April 25, 2019

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Suzie Martin!

1,220 years ago
799

World events
After mistreatment and disfigurement by the citizens of Rome, Pope Leo III fled to the Frankish court of King Charlemagne at Paderborn for protection.

420 years ago
1599

Born on this date
Oliver Cromwell. Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1653-1658. Mr. Cromwell was the Member of Parliament for Huntington (1628-1629) and Cambridge (1640-1649), and entered the English Civil War on the side of the "Roundheads," or Parliamentarians. He was a devout independent Puritan, and believed that God was guiding his military victories. Mr. Cromwell signed King Charles I's death warrant in 1949 and then led the "Rump Parliament" from 1649-1653 before dismissing it and accepting the invitation of fellow leaders to serve as Lord Protector. Mr. Cromwell was tolerant of Protestant sects, but not of Roman Catholics, and he remains the subject of divided opinion. He died of a possible kidney or urinary infection on September 3, 1568 at the age of 59, and was succeeded as Lord Protector by his son Richard.

375 years ago
1644

Died on this date
Chongzhen, 33. Emperor of China, 1627-1644. Chongzhen, born Zhu Youjian, was the fifth son of Emperor Taichang, and succeeded his elder brother Tiangqi on the throne. Emperor Chongzhen battled peasant rebellions, but was unable to defend the northern frontier against Manchu forces, and committed suicide when they reached Beijing, ending the Ming dynasty. The Manchu then formed the succeeding Qing dynasty.

275 years ago
1744

Died on this date
Anders Celsius, 42. Swedish astronomer, physicist, and mathematician. Professor Celsius taught astronomy at Uppsala University from 1730-1744 and visited observatories in various European locations, but was best known for devising the temperature scale in 1742 that eventually bore his name.

190 years ago
1829

Australiana
Charles Fremantle arrived in HMS Challenger off the coast of modern-day Western Australia's Garden Island, a week before declaring the Swan River Colony for the United Kingdom.

170 years ago
1849

Protest
Governor General of Canada Lord Elgin signed the Rebellion Losses Bill, providing payment for people who had lost property in the rebellions of 1837-1838, including rebels. Angry Tory mobs were furious the Queen's representative would sign a bill rewarding treason, and began rioting. They threw garbage and dead rats at members of the Assembly, and pelted an official reading the Riot Act with onions. That night, the mobs set fire to the Legislature in the St. Anne's Market in Montreal while it was in session, destroying parliamentary and government records, and Lord Elgin barely escaped. As a result of the lack of public security in Montreal, the government decided to move to Toronto; so began the period of wandering government, when Kingston and Quebec City also shared the duties of being the capital of the Canadas.

160 years ago
1859

Transportation
Ground was broken for the Suez Canal.

140 years ago
1879

Politics and government
Sir William Sullivan was sworn in as Premier of Prince Edward Island, succeeding Sir Louis Davies.

100 years ago
1919

Died on this date
Augustus D. Juilliard, 83. U.S. businessman and philanthropist. Mr. Juilliard was born at sea while his parents were emigrating from France to the United States. He became a wealthy textile merchant and investor, and was best known for bequeathing much of his estate to the advancement of music, with the Juilliard School being established in New York City in 1924 as a graduate music conservatory. Mr. Juilliard died six days after his 83rd birthday.

75 years ago
1944

Died on this date
Tony Mullane, 85. Irish-born U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Mullane, one of the few major league players who could pitch with either hand, played for the Detroit Wolverines (1881); Louisville Eclipse (1882); St. Louis Browns (1883); Toledo Blue Stockings (1884); Cincinnati Red Stockings/Reds (1886-1893); Baltimore Orioles (1893-1894); and Cleveland Spiders (1894), compiling a record of 284-220, with an earned run average of 3.05. He pitched a no-hitter in 1882, and remains the Cincinnati Reds' career leader with 264 complete games. Bobby Matthews (297) and Tommy John (288) are the only pitchers with more career major league wins than Mr. Mullane who aren't in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

William Stephens, 84. U.S. politician. Mr. Stephens represented California's 7th District in the United States House of Representatives from 1911-1913 and California's 10th District from 1913-1916. He was a Republican when he was first elected, but joined the Progressive Party, led by former President Theodore Roosevelt, in 1912. Mr. Stephens rejoined the Republican Party in 1916 and served as Governor of California from 1917-1923.

George Herriman, 63. U.S. cartoonist. Mr. Herriman wrote and drew two dozen newspaper comic strips, but was best known for Krazy Kat, which ran from 1913 until his death from non-alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver.

Humphrey Cobb, 44. U.S. author and screenwriter. Mr. Cobb, born in Italy to American parents, served with the Canadian Army in World War I before returning to the United States and writing propaganda for the U.S. Office of War Information and the Young & Rubicam advertising agency. He was best known for the novel Paths of Glory (1935) and the screenplay for San Quentin (1937).

War
Allied forces captured Sentani and Cyclops airfields on Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea. Allied forces continued to push back Japanese troops within the Imphal and Kohima areas in India.

Defense
U.S. Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson told the House of Representatives Postwar Committee on Military Policy that he favoured "a single authority in planning, supervision, and control" of the armed forces.

Politics and government
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt won the Massachusetts and Pennsylvania primaries in the contest to win the Democratic Party nomination for President of the United States in the November 1944 election.

Labour
Montgomery Ward telegraphed U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt that the company would not recognize the Congress of Industrial Organizations union until elections were held.

Academia
The United Negro College Fund was incorporated.

70 years ago
1949

On the radio
The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring John Stanley and George Spelvin (Wendell Holmes), on MBS
Tonight's episode: The Golden Pince-Nez

World events
The Panamanian government imposed a state of siege, charging opposition politicians with plotting a coup.

Politics and government
The World Congress of Fighters for Peace ended in Paris after issuing a manifesto attacking U.S. foreign policy and the North Atlantic security pact.

Crime
The espionage trial of U.S. Justice Department employee Judith Coplon opened in Washington.

Labour
A New York Congress of Industrial Organizations Council was formed to replace the Greater New York CIO Council, disbanded by the national CIO leadership because of its Communist leanings. Transport Workers Union President Michael Quill headed the new organization.

60 years ago
1959

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Petite Fleur (Little Flower)--Chris Barber's Jazz Band

#1 single in Italy: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes--The Platters (5th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Die Gitarre und das Meer--Freddy Quinn

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): It Doesn't Matter Anymore--Buddy Holly (2nd week at #1)

U.S. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Come Softly to Me--The Fleetwoods (3rd week at #1)
2 (Now and Then There’s) A Fool Such as I--Elvis Presley
3 Venus--Frankie Avalon
4 Pink Shoe Laces--Dodie Stevens
5 Guitar Boogie Shuffle--The Virtues
6 I Need Your Love Tonight--Elvis Presley
7 Sorry (I Ran All the Way Home)--The Impalas
8 It's Late--Ricky Nelson
9 Since I Don't Have You--The Skyliners
10 The Happy Organ--Dave "Baby" Cortez

Singles entering the chart were Kookie, Kookie (Lend Me Your Comb) by Edward Byrnes & Connie Stevens (#50); Young Ideas by Chico Holiday (#71); Castin' My Spell by the Johnny Otis Show (#85); I Waited Too Long by LaVern Baker (#86); Your Cheatin' Heart by Billy Vaughn and his Orchestra (#89); A String of Trumpets by the Trumpeteers (#90); The Fountain of Youth by the Four Lads (#92); I've Come of Age by Billy Storm (#93); Gretchen by the Diamonds (#95); If You Only Knew (The Love I Have for You) by the Teddy Bears (#96); Move Over Rover by the Mark IV (#98); and The Battle of New Orleans by Johnny Horton (#99).

Diplomacy
Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro, along with 75 Cuban government officials and members of the country’s press corps, all clad in olive green military fatigues, arrived in Montreal for his first visit to Canada, after a two-day visit to Boston. Mr. Castro then held a long press conference with prominent journalists, including René Lévesque, where he tried to explain the philosophy of his Revolutionary movement, which he called “humanism.”

U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman J. William Fulbright (Democrat--Arkansas) declined Secretary of State Christian Herter's invitation for ranking committee members to accompany him to East-West talks in Geneva.

Politics and government
Moroccan Prime Minister Abdullah Ibrahim was expelled from membership in the ruling Istiqlal Party after being blamed by party president Allal el-Fassity for the growth of banditry.

Crime
Masked white men abducted Negro truck driver Mack Parker from the unguarded Pearl River County Jail in Poplarville, Mississippi, where Mr. Parker was awaiting trial on charges of raping a white woman.

Transportation
The St. Lawrence section of the St. Lawrence Seaway opened for traffic as the first ship, the icebreaker D'Iberville, entered the locks south of Montréal; the first westbound vessel was the Simcoe, a 36-year-old, coal-burning, Canadian canaller; 30 hours later, Simcoe reaches Kingston, Ontario to take on a load of grain; the 650 km. waterway between Montréal and Lake Erie links the Great Lakes together as far as Duluth, Minnesota on Lake Superior - a distance of 3776 kilometres from the Atlantic Ocean.

50 years ago
1969

Hit parade
Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 Hair--The Cowsills
2 Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)--The 5th Dimension
3 What Can the Matter Be--The Poppy Family
4 Sweet Cherry Wine--Tommy James and the Shondells
5 Gitarzan--Ray Stevens
6 Rock Me--Steppenwolf
7 Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show--Neil Diamond
8 The Boxer--Simon & Garfunkel
9 First of May--The Bee Gees
10 Morning Girl--Neon Philharmonic

Singles entering the chart were Get Back/Don't Let Me Down by the Beatles with Billy Preston (#20); Black Pearl by Sonny Charles & the Checkmates, Ltd. (#25); In the Bad, Bad Old Days (Before You Loved Me) by the Foundations (#26); Stand! by Sly & the Family Stone (#28); and Goodbye by Mary Hopkin (#29).

Edmonton's top 10 (CJCA)
1 Hair--The Cowsills
2 Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)--The 5th Dimension
3 Galveston--Glen Campbell
4 Long Green--The Fireballs
5 Things I'd Like to Say--The New Colony Six
6 The Letter--The Arbors
7 Hot Smoke & Sasafrass--The Bubble Puppy
8 Time of the Season--The Zombies
9 Rock Me--Steppenwolf
10 Gimme Gimme Good Lovin'--Crazy Elephant

Basketball
NBA
Finals
Boston 112 @ Los Angeles 118 (Los Angeles led best-of-seven series 2-0)

Jerry West scored 41 points and Elgin Baylor added 31, including his team's last 12 points, as the Lakers beat the Celtics at the Forum in Inglewood, California.

40 years ago
1979

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Bright Eyes--Art Garfunkel (3rd week at #1)

Law
The Manitoba Court of Appeal struck down an 1890 law prohibiting the use of French in the provincial legislature, courts and schools.

Hockey
WHA
Avco World Trophy
Semi-Finals
Winnipeg 9 @ Quebec 2 (Winnipeg led best-of-seven series 2-0)

30 years ago
1989

Politics and government
U.S.S.R. President Mikhail Gorbachev obtained the resignations of 110 officials, including 74 full members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party. Most of those who "retired" were holdovers from the time when Leonid Brezhnev had run the party and the country (1964-1982). Among those who resigned was former President and Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko.

Japanese Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita, who had received large donations from Recruit Company, and was accused of granting favours in return, announced that he would resign after the 1989 budget was approved by the Diet.

Scandal
Canadian Finance Minister Michael Wilson's budget was leaked by Global television reporter Doug Small. When opposition parties reject Mr. Wilson's request for an emergency evening sitting of the House of Commons, he called a 10 P.M. news conference to announce budget highlights.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Division Finals
Boston 2 @ Montreal 3 (Montreal won best-of-seven series 4-1)

25 years ago
1994

Hit parade
#1 single in Germany (Media Control): Streets of Philadelphia--Bruce Springsteen (3rd week at #1)

Canada's top 10 (RPM)
1 Love Sneakin' Up on You--Bonnie Raitt
2 Streets of Philadelphia--Bruce Springsteen
3 Mr. Jones--Counting Crows
4 The Sign--Ace of Base
5 Return to Innocence--Enigma
6 Without You--Mariah Carey
7 Swimming in Your Ocean--Crash Test Dummies
8 Hasn't Hit Me Yet--Blue Rodeo
9 Loser--Beck
10 I'll Remember--Madonna

Singles entering the chart were Round Here by Counting Crows (#53); Soul's Road by Lawrence Gowan (#54); Change by Blind Melon (#67); Breakaway by ZZ Top (#80); Sanctuary by Annette Ducharme (#89); and We Wait and Wonder by Phil Collins (#91).

Politics and government
The Japanese Diet elected Tsutomu Hata of the Japanese Renewal Party (Shinseito) to succeed Morihiro Hosokawa as Prime Minister. Mr. Hosokawa had announced his resignation on April 8, pending the choice of a successor, amid allegations that he had profited illegally from a loan from a trucking company.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Montreal 2 @ Boston 1 (OT) (Montreal led best-of-seven series 3-2)

20 years ago
1999

Defense
North Atlantic Treaty Organization leaders met with leaders of seven non-NATO nations surrounding Yugoslavia and pledged to protect them from Yugoslav aggression--completely oblivious to the fact that it was the NATO nations who were the aggressors.

Crime
U.S. Vice President Al Gore was among 70,000 people who attended a memorial service for victims of the Columbine High School shooting five days earlier. Some of those in attendance may actually have known some of the deceased.

10 years ago
2009

Died on this date
Bea Arthur, 86. U.S. actress and singer. Mrs. Arthur, born Bernice Frankel, won a Tony Award in 1966 for playing Vera Charles in Mame, but was best known for starring in the television comedy series Maude (1972-1978) and The Golden Girls (1985-1992), winning Emmy Awards (1977, 1988) for her performances in both series. She died 18 days before her 87th birthday.

Disappeared on this date
Brittanee Drexel, 17. U.S. girl. Miss Drexel, a resident of Chili, New York, went with friends on a spring break trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, without her mother's permission. She was seen on security camera footage entering and leaving a hotel, and texted her boyfriend at home to say she was on her way to visit someone else at another hotel. Miss Drexel hasn't been seen since. Prison inmae Taquan Brown told police in 2016 that Miss Drexel had been kidnapped, sexually abused, and murdered by Timothy Da'Shaun Taylor. Mr. Taylor denies all knowledge of the crime. The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced in 2016 their belief that Miss Drexel was murdered shortly after her disappearance.