June 27, 2014

820 years ago
1194

Died on this date
Sancho VI, 62. King of Navarre, 1150-1194. Sancho VI, known as Sancho the Wise, succeeded his father García Ramírez on the throne, and dropped the title King of Pamplona in favour of King of Navarre, thus changing the designation of his kingdom. He repaired the borders of his kingdom and brought it into the political orbit of Europe. Sancho VI was succeeded by his son Sancho VII.

175 years ago
1839

Died on this date
Ranjit Singh, 58. Maharajah of Punjab, 1801-1839. Majarajah Ranjit Singh was the founder of the Sikh Empire, that existed from 1799-1849. He was succeeded as Maharajah by his son Kharak Singh.

170 years ago
1844

Died on this date
Hyrum Smith, 44; Joseph Smith, 38. U.S. religious leaders. Joseph Smith was a con man who founded the Church of Christ--later known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--in 1830, based on an alleged visit from an angel, resulting in The Book of Mormon, an alleged history of North America that had been preserved in a book of buried golden plates--which nobody ever saw. Mr. Smith's older brother Hyrum became an early follower and eventually Assistant President of the church. The church began in New York state and moved westward to Illinois, accompanied by various scams. The Smith brothers, along with apostles John Taylor and Willard Richards, were being held at the jail in Carthage, Illinois, when a mob of 60-200 dissident Saints descended on the jail. A shootout resulted, resulting in the deaths of the Smith brothers and the wounding of Mr. Taylor. Another brother, William Smith, succeeded Joseph as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, popularly known as the Mormon Church.

160 years ago
1854

Technology
New Brunswick chemist Abraham Gesner was awarded a U.S. patent for distilling kerosene from petroleum; it completely replaced whale oil in lamps in a few years.

130 years ago
1884

Baseball
Larry Corcoran pitched a no-hitter as the Chicago White Stockings blanked the Providence Grays 6-0 at Lakefront Park in Chicago.

125 years ago
1889

Born on this date
Moroni Olsen. U.S. actor. Mr. Olsen began acting in plays in the 1910s, but was best known as a character actor in numerous movies from the mid-1930s until his death on November 22, 1954 at the age of 65.

100 years ago
1914

Boxing
Jack Johnson (40-5-8) retained his world heavyweight title with a 20-round decision over Frank Moran (21-7-2) at Velodrome d'Hiver in Paris.



90 years ago
1924

Golf
Walter Hagen won the British Open at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England with a score of 301, 1 stroke ahead of Ernest Whitcombe. First prize money was £75.

80 years ago
1934

At the movies
El fantasma del convento (The Phantom of the Monastery), cowritten and directed by Fernando de Fuentes, and starring Marta Roel, Carlos Villatoro, Enrique del Campo, and Paco Martinez, opened in theatres in Mexico City.



Died on this date
Francesco Buhagiar, 57. Prime Minister of Malta, 1923-1924. Mr. Buhagiar, the leader of the Popular Union party, was Malta's second Prime Minister. He was succeeded by Ugo Mifsud.

70 years ago
1944

Theatre
Ten Little Indians by Agatha Christie opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on Broadway in New York City. The cast included Neil Fitzgerald, Georgia Harvey, and Halliwell Hobbes.

Died on this date
Milan Hodža, 66. Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia, 1935-1938. Mr. Hodža, the leader of the Czechoslovak Agrarian Party, was known for his attempts to establish a democratic federation of Central European states. He fled the country after the Munich agreement in 1938 that essentially violated Czechoslovakia's sovereignty, and lived in exile in several countries. Mr. Hodža died in Clearwater, Florida.

War
British units on the left flank of the Normandy beachhead launched an offensive that gained more than five miles southeast of Tilly-sur-Seulles. British troops recaptured Chiusi, Italy. Soviet troops captured Mogilev, 110 miles east of Minsk. U.S. troops pushed two miles north of Kagman Point on the eastern shore of Saipan.

World events
Guatemalan President Jorge Ubico issued a decree placing all personnel of railroads, health, light, and water organizations under military laws and regulations until further notice.

Politics and government
The platform of the U.S. Republican Party, presented at the Republican National Convention in Chicago, pledged extension to old age and unemployment insurance; promised labour freedom from "political trickery;" offered farmers reorganization of the U.S. Agriculture Department; and approved U.S. participation in a postwar organization to prevent the rise of militarism.

60 years ago
1954

Energy
The Obninsk Nuclear Power Plant, the world's first nuclear power station, opened in Obninsk, near Moscow.

Soccer
FIFA World Cup @ Berne, Switzerland
Quarter-Finals
Hungary 4 Brazil 2

60,000 fans at Wankdorf Stadium witnessed one of the most violent games in World Cup history, which became known as the Battle of Berne. Referee Arthur Ellis of England disqualified three players during the match and the fighting continued after the game when Brazilian players invaded the Hungarian dressing room.

50 years ago
1964

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Can't Buy Me Love/You Can't Do That--The Beatles (6th week at #1)

#1 single in France: La Plus Belle Pour Aller Danser--Sylvie Vartan (11th week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Cin, cin--Richard Anthony (5th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Shake Hands--Drafi Deutscher (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): It's Over--Roy Orbison (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): A World Without Love--Peter and Gordon

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 A World Without Love--Peter and Gordon
2 Chapel of Love--The Dixie Cups
3 I Get Around--The Beach Boys
4 My Boy Lollipop--Millie Small
5 People--Barbra Streisand
6 Memphis--Johnny Rivers
7 Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying--Gerry and the Pacemakers
8 Love Me with All Your Heart (Cuando Calienta El Sol)--The Ray Charles Singers
9 No Particular Place to Go--Chuck Berry
10 Love Me Do--The Beatles

Singles entering the chart were The Little Old Lady (From Pasadena) by Jan & Dean (#60); Under the Boardwalk by the Drifters (#70); Do I Love You? by the Ronettes (#76); Nobody I Know by Peter and Gordon (#79); I Believe by the Bachelors (#80); I Wanna Love Him So Bad by the Jelly Bens (#81); Everybody Loves Somebody by Dean Martin (#87); Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand) by Irma Thomas (#93); Mixed-Up, Shook-Up, Girl by Patty and the Emblems (#96); Precious Words by the Wallace Brothers (#97); I'm a Fool for Loving You by Bobby Wood (#98); It's All Over Now by the Valentinos (#99); and Love is All We Need by Vic Dana (#100).

Music
The Beatles concluded the New Zealand portion of their Far Eastern tour, performing one concert in Christchurch. The three opening acts included Johnny Devlin.

The Beach Boys were at Western Recorders in Hollywood, California, where they finished recording the song Christmas Day, which was released on The Beach Boys' Christmas Album several months later.

40 years ago
1974

Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Always Yours--Gary Glitter

Diplomacy
U.S. President Richard Nixon arrived in Moscow for talks with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev.

France and Iran reached agreement on a 10-year development program amounting to $4 billion. Included was a provision for the sale to Iran of five 1,000-megawatt nuclear reactors worth $1.1 billion. Iran's promise to advance $1 billion to the Bank of France and to pay for three quarters of the reactors in five years would substantially ease France's balance of payment problem.

30 years ago
1984

Diplomacy
Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau was named the 1984 winner of the Albert Einstein Peace Prize for his global campaign to ease East-West tensions.

Rev. Jesse Jackson, a candidate for the 1984 Democratic Party nomination for President of the United States, continued a visit to the Caribbean and Central America with an eight-hour meeting in Havana with Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, after which Rev. Jackson announced the release of 22 American and 26 Cuban prisoners. It was believed that most of the Americans were being held on drug charges. The two men called for normalization of relations between the United States and Cuba, and endorsed peace negotiations to end military conflicts in Central America. Mr. Castro indicated willingness to discuss the return to Cuba of hundreds of Cubans being held in the U.S. since being permitted by Mr. Castro to migrate to Florida from the Cuban port of Mariel in 1980. Mr. Jackson then went to Nicaragua.

Roberto D'Aubuisson, leader of El Salvador's right-wing Arena party, met in Washington with 12 U.S. Senators and denied involvement in a plot to assassinate U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador Thomas Pickering. The plot had been alleged in an article in The New York Times on June 23.

Economics and finance
The United States Senate voted 83-15 and House of Representatives voted 268-155 to endorse a package worked out by congressional leaders to raise $50 billion in taxes and reduce spending by $11 billion in an effort to make a "down payment" against enormous budget deficits projected for the coming years.

25 years ago
1989

Law
U.S. President George Bush announced his support for an amendment to the United States Constitution to prohibit desecration of the American flag. Civil liberties groups objected to such an idea on the grounds that such an amendment would infringe on freedom of speech. The U.S. House of Representatives voted 411-5 to express its concern over the June 21 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that burning the flag was permitted as a form of political protest.

Scandal
A U.S. federal appeals court ruled 2-1 to overturn the 1988 conviction of Lyn Nofziger, a former official in the administration of President Ronald Reagan, for illegal lobbying, because prosecutors had failed to prove that Mr. Nofziger had known he was breaking the law.

Baseball
Randy Milligan batted 4 for 5 with a home run, 2 doubles, and 4 runs batted in as the Baltimore Orioles routed the Toronto Blue Jays 16-6 before 30,136 fans at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Jay Tibbs allowed 13 hits and 6 earned runs in pitching a complete game victory to improve his record for the season to 5-0. The most interesting aspect of the game was that with Frank Robinson managing the Orioles and Cito Gaston managing the Blue Jays, it was the first regular season game in major league history to feature Negro managers for both teams.

Charlie Puleo and Steve Ziem combined to pitch a no-hitter for the Richmond Braves of the International League as they shut out the Oklahoma City 89ers of the American Association 3-0 in an interlocking game.

20 years ago
1994

Hit parade
#1 single in Germany (Media Control): United--Prince Ital Joe & Marky Mark (3rd week at #1)

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 I Swear--All-4-One (2nd week at #1)
2 Don't Turn Around--Ace of Base
3 Wild Night--John Mellencamp with Me’shell Ndegeocello
4 I'll Remember--Madonna
5 If You Go--Jon Secada
6 Round Here--Counting Crows
7 Sleeping in My Car--Roxette
8 Shine--Collective Soul
9 You Mean the World to Me--Toni Braxton
10 Misled--Celine Dion

Singles entering the chart were Crash! Boom! Bang! by Roxette (#72); Ain't Got Nothing If You Ain't Got Love by Michael Bolton (#74); Love is Strong by the Rolling Stones (#77); Broadway Joe by Koven Jordan (#78); This Weight on Me by Chris DeBurgh (#83); Just a Step from Heaven by Eternal (#86); Love is All Around by Wet Wet Wet (#87); Always by Erasure (#88); Bad Timing by Blue Rodeo (#93); I Wish by Gabrielle (#94); and I'll Remember You by Atlantic Starr (#96).

Terrorism
Members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult released sarin gas in Matsumoto, Japan; 7 people were killed, 660 injured.

Politics and government
U.S. President Bill Clinton named former Congressman and current director of the White House Office of Management and Budget Leon Panetta as his chief of staff, replacing Mr. Clinton's longtime friend Thomas McLarty.

10 years ago
2004

Died on this date
George Patton IV, 80. U.S. military officer. Mr. Patton was a Major General in the United States Army and the son of General George Patton who achieved fame in World War II. Major General Patton served three tours of duty in the Vietnam War and won the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Darrell Russell, 35. U.S. auto racing driver. Mr. Russell was a drag racer who was the National Hot Rod Association's Rookie of the Year in 2001. He was killed in an accident at the Sears Craftsman Nationals at Gateway International Raceway in St. Louis.

Football
CFL
Montreal (2-0) 32 @ Calgary (1-1) 14