March 20, 2016

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Cliff Lander!

825 years ago
1191

Died on this date
Clement III, 61 (?). Roman Catholic Pope, 1187-1191. Clement III, born Paulion (or Paolo) Scolari, succeeded Gregory VIII. He was involved in a dispute with Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI at the time of his death. Pope Clement III was succeeded in office by Celestine III.

400 years ago
1616

Crime
Sir Walter Raleigh was freed from the Tower of London after 13 years of imprisonment for his involvement in the Main Plot against King James I.

200 years ago
1816

Law
The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed its right to review state court decisions.

120 years ago
1896

Born on this date
Wop May. Canadian aviator. Wilfrid May, a native of Carberry, Manitoba, moved to Edmonton in 1902. He joined the Canadian Army in 1916 and went to England, but resigned when he was accepted into the Royal Flying Corps, where he rose to the rank of captain. Captain May was credited with 13 combat victories and may have had 5 more, but he was primarily known for the events of April 21, 1918: He chased German pilot Wolfram von Richthofen, but Mr. Richthofen's brother Manfred, the "Red Baron," fired on Capt. May and then chased him before being shot down. Capt. May resigned from the RFC in 1919 and returned to Edmonton, where he and his brother Elgin founded Canada's first "air harbour." Mr. May attracted international attention in January 1929 when he and Vic Horner flew vaccines to Little Red River in northern Alberta in a desperate attempt to save lives and prevent an outbreak of diphtheria. Mr. May helped the Royal Canadian Mounted Police capture Albert Johnson, the "Mad Trapper" of Rat River, Northwest Territories in February 1932. Mr. Johnson seriously wounded an RCMP officer before being killed in a shootout, and Mr. May flew the injured policeman 125 miles to a doctor, saving his life. Mr. May participated in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan in World War II, commanding the No.2 Air Observer School in Edmonton and supervising all western schools. He was on vacation in Utah with his son Denny when he died of a stroke on June 21, 1952 at the age of 56.

110 years ago
1906

Born on this date
Lon Tinkle. U.S. journalist, academic, and historian. Mr. Tinkle was a literature professor at Southern Methodist University and the book editor and critic for the Dallas Morning News before writing several books of his own, mainly on the history of Texas. He was best known for Thirteen Days to Glory: The Siege of the Alamo (1958). Mr. Tinkle died on January 11, 1980 at the age of 73.

100 years ago
1916

Born on this date
Pierre Messmer. Prime Minister of France, 1972-1974. Mr. Messmer, aGaullist, served as Minister of Armies under President Charles de Gaulle from 1960-1969 and as Prime Minister under President Georges Pompidou. He died on August 29, 2007 at the age of 91.

Died on this date
Ota Benga, 32 (?). Congolese pygmy. Mr. Benga was a pygmy of the Mbuti tribe. He was purchased from African slave traders by explorer Samuel Phillips Verner, a businessman hunting Africans for the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis. Mr. Benga was part of an anthropology exhibit at the exposition and was exhibited at the Bronx Zoo in New York in 1906. He was eventually released into the custody of Rev. James M. Gordon and became his ward, but committed suicide when he found out he would be unable to return to Africa because of the cessation of passenger shipping during World War I.

Science
Albert Einstein published his general theory of relativity.

Hockey
Stanley Cup
Finals @ Montreal Arena

Portland Rosebuds (PCHA) 2 @ Montreal Canadiens (NHA) 0 (Portland led best-of-five series 1-0)

90 years ago
1926

Died on this date
Louise, 74. Queen consort of Denmark, 1906-1912. Louise, the only surviving child of King Karl XV and Queen Louise of Sweden, was barred from succession to the thrones of Sweden and Norway. She married the future King Frederik VIII of Denmark in 1869, and became queen consort when he acceded to the throne in 1906. The couple had eight children before his death in 1912, and King Frederik was succeeded by his son Christian X. Queen Louise was known for her charitable works.

Hockey
Stanley Cup
NHL
Semi-Finals
Montreal Maroons 3 @ Pittsburgh 1 (First game of 2-game total goals series)

WHL
Finals
Edmonton 1 @ Victoria 3 (First game of 2-game total goals series)

75 years ago
1941

War
German bombers subjected Plymouth, England to its worst raids of the European war. The British battleship Malaya was struck by a German torpedo in the mid-Atlantic Ocean, but there were reportedly no injuries. U.S. Army Colonel Charles Lindbergh said in the article A Letter to Americans in the March 29, 1941 issue of Collier's magazine that the United States was being led toward war "with ever-increasing rapidity and with every conceivable deception."

Defense
U.S. Representative Joseph Mansfield (Democrat--Texas) urged that the Panama Canal be converted to a sea-level canal to lessen the danger of air raids. Seven U.S. warships arrived in Sydney, Australia on a goodwill visit.

Law
U.S. Attorney General Robert Jackson asked Congress to legalize the use of wire-tapping evidence against spies, saboteurs, kidnappers, and extortionists.

Golf
Sam Snead won the North-South Open at Pinehurst, North Carolina.

70 years ago
1946

Died on this date
Fred M. Smith, 72. U.S. religious leader. Dr. Smith was President of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was the son of its founder, Joseph Smith III. He succeeded to the presidency in 1915 after his father's death. Dr. Smith obtained his doctorate in psychology from Clark University, and attempted to use social science methods in addressing the problems of his day. He was involved in a controversy in the 1920s over "supreme directional control" of the church, which marred his leadership. Dr. Smith was succeeded in office by his brother Israel.

Disasters
185 people were killed when a train derailed near Aracaju, Brazil.

60 years ago
1956

Africana
Tunisia gained her independence from France.

50 years ago
1966

Died on this date
Johnny Morrison, 70. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Morrison played with the Pittsburgh Pirates (1920-1927) and Brooklyn Robins, compiling a record of 103-80 with an earned run average of 3.65 in 297 games. His best season was 1923, when he was 25-13 with a 3.49 ERA. Mr. Morrison was a member of the Pirates' World Series championship team in 1925.

Crime
The soccer World Cup was stolen while on exhibition at Central Hall in Westminster, London; it was recovered a week later.

40 years ago
1976

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (Hit Parade Italia): Sandokan--Oliver Onions (6th week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (Veronica Top 40): Love Hurts--Nazareth (5th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K.: I Love to Love (But My Baby Loves to Dance)--Tina Charles (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)--The Four Seasons (2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)--The Four Seasons
2 Dream Weaver--Gary Wright
3 Lonely Night (Angel Face)--Captain and Tennille
4 Disco Lady--Johnnie Taylor
5 All by Myself--Eric Carmen
6 Sweet Thing--Rufus featuring Chaka Khan
7 Dream On--Aerosmith
8 Money Honey--Bay City Rollers
9 Love Hurts--Nazareth
10 Love Machine (Part 1)--The Miracles

Singles entering the chart were Get Up and Boogie (That's Right) by Silver Convention (#72); Queen of Clubs by K.C. and the Sunshine Band (#74); There Won't Be No Country Music (There Won’t Be No Rock ’N’ Roll) by C.W. McCall (#80); I Thought it Took a Little Time (But Today I Fell in Love) by Diana Ross (#82); More, More, More (Part 1) by Andrea True Connection (#83); Happy Music by the Blackbyrds (#84); Ophelia by The Band (#88); Heavy Love by David Ruffin (#93); Let's Make a Baby by Billy Paul (#94); Movin' by Brass Construction (#96); Mighty High by Mighty Clouds of Joy (#99); and Train Called Freedom by South Shore Commission (#100).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Theme from S.W.A.T. (Part 1)--The T.H.P. Orchestra
2 Fanny (Be Tender with My Love)--Bee Gees
3 Money Honey--Bay City Rollers
4 Love to Love You Baby--Donna Summer
5 Wow--Andre Gagnon
6 Action--Sweet
7 Only Sixteen--Dr. Hook
8 I Feel Like a Bullet (In the Gun of Robert Ford)--Elton John
9 Lady Bump--Penny McLean
10 Bohemian Rhapsody--Queen

Singles entering the chart were Lost in a Love Song by Christopher Ward (#91); Give a Little Love by Ken Tobias (#97); Highfly by John Miles (#98); Devil Woman by Kristine (#99); and Tangerine by Salsoul Orchestra (#100).

Crime
U.S. newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst was convicted of bank robbery and using a weapon to commit a felony. She had been kidnapped from her Berkeley, California apartment in 1974 by members of the Symbionese Liberation Army, and later participated with them in a bank robbery.

Hockey
NHL
Washington 3 @ Toronto 7

The Maple Leafs trailed 3-1 after the 1st period, but scored 6 straight goals to defeat the Capitals at Maple Leaf Gardens in the national Hockey Night in Canada telecast. Kurt Walker made his NHL debut as a forward with the Maple Leafs, playing several shifts.

30 years ago
1986

Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 30 (CHED)
1 How Will I Know--Whitney Houston
2 These Dreams--Heart
3 Sara--Starship
4 Secret Lovers--Atlantic Starr
5 Nikita--Elton John
6 Kiss--Prince and the Revolution
7 Don't Forget Me (When I'm Gone)--Glass Tiger
8 R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.--John Cougar Mellencamp
9 Rock Me Amadeus--Falco
10 This Could Be the Night--Loverboy
11 Life in a Northern Town--The Dream Academy
12 Kyrie--Mr. Mister
13 The Sweetest Taboo--Sade
14 Eurasian Eyes--Corey Hart
15 King for a Day--Thompson Twins
16 Sanctify Yourself--Simple Minds
17 What You Need--INXS
18 People See Through You--Bruce Cockburn
19 Silent Running--Mike + the Mechanics
20 Manic Monday--Bangles
21 Feel it Again--Honeymoon Suite
22 There was a Time--One to One
23 Living in America--James Brown
24 If I Was--Midge Ure
25 Let's Go All the Way--Sly Fox
26 Flippin' to the A Side--Cats Can Fly
27 Calling America--Electric Light Orchestra
28 Tarzan Boy--Baltimora
29 West End Girls--Pet Shop Boys
30 She Sells Sanctuary--The Cult

On television tonight
The Twilight Zone, on CITV
Tonight’s episode: Need to Know, starring William Petersen; Red Snow, starring George Dzundza

Politics and government
Jacques Chirac, the mayor of Paris and leader of a non-Gaullist party, accepted the offer of French President Francois Mitterand and took office as Premier of France.

Terrorism
Two people were killed and 28 injured when a bomb exploded on the Champs Elysees in Paris.

Defense
The United States House of Representatives voted 222-210 to deny aid for the Contras of Nicaragua in their war against the ruling Sandanistas. 16 Republican Congressmen voted against the bill, thus voting against the policy of President Ronald Reagan.

Scandal
2,300 pages of documents that former Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos had taken with him to Hawaii were made public by a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee. The documents revealed holdings of Mr. Marcos valued at about $1 billion in banks, stock, and real estate. The Philippines government sued Mr. Marcos and his wife Imelda in Texas, charging that they and their associates had used stolen funds to buy $50 million in Texas real estate.

Economics and finance
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 1,800 for the first time.

25 years ago
1991

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Joyride--Roxette (2nd week at #1)

On television tonight
The Wonder Years, on ABC
Tonight’s episode: When Worlds Collide

Politics and government
Kuwaiti Premier Crown Prince Saad al-Abdallah Al Sabah and his entire cabinet resigned amid public protest over the government’s failure to supply necessities such as food, electricity, and water.

Yugoslavian President Borislav Jovic, whose March 15 resignation hadn’t been accepted by Serbia, returned to the executive body and resumed his role as Yugoslavia’s head of state.

Keith Spicer issued What We Have Heard So Far--the interim report of the Citizen's Forum on Canada's Future; the Spicer Commission talked to 75,000 Canadians.

Economics and finance
Consumer and Corporate Affairs Canada reported that personal and business bankruptcies had reached their highest level ever; up 68% from 1990.

The United States Commerce Department reported that the merchandise trade deficit stood at $7 billion in January.

20 years ago
1996

Crime
A jury in Los Angeles convicted Erik and Lyle Menendez of first-degree murder. A mistrial had been declared on January 28, 1994 in Los Angeles Superior Court in the murder trial of Lyle Menendez, 26, who, with his brother Erik, 23, had been accused of the August 20, 1989 murder of their parents in their Beverly Hills, California home in order to inherit their $14-million estate. The brothers had testified that they had endured years of sexual and emotional abuse from their parents. The brothers had been tried separately, and Erik's trial had also ended in a mistrial on January 13. The brothers had been tried separately, and both juries had been unable to reach verdicts. In one of the trials, the accused admitted killing his mother, but a typically stupid female juror stated afterward to a reporter that she didn't think he'd really done it, prompting conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh to say that women shouldn't be allowed to sit on a jury where the defendant is a hunk. The brothers are currently serving life sentences without possibility of parole.

Health
A scientific report linking mad cow disease and the slow-developing but fatal Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease raised fears about the safety of British beef at home and abroad.

Basketball
NBA
Vancouver 93 @ Atlanta 98



10 years ago
2006

World events
Over 150 Chadian soldiers were killed in eastern Chad by members of the rebel UFDC. The rebel movement sought to overthrow President Idriss Déby.