December 6, 2013

1,670 years ago
343

Died on this date
Nicholas, 73. Greek clergyman. Nicholas, commonly known as Saint Nicholas, was a Christian bishop in the maritime city of Myra in what is now Turkey. He was credited with many miracles, and his reputation for secret giving inspired the character of Santa Claus.

175 years ago
1838

War
A court martial began in Montreal for Lower Canada rebels accused of high treason. 9 were acquitted and 99 condemned to death; by May 1, 1839, 12 would be executed, 58 deported to Australia, and 27 freed under a caution.

160 years ago
1853

Born on this date
Dick T. Morgan. U.S. politician. Mr. Morgan, a Republican, was a mathematics professor and lawyer before serving in the Illinois House of Representatives (1880-1881). He was appointed by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt as register of the United States Land Office in Woodward, Oklahoma Territory, serving from 1904-1908. Mr. Morgan represented Oklahoma's 2nd (1909-1915) and 8th (1915-19200 Districts in the U.S. House of Representatives, and was expected to be easily re-elected in 1920, but he died of pneumonia in Danville, Illinois on July 4, 1920 at the age of 66, while returning from Washington, D.C. to Oklahoma.

110 years ago
1903

Born on this date
Tony Lazzeri. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Lazzeri was a second baseman with the New York Yankees (1926-1937); Chicago Cubs (1938); Brooklyn Dodgers (1939); and New York Giants (1939), batting .292 with 178 home runs and 1,191 runs batted in in 1,740 games. He was a member of World Series championship teams in 1927, 1928, 1932, 1936, and 1937. On May 24, 1936, "Poosh 'Em Up Tony" became the first major league player to hit 2 grand slams in the same game, and drove in 11 runs, an American league record that still stands. Mr. Lazzeri was an epileptic, but never had a seizure on the field; he died of a reported heart attack on August 6, 1946 at the age of 42, although it was also said that he had suffered a seizure and fallen down the stairs at his home and broken his neck. Mr. Lazzeri was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.

100 years ago
1913

Baseball
The New York Giants and Chicago White Sox arrived in Yokohama Harbor aboard the RMS Empress of Japan to continue their post-season exhibition tour, 17 days after departing Seattle. The teams then went to Tokyo and played their first game in Japan, which the White Sox won 9-4.

90 years ago
1923

On the radio
U.S. President Calvin Coolidge spoke to a joint session of Congress; it was the first presidential address to be broadcast on radio.

75 years ago
1938

Disasters
16 miners were killed when a cable broke, sending a riding rake plummeting into a mine at Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia.

70 years ago
1943

On the radio
The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, on MBS
Tonight's episode: The Camberwell Poisoning Case

War
U.K. forces made a limited crossing of the Moro River at the Adriatic end of the Italian front at San Leonardo. U.S.S.R. Red Army troops cut the Znamenka-Smela railway between Krasnoselye and Tsybulevom, southwest of Kremenchug.

Labour
The U.S. War Manpower Commission reported an increase in manpower needs to a peak of 66.3 million by July 1944, sharply revising earlier estimates.

Disasters
550 people were killed when an earthquake struck the Erbaa region near the Black Sea coast of north-central Turkey.

60 years ago
1953

On the radio
Last Man Out, narrated by Richard English, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Case of Dorothy K. Funn

This is the only known extant episode of the series.

Died on this date
Marion McDowell, 17. Canadian murder victim. Miss McDowell was on a date in Scarborough, Ontario with Jimmy Wilson, 19, when the unlocked door on the driver's side of their parked car was opened by a gun-wielding assailant, and the couple were beaten and robbed. When Mr. Wilson regained consciousness, the car had been driven into the countryside, and Miss McDowell was missing, with only her blood-stained scarf in the car. Despite a large public search, Miss McDowell was never found dead or alive, although it was estimated that she would not likely have survived long because of loss of blood. Mr. Wilson was cleared as a suspect after passing a polygraph test, and the crime remains unsolved.

50 years ago
1963

Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): You'll Never Walk Alone--Gerry and the Pacemakers (5th week at #1)

London's Top 10 (CFPL)
1 She Loves You--The Beatles
2 It's All in the Game--Cliff Richard
3 Dominique--The Singing Nun
4 Forget Him--Bobby Rydell
5 Be True to Your School--The Beach Boys
6 Kickin' My Hound Around--The Lowlanders
7 Drip Drop--Dion Di Muci
8 She's a Fool--Lesley Gore
9 Bossa Nova Baby--Elvis Presley
10 Four Strong Winds--Ian and Sylvia

This was the first Canadian chart on which the Beatles reached #1.

Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Johnny Liar--Molly Bee (3rd week at #1)
2 Move Over--Bobby Curtola
3 It's All in the Game--Cliff Richard
4 I'm Leaving it Up to You--Dale & Grace
5 Pretty Paper--Roy Orbison
6 Be True to Your School--The Beach Boys
7 Midnight Mary--Joey Powers
8 Dominique--The Singing Nun
9 There! I've Said it Again--Bobby Vinton
10 Bossa Nova Baby--Elvis Presley
Pick hit of the week: Silver Bells--Bobby Vinton
New this week: Little Saint Nick--The Beach Boys
I Want to Stand Up on the Mountain--Loreen Church
Fun in Acapulco--Elvis Presley
The Christmas Song--Andy Williams
Taxi-Cab Driver--Dave Dudley
Snowman, Snowman, Sweet Potato Nose--The Jaynetts

Fun in Acapulco was the title song of the movie. Taxi-Cab Driver was presumably the B-side (or maybe the A-side) of Last Day in the Mines, which had been one of the new singles a week earlier.

On television tonight
Twilight Zone, hosted by Rod Serling, on CBS
Tonight's episode: The 7th is Made Up of Phantoms, starring Ron Foster, Randy Boone, Warren Oates, and Greg Morris

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, on CBS
Tonight's episode: The Dividing Wall, starring James Gregory, Chris Robinson, Katharine Ross, and Norman Fell

40 years ago
1973

Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): The Helicopter Song--Wolfe Tones (3rd week at #1)

Politics and government
U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as the 40th Vice-President of the United States of America, succeeding Spiro Agnew, who had resigned on October 10 after pleading no contest to income tax evasion. Mr. Ford pledged his full "support and loyalty" to President Richard Nixon, and bade a "fond goodbye" to his colleagues in the House. John Rhodes (Republican--Arizona) was chosen by acclamation to succeed Mr. Ford as Minority Leader in the House.

Oil
The Canadian government of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau announced its intention to establish national oil company. This was the beginning of PetroCanada.

30 years ago
1983

Terrorism
In the first terrorist bombing in Israel in four years, a bomb destroyed a bus in Jerusalem, killing 5 Israelis and wounding 45.

Medicine
Swedish journalist Lars Ljungberg became the first person in the United Kingdom to receive a successful heart and lung transplant. The operation took place at Harefield Hospital in north London.

25 years ago
1988

Died on this date
Roy Orbison, 52. U.S. musician. "The Big O" was one of this blogger's favourite singers and songwriters. He was one of the most popular performers in the U.S.A. and U.K. from 1960-1964, topping the singles charts in both countries. Mr. Orbison was known for his striking voice and his ballads of lost love, and was the perfect singer for those of us who don't get the girl. His hits included Only the Lonely (1960); Running Scared (1961); Crying (1961); Dream Baby (1962); In Dreams (1963); Blue Bayou (1963); It's Over (1964); and Pretty Woman (1964). Personal tragedies intervened, and record sales declined after a switch of record companies from Monument to MGM in 1965, and Mr. Orbison receded from prominence for many years. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and in 1988 he joined George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, and Tom Petty to form the Traveling Wilburys. Mr. Orbison shared lead vocals on the group's first single, Handle with Care, which was moving up the charts when he died of a heart attack. Mr. Orbison had recently finished recording a new album, Mystery Girl, which was released in January 1989. Although the hits from his days with Monument Records are the ones most people are familiar with, his singles (e.g., Ride Away (1965), Crawling Back (1965)) and albums (e.g., The Orbison Way (1966)) from his early years (1965-1968) with MGM are some of this blogger's favourites.

Space
The U.S. space shuttle Atlantis and her five-man crew landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California to conclude its secret four-day mission for the U.S. Department of Defense.

Politics and government
The Australian Capital Territory was granted self-government.

U.S. Vice-President and President-elect George Bush announced names of some of his nominees for his coming administration. He named Houston businessman Robert Mosbacher, Sr. as Secretary of Commerce; career diplomat Thomas Pickering as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; Stanford University econmoist Michael Boskin as chairman of his Council of Economic Advisers; and Washington, D.C. lawyer Carla Hills as U.S. trade representative. William Webster was retained as director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

20 years ago
1993

Hit parade
#1 single in Germany (Media Control): I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)--Meat Loaf (3rd week at #1)

Died on this date
Don Ameche, 85. U.S. actor. Mr. Ameche, born Dominic Amici, was a star on radio in the early 1930s before going into movies, where he often appeared in comedies and musicals. He often played historical figures, and his most famous role was as the star of The Story of Alexander Graham Bell (1939). Mr. Ameche appeared in numerous television programs in the 1950s and '60s, and returned to movies as a supporting actor in the 1980s, winning an Academy Award for his performance in Cocoon (1985). He died of prostate cancer.

Economics and finance
Edmonton Auditor General Andre Bolduc issued his report on how the Dinosaur World Tour, which had opened in May and run for 77 days, had lost $2.2 million--about $700,000 of that from city coffers.

Labour
25,000 workers in Quebec protested against Bill 142, tabled by the Liberal government of Premier Robert Bourassa. The bill aimed to deregulate the residential construction industry.

10 years ago
2003

War
American air strikes in southeastern Afghanistan missed their Taliban targets and killed 15 civilians, mostly children.

Politics and government
Members of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada approved a proposal to merge with its larger, more conservative rival, the Canadian Alliance. The new party was to be known as the Conservative Party of Canada.

Football
NCAA
Army became the first team to finish 0-13 in U.S. major college football history after a 34-6 loss to Navy.