August 4, 2018

440 years ago
1578

War
Moroccan forces defeat Portuguese forces in the Battle of Al Kasr al Kebir in northern Morocco. King Sebastian of Portugal, 24, was killed in the battle, leaving his elderly uncle, Cardinal Henry, as his heir, and initiating a succession crisis in Portugal.

325 years ago
1693

Technology
French monk Dom Perignon reportedly invented champagne; it's not clear whether he actually invented champagne, but he has been credited as an innovator who developed the techniques used to perfect sparkling wine.

90 years ago
1928

At the movies
The Bush Cinderella, written and directed by Rudall Hayward, and starring Dale Austen, opened in theatres in New Zealand.



Britannica
20,000 people in Denby, Dale, England partook of a 3½-ton pie that was 16 feet long and 5 feet wide, containing a ton of potatoes and 4 bullocks. The crust was made of 1,120 pounds of flour, and the dish was steel.

Disasters
Hydrochloric (muriatic) acid, used to clean the bar, was mistaken for "applejack" brandy, and killed three men and injured another in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

80 years ago
1938

Died on this date
Pearl White, 49. U.S. actress. Miss White appeared in plays and silent films, and was best known as the star of the 20-chapter movie serial The Perils of Pauline (1914). She died of liver disease, perhaps the result of years of heavy drinking.

75 years ago
1943

Politics and government
George Drew led the Progressive Conservative Party to victory in the Ontario Provincial election, winning 38 of 87 seats in the Provincial Parliament to form a minority government. The PCs' total was an increase of 15 from the most recent election in 1937. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, led by Ted Jolliffe, captured 34 seats, after winning none in 1937. The Liberal Party, led by Premier Harry Nixon, dropped from 63 seats to 15. Mr. Nixon had replaced Mitchell Hepburn as Liberal leader and Premier earlier in 1943. CCF candidates Agnes MacPhail (York East) and Rae Luckock (Bracondale) became the first women elected to the Provincial Parliament. The election marked the beginning of 42 straight years of Progressive Conservative government in Ontario.

Disasters
The Indian government announced that more than 2,000 people had died in recent floods which had inundated Vijainagar and six other villages in Rajputana.

70 years ago
1948

War
Greek government troops reported clearing Communist guerrillas from the Smolika area in northeastern Greece, restricting main guerrilla forces to a 30-mile front on the Albanian border.

Politics and government
The South Korean National Assembly approved President Syngman Rhee's appointment of General Lee Bum Suk as Prime Minister and Defense Minister; other cabinet appointments were also announced.

U.S. Senate Republican Party leaders dropped anti-poll tax legislation from the current session's order of business, bowing to a filibuster by Southern Senators.

The U.S. Navy and Commerce Departments refused to supply files on former Commerce Dept. official William Remington to the Senate Expenditures subcommittee, four days after Mr. Remington had testified before the subcommittee, denying allegations of confessed Communist spy Elizabeth Bentley that he had furnished her with classified information.

Health
The U.S. Public Health Service reported new polio outbreaks in North Carolina, Texas, and California, and revealed that the incidence of the disease was increasing in other states as well.

Economics and finance
The price of hogs on Chicago's livestock market rose to a record $31.50 per hundredweight.

Labour
The Metropolitan Opera in New York cancelled its 1948-49 season after three of the 12 unions representing the organization's employees refused to accept contracts on the previous season's terms.

60 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Poor Little Fool--Ricky Nelson (Best Seller--1st week at #1; Hot 100--1st week at #1)

Died on this date
Robert Moore, 6. Canadian crime victim. Robert was apparently bludgeoned to death with a hammer by his father Richard, 42, an associate professor of sociology at the University of Alberta. Professor Moore was taken to the provincial hospital at Oliver following his arrest.

War
Greek Cypriot guerrilla commander George Grivas declared a truce with Turkish Cypriots and British security forces.

Politics and government
A U.S. Court of Appeals in New York unanimously reversed the 1956 conviction of six Communist leaders on grounds that the government had failed to prove that the accused had urged people to "do something" rather than merely to "believe in something."

Golf
Ken Venturi won the Chicago Open.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Hamilton (0-2) 7 @ Edmonton (1-0) 9

Joe Mobra's 32-yard field goal with 44 seconds remaining in the game gave the Eskimos their win over the defending Grey Cup champion Tiger-Cats at Clarke Stadium. The Eskimos rushed for 320 yards, including 176 by Johnny Bright and 124 by Normie Kwong, but their only touchdown came on a pass from Jackie Parker to Joe-Bob Smith. Bernie Faloney passed to Ron Howell for the Hamilton TD.

50 years ago
1968

War
Israel conducted a three-hour air raid on Arab guerrilla bases 10 miles inside Jordan, during which both countries exchanged tank and artillery fire across the Jordan River.

World events
Alphonse Massamba-Debat was recalled as President of Republic of Congo--Brazzaville, the day after being deposed by a left-wing military coup reportedly led by paratroop commander Captain Marien Ngouabi.

Golf
Jack Nicklaus won the Western Open in Chicago with a total score of 273. First prize money was $26,000.

Football
CFL
Winnipeg (0-2) 8 @ Saskatchewan (2-0) 27

40 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (4th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (16th week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): En chantant--Michel Sardou (3rd week at #1)

Journalism
New York Times reporter M.A. Farber was jailed for contempt of court for refusing to turn over his files on his investigation of the suspicious deaths of 13 patients at a New Jersey hospital in 1965 and 1966. The files were subpoenaed by the defense in the trial of Dr. Mario Jascalevich, who was charged with murder as an outgrowth of Mr. Farber's interest in the case. Also that day, The New York Times began to pay a fine of $5,000 per day for refusing to turn over its files on the case, as well as an additional $1,000-per-day fine levelled against Mr. Farber.

Labour
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that unemployment had risen to 6.2% for July, up from 5.7% in June.

Business
Molson Brewery acquired the Montréal Canadiens of the National Hockey League for $20 million.

Disasters
41 disabled people died when their bus plunged into Lac d'Argent in the Eastern Townships of Quebec in the worst single-vehicle and bus accident in Canadian history.

Three days of floods and 30 inches of rain caused by tropical storm Amelia had ravaged central Texas, resulting in at least 26 deaths.

30 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Gimme Hope Jo'anna--Eddy Grant (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Yé ké yé ké--Mory Kanté (3rd week at #1)

Scandal
U.S. Congressman Mario Biaggi (Democrat--New York) was convicted in Federal District Court in New York City of racketeering, conspiracy and extortion in connection with a scandal involving Wedtech Corporation in the Bronx. Mr. Biaggi had obtained Wedtech stock worth about $1.8 million in return for lobbying on the company's behalf. Five other defendants, including Wedtech's founder, John Mariotta, were convicted of various felony counts. Former Bronx Borough president Stanley Simon was also among those convicted. Mr. Biaggi announced his resignation from the House of Representatives the next day, effective immediately.

Football
CFL
Saskatchewan (3-1) 27 @ Edmonton (3-1) 43

Tracy Ham threw 3 touchdown passes to Jim Sandusky to help the Eskimos defeat the Roughriders before 35,383 fans at Commonwealth Stadium. Chris Skinner rushed 55 yards and Blake Marshall rushed 18 yards for the other Edmonton TDs.

25 years ago
1993

Crime
A judge in Los Angeles sentenced Stacey Koon and Laurence Powell, two of the police officers involved in the 1992 beating of Rodney King to 2 1/2 years in prison, explaining the lenient penalty by saying that he considered Mr. King to have provoked the violence.

Politics and government
The Italian parliament voted to abolish the country's electoral system of proportional representation after 45 years and replace it with a direct ballot expected to make politicians more accountable. 75% of deputies in the 945-seat lower house would now be directly elected. Minor parties would still have seats under the new system, which would be in place in time for a general election scheduled for early 1994.

Diplomacy
Marshall Harris, the top U.S. expert on Bosnia, resigned, accusing the administration of President Bill Clinton of putting too much pressure on the governments of Bosnia and Herzegovina to agree to partition.

20 years ago
1998

Died on this date
Yuri Artyukhin, 68. U.S.S.R. cosmonaut. Colonel Artyukhin was a Soviet Air Force pilot and engineer who joined the space program in 1963. He would have been among the crew of the Voskhod 3 mission if it hadn't been cancelled, and finally did go into space as the Flight Engineer of the Soyuz 14 mission to the Salyut 3 space station in 1974. In later years, Col. Artyukhin helped to develop the space station Buran. He died of cancer.

Politics and government
The Governments of British Columbia, Canada and the Nisga’a Indians settled a land claim. Nearly 2,000 square kilometres of land in the Nass River valley was officially recognized as Nisga’a, and a 300,000-cubic decameter water reserve was also created. The agreement also created the Bear Glacier Provincial Park. It was the first formal treaty signed by a First Nation in British Columbia since the Douglas Treaties in 1854, and was given Royal Assent on April 13, 2000.

The government of Quebec signed an agreement on the management of natural resources among the Algonquins of Lac-Simon, Kitcisakik and Barrière Lake. As part of a tour of the Algonquin territories, Minister Guy Chevrette signed three agreements promoting the development and development of forest resources (Lac-Simon and Kitcisakik), as well as an agreement on the development of Lake Barriere community.