March 29, 2018

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Alexandra Duenas Mejia!

650 years ago
1368

Died on this date
Go-Murakami, 39 or 40. Emperor of Japan, 1339-1368. Go-Murakami, born Noriyoshi, succeeded to the throne upon the death of his father, Emperor Go-Daigo. Emperor Go-Murakami reigned from various temporaty locations; he was succeeded by his son Emperor Chōkei.

380 years ago
1638

Americana
Swedish colonists established the first European settlement in Delaware, naming it New Sweden.

230 years ago
1788

Died on this date
Charles Wesley, 80. U.K. clergyman and hymnist. Mr. Wesley, the younger brother of Methodist founder John Wesley, was an Anglican minister who wrote the lyrics for over 6,000 hymns, including Hark! The Herald Angels Sing; O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing; and Christ the Lord is Risen Today.

160 years ago
1848

Weather
An ice jam formed at the source of the Niagara River on the eastern shore of Lake Erie, temporarily stopping the flow of water down Niagara Falls for the first time in recorded history.



130 years ago
1888

Died on this date
Charles-Valentin Alkan, 74. French composer. Mr. Alkan was a child prodigy who began playing piano in public at age 7 and began composing at 14. His compositions included Symphony for Solo Piano; Concerto for Solo Piano; and the Grande sonate Les quatre âges. It was long believed that he had been killed when his bookcase had fallen on him, but that has recently been debunked.

125 years ago
1893

Born on this date
Astrid Holm. Danish actress. Mrs. Holm, born Astrid Rasmussen, appeared in plays from the 1910s through the 1940s, and movies in the 1910s and '20s. Her films included Körkarlen (The Phantom Carriage) (1921) and Du skal ære din hustru (Master of the House) (1925). Mrs. Holm died on October 19, 1961 at the age of 68, after years of declining health.

110 years ago
1908

Born on this date
Arthur O'Connell. U.S. actor. Mr. O'Connell appeared in numerous movies and television programs in a career spanning more than 40 years, usually in supporting roles. He was best known for his supporting performances in Picnic (1955) and Anatomy of a Murder (1959), for which he received Academy Award nominations. Mr. O'Connell suffered from Alzheimer's disease in later years, appearing only in television commercials for Crest toothpaste. He died on May 18, 1981 at the age of 73.

100 years ago
1918

Born on this date
Pearl Bailey. U.S. actress and singer. Miss Bailey had a successful career as a nightclub singer before branching out into recordings, theatre, films, and television. She won a special Tony Award for her performance in an all-black production of Hello Dolly! (1968), and hosted The Pearl Bailey Show (1971), a summer replacement television program. Miss Bailey died on August 17, 1990 at the age of 72.

Sam Walton. U.S. business magnate. Mr. Walton operated several Ben Franklin variety stores before opening the first Wal-Mart store in 1962 in Rogers, Arkansas. He died of cancer on April 5, 1992, a week after his 74th birthday.

90 years ago
1928

Politics and government
It was reported that threats of bombing by gangs had put a crimp in political rallies in the primary campaign at Chicago.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Quarter-Finals
Ottawa 1 @ Montreal Maroons 2 (Montreal won 2-game total goals series 3-1)
Pittsburgh 4 @ New York Rangers 2 (New York won 2-game total goals series 6-4)

80 years ago
1938

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Semi-Finals
Toronto 3 @ Boston 2 (OT) (Toronto won best-of-five series 3-0)

Gord Drillon scored 10:04 into overtime to give the Maple Leafs the win over the Bruins at Boston Garden.

75 years ago
1943

At the movies
Tonight We Raid Calais, directed by John Brahm, and starring Annabella, John Sutton, Lee J. Cobb, and Beulah Bondi, received its premiere screening.



War
After ceremonies in Honolulu attended by nearly 20,000 people, more than 2,600 Japanese-American volunteers left Hawaii to train at Camp Shelby in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. British forces overran the Mareth Line in southern Tunisia and drove German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps troops toward Gabes in the northwest. Chinese troops recaptured Tiaoyenkow and Hwangchangchiawan, south of the Yangtze River.

Politics and government
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Jonathan Daniels, son of former Navy Secretary Josephus Daniels, as a White House administrative assistant.

Labour
At the call of the Canadian Brotherhood of Railway and Transportation Workers, 3,000 streetcar workers in Montreal went on strike. The conflict caused much inconvenience to Montrealers before a special act of the federal Parliament put an end to it, after 11 days.

Basketball
NCAA
NIT @ Madison Square Garden, New York
Final
St. John's 48 Toledo 27

70 years ago
1948

Politics and government
China's National Assembly convened in Nanking as 60 dissident Kuomintang members refused President Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek's demand that they yield their seats to represetatives of smaller parties.

General Dwight D. Eisenhower announced through the U.S. Army Public Information Office that we would not accept a Democratic Party draft as their 1948 U.S. presidential candidate.

Law
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Winters v. New York that a New York state ban on publications devoted to "bloodshed, lust or crime" was unconstitutional, because it was too vague.

Journalism
The New York Herald Tribune won the N.W. Ayre & Son typography award as the best-looking newspaper in the United States.

60 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): The Twelfth of Never--Johnny Mathis

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Der lachende Vagabund--Fred Bertelmann (10th week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): Hello, le soleil brille--Annie Cordy (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Magic Moments/Catch a Falling Star--Perry Como (5th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Tequila--The Champs (3rd week at #1)
2 Sweet Little Sixteen--Chuck Berry
3 Who's Sorry Now--Connie Francis
4 Lollipop--The Chordettes
--Ronald and Ruby
5 Catch a Falling Star--Perry Como
6 26 Miles (Santa Catalina)--The Four Preps
7 It's Too Soon to Know--Pat Boone
8 Are You Sincere--Andy Williams
9 Sail Along Silvery Moon--Billy Vaughn and his Orchestra
10 Breathless--Jerry Lee Lewis

Singles entering the chart were Believe What You Say (#43)/My Bucket's Got a Hole in It (#59) by Ricky Nelson; Tumbling Tumbleweeds by Billy Vaughn and his Orchestra (#45); Bluebirds Over the Mountain by Ersel Hickey (#46); Return to Me by Dean Martin (#50); Every Night (I Pray) by the Chantels (#51); Let's Be Lovers by the Playmates (#55); and Walkin' the Low Road by Randy Sparks (#60).

Diplomacy
Czechoslovakia sent notes to Argentina, Australia, Austria, Canada, and France demanding the extradition of Czech Hlinka Guardsmen for the massacre of Slvakian partisans during World War II.

Politics and government
Joseph Bech resigned as Prime Minister of Luxembourg, but remained as Foreign Minister; he was succeeded as Prime Minister by Pierre Frieden.

The North Dakota Republican Party convention in Bismarck rejected U.S. Senator William Langer's candidacy for renomination, voting to endorse North Dakota Lieutenant Governor for the Senate.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Semi-Finals
New York 0 @ Boston 5 (Boston led best-of-seven series 2-1)

Basketball
NBA
Finals
St. Louis 104 @ Boston 102 (St. Louis led best-of-seven series 1-0)

50 years ago
1968

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Why or Where or When--Mr. Lee Grant

Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Lady Madonna--The Beatles
2 Valleri--The Monkees
3 Playboy--Gene and Debbe
4 Love is Blue (L'Amour est Bleu)--Paul Mauriat and his Orchestra
5 Too Much Talk--Paul Revere and the Raiders
6 Young Girl--The Union Gap
7 The Unicorn--The Irish Rovers
8 Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition was In)--The First Edition
9 The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde--Georgie Fame
10 Thank U Very Much--The Scaffold
Pick of the Week: Maybe Came Today--Diana Ross & the Supremes
New this week: Rainbow Woman--Lee Hazlewood
Soul Serenade--Willie Mitchell
Master Jack--Four Jacks and a Jill
Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day--Stevie Wonder

The McCartney brothers were prominently featured in the top 10. Paul wrote and sang lead on Lady Madonna, while Mike, who wrote and recorded under the name Mike McGear, was a member of The Scaffold, and co-wrote Thank U Very Much.

At the movies
Madigan, directed by Don Siegel and starring Richard Widmark, Henry Fonda, Inger Stevens, and Steve Ihnat, received its premiere screening in New York City.



War
Israeli and Jordanian forces fought an eight-hour artillery duel, in which Israel used airplanes, along the Jordan River.

Hockey
CPHL
Adams Cup
Quarter-Finals
Dallas 2 @ Fort Worth 4 (Fort Worth led best-of-five series 1-0)

Basketball
NBA
Western Division Semi-Finals
Los Angeles 93 @ Chicago 87 (Los Angeles led best-of-seven series 3-1)
St. Louis 107 @ San Francisco 108 (San Francisco led best-of-seven series 3-1)

ABA
Eastern Division Semi-Finals
Minnesota 86 @ Kentucky 94 (Best-of-five series tied 2-2)

40 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Denis--Blondie

Diplomacy
U.S. President Jimmy Carter, on a tour of South America, arrived in Brazil, and immediately raised the two issues that had brought U.S.-Brazilian relations to a "30-year low"--human rights and nuclear proliferation. Brazil had abrogated the U.S.-Brazil military assistance treaty the previous year after Mr. Carter had criticized the human rights record of the Brazilian military government under President Ernesto Geisel. The United States had also opposed a Brazilian plan to import a West German uranium-reprocessing plant that could be used in the production of nuclear weapons. Mr. Carter was given a cool reception by the Brazilian government.

Hockey
NHL
Vancouver 1 @ St. Louis 3

30 years ago
1988

On television tonight
The Wonder Years, on ABC
Tonight's episode: My Father's Office

Died on this date
Maurice Blackburn, 73. Canadian composer. Mr. Blackburn worked with the National Film Board of Canada. He and animator Norman McLaren invented the technique of etching sound and image directly onto film.

Ted Kluszewski, 63. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Kluszewski was a first baseman with the Cincinnati Reds/Redlegs from 1947-1957; Pittsburgh Pirates (1958-1959); Chicago White Sox (1959-1960); and Los Angeles Angels (1961), batting .298 with 279 home runs and 1,028 runs batted in in 1,718 games. "Big Klu" was famous for cutting the sleeves off his jerseys in order not to restrict his massive biceps. His best season was 1954, when he hit .326 and led the National League with 49 home runs and 141 RBIs. He drew only 492 bases on balls in his career, but struck out only 365 times. In his only World Series, Mr. Kluszewski batted .391 with 3 homers and 10 RBIs for the White Sox as they lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 6 games in 1959. He also led NL first basemen in fielding percentage for five straight seasons (1951-1955). Mr. Kluszewski was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1962 and had his jersey #18 retired by the team in 1998. He was a batting coach with the Reds during their World Series championship years of 1975 and 1976, and owned a downtown steak house that was a local landmark in Cincinnati.

Politics and government
In the contest for the U.S. presidential nominations, Michael Dukakis won the Democratic Party primary in Connecticut, while Vice President George Bush won the Connecticut Republican Party primary. Senator Bob Dole dropped out of the race for the Republican nomination, leaving only Pat Robertson to challenge Mr. Bush.

World events
Two Israeli soldiers who had buried four Arab youths alive were sentenced to prison terms.

Scandal
U.S. Deputy Attorney General Arnold Burns and William Weld, head of the U.S. Justice Department's criminal division, resigned, apparently in displeasure with the legal and ethical controversies surrounding Attorney General Edwin Meese. The two had reportedly informed White House Chief of Staff Howard Baker that prolonged investigations of Mr. Meese had paralyzed the department and undermined its credibility.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department reported that the index of leading economic indicators had risen 0.9% in February.

25 years ago
1993

Hit parade
#1 single in Germany (Media Control): All that She Wants--Ace of Base (4th week at #1)

Movies
The Academy Awards for 1992 were presented at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. The winners included: Picture--Unforgiven; Director--Clint Eastwood (Unforgiven); Actor--Al Pacino (Scent of a Woman); Actress--Emma Thompson (Howards End); Supporting Actor--Gene Hackman (Unforgiven); Supporting Actress--Marisa Tomei (My Cousin Vinny).

Politics and government
The Russian Congress of People's Deputies agreed to President Boris Yeltsin's call for a national vote of confidence on his leadership, but accepted it with conditions that threatened an indecisive result.

Catherine Callbeck led her Liberal Party to a landslide victory in the Prince Edward Island provincial election, becoming the first female premier in Canada to win an election as the Liberals won 31 of 32 seats in the Legislative Assembly. Progressive Conservative leader Pat Mella won the only opposition seat in the legislature.

Society
Major league baseball owners announced new initiatives, to be enforced by sanctions, to increase hiring of members of minority groups.

10 years ago
2008

Business
The Book Room, Canada's oldest bookstore, closed its doors in Halifax after 169 years.

Disasters
Four Cape Breton sealers died when their disabled fishing trawler, under tow by a Coast Guard icebreaker, capsized off Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia.