December 16, 2017

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Heather Austin!

520 years ago
1497

Exploration
Vasco da Gama passed the Great Fish River in South Africa, where Bartolomeu Dias had previously turned back to Portugal.

275 years ago
1742

Born on this date
Gebhard von Blücher. Prussian military officer. Generalfeldmarschall Blücher was best known for leading his forces against those of French Emperor Napoleon I in the Battle of the Nations at Leipzig in 1813 and the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. He died on September 12, 1819 at the age of 76.

180 years ago
1837

War
In the Lower Canada Rebellion, Governor Sir John Colborne ordered 150 Patriotes released from custody in St-Eustache, but put the village and nearby St-Hermas to the torch. He ordered Colonel John Maitland to proceed to St-Scholastique and Ste-Therèse.

150 years ago
1867

Born on this date
Amy Carmichael. U.K. missionary. Miss Carmichael was born in Ireland, came to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ in her youth, and became a Protestant missionary in her early 20s. She spent her last 55 years in India, where she founded Dohnavur Fellowship, primarily rescuing young people from sexual exploitation in Hindu temples. Miss Carmichael wrote numerous books about her experiences, and died on January 18, 1951 at the age of 83.

125 years ago
1892

Politics and government
Louis-Olivier Taillon, a Conservative, was sworn in for the second time as Premier of Québec, replacing Charles-Eugène de Boucherville, who resigned after the appointment of former Conservative Premier Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau as Lieutenant-Governor.

Scandal
Charles de Lesseps was arrested for complicity in the Panama Canal frauds. An attempt to build the canal, beginning in 1882, had ended with the bankruptcy of the Panama Canal Company in December 1888. In 1892 it emerged that 150 French deputies had been bribed into voting for the allocation of financial aid for the Panama Canal Company. Charles was the son of Ferdninand de Lesseps, who had developed the Suez Canal.

110 years ago
1907

Born on this date
Barbara Kent. Canadian-born U.S. actress. Miss Kent, born Barbara Cloutman in Gadsby, Alberta, moved to California in her youth, and began her acting career after winning the Miss Hollywood Beauty Pageant in 1925. She appeared in movies such as Flesh and the Devil (1927); Welcome Danger (1929); and Feet First (1930), but her popularity declined in the early 1930s, and she retired from acting in 1935. Miss Kent enjoyed outdoor life, flying her own light plane until her 85th birthday and golfing into her 90s. She died on October 13, 2011 at the age of 103.

Defense
The U.S. Navy's Great White Fleet began its circumnavigation of the world.

100 years ago
1917

Born on this date
Arthur C. Clarke. U.K. author. Sir Arthur was one of the most prominent science fiction writers of the 20th century, and was perhaps best known as the co-author of the screenplay for the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), and author of various sequel novels. He was also an advocate of space travel, and wrote non-fiction books on the subject, such as The Promise of Space (1968). Sir Arthur moved to Sri Lanka in 1956, most likely because it allowed him sexual access to boys. He died on March 9, 2008 at the age of 90.

Died on this date
Frank Gotch, 40. U.S. wrestler. Mr. Gotch was world heavyweight champion from 1908-1913, and has been credited with popularizing professional wrestling in the United States in the 1900s and '10s. His world title matches against Georg Hackenschmidt in 1908 and 1911 are among the most famous in history. Mr. Gotch retired in 1913 while still champion and toured with a circus before returning home to Humboldt, Iowa, where he died of what was officially reported as uremic poisoning, although rumoured to be syphilis.

90 years ago
1927

Died on this date
Benjamin Purnell, 66. U.S. religious leader. Mr. Purnell was "King of the Israelite House of David," a sect based in Benton Harbor, Michigan that subscribed to replacement theology, believing that they were true Israel. Mr. Purnell died of diabetes 11 days after losing a civil suit in which he was accused of fraud and sexually molesting daughters of sect members. The verdict was later overturned on appeal. Mr. Purnell, an alleged prophet, predicted that he would rise from the dead three days after his death, but that still hasn't occurred.

Marion Parker, 12. U.S. crime victim. Miss Parker, daughter of banker Perry Parker, was strangled and dismembered by William Hickman, 19, the day after being kidnapped from Mount Vernon Junior High School in Los Angeles. Mr. Hickman, who had been fired by Mr. Parker several years earlier and had served time in prison over a matter of stolen and forged cheques, demanded $1,500 ransom. The money was paid on December 17, with Miss Parker's body tied up in the car and made to appear alive, while in fact she was dead. Mr. Hickman drove off and dumped the body as soon as the ransom was paid; a manhunt ensued, and he was arrested in Echo, Oregon on December 22.

80 years ago
1937

Crime
Convicted bank robbers Ted Cole and Ralph Roe attempted to escape from the U.S. federal prison on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay during a dense fog by floating on large cans. According to eyewitness Alvin "Creepy" Karpis, the two were caught up in the swift currents and sucked beneath the surface of the water. They were never seen again, but authorities concluded that they probably drowned soon after their escape and were swept out to sea.

75 years ago
1942

Abominations
Nazi S.S. Reichsfuhrer Heinrich Himmler ordered that Roma (Gypsy) candidates for extermination be deported to the death camp at Auschwitz. The program became known as the Porajmos.

War
Russian forces began their third offensive against German forces west of the Don River between Voronezh and Stalingrad; Russians also scored two victories over German forces west of Surovikino, about 80 miles west of Stalingrad, and near Verkhni Kunsky, southwest of Stalingrad. A British column in Tunisia broke through to the Mediterranean Sea at Wadi Matratin and then turned southward, splitting retreating Axis forces in two.

Diplomacy
The Dominican Republic-Haiti boundary commission reached agreement in Ciudad Trujillo on their nations' border dispute.

Energy
The U.S. Office of Price Administration virtually suspended the sale of oil heaters and revealed plans to ration coal stoves and heaters beginning December 18, 1942.

70 years ago
1947

At the movies
Road to Rio, directed by Norman Z. McLeod, and starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour, received its premiere screening in St. Louis.



Defense
Honduras ratified the Inter-American Defense Treaty.

Technology
William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain built the first practical point-contact transistor.

Economics and finance
U.S. President Harry Truman announced that tariff reductions for Australia, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and the Benelux customs union agreed to at Geneva would go into effect on January 1, 1948.

The Argentine delegation to the United Nations Trade and Employment Conference in Havana offered to lend "deserving" countries up to $5 billion for long-term recovery projects to supplement the Marshall Plan.

Business
A U.S. federal grand jury in Boston indicted the Boston Fruit and Produce Exchange and 12 egg dealers for alleged conspiracy to fix New England egg prices.

Labour
The California Supreme Court ruled against movie producer Cecil B. De Mille in his effort to reduce the American Federation of Labor Federation of Radio Artists for refusing to pay a $1 political assessment.

Boxing
Former world lightweight champion Beau Jack (68-11-4) won a 10-round decision over Frankie Vigeant (25-6-3) in a welterweight bout at Hartford Auditorium in Hartford, Connecticut.

60 years ago
1957

Hit parade
#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Jailhouse Rock/Treat Me Nice--Elvis Presley (Best Seller--7th week at #1); April Love--Pat Boone (Disc Jockey--1st week at #1); You Send Me--Sam Cooke (Top 100--1st week at #1)

Space
Professor K. Stanyukovich of the Soviet Commission for Interplanetary Travel predicted in a Moscow broadcast tha the U.S.S.R. would send a rocket to the Moon within two years.

Defense
U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Air Garrison Norton rejected "Buck Rogers" talk of manned space vehicles, and told the Senate Armed Forces Preparedness subcommittee that the "number one business" was to develop a missile for military use.

Norwegian Prime Minister Einar Gerhardsen, backed by Danish Prime Minister H.C. Hansen, asked for postponement of a decision on the establishment of launching sites for U.S. missiles in western Europe.

Diplomacy
United Nations Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold named Francisco Urrutia Holguin of Colombia to mediate between Israel and Jordan on the disputed Israeli enclave of Mount Scopus in Jordanian Jerusalem.

Politics and government
Malik Firoz Khan Noon took office as Pakistani Prime Minister and Foreign Minister.

50 years ago
1967

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): The Last Waltz--Engelbert Humperdinck (9th week at #1)

#1 single in France: Dans une Heure--Sheila (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): L'ora dell'amore--I Camaleonti

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): (The Lights Went Out In) Massachusetts--The Bee Gees (4th week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): Hello Goodbye--The Beatles

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Treat Me Daughter Kindly--Pat Lynch

#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Hello Goodbye--The Beatles (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Daydream Believer--The Monkees (3rd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Daydream Believer--The Monkees (3rd week at #1)
2 Hello Goodbye--The Beatles
3 I Heard it Through the Grapevine--Gladys Knight & the Pips
4 The Rain, the Park and Other Things--The Cowsills
5 I Second that Emotion--Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
6 An Open Letter to My Teenage Son--Victor Lundberg
7 Incense and Peppermints--Strawberry Alarm Clock
8 I Say a Little Prayer--Dionne Warwick
9 You Better Sit Down Kids--Cher
10 In and Out of Love--Diana Ross and the Supremes

Singles entering the chart were Goin' Out of My Head/Can't Take My Eyes Off You by the Lettermen (#68); Monterey by Eric Burdon & the Animals (#76); My Baby Must Be a Magician by the Marvelettes (#77); Who Will Answer? by Ed Ames (#79); Good Combination by Sonny and Cher (#84); Two Little Kids by Peaches and Herb (#88); Am I That Easy to Forget by Engelbert Humperdinck (#89); Baby, Now that I've Found You by the Foundations (#98); and (1-2-3-4-5-6-7) Count the Days by Inez and Charlie Foxx (#100).

Canada's top 10 (RPM)
1 Daydream Believer--The Monkees
2 Lazy Day--Spanky and Our Gang
3 Stag-O-Lee--Wilson Pickett
4 I Say a Little Prayer--Dionne Warwick
5 I Heard it Through the Grapevine--Gladys Knight & the Pips
6 Next Plane to London--The Rose Garden
7 Hello Goodbye--The Beatles
8 (The Lights Went Out In) Massachusetts--The Bee Gees
9 Please Love Me Forever--Bobby Vinton
10 In and Out of Love--Diana Ross and the Supremes

Singles entering the chart were Chain of Fools by Aretha Franklin (#59); And Get Away by the Esquires (#71); Green Tambourine by the Lemon Pipers (#72); Dear Eloise by the Hollies (#78); In Another Land by Bill Wyman (#80); Nobody But Me by the Human Beinz (#82); Storybook Children by Billy Vera and Judy Clay (#83); Piece of My Heart by Erma Franklin (#86); Insanity Comes Quietly to the Ruptured Mind by Janis Ian (#90); Bottle of Wine by the Fireballs (#91); Snoopy's Christmas by the Royal Guardsmen (#92); (Alone) In My Room by Willie & the Walkers (#94); Bend Me, Shape Me by the American Breed (#95); Tears by the Fifth (#96); Judy in Disguise (With Glasses) by John Fred and his Playboy Band (#97); Dancin' Out of My Heart by Ronnie Dove (#98); I Can't Stand Myself (When You Touch Me) by James Brown and the Famous Flames (#99); and Everybody Knows by the Dave Clark Five (#100).

Vancouver's top 10 (CKLG)
1 Love of the Common People--Wayne Newton
2 Hello Goodbye/I Am the Walrus--The Beatles
3 Snoopy's Christmas--The Royal Guardsmen
4 Daydream Believer--The Monkees
5 Everlasting Love--Robert Knight
6 (The Lights Went Out In) Massachusetts--The Bee Gees
7 Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)--John Fred and his Playboy Band
8 Beautiful People--Bobby Vee and the Strangers
9 Woman, Woman--The Union Gap
10 I Second that Emotion--Smokey Robinson and the Miracles

Singles entering the chart were She's a Rainbow by the Rolling Stones (#24); Chain of Fools by Aretha Franklin (#25); Love Power by the Sandpebbles (#27); Let the Heartaches Begin by Long John Baldry (#28); It's Wonderful by the Young Rascals (#29); and The Other Man's Grass (Is Always Greener) by Petula Clark (#30).

Died on this date
Basil Dean, 52. U.K.-born Canadian journalist. Mr. Dean began his career in his native England, working for newspapers such as the London Daily Herald, before coming to Canada, where he worked at the Hamilton Spectator before serving as publisher of The Edmonton Journal from 1962 until his death, which came from a heart attack in his sleep while in Ottawa.

Politics and government
U.S. state governors from the Democratic Party, meeting in Sulphur Springs, West Virginia voiced criticism of U.S. President Lyndon Johnson and his Great Society social program. Iowa Governor Harold Hughes, chairman of the group, said that state leaders should have a greater part in developing party policy and that the federal government should not try to impose programs on the states without taking into regard local problems.

Disasters
Nine people were killed in an accidental quarry explosion near Schaffhausen, Switzerland.

Football
NCAA
Tangerine Bowl @ Orlando
Tennessee @ Martin Branch 25 West Chester 8

Liberty Bowl @ Memphis
North Carolina State 14 Georgia 7

Pecan Bowl @ Abilene, Texas
Texas @ Arlington 13 North Dakota State 0

40 years ago
1977

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Yes Sir, I Can Boogie--Baccara (18th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood--Santa Esmeralda (5th week at #1)

#1 single in France: Es la Nostalgia--Jairo

Diplomacy
Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin met in Washington with U.S. President Jimmy Carter to unveil Israel's latest peace proposal, which included restoration to Egypt of complete sovereignty over the Sinai Peninsula and to give Palestinians control over the internal affairs in the West Bank of the Jordan River and the Gaza Strip, with Israel to maintain a military presence in all three areas.

Transportation
Queen Elizabeth II unveiled the new underground link from central London to Heathrow - the first from a capital city to its major airport.

Hockey
CHL
Kansas City 2 @ Fort Worth 4
Dallas 1 @ Salt Lake City 3

30 years ago
1987

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Whenever You Need Somebody--Rick Astley (2nd week at #1)

At the movies
Broadcast News, written, produced, and directed by James L. Brooks and starring William Hurt, Albert Brooks, and Holly Hunter, opened in theatres.

25 years ago
1992

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): House of Love--East 17 (4th week at #1)

On television tonight
The Wonder Years, on ABC
Tonight's episode: Let Nothing You Dismay

Transportation
The governments of Canada, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island signed a deal to build a 13-kilometre, $800-million bridge between P.E.I. and the Canadian mainland. The government of Canada was to supply $60 million for roads and to redevelop Borden and Cape Tormentine, New Brunswick. The Confederation Bridge did not yet have a name; one suggestion was: Span of Green Cables.

20 years ago
1997

Politics and government
The Senate of Canada voted to strip Senator Andrew Thompson of his office, secretary, telephone and most travel privileges. The former Ontario Liberal Party leader had attended only 3% of the chamber's sittings since 1990, and some Senators had never met him; he resigned from the upper chamber in March 1998.

Oddities
Dennō Senshi Porygon, an episode of the Japanese television series Pokémon, induced epileptic seizures in 685 children.

Disasters
Air Canada Flight 646, a CRJ-200 registered C-FSKI, crashed in a failed go-around at Fredericton, New Brunswick after hitting trees. All on-board miraculously survived.

10 years ago
2007

Died on this date
Dan Fogelberg, 56. U.S. musician. Mr. Fogelberg was a singer-songwriter who achieved his greatest success in the early 1980s with singles such as Longer (1980); Hard to Say (1981); and Leader of the Band (1981-82). He died after a long battle with prostate cancer.

Defense
British forces formally handed over to Iraq responsibility for Basra, the last Iraqi region under their control.