September 10, 2015

275 years ago
1740

Born on this date
Nicolau Tolentino de Almeida. Portuguese poet. Mr. Tolentino de Almeida was Portugal's foremost satirical poet of the 18th century. He died on June 23, 1811 at the age of 70.

125 years ago
1890

Born on this date
Bob Heffron. N.Z.-born Australian politician. Mr. Heffron, a member of the Labour Party, held various offices, and was Premier of New South Wales from 1959-1964. He died on July 27, 1978 at the age of 87.

110 years ago
1905

Died on this date
Pete Browning, 44. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Browning was an outfielder with seven major league clubs from 1882-1894, batting .341 with 46 home runs and 659 runs batted in in 1,183 games. He was a native of Louisville, and played with the Louisville Eclipse/Colonels of the American Association (1882-1889) and National League (1892-1893), and was the AA batting champion n 1882 and 1885. The Hillerich & Bradsby company made his bats; both Mr. Browning and the bats were nicknamed "Louisville Slugger." He won the Players League batting title with the Cleveland Infants in 1890, the only year of the PL's existence. Mr. Browning was a terrible defensive player, which may be why he isn't in the Baseball Hall of Fame. He suffered from lifelong mastoiditis, which resulted in near-total deafness and virtual illiteracy. Mr. Browning tried to numb the pain with alcohol, and was occasionally drunk on the field. He was also known to patronize prostitutes, which may have resulted in paresis. Mr. Browning was committed to a lunatic asylum in June 1905, but was released two weeks later. A month later, he was hospitalized, and died from "asthenia" (a general weakening of the body), which included mastoiditis; cirrhosis of the liver; cancer; and paresis.

100 years ago
1915

Born on this date
Edmond O'Brien. U.S. actor. Mr. O'Brien won the Academy Award for his supporting performance in The Barefoot Contessa (1954). His other movies included White Heat (1949); D.O.A. (1950); The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962); and Seven Days in May (1964). He starred in the radio series Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar from 1950-1952. Mr. O'Brien died of Alzheimer's disease at the age of 69 on May 9, 1985.

Died on this date
Charles Boucher de Boucherville, 93. Canadian politician. Dr. Boucher de Boucherville, a physician and Conservative, was Premier of Quebec from 1874-1878 and 1891-1892, and represented Montarville, Quebec in the Senate from 1879-1915.

80 years ago
1935

Died on this date
Huey Long, 42. U.S. politician. The man known as the "Kingfish," Mr. Long was Governor of Louisiana from 1928-1932 and United States Senator from 1932-1935. His populist policies included big spending on public works, educational institutions (e.g. Louisiana State University), and old-age pensions. He dubbed his program "Share Our Wealth," and sang a theme song called Every Man a King. Mr. Long was accused of dictatorial practices while Governor, and still controlled state politics while he was in the U.S. Senate. He was considered a likely challenger to President Franklin D. Roosevelt for the Democratic party presidential nomination in 1936. Mr. Long died two days after being shot in the Louisiana state Capitol building. Dr. Carl Weiss, a physician whose father-in-law was a judge who had reportedly been gerrymandered out of his electoral district because of his opposition to Mr. Long, went to the Louisiana state Capitol building in Baton Rouge. Dr. Weiss had a gun in his coat, and shots were fired, most of them by Mr. Long's bodyguards, with 32 bullets going into or through Dr. Weiss. In the early 1990s the NBC television documentary program Unsolved Mysteries ran a segment on the incident, and the evidence indicated that the bullet that mortally wounded Mr. Long had been fired by one of his bodyguards, not by Dr. Weiss.

75 years ago
1940

War
German planes dropped bombs on London for 8 hours 24 minutes, causing heavy damage to St. Paul's Cathedral and the Old Bailey.

Politics and government
U.S. National Youth Foundation Chairman Gene Tunney announced the creation of a Young Voter's Exchange, designed to bring out an estimated 9 million first-time voters in the November 1940 elections.

Religion
Physicist Albert Einstein, in a paper read before a conference of scientists, philosophers, and religious leaders in New York City, urged the development of a religion of good and the abandonment of a "personal God."

Economics and finance
The Swedish government concluded trade agreements with Nazi-controlled Belgium and the Netherlands.

70 years ago
1945

Hit parade
U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe--Johnny Mercer and the Pied Pipers with Paul Weston and his Orchestra (4th week at #1)
--Bing Crosby
--Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra
2 Chopin's Polonaise--Carmen Cavallaro and his Orchestra
3 Till the End of Time--Perry Como with Russ Case and his Orchestra
--Dick Haymes
--Les Brown and his Orchestra
4 Gotta Be This or That--Benny Goodman and his Orchestra
--Sammy Kaye and his "Swing and Sway" Orchestra
5 If I Loved You--Perry Como
--Bing Crosby
--Frank Sinatra
6 Sentimental Journey--Les Brown and his Orchestra (vocal chorus by Doris Day)
--Hal McIntyre and his Orchestra
--The Merry Macs
7 Bell Bottom Trousers--Tony Pastor and his Orchestra
--Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
--Kay Kyser and his Orchestra
--Louis Prima and his Orchestra
--Jerry Colonna
8 Tampico--Stan Kenton and his Orchestra
9 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
10 You Belong to My Heart--Bing Crosby and Xavier Cugat and his Orchestra
--Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra

The only single entering the chart was Homesick - That's All by Frank Sinatra (#36).

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

At the movies
The House on 92nd Street, starring William Eythe, Lloyd Nolan, and Signe Hasso, opened in theatres.



Crime
A tribunal of the Norwegian Superior Court found former Minister President Vidkun Quisling guilty of treason, and sentenced him to death.

War
U.S. President Harry Truman presented General Jonathan Wainwright with the Congressional Medal of Honor for "intrepid and determined leadership" of U.S. troops in the Philippines and later in prisoner of war camps.

Politics and government
Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) in Japan General Douglas MacArthur ordered Emperor Hirohito to abolish the Imperial General Headquarters and established censorship over Japanese radio and press.

Oddities
Farmer Lloyd Olsen of Fruita, Colorado decapitated a chicken, but he missed the jugular vein, leaving one ear and most of the brain stem intact. The headless chicken, named Mike, lived for another 18 months.

Economics and finance
Bolivia and the U.S. Foreign Economic Administration reached an agreement for U.S. purchase of tin through 1946.

Business
Montgomery Ward Chairman Sewell Avery protested to U.S. War Secretary Henry Stimson that the Army's continued occupation of company property was illegal.

60 years ago
1955

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock--Bill Haley and his Comets (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Rose Marie--Slim Whitman (8th week at #1)

#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): The Yellow Rose of Texas--Mitch Miller and his Orchestra (Best Seller--2nd week at #1; Disc Jockey--2nd week at #1); (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock--Bill Haley and his Comets (Jukebox--7th week at #1)

U.S. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 The Yellow Rose of Texas--Mitch Miller and his Orchestra (3rd week at #1)
--Johnny Desmond
2 Ain't That a Shame--Pat Boone
--Fats Domino
3 Seventeen--Boyd Bennett and the Rockets
--The Fontane Sisters
--Rusty Draper
4 (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock--Bill Haley and his Comets
5 Maybellene--Chuck Berry
6 Love is a Many-Splendored Thing--The Four Aces
7 Wake the Town and Tell the People--Les Baxter and his Orchestra
--Mindy Carson
8 Hard to Get--Gisele MacKenzie
9 Tina Marie--Perry Como
10 Autumn Leaves--Roger Williams

Singles entering the chart were Hawk-Eye by Frankie Laine (#32); Fairy Tale (#33)/Same Old Saturday Night (#36) by Frank Sinatra; Goodnight, Sweet Dreams by Gordon Jenkins and his Orchestra (#42); Give Me Love by the McGuire Sisters (#48); and He by Al Hibbler (#50).

On television tonight
Gunsmoke, on CBS
Tonight's episode: Matt Gets It

This was the first episode of the series.

Football
CRU
IRFU
Toronto (1-2) 11 @ Montreal (2-1) 43
Ottawa (1-2) 12 @ Hamilton (2-1) 23

WIFU
Calgary (2-4) 23 @ Saskatchewan (4-2) 24
Edmonton (5-0) 18 @ British Columbia (3-3) 13

Pat Abbruzzi rushed 20 times for 201 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Alouettes routed the Argonauts before 22,227 fans at Molson Stadium. Montreal set an IRFU record for a single game with a net total of 390 yards rushing.

Larry Isbell scored 2 touchdowns and Stan Williams added another as the Roughriders edged the Stampeders before 12,000 fans at Taylor Field in Regina. Saskatchewan quarterback Frank Tripucka completed 17 of 23 passes for 285 yards. Calgary quarterback Don Klosterman completed 26 of 36 passes for 421 yards and touchdowns to Don Maselle, Baz Nagle, and Bill McKenna.

Earl Lindley rushed 74 yards for a touchdown, and Rollie Miles and Jackie Parker added TDs, all converted by Bob Dean, as the Eskimos defeated the Lions before 29,503 fans at Empire Stadium in Vancouver, a record crowd for Canadian football. Ron Clinkscale and Don Bartosh scored B.C. touchdowns.

50 years ago
1965

Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Help!--The Beatles (6th week at #1)
2 Catch Us if You Can--The Dave Clark Five
3 Eve of Destruction--Barry McGuire
4 Houston--Dean Martin
5 Only Sixteen--Terry Black
6 You were on My Mind--We Five
7 Heart Full of Soul--The Yardbirds
8 I Got You Babe--Sonny and Cher
9 Ride Away--Roy Orbison
10 California Girls--The Beach Boys
Pick hit of the week: (It's a) Long Lonely Highway--Elvis Presley
New this week: Not the Lovin' Kind--Dino, Desi and Billy
My Town, My Guy, and Me--Lesley Gore
Out of the Sunshine--David Clayton-Thomas
I Knew You When--Billy Joe Royal

Died on this date
Father Divine. U.S. religious leader. Father Divine, born George Baker, founded the International Peace Mission Movement in the early 20th century. A Negro, Father Divine promoted racial equality, and attracted many white, as well as black, followers. He was heavily influenced by the positive-thinking movement known as New Thought, and was thus an early figure in the New Age Movement. Father Divine's main doctrine was that he was God, and the only true expression of God's spirit; he wasn't. Father Divine's age was uncertain, but he was believed to be in his late 80s at the time of his death.

Bobby Jordan, 42. U.S. actor. Mr. Jordan was one of the regular cast members of the Dead End Kids/East Side Kids/Bowery Boys movies in the 1930s and '40s. He died of cirrhosis of the liver after years of heavy drinking.

Music
The single Will it Last Forever/Hang On (Just a Little Bit Longer) by Gene McDaniels was released on Liberty Records. It was Mr. MacDaniels' last single with Liberty after six years with the label.

Football
CFL
Saskatchewan (4-3-1) 28 @ Toronto (0-7) 9

George Reed rushed 22 times for 167 yards and a touchdown to led the Roughriders over the Argonauts before 20,497 fans at CNE Stadium. Dick Aldridge ran 27 yards for the Toronto touchdown.

Baseball
An infield single by Cookie Rojas with 2 out in the bottom of the 12th inning scored John Herrnstein with the winning run as the Philadelphia Phillies edged the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 before 16,333 fans at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. Ferguson Jenkins made his major league debut on the mound with the Phillies, relieving starter Jim Bunning with 2 out in the 8th inning. Mr. Jenkins allowed just 2 hits in 4 1/3 innings, and was the winning pitcher.

40 years ago
1975

Died on this date
George Paget Thomson, 83. U.K. physicist. Sir George shared the 1937 Nobel Prize in Physics with Clinton Davisson of the United States"for their experimental discovery of the diffraction of electrons by crystals."

Lance Richbourg, 77. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Richbourg was a right fielder with the Philadelphia Phillies (1921); Washington Nationals (1924); Boston Braves (1927-1931); and Chicago Cubs (1932), batting .308 with 13 home runs and 247 runs batted in in 698 games. He played in various minor leagues from at least 1916-1938, with his best season probably being 1926, when he hit .346 with 38 doubles, 28 triples, and 3 home runs with the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association.

Diplomacy
Cyprus peace talks in New York City between Greek and Turkish Cypriots adjourned after two days, with no progress reported.

Economics and finance
The United States Congress overrode President Gerald Ford's veto of a $7.9-billion education aid bill, but failed to override Mr. Ford's veto of a bill to continue price controls on domestic oil production for six months.

Football
CFL
Calgary (3-5) 17 @ Saskatchewan (6-3) 31

George Reed carried 21 times for 78 yards and 3 touchdowns to lead the Roughriders over the Stampeders before 17,838 fans at Taylor Field in Regina. Saskatchewan defensive back Jim Marshall clinched the victory with a 57-yard interception return for a touchdown with 20 seconds remaining in the game. Calgary quarterback Joe Pisarcik completed a 25 yard touchdown pass to Tom Forzani 6:19 into the game, and defensive back Larry Cates scored the other Calgary touchdown on a 37-yard interception return in the 2nd quarter.

Baseball
Wayne Simpson (1-0) allowed 8 hits but just 1 earned run in 6 innings to get his first major league win in two years as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Montreal Expos 5-1 before 9,216 fans at Jarry Park in Montreal on the Wednesday Expos Baseball telecast on CBC. The win was the only one for Mr. Simpson in a Philadelphia uniform. Dave Cash and Greg Luzinski each drove in 2 runs for the Phillies. Losing pitcher Steve Renko allowed 8 hits and 3 earned runs in 7 innings, but batted 2 for 2 with a base on balls.

Pinch hitter Leron Lee doubled home Steve Yeager with 1 out in the bottom of the 9th inning to give the Los Angeles Dodgers a 3-2 win over the Cincinnati reds before 27,432 fans at Dodger Stadium. Mr. Lee was batting for pitcher Burt Hooton, who allowed just 4 hits and 2 earned runs in pitching a complete game and improving his 1975 record to 16-9.

The New York Yankees scored all their runs in the first 3 innings as they beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-2 before 6,944 fans at Shea Stadium in New York. Larry Gura alowed 11 hits, but just 2 earned runs in pitching a complete game victory. Lafayette Currence, the second of three Milwaukee pitchers, allowed 3 hits, 5 bases on balls, and 3 runs--all earned--in 3 2/3 innings in his 8th and last major league game.

Frank Tanana pitched a 4-hitter and struck out 9 batters to improve his record for the season to 15-7 as the California Angels beat the Chicago White Sox 4-2 before 3,233 fans at White Sox Park. Dan Briggs made his major league debut, entering the game in the 7th inning for California as a pinch runner for first baseman Bruce Bochte, and was promptly thrown out in an attempt to steal second base. Mr. Briggs remained in the game at first base and made 3 putouts and an error.

30 years ago
1985

Defense
The Canadian cabinet of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney issued an Order-in-Council detailing the waters in the Arctic archipelago that Canada considered to be internal waters, and that Canada would take steps to strengthen her sovereignty in the Arctic, including more military surveillance flights.

Baseball
The California Angels acquired veteran pitcher Don Sutton from the Oakland Athletics for 2 minor league players to be named later. Mr. Sutton had recorded a 13-8 record for Oakland in 1985.

Howard Johnson's grand slam climaxed a 5-run 1st inning as the New York Mets held on to edge the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 before 50,195 fans at Shea Stadium in New York.

25 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Tahroja paperilla--Eppu Normaali

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Tom's Diner--DNA featuring Suzanne Vega

Diplomacy
West Germany and the U.S.S.R. agreed on principle on maintenance and repatriation of Soviet forces in East Germany. West Germany agreed to spend $8.2 billion to build 36,000 houses in the Soviet Union; cover continued cost of soldiers still stationed in East Germany; transport the soldiers home; and retrain them.

War
Four factions fighting for control of Cambodia agreed to accept a United Nations proposal to end their civil war. Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, they appointed a 12-member Supreme National Council that would run Cambodia until free elections could be held under UN supervision. The government named six members to the council, two each from the three rebel groups.

Religion
The Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro, Côte d'Ivoire, the largest church in Africa, was consecrated by Pope John Paul II.

20 years ago
1995

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): You are Not Alone--Michael Jackson

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): Wish You were Here--Rednex (8th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Wish You were Here--Rednex (9th week at #1)

At the movies
Angels & Insects, starring Mark Rylance, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Patsy Kensit, received its premiere screening at the Toronto International Film Festival.



The Grass Harp, directed by Chris Matthau and co-starring his father Walter, also received its premiere screening at TIFF.



Golf
Mark O'Meara defeated Bob Lohr in a playoff to win the Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Course in Oakville, Ontario. The two finished with 4-round 10-under-par total scores of 274. First prize money was $234,000.

Auto racing
CART
Gil de Ferran led 54 of 84 laps and won the Toyota Grand Prix of Monterey at Laguna Seca Raceway in Monterey, California. Paul Tracy finished second and Mauricio Gugelmin third. Jacques Villeneuve was 11th, but became the first Canadian to win the Championship Auto Racing Teams championship, picking up 3 points in the 17th and last race of the season.



Football
CFL
Shreveport (4-8) 21 @ Memphis (6-6) 22
Saskatchewan (3-8) 24 @ Winnipeg (4-7) 25

Bjorn Nittmo's 59-yard field goal attempt on the last play of regulation time was wide for a single point, enabling the Mad Dogs to edge the Pirates before 10,198 fans at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. Shreveport led 17-6 in the 3rd quarter before Steve Bates blocked a Robbie Keen punt, and Danton Barto recovered in the Shreveport end zone for the only Memphis touchdown of the game. Nick Mystrom converted and kicked his third, fourth, and fifth field goals of the game to give Memphis the lead. Norman Bradford scored the only Shreveport touchdown on an 11-yard rush in the 2nd quarter.

Troy Westwood's 27-yard field goal late in the 4th quarter gave the Blue Bombers their win over the Roughriders before 24,698 fans at Winnipeg Stadium in a game in which all the scoring was done by the team with the favouring wind. Mr. Westwood scored the only touchdown of his 17-year CFL career in the 1st quarter on a 12-yard rush after taking a pitchout from holder Bob Cameron on a fake field goal attempt. The Blue Bombers led 15-0 after the 1st quarter, but the Roughriders came back with 24 straight points in the next 2 quarters, with Tom Burgess completing touchdown passes of 28 and 14 yards to Don Narcisse. Winnipeg quarterback Kevin McDougal climaxed a 98-yard drive with a 9-yard TD run in the 4th quarter. After Mr. Westwood's field goal gave Winnipeg the lead, Mr. Burgess fumbled, and Winnipeg defensive end Len Johnson recovered to end Saskatchewan's hopes.

10 years ago
2005

Died on this date
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, 81. U.S. musician. Mr. Brown was a blues musician, playing guitar, fiddle, mandolin, viola, harmonica, and drums in a career that spanned 60 years.

Charlie Williams, 61. U.S. baseball umpire. Mr. Williams worked in the National League from 1978-1999. He was the first Negro umpire to work behind home plate in a World Series game--the fourth game of the 1993 World Series, which lasted 4 hours and 14 minutes as the Toronto Blue Jays edged the Philadelphia Phillies 15-14. Mr. Williams retired from the major leagues in 2000 because of health problems, and died from diabetes and kidney failure. His death was sad news to this blogger, who met Mr. Williams when he was working in the Pacific Coast League in 1981, and found him to be a very friendly man.

Football
CFL
Hamilton (2-9) 0 @ Toronto (7-4) 48
Saskatchewan (5-6) 19 @ Winnipeg (3-9) 17

The Hamilton offense made it into Toronto territory only once in the Tiger-Cats' humiliating shutout loss to the Argonauts at Rogers Centre.



CIS
Calgary (0-2) 20 @ Alberta (2-0) 34

The Golden Bears rushed for almost 200 yards in their win over the Dinos before about 3,000 fans at Foote Field in Edmonton.