September 17, 2017

230 years ago
1787

Politics and government
The United States Constitution was signed in Philadelphia.

150 years ago
1867

Americana
Antietam National Cemetery was dedicated in Maryland on the fifth anniversary of the American Civil War Battle of Antietam.

140 years ago
1877

Died on this date
Henry Fox Talbot, 77. U.K. inventor and scientist. Mr. Talbot was a polymath whose interests included integral calculus, optics, history, chemistry, and etymology. He was best known as a pioneer in photography; he invented the salted paper and calotype processes, and his work in the 1840s on photomechanical reproduction led to the creation of the photoglyphic engraving process, the precursor to photogravure.

110 years ago
1907

Born on this date
Elizabeth Enright. U.S. authoress. Miss Enright wrote short stories for adults, but was perhaps best known for her novels for children, including Thimble Summer (1938) and Gone-Away Lake (1957). She was reported to have died in her sleep on June 8, 1968 at the age of 60 after a short illness, although some claimed that she committed suicide.

Warren Burger. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, 1969-1986. Chief Justice Burger delivered the Minnesota delegation for Dwight D. Eisenhower at the 1952 Republican National convention, and was rewarded by being appointed Assistant Attorney General when Gen. Eisenhower became U.S. President. Mr. Burger was appointed by President Eisenhower to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 1956, and served on that court until he accepted President Richard Nixon's nomination to succeed the retiring Earl Warren as Chief Justice. As Chief Justice, he took liberal positions on some issues and conservative positions on others, and was reportedly regarded within the court as a poor leader. Chief Justice Burger retired from the Supreme Court in 1986, and died on June 25, 1995 at the age of 87.

Died on this date
Ignaz Brüll, 60. Moravian-born Austrian composer. Mr. Brüll was a highly-regarded concert pianist who was best known in his own time for the opera Das Goldene Kreuz (The Golden Cross), but in recent times his concert and recital works have been rediscovered and achieved popularity.

100 years ago
1917

Born on this date
Ib Melchior. Danish-born U.S. author and screenwriter. Mr. Melchior, the son of opera singer Lauritz Melchior, was best known for science fiction novels and screenplays. He wrote and directed the movies The Angry Red Planet (1959) and The Time Travelers (1964), and co-wrote the screenplay for Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964). Mr. Melchior died on March 14, 2015 at the age of 97.

Economics and finance
Canadian Finance Minister Sir Thomas White's "War Tax Upon Income," passed July 25 as a supposedly temporary wartime measure, went into effect as the first national tax on personal income on Canadians, taking 4% on all income of single men over $2,000. For others, the personal exemption was $3,000, while for those Canadians with annual incomes of more than $6,000, the tax rate ranged from 2%-25%.

75 years ago
1942

At the movies
In Which We Serve, written, produced, co-directed by, and starring Noël Coward, opened in theatres in the United Kingdom.

War
A Royal Canadian Navy warship attacked a German U-Boat in the St. Lawrence River near Rimouski, Québec before the submarine fled.
Hand-to-hand fighting broke out between Russian and German troops in the streets of the northwest sector of Stalingrad. Allied bombers and fighters made their ninth attack upon the Japanese base at Buna, New Guinea. U.S. Flying Fortress bombers completed three days of attacks on Rekata Bay, Santa Isabel Island, and on ship and shore installations at Gizo Island in the New Georgia group of islands. The Vichy French government said that British armistice terms for Madagascar were unacceptable and that French forces would continue the fight.

Diplomacy
U.S. presidential envoy Wendell Willkie arrived in Kuibyshev, Russia from Tehran.

Italian, Hungarian, and German diplomats in Brazil left for Lisbon.

Argentine President Ramon Castillo and Bolivian President Enrique Penaranda del Castillo met in Yacuiba, Bolivia for a conference on trade and transportation.

Labour
U.S. Office of War Information Director Elmer Davis said that the proposed American Federation of Musicians ban on recording threatened the morale of the nation by depriving it of entertainment.

The U.S. National War Labor Board ordered a 4c-per-hour increase for General Motors workers and a maintenance of membership provision in their contract.

70 years ago
1947

Politics and government
The Ecuadorian Congress elected Carlos Arosemena acting President to replace temporary President Mariano Suarez Veintimilla.

James V. Forrestal was sworn in as the first U.S. Secretary of Defense, with orders from President Harry Truman to immediately complete the unification of the armed forces.

Former Nationalist Chinese Premier T.V. Soong was named Governor of Kwangtung Province.

Economics and finance
The World Bank and International Monetary Fund meetings in London ended after the Bank admitted Finland, approved an agreement on its relations with the United Nations, and established a 10-man advisory board.

Labour
The American Federation of Labor International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers filed the first test case against the National Labor Relations Board's right under the Taft-Hartley Act to require affidavits from union leaders affirming that they were not Communists.

Football
CRU
IRFU
Toronto (1-2) 34 @ Hamilton (0-2) 25

60 years ago
1957

World events
Troops led by Thai Army commander-in-chief Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat seized control of Thailand's government and ousted Prime Minister Pibul Songgram in response to Mr. Pibul's demand that high officials severed private business connections.

Diplomacy
The United Nations opened its 12th annual session in New York, electing Sir Leslie Munro of New Zealand as its President. The General Assembly voted to admit the Federation of Malaya as the 82nd UN member.

Society
Legendary American jazz trumpeter and singer Louis Armstrong confirmed reports that he had cancelled a government-sponsored tour of the U.S.S.R. because "the way they are treating my people in the South, they can go to hell. It's getting so bad, a colored man hasn't got any country."

Labour
The American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations Ethical Practices Committee approved a report accusing Teamsters union leaders of misusing union funds, aiding labour racketeers, and tolerating a wide variety of corrupt practices. The committee also accused the Bakery and Confectionery Workers union and the United Textile Workers union of failing to live up to AFL-CIO ethical standards.

50 years ago
1967

Football
CFL
Hamilton (5-1) 16 @ Ottawa (3-4) 14
Saskatchewan (6-2) 16 @ Winnipeg (3-5) 17
British Columbia (1-6-1) 8 @ Edmonton (3-5-1) 19

Tommy-Joe Coffey, who had earlier kicked field goals of 25 and 32 yards, connected from 28 yards with 1 second remaining in the game to give the Tiger-Cats their win over the Rough Riders before 27,058 fans at Lansdowne Park. Ron Stewart scored 2 touchdowns for the Rough Riders.

Ken Nielsen and Bill Van Burkleo scored touchdowns for the Blue Bombers as they overcame a 16-0 halftime deficit to upset the Roughriders before 21,681 fans at Winnipeg Stadium. George Reed scored a Saskatchewan touchdown.

Randy Kerbow scored a touchdown on a 56-yard pass from Frank Cosentino and Art Perkins added a TD for the Eskimos as they defeated the Lions before 20,000 fans at Clarke Stadium in the first professional football game to be played in Edmonton on a Sunday. Peter Kempf added 2 converts, a field goal and a single, while Mr. Kerbow punted for a single. Jim Young scored the B.C. touchdown, while Ted Gerela added a convert and a single. B.C. tight end Hugh McInnis caught 2 passes for 30 yards in his only Canadian Football League game. It was the second game in an Edmonton uniform for former B.C. defensive back Ernie "Pokey" Allen, and the last game of his 3-year CFL career.

40 years ago
1977

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (Hit Parade Italia): Ti Amo'--Umberto Tozzi (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Ti Amo'--Umberto Tozzi

#1 single in the Netherlands (Veronica Top 40): Sorry, I'm a Lady--Baccara

#1 single in Ireland: I Need You--Joe Dolan (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K (BMRB): Way Down--Elvis Presley (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): I Just Want to Be Your Everything--Andy Gibb (4th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Don't Stop--Fleetwood Mac
2 (Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher--Rita Coolidge
3 Float On--The Floaters
4 Handy Man--James Taylor
5 Telephone Line--Electric Light Orchestra
6 On and On--Stephen Bishop
7 Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band--Meco
8 I Just Want to Be Your Everything--Andy Gibb
9 Strawberry Letter 23--The Brothers Johnson
10 Smoke from a Distant Fire--Sanford/Townsend Band

Singles entering the chart were Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes by Jimmy Buffett (#86); Rollin' with the Flow by Charlie Rich (#95); You're Moving Out Today by Carole Bayer Sager (#97); Be My Lady by the Meters (#98); Red Hot by Robert Gordon (#99); and (Every Time I Turn Around) Back in Love Again by L.T.D. (#100).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Handy Man--James Taylor
2 Don't Stop--Fleetwood Mac
3 Telephone Line--Electric Light Orchestra
4 (Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher--Rita Coolidge
5 How Much Love--Leo Sayer
6 Barracuda--Heart
7 Float On--The Floaters
8 Give a Little Bit--Supertramp
9 Que Sera Sera--The Raes
10 Just a Song Before I Go--Crosby, Stills & Nash

Singles entering the chart were Devil's Gun by C.J. & Co. (#73); Brickhouse by the Commodores (#74); Surfin' U.S.A. by Leif Garrett (#76); Sometimes When We Touch by Dan Hill (#82); The Right Feeling at the Wrong Time by Hot (#87); It's in His Kiss (The Shoop Shoop Song) by Kate Taylor (#89); We're All Alone by Rita Coolidge (#90); C'est la Vie by Greg Lake (#91); We're Here for a Good Time by Trooper (#92); Little Queen by Heart (#93); Come Sail Away by Styx (#94); Set Me Free by Jackson Hawke (#98); and Funk it Up (David's Song) by Sweet (#100).

Football
CFL
British Columbia (8-2) 20 @ Edmonton (5-4) 18
Winnipeg (5-5) 10 @ Calgary (2-8) 16

Lui Passaglia kicked a 31-yard field goal on the last play of the game to give the Lions their win over the Eskimos at Clarke Stadium. Dave Cutler had kicked a field goal just a couple of minutes earlier to give the Eskimos the lead.

Ray Odums returned an interception 49 yards for a touchdown and Cyril McFall kicked 3 field goals in the 4th quarter as the Stampeders ended a 7-game losing streak by upsetting the Blue Bombers before 27,188 fans at McMahon Stadium. John Hufnagel played most of the game at quarterback for Calgary, but backup Matthew Reed saw some playing time, and showed his strength on one play when four Winnipeg defenders had hold of him behind the line of scrimmage and prevented him from passing or running, but were unable to bring him down, and the referee finally blew the whistle with Mr. Reed still standing. Another unusual play occurred late in the game when Mr. Hufnagel took a snap and went to one knee to ground the ball, but no time went off the clock during the play.

30 years ago
1987

Diplomacy
On the third day of talks in Washington toward a treaty on intermediate-range nuclear forces (INF), the U.S.S.R. agreed that West Germany’s 72 Pershing missiles would not be included in the treaty. In return, U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz reportedly said that the nuclear warheads for the missiles, which the U.S.A. controlled, would be dismantled. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev said an INF treaty could be concluded by the end of the year and would pave the way for a treaty on long-range weapons in 1988.

Newfoundland Premier Brian Peckford pulled Newfoundland out of negotiations between Canada and France over a boundary dispute because the government of Canada was set to give away valuable fish stocks off the province's coast. France claimed a 200-mile boundary around the islands of St-Pierre and Miquelon while Canada recognized a 12-mile limit for the French islands.

Politics and government
Philippines President Corazon Aquino removed her closest adviser, Joker Arroyo, and another assistant, from her cabinet. Both had been regarded as leftists by the military.

Labour
Ford Motor Company and United Auto Workers reached a tentative three-year contract settlement guaranteeing that Ford’s 104,000 workers would not be laid off unless the industry as a whole went into decline, and Ford agreed to close no plants during the term of the contract. The workers would get a 3% increase in their base wage in the first year and 3% lump-sum payments in the next two years.

25 years ago
1992

Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Rhythm is a Dancer--Snap! (6th week at #1)

Died on this date
W. A. Swanberg, 84. U.S. author. Mr. Swanberg was a biographer of notable American political and media figures. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Luce and his Empire (1972) and the National Book Award for Norman Thomas: The Last Idealist (1976). Other notable titles of Mr. Swanberg included Citizen Hearst: A Biography of William Randolph Hearst (1961); Dreiser (1965); and Pulitzer (1967).

Roger Wagner, 78. French-born U.S. choirmaster. Mr. Wagner founded the Roger Wagner Chorale in 1946; the group of about 200 singers became internationally famous through recordings, concerts, and radio and television appearances.

Sadegh Sharafkandi, 54; Fattah Abdoli; Homayoun Ardalan. Iranian politician. Mr. Sharafkandi was a Kurdish political activist and the Secretary-General of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (PDKI). Messrs. Sharafkandi, Abdoli, and Ardalan, along with their translator, Nouri Dehkordi, were assassinated at the Mykonos Restaurant in Berlin by Kazem Darabi, an Iranian national who worked as a grocer in Berlin, and Lebanese national Abbas Rhayel. The court that convicted the assassins issued an international arrest warrant in 1997 for Iranian intelligence minister Hojjat al-Islam Ali Fallahian after declaring that the assassination had been ordered by him with knowledge of supreme leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and president Ayatollah Rafsanjani.

Oil
Ecuadorean President Rodrigo Borja Cevallos announced that his country was withdrawing from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in the wake of OPEC’s refusal to increase Ecuador’s production quota and also because of the annual $2 million membership fee. Ecuador remained an associate of OPEC.

Economics and finance
Statistics Canada reported record Canadian trade levels: exports rose to $13.1 billion; imports to $12.5 billion in July; there was a merchandise trade surplus of $623 million; and a projected federal deficit of $30 billion.

The United States Commerce Department reported that the merchandise trade deficit had jumped to $7.82 billion in July.

20 years ago
1997

At the movies
This blogger attended a pre-release screening of L.A. Confidential (1997). The film opened in theatres two days later.

Died on this date
Red Skelton, 84. U.S. actor and comedian. Richard Skelton was known for his pantomime skills, but first achieved popularity on radio in the late 1930s, hosting his own show in the 1940s and early '50s. He hosted The Red Skelton Show on television from 1951-1971, playing characters such as Freddie the Freeloader and Clem Kadiddlehopper. Mr. Skelton was also known for his numerous oil paintings of clowns, and composed music and wrote short stories.

10 years ago
2007

Politics and government
New Democratic Party candidate Ève-Mary Thaï Thi Lac won a Canadian federal by-election in the Quebec riding of Saint-Hyacinthe–Bagot, becoming the first Member of Parliament of Vietnamese origin and the first NDP candidate elected in Quebec in 1990.