May 28, 2015

170 years ago
1845

Disasters
Fire destroyed two-thirds of Quebec City plus the suburbs of St-Roch and St-Jean, with 1,500 houses destroyed.

140 years ago
1875

Born on this date
Morris Sheppard. U.S. politician. Mr. Sheppard, a Democrat, represented Texas in the United States House of Representatives from 1902-1913 and in the Senate from 1913 until his death from a brain hemorrhage on April 9, 1941 at the age of 65. He was chairman of the Senate Military Affairs Committee and was an author of the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution, thus earning the nickname "the father of national Prohibition."

120 years ago
1895

Art
Owens Art Gallery, oldest university art gallery in Canada, re-opened on the Mount Allison University campus in Sackville, New Brunswick after being relocated from Saint John, New Brunswick two years previously.

110 years ago
1905

War
The Battle of Tsushima in the Strait of Tsushima between Korea and Japan ended with the destruction of the Russian Baltic Fleet by Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō and the Imperial Japanese Navy.

80 years ago
1935

Baseball
The Cincinnati Reds beat the Boston Braves 13-4 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Babe Ruth batted 0 for 2 for the Braves with a base on balls and a run scored.

75 years ago
1940

War
A Gallup Poll revealed that Americans opposed entry into the European war by a 13-1 margin. Belgian King Leopold III unconditionally surrendered his troops to Germany at 3 A.M., ending the Battle of Belgium. The Belgian government-in-exile in Paris, led by Prime Minister Habort Pierlot, declared the King's surrender illegal and unconstitutional, and resolved to continue the war. Norwegian, French, Polish and British forces recaptured Narvik, Norway for the first allied infantry victory of the war. Japanese bombers again inflicted heavy damage on Chungking.

Defense
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt named a seven-member National Defense Advisory Commission headed by William Knudsen and Edward Stettinius.

The U.S. administration of President Roosevelt and congressional leaders were reportedly in agreement on a $700-million defense tax measure.

Politics and government
New Jersey delegates to the Republican National Convention were reportedly split in their support for New York City District Attorney Thomas Dewey as the Republican Party's candidate for President of the United States in the November 1940 election.

Law
The United States Senate passed and sent to the House of Representatives a bill authorizing the U.S. attorney general to appoint a five-member commission to prepare a new code of law for the District of Columbia.

Economics and finance
The sale of a seat on the New York Stock Exchange fell to the lowest price since 1915: $38,000.

70 years ago
1945

Hit parade
U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 My Dreams are Getting Better All the Time--Les Brown and his Orchestra (vocal chorus by Doris Day) (8th week at #1)
--Johnny Long and his Orchestra and Dick Robertson
--Phil Moore Four
2 Candy--Johnny Mercer, Jo Stafford and the Pied Pipers with Paul Weston and His Orchestra
--Dinah Shore
--Johnny Long and his Orchestra and Dick Robertson
3 There! I've Said it Again--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra (vocal refrain by Vaughn Monroe and the Norton Sisters)
--Jimmy Dorsey and his Orchestra
4 Laura--Woody Herman and his Orchestra
--Freddy Martin and his Orchestra
--Johnnie Johnston
5 Dream--The Pied Pipers
--Frank Sinatra
--Freddy Martin and his Orchestra
6 Sentimental Journey--Les Brown and his Orchestra (vocal chorus by Doris Day)
--Hal McIntyre and his Orchestra
7 I'm Beginning to See the Light--Harry James and his Orchestra
--Duke Ellington and his Famous Orchestra
--Ella Fitzgerald and the Ink Spots
8 Just a Prayer Away--Bing Crosby
--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
9 Caldonia--Woody Herman and his Orchestra
--Erskine Hawkins and his Orchestra
--Louis Jordan and the Tympany Five
10 All of My Life--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
--Bing Crosby

Singles entering the chart were the version of There! I've Said it Again by Jimmy Dorsey and his Orchestra; I Wish I Knew by Dick Haymes (#18); There Must Be a Way (#24)/You Belong to My Heart (#29) by Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra; There Must Be a Way by Johnnie Johnston (also #24, charting with the version by Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra); You Belong to My Heart by Bing Crosby and Xavier Cugat and his Orchestra (also #29, charting with the version by Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra); There's No You by Jo Stafford (#31); and Good, Good, Good (That’s You – That’s You) by Xavier Cugat and his Orchestra (#32).

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

This was the last episode of the season.

War
U.S. Superfortresses made their first raid on Yokohama, dropping 3,200 tons of incendiary bombs; Japan reported 60,000 homes destroyed in the attack. U.S. troops in the Philippines captured the remaining fortifications of the Shimbu Line east of Manila.

World events
Nobel Prize-winning author Knut Hamsun and his wife were arrested in Grimstad, Norway on allegations of having made pro-Nazi statements during the German occupation of Norway.

Diplomacy
U.S. Secretary of State Edward Stettinius outlined the major aims of U.S. policy, which included preventing Germany and Japan from being able to wage another war, and helping to remove the economic and social causes of war.

U.S. presidential envoy Harry Hopkins and Soviet dictator Josef Stalin met alone in Moscow, each expressing concerns over the other country's policies: Soviet actions in Poland and U.S. termination of Lend-Lease.

The U.S. State Department removed Albania, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Danzig, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, and Yugoslavia from the category of "enemy territory," permitting resumption of commercial relations.

Politics and government
Brazilian President Getulio Vargas set general elections for December 12, 1945.

Egyptian Prime Minister Mahmoud Fahmy Nokrashy said that his country supported the independence movements in Syria and Lebanon.

The United States Senate rejected an annual $2,500 expense account for its members, but voted to let the House of Representatives do as it would in the matter.

Protest
Street fighting between French and Syrians broke out in Hama and spread to Homs, 30 miles to the south.

Defense
A U.S. Senate committee postponed until six months after Japan's defeat courts-martial on the December 7, 1941 Japanese attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

60 years ago
1955

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Melody of Love--The Four Aces; Billy Vaughn and his Orchestra

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Stranger in Paradise--Tony Bennett (4th week at #1)

#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White--Perez Prado and his Orchestra (Best Seller--5th week at #1; Disc Jockey--2nd week at #1); Dance with Me Henry (Wallflower)--Georgia Gibbs (Jukebox--3rd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Unchained Melody--Les Baxter and his Orchestra (2nd week at #1)
--Al Hibbler
--Roy Hamilton
2 Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White--Perez Prado and his Orchestra
--Alan Dale
3 The Ballad of Davy Crockett--Bill Hayes
--Fess Parker
--Tennessee Ernie Ford
4 Dance with Me Henry (Wallflower)--Georgia Gibbs
5 Honey-Babe--Art Mooney and his Orchestra
6 Whatever Lola Wants--Sarah Vaughan
7 A Blossom Fell--Nat "King" Cole
8 (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock--Bill Haley and his Comets
9 Don't Be Angry--The Crew-Cuts
--Nappy Brown
10 The Crazy Otto--Johnny Maddox and the Rhythmasters

Singles entering the chart were Rollin' Stone (#32)/Playmates (#48) by the Fontane Sisters; Smack Dab in the Middle by the Mills Brothers (#38); Chee Chee-Oo Chee (Sang the Little Bird) by Perry Como and Jaye P. Morgan (#40); Johnny's Medley by Johnny Maddox and the Rhythmasters (#47); and Bo Diddley, with versions by Joe Reisman and his Orchestra; and Bo Diddley (#50).

50 years ago
1965

Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Crying in the Chapel--Elvis Presley (2nd week at #1)
2 Silhouettes--Herman's Hermits
3 Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte--Patti Page
4 Help Me, Rhonda--The Beach Boys
5 Ticket to Ride--The Beatles
6 Concrete and Clay--Unit Four Plus Two
7 Engine Engine #9--Roger Miller
8 Count Me In--Gary Lewis and the Playboys
9 Voodoo Woman--Bobby Goldsboro
10 Reelin' and Rockin'--The Dave Clark Five
Pick hit of the week: You Really Know How to Hurt a Guy--Jan & Dean
New this week: I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)--The Four Tops
From the Bottom of My Heart (I Love You)--The Moody Blues
Just Dance on By--Eydie Gorme
Cara, Mia--Jay & the Americans
Trains and Boats and Planes--Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas

Aviation
Thomas Scheer, 42, of Langley, British Columbia and three other Canadians completed the first unescorted transatlantic helicopter flight, a 6,400-kilometre, 15-day journey from Stratford, Connecticut to Prestwick, Scotland in a 26-seat amphibian Sikorsky. The longest single hop was 640 km, from Greenland to Reykjavik Iceland.

40 years ago
1975

Died on this date
Ezzard Charles, 53. U.S. boxer. Mr. Charles was world heavyweight champion from 1949-1951. Mr. Charles began his professional career in 1940, fighting as a light heavyweight before moving up to the heavyweight division. When Joe Louis retired as champion in 1949, Mr. Charles won the title with a 15-round decision over Jersey Joe Walcott. He won a decision over Mr. Louis when the former champion came out of retirement, and also won another decision over Mr. Walcott. Mr. Walcott finally won the title from Mr. Charles with a 7th-round knockout in 1951, and decisioned Mr. Charles again in their fourth title fight. Mr. Charles fought Rocky Marciano for the title twice in 1954, losing in a 15-round decision and an 8th-round knockout. Mr. Charles was forced to continue fighting for several more years because of financial problems, and he retired in 1959 with a record of 93-25-1. He died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease).

Margaret Wright. Canadian schoolteacher. John Slinger, 17; Michael Slobodian, 16. Canadian students. In Canada's first mass school shooting, Mr. Slobodian, a student at Brampton Centennial Secondary School in Brampton, Ontario, killed Mr. Slinger and Mrs. Wright and wounded 13 others before fatally shooting himself in a hallway.

Economics and finance
15 West African countries signed the Treaty of Lagos, creating the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) .

Baseball
The Atlanta Braves traded pitcher Ron Reed and a player to be named later to the St. Louis Cardinals for pitchers Elias Sosa and Ray Sadecki. Mr. Reed had a record of 4-5 with an earned run average of 4.22 in 10 games with Atlanta in 1975; Mr. Sosa was 0-3 with a 3.95 ERA in 14 games with St. Louis, while Mr. Sadecki was 1-0 with a 3.27 ERA in 8 games with the Cardinals.

Gary Nolan allowed just 2 hits in pitching his first shutout in three years as the Cincinnati Reds blanked the Montreal Expos 6-0 before 16,480 fans at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati in the Wednesday Expos Baseball telecast on CBC. The only Montreal hits were doubles by Pepe Mangual and Rich Coggins.

Luis Melendez singled home Lou Brock with 2 out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the St. Louis Cardinals a 6-5 win over the San Diego Padres before 11,690 fans at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

Bill Bonham batted 2 for 2 with a run scored and another batted in, but failed to get credit as the winning pitcher for the Chicago Cubs as they edged the Atlanta Braves 5-4 before 10,085 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Mr. Bonham scored the first of 4 Chicago runs in the 3rd inning and singled home Manny Trillo with the eventual winning run in the 4th, but ran into trouble in the 5th, and was removed after 4 2/3 innings, 1 out short of the number required for a starting pitcher to get credit for a win. Oscar Zamora, who allowed just 1 hit and no runs in 4 innings, was the winning pitcher.

Bobby Bonds hit a pair of 2-run home runs and Rudy May pitched a 6-hit complete game victory as the New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals 6-2 before 10,108 fans at Royals Stadium.

Bill Lee pitched a 4-hit complete game to win a pitchers' duel over Ferguson Jenkins, who also pitched a complete game as the Boston Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers 4-1 before 8,091 fans at Arlington Stadium.

Vida Blue pitched a 4-hit shutout and improved his 1975 record to 9-2 as the Oakland Athletics blanked the Baltimore Orioles 5-0 before 4,094 fans at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Losing pitcher Mike Torrez allowed just 4 hits in 8 innings in also pitching a complete game, but surrendered home runs by Sal Bando, Billy Williams, and Reggie Jackson.

Jim Hughes allowed 7 hits in pitching a complete game for his sixth straight win, improving his record for the season to 6-1, as the Minnesota Twins defeated the Detroit Tigers 5-2 before 9,675 fans at Tiger Stadium.

Buddy Bell and John Lowenstein each hit home runs and batted in 3 runs as the Cleveland Indians defeated the California Angels 9-2 before 11,309 fans at Anaheim Stadium. Eric Raich pitched 7 2/3 innings for his first major league win, while Nolan Ryan allowed 7 hits and 6 runs--all earned--in 7 innings in losing his second straight decision, dropping to 8-3 for the year.

In the International League, the Memphis Blues made 6 errors and hit into a triple play in losing 5-1 to the Toledo Mud Hens. The Triple play came in the 2nd inning, when Bombo Rivera doubled and went to third base on Ellis Valentine's single. Bob Reece then grounded into a 5-4-3 double play, and when Mr. Rivera attempted to score, he was tagged out at home plate by Toledo catcher Bill Nahorodny, making the triple play 5-4-3-2.

30 years ago
1985

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Philadelphia 3 @ Edmonton 5 (Edmonton led best-of-five series 3-1)

Wayne Gretzky scored 2 goals as the Oilers came back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat the Flyers at Northlands Coliseum.



25 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Jealousy o nemura sete (ＪＥＡＬＯＵＳＹを眠らせて)--Kyosuke Himuro

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Verdammt, Ich Lieb' Dich--Matthias Reim (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Julius Eastman, 49. U.S. musician. Mr. Eastman was a minimalist classical and jazz pianist, composer, and singer whose works included Stay On It (1973) and Evil Nigger (1979). He was a sodomite and drug addict who died of cardiac arrest.

Diplomacy
United Nations Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar, on a visit to Ottawa, thanked Canada for her support of the United Nations. He discussed security issues with Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, who signed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

20 years ago
1995

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: I'll Be Around--Rappin' 4-Tay

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): Shut Up (and Sleep with Me)--Sin with Sebastian (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)--Scatman John (5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Irfan Ljubijankić, 42. Bosnian politician. Mr. Ljubijankić, Bosnia's Foreign Minister since 1993, was killed along with five others when their helicopter was downed by Serb forces.

Disasters
The 7.0 Mw  Neftegorsk earthquake shook the former Russian settlement of Neftegorsk with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). Total damage was $64.1–300 million, with 1,989 deaths and 750 injured. The settlement was not rebuilt.

Auto racing
Jacques Villeneuve became the first Canadian driver to win the Indianapolis 500. Fellow Canadian Scott Goodyear was leading late in the race when he was penalized for driving too fast while preparing for a return to a green flag while still under a caution. Mr. Goodyear ignored the penalty, and race officials stopped counting him with 5 laps remaining. Mr. Villeneuve was 2 laps behind the rest of the field at one point before coming back to win. This was the last Indianapolis 500 before the political dispute in open-wheel racing that resulted in the creation of the Indy Racing League in 1996.