March 10, 2013

500 years ago
1513

Died on this date
John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford, 70. English military officer. Mr. de Vere was one of the leading Lancastrian commanders in the Wars of the Roses and helped Henry VII to victory in the Battle of Bosworth in 1485.

125 years ago
1888

Born on this date
Baldwin Cooke. U.S. actor. Mr. Cooke toured in vaudeville with Stan Laurel and appeared in many Laurel and Hardy movies. He died on December 31, 1953 at the age of 65.

Barry Fitzgerald. Irish actor. Mr. Fitzgerald won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Going My Way (1944). He died on January 14, 1961 at the age of 72.

110 years ago
1903

Born on this date
Bix Beiderbecke. U.S. musician. Mr. Beiderbecke was a cornetist and pianist who was one of the major figures in jazz in the 1920s, performing and recording under his own name and with bands led by Jean Goldkette, Frank Trumbauer, Paul Whiteman, and Hoagy Carmichael. He was known for cornet solos on recordings of tunes such as Singin' the Blues (1927) and I'm Coming, Virginia (1927), while his best-known composition and recording was the piano solo In a Mist (1927). Heavy drinking interfered with Mr. Beiderbecke's career and led to his death on August 6, 1931 at the age of 28, which occurred in his New York apartment after an episode of hysterical screaming and trembling.

Hockey
Stanley Cup
Montreal Victorias 0 @ Ottawa Silver Seven 8 (Ottawa won two-game total goals challenge series 9-1)

100 years ago
1913

Died on this date
Harriet Tubman, 93 (?). U.S. social activist. Mrs. Tubman, born into slavery in Maryland, escaped and became a leading figure in the Underground Railroad, helping more than 70 people to escape slavery. She also acted as a cook, nurse, scout, and spy for the Union army in the U.S. Civil War.

Hockey
Stanley Cup
Sydney 2 @ Quebec Bulldogs 6 (Quebec won best-of-three challenge series 2-0)

The Bulldogs were the defending champions, having defeated Moncton for the Cup in 1912.

80 years ago
1933

Disasters
An earthquake struck Long Beach, California, killing 115 people and causing $40 million in damage. Older buildings withstood the earthquake better than those built more recently.

75 years ago
1938

Movies
The Academy Awards for 1937 were presented at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. The winners included: Picture--The Life of Emile Zola; Director--Leo McCarey (The Awful Truth); Actor--Spencer Tracy (Captains Courageous); Actress--Luise Rainer (The Good Earth); Supporting Actor--Joseph Schildkraut (The Life of Emile Zola); Supporting Actress--Alice Brady (In Old Chicago).

World events
German Chancellor Adolf Hitler announced that he would not accept the results of the referendum on Austrian independence scheduled for March 13, declaring that the vote would be subject to major fraud. The referendum had been announced the day before by Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg in a desperate attempt to maintain his country's independence. The German Ministry of Propaganda issued press releases stating that riots had broken out in Austria and that large parts of the Austrian population were calling for German troops to restore order. Mr. Schuschnigg immediately responded publicly that reports of riots were false.

60 years ago
1953

On television tonight
Suspense, on CBS
Tonight's episode: The Legend of Lizzie, starring Katharine Bard

40 years ago
1973

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K.: Cum on Feel the Noize--Slade (2nd week at #1)

Australia's top 10 (Go-Set)
1 You're So Vain--Carly Simon
2 I'd Love You to Want Me--Lobo
3 Crocodile Rock--Elton John
4 I Am Woman--Helen Reddy
5 Nights in White Satin--The Moody Blues
6 Dreams are Ten a Penny--Kincade
7 I've Got to Have You--Carly Simon
8 Your Mama Don't Dance--The Bootleg Family
9 Mouldy Old Dough--Lieutenant Pigeon
10 Ben--Michael Jackson

Singles entering the chart were Dueling Banjos by Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandell (#28); Beautiful You by Neil Sedaka (#30); Made in Japan by Buck Owens and the Buckaroos (#31); Living Next Door to Alice by New World (#35); Funny Face by Donna Fargo (#36); and Top of the World by the Carpenters (#37).

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Killing Me Softly with His Song--Roberta Flack (3rd week at #1)

U.S. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Killing Me Softly with His Song--Roberta Flack
1 Dueling Banjos--Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandell
3 Love Train--O'Jays
4 Last Song--Edward Bear
5 Could it Be I'm Falling in Love--The Spinners
6 Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001)--Deodato
7 Rocky Mountain High--John Denver
8 Daddy's Home--Jermaine Jackson
9 The Cover of "Rolling Stone"--Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show
10 Jambalaya (On the Bayou)--The Blue Ridge Rangers

Singles entering the chart were Oh La De Da by the Staple Singers (#69); The Cisco Kid by War (#75); Out of the Question by Gilbert O'Sullivan (#78); Yesterday I Had the Blues by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes (#84); Blue Suede Shoes by Johnny Rivers (#86); Cherry Cherry by Neil Diamond (#87); Stuck in the Middle with You by Stealers Wheel (#88); Saw a New Morning by the Bee Gees (#92); and Last Tango in Paris by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass (#95). This version of Cherry Cherry was a live version of Mr. Diamond's 1966 hit. Last Tango in Paris was a version of the theme from the movie.

Canada's top 10 (RPM)
1 Crocodile Rock--Elton John (4th week at #1)
2 Danny's Song--Anne Murray
3 Oh Babe, What Would You Say--Hurricane Smith
4 Don't Expect Me to Be Your Friend--Lobo
5 Jambalaya (On the Bayou)--The Blue Ridge Rangers
6 Do it Again--Steely Dan
7 Gypsy--Abraham's Children
8 You Are What I Am/That Same Old Obsession--Gordon Lightfoot
9 Killing Me Softly with His Song--Roberta Flack
10 I Just Want to Make Music--Tobias

Singles entering the chart were Daisy a Day by Jud Strunk (#93); Hello A by Mouth and MacNeal (#99); and Papa Joe by Eric (#100).

Calgary’s top 10
1 Killing Me Softly with His Song--Roberta Flack (2nd week at #1)
2 Daddy's Home--Jermaine Jackson
3 Dueling Banjos--Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandell
4 Dancing in the Moonlight--King Harvest
5 Do You Want to Dance--Bette Midler
6 Don't Expect Me to Be Your Friend--Lobo
7 Superfly--Curtis Mayfield
8 Big City Miss Ruth Ann--Gallery
9 Crocodile Rock--Elton John
10 You're So Vain--Carly Simon
Pick hit of the week: Little Willy--The Sweet

Died on this date
Eugene "Bull" Connor, 75 . U.S. bureaucrat. Mr. Connor was Commissioner of Public Safety for the city of Birmingham, Alabama from 1937-1952 and 1957-1963, enforcing a policy of racial segregation. He achieved notoriety in 1963 for ordering fire hoses and police dogs to be used against peaceful civil rights protesters, including children.

Richard Sharples, 56. Governor of Bermuda, 1972-1973. Sir Richard and his aide-de-camp, Captain Hugh Sayers, 26, and Sir Richard's Great Dane, Horsa, were shot dead as they strolled on the grounds of Government House in Hamilton.

Crime
U.S. President Richard Nixon, in his weekly radio address, announced that he had asked Attorney General Richard Kleindienst to draft a new law to send to Congress that would revive capital punishment for assassination, treason, kidnapping, air hijacking, and murder of law enforcement officials and prison guards. He also asked for mandatory life imprisonment with no parole for narcotics sellers convicted of a second drug-related felony.

30 years ago
1983

Defense
In an address to the National Association of Manufacturers, U.S. President Ronald Reagan asserted that El Salvador was a target of efforts by the U.S.S.R. and Cuba to spread communism in Central America. He said he would increase his request for military aid to El Salvador from $60 million, announced two weeks earlier, to $110 million. Mr. Reagan also said he would ask for more economic assistance for Central American nations.

25 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Together Forever--Rick Astley

Died on this date
Glenn Cunningham, 78. U.S. runner. A native of Elkhart, Kansas, Mr. Cunningham suffered severe burns to his legs (and had the toes of his left foot amputated) at the age of 8 in a schoolhouse fire which killed his brother Floyd. Doctors recommended amputating his legs, but Glenn's mother wouldn't allow it. Doctors predicted he would never walk normally again; it was two years until he took his first steps, but he eventually proved the doctors wrong. Mr. Cunningham graduated from the University of Kansas, where he won two national collegiate titles and eight Amateur Athletic Union crowns, five of them in the outdoor one mile and 1,500 metres. He acquired the nicknames Kansas Flyer, Elkhart Express, and Iron Horse of Kansas. Mr. Cunningham was national collegiate and AAU champion in 1932, and placed fourth in the 1,500 metres at the Olympics in Los Angeles. In 1933 he received the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States. Also that year, his hometown of Elkhart honoured him with Glenn Cunningham Day after he returned from Europe, having won 11 straight races. On June 16, 1934, Mr. Cunningham ran the mile in 4:06.8, a world record that stood for three years. He won three straight Big Six indoor titles from 1932-1934. Mr. Cunningham made his second Olymic appearance at Berlin in 1936. He beat the world record in the final of the 1,500 metres, but Jack Lovelock of New Zealand was even faster, and Mr. Cunningham had to settle for the silver medal. Two weeks later, on August 20, Mr. Cunningham ran the 800 metres in 1:49.7, a world record that stood for 11 months. In 1938, on an oversized indoor track at Dartmouth College, he set a world record time of 4:04.4. Mr. Cunningham retired from running in 1940 after the Olympics were cancelled. In World War II he entered the Navy and established physical training programs at the Great Lakes and San Diego training stations. He later became a rancher and devoted his time to youth. Glenn Cunningham was elected to the United States Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1974. Many consider him the greatest U.S. miler ever.

Pham Hung, 75. Prime Minister of Vietnam, 1987-1988. Pham joined the Indochinese Communist Party in 1930, was sentenced to death by French authorities, had his sentence commuted, and was freed in 1945 when Communist forces took power in Hanoi. He loyally served the Communist cause in the war for independence against the French, and as an apparatchik with the government of North Vietnam and the united Vietnam until becoming Prime Minister in June 1987. He died of a heart attack.

Andy Gibb, 30. U.K.-born Australian singer. Andy Gibb was the younger brother of Barry, Robin and Maurice of the Bee Gees, and duelled with them for supremacy of the singles charts from 1977-1979, before a cocaine addiction derailed his career. Mr. Gibb's first hit, Words and Music, hit Sydney's top 5 in 1976. This success led to a contract with RSO, the same label his brothers recorded for. His first single, I Just Want to Be Your Everything, topped the U.S. chart for 4 weeks in the summer of 1977. The follow-up, (Love Is) Thicker Than Water, spent 2 weeks at #1 in March 1978. The next single, Shadow Dancing, was #1 for 7 weeks, making Mr. Gibb the first male solo performer to have three straight singles hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Mr. Gibb had three subsequent U.S. top 10 hit singles: An Everlasting Love (#5, 1978); (Our Love) Don't Throw it All Away (#9, 1978-79); and Desire (#4, 1980). His first five RSO singles each sold over one million copies, with Shadow Dancing earning a platinum record award for sales of over two million. His albums Flowing Rivers and Shadow Dancing were also million-sellers. Mr. Gibb's duet with Olivia Newton-John, I Can't Help It, hit #12 on the U.S. chart in 1980. Time is Time (1980-81) hit #15, while Me (Without You) stopped at #40 in April 1981. A romantic relationship with actress Victoria Principal produced a duet, All I Have to Do is Dream, which stalled at #51 on the U.S. chart. It was Mr. Gibb's last single release. By this time he was using cocaine heavily, and was considered unreliable, althoough he did co-host the syndicated television show Solid Gold for a time. Mr. Gibb went to the Betty Ford Center for treatment of his addiction. The treatment was apparently successful, but Mr. Gibb was never able to recapture his success; he performed in small clubs and made a few television appearances. He made a few demo recordings with his brothers, at least one of which was posthumously released on an album in 1991. Five days after celebrating his 30th birthday in London, where he was recording, Mr. Gibb checked into hospital complaining of chest pains. He succumbed to myocarditis (heart inflammation); the years of cocaine abuse had seriously weakened his heart.

War
Turkish Premier Turgut Ozal said that he had arranged a truce between Iran and Iraq, to take effect on March 11.

World events
Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, narrowly escaped death while skiing in Switzerland when an avalanche struck, killing one of his closest friends, Major Hugh Lindsay.

Politics and government
Rev. Jesse Jackson won the Alaska primary in the 1988 Democratic party contest for the nomination to be President of the United States. U.S. Representative Jack Kemp (New York), who was doing poorly in the contest for the Republican party nomination, withdrew from the campaign.

20 years ago
1993

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): No Limit--2 Unlimited (3rd week at #1)

Died on this date
David Gunn, 47. U.S. abortionist. Dr. Gunn was shot to death outside his clinic in Pensacola, Florida by anti-abortion activist Michael Griffin in the first recorded such murder in the United States.

War
Egyptian forces conducted nine raids on militants in Cairo and Aswan, killing 21 and wounding two dozen.

10 years ago
2003

Politics and government
The Palestinian Legislative Council created the position of prime minister and gave the office control over internal affairs. Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat nominated Mahmoud Abbas, the PLO's second-in-command, to fill the position. Mr. Arafat would continue to handle external affairs.

Seydou Diarra became Premier of Ivory Coast under a French-brokered peace accord for sharing power among government, opposition parties, and three rebel factions. 3,000 people had died in civil war in the previous six months.

Protest
During a concert by the Dixie Chicks at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in London, singer Natalie Maines said, "Just so you know, we're on the good side with y'all. We do not want this war, this violence. And we're ashamed the President of the United States is from Texas." Her remarks, when published in the British newspaper The Guardian two days later, resulted in a backlash against the group in the United States.