March 26, 2016

450 years ago
1566

Died on this date
Antonio de Cabezón, 55. Spanish composer and organist. Mr. Cabezón, who went blind in early childhood, became prominent as an organist, and was employed in the court of King Charles V and Queen Isabella. He composed about 275 pieces, most for organ or other keyboard instruments. Mr. Cabezón died four days before his 56th birthday.

150 years ago
1866

Born on this date
Fred Karno. U.K. actor. Mr. Karno, born Frederick Westcott, was a music hall comedian and impresario who developed the pie-in-the-face gag and other bits that became staples of music hall and silent film comedy. Among those who worked under him were Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel. Mr. Karno died on September 17, 1941 at the age of 75.

120 years ago
1896

Disasters
A gas explosion in the Brunner Mine, a coal mine on the west coast of New Zealand, killed 65 miners; it remains the worst mining disaster in the country's history.

110 years ago
1906

Born on this date
Rafael Méndez Arceo. Mexican-born U.S. musician and composer. Mr. Méndez, who emigrated to the United States at the age of 20, was a trumpeter who performed and composed classical, jazz, folk, and popular music in a career spanning more than 50 years. He led the brass section of M-G-M's studio orchestra in the 1940s, and performed as a soloist from 1950 until his retirement in 1975, with a peak of about 120 concerts per year. Mr. Méndez began experiencing problems with asthma in the 1950s that negatively affected his skill, but he continued to compose and arrange after his retirement as a performer. He died on September 15, 1981 at the age of 75. Mr. Méndez's Scherzo in D minor is often heard in recitals, and he's credited with popularizing La Virgen de la Macarena, commonly known as "the bullfighter's song," to American audiences.

100 years ago
1916

Born on this date
Sterling Hayden. U.S. actor. Mr. Hayden, born Sterling Walter, was known for his performances in such films as The Asphalt Jungle (1950); Johnny Guitar (1954); The Killing (1956); Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964); and The Godfather (1972). He was a skilled yachtsman, and took acting jobs in order to finance his sailing trips. Mr. Hayden died on May 23, 1986 at the age of 70.

Christian B. Anfinsen. U.S. biochemist. Mr. Anfinsen shared the 1972 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Stanford Moore and William Howard Stein "for their contribution to the understanding of the connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of the active centre of the ribonuclease molecule." He died on May 14, 1995 at the age of 79.

90 years ago
1926

Died on this date
Constantin Fehrenbach, 74. Chancellor of Germany, 1920-1921. Mr. Fehrenbach, one of the leaders of the Centre Party, was President of the Reichstag in 1918 and President of the Weimar National Assembly from 1919-1920 before taking office as Chancellor on June 25, 1920. He resigned on May 10, 1921 after failing to get the Reichstag's approval of fixed payments of World War I reparations to the Allies.

75 years ago
1941

At the movies
I Wanted Wings, directed by Mitchell Leisen, and starring Ray Milland, William Holden, Wayne Morris, and Brian Donlevy, received its premiere screening in New York City.



War
World Zionist Organization President Dr. Chaim Weizmann urged the British government to permit Jews in Palestine to form their own army "for service against the common enemy of mankind."

Diplomacy
Japanese Foreign Minister Yosuke Matsuoka arrived in Berlin.

Defense
U.S. Army Colonel William J. Donovan declared that the United States must now consider the question of convoying war shipments to the United Kingdom. 1940 Republican Party U.S. presidential candidate Wendell Willkie addressed the opening of the United China Relief drive in New York, and said that the United States must help China because "she is standing up against an aggressor."

Protest
Riots began in Yugoslavian cities in protest against the government's signing of the Tripartite Act, bringing Yugoslavia into the Axis. British radio broadcasted an appeal to Yugoslavs resist "the betrayal of your honour and independence." French Army General Henri Dentz imposed martial law in several Syrian cities after two days of riots caused by food shortages and nationalist agitation.

Labour
U.S. Office of Production Management Chairman William Knudsen and Navy Secretary Frank Knox told the machinery firm Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company "to notify your entire work force to report for work and start operations immediately." International Harvester Company rejected a Congress of Industrial Orgznizations proposal to have the National Defense Mediation Board settle the strike at the Chicago-McCormick works.

Oil
The Bolivian Senate passed a resolution authorizing the government to seek an agreement with Standard Oil Company (New Jersey) regarding its confiscated properties.

Disasters
Two officers and 17 enlisted men were killed when the Royal Canadian Navy armed yacht HMCS Otter was destroyed by an accidental explosion and fire off Halifax.

70 years ago
1946

War
Testifying at the war crimes trial in Nuremberg of former German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, defense witness Adolf von Steengracht said that Mr. Ribbentrop was a "powerless puppet" of German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler.

Diplomacy
The United Nations Security Council defeated a Soviet proposal to keep the issue of Soviet troops in Iran off the agenda, resulting in a threat by U.S.S.R. delegate Andrei Gromyko to boycott sessions.

The Anglo-American Commission of Inquiry on Palestine concluded its hearings in Jerusalem.

Scandal
McGill University chemistry professor Raymond Boyer admitted in Montreal that he had given details of the new explosive RDX to Member of Parliament Fred Rose (Labour-Progressive--Cartier) "to help the Soviet Union." The Labour-Progressive Party was really the outlawed Communist Party in disguise, and Mr. Rose was accused of spying for the U.S.S.R. as a result of revelations by former Soviet embassy clerk Igor Gouzenko, who had defected to Canada several months earlier.

Defense
General Leslie Groves, head of the U.S. Army's atomic research program, told a Senate Appropriations subcommittee that the United States was still producing atomic bombs.

Economics and finance
The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration Council approved a resolution urging occupation armies to refrain from requisitioning land and consuming indigenous food supplies.

U.S. Civilian Production Administrator John Small and National Housing Expediter Wilson Wyatt ordered a halt to all general building construction and repairs in order to speed construction of military veterans' housing.

Basketball
NCAA
Men's Championship
Final
Oklahoma A&M 43 North Carolina 40

Bob Kurland, the first dominant 7-footer in basketball, scored 23 points as the Aggies, coached by Hank Iba, became the tournament's first two-time champion, winning for the second straight year.

60 years ago
1956

Diplomacy
Canadian Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent met with U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower and Mexican President Adolpho Ruiz Cortines for talks in Washington, DC.

50 years ago
1966

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): These Boots are Made for Walkin'--Nancy Sinatra (4th week at #1)

#1 single in France: Une Mèche de Cheveux--Salvatore Adamo (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Nessuno mi può giudicare--Caterina Caselli (7th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Ganz in Weiß--Roy Black (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): These Boots are Made for Walkin'--Nancy Sinatra (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore--The Walker Brothers (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): The Ballad of the Green Berets--SSgt Barry Sadler (4th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 The Ballad of the Green Berets--SSgt Barry Sadler (4th week at #1)
2 19th Nervous Breakdown--The Rolling Stones
3 Nowhere Man--The Beatles
4 California Dreamin'--The Mamas and the Papas
5 Daydream--The Lovin' Spoonful
6 Homeward Bound--Simon & Garfunkel
7 These Boots are Made for Walkin'--Nancy Sinatra
8 (You’re My) Soul and Inspiration--The Righteous Brothers
9 Listen People--Herman's Hermits
10 634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)--Wilson Pickett

Singles entering the chart were Rhapsody in the Rain by Lou Christie (#63); Together Again (#73)/You're Just About to Lose Your Clown (#91) by Ray Charles; Caroline, No by Brian Wilson (#80); One Track Mind by the Knickerbockers (#81); Tippy Toeing by the Harden Trio (#82); Memories are Made of This by the Drifters (#86); Hi Heel Sneakers (Part 1) by the Ramsey Lewis Trio (#87); I'll Take Good Care of You by Garnet Mimms (#89); Louie Louie by Travis Wammack (#90); Real Humdinger by J.J. Barnes (#93); I Spy (For the FBI) by Jamo Thomas and the Party Brothers Orchestra (#94); Please Don't Stop Loving Me by Elvis Presley (#95); 3000 Miles by Brian Hyland (#96); Sharing You by Mitty Collier (#97); The Boogaloo Party by the Flamingos (#100); I Surrender by Fontella Bass (also #100); and Stop! by the Moody Blues (also #100). Please Don't Stop Loving Me was the B-side of Frankie and Johnny, charting at #47.

Music
Bob Dylan performed at PNE Agrodome in Vancouver, the third and last Canadian concert of his 1966 world tour.

40 years ago
1976

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Mississippi--Pussycat (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Mississippi--Pussycat (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Mississippi--Pussycat

Died on this date
Lin Yutang, 80. Chinese author and inventor. Dr. Yutang was born and educated in China, but completed graduate studies in the United States. He was known in the West for popularizing Chinese philosophy and culture in books such as The Importance of Living (1937). Dr. Yutang succeeded in inventing a Chinese typewriter during World War II, which proved useful in translation work.

Yellowknifiana
The temperature reached a balmy 35 F., and the annual Caribou Carnival began with a half-day civic holiday in the afternoon. This blogger helped out with a bingo put on by Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron 825. This year's Caribou Queen pageant included News of the North columnist Ken Coach as a candidate; he didn't win.

Defense
The U.S.A. and Turkey agreed to a pact giving the United States military bases in Turkey for four years in exchange for $1 billion in military aid.

Business
American League baseball owners approved the purchase of the Toronto Blue Jays franchise by Labatt Brewing for $7 million.

30 years ago
1986

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Brother Louie--Modern Talking (4th week at #1)

Scandal
The New York Times reported that former United Nations Secretary General Kurt Waldheim had participated in campaigns against Yugoslav partisans while he was an intelligence officer in the German army during World War II.

25 years ago
1991

World events
After four days of strikes and protests, soldiers in Mali overthrew the government of President Moussa Traore and promised to replace it with a multi-party democracy. At least 59 people were killed during the coup, while as many as 150 citizens were killed by the demonstrations during the demonstrations preceding the coup.

Politics and government
The 37-member Belanger-Campeau Commission recommended that the Quebec National Assembly pass legislation providing for a referendum on provincial sovereignty to be held no later than October 1992.

Local self-government was restored after three decades of centralized control in South Korea.

Crime
Five South Korean boys, nicknamed the Frog Boys, disappeared while hunting for frogs and were murdered in a case that remains unsolved.

Economics and finance
Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay signed the Treaty of Asunción, establishing Mercosur, the South Common Market.

Hockey
NHL
Edmonton 0 @ Los Angeles 2

20 years ago
1996

Died on this date
David Packard, 83. U.S. engineer and businessman. Mr. Packard, an electrical engineer, co-founded Hewlett-Packard with William Hewlett in 1939. Mr. Packard served as U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense in the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1969-1971.

Edmund Muskie, 81. U.S. politician. Mr. Muskie, a Democrat, was Governor of Maine from 1955-1959, represented Maine in the United States Senate from 1959-1980, and served as U.S. Secretary of State in the administration of President Jimmy Carter from 1980-1981. He was Vice President Hubert Humphrey's vice presidential nominee when Mr. Humphrey was the Democratic Party presidential candidate in 1968. Mr. Muskie was regarded as the favourite for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination, but he performed poorly in caucuses, and his emotional reaction to attacks by the Manchester Union Leader on his wife hurt his campaign. Mr. Muskie died two days before his 82nd birthday.

Environment
U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt authorized the partial opening of the Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River in Arizona and the flooding of the Grand Canyon for a week; before the dam had been built, natural floods had taken place in the canyon, and officials were attempting to recreate these conditions by allowing 443 million litres--45,000 cubic feet per second (1,300 m3/s)--of water in, in an effort to improve conditions for flora and fauna.

Communications
Canada's Anik E-1 communications satellite suffered an electronic fault and lost 50% of its capacity in the malfunction; officials later announced that the damage was irreparable, and transferred the displaced traffic to Anik-E-2.

Hockey
NHL
St. Louis 4 @ Pittsburgh 8

Mario Lemieux scored 5 goals to lead the Penguins over the Blues at Kiel Center.

10 years ago
2006

Died on this date
Paul Dana, 30. U.S. auto racing driver. Mr. Dana was a rookie in the Indy Racing League who competed in three events in 2005, finishing 10th in the season-opening race at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida; he suffered a broken back while practicing for the Indianapolis 500, and missed the rest of the season. Mr. Dana was still officially a rookie in 2006, but crashed into the car of Ed Carpenter during a practice run hours five hours prior to the season-opening race, once again at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Mr. Dana was taken to hospital, where he died of his injuries, 20 days before his 31st birthday. He had been working with the racing community to develop improved safety measures, which remains part of his legacy. Another aspect of Mr. Dana's legacy is that the IRL soon decided to scrap pre-race practice runs.

Auto racing
IRL
Dan Wheldon won the first race of the Indy Racing League season at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida; Sam Hornish, Jr., who had started on the pole, led the greatest number of laps, while Scott Dixon had the fastest lap. Mr. Wheldon's car sported a sticker with the number 17 on it, the number of the car of Paul Dana, who died before the race from injuries suffered in his crash during the pre-race practice.