January 22, 2015

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Nancy Lear!

175 years ago
1840

New Zealandiana
The New Zealand Company’s first settler ship, the Aurora, arrived at Petone to found the settlement that would become Wellington. 125 years ago
1890

Born on this date
Fred M. Vinson. U.S. politician and judge. Mr. Vinson, a Democrat, represented Kentucky's 9th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives from 1924-1929 and 1931-1933, and Kentucky's 8th Congressional District from 1933-1938. He was a judge on the District of Columbia Court of Appeals from 1938-1943 before serving as Director of the Office of Economic Stabilization in the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1943-1945 and Secretary of the Treasury in the administration of President Harry Truman from 1945-1946. Mr. Truman nominated Mr. Vinson to succeed Harlan Fiske Stone as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and Mr. Vinson held that position until his death from a heart attack on September 8, 1953 at the age of 63. The major issues that the Supreme Court dealt with during Mr. Vinson's time as Chief Justice were racial segregation, labour unions, Communism, and loyalty oaths.

110 years ago
1905

Protest
Over 100 unarmed marching workers in St. Petersburg were killed by Czar Nicholas II's troops on Bloody Sunday, helping to begin the 1905 Russian revolution.

100 years ago
1915

Disasters
Over 600 people were killed in Guadalajara, Mexico when a train plunged off the tracks into a deep canyon.

75 years ago
1940

On the radio
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, on NBC
Tonight’s episode: The Cardboard Box

Literature
Pierre Caille won a French prize of 10,000 francs for his translation of Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone with the Wind.

War
The governments of the United Kingdom and France agreed to combine scientific efforts to expedite development of new weapons systems. The Japanese Army claimed the capture of Shaohing, an important base in the Chinese province of Chekiang.

Diplomacy
The United States demanded that the U.K. modify her treatment of American ships and cargoes in the Mediterranean Sea.

Politics and government
Philippine President Manuel Quezon told the national parliament that independence for the Philippines should not be delayed past 1946.

U.S. Communist Party General Secretary Earl Browder was sentenced to four years in prison for illegally obtaining a U.S. passport. The decision was later appealed.

Labour
The International Labor Office in Geneva announced a meeting for February 3 to discuss the effect of World War II on labour.

70 years ago
1945

Hit parade
U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Don't Fence Me In--Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters (4th week at #1)
--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
--Kate Smith
2 I'm Making Believe--The Ink Spots and Ella Fitzgerald
3 I Dream of You (More than You Dream I Do)--Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra
--Andy Russell
--Frank Sinatra
--Perry Como
4 There Goes that Song Again--Russ Morgan and his Orchestra
--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
5 The Trolley Song--The Pied Pipers
--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra
--Judy Garland
6 Rum and Coca-Cola--The Andrews Sisters
7 Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive--Johnny Mercer and the Pied Pipers with Paul Weston and His Orchestra
--Artie Shaw and his Orchestra
8 Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That’s An Irish Lullaby)--Bing Crosby
--Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra
9 Dance with a Dolly (With A Hole In Her Stockin’)--Russ Morgan and his Orchestra
--Evelyn Knight with Camarata and his Orchestra
--Tony Pastor and his Orchestra
10 Evelina--Bing Crosby

Singles entering the chart were the version of I Dream of You (More than You Dream I Do) by Perry Como; the version of Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive by Artie Shaw and his Orchestra; The Love I Long For, with versions by Harry James and his Orchestra and the Three Suns (#24); Right as the Rain, with versions by Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra and Frankie Carle and his Orchestra (#27); Opus No. 1 by Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra (#28); and I Had a Little Talk with the Lord by Frankie Carle and his Orchestra (#35).

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

War
U.S. planes unleashed a merciless assault on German troops retreating from the Ardennes. Soviet troops swept through East Prussia, taking Insterburg in the east and Allenstein, Osterode, and Deutsch Eylau in the south. British commando forces carried out their fourth amphibious operation in Burma, landing on the Arkan coast 4 miles southwest of Kangaw to cut the Japanese forces' Myohaung-Taungup escape route.

Politics and government
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt nominated former Vice President Henry Wallace as Secretary of Commerce and former National Youth Administration executive director Aubrey Williams as head of the Rural Electrification Administration. In a move against the nomination of Mr. Wallace, U.S. Senator Walter George (Democrat--Georgia) introduced a bill to remove all lending agencies from the Commerce Department and return them to their status as of September 1940.

The U.S. Republican National Committee adopted a program to establish a full-time national headquarters in Washington to prepare for the 1946 and 1948 election campaigns, and named Mrs. Dudley Hay as secretary.

60 years ago
1955

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Serenade (from "The Student Prince")--Mario Lanza (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Mambo Italiano--Rosemary Clooney

#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Mr. Sandman--The Chordettes (Disc Jockey--5th week at #1); Let Me Go Lover--Joan Weber (Best Seller--1st week at #1; Jukebox--2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Mr. Sandman--The Chordettes (6th week at #1)
--The Four Aces
2 Let Me Go Lover--Joan Weber
--[Teresa Brewer with the Lancers]
3 The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane--The Ames Brothers
--Archie Bleyer
4 Hearts of Stone--The Fontane Sisters
--The Charms
5 Melody of Love--Billy Vaughn and his Orchestra
--David Carroll and his Orchestra
--The Four Aces
6 Papa Loves Mambo--Perry Como
7 Teach Me Tonight--The DeCastro Sisters
8 Make Yourself Comfortable--Sarah Vaughan
9 That's All I Want from You--Jaye P. Morgan
10 (My Baby Don’t Love Me) No More--The DeJohn Sisters
--[The McGuire Sisters]

Singles entering the chart were Open Up Your Heart (And Let the Sunshine In) by Cowboy Church Sunday School (#23); Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So), with versions by Perry Como and the Crew-Cuts (#31); All of You by Tony Martin (#36); Don't Get Around Much Anymore by Jo Stafford (#38); D-A-R-L-I-N by the Hilltoppers (#39); Someday Sweetheart by Les Paul (#41); To Say You're Mine by the DeCastro Sisters (#42); and Ever Since You Went Away by Les Elgart and his Orchestra with Don Forbes (#46).

50 years ago
1965

Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Love Potion No. 9--The Searchers (2nd week at #1)
2 This Diamond Ring--Gary Lewis and the Playboys
3 Downtown--Petula Clark
4 Look of Love--Lesley Gore
5 The Wedding--Julie Rogers
6 I Feel Fine--The Beatles
7 I'll Be There--Gerry and the Pacemakers
8 Thou Shalt Not Steal--Dick and DeeDee
9 Keep Searchin' (We'll Follow the Sun)--Del Shannon
10 Paper Tiger--Sue Thompson
Pick hit of the week: For Lovin' Me--Peter, Paul and Mary
New this week: Walking Alone--Harry Simeone Chorale
Sylvia--Paul Anka
Like a Child--Julie Rogers
Lemon Tree--Trini Lopez
At the Club--The Drifters
It's Gotta Last Forever--Billy J. Kramer with the Dakotas

Space
The United States launched TIROS 9 from Cape Kennedy, Florida. The weather satellite's mission was to photograph the entire Earth once every 24 hours.

Crime
Iranian Prime Minister Hassan Ali Mansur was on his way to deliver his State of the Union address to parliament and had just stepped out of his car in Tehran's Baharestan Square when he was shot by 17-year-old Mohammad Bokharaei, a member of the terrorist organization Fada'iyan-e Islam. Mr. Mansur was rushed to hospital, where he remained in critical condition.

Scandal
Yvon Dupuis, a Liberal member of the House of Commons since 1958 and Minister of State in the Canadian government of Prime Minister Lester Pearson, resigned from the cabinet. He had been charged in 1964 with accepting a bribe of $10,000 in 1961 related to the licensing of a new race track in his riding. Mr. Dupuis became the first federal cabinet minister in Canadian history to resign while facing criminal charges; he was eventually acquitted.

Politics and government
Michael Stewart was named Foreign Minister in the British government of Prime Minister Harold Wilson, succeeding Patrick Gordon Walker.

40 years ago
1975

Crime
The siege at the home of Mr. and Mrs. George Field in Thamesford, Ontario continued, as their former neighbour, escaped convict Donald Cline, 22, released three of the Fields' four children. Donald, 11; Kim, 7; and David, 4, were released, while Mr. Cline, accompanied by his girlfriend Gail Guest, continued to hold Robert, 12, hostage. Mr. and Mrs. Field were outside the house, accompanied by police.

13 people were killed at the Gargantuan Night Club in Montreal. It was believed that te first 2 victims were murdered in an underworld settling of scores, while the other 11 were killed in a deliberately-set fire because they had witnessed the first two killings. Quebec Justice Minister Jérôme Choquette immediately opened an investigation.

The police headquarters in Deland, Florida was robbed at 4 A.M. by armed bandits, who forced the night desk clerk to open the cash register and hand over the contents, which amounted to about $25. The Deland police chief described the incident as "embarrassing."

Society
Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau declared Canadian recognition of International Women's Year.

30 years ago
1985

Politics and government
Helen Hunley, a former cabinet minister in the Progressive Conservative provincial government of Premier Peter Lougheed, was installed as Alberta's Lieutenant-Governor, replacing Frank Lynch-Staunton.

25 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Kuchibiru Kara Biyaku--Shizuka Kudo

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Another Day in Paradise--Phil Collins (8th week at #1)

World events
The Azerbaijani parliament threatened to secede from the U.S.S.R. Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, in a televised address, used the John Turner "I had no option" defense to justify the use of Soviet troops to invade the Azerbaijani capital of Baku, which had begun two days earlier.

Crime
Robert Tappan Morris was convicted of releasing the 1988 Internet Computer worm.

20 years ago
1995

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Here Comes the Hotstepper--Ini Kamoze (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): An Angel--The Kelly Family (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Cotton Eye Joe--Rednex (9th week at #1)

Died on this date
Rose Kennedy, 104. U.S. socialite and political matriarch. Mrs. Kennedy, the daughter of Boston Mayor John F. "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald and the wife of U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Joseph P. Kennedy, was the mother of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and U.S. Senators Robert F. and Ted Kennedy.

Terrorism
Near Netanya in central Israel, two suicide bombers from the Gaza Strip blew themselves up at a military transit point, killing 18 Israeli soldiers and a civilian.

10 years ago
2005

Died on this date
Rose Mary Woods, 87. U.S. secretary. Mrs. Woods was personal secretary to Richard Nixon from his time as a Congressman in 1951 through his time as President of the United States from 1969-1974. She was best known for allegedly accidentally erasing several minutes from a tape of a White House conversation of June 20, 1972, three days after the break-in at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.

César Gutiérrez, 61. Venezuelan baseball player. Mr. Gutiérrez was a shortstop with the San Francisco Giants (1967, 1969) and Detroit Tigers (1969-1971), batting .235 with no home runs and 26 runs batted in in 223 games. His only season as a starter was 1970, when he batted .243 with 22 RBIs in 135 games. Mr. Gutiérrez was known mainly for one game: in the second game of a doubleheader against the Cleveland Indians at Cleveland Stadium, he became the first player in major league history to bat 7 for 7 in a game as the Tigers won 9-8 in 12 innings. Mr. Gutiérrez played winter baseball in Venezuela for many years and later served as a manager in the Mexican League. He died four days before his 62nd birthday.