December 2, 2017

150 years ago
1867

Literature
At Tremont Temple in Boston, British author Charles Dickens gave his first public reading in the United States.

125 years ago
1892

Died on this date
Jay Gould, 56. U.S. financier. In the early 1880s, Mr. Gould controlled 1/9 of the length of rail in the United States, and held controlling interest in 15% of the country's railroad tracks. He also controlled the Western Union telegraph company and the elevated railways in New York City. Mr. Gould died of tuberculosis.

Crime
Lizzie Borden was indicted in Fall River, Massachusetts for the August 4 murders of her parents.

110 years ago
1907

Boxing
Tommy Burns (36-3-8) retained his world heavyweight championship with a knockout of Gunner Moir (12-4) in the 10th round of a scheduled 20 at National Sporting Club, Covent Garden, London.



100 years ago
1917

War
Russia and the Central Powers signed an armistice at Brest-Litovsk, and peace talks leading to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk began.

90 years ago
1927

Died on this date
Paul Heinrich von Groth, 84. German mineralogist. Professor Groth systematically classified minerals based on their chemical compositions and crystal structures, and founded the journal Zeitschrift für Krystallographie und Mineralogie.

Transportation
Following 19 years of Ford Model T production, the Ford Motor Company unveiled the Ford Model A as its new automobile.

80 years ago
1937

Politics and government
The Royal Commission on Dominion-Provincial Relations--better known as the Rowell-Sirois Commission--recommended that the three Canadian prairie provinces become a single political unit.

75 years ago
1942

Hit parade
Variety reported the most popular songs in the United States as:
1. White Christmas
2. Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition
3. When the Lights Go On Again
4. Mr. Five by Five
5. Dearly Beloved

War
Allied planes shot down 23 Japanese Zeros and drove off a naval convoy attempting to renforce their trapped forces at Buna. In a radio broadcast from Tokyo, the Japanese Army claimed that mop-up operations in the Philippines had been completed.

Defense
Republic Aviation Corporation announced that the new U.S. P-47 (Thunderbolt) had reached a speed of 725 miles per hour in complete power dives from 35,000 feet.

Energy
Physicist Enrico Fermi directed and controlled the first nuclear chain reaction at the University of Chicago.

Crime
German-born Anthony Cramer, convicted on November 18 of treason, was sentenced in New York by U.S. Federal Judge Henry Goddard to 45 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Four Axis spies received 14-year prison sentences for espionage and propaganda in Brazil.

Politics and government
New York Governor Herbert Lehman resigned in order to become director of foreign relief and rehabilitation. Lieutenant Governor Charles Poletti served as acting Governor until the inauguration of Thomas Dewey on January 1, 1943.

Disasters
The 94-ton tugboat Admiral sank in a storm in Lake Erie near Cleveland, with all 14 crewmen drowned.

70 years ago
1947

Politics and government
The United Nations Trusteeship Council set up a six-nation working committee to draft a constitution for the proposed Jerusalem international zone.

Protest
Palestinian Arabs began a three-day general strike against the partition of Palestine and destroyed a three-block Jewish business district in Jerusalem.

Defense
General William Livesay, head of the U.S. military mission to Greece, announced plans to station 14 American officers in the field, with the Greek Army as observers and advisers.

Economics and finance
U.S. President Harry Truman urged Congress to approve emergency aid for 61,000 Navajo Indians in four western states who faced hunger and cold during the coming winter.

Labour
U.S. Congress of Industrial Organizations President Philip Murray announced that his organization would seek another round of wage increases--the third this year--due to continuing inflation.

Football
NCAA
University of Notre Dame quarterback Johnny Lujack was named the winner of the Heisman Trophy as the most outstanding college football player in the United States for 1947. Mr. Lujack led the Fighting Irish to a 9-0 record, completing 61 of 109 passes for 777 yards, and rushing 12 times for 139 yards.

60 years ago
1957

Hit parade
#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): You Send Me/Summertime, Part 1--Sam Cooke (Best Seller--1st week at #1); Jailhouse Rock--Elvis Presley (Disc Jockey--2nd week at #1; Top 100--5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Harrison Ford, 73. U.S. actor. Mr. Ford was a star on Broadway in the early 1900s and in silent movies from 1915-1929. He died six years after suffering serious injuries when he was hit by a car while walking. Mr. Ford was no relation to the later actor of the same name.

War
The Spanish government confirmed that Spanish-Moroccan fighting had spread from Ifni to Saharan areas of Spanish West Africa.

Politics and government
Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stanley Reed withdrew as chairman of the new Civil Rights Commission on the grounds that service in "such an investigatory and advisory office" might lower "respect for the impartiality of the federal judiciary."

Energy
The first full-scale civilian atomic power plant in the United States went into operation on a test basis in Shippingport, Pennsylvania.

Science
Physicist Ernest Lawrence, director of the University of California's Radiation Laboratory, received the Enrico Fermi Award for contributions to atomic energy development.

Football
NCAA
An Associated Press poll of sportswriters and broadcasters named Auburn, Ohio State, and Michigan as the top college football teams in the United States.

50 years ago
1967

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): The Last Waltz--Engelbert Humperdinck (7th week at #1)

#1 single in France: La Dernière Valse--Mireille Mathieu (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Parole--Nico e i Gabbiani (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): (The Lights Went Out In) Massachusetts--The Bee Gees (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): De Bostella--Johnny Kraaykamp & Rijk de Gooyer

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Whiskey on a Sunday--Danny Doyle (6th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Let the Heartaches Begin--Long John Baldry

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

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Daydream Believer--The Monkees
2 The Rain, the Park and Other Things--The Cowsills
3 Incense and Peppermints--Strawberry Alarm Clock
4 To Sir with Love--Lulu
5 Please Love Me Forever--Bobby Vinton
6 I Say a Little Prayer--Dionne Warwick
7 Soul Man--Sam & Dave
8 I Can See for Miles--The Who
9 I Heard it Through the Grapevine--Gladys Knight & the Pips
10 Keep the Ball Rollin'--Jay and the Techniques

Singles entering the chart were Hello Goodbye (#48)/I Am the Walrus (#67) by the Beatles; Wear Your Love Like Heaven by Donovan (#57); If I Could Build My Whole World Around You by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell (#60); The Other Man's Grass is Always Greener by Petula Clark (#63); Love Me Two Times by the Doors (#66); In the Misty Moonlight by Dean Martin (#77); Hooray for the Salvation Army Band by Bill Cosby (#81); Storybook Children by Billy Vera and Judy Clay (#83); Love Power by the Sandpebbles (#85); I'm in Love by Wilson Pickett (#87); Back Up Train by Al Greene and the Soul Mates (#88); Dear Eloise by the Hollies (#89); Detroit City by Solomon Burke (#90); I Call it Love by the Manhattans (#93); Can't Help But Love You by the Standells (#96); and Somebody's Sleeping in My Bed by Johnnie Taylor (#98). I'm in Love was the B-side of Stag-O-Lee, charting at #17.

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Please Love Me Forever--Bobby Vinton
2 The Rain, the Park and Other Things--The Cowsills
3 She is Still a Mystery--The Lovin' Spoonful
4 Lazy Day--Spanky and Our Gang
5 Soul Man--Sam & Dave
6 Glad to Be Unhappy--The Mamas and the Papas
7 I Say a Little Prayer--Dionne Warwick
8 Next Plane to London--The Rose Garden
9 I Can See for Miles--The Who
10 Your Precious Love--Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell

Singles entering the chart were The Other Man's Grass is Always Greener by Petula Clark (#64); Hello Goodbye by the Beatles (#65); Boogaloo Down Broadway by Fantastic Johnny C (#79); Wear Your Love Like Heaven by Donovan (#80); Baby, Now that I've Found You by the Foundations (#82); Okalona River Bottom Band by Bobbie Gentry (#84); Cover Me by Percy Sledge (#85); Popcorn Man by the Lords of London (#86); Tell Mama by Etta James (#89); Windy by Wes Montgomery (#91); Too Much of Nothing by Peter, Paul and Mary (#92); Since You Showed Me How to Be Happy by Jackie Wilson (#94); If I Could Build My Whole World Around You by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell (#95); Baby You Got It by Brenton Wood (#96); I'll Be Sweeter Tomorrow by the O'Jays (#97); People in Me by Passing Fancy (#98); Love Power by the Sandpebbles (#99); and Ooh Baby by Deon Jackson (#100).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 Hello Goodbye/I Am the Walrus--The Beatles
2 Daydream Believer--The Monkees
3 Next Plane to London--The Rose Garden
4 She's My Girl--The Turtles
5 Love of the Common People--Wayne Newton
6 I Say a Little Prayer--Dionne Warwick
7 Itchycoo Park--Small Faces
8 Ten Little Indians--The Yardbirds
9 Everlasting Love--Robert Knight
10 She is Still a Mystery--The Lovin' Spoonful

Singles entering the chart were What's it Gonna Be by Dusty Springfield (#23); Woman, Woman by the Union Gap (#25); Summer Rain by Johnny Rivers (#28); and Judy in Disguise (With Glasses) by John Fred and his Playboy Band (#30).

Died on this date
Francis Spellman, 78. U.S. clergyman. Cardinal Spellman was Roman Catholic Auxiliary Bishop of Boston from 1932-1939 and Archbishop of New York from 1939 until his death, and was elevated to the College of Cardinals in 1946. He acted as an agent for U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt during World War II, and was known for opposing theological and political liberalism. Cardinal Spellman opposed Communism, and supported U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. He was succeeded as Archbishop of New York by Terence Cooke.

Transportation
The New York Central Railroad's Twentieth Century Limited ended 65 years of service, leaving New York's Grand Central Station for its last run to Chicago. The NYCR replaced the Twentieth Century Limited with No. 61, devoid of observation cars and other luxuries.

Economics and finance
In a special report to the United States Congress, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission declared that mutual funds charged their customers "excessive" fees, and asked Congress for legislation to remedy the situation. The report, which took four years to prepare, urged a 5% ceiling on sales commissions and an enforceable requirement that management fees be "reasonable."

Boxing
Jimmy Ellis (25-5) won a 12-round unanimous decision over Oscar Bonavena (31-4) at Freedom Hall in Louisville in a semi-final bout in the World Boxing Association elimination tournament to determine a world heavyweight champion to replace Muhammad Ali, who had been stripped of the title on April 28, 1967 for refusing induction into the U.S. Army (see video). Mr. Bonavena was knocked down in rounds 3 and 10.

Football
CFL
Grey Cup @ Lansdowne Park, Ottawa
Hamilton 24 Saskatchewan 1

Joe Zuger rushed 3 yards for a touchdown to open the scoring in the 1st quarter and completed a 72-yard touchdown pass to Ted Watkins in the 2nd quarter as the Tiger-Cats coasted to their third Grey Cup championship in the past five years, defeating the Roughriders before 31,358 fans in the first Grey Cup game in Ottawa since 1940. Hamilton defensive end Billy Ray Locklin scored the other touchdown when he recovered a fumble by Saskatchewan offensive halfback Ed Buchanan and returned it 43 yards. Tommy-Joe Coffey converted 2 touchdowns and added a single on a wide field goal attempt in the 2nd quarter, while Mr. Zuger punted for 2 singles as Hamilton took a 17-1 halftime lead, and added another single in the 4th quarter. Alan Ford scored the only Saskatchewan point on a Grey Cup-record 87-yard quick kick in the 1st quarter. Mr. Buchanan, who dropped what looked like a sure touchdown pass from Ron Lancaster in the 2nd quarter, was ejected late in the game for punching a couple of Hamilton players in frustration; it was Mr. Buchanan's last game in a Saskatchewan uniform. Saskatchewan quarterback Ron Lancaster was limited to 119 yards passing, and gave up interceptions to Garney Henley, Bob Richardson, and Bob Krouse. Saskatchewan fullback George Reed, the CFL's rushing leader in 1967, rushed for 92 yards, mostly in his own end of the field in the 1st half. Mr. Zuger was named the game's Most Valuable Player. It was the final game for Ralph Sazio as head coach of the Tiger-Cats; in five seasons, Mr. Sazio led the team to three Grey Cup championships and four Eastern Football Conference championships. It turned out to be the final game for Mr. Watkins, who was shot to death on June 2, 1968 while apparently robbing a liquor store in California. It was also the final game for Hamilton linebacker Smokey Stover, who, less than 11 months earlier, had played in the first Super Bowl for the Kansas City Chiefs in their loss to the Green Bay Packers. This game was the sixth straight in which the Tiger-Cats didn't allow a touchdown.





NCAA
Orange Blossom Classic @ Miami
Grambling 28 Florida A&M 25

40 years ago
1977

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Yes Sir, I Can Boogie--Baccara (16th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood--Santa Esmeralda (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in France: Singin' in the Rain Part 1--Sheila and Black Devotion (3rd week at #1)

Died on this date
Erskine Burrows; Larry Tacklyn. Bermudan criminals. Messrs. Burrows and Tacklyn were hanged for several murders, including that of Governor General Sir Richard Sharples in 1972.

Protest
Negroes in the Bermudan capital of Hamilton began rioting after the execution of Erskine Burrows and Larry Tacklyn. Three people, including two Americans, died when the luxury Southampton Princess Hotel burned in a fire police suspected may have been set. Arsonists set fire to a liquor warehouse, supermarkets, and other buildings as police used tear gas against the rioters. The government imposed a curfew.

Diplomacy
Representatives of Syria, Iraq, Libya, Algeria, South Yemen, and the Palestine Liberation Organization began a three-day conference in Tripoli to discuss their response to Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's peace initiative with Israel.

Crime
A three-week inquest absolved South African security police of responsibility for the September 12 death of black anti-apartheid activist Stephen Biko, who died in police custody. The inquest verdict found that Mr. Biko's injuries had resulted from a scuffle with police on September 7, not from beatings by his interrogators, as lawyers for Mr. Biko's family charged. The inquest included admissions from police that Mr. Biko had been kept naked in his cell for most of the 19 days prior to his death; that he had been shackled and handcuffed for up to 50 hours at a time; and that police had prevented doctors from hospitalizing him after he was injured. A few hours before Magistrate Marthinus Prins announced the verdict, police arrested 13 members of Mr. Biko's "Black Consciousness" group, including his brother Kaya and cousin Solomon. The inquest verdict was announced two days after Prime Minister John Vorster had led his National Party to an overwhelming majority of seats in the House of Assembly in the South African general election.

Leroy "Nicky" Barnes, 45, one of New York City's principal drug dealers, was convicted in U.S. District Court in Manhattan on charges of heading an operation that sold 40 pounds of heroin per month from a Harlem garage. Mr. Barnes, reputed to be the head of a narcotics ring that sold millions of dollars of heroin and cocaine nationwide, was known as "Mr. Untouchable" because he had successfully avoided prosecution or won acquittals on a variety of charges in the past. He faced life in prison as a result of his conviction.

Disasters
At least 56 people were killed when a chartered Bulgarian airliner carrying Muslim pilgrims home from Mecca crashed while attempting an emergency landing near the Egypt-Libya border.

Hockey
CHL
Kansas City 3 @ Dallas 2
Phoenix 4 @ Salt Lake City 6

30 years ago
1987

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Oh Mama--Lili & Susie (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Luis Federico Leloir, 81. French-born Argentine physician and biochemist. Dr. Leloir was born of Argentine parents in Paris, but moved to Argentina with his family as an infant. He invented salsa golf (golf sauce) in the 1920s, but won the 1970 Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for his discovery of sugar nucleotides and their role in the biosynthesis of carbohydrates." He was still working when he died of a heart attack.

Donn Eisele, 57. U.S. astronaut. Mr. Eisele joined the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's astronaut corps in 1963. He was the command module pilot on Apollo 7, the first manned Apollo mission, which orbited Earth from October 11-22, 1968. Mr. Eisele had the dubious distinctions of being the first astronaut to get divorced and the first astronaut to get fired. He was told to leave the space program at the end of 1969, and eventually moved into private business. Mr. Eisele died of a heart attack in Tokyo, where he was to attend the opening of a new space camp. His memoir, Apollo Pilot, was published in 2017.

25 years ago
1992

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): House of Love--East 17 (2nd week at #1)

On television tonight
The Wonder Years, on ABC
Tonight's episode: The Test

20 years ago
1997

Theatre
This blogger, with enjoyable female company, attended a dress rehearsal of I Hate Hamlet at the Walterdale Theatre in Edmonton.