January 15, 2014

180 years ago
1834

Born on this date
Samuel Arza Davenport. U.S. politician and journalist. Mr. Davenport, a lawyer by profession, was owner and publisher of the Erie Gazette (1865-1890). A Republican, he represented Pennsylvania's at-large district in the U.S. House of Representatives (1897-1901). Mr. Davenport died on August 1, 1911 at the age of 77.

170 years ago
1844

Academia
The University of Notre Dame received its charter from the state of Indiana.

125 years ago
1889

Business
The Coca-Cola Company, then known as the Pemberton Medicine Company, was incorporated in Atlanta, Georgia.

100 years ago
1914

Born on this date
Hugh Trevor-Roper. U.K. historian. Mr. Trevor-Roper was reputed to be an expert on 17th-century Britain and Nazi Germany, but was exposed as a fool when he vouched for the authenticity of the "Hitler diaries" in the early 1980s, which were exposed as a hoax. Mr. Trevor-Roper mocked Christian belief in the truth of the history recorded in the Bible--a period of history that wasn't his specialty--but he couldn't recognize the fraudulence of documents from a very recent period of history that was his specialty. He died on January 26, 2003 at the age of 89.

80 years ago
1934

Music
Arnold Bax's Symphony No. 5 received its premiere performance.



75 years ago
1939

Football
NFL
All-Star Game @ Wrigley Field, Los Angeles
New York 13 All-Stars 10

15,000 fans saw the 1938 champion Giants defeat the All-Stars in the first annual NFL All-Star Game. The All-Stars were coached by Ray Flaherty of the Washington Redskins and Gus Henderson of the Detroit Lions.

70 years ago
1944

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Paper Doll--The Mills Brothers (Best Seller--11th week at #1); Shoo-Shoo Baby--The Andrews Sisters with Vic Schoen and his Orchestra (Jukebox--1st week at #1)

War
In a three-way drive on German lines before the Baltic states, Soviet troops opened a new offensive in the Leningrad and Lake Ilmen areas and near Nevel. U.S. troops in Italy took Mount Trecchio, the last mountain obstacle before Cassino.

Economics and finance
The U.S. War Production Board reported war expenditures for 1943 at $85.135 billion.

Puerto Rico completed its program of purchase of electric power utilities and became the first U.S. territory or state with public ownership in this field.

60 years ago
1954

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Oh, Mein Papa (Oh! My Pa-Pa)--Eddie Calvert (2nd week at #1)

50 years ago
1964

Died on this date
Jack Teagarden, 58. U.S. musician. Mr. Teagarden, the "Father of Jazz Trombone," was also a vocalist, and led his own band for much of the period from the 1920s until his death from a heart attack. Basin Street Blues was one of the tunes most associated with him.

Diplomacy
Lester Pearson arrived in Paris to begin the first visit to France by a Canadian Prime Minister.

40 years ago
1974

Hit parade
#1 single in France: Les divorcés--Michel Delpech (3rd week at #1)

Protest
Eight people were killed in Jakarta, Indonesia in demonstrations against Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka, who was continuing his five-nation tour of southeast Asia. Anti-Japanese sentiment spurred attacks on Japanese property, leading to the burning of hundreds of cars and the cancellation of Mr. Tanaka's program. Indonesian President Suharto offered regrets over the events at a dinner in Mr. Tanaka's honour.

Scandal
A court-appointed panel of six technical experts that had investigated the 18 1/2-minute gap in the tape of the June 20, 1972 White House conversation between U.S. President Richard Nixon and chief of staff Bob Haldeman reported that the gap had been caused by at least five separate erasures and re-recordings. The tape was one of those turned over by Mr. Nixon to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Campaign Activities that was investigating the June 17, 1972 break-in at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C. and the subsequent cover-up. The panel concluded that the gap culd not have been caused by a single accidental pressing of a wrong button, as the administration had contended. Although the panel report did not state whether the erasures had been made deliberately, the experts, under questioning by Assistant Special Watergate Prosecutor Richard Ben-Veniste, agreed that their evidence would be "consistent" with results that would be found if the attempt had been deliberate.

30 years ago
1984

Hit parade
#1 single in France: Flashdance...What a Feeling--Irene Cara (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: ? (Fragezeichen)--Nena (2nd week at #1)

Diplomacy
Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang arrived in Ottawa to begin a seven-day state visit to Canada.

Politics and government
The eight candidates for the Democratic party nomination for President of the United States in the November election participated in a televised debate in New Hampshire.

Veteran politician Tony Benn, who epitomized England's "loony left," won the Labour Party nomination for a by-election in the riding of Chesterfield. Mr. Benn had lost his seat in the 1983 British general election after his riding in Bristol had been gerrymandered.

25 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)--The Proclaimers

#1 single in Switzerland: Bring Me Edelweiss--Edelweiss

Austria's top 10 (Ö3)
1 Don't Worry Be Happy--Bobby McFerrin
2 Bring Me Edelweiss--Edelweiss
3 Patrona Bavariae--Original Naabtal Duo
4 Stop!--Sam Brown
5 One Moment in Time--Whitney Houston
6 Tango Korrupti--Rainhard Fendrich
7 Hand in Hand--Koreana
8 A Groovy Kind of Love--Phil Collins
9 The Boxer--Rockip
10 Macho Macho--Rainhard Fendrich

Singles entering the chart were Never Trust a Stranger by Kim Wilde (#14); Two Hearts by Phil Collins (#18); Wee Rule by Wee Papa Girl Rappers (#20); First Time by Robin Beck (#23); and Christkind is in the House by XXX (#28).

Disasters
170 people were killed and 1,000 injured when a mail train and an express train carrying religious pilgrims collided head-on in Bangladesh.

20 years ago
1994

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (ARIA): Boom! Shake the Room--DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince

#1 single in Italy: Penso Positivo--Jovanotti (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Saturday Night--Whigfield (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Denmark (Nielsen Music Control & IFPI): All for Love--Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart and Sting (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Flanders (VRT): I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)--Meat Loaf (4th week at #1)

#1 single in France (SNEP): Please Forgive Me--Bryan Adams

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): Ik wil niet dat je liegt/Waarheen waarvoor--Paul de Leeuw

#1 single in the U.K. (BMRB): Twist and Shout--Chaka Demus and the Pliers (2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 Hero--Mariah Carey (4th week at #1)
2 All for Love--Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart and Sting
3 All that She Wants--Ace of Base
4 Again--Janet Jackson
5 Breathe Again--Toni Braxton
6 Gangsta Lean--DRS
7 Said I Loved You...But I Lied--Michael Bolton
8 Whoomp! (There it Is)--Tag Team
9 Can We Talk--Tevin Campbell
10 What's My Name?--Snoop Dogg

Singles entering the chart were Choose by Color Me Badd (#49); Groove Thang by Zhane (#71); Stay by Eternal (#87); and (Lay Your Head on My) Pillow by Tony Toni Tone (#93).

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Cash Box): Again--Janet Jackson (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Canada (RPM): Please Forgive Me--Bryan Adams (5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Gyِrgy Cziffra, 72. Hungarian-born musician. Mr. Cziffra was a jazz and classical pianist who was regarded as one of the greatest virtuoso pianists of the 20th century, particularly known for known for his recordings of works of Franz Liszt, Frédéric Chopin and Robert Schumann. Mr. Cziffra served with the Hungarian military in World War II and was a Soviet prisoner of war; he was imprisoned under Hungary's Communist regime from 1950-1956, but escaped to Paris, and became a French citizen in 1968. Mr. Cziffra arranged several orchestral works for piano, and composed several piano works. He developed lung cancer, leading to a fatal heart attack.

Harry Nilsson, 52. U.S. musician. Mr. Nilsson was a singer-songwriter whose two biggest hits as a performer were with songs written by others. Everybody's Talkin', a minor hit in Canada for Mr. Nilsson in 1968, was included in the soundtrack of the movie Midnight Cowboy (1969), and then reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the fall of 1969 and earned Mr. Nilsson a Grammy Award. Mr. Nilsson's biggest hit, Without You, reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972, and earned him another Grammy Award. Among his compositions was One, which reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in a version by Three Dog Night in 1969. Mr. Nilsson also wrote the songs for, and appeared in, the movie Skidoo (1968). He died of heart failure.

Diplomacy
U.S. President Bill Clinton visited Belarus, where he honoured the memory of more than one million people who had died at the hands of the Nazis during World War II. He also visited the mass grave of 200,000 victims of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's purges of 1937-1941.

Chinese President Jiang Zemin told six visiting members of the U.S. House of Representatives that China would make an effort to improve its human rights record.

Figure skating
Elvis Stojko won his first Canadian men's championship, at the Edmonton Coliseum.

Hockey
NHL
Toronto 5 Winnipeg 1

Football
NFL
AFC Divisonal Playoff
Los Angeles Raiders 23 @ Buffalo 29

Jim Kelly's 22-yard touchdown pass to Bill Brooks with 12:05 remaining in regulation time proved to be the winning score as the Bills prevailed over the Raiders before 61,923 fans at Rich Stadium in Orchard Park, New York in 0 F. (-18 C) weather. Mr. Brooks scored on a 25-yard pass from Mr. Kelly in the 3rd quarter. There was no scoring in the 1st quarter, but the Raiders took a 17-13 halftime lead.

NFC Divisional Playoff
New York Giants 3 @ San Francisco 44

Ricky Watters rushed for 118 yards, caught 5 passes for 46 yards, and set a National Football League playoff record with 5 touchdowns as the 49ers routed the Giants before 67,143 fans at Candlestick Park.

10 years ago
2004

Space
The NASA rover Spirit rolled onto the surface of Mars.

Politics and government
Ayatollah Ali Sistani, Iraq's most influential Shia Muslim cleric, called for direct elections to an interim parliament that was supposed to choose a full-fledged Iraqi government by July 2004. The United States wanted the parliament to be chosen by caucuses of notable Iraqis.