May 6, 2013

280 years ago
1733

Boxing
In the first international boxing match, Britain’s Bob Whittaker beat Tito di Carni of Italy at Figg’s Amphitheater in London.

180 years ago
1833

Technology
John Deere made the first steel plow.

150 years ago
1863

War
In the U.S. Civil War, the Battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia ended with the defeat of the Army of the Potomac by Confederate troops commanded by J.E.B. Stuart.

100 years ago
1913

Born on this date
Carmen Cavallaro. U.S. musician. Mr. Cavallaro was a pianist and bandleader who was popular from the 1930s through the 1950s. He was known for his performances of "light" music, and was a major influence on Liberace. He died on October 12, 1989 at the age of 76.

Stewart Granger. U.K.-born U.S. actor. Mr. Granger, born James Stewart, was known for his starring roles in period dramas and adventure films such as The Man in Grey (1943); Blanche Fury (1948); King Solomon's Mines (1950); Scaramouche (1952); The Prisoner of Zenda (1952); Bhowani Junction (1956); and North to Alaska (1960). He died on August 16, 1993 at the age of 80.

Died on this date
Alexandros Schinas, 42 or 43. Greek assassin. Mr. Schinas, an anarchist, shot and killed King George I in Thessaloniki on March 18, 1913. On May 6, he jumped or fell out of a window of the gendarmerie in Thessaloniki in what was reported as a suicide.

80 years ago
1933

Protest
The Deutsche Studentenschaft (German Student Union) attacked Magnus Hirschfeld's Institut für Sexualwissenschaft (Institute of Sex Research), later burning many of its books.

Horse racing
Brokers Tip, with Don Meade aboard, won the 59th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville in a time of 2:06 4/5.

Diplomacy
Italy and the U.S.S.R. signed a trade agreement.

75 years ago
1938

World events
Dutch writer Maurits Dekker was sentenced to 50 days in prison for "offending a friendly head of state" (German Chancellor Adolf Hitler).

60 years ago
1953

On the radio
I Was a Communist for the FBI, starring Dana Andrews
Tonight’s episode: An Unamerican Activity

Baseball
Bobo Holloman, making his first major league start, pitched a no-hitter for the St. Louis Browns as they blanked the Philadelphia Athletics 6-0 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. The no-hitter turned out to be the only complete game of Mr. Holloman's major league career; two months later he was sent to the minors after compiling a 3-7 record with an earned run average of 5.23. Mr. Holloman never returned to the major leagues after 1953.

50 years ago
1963

Died on this date
Monty Woolley, 74. U.S. actor. Mr. Woolley was best known for playing the title role in The Man Who Came to Dinner on Broadway (1939) and in the movie of the same name (1941). He died of heart and kidney ailments.

Ted Weems, 61. U.S. bandleader and musician. Mr. Weems, a violinist and trombonist, was popular from the 1920s through the 1940s. His hit singles included Somebody Stole My Gal (1924); Piccolo Pete (1929); and The Man from the South (1929). In 1933 his band recorded and released Heartaches, but the song didn't become a major hit until 1947, when a disc jockey began playing some old records that he'd come across, and listener demand prompted a re-release of the record.

Beverly Samans, 23. U.S. murder victim. Miss Samans was stabbed to death in Cambridge, Massachusetts, but was regarded as the tenth victim of the Boston Strangler. The killer had attempted to strangle Miss Samans with a nylon stocking and two handkerchiefs, but her throat muscles were apparently strong enough to resist strangling.

Boxing
Leotis Martin (7-0) scored a technical knockout over Frank Davis (1-2) in the 2nd round of a heavyweight bout at Cambria Athletic Club in Philadelphia.

Football
NFL
Quarterback Bobby Layne announced his retirement after 15 seasons in the National Football League. Mr. Layne played with the Chicago Bears (1948); New York Bulldogs (1949); Detroit Lions (1950-1958); and Pittsburgh Steelers (1958-1962). The Lions won the NFL championship in 1952, 1953, and 1957, and haven't won the title since. Mr. Layne threw 196 touchdown passes in his career, a record at the time. Mr. Layne retired on the advice of Steelers' head coach Buddy Parker, under whom he had played for 12 of his 15 seasons.

40 years ago
1973

Died on this date
Ernest MacMillan, 79. Canadian conductor and composer. Sir Ernest was principal of the Toronto (now Royal) Conservatory of Music from 1926-1942, and conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra from 1931-1956.

Terrorism
In response to the demands of People's Revolutionary Armed Forces guerrillas who had kidnapped U.S. Consul General Terrance Leonhardy two days earlier, the Mexican government freed 30 prisoners and flew them to Cuba. The kidnappers promised to release Mr. Leonhardy when they received official word that the prisoners were safe in Cuba.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Montreal 4 @ Chicago 0 (Montreal led best-of-seven series 3-1)

Marc Tardif's goal just 1:08 into the game proved to be the winner as the Canadiens blanked the Black Hawks at Chicago Stadium. Ken Dryden posted the shutout in goal for Montreal, making 19 saves.

WHA
Avco World Trophy
Finals
Winnipeg 6 @ New England 9 (New England won best-of-seven series 4-1)

Larry Pleau scored 3 goals to lead the Whalers over the Jets at Boston Garden. Jack Kelley was the winning coach as the Whalers became the first team to win the Avco World Trophy.



30 years ago
1983

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Let's Dance--David Bowie (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Bruttosozialprodukt--Geier Sturzflug

Died on this date
Kai Winding, 60. Danish-born U.S. jazz musician and composer. Mr. Winding, a trombonist, was a member of the bands of Benny Goodman and later, Stan Kenton after World War II. Mr. Winding’s best-known recording was the single More, the theme from the movie Mondo Cane. More reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the late summer of 1963.

Politics and government
The United States Senate Intelligence Committee approved a bill that authorized continued covert aid to the Contras in Nicaragua provided that the administration of President Ronald Reagan outlined its objectives in Nicaragua by September 30.

Diplomacy
Israel gave its approval to a U.S.-backed plan for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon. Israeli acceptance, however, was conditional on the agreement of Syria.

Scandal
The "Hitler Diaries," which had been published in April by the West German magazine Stern, were pronounced a hoax by West German historians who had had a chance to examine them. Hans Booms, head of the federal archives, called the documents "a blatant, grotesque and superficial forgery." It was established that the paper, glue, and artificial leather covers had been manufactured after the war. English historian Hugh Trevor-Roper, an alleged "expert" on World War II, believed that the documents were the actual diaries of Adolf Hitler, and was exposed as a total idiot when the hoax was revealed. Mr. Trevor-Roper was known for his denial of the accuracy of the historical accounts given in the Bible; given his ignorance of an area of history that he was supposed to be knowledgeable in, and his inability to accurately judge the authenticity of documents that were less than 50 years old, nobody needed to take seriously his statements about documents that were several thousand years old, concerning an area of history in which was not his main area of expertise. The diaries were produced by veteran West German forger Konrad Kujau. Years later, in an interview for the CTV program W5, Mr. Kujau was asked his opinion of the academics who had been fooled by him. He said, "They're idiots. They compared my Hitler diaries with other Hitler documents which were also my forgeries. They're all totally incompetent."

Economics and finance
The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit 1,232.59, a new high.

Baseball
At Tiger Stadium, the California Angels defeated Detroit 4-2, as Rod Carew went 3-for-4 to raise his batting average for the season to .500 (48-for 96).

25 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Heart--Pet Shop Boys (3rd week at #1)

War
Bloody fighting broke out in the southern suburbs of Beirut between the pro-Iranian Hezbollah (Party of God) and the Syrian-supported Amal militia. Both sides were competing for the support of Lebanon’s Shiites.

Scandal
Two aides to U.S. Vice President George Bush said that Attorney General Edwin Meese should resign because allegations of misconduct posed problems for Mr. Bush’s presidential campaign.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Prince of Wales Conference
Finals
Boston 6 @ New Jersey 1 (Boston led best-of-seven series 2-1)

Devils’ head coach Jim Schoenfeld was enraged by the officiating of referee Don Koharski, and confronted him after the game, shouting the immortal line, "Have another donut, you fat pig!" Mr. Koharski, one of the worst referees in all recorded history, tripped when trying to avoid him, and fell against a wall. Mr. Schoenfeld was suspended for "pushing" Mr. Koharski.

Basketball
NBA
Playoffs
Eastern Conference
First Round
Atlanta 99 @ Milwaukee 105 (Best-of-five series tied 2-2)
Boston 102 @ New York 94 (Boston won best-of-five series 3-1)

Western Conference
First Round
Portland 96 @ Utah 111 (Utah won best-of-five series 3-1)

20 years ago
1993

Hit parade
#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Informer--Snow (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Ann Todd, 84. U.K. actress. Miss Todd appeared in such movies as The Seventh Veil (1945); The Paradine Case (1947); So Evil My Love (1948); The Passionate Friends (1949); Madeleine (1950); and The Sound Barrier (1952), the last three of which were directed by her second husband, David Lean.

Space
The U.S. space shuttle Columbia and her seven-man crew commanded by Steven Nagel landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California at the end of the 10-day research mission STS-55.

Abominations
The Quebec National Assembly, led by the Liberal government of Premier Robert Bourassa, passed Bill 86, permitting interior English signs if they are smaller than those outside.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Prince of Wales Conference
Division Finals
Montreal 4 @ Buffalo 3 (OT) (Montreal led best-of-seven series 3-0)
Pittsburgh 3 @ New York Islanders 1 (Pittsburgh led best-of-seven series 2-1)

Gilbert Dionne scored at 8:28 of the 1st overtime period to give the Canadiens their win over the Sabres at War Memorial Auditorium.

Basketball
NBA
Playoffs
Eastern Conference
First Round
New York 109 @ Indiana 100 (New York won best-of-five series 3-1)

Western Conference
First Round
Phoenix 101 @ Los Angeles Lakers 86 (Best-of-five series tied 2-2)
Seattle 93 @ Utah 80 (Best-of-five series tied 2-2)

10 years ago
2003

Died on this date
Art Houtteman, 75. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Houtteman played with the Detroit Tigers (1945-1953), Cleveland Indians (1953-1957), and Baltimore Orioles (1957), compiling a record of 87 wins and 91 losses. In 1950 he posted a 19-12 record, led the American League in shutouts with 4, and pitched for the AL in the major league All-Star game. In 1954 the Indians won the AL pennant with a record of 111-43, and Mr. Houtteman, part of a starting rotation that included Bob Lemon (23-7), Early Wynn (23-11), Mike Garcia (19-8), and Bob Feller (13-3), finished with a 15-7 record, and pitched in game 3 of the Indians' 4-game loss to the New York Giants in the World Series.

Diplomacy
Four days after India announced the resumption of diplomatic relations with Pakistan, Pakistan reciprocated, and Pakistani Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali said that Pakistan would reduce tariffs on 70 Indian imports.

U.S. President George W. Bush named L. Paul Bremer III, a retired diplomat, as his envoy in Iraq, with authority over Lieutenant General Jay Garner (retired), who had been named head of the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance just three weeks earlier.

War
U.S. officials said that a tractor-trailer found in northern Iraq in April might have been used as a mobile lab for chemical or biological weapons.

Health
The United States reported 63 cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) so far, with no deaths.