December 25, 2012

175 years ago
1837

War
U.S. Army troops under the command of Colonel Zachary Taylor fought against Seminoles in the Battle of Lake Okeechobee in Florida.

100 years ago
1912

Hockey
NHA
The Torontos hosted the Montreal Canadiens in the first professional regular season game at Arena Gardens in Toronto.

80 years ago
1932

Disasters
An earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale struck Gansu, China, killing 275 people.

70 years ago
1942

At the movies
Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon, starring Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, and Lionel Atwill, opened at the Pantages Hollywood and RKO Hillstreet theatres in Los Angeles. It was the second feature, following Once Upon a Honeymoon, starring Cary Grant, Ginger Rogers, and Walter Slezak.





Movies
In a poll conducted by Motion Picture Herald, the comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were voted the leading box office attraction of 1942.

War
The British 8th Army occupied Sirte, 225 miles east of Tripoli, and continued to pursue German troops to the west. U.S. Army bombers from Guadalcanal flew 560 miles to Rabaul, New Britain and scored several hits on Japanese cargo ships.

Crime
Bonnier de la Chapelle, who had assassinated French Prime Minister Jean-Francois Darlan the previous day, was convicted by a French military tribunal of murder and sentenced to death.

60 years ago
1952

Britannica
Queen Elizabeth II made her first Christmas broadcast from her study at Sandringham House.

50 years ago
1962

At the movies
To Kill a Mockingbird, starring Gregory Peck, received its premiere screening in Los Angeles.

40 years ago
1972

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Ben--Michael Jackson (3rd week at #1)

30 years ago
1982

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K.: Save Your Love--Renée and Renato (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Maneater--Daryl Hall & John Oates (2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Maneater--Daryl Hall & John Oates (2nd week at #1)
2 Mickey--Toni Basil
3 The Girl is Mine--Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney
4 Truly--Lionel Richie
5 Dirty Laundry--Don Henley
6 Down Under--Men at Work
7 It's Raining Again--Supertramp
8 Sexual Healing--Marvin Gaye
9 The Look of Love--ABC
10 Steppin' Out--Joe Jackson

Singles entering the chart were Stray Cat Strut by the Stray Cats (#78); Hungry Like the Wolf by Duran Duran (#83); Shoot for the Moon by Poco (#86); Forever by Little Stephen and the Disciples of Soul (#87); Eminence Front by the Who (#88); Papa was a Rollin' Stone by Wolf (#90); and Burning Heart by Vandenberg (#96).

Canada’s top 10 (RPM)
1 Mickey--Toni Basil
2 Gloria--Laura Branigan
3 Truly--Lionel Richie
4 Dirty Laundry--Don Henley
5 Maneater--Daryl Hall & John Oates
6 Rock This Town--Stray Cats
7 Nobody--Sylvia
8 The Girl is Mine--Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney
9 It's Raining Again--Supertramp
10 You Can't Hurry Love--Phil Collins

Singles entering the chart were Goody Two Shoes by Adam Ant (#37); Start Again by Surrender (#44); Subdivisions by Rush (#46); and The Elvis Medley by Elvis Presley (#48). The Stray Cats had their own version of You Can't Hurry Love, as the B-side of Rock This Town.

Died on this date
Jack Pearl, 88. U.S. comedian. Mr. Pearl was popular on vaudeville and in the early days of radio. Characters with heavy ethnic accents were popular in the 1930s, and Mr. Pearl created the character Baron Munchausen, whose catch phrase was "Vass you dere, Sharlie?"

25 years ago
1987

Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Whenever You Need Somebody--Rick Astley (4th week at #1)

20 years ago
1992

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: I Will Always Love You--Whitney Houston (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Germany (Media Control): More and More--Captain Hollywood Project (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Monica Dickens, 77. U.K. author. Miss Dickens, the great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens, wrote fiction and non-fiction. Her books included One Pair of Hands (1939); Mariana (1940); The Winds of Heaven (1955); and One of the Family (1993).

10 years ago
2002

Died on this date
Larry Uteck, 50. Canadian football player and coach. Mr. Uteck was a defensive back for seven seasons in the Canadian Football League, with the Toronto Argonauts (1974-1976); British Columbia Lions (1977); Montreal Alouettes (1978-1980); and Ottawa Rough Riders (1980). He was voted to the Eastern Football Conference All-Star team in 1975 and 1976. Mr. Uteck was head coach at St. Mary's Univesity from 1983-1997 and was named Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union Coach of the Year in 1988 and 1992. Mr. Uteck's teams played in the Vanier Cup in 1988, 1990, and 1992, but never won. He also served as an alderman in Halifax and deputy mayor of Halifax Regional Municipality in the mid-1990s. Mr. Uteck resigned from his activities when he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease). The Atlantic Bowl, one of two Vanier Cup semi-final games, was renamed the Uteck Bowl in 2003.

Football
NCAA
Katie Hnida of the University of New Mexico Lobos became the first woman to play in a Division I game when she attempted to kick an extra point against the University of California at Los Angeles Bruins in the Las Vegas Bowl. The kick came in the 1st quarter after UNM linebacker Desmar Black had returned an interception 55 yards for a touchdown. Miss Hnida kicked the ball to low, and it was blocked by Brandon Collier. Miss Hnida didn't see any more playing time in the game, and UCLA went on to win 27-13.