July 16, 2015

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Campbell Milton, Carmen Reyes Zubiaga, Brock Ralph, and Anna!

225 years ago
1790

Americana
The Residence Act, which stipulated that the President select a site on the Potomac River as the permanent capital of the United States, following a 10-year temporary residence in Philadelphia, was signed into law.

120 years ago
1895

Born on this date
Wilfrid Hamel. Canadian politician. Mr. Hamel, a native of Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec, was a Liberal member of the Quebec Legislative Assembly (1939-1948), representing the riding of Saint-Sauveur and serving in the cabinet of Premier Adélard Godbout as Minister of State and Minister of Land and Forests. He was defeated in the 1948 and 1952 provincial elections. Mr. Hamel was Mayor of Quebec City from 1953-1965; he died in Quebec City on December 31, 1968 at the age of 73.

100 years ago
1915

Died on this date
Ellen G. White, 87. U.S. religious leader. Mrs. White, born Ellen Harmon, co-founded the Seventh-day Adventist Church and remains its most influential individual. Her visionary experiences, which resulted in over 40 books, led Seventh-day Adventists to regard Mrs. White as possessing the biblical gift of prophecy--a view not shared by this blogger. The physical phenomena that accompanied Mrs. White's "visions" indicate control by a seducing spirit rather than by the Holy Spirit.

80 years ago
1935

Politics and government
The Liberal government of Premier Allison Dysart took office in New Brunswick, 19 days after winning 43 of 48 seats in the Legislative Assembly in the provincial election.

Technology
The first parking meters were installed in Oklahoma City.

75 years ago
1940

War
German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler ordered the invasion of Britain to be prepared for mid-August, and directed the Luftwaffe to secure air superiority over the English Channel.

Diplomacy
Spanish dictator Generalissimo Francisco Franco said that Spanish control of Gibraltar and expansion in Africa was Spain's prime mission. Spain severed diplomatic relations with Chile for allegedly tolerating anti-Nationalist propaganda.

Nationalist Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek spurned a British proposal to mediate the Sino-Japanese War.

U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull issued a statement opposing the British closing of the Burma Road.

Defense
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill transferring 6,450 acres of Hawaii National Park to the War Department to use as a bombing target range.

Finland announced the complete demilitarization of the Aland Islands.

Politics and government
At the Democratic National Convention at Chicago Stadium, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced through Senator Alben Barkley that he did not wish a third term as President, and released all convention delegates committed to him. The statement, which clearly left Mr. Roosevelt open to a draft, touched off a long floor demonstration virtually assuring him of the nomination.

70 years ago
1945

Hit parade
U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Sentimental Journey--Les Brown and his Orchestra (vocal chorus by Doris Day) (7th week at #1)
--Hal McIntyre and his Orchestra
--The Merry Macs
2 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
3 Bell Bottom Trousers--Tony Pastor and his Orchestra
--Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
--Kay Kyser and his Orchestra
--Louis Prima and his Orchestra
4 You Belong to My Heart--Bing Crosby and Xavier Cugat and his Orchestra
--Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra
5 Caldonia--Louis Jordan and the Tympany Five
--Woody Herman and his Orchestra
--Erskine Hawkins and his Orchestra
6 The More I See You--Dick Haymes
--Harry James and his Orchestra
7 Dream--The Pied Pipers
--Frank Sinatra
--Freddy Martin and his Orchestra
8 Laura--Johnnie Johnston
--Woody Herman and his Orchestra
--Freddy Martin and his Orchestra
--Dick Haymes
9 Chopin's Polonaise--Carmen Cavallaro and his Orchestra
10 Good, Good, Good (That’s You – That’s You)--Xavier Cugat and the Waldorf-Astoria Orchestra
--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra

Singles entering the chart were On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe, with versions by Johnny Mercer and the Pied Pipers with Paul Weston and his Orchestra; Bing Crosby; and Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra (#21); A Kiss Goodnight, with versions by Woody Herman and his Orchestra; and Freddie Slack and his Orchestra (#26); The Minor Goes Muggin' by Duke Ellington with Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra (#28); Bottoms Up (A Clap Hands Song) by Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra (#29); and Slipped Disc by the Benny Goodman Sextet (#33). On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe was written for the movie The Harvey Girls (1946), and went on to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song for 1946.

War
The heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis left San Francisco bound for Tinian Island with parts for the atomic bomb "Little Boy." British troops took five villages in the Sittang River bend north of Rangoon and closed in on Japanese forces at Myitko in central Burma.

Defense
The first secret test of the atomic bomb took place at Alamagordo Air Force Base, New Mexico.



U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader Joseph Martin (Republican--Massachusetts) announced that he would introduce a resolution asking President Harry Truman to work for the abandonment of universal military training by all nations.

Diplomacy
The summit at Potsdam, Germany of U.S. President Harry Truman, U.K. Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and U.S.S.R. dictator Josef Stalin was delayed for a day because Mr. Stalin hadn't yet arrived. Mr. Truman and Mr. Churchill each went on his own tour of war-ravaged Berlin--Mr. Truman in a convertible, and Mr. Churchill in a closed sedan.

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee submitted its official report on the United Nations Charter, asking for unreserved ratification and saying that any attempt to give Congress the power to decide every time the new world organization could use U.S. troops against a recalcitrant country would violate both the Charter and the U.S. Constitution.

The British Foreign Office issued a statement denying that Prime Minister Winston Churchill had ever made a "gentleman's agreement" with Vichy French Prime Minister Marshal Philippe Petain.

Politics and government
The nomination of Fred Vinson as U.S. Secretary of the Treasury was sent to the Senate after current Secretary Henry Morgenthau asked President Harry Truman to relieve him as soon as possible.

Economics and finance
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Clinton Anderson told the nation that it must consume 5% less food in 1945 than during "last year's eating spree," and that fats and oils, sugar, condensed milk, and canned fruits and vegetables remained in short supply.

60 years ago
1955

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): The High and the Mighty--Victor Young and his Orchestra; Les Baxter and his Orchestra (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Dreamboat--Alma Cogan (2nd week at #1)

#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock--Bill Haley and his Comets (Best Seller--2nd week at #1; Disc Jockey--1st week at #1); Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White--Perez Prado and his Orchestra (Jukebox--7th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock--Bill Haley and his Comets (2nd week at #1)
2 Unchained Melody--Les Baxter and his Orchestra
--Al Hibbler
--Roy Hamilton
3 Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White--Perez Prado and his Orchestra
--Alan Dale
4 Something's Gotta Give--The McGuire Sisters
--Sammy Davis, Jr.
5 Learnin' the Blues--Frank Sinatra
6 Honey-Babe--Art Mooney and his Orchestra
7 A Blossom Fell--Nat "King" Cole
8 Hard to Get--Gisele MacKenzie
9 It's a Sin to Tell a Lie--Somethin' Smith and the Redheads
10 Sweet and Gentle--Alan Dale
--Georgia Gibbs

The only single entering the chart was Seventeen by Boyd Bennett and the Rockets (#35).

At the movies
Breakaway, directed by Henry Cass, and starring Tom Conway, Michael Balfour, and Honor Blackman, opened in theatres in the United Kingdom.



Auto racing
Stirling Moss won the British Grand Prix at the Aintree track near Liverpool, becoming the first English driver to win the race.

50 years ago
1965

Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 I'm Henry VIII, I Am--Herman's Hermits (3rd week at #1)
2 (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction--The Rolling Stones
3 What's New Pussycat?--Tom Jones
4 Mr. Tambourine Man--The Byrds
5 Cara, Mia--Jay & the Americans
6 (Such An) Easy Question--Elvis Presley
7 I Like it Like That--The Dave Clark Five
8 Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows--Lesley Gore
9 Down in the Boondocks--Billy Joe Royal
10 Save Your Heart for Me--Gary Lewis and the Playboys
Pick hit of the week: Trains and Boats and Planes--Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas
New this week: Looking Through the Eyes of Love--Gene Pitney
On the Beach--Tommy Leonetti
Ten Seconds to Heaven--The Ventures
I'm Your Man--The Denims
Don't You Even Want to Know--The Royal Family

Died on this date
Phạm Ngọc Thảo, 42 or 43. North Vietnamese spy. Colonel Thảo was a Communist agent of the Viet Minh who infiltrated the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. He was reported dead in unclear circumstances after being sentenced to death in absentia after an unsuccessful coup attempt in May.

Space
The U.S.S.R. launched the satellite Proton I, which at 26,900 pounds, had the heaviest payload yet; it was put into Earth orbit by a new booster rocket. The Soviets also launched five Cosmos satellites with one rocket.

Defense
The Canadian government of Prime Minister Lester Pearson announced that it would place a $215-million order for Northrop CF-5 aircraft.

Transportation
The two-lane, 7¼-mile Mont Blanc Tunnel linking Peleriins (near Chamonix), France and Entreves (near Courmayeur), Italy opened.

40 years ago
1975

Personal
This blogger was one of several passengers aboard a DC-3 on a flight from Yellowknife to Coppermine, Northwest Territories for a brief stop before returning to Yellowknife. It was the only time I was ever above the Arctic Circle.

Basketball
ABA
The Denver Nuggets signed 21-year-old David Thompson, from North Carolina State University, to a three-year contract for a reported $3 million in what was believed to be the highest salary ever paid to a rookie in any sport.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Hamilton (1-3) 21 @ Ottawa (1-3) 19
Toronto (2-2) 7 @ Montreal (2-1-1) 20
Edmonton (4-0) 28 @ Calgary (2-2) 27

Jim McMillan completed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Terry Evanshen with 15 seconds remaining in the game to give the Tiger-Cats their win over the Rough Riders before 18,040 fans at Lansdowne Park.

Larry Smith rushed 22 yards for a touchdown in the 1st quarter and Johnny Rodgers rushed 8 yards for a TD in the 4th quarter as the Alouettes beat the Argonauts before 15,265 fans at Autostade.

Tom Wilkinson completed a 6-yard touchdown pass to George McGowan with 1:51 remaining in the game and then connected with Tyrone Walls for 4-yard TD with 20 seconds left, while Dave Cutler converted both, giving the Eskimos their win over the Stampeders before 23,508 fans at McMahon Stadium. Bruce Lemmerman started at quarterback for Edmonton and threw touchdown passes of 12 yards to Mr. McGowan late in the 1st quarter and 76 yards to Larry Mayer in the 2nd quarter. All 3 Calgary touchdowns were scored in the 2nd quarter--Willie Burden rushed 12 and 8 yards for TDs, and Joe Pisarcik threw 34 yards to Tom Forzani. It was the final game in an Edmonton uniform for defensive end Ron Forwick, who was subsequently dealt to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats after 10 years as an Eskimo. It was also the final game for Mr. Mayer and fellow Edmonton receiver Jerrald Taylor. It was the final game in a Calgary uniform for linebacker Roger Goree after two seasons with the Stampeders; he was a surprise victim when final roster cuts took place several days later, and was quickly signed by the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Baseball
Pacific Coast League All-Star Game @ Hughes Stadium, Sacramento
East 10 West 2

Horace Speed of the Phoenix Giants drove in 4 runs with a home run and a single and was named the game's Most Valuable Player as the East won before 2,202 fans.

30 years ago
1985

Died on this date
Wayne King, 84. U.S. musician. Mr. King played saxophone with Paul Whiteman's orchestra before founding his own orchestra in 1927, and recording hit singles such as Dream a Little Dream of Me (1931) and Maria Elena (1941).

Heinrich Böll, 67. German author. Mr. Böll was awarded the 1972 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his writing which through its combination of a broad perspective on his time and a sensitive skill in characterization has contributed to a renewal of German literature."

Baseball
Major League All-Star Game @ Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis
National League 6 American League 1

Ozzie Virgil of the Philadelphia Phillies singled home 2 runs in the 5th inning and Willie McGee of the St. Louis Cardinals doubled home 2 in the 9th for the NL before 54,960 fans. LaMarr Hoyt of the San Diego Padres gave up just 1 unearned run in 3 innings and was named the game’s most valuable player.





25 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): The Point of Lover's Night--TM Network

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Verdammt, Ich Lieb' Dich--Matthias Reim (9th week at #1)

Died on this date
Sidney Torch, 82. U.K. musician. Mr. Torch, born Sidney Torchinsky, was a pianist and organist who conducted orchestras and bands--especially those associated with the British Broadcasting Corporation--and composed theme music for BBC programs.

Politics and government
The parliament of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic declared state sovereignty over the territory of the Ukrainian SSR.

Economics and finance
The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 2,999.75, an all-time high. It topped 3,000 during the course of the day.

Journalism
An Ontario provincial court judge in Ottawa threw out charges against Global television reporter Doug Small in the 1989 federal budget leak case.

Disasters
An earthquake whose epicentre was 55 miles north of Manila struck the Philippines, killing more than 600 people and leaving more than 2,600 homeless.

20 years ago
1995

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me--U2

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?--Bryan Adams

#1 single in Switzerland: Wish You were Here--Rednex

Died on this date
Stephen Spender, 86. U.K. poet. Sir Stephen's poetry concentrated on themes of social injustice and class struggle. He joined the Communist Party of Great Britain in 1936, but eventually became disillusioned with Communism.

May Sarton, 83. U.S. writer. Miss Sarton wrote 53 books of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and other works, often with feminist and lesbian content. She died of breast cancer.

10 years ago
2005

Football
CFL
Calgary (1-2) 18 @ Ottawa (2-2) 33