April 19, 2018

1,175 years ago
843

Died on this date
Judith of Bavaria, 45 or 46. Holy Roman Empress, 819-840; Queen of the Franks, 819-840. Judith was the second wife and queen consort of Holy Roman Emperor Louis I, who died in 840 and was succeeded on the throne by their son Charles the Bald. Judith died after a year of ill health.

110 years ago
1908

Born on this date
Babe Phelps. U.S. baseball player. Ernest Gordon Phelps was a catcher in the major leagues from 1931-1942, mostly with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He had a lifetime batting average of .310 in 726 games; in 1936 he hit .367 in 115 games. In 1941 the Dodgers held spring training in Cuba; Mr. Phelps was terrified of drowning, refused to board the ship, and missed the entire spring training. He died on December 10, 1992 at the age of 84.

100 years ago
1918

Born on this date
Whitey Kurowski. U.S. baseball player. George John Kurowski played third base for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1941-1949, and was the starting third baseman for the World Series championship teams of 1942, 1944, and 1946. His 2-run home run in the 9th inning of the fifth game of the 1942 World Series provided the winning margin as the Cardinals won the series 4 games to 1. Mr. Kurowski played in 916 career games, batting .286. His best seasons were 1945 (.323, 21 home runs, 102 runs batted in) and 1947 (.310, 27 homers, 104 RBI, 108 runs). He died on December 9, 1999 at the age of 81.

90 years ago
1928

Died on this date
Harry McCaffery, 69. U.S. baseball player. Mr. McCaffery was an outfielder and infielder with the Louisville Eclipse (1882) and St. Louis Browns (1882-1883), batting .251 with no home runs in 44 games.

Charles Birger, 47. U.S. criminal. Mr. Birger, a bootlegger, was hanged at Benton, Illinois for the murder of Joe Adams, Mayor of West City, Illinois. It was the last legal hanging in the state, as the electric chair was to succeed the noose.

World events
The Knights of Malta girded in armour, marched back into their fortress City of Rhodes which they had surrendered to the Turks 406 years earlier.

Baseball
For the first time since May 1926, the New York Yankees dropped out of first place in the American League when the Boston Red Sox overcame a 6-0 deficit with 3 runs in the 6th inning and 4 in the 8th to edge the Yankees 7-6 in the morning Patriots Day game at Fenway Park. Paul Hinson made his major league debut with the Red Sox as a pinch runner, scoring the first run of the 8th-inning rally. The afternoon game was called because of rain after 6 innings, with the Yankees winning 7-2 before 30,000 fans.

The Detroit Tigers and St. Louis Browns combined for 18 bases on balls and 6 errors as the Tigers won 9-8 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Browns drew 11 of the walks, but made 4 of the errors, leading to 4 unearned runs.

Relief pitcher Ed Brandt singled to lead off the top of the 10th inning and scored with 2 out when he beat the throw to home plate by pitcher Jim Faulkner on a ground ball by Rogers Hornsby as the Boston Braves overcame an 8-3 deficit to defeat the New York Giants 9-8 at the Polo Grounds in New York.

The St. Louis Cardinals scored 5 runs in each of the 5th and 6th innings as they beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 13-10 before 30,000 fans at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Jim Bottomley led th St. Louis attack with a triple, 2 singles, 2 runs, and 4 runs batted in, while Pittsburgh third baseman Pie Traynor was 5 for 6 with a double, triple, 4 runs, and a run batted in. Walt Taushcer made his major league debut on the mound for Pittsburgh, pitching 1 1/3 perfect innings of relief. Rollie Hemsley played his first major league game, catching the 9th inning for the Pirates, with no fielding chances.

Sheriff Blake pitched a 2-hitter and batted 4 for 5 with a run as the Chicago Cubs routed the Cincinnati Reds 13-0 before 9,000 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago in a game that was played in 1 hour 27 minutes. Chicago center fielder Hack Wilson batted 4 for 4 with 2 home runs--including a grand slam--, a double, 4 runs, and 6 runs batted in, while first baseman Joe Kelly was 4 for 5 with a home run and 4 RBIs. Jack White played the last 6 innings at second base for the Reds, batting 0 for 3, with 5 putouts and an error in the field in the 6th and last game of his 2-year major league career.

80 years ago
1938

Baseball
Emmett Mueller of the Philadelphia Phillies and Ernie Koy of the Brooklyn Dodgers each hit a home run in their first major league at-bats as the Dodgers defeated the Phillies 12-5 before 10,000 fans on opening day at Baker Bowl in Philadelphia. Chuck Klein also homered for Philadelphia, while Cookie Lavagetto and Dolph Camilli homered for Brooklyn.

The New York Giants scored 4 runs in the 1st inning and 3 in the 2nd as they routed the Boston Bees 13-1 before 39,742 fans on opening day at the Polo Grounds in New York. New York third baseman Mel Ott drove in 4 runs with a home run and a double.

Ripper Collins batted 4 for 5 with a home run, double, 3 runs, and 2 runs batted to help the Chicago Cubs overcome a 5-1 deficit and edge the Cincinnati Reds 8-7 before 34,148 fans on opening day at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Willard Hershberger made his major league debut with the Reds, reaching first base on an error as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the 9th inning.

Arky Vaughan hit a 2-run home run in the top of the 9th inning to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 4-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals before 19,865 fans on opening day at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Pittsburgh left fielder Johnny Rizzo batted 2 for 3 with a base on balls, a run, and a run batted in in his first major league game, while Bob Klinger pitched 2 scoreless innings of relief to get the win in his first major league game. Enos Slaughter made his major league debut in right field with the Cardinals, batting 3 for 5 with a double.

The Chicago White Sox scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 4th inning as they held on to edge the Detroit Tigers 4-3 on opening day at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Hank Greenberg hit a home run for Detroit, as did Chet Laabs, who came to bat as a pinch hitter with 1 out and nobody on base in the top of the 9th. Roy Cullenbine made his major league debut, leading off for the Tigers and playing left field; he batted 1 for 5, singling after Mr. Laabs' homer, and making 3 putouts in the field. It was also the first major league game for first base umpire Bill Grieve.

75 years ago
1943

War
U.K. Royal Air Force planes made a concentrated raid on the Italian naval base of Spezia in northern Italy.

Protest
The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising began when police and Nazi SS auxiliary forces entered Warsaw's Jewish ghetto to complete the process of deporting Jews to death camps, and were surprised by Molotov cocktails and hand grenades thrown by Jewish insurgents.

Politics and government
Spanish refugee leaders agreed at a conference in Montevideo to meet in Mexico City to discuss the formation of a Spanish republican government in exile.

Economics and finance
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt authorized the extension of Lend-Lease aid to Saudi Arabia.

Track and field
Gérard Côté, a native of St-Barnabé, Québec, won the Boston Marathon for the second time in as many years, in 2:28:25 4/5.

70 years ago
1948

War
Fighting in Costa Rica's five-week civil war ended with the victory of rightist rebels under Colonel Jose Figueres over the government of President Teodoro Picado Michalski as Mr. Picado and Father Benjamín Núñez, an eminent labour leader in Costa Rica, signed The Pact of the Mexican Embassy. The U.S. State Department protested the last-minute intervention by Nicaraguan forces on the side of President Picado.

Defense
The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission announced the successful testing of an atomic bomb on Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

Diplomacy
The United Nations General Assembly unanimously voted to admit Burma as the organization's 58th member.

Politics and government
The Chinese National Assembly re-elected Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek President, disregarding his disclaimer of candidacy.

A U.S. federal district court in Washington convicted screenwriter John Howard Lawson of contempt of Congress for refusing to tell the House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities whether he was a Communist.

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to review a South Carolina circuit court decision barring the practice of viewing a political party as a "private club" in order to exclude Negroes from primary elections.

Track and field
Gérard Côté won the Boston Marathon for the fourth time, in 2:31:02.

Baseball
The Philadelphia Phillies released first baseman Roy Cullenbine, ending his major league career exactly 10 years after he played his first game. He batted .276 with 110 home runs and 599 runs batted in in 1,181 games, drawing 853 bases on balls. Mr. Cullenbine was with the Detroit Tigers in 1947, batting just .224 with 24 homers and 78 RBIs, but drawing an amazing 137 bases on balls.

Stan Spence, Vern Stephens and Bobby Doerr hit consecutive home runs as the Boston Red Sox set a team record on opening day, but the long ball wasn't enough as the Philadelphia Athletics won 5-4 in 11 innings before 22,409 fans in the morning game at Fenway Park. Don White made his major league debut in right field for Philadelphia, batting 1 for 6 with a run, and driving in the eventual deciding run with an outfield fly. Lou Brissie pitched a 4-hitter and singled in 2 runs in the 4th inning as the Athletics won the afternoon game 4-2 before 33,675 fans to complete the sweep.

U.S. President Harry Truman threw out the first ball and watched the New York Yankees (7) and Washington Nationals (3) combine to score 10 runs in the 1st inning as the Yankees won 12-4 before 31,728 fans on opening day at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Allie Reynolds pitched an 11-hit complete game victory and hit a 3-run home run to climax the 1st-inning outburst. Washington second baseman Al Kozar played his first major league game, batting 1 for 4 with a base on bals and a run, with 1 putout and 3 assists in the field. Ramon Garcia made his major league debut with the Nationals, retiring the last 2 batters in the 9th inning in relief of losing pitcher Early Wynn, who allowed 16 hits and 10 earned runs in 8 1/3 innings.

Ewell Blackwell pitched a 7-hit complete game and Hank Sauer hit a 2-run home run in the bottom of the 8th inning to clinch the victory as the Cincinnati Reds beat the Chicago Cubs 4-1 before 32,147 fans on opening day at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Monty Basgall made his major league debut at second base for the Pirates, batting 0 for 4, with 1 putout and 4 assists in the field. Ed Fitz Gerald made his major league debut with the Pirates, batting 0 for 2 after entering the game as a pinch hitter in the 7th, with no fielding chances in 2 innings as a catcher.

60 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Catch a Falling Star--Perry Como (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): March from the River Kwai and Colonel Bogey--Mitch Miller and his Orchestra (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): Hello, le soleil brille--Annie Cordy (6th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Whole Lotta Woman--Marvin Rainwater

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 He's Got the Whole World (In His Hands)--Laurie London
2 Tequila--The Champs
3 Twilight Time--The Platters
4 Lollipop--The Chordettes
--Ronald and Ruby
5 Who's Sorry Now--Connie Francis
6 A Wonderful Time Up There--Pat Boone
7 Book of Love--The Monotones
8 Witch Doctor--David Seville
9 Are You Sincere--Andy Williams
10 Return to Me--Dean Martin

Singles entering the chart were Wear My Ring Around Your Neck by Elvis Presley (#24); Teacher, Teacher (#39)/All the Time (#56) by Johnny Mathis; All I Have to Do is Dream (#42)/Claudette (#51) by the Everly Brothers; Let the Bells Keep Ringing by Paul Anka (#48); Kathleen by Wally Lewis (#55); Groovy by Joe Dodo and the Groovers (#59); Down on My Knees by the Heartbeats (#60); and Stairway of Love by Marty Robbins (also #60).

Diplomacy
The first 420 of 2,000 Japanese repatriates and prisoners of war recently released by the People's Republic of China sailed for Japan from Tientsin.

Politics and government
North Carolina Governor Luther Hodges appointed former state Democratic Party chairman B. Everett Jordan to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the April 16 death of W. Kerr Scott.

V.E. Semichastny succeeded A.N. Shelepin as first secretary of the Soviet Komsomol (Young Communist League).

Track and field
Yugoslavian printer Franjo Mihalic won the Boston Marathon.

50 years ago
1968

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Lady Madonna--The Beatles

Edmonton’s Eop 10 (CJCA)
1 Love is All Around--The Troggs
2 Summertime Blues--Blue Cheer
3 Lady Madonna--The Beatles
4 The Mighty Quinn (Quinn the Eskimo)--Manfred Mann
5 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly--Hugo Montenegro, his Orchestra and Chorus
6 Honey--Bobby Goldsboro
7 Jennifer Eccles--The Hollies
8 Young Girl--The Union Gap
9 Cry Like a Baby--The Box Tops
10 Playboy--Gene and Debbe
Pick of the Week: Look to Your Soul--Johnny Rivers
New this week: If You Were a Baby--Doug Hutton
Like to Get to Know You--Spanky & Our Gang
Follow Me--Jack Jones
Ain’t Nothin’ Like the Real Thing--Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell
Mony Mony--Tommy James and the Shondells

Died on this date
Allan Travers, 75. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Travers had a brief, but memorable, major league career. On May 18, 1912, the Detroit Tigers fielded a team of collegians and other amateurs to play the Philadelphia Athletics at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Ty Cobb had been suspended for going into the stands to attack a fan who was taunting him, and the other Tiger players had walked out in support of Mr. Cobb. The Tigers chose to fill in with amateurs rather than forfeit. The Athletics won 24-2; Mr. Travers went the distance (8 innings), giving up 26 hits, 7 bases on balls, and 14 earned runs. He did manage to strike out one batter. Mr. Travers also went 0 for 3 at bat. He became a Jesuit priest in 1926, and spent the rest of his life as a teacher.

Tommy Bridges, 61. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Bridges played with the Detroit Tigers from 1930-1946, winning 194 games and losing 138. He won 20 or more games for three straight seasons (1934-1936), leading the American League with 23 wins in 1936. Mr. Bridges also led the league in strikeouts in 1935 and 1936, and in shutouts in 1933. He pitched in four World Series with the Tigers (1934; 1935; 1940; 1945) and won two games in the 1935 Series, including the deciding sixth game. Drink got the better of Mr. Bridges in his later years, undoing his career and his life.

Music
The album Odessey and Oracle by the Zombies was released on CBS Records.

Space
The U.S.S.R. launched Cosmos 215, the first optical astronomical observatory to be operated successfully in space. It carried nine telescopes and stayed aloft for six weeks.

War
United States forces began Operation Delaware in the Ashau Valley, described as one of the Viet Cong’s "top logistical support bases" by Maj. Gen. John Tolson, commander of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile). Ten U.S. helicopters were reported shot down by enemy antiaircraft, while 20 Americans and 50 North Vietnamese were reported killed the first day.

Politics and government
Colonel John Bangura, in exile since a 1967 coup had removed Sierra Leone’s civilian government, returned to head a seven-man junta.

Adventure
An expedition on Bombardier Ski-Doo snowmobiles led by Ralph Plaisted, an insurance agent from Minnesota, arrived at the North Pole after a 7-week trek across the Canadian Arctic.

Disasters
A tornado hit Greenwood, Arkansas, killing 12 and injuring 48.

Basketball
NBA
Eastern Division Finals
Boston 100 @ Philadelphia 96 (Boston won best-of-seven series 4-3)

Sam Jones scored 22 points and John Havlicek added 21 as the Celtics defeated the 76ers at the Spectrum, ending Philadelphia's reign as champions after one season. Hal Greer led the 76ers with 22 points, while Wilt Chamberlain was held to 14 points.

40 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Night Fever--Bee Gees

War
Canadian peacekeepers started their mission with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon in Operation Angora, providing UN communication networks and local security.

Economics and finance
The United States Treasury announced a plan to sell some of the nation’s gold reserve.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Quarter-Finals
Detroit 4 @ Montreal 2 (Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)
Chicago 3 @ Boston 4 (OT) (Boston led best-of-seven series 2-0)
Toronto 2 @ New York Islanders 3 (OT) (New York led best-of-seven series 2-0)
Buffalo 2 @ Philadelphia 3 (Philadelphia led best-of-seven series 2-0)

Nick Libett scored on a breakaway in the last minute of regulation time with Ken Dryden still in goal to clinch the Red Wings' upset win over the Canadiens at the Montreal Forum.

Terry O'Reilly scored at 1:50 of the 1st overtime period to give the Bruins their win over the Black Hawks at Boston Garden.

Mike Bossy scored at 2:50 of the 1st overtime period to give the Islanders their win over the Maple Leafs at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale in the national Hockey Night in Canada broadcast.

WHA
Avco World Trophy
Quarter-Finals
New England 0 @ Edmonton 2 (New England led best-of-seven series 2-1)
Winnipeg 2 @ Birmingham 3 (Winnipeg led best-of-seven series 2-1)

30 years ago
1988

On television tonight
The Wonder Years, on ABC
Tonight's episode: Dance With Me

This was the last episode of the season, and the first I ever saw.

Died on this date
Kwon Ki-ok, 87. Korean aviator. Ms. Kwon was the first female aviator in Korea and the first female pilot in China. After being imprisoned for taking part in the March 1, 1919 protest against Japanese control of Korea, she went into exile in China and rose to the level of Lieutenant Colonel in the Republic of China Air Force. After the end of World War II, Ms. Kwon returned to Korea, where she helped to found the Republic of Korea Air Force and served in South Korea's Ministry of National Defense.

War
Iran admitted that 15 of its sailors had been killed in a U.S. attack on its Sassan oil platform the day before. Iran jets responded by unsuccessfully attacking one of the U.S. ships, the Wainwright. Iranian boats also attacked several commercial vessels and an offshore oil field owned by United Arab Emirates. American A-6 attack planes struck back, sinking one boat and damaging two others. An Iranian frigate attacked two U.S. warships, but in turn was struck and presumed sunk; a second attacking frigate was struck and damaged. U.S. Congressional leaders backed the American military initiative.

Politics and government
Michael Dukakis won the New York Democratic Party primary for the 1988 nomination for President of the United States with 51% of the vote to 37% for Jesse Jackson and 10% for Al Gore. Rev. Jackson took 90% of the black vote, and a narrow margin in New York City, but took only a small fraction of the Jewish vote.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Clarence S. Campbell Conference
Division Finals
St. Louis 4 @ Detroit 5 (Detroit led best-of-seven series 1-0)
Edmonton 3 @ Calgary 1 (Edmonton led best-of-seven series 1-0)

25 years ago
1993

Hit parade
#1 single in Germany (Media Control): All that She Wants--Ace of Base (7th week at #1)

Died on this date
George S. Mickelson, 52. U.S. politician. Mr. Mickelson, a Republican, was Governor of South Dakota from 1987 until his death. Mr. Mickelson and all seven other people aboard a state-owned Mitsubishi MU-2 turboprop plane were killed when it crashed into a farm silo about nine miles south of Dubuque, Iowa while flying back to South Dakota after a lobbying trip to Ohio.

Joseph Wallace, 2. U.S. murder victim. Joseph and his younger brother Joshua were taken from a foster family on the orders of two circuit court judges and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and returned to their mother, Amanda Wallace, in Chicago despite her history of mental problems. She then hanged Joseph with an electrical cord.

Abominations
A 51-day standoff between U.S. federal authorities and residents of the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas ended with the deaths of all people in the compound when federal agents began battering the buildings and firing tear gas inside, and fire swept through the buildings. As many as 81 people may have been killed.

War
Croat nationalists and the Bosnian army began a full-scale war against each other, marked by terrorist tactics, in a dispute over the boundary proposed in the Vance-Owen peace plan.

Politics and government
In a national referendum, voters in Italy approved changing the current system of proportional representation in the Senate for one using majority voting. The country had been hit by economic recession and a growing scandal involving the Mafia and many government leaders.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Clarence S. Campbell Conference
Division Semi-Finals
Toronto 3 @ Detroit 6 (Detroit led best-of-seven series 1-0)
Winnipeg 2 @ Vancouver 4 (Vancouver led best-of-seven series 1-0)

20 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Octavio Paz Lozano, 84. Mexican writer. Mr. Paz wrote more than 40 volumes of poems and essays; his book-length essay The Labyrinth of Solitude (1950) is considered by many to be the seminal book on the Mexican mindset. Mr. Paz was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1990 "for impassioned writing with wide horizons, characterized by sensuous intelligence and humanistic integrity."

World events
The People’s Republic of China released Wang Dan, a leader in the Tiananmen Square democracy movement, who entered exile in the United States. The move by China was viewed as an attempt to win favour with the administration of President Bill Clinton.

Basketball
NBA
Chicago 111 New York 109

Michael Jordan scored 44 points to lead the Bulls over the Knickerbockers in the final game of the regular season, securing his record 10th National Basketball Association scoring title with a 28.7 points-per-game average.

10 years ago
2008

Died on this date
John Marzano, 45. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Marzano was a catcher with the Boston Red Sox (1987-1992); Texas Rangers (1995); and Seattle Mariners (1996-1998), batting .241 with 11 home runs and 72 runs batted in in 301 games. He played 11 years in the minor leagues from 1985-1999, batting .257 with 48 homers and 305 RBIs in 765 games; he was the American Association's All-Star catcher in 1995, when he batted .309 with 9 home runs and 56 runs batted in in 120 games with the Oklahoma City 89ers. Mr. Marzano was a member of the American team that won the silver medal at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Mr. Marzano was a sportscaster after his playing days, until his death from a fall down the stairs at his home in Philadelphia.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Eastern Conference
Quarter-Finals
Montreal 4 @ Boston 5 (Best-of-seven series tied 3-3)
Philadelphia 2 @ Washington 3 (Philadelphia led best-of-seven series 3-2)

Western Conference
Quarter-Finals
Minnesota 1 @ Colorado 2 (Colorado won best-of-seven series 4-2)

Basketball
NBA
Playoffs
Eastern Conference
First Round
Washington 86 @ Cleveland 93 (Cleveland led best-of-seven series 1-0)

Western Conference
First Round
Dallas 92 @ New Orleans 104 (New Orleans led best-of-seven series 1-0)
Phoenix 115 @ San Antonio 117 (San Antonio led best-of-seven series 1-0)