February 22, 2018

230 years ago
1788

Born on this date
Arthur Schopenhauer. German philosopher. Mr. Schopenhauer believed that the world was driven by a will continually seeking satisfaction. His best-known book was Die Welt als Wille und Vorstellung (The World as Will and Representation) (1819). Those influenced by Mr. Schopenhauer included Friedrich Nietzsche, Richard Wagner, Thomas Mann, Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, Leo Tolstoy, and Joseph Campbell. Mr. Schopenhauer died on September 21, 1860 at the age of 72.

170 years ago
1848

World events
The French Revolution of 1848, which led to the establishment of the French Second Republic, began.

130 years ago
1888

Born on this date
Owen Brewster. U.S. politician. Mr. Brewster was Governor of Maine (1925-1929); member of the United States House of Representatives from Maine (1935-1941); and United States Senator from Maine (1941-1952). As chairman of a special Senate committee investigating defense procurement during World War II, Mr. Brewster attacked the commercial interests of Howard Hughes, but his reputation suffered when Mr. Hughes responded with accusations of his own. Mr. Brewster died on December 25, 1961 at the age of 73.

125 years ago
1893

Society
The Quebec Legislative Assembly declared beer of not over 4% alcohol a "temperance drink."

120 years ago
1898

Died on this date
Heungseon Daewongun, 77. Regent of Korea, 1863-1873. Heungseon Daewongun, born Yi Ha-eung and known to Western diplomats as Prince Gung, was regent when his second son, Yi Myeong-bok, was chosen as king after King Cheoljong died without an heir. The Daewongun maintained an isolationist foreign policy until he was forced into retirement when the king came of age.

110 years ago
1908

Born on this date
Rómulo Betancourt. President of Venezuela, 1945-1948, 1959-1964. Mr. Betancourt was a Communist as a young man, but eventually rejected Communism, and in 1941 founded Acción Democrática, (AD). He became President in 1945 as the result of a military coup, and achieved social and economic reforms, especially in the oil industry. Mr. Betancourt was deposed by a military coup in 1948, and spent the next decade in exile in the United States and other countries. He was returned to the presidency in the 1958 election, and his government participated in the founding of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in 1960. Mr. Betancourt's foreign policy included the Betancourt Doctrine, by which Venezuela refused diplomatic recognition to any regime that came to power by military force. He survived an assassination attempt by agents of Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo in 1960, and oversaw the 1963 election, in which Raْl Leoni was elected President, marking the first time in Venezuela that the presidency had passed from one democratically-elected President to another. Mr. Betancourt was awarded a lifetime seat in the Senate in 1964, and died in New York City on September 28, 1981 at the age of 73.

100 years ago
1918

Born on this date
Robert Wadlow. U.S. giant. Mr. Wadlow was afflicted with a malfunction of the pituitary gland, which resulted in him reaching a height of 8' 11.1", the tallest person for whom there is irrefutable evidence. He was still growing when he contracted an infection from a leg brace that chafed his ankle, and died on July 15, 1940 at the age of 22.



Sid Abel. Canadian-born U.S. hockey player and coach. Mr. Abel, a native of Melville, Saskatchewan, was a center with the Detroit Red Wings (1938-43, 1946-52) and Chicago Black Hawks (1952-54), scoring 472 points on 189 goals and 283 assists in 612 regular season games and 28 goals and 30 assists in 97 playoff games. He was a member of Stanley Cup championship teams in 1943, 1950, and 1952, and was best known as the centre of the "Production Line" in the late 1940s-early '50s, with Ted Lindsay on left wing and Gordie Howe on right wing. Mr. Abel won the Hart Memorial Trophy in 1948-49 as the National Hockey League's Most Valuable Player, and was a two-time First Team All-Star and a two-time Second-Team All-Star. Mr. Abel coached the Black Hawks (1952-54); Red Wings (1957-68, 1969-70); St. Louis Blues (1971-72); and Kansas City Scouts (1975-76), compiling a 382-427-155 record in 964 regular season games, leading the Red Wings to appearances in the Stanley Cup finals in 1961, 1963, 1964, and 1966. Mr. Abel was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a player in 1969. He died on February 8, 2000, two weeks before his 82nd birthday.

Don Pardo. U.S. broadcaster. Mr. Pardo was an announcer on numerous radio and television programs with the National Broadcasting Company from 1938 until his death on August 18, 2014 at the age of 96. He was best known as the announcer for the television comedy program Saturday Night Live (1975-1981, 1982-2014).

90 years ago
1928

Diplomacy
King Amanullah I of Afghanistan, the first monarch to visit Germany in 15 years and the first to visit the Weimar Republic, received a royal welcome in Berlin, and met with German President Paul von Hindenburg.

Americana
The Ku Klux Klan officially announced the discarding of its masks beginning February 23, and the changing of its name to Knights of the Great Forest.

Crime
The wire-bound bodies of Edgar and George Chisholm were found in the canal at Indiana Harbor, Indiana.

75 years ago
1943

Died on this date
Christoph Probst, 24; Hans Scholl, 24; Sophie Scholl, 21. German resistance leaders. Leaders of the White Rose youth resistance movement, the Scholls--brother and sister--and Mr. Probst were convicted of high treason and executed by guillotine in Munich, four days after being arrested for distributing anti-Nazi leaflets on the campus of the University of Munich.

War
The Royal Canadian Navy Flower Class corvette HMCS Weyburn struck a mine laid by German submarine U-118 off the Strait of Gibraltar; the explosion killed one seaman of her crew of 77. Before the ship sank, all but two depth charges were rendered safe by throwing the detonators over the side. The British destroyer HMS Wivern started to remove the wounded and survivors when twenty minutes later, an after bulkhead gave way and the corvette began to sink. The two depth charges exploded, killing eight more sailors and wounding others in the water. Wivern’s engines and boilers were hit, leaving the ship dead in the water. 84 RCN and RN sailors were wounded in total. A column of 40 German tanks drove within 4 miles of Thala in central Tunisia.

Diplomacy
King Saud of Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic relations with Italy.

Protest
British authorities in India issued a "white paper" charging that Hindu nationalist leader Mohandas Gandhi had instigated uprisings and sabotage during the previous summer's disturbances.

Economics and finance
The U.S. Office of Price Administration placed emergency price ceilings on fresh tomatoes, peas, snap beans, carrots, and cabbage in order to halt rising prices resulting from the rationing of canned goods.

Business
The U.S. Senate approved and sent to President Franklin D. Roosevelt a bill permitting the merger of Western Union and Postal Telegraph Company.

70 years ago
1948

On the Radio
The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes on MBS, starring John Stanley and Alfred Shirley.
Tonight's episode: The Wooden Claw

Terrorism
Palestinian Arabs planted two truckloads of explosives in the Jewish sector of Jerusalem, destroying a three-block area, killing 54 people, and injuring 200.

Diplomacy
U.S. and U.K. diplomats walked out of a Soviet Red Army anniversary celebration in Vienna when General L.V. Kurasov, Soviet High Commissioner for Austria, accused the West of planning a new war against the U.S.S.R.

60 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): April Love--Pat Boone (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Der lachende Vagabund--Fred Bertelmann (5th week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): Gondolier--Dalida (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): The Story of My Life--Michael Holliday (2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Get a Job--The Silhouettes
2 Don't--Elvis Presley
3 Short Shorts--The Royal Teens
4 At the Hop--Danny and the Juniors
5 Sail Along Silvery Moon--Billy Vaughn and his Orchestra
6 The Stroll--The Diamonds
7 Catch a Falling Star--Perry Como
8 Oh Julie--The Crescendos
9 Sugartime--The McGuire Sisters
10 You are My Destiny--Paul Anka

Singles entering the chart were Tequila by the Champs (#36); The Walk by Jimmy McCracklin (#45); Rock and Roll is Here to Stay by Danny and the Juniors (#48); Oh Lonesome Me by Don Gibson (#49); Maybe Baby by the Crickets (#53); (Make With) The Shake by Mark IV (#55); Just a Little Lonesome by Bobby Helms (#57); and Bad Motorcycle by the Storey Sisters (#60).

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Laura Pereverzoff Ong!

War
Indonesian Air Force planes bombed and strafed rebel-held areas in central Sumatra and northern Celebes.

Diplomacy
The French government protested Tunisia's closure of French consulates.

Defense
The U.S.A. and U.K. concluded an agreement providing for the placement of U.S. Thor missiles in eastern and northern Britain, within striking distance of major Soviet population centres.

Politics and government
Radical Party candidate Arturo Frondizi won the first free Argentine presidential election since 1928.

50 years ago
1968

Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Kaette Kita Yopparai--The Folk Crusaders (5th week at #1)

On television tonight
Dragnet 1968, starring Jack Webb and Harry Morgan, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Squeeze

Radio
Quebec Premier Daniel Johnson announced the creation of Radio-Québec, a provincially-owned radio and television network; on August 19, 1996, the network changed its name to Télé-Québec.

40 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Take a Chance on Me--ABBA (2nd week at #1)

On television tonight
What a Nightmare, Charlie Brown!, on CBC

This was the first broadcast of this Peanuts special; its first American showing took place on CBS the following night.

Hockey
NHL
Boston 6 @ Vancouver 4

CHL
Kansas City 5 @ Fort Worth 6
Dallas 5 @ Salt Lake City 4

30 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): (I've Had) The Time of My Life--Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes (4th week at #1)

Scandal
Leaders of the Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana barred Rev. Jimmy Swaggart from the pulpit for three months and imposed a two-year period of rehabilitation after seeing photographic evidence that the Assemblies of God pastor had been less than faithful in living up to his marriage vows. The announcement was made the day after Mr. Swaggart had publicly asked his congregation for forgiveness for an unspecified sin.

Politics and government
U.S. Secretary of the Navy James Webb resigned after less than a year in office. Mr. Webb wrote to President Ronald Reagan and complained about Defense Secretary Frank Carlucci's decision to retire 16 small ships as an economic move.

Olympics
Bonnie Blair of the United States set a world record of 39.10 seconds to win the gold medal in the women's 500-metre speed skating event in Calgary. Karen Percy of Banff, Alberta won her second bronze medal of the games, in the women's super giant slalom ski event in her hometown. Canada and Sweden tied 2-2 in men's hockey at the Olympic Saddledome in Calgary.

25 years ago
1993

Hit parade
#1 single in Germany (Media Control): I Will Always Love You--Whitney Houston (5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Jean Lecanuet, 72. French politician. Mr. Lecanuet was a member of three different centrist parties during a political career lasting almost 50 years, and held several cabinet posts, including Minister of Justice (1974-1976). He served three terms in the Senate (1959-1973, 1977-1986, 1986-1993); ran unsuccessfully for President in 1965; and was a Deputy in the European Parliament (1979-1988), while serving as Mayor of Rouen from 1968 until his death from cancer, 10 days before his 73rd birthday.

20 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Abraham Ribicoff, 87. U.S. politician. A Democrat, Mr. Ribicoff served in the Connecticut state legislature from 1938-1942, and in the United States House of Representatives from 1949-1953, where he was a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee. Mr. Ribicoff ran for United States Senator in 1952, losing to Republican Prescott Bush. He then returned to state politics, and was governor of Connecticut from 1955-1961. One of his projects as governor was an effort to curb speeding; in 1956 he suspended 10,346 driver's licenses, as opposed to 372 the year before. Mr. Ribicoff was a longtime friend of John F. Kennedy, and nominated the Massachusetts senator for Vice-President at the Democratic National Convention in 1956. When JFK became President, he rewarded Mr. Ribicoff for his support by naming him to his cabinet, as Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare in 1961. Mr. Ribicoff found the department too large to be manageable, and left the cabinet to run for the Senate again in 1962. He was elected, replacing the retired Prescott Bush, and served three terms, leaving office in January 1981. Perhaps Mr. Ribicoff's most memorable moment occurred at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968. In his speech nominating George McGovern for President, Mr. Ribicoff expressed his disgust with the behaviour of Chicago police towards student protesters by saying "If George McGovern were President, we wouldn’t have these Gestapo tactics in the streets of Chicago." The comment prompted loud applause from much of the audience, and an angry reaction from Chicago mayor Richard Daley. Mr. Ribicoff spent his remaining years in the Senate supporting liberal stands on various issues. After leaving public office he practiced law with a New York firm. Mr. Ribicoff died of Alzheimer's disease.

Olympics
Bjorn Dahlie of Norway won the 50-kilometre cross country freestyle skiing event at Nagano for his record eighth career Olympic gold medal. He also had four silvers for a total of 12 Olympic medals, also a record. His winning time of 2 hours, 5 minutes, 8.2 seconds was just 8.1 seconds better than that of Niklas Jonsson of Sweden. The Czech Republic defeated Russia 1-0 in the men's hockey final, the last Olympic event of the 20th Century.