April 13, 2013

400 years ago
1613

Americana
Samuel Argall captured Native American princess Pocahontas in Passapatanzy, Virginia to ransom her for some English prisoners held by her father. She was brought to the city of Henricus as hostage.

160 years ago
1853

Died on this date
James Iredell, Jr., 64. U.S. politician. Mr. Iredell was Governor of North Carolina from 1827-1828 and represented the state in the United States Senate from 1828-1831.

140 years ago
1873

Abominations
Estimates varying from 50 to over 100 Negro freedmen and state militia men were killed by whites in a riot over control of the Grant Parish courthouse in Colfax, Louisiana. The Colfax Riot, aka Colfax Massacre, resulted from a dispute over results in the election for Governor of Louisiana.

130 years ago
1883

Born on this date
Aleksandr Vasilevich Aleksandrov, 63. U.S.S.R. composer. Mr. Aleksandrov wrote the Soviet national anthem, which is now--with different lyrics--the Russian national anthem. He died on July 8, 1946 at the age of 83, while on tour in Berlin.

110 years ago
1903

Born on this date
Ken Jones. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Jones appeared in 1 game with the Detroit Tigers in 1924 and 8 games with the Boston Braves in 1930, compiling a record of 0-1 with an earned run average of 5.40 in 21 2/3 innings. In seven seasons in the minor leagues he compiled a record of 69-87 in 199 games. Mr. Jones died on May 15, 1991 at the age of 88.

100 years ago
1913

Born on this date
Kermit Tyler. U.S. military aviator. Mr. Tyler was a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Air Force serving as Executive Officer of the 78th Pursuit Squadron, based at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in 1941. On the morning of December 7, he was assigned as Officer in Charge of the Pearl Harbor Intercept Center, with duties to assist the controller in ordering planes to intercept enemy planes or supposed enemy planes. Lt. Tyler was warned of a large flight from the north, and assumed it was the scheduled arrival of U.S. B-17 bombers from the mainland. In fact, the approaching planes were Japanese bombers. Lt. Tyler was cleared by a board of inquiry of any wrongdoing because of his lack of training, supervision, and staff with which to work. Mr. Tyler became a lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force and retired in 1961. He died on January 23, 2010 at the age of 96.

80 years ago
1933

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
New York Rangers 1 @ Toronto 0 (OT) (New York won best-of-five series 3-1)

The Rangers held a 2-man advantage when Bill Cook scored the Cup-winning goal at 7:18 of overtime at Maple Leaf Gardens.

75 years ago
1938

Died on this date
Grey Owl, 49. U.K.-born Canadian conservationist. Born Archibald Belaney near Hastings, England, he emigrated to Canada as a teenager, and ended up in northern Ontario, where he adopted an Indian identity, including the name Grey Owl. Grey Owl married a Native Canadian girl, who led him to abandon trapping and become a conservationist. Books such as The Men of the Last Frontier (1931) and magazine articles that he wrote while he was working with the Dominion Parks Service were influential in leading Canadians to view their land and animals as resources to be protected rather than exploited. Grey Owl, who was a heavy drinker, died in his cabin near Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. The day after his death, the North Bay Nugget, which had been sitting on the story for three years, became the first newspaper to expose the fact that Canada's leading "Native" conservationist was a white Englishman.

70 years ago
1943

Abominations
The discovery of a mass grave of Polish prisoners of war killed by Soviet forces in the Katyń Forest Massacre was announced, causing a diplomatic rift between the Polish government in exile in London from the Soviet Union, which denied responsibility.

Americana
The Jefferson Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C., on the 200th anniversary of Thomas Jefferson's birth.



60 years ago
1953

Abominations
U.S. Central Intelligence Agency director Allen Dulles launched the mind-control program MKUltra, which included the administration of hallucinogenic drugs to unwitting subjects.

50 years ago
1963

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): In Dreams--Roy Orbison

#1 single in France: Tous les Garçons et les Filles--Françoise Hardy (13th week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Come te non c'è nessuno--Rita Pavone (4th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Ich kauf' mir lieber einen Tirolerhut--Billy Mo (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): How Do You Do It--Gerry and the Pacemakers (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): He's So Fine--The Chiffons (3rd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 He's So Fine--The Chiffons (3rd week at #1)
2 Can't Get Used to Losing You--Andy Williams
3 South Street--The Orlons
4 The End of the World--Skeeter Davis
5 Our Day Will Come--Ruby and the Romantics
6 I Will Follow Him--Little Peggy March
7 Baby Workout--Jackie Wilson
8 Puff the Magic Dragon--Peter, Paul and Mary
9 Young Lovers--Paul and Paula
10 Our Winter Love--Bill Pursell

Singles entering the chart were Losing You by Brenda Lee (#59); Reverend Mr. Black by the Kingston Trio (#61); Take These Chains from My Heart by Ray Charles (#78); The Love of My Man by Theola Kilgore (#85); Bony Moronie by the Appalachians (#87); Hot Pastrami by the Dartells (#89); Come and Get These Memories by Martha and the Vandellas (#90); Call Me Irresponsible, with versions by Frank Sinatra; and Jack Jones (#94); Pushover by Etta James (#95); Ann-Marie by the Belmonts (#97); What a Guy by the Raindrops (#99); Don't Let Her Be Your Baby by the Contours (#100); and Still by Bill Anderson (also #100). Call Me Irresponsible was originally from the movie Papa's Delicate Condition (1963), and went on to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Boxing
Ernie Terrell (31-4) won a 10-round split decision over Cleveland Williams (58-5-1) in a heavyweight bout at Philadelphia Arena. On the undercard, Leotis Martin (6-0) scored a technical knockout over Monte Monnie McCoy (3-2) in the 4th round of a heavyweight bout.



40 years ago
1973

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Crocodile Rock--Elton John

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Der Junge mit der Mundharmonika--Bernd Clüver

World events
Palden Thondup Namgyal, the Chogyal of Sikkim, emerged from a week's isolation to announce that he had agreed with the Indian government to yield to most of the demands of his opposition, and said that his party would sit down with the opposition to work out the future administration of the Indian protectorate.

Hockey
NHL
The Detroit Red Wings fired coach Johnny Wilson. The Red Wings had compiled a record of 37-19-12 in 1972-73, fifth in the East Division and just 2 points behind the Buffalo Sabres in the battle for the fourth and last playoff spot in the division. Mr. Wilson had become the Red Wings' coach in November 1971, replacing the fired Doug Barkley.

IIHF
World Men's Championship @ Moscow
Czechoslovakia 2 @ U.S.S.R. 4
Sweden 2 Finland 1

Boris Mikhailov scored 2 goals as the Soviets beat defending world champion Czechoslovakia at Luzhniki Sports Palace to clinch the world championship. Sweden clinched second place with the win over Finland.

30 years ago
1983

Politics and government
U.S. Congressman Edward Boland (Democrat, Massachusetts) said that the administration of President Ronald Reagan had apparently violated the so-called Boland Amendment, a law passed in 1982 that prohibited the use of U.S. defense funds to help overthrow the Sandanista government of Nicaragua. Rep. Boland cited "very strong" evidence that the United States was helping anti-Sandanista rebels. After returning from Central America, an 8-member delegation that included two members of the House of Representatives reported that the United States was "deeply involved in covert activities aimed at overthrowing the government of Nicaragua."

25 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Allt som jag känner--Tone Norum and Tommy Nilsson (9th week at #1)

Died on this date
Jean Gascon, 67. Canadian actor and theatre director. Mr. Gascon was artistic director of the Stratford Festival of Canada from 1968-1974.

Terrorism
A refuelled Kuwait Airlways jet that had been hijacked on April 5 left Larnaca, Cyprus and flew to Algiers with more than 30 hostages still aboard. The hijackers were demanding the release by Kuwait of 17 Shiite prisoners.

20 years ago
1993

Died on this date
Wallace Stegner, 84. U.S. writer. Mr. Stegner won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1972 for his novel Angle of Repose and the National Book Award for Fiction in 1977 for his novel The Spectator Bird. He died 16 days after being injured in a car accident.

War
More than 50 civilians were reported killed in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica as a result of artillery fire from Serbian nationalists.

Protest
Hundreds of prison inmates at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville, Ohio seized a cell block and held eight guards as hostages.

Environment
British Columbia Premier Mike Harcourt announced that his government would allow limited logging in the last major old-growth forest on Vancouver Island, in the Clayoquot Sound area. Environmentalists were outraged, while logging advocates were dissatisfied with the limitations imposed.

10 years ago
2003

War
U.S. President George W. Bush accused Syria of having chemical weapons and of allowing Iraqi leaders to enter the country. Five members of the U.S. Army 50th Maintenance Company who had been ambushed near Nasiriyah, Iraq on March 22 were found alive by U.S. troops north of Baghdad after being abandoned by their captors. Also rescued were two U.S. soldiers who had been in an Apache helicopter that had been downed on March 24.

Golf
Mike Weir of Bright's Grove, Ontario became the first Canadian to win a major tournament, defeating Len Mattiace on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff to win the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Georgia. The two had finished the regulation 72 holes in 281 strokes, 7 under par. Defending champion Tiger Woods finished at 290, 2 over par.