and coasted to victory over the Golden Bears. Darrell Batt gave the Bisons a 3-0 lead in the 1st quarter with a 27-yard field goal and added a single on a missed 29-yard FG early in the 2nd quarter to make it 4-0. Alberta quarterback Darren Brezden then threw touchdown passes of 52 yards to Dave Brown and 5 yards to Rick Paulitsch, both converted by James Richards. Rookie quarterback Mike O’Donnell, a surprise starter, completed a 22-yard touchdown pass to Terry Fach, converted by Mr. Batt, and the Bisons trailed 14-11 with 3 minutes remaining in the 1st half. Mr. O’Donnell threw a short completion to Kevin Neiles, who broke it for a 59-yard touchdown with 1 second left in the half. Mr. Batt’s convert gave the Bisons an 18-14 lead, which they held. Mr. Batt’s kickoff to begin the 2nd half went for a single, and he added another single and field goals of 39 and 18 yards. Mr. Richards closed the Alberta scoring with a 42-yard field goal. Mr. Brezden, a rookie, completed 15 of 35 passes for 225 yards, setting a single-season team record with 1,672 yards passing. Among those playing their final game in a Golden Bear uniform were Mr. Brown, Mr. Paulitsch, Rollie Miles, John Waterhouse, and linebacker Stew McAndrews, who recorded 3 quarterback sacks in the 1st half.

25 years ago
1987

Football
CFL
Ottawa (3-14) 12 @ Saskatchewan (5-11-1) 9

Joe Paopao completed 22 of 34 passes for 250 yards, including a 36-yard touchdown pass to Gerald Alphin in the 1st quarter, as the Rough Riders held on to defeat the Roughriders before 21,773 fans at Taylor Field in Regina, ending a 13-game losing streak. In the final minutes, Saskatchewan drove from their own 12-yard line, but Ray Elgaard fumbled at the Ottawa 15 after catching a pass, and the Rough Riders recovered. Former Edmonton Eskimo Tom Dixon, playing his first game for Ottawa, converted Mr. Alphin’s touchdown and added a field goal and a single. Dave Ridgway kicked 3 field goals for the Roughriders, who were shut out in the 2nd half.

CIAU
WIFL
Manitoba (1-7) 14 @ Calgary (4-4) 49

20 years ago
1992

Abominations
Canadian Inuit, federal, and territorial leaders signed an agreement to divide the Northwest Territories and create a new territory, to be called Nunavut, before 2000.

Politics and government
Prince Edward Island Premier Joe Ghiz announced that he would be stepping down as Premier and called for a leadership convention to be held in January 1993.

Hockey
NHL
Detroit 7 Toronto 1

Football
CIAU
Calgary (4-4) 11 @ Alberta (3-4-1) 22

Jay Hamilton rushed 10 yards for a touchdown in the 1st quarter and Mike Weiss rushed 15 yards for a TD in the 4th quarter as the Golden Bears upset the Dinosaurs before 1,002 fans—including this blogger—at Clarke Stadium in Edmonton. John Cutler converted both touchdowns and added a pair of 20-yard field goals. The Golden Bears also scored a safety touch in the 2nd quarter. Calgary’s only touchdown came in the 2nd quarter on a 1-yard pass from Sasha Blaskovich to Remo Cardone. Calgary running back Craig Kittelson rushed 18 times for 135 yards to finish the regular season with 1,248 yards rushing, breaking the Canadian record of 1,208 set by Tim Tindale of Western Ontario the previous year.