April 18, 2018

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Mila Levashova!

500 years ago
1518

Married on this date
King Sigismund I of Poland and his second wife, Bona Sforza, were married in Kraków; she was crowned queen consort the same day.

280 years ago
1738

Academia
The Real Academia de la Historia (Royal Academy of History) was founded in Madrid by decree of King Philip V.

225 years ago
1793

Journalism
Ontario saw its first newspaper when Louis Roy published the first issue of his broadsheet, the Upper Canada Gazette or American Oracle in Newark. The subscription price was $3.00 per annum; the front page featured a proclamation by Governor Simcoe calling for "the suppression of Vice, Profaneness, and Immorality," and the Speech from the Throne given by King George III on December 13, 1792. Advertisements under twelve lines cost four shillings.

125 years ago
1893

Born on this date
Violette Morris. French athlete and spy. Miss Morris won gold medals in javelin and shot put in the Women's World Games in Monte Carlo in 1921, and repeated her gold medal performance in shot put in 1922, winning the silver medal in javelin. She became a spy for the Nazis in 1936, and continued this activity during World War II, until she was shot to death on April 26, 1944 at the age of 51 by a French resistance squad in an ambush.

110 years ago
1908

Boxing
Tommy Burns (39-2-7) retained his world heavyweight title with a knockout of Jewey Smith (2-1) in the 5th round at Neuilly Bowling Palace in Paris.

100 years ago
1918

Born on this date
André Bazin. French film critic. Mr. Bazin co-founded the magazine Cahiers du cinema in 1951. He called for objective reality, deep focus, and a lack of montage, and believed that only critics who liked a film should review it. Mr. Bazin died of leukemia on November 11, 1958 at the age of 40.

Clifton Hillegass. U.S. publisher. Mr. Hillegass bought the American rights to the Canadian study guides known as Coles Notes in 1958, with the U.S. version becoming known as CliffsNotes. Mr. Hillegass died on May 5, 2001, 17 days after his 83rd birthday.

Tony Mottola. U.S. musician. Mr. Mottola was a jazz guitarist who released dozens of solo albums and worked on various television programs. He died on August 9, 2004 at the age of 86.

War
The Royal North-West Mounted Police started a draft for a volunteer squadron to participate in the Great War; the 200 regular police and 500 new recruits became known as RNWMP Squadron “A”.

90 years ago
1928

Died on this date
Henryk Melcer-Szczawiński, 58. Polish musician and composer. Mr. Melcer-Szczawiński was a highly-regarded pianist and piano teacher whose relatively small number of compositions included two piano concertos and the opera Maria (1903). He died of a heart attack while giving a lecture at the Warsaw Conservatory.

Aviation
After a journey with took them to Natashquan on April 16 and Sept-Iles and Clarke City on April 17, C.A. "Duke" Schiller and his passenger, Commandant James Fitzmaurice of the German Junker Bremen, which was stranded on Greenly Island after a transatlantic flight from Dublin to New York, arrived in Murray Bay, where they met Miss Herta Junkers, daughter of the Bremen's builder. Miss Junkers had flown in from New York. Mr. Schiller then flew to Quebec City.

Adventure
Japanese traveller Toichi Araki reached New York, 12 days after departing Tokyo on a trip around the world heading east. Ryvkichi Matsui left Tokyo the same day heading west.

Disasters
Earthquakes in Bulgaria at Philippopolis, Papazli, and Tchirpan, killed 50 and destroyed much property.

80 years ago
1938

Died on this date
George Bryant, 60. U.S. archer. Mr. Bryant won gold medals in the Double York round and Double American round, and a bronze medal in the team round at the 1904 Summer Olympic Games in St. Louis. He was President of the Organizing Committee for the Summer Olympic Games for the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Literature
Superman, created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, made his debut in Action Comics #1, the first true superhero comic book.

75 years ago
1943

Died on this date
Isoroku Yamamoto, 59. Japanese military officer. Admiral Yamamoto was Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Japanese Navy's combined fleet. He opposed Japan's invasion of Manuchuria in 1931, her invasion of China in 1937, and her attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. During an inspection tour of the Solomon Islands, Admiral Yamamoto was killed when his plane was shot down over Bougainville Island by U.S. P-38 fighter planes in what was known as Operation Vengeance. The death of Admiral Yamamoto was a major blow to Japanese morale in World War II.

War
Soviet forces repelled German attacks near Novorossiisk.

70 years ago
1948

On the radio
The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring John Stanley and Alfred Shirley, on MBS
Tonight's episode: The Very Best Butter

Politics and government
The Christian Democratic Party, led by Prime Minister Alcide de Gasperi, won 305 seats in the 574-seat Chamber of Deputies and 131 of the 237 seats in the 343-seat Senate that were up for election in the Italian general election. The Popular Democratic Front, led by Palmiro Togliatti, took 183 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 72 seats in the Senate. The Socialist Unity Party, led by Ivan Matteo Lombardo, captured 33 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 10 seats in the Senate.

The Syrian Chamber of Deputies re-elected Shuri al-Kuwatly President.

60 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Magic Moments--Perry Como (8th week at #1)

On television tonight
Harbor Command, starring Wendell Corey
Tonight's episode: Decoy

Died on this date
Maurice Gamelin, 85. French military officer. General Gamelin served with distinction in the French Army during World War I, but is best remembered for his unsuccessful performance as Commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces in World War II. Eight days after German forces invaded France on May 10, 1940, Gen. Gamelin was removed from his post by Prime Minister Paul Reynaud. He was imprisoned by the Vichy regime in 1943, and freed in 1945.

War
A U.S. Federal District Court in Washington dismissed World War II treason charges against American poet Ezra Pound after psychiatrists concluded that he would never be mentally competent to stand trial. He was released from St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, D.C. after 12 years of incarceration.

Diplomacy
Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko met in Moscow with U.K. Ambassador to the U.S.S.R. Patrick Reilly and French Ambassador to the U.S.S.R. Maurice Dejean in talks designed to pave the way to a summit conference.

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Faisal declared that his government would pursue policies of "positive neutrality" and would not join the United Arab Republic or the rival Arab Federation.

Politics and government
The West Indies Federation legislature elected former Barbados Prime Minister Sir Grantley Herbert Adams as the Federation's first Prime Minister.

Disasters
An underwater explosion aboard a sunken U.S. munitions ship killed 40 excavators scrapping the hulk near Naha, Okinawa.

Baseball
Dick Gray's solo home run with 1 out in the bottom of the 7th inning proved to be the deciding run as the Los Angeles Dodgers edged the San Francisco Giants 6-5 before 78,672 fans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in the first major league game ever played in Los Angeles. Winning pitcher Carl Erskine allowed 10 innings and 4 runs--all earned--in 8+ innings. Hank Sauer hit 2 home runs for the Giants.

Roger Maris batted 4 for 5 with a home run to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 7-5 win over the Detroit Tigers before 46,698 fans at Briggs Stadium in the Tigers' 1958 home opener. Herb Score pitched a 5-hit complete game, allowing 4 earned runs, and hitting a single, to get his first win since being hit in the eye by a line drive on May 7, 1957.

Jim Landis, Ron Jackson, Luis Aparicio, and Bubba Phillips hit home runs to help the Chicago White Sox defeat the Kansas City Athletics 11-7 before 23,001 fans at Municipal Stadium in Kansas City. Vic Power and Hal Smith homered for Kansas City.

50 years ago
1968

World events
In a successful coup d’etat, non-commissioned Sierra Leone officers replaced the military government of Colonel Andrew Juxon-Smith with a 14-member Anti-Corruption Revolutionary Movement. Charging that Col. Juxon-Smith’s National Reform Council had been "more corrupt and selfish" than the civilian regime it had replaced in March 1967, a Sierra Leone radio broadcast promised a restoration of civilian rule.

Economics and finance
The U.S. Federal Reserve Board raised its lending rate for the second time in a month, from 5% to 5 1/2%.

Labour
A nationwide strike of 200,000 telephone workers who were members of the AFL-CIO Communications Workers of America began against American Telephone & Telegraph Company-affiliated Bell Telephone firms in 15 states and Western Electric Company firms in 40 states. Automation enabled service to continue at near-normal levels.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Quarter-Finals
St. Louis 3 @ Philadelphia 1 (St. Louis won best-of-seven series 4-3)
Minnesota 9 @ Los Angeles 4 (Minnesota won best-of-seven series 4-3)

Semi-Finals
Chicago 2 @ Montreal 9 (Montreal led best-of-seven series 1-0)

Parker MacDonald, Bill Goldsworthy, and Milan Marcetta each scored 2 goals as the North Stars took advantage of the shaky goaltending of Terry Sawchuk to eliminate the Kings at the Forum in Inglewood, California. Doug Robinson scored 2 goals for the Kings. For Mr. Sawchuk, it was his 100th career playoff game and probably his worst; it was his last game in a Los Angeles uniform.

CPHL
Adams Cup
Finals
Tulsa 3 @ Fort Worth 2 (Tulsa led best-of-seven series 1-0)

Basketball
ABA
Finals
New Orleans 112 @ Pittsburgh 120 (Pittsburgh led best-of-seven series 1-0)

40 years ago
1978

Politics and government
The United States Senate voted 68-32, more than the two-thirds majority required, to turn over the Panama Canal to Panama on December 31, 1999. The margin was the same as the March 16 vote to ratify the treaty guaranteeing the neutrality of the canal after 2000. Reservations added to the treaty would allow the U.S. to use its troops to reopen the canal if necessary, but not to interfere with Panamanian sovereignty. U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who had lobbied hard for the treaties, and Panama’s head of state, Brigadier General Omar Torrijos, hailed the ratification. Brig. Gen. Torrijos added that if the treaties had been rejected, Panama would have seized the canal by force.

Terrorism
A message was found saying that former Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro had been killed by his kidnappers, and his body thrown into a mountain lake near Rome. Italian troops on skis and in helicopters began a three-day search of the area in vain.

Law
The Supreme Court of the United States ruled 7-2 that broadcasters and recording companies would not have automatic access to former president Richard Nixon’s White House tapes. In a majority opinion, Justice Lewis Powell argued that the press had no "special benefits" beyond "the right to attend the trial and report what they have observed."

Hockey
WHA
Avco World Trophy
Quarter-Finals
Quebec 5 @ Houston 4 (Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)

Basketball
NBA
Eastern Conference
Semi-Finals
New York 100 @ Philadelphia 110 (Philadelphia led best-of-seven series 2-0)
Washington 121 @ San Antonio 117 (Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)

Western Conference
Semi-Finals
Milwaukee 103 @ Denver 119 (Denver led best-of-seven series 1-0)
Seattle 104 @ Portland 95 (Seattle led best-of-seven series 1-0)

30 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): I Should Be So Lucky--Kylie Minogue (6th week at #1)

Died on this date
Pierre Desproges, 48. French humourist. Mr. Desproges worked on newspapers, radio, television, and stage. He was perhaps most famous for starring in the radio program Chroniques de la haine ordinaire (Chronicles of Ordinary Hatred) (1986). Mr. Desproges died of lung cancer.

War
Three U.S. warships bombarded the Sassan Iranian offshore oil platform, and after it was abandoned, U.S. Marines destroyed it. Some Iranians may have been killed during a similar bombardment of the platform off Sirri Island. During a series of Iranian reprisals, a U.S. helicopter gunship disappeared and its two-man crew was presumed lost. Two U.S. vessels repelled an attack by an Iranian missile boat and then sank it. The attacks, approved by President Ronald Reagan, were in response to the discovery of underwater mines in international waters, which President Reagan believed to be the work of Iran.

Iraq reported that it had recaptured the once-important oil port of Fao from Iran.

Diplomacy
Nicaraguan Defense Minister Humberto Ortega said that the Sandanista government would make concessions to the opposition Contras only after a final cease-fire was signed.

World events
John Demjanjuk, who had been extradited to Israel from the United States in 1986, was found guilty of war crimes by an Israeli court in Jerusalem. He had been accused by survivors of the Treblinka, Poland death camp of being "Ivan the Terrible," a guard who had assisted in the persecution of Jews. Mr. Demjanjuk claimed that he was the victim of mistaken identity. A few years after this trial, Mr. Demjanjuk was proven correct when documents released from a Soviet archive indicated that the real "Ivan the Terrible" was an Ivan Marchenko, who looked nothing like Mr. Demjanjuk.

Politics and government
In the contest for the 1988 Democratic Party nomination for President of the United States, Rev. Jesse Jackson won the Delaware caucus vote.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Prince of Wales Conference
Division Finals
Boston 2 @ Montreal 5 (Montreal led best-of-seven series 1-0)
New Jersey 1 @ Washington 3 (Washington led best-of-seven series 1-0)

A delay caused by a power failure prevented the game at the Montreal Forum from being televised, and Chris Cuthbert, who was at the Capital Center in Landover, Maryland to deliver periodic reports on the New-Jersey Washington game, suddenly found himself broadcasting an entire game by himself, including intermissions. Mr. Cuthbert's excellent impromptu performance greatly aided his career.

25 years ago
1993

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Give in to Me--Michael Jackson (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): All that She Wants--Ace of Base (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: No Limit--2 Unlimited (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Young at Heart--The Bluebells (2nd week at #1)

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Prince of Wales Conference
Division Semi-Finals
Buffalo 5 @ Boston 4 (OT) (Buffalo led best-of-seven series 1-0)
Montreal 2 @ Quebec 3 (OT) (Quebec led best-of-seven series 1-0)
New Jersey 3 @ Pittsburgh 6 (Pittsburgh led best-of-seven series 1-0)
New York Islanders 1 @ Washington 3 (Washington led best-of-seven series 1-0)

Clarence S. Campbell Conference
Division Semi-Finals
St. Louis 4 @ Chicago 3 (St. Louis led best-of-seven series 1-0)
Los Angeles 6 @ Calgary 3 (Los Angeles led best-of-seven series 1-0)

Bob Sweeney scored at 11:03 of the 1st overtime period to give the Sabres their win over the Bruins at Boston Garden. Alexander Mogilny scored 2 goals for the Sabres.

The Canadiens led the Nordiques 2-0 with less than 2 minutes remaining in regulation time at Le Colisee, but Martin Rucinsky scored on a powerplay with 1:29 remaining to make the score 2-1, and Joe Sakic scored with 48 seconds remaining to tie the score. Scott Young scored the winning goal at 16:49 of the 1st overtime period.

Basketball
NBA
Cleveland 103 Chicago 94

20 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Terry Sanford, 80. U.S. politician. Mr. Sanford was a Democratic politician and educator from North Carolina, where he served as a state senator from 1953-1961, Governor from 1961-1965, and United States Senator from 1986-1993. Mr. Sanford was noted for his progressive leadership in the fields of civil rights and education, and served as president of Duke University from 1969 to 1985. During his time as Governor of North Carolina, Mr. Sanford nearly doubled state spending on public schools, and created the Governor’s Schools for gifted students. He also pushed for desegregation. In recognition of Mr. Sanford's efforts in education and in countless other areas, a 1981 Harvard University survey named him one of the 10 best governors of the 20th century. Mr. Sanford was a close ally of President John F. Kennedy, and according to President Kennedy’s personal secretary Evelyn Lincoln, Mr. Kennedy would have dumped Vice-President Lyndon Johnson as his running mate in the 1964 election in favour of Mr. Sanford. According to Mrs. Lincoln, President Kennedy stated these views in a private conversation with her on November 19, 1963, just three days before his assassination. President Kennedy, according to Mrs. Lincoln, planned to emphasize government service as an honourable career in his second term, and thought that Governor Sanford believed the same things that he did. Mr. Sanford served as President Lyndon Johnson’s campaign manager in 1968 before Mr. Johnson announced his withdrawal from the race on March 31. In September he took over as Hubert Humphrey’s campaign manager. In 1972, with Alabama Governor George Wallace running for the Democratic presidential nomination, Mr. Sanford decided to challenge the idea that Governor Wallace represented southern opinion. Mr. Sanford declared his candidacy on March 8, but he received 100,000 fewer votes than Governor Wallace in the North Carolina primary, and received just 77 ½ votes at the Democratic National Convention, finishing a distant fourth behind George McGovern, George Wallace, and Shirley Chisholm. On June 1, 1975, Mr. Sanford announced his candidacy for the 1976 Democratic presidential nomination, but he withdrew on January 25, 1976, after suffering a heart murmur.

Hockey
NHL
Edmonton 4 Toronto 3

10 years ago
2008

Scandal
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrested Benoit Corbeil, director of the Liberal Party of Canada's Quebec wing from 1999-2001, on fraud and influence peddling charges. In June 2009, he pled guilty and was sentenced to 15 months in a Quebec jail, and was also fined $20,000 and ordered to pay back $117,000 to the Liberal Party.

Health
Canada became the first country to classify the controversial chemical bisphenol A as a dangerous substance, allowing Health Canada to take steps to ban the use of BPA in baby bottles.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Eastern Conference
Quarter-Finals
New York Rangers 5 @ New Jersey 3 (New York won best-of-seven series 4-1)

Western Conference
Quarter-Finals
Nashville 1 @ Detroit 2 (OT) (Detroit led best-of-seven series 3-2)
Dallas 2 @ Anaheim 5 (Anaheim led best-of-seven series 3-2)

Johan Franzen scored at 1:48 of the 1st overtime period to give the Red Wings their win over the Predators at Joe Louis Arena.