January 16, 2014

200 years ago
1814

War
In the War of 1812, British troops began week-long raids on the New York towns of Madrid, Salmon River, Malone, and Four Corners in retaliation for U.S. raids in Canada.

170 years ago
1844

Born on this date
Ismail Qemali. Prime Minister of Albania, 1912-1914. Mr. Qemali was a founding father of modern Albania; he wrote the country's Declaration of Independence in 1912, and served as Albania's first Prime Minister, while also serving as Foreign Minister (1912-1913). Mr. Qemali died on January 24, 1919, eight days after his 75th birthday.

120 years ago
1894

Born on this date
Irving Mills. Ukrainian-born U.S. musician, producer, and publisher. Mr. Mills, born Isidore Minsky, moved to New York with his family at a young age. He led the band Irving Mills and his Hotsy Totsy Gang in the 1920s, but became best known as a publisher of jazz music and producer of jazz recordings with artists such as Duke Ellington. Mr. Mills died on April 21, 1985 at the age of 91.

100 years ago
1914

Born on this date
Roger Wagner. French-born U.S. conductor. Mr. Wagner formed the Roger Wagner Chorale in 1946, and later formed the Los Angeles Master Chorale. He died on September 17, 1992 at the age of 78.

90 years ago
1924

Politics and government
Eleftherios Venizelos became Prime Minister of Greece for the fourth time.

75 years ago
1939

Popular culture
The first Superman comic strip, by Joe Shuster, was published.

70 years ago
1944

War
Supreme Allied Commander for Europe General Dwight D. Eisenhower arrived in London to take command of Allied forces to invade the European continent. The Soviet government announced that in the period of December 24, 1943-January 13, 1944, U.S.S.R. forces alone had killed more than 100,000 Germans west and south of Kiev. U.S. troops in Italy reached the east bank of the Rapido River, two miles east of Cassino.

Diplomacy
The U.S.S.R. government rejected the Polish bid to discuss boundary issues, and ignored the plea for resumption of diplomatic relations.

Politics and government
The Vermont Democratic state convention endorsed Franklin D. Roosevelt for a fourth term as President of the United States and wired a request that he accept the nomination.

Disasters
Severe earthquakes virtually destroyed the western Argentine town of San Juan in the Andes Mountains, and caused heavy damage to others.

60 years ago
1954

Hit Parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Pretend--Nat "King" Cole (3rd week at #1)

#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Oh, Mein Papa (Oh! My Pa-Pa)--Eddie Fisher; (Best Seller--2nd week at #1; Disc Jockey--1st week at #1); Rags to Riches--Tony Bennett (Jukebox--7th week at #1)

U.S. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Oh, Mein Papa (Oh! My Pa-Pa)--Eddie Fisher (3rd week at #1)
--Eddie Calvert
2 Stranger in Paradise--Tony Bennett
--The Four Aces
--[Tony Martin]
3 That's Amore--Dean Martin
4 Changing Partners--Patti Page
--[Kay Starr]
5 Rags to Riches--Tony Bennett
6 Ricochet (Rick-O-Shay)--Teresa Brewer
7 The Gang that Sang "Heart of My Heart"--The Four Aces
-- Don Cornell, Alan Dale, and Johnny Desmond
8 Woman--Johnny Desmond
9 Ebb Tide--Frank Chacksfield and his Orchestra
10 Istanbul (Not Constantinople)--The Four Lads

Singles entering the chart were Till Then by the Hilltoppers (#22); Alone by Jimmy Sacca (#28); What it Was, Was Football (Parts 1 and 2) by Deacon Andy Griffith (#30); Baubles, Bangles, and Beads, with versions by Peggy Lee and Lu Ann Sims (#34); Bell Bottom Blues (#35)/Our Heartbreaking Waltz (#39) by Teresa Brewer; Sadie Thompson's Song (Blue Pacific Blues) by Richard Hayman and his Orchestra (#36); Are You Looking for a Sweetheart? by Kitty Kallen (#38); and Till We Two are One by Georgie Shaw (#40).

50 years ago
1964

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: I Want to Hold Your Hand--The Beatles (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Retailer): Glad All Over--The Dave Clark Five

Theatre
The musical Hello, Dolly!, starring Carol Channing, opened at the St. James Theatre on Broadway in New York, beginning a run of 2,844 performances through December 27, 1970.

40 years ago
1974

Hit parade
#1 single in Switzerland: I'd Love You to Want Me--Lobo (9th week at #1)

Edmontonia
Alderman Ken Newman criticized the city's snow removal system as "archaic" and not nearly as efficient as the system that had existed in Jasper Place a decade earlier when he had been that town's mayor before its annexation by Edmonton.

War
Five days after China had claimed sovereignty over the Paracel Islands, South Vietnam responded to what she called " threat to peace and security in the area" by sending six gunboats into the area. The islands were a desolate archipelago believed to contain oil deposits.

Crime
Three men said to have connections with the Mafia in southern Italy were arrested on charges of having kidnapped J. Paul Getty III, 17-year-old grandson of oil billionaire J. Paul Getty. The younger Getty had been freed by his kidnappers on December 15, 1973, three days after a $2.8-million ransom had been paid, and five months after he had been kidnapped from his home in Rome.

Baseball
Former New York Yankees teammates Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Mr. Mantle played with the Yankees from 1951-1968, playing in the outfield for all but his last two seasons, when he moved to first base. He batted .298 with 536 home runs and 1,509 runs batted in in 2,401 games, winning the triple crown in 1956 and being named the American League's Most Valuable Player in 1956, 1957, and 1962. Mr. Mantle played in 12 World Series, and his 18 home runs in World Series competition remains the record. Mr. Ford pitched with the Yankees from 1950 and 1953-1967, winning 236 games while losing just 106, for a winning percentage of .690, with an earned run average of 2.74 and 45 shutouts. Mr. Ford won the Cy Young Award in 1961. He pitched in 11 World Series, and his 10 wins and 33 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings in World Series competition remain records.

30 years ago
1984

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): All Night Long (All Night)--Lionel Richie (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Karma Chameleon--Culture Club (5th week at #1)

Diplomacy
U.S. President Ronald Reagan, in a major statement, spoke with unusual restraint about the state of U.S.-Soviet relations, and called for the resumption of arms reduction talks.

In an address to his parliament, Jordan's King Hussein appealed to the Palestine Liberation Organization for help in finding a formula for Middle East peace negotiations. He called for an end to the requirement for unanimity in reaching decisions among Arab nations, which had given veto power to hard-line opponents of Israel. King Hussein also urged that Egypt be readmitted to the Arab League. The speech was an attempt to revive U.S. President Ronald Reagan's 1982 plan, which contemplated a semi-autonomous Palestinian entity in the West Bank "in association with Jordan."

25 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): Kokomo--The Beach Boys (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Smooth Criminal--Michael Jackson (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Steve Otto, 67. Polish-born Canadian politician. Mr. Otto, a Liberal, represented the Ontario riding of York East in the Canadian House of Commons (1962-1972). He was 22 days past his 67th birthday when he disappeared and was presumed dead when his sailboat hit a rock and capsized off the coast of Cuba.

Protest
Three days of rioting erupted in Miami when a police officer fatally shot a Negro motorcyclist, causing a crash that also claimed the life of a passenger.

20 years ago
1994

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: I Can See Clearly Now--Jimmy Cliff

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)--Meat Loaf (10th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)--Meat Loaf (9th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Chart Information Network): Things Can Only Get Better--D: Ream

Music
Canadian singer Bryan Adams played before an audience of 2,500 in Ho Chi Minh City, becoming the first Western artist to perform in Vietnam since end of the Vietnam War.

Diplomacy
At a joint press conference in Geneva with U.S. President Bill Clinton, Syrian President Hafez al-Assad indicated a willingness to negotiate a peace treaty with Israel.

Politics and government
Yegor Gaidar, Russia's first deputy premier and economics minister, resigned, saying that the government had not approved some of his pro-reform policies.

Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari asked Congress to approve a general amnesty for members of the Zapatista National Liberation Army, a rebel group in the state of Chiapas that had declared war against the government earlier in the month.

Figure skating
Josee Chouinard won the Canadian women's championship at the Edmonton Coliseum; it was her second straight national championship and third in four years.

Football
NFL
NFC Divisional Playoff
Green Bay 17 @ Dallas 27

The Cowboys scored 17 points in the 2nd quarter--10 in the final 23 seconds--to take a 17-3 halftime lead as they held on to defeat the Packers before 64,790 fans at Texas Stadium in Irving. Eddie Murray's 41-yard field goal with 23 seconds remaining in the 1st half gave Dallas a 10-3 lead; the Cowboys recovered a Green Bay fumble on the subsequent kickoff, and Troy Aikman passed 6 yards to Jay Novacek for a touchdown. The Packers had several opportunities to come back in the 4th quarter, but Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre threw 2 interceptions before completing a touchdown pass to Sterling Sharpe late in the game.

AFC Divisional Playoff
Kansas City 28 @ Houston 20

Joe Montana threw a touchdown pass in the 3rd quarter and 2 in the 4th, and handed off to Marcus Allen for a 21-yard touchdown to conclude the scoring as the Chiefs overcame a 10-0 halftime deficit to defeat the Oilers before 64,011 fans at the Astrodome. The Kansas City defense sacked Houston quarterback Warren Moon 9 times.

10 years ago
2004

Died on this date
Kalevi Sorsa, 73. Prime Minister of Finland, 1972-1975; 1977-1979; 1982-1983; 1983-1987. Mr. Sorsa was the leader of the Social Democratic Party, and his governments strengthened Finland's welfare state. He holds the record as Finland's longest-serving Prime Minister.

Popular culture
U.S. pop star Michael Jackson pleaded not guilty to child molestation charges in Santa Maria, California. Charges were later re-filed and Mr. Jackson was acquitted.