July 31, 2019

1,010 years ago
1009

Religion
Sergius IV took office as Roman Catholic Poe, shortly after the death of John XVIII.

180 years ago
1839

Born on this date
Ignacio Andrade. 25th President of Venezuela, 1898-1899. Mr. Andrade was a member of the Great Liberal Party of Venezuela. He died on February 17, 1925 at the age of 85.

150 years ago
1869

Baseball
The Cincinnati Red Stockings defeated the Rockford Forest Citys 53-32 before 8,000 spectators at Ogden Park in Chicago for their third straight win over the Forest Citys.

140 years ago
1879

Aviation
In Montreal, Richard Cowan made the first flight in Canada in a hydrogen balloon, with Charles Grimely and Charles Page.

120 years ago
1899

Baseball
Christy Mathewson made his professional debut, pitching for Taunton against Manchester in the New England League. Mr. Mathewson lost 6-5.

110 years ago
1909

Baseball
Sleepy Bill Burns pitched a 2-hitter to win the pitchers' duel over Walter Johnson, who allowed 3 hits, as the Chicago White Sox edged the Washington Nationals 1-0 in the first game of a doubleheader at American League Park in Washington. Frank Smith pitched a 5-hitter to improve his 1909 record to 18-11 as the White Sox won the second game 4-0 to complete the sweep.

Addie Joss pitched a 4-hitter to win the pitchers' duel over Cy Morgan, who pitched a 6-hitter, as the Cleveland Naps defeated the Philadelphia Athletics 3-1 in the first game of a doubleheader at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. The Athletics scored a run with 1 out in the bottom of the 9th inning to win the second game 4-3, with Harry Krause allowing 3 hits and 1 run in 8 innings as he relieved Jack Coombs and won the pitching matchup over Cy Young.

100 years ago
1919

Born on this date
Primo Levi. Italian chemist and author. Mr. Levi was interned in the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz, Poland from 1944-1945, and his experiences led him to make a career of writing about the Holocaust in fiction and non-fiction works such as If This is a Man (1947) and The Periodic Table (1975). Mr. Levi died in a fall from his third-floor apartment in Turin on April 11, 1987 at the age of 67; his death was ruled a suicide, as he had been suffering from depression, but some thought his death may have been accidental, as he had recently been complaining of dizziness.

Curt Gowdy. U.S. sportscaster. Mr. Gowdy was a radio broadcaster of New York Yankees (1949-1950) and Boston Red Sox (1951-1965) games before moving to the National Broadcasting Company, where he broadcast baseball, football, and numerous other sports on television and radio through the 1970s. He was often lent to ABC to cover the Olympic games, and was with CBS in the early 1980s. Mr. Gowdy died on February 20, 2006 at the age of 86.

Politics and government
The German national assembly adopted the Weimar Constitution, which went into force on August 14.

Baseball
American League President Ban Johnson suspended pitcher Carl Mays indefinitely, and ordered umpires not to let Mr. Mays pitch for the New York Yankees.

19-year-old Waite Hoyt made his major league debut on the mound for the Boston Red Sox, allowing 10 hits and 1 earned run in defeating the Detroit Tigers 2-1 in 12 innings at Fenway Park in Boston. Babe Ruth, playing left field and first base, led the Boston attack, batting 4 for 6 with 2 doubles and a run batted in. Doc Ayers allowed 12 hits and 1 earned run in 11 2/3 innings, dropping to 0-7 for the year.

Bob Fisher and Dolf Luque were the respective winning pitchers as the Cincinnati Reds swept a doubleheader from the Boston Braves 5-0 and 2-0 at Redland Field in Cincinnati.

Gene Paulette hit a single, double, and triple, scoring a run and driving in 4, while Possum Whitted batted 4 for 5 with 3 runs, and Lena Blackburne was 3 for 3 with 2 bases on balls, a run, and 2 RBIs to help the Philadelphia Phillies beat the St. Louis Cardinals 11-4 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Mike Pasquella struck out as a pinch hitter for the Cardinals in the 4th inning of his second and last major league game, and his only game as a Cardinal.

90 years ago
1929

Baseball
The New York Yankees routed the Chicago White Sox 16-2 at Yankee Stadium. Lou Gehrig led the Yankee attack as he hit a home run and a double, and reached base 5 times, while Ed Wells pitched an 8-hit complete game to improve his 1929 record to 9-2.

The Philadelphia Athletics scored 9 runs in the 4th inning to beat the Detroit Tigers 10-1 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Rube Walberg pitched a 4-hitter to improve his record for the season to 15-5, and had a single and 3 runs batted in of his own.

Lance Richbourg hit 3 triples and scored 4 runs to lead the Boston Braves to a 7-1 win over the Chicago Cubs in the first game of a doubleheader at Wrigley Field in Chicago, with Socks Seibold pitching a 7-hit complete game victory. The Cubs won the second game 6-3 as Hack Wilson drove in 4 runs with his 29th and 30th home runs of the season, and Pat Malone pitched an 11-hit complete game victory to improve to 15-7 for 1929.

75 years ago
1944

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Whispering Grass (Don't Tell the Trees)--The Ink Spots (1st month at #1)

On the radio
The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, on MBS
Tonight's episode: The Giant Rat of Sumatra

Died on this date
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, 44. French aviator and author. Mr. Saint-Exupéry, one of France's best-known pilots in the 1920s and '30s, wrote a number of books, the best-known of which was the novella Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) (1943). While flying with the Free French Air Force he disappeared off the French coast near Marseilles while on a reconnaissance mission, and was presumed dead.

War
U.S. units in France swept down the west coast of the Cotentin Peninsula and captured the town of Avranches. Soviet troops in Poland began outflanking Warsaw on the northeast, approaching within 10 miles of the city. Romanian peace terms submitted to Allied representatives were rejected because of Soviet objections. U.S. troops in New Guinea crossed the lower portion of the Driniumor River below Aitape and then began moving eastward.

Diplomacy
German Ambassador Franz von Papen warned Turkish Premier Sukru Saracoglu that a break in relations with the Axis would have "grave consequences" for Turkey.

Politics and government
Ecuadorian President Jose Velasco Ibarra named Alfredo Vera, a Communist, as minister of education.

70 years ago
1949

Religion
The West German Roman Catholic hierarchy issued a pastoral letter instruting church members to vote for Christian Democratic candidates in upcoming parliamentary elections.

Economics and finance
The U.S.S.R. announced the conclusion of a one-year trade agreement with Chinese Communist authorities in Manchuria.

Golf
Sam Snead finished with a 20-under-par total score of 268 to win the Western Open at Keller Golf Course in St. Paul, Minnesota, 4 strokes ahead of Cary Middlecoff.

Baseball
Larry Jansen and Adrian Zabala were the respecitve winning pitchers as the New York Giants swept a doubleheader from the Cincinnati Reds 10-0 and 9-0 before 19,513 fans at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Sid Gordon hit 2 home runs in the 2nd inning of game 2, when all the scoring took place.

The Boston Braves, trailing 1-0 after 6 innings, erupted for 6 runs in the 7th, 1 in the 8th, and 2 in the 9th to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 9-1 in the first game of a doubleheader before 27,105 fans at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. In the second game, pinch hitter Tom Saffell singled home Johnny Hopp and Ralph Kiner to climax a 3-run rally in the bottom of the 9th to give the Pirates a 6-5 win. The Braves had scored 2 runs in the top of the 9th to break a 3-3 tie.

Granny Hamner led off the 10th inning with a double and Dick Sisler followed with a run-scoring single to break a 4-4 tie as the Philadelphia Phillies edged the Chicago Cubs 5-4 before 18,926 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

Don Newcombe pitched an 8-hitter and singled in a run to help the Brooklyn Dodgers defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 4-2 before 32,965 fans at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis.

Ted Gray and Fred Hutchinson each pitched shutouts as the Detroit Tigers swept a doubleheader from the Philadelphia Athletics 3-0 and 6-0 before 20,357 fans at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Alex Kellner and Lou Brissie were the respective losing pitchers.

Johnny Lindell led off the bottom of the 9th inning to tie the score and Tommy Henrich singled home Jack Phillips with the bases loaded later in the inning to give the New York Yankees a 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox in the first game of a doubleheader before 40,719 fans at Yankee Stadium. Chicago third baseman Bobby Rhawn batted 1 for 4 with a double, and made 2 putouts and 3 assists, participating in a double play, in the 90th and last game of his 3-year major league career. In the second game, Dave Philley singled with 2 out and nobody on base in the top of the 10th, and Luke Appling followed with a home run to break a 0-0 tie as the White Sox won the second game 2-1. Mr. Henrich homered to lead off the bottom of the 10th and Joe DiMaggio followed with a single, but was thrown out at second base trying to stretch it into a double. Billy Johnson then singled, but Mr. Lindell and Snuffy Stirnweiss made consecutive outs to third base to end the game. Bob Kuzava pitched a 6-hitter to win the pitchers' duel over Duane Pillette.

Mickey McDermott pitched an 8-hitter to win the pitchers' duel over Gene Bearden as the Boston Red Sox shut out the Cleveland Indians 3-0 before 28,802 fans at Fenway Park in Boston. Tommy O'Brien singled home Ted Williams and Vern Stephens with 2 out in the bottom of the 4th inning to break a 0-0 tie. Mr. Stephens batted 3 for 3 with a base on balls.

Sherry Robertson batted 3 for 4 with 2 solo home runs and Eddie Robinson added a solo homer for the Washington Nationals as they beat the St. Louis Browns 7-3 before 4,057 fans at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Sid Hudson pitched a 5-hit complete game victory.

60 years ago
1959

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Living Doll--Cliff Richard and the Drifters

Defense
An experts' committee set up to examine technical problems standing in the way of an East-West accord on Germany adjourned after failing to agree on a definition of nuclear and missile weapons to be banned from Berlin.

Politics and government
Indian President Rajendra Prasad dismissed the Communist-led Kerala State government on grounds that it was unable to govern peaceably and in accordance with the Indian constitution.

Economics and finance
Estimates prepared for Printers' Ink revealed that the cost of advertising in the United States had dropped from $10,310,600,000 to $10,301,800,000 in 1958.

Labour
U.K. printing union members ended a seven-week strike after winning new contracts.

Baseball
Earl Wilson, the Boston Red Sox’ first Negro pitcher, made his first major league start. He gave up no hits but 9 bases on balls in 3 2/3 innings, and left with the Red Sox leading the Detroit Tigers 4-0 before 31,916 fans at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. Despite allowing 6 more walks, the Red Sox won 6-5, with Mike Fornieles the winning pitcher. Boston first baseman Pete Runnels batted 4 for 5 with a run batted in.

Pinch hitter Jack Harshman drew a bases-loades walk with 2 out in the bottom of the 8th to score George Strickland to tie the score, and Billy Martin followed with a single to score Jim Baxes as the Cleveland Indians scored 2 runs and edged the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 before 32,864 fans at Municipal Stadium in Pittsburgh.

Barry Latman pitched a 4-hitter and singled in a run to help the Chicago White Sox beat the Washington Senators 7-1 before 24,278 fans at Comiskey Park in Chicago. The White Sox scored 3 runs in each of the 2nd and 3rd innings.

Yogi Berra, Elston Howard, and Hector Lopez hit home runs for the New York Yankees as they beat the Kansas City Athletics 11-2 before 29,592 fans at Municipal Stadium in Kansas City. Bobby Shantz allowed 2 hits and no runs in 5 innings in relief of Don Larsen to get the win.

Pinch hitter John Powers hit a solo home run off Don Elston with 2 out in the bottom of the 9th inning to give the Cincinnati Reds a 5-4 win over the Chicago Cubs before 13,846 fans at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Mr. Powers' homer was his second of the season, and the sixth and last of his major league career. Jim Brosnan pitched 2 innings and got the win in relief of Don Newcombe.

With 2 out and nobody on base in the bottom of the 8th inning, Willie Mays walked, stole second base, and scored on a single by Willie McCovey--playing his second major league game--to break a 3-3 tie as the San Francisco Giants edged the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 before 22,371 fans at Seals Stadium in San Francisco. Jack Sanford pitched a 7-hitter to win the pitchers' duel over Harvey Haddix, who allowed 6 hits. The Giants' win left them in first place in the National League, 1/2 game ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Braves.

The Los Angeles Dodgers scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 1st inning to take a 4-0 lead, but barely held on to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4 before 21,900 fans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Don Drysdale pitched an 8-hit complete game victory to improve his 1959 record to 14-6.

Joe Adcock hit a 3-run home run to climax a 5-run 6th inning and Hank Aaron added a solo homer in the 8th as the Milwaukee Braves shut out the St. Louis Cardinals 6-0 before 29,287 fans at County Stadium in Milwaukee. Winning pitcher Bob Buhl pitched a 3-hitter.

50 years ago
1969

Space
The United States probe Mariner 6, launched February 24, flew by Mars, photographing the planet's surface and making measurements of its temperatures and atmospheric characteristics. Mariner 6 concentrated on the equatorial regions of Mars, while Mariner 7, which flew by Mars eight days later, concentrated on the polar regions.

Diplomacy
U.S. President Richard Nixon was in India, where he expressed praise and support for the South Vietnamese government, and called South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu one of the best political leaders in the world.

Religion
Pope Paul VI became the first pontiff to visit Africa when he flew to Uganda to participate I the closing session of the all-Africa bishops’ parley, and to press for a settlement in the Nigeria-Biafra conflict. After a procession that included five African heads of state, the pope addressed the bishops in Rubaga Cathedral, Kampala, and warned them against altering church teaching in the name of Africanization. He urged them to become "missionaries to yourselves."

Crime
As Ted Kennedy returned to his U.S. Senate duties, Edward Dinis, United States District Attorney for southern Massachusetts, requested an inquest into the death of Mary Jo Kopechne.

Football
CFL
Hamilton (1-0) 34 @ Toronto (0-1) 28

The Tiger-Cats rushed for 245 yards, led by Dave Fleming, who picked up 113 yards on just 6 carries. Tommy-Joe Coffey caught 3 passes for 61 yards and scored 2 touchdowns--one on a pass from Joe Zuger and the other when he raced downfield to recover a fumble in the end zone after he'd missed a field goal--and added 4 converts. Willie Bethea and Ed Buchanan also scored Hamilton touchdowns. Tiger-Cat quarterback Joe Zuger completed 9 of 15 passes for 150 yards and 2 touchdowns. Tom Wilkinson, who had won the Argonauts' starting quarterback job during the pre-season, completed 23 of 35 passes for 435 yards and 3 touchdowns in his first CFL start. Bobby Taylor led the Toronto receivers with 6 receptions for 113 yards. Mike Eben, whose end-zone fumble was recovered by Mr. Coffey, scored his first CFL touchdown on a pass from Mr. Wilkinson. Bill Symons, who rushed 13 times for 55 yards, added a 1-yard touchdown run for the Argonauts. Toronto kicker Dave Mann missed 3 field goals and 2 converts, which proved costly. In the last 2 minutes of the game, the teams combined for 3 touchdowns in 48 seconds. Tom Wilkinson threw 14 yards to Bobby Taylor, converted by Dave Mann, at 13:06 of the 4th quarter, to reduce the Hamilton lead to 28-22. Mr. Mann's short kickoff went right into the hands of Hamilton linebacker Henry Sorrell, who returned the kick 56 yards for a touchdown at 13:10 to make the score 34-22 (The Globe and Mail summary recorded the time of the earlier touchdown as 13:05, but even a 5-second difference sounded too unbelievable for their reporter). Mr. Wilkinson then brought the Argonauts back, and threw a 53-yard touchdown strike to Jim Thorpe (playing his first CFL game) at 13:54, making the final score 34-28.

40 years ago
1979

World events
Former Iranian Prime Minister Shahpur Bakhtiar emerged from silent exile in Paris to denounce the rule of the Ayatollah Khomeini, saying that his Islamic regime had brought "chaos and dictatorship" to Iran.

Scandal
The United States House of Representatives unanimously censured Rep. Charles Diggs, Jr. (Democrat--Michigan) for padding his office payroll and making personal use of public funds. The senior Negro member of Congress stood silently in the well of the chamber as the censure resolution was read. He was ordered to deliver a $40,000 promissory note to the Treasury to cover his misdeeds. It was the first time a member of the House had been censured since 1921 and was the most severe punishment short of expulsion.

Energy
The U.S. House of Representatives voted to give President Jimmy Carter strong authority to draft a standby plan for gasoline rationing, reversing a July 25 vote calling for a Congressional veto over any such program.

Defense
Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger appeared before the Senate hearings on the SALT-II arms limitation treaty with the U.S.S.R., and said that the Senators should approve the treaty only if President Carter made a binding commitment to increase military spending rapidly.

Business
Chrysler Corporation reported a record quarterly deficit of $207.1 million. Chrysler officials announced that they had asked the United States government for $1 billion in aid to see the company through its financial crisis.

Disasters
10 were killed and 78 others injured in a fire at a Holiday Inn in Cambridge, Ohio.

Football
CFL
Toronto (2-2) 18 @ Ottawa (2-1) 16
Calgary (2-1) 9 @ Edmonton (3-0) 44
Saskatchewan (0-4) 15 @ British Columbia (4-0) 24

30 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): The Look--Roxette (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): The Look--Roxette (5th week at #1)

Canada's top 10 (RPM)
1 Express Yourself--Madonna (2nd week at #1)
2 Batdance--Prince
3 If You Don't Know Me by Now--Simply Red
4 Toy Soldiers--Martika
5 So Alive--Love and Rockets
6 Good Thing--Fine Young Cannibals
7 Baby Don't Forget My Number--Milli Vanilli
8 Rock 'N' Roll Duty--Kim Mitchell
9 Rooms on Fire--Stevie Nicks
10 The End of the Innocence--Don Henley

Singles entering the chart were One by the Bee Gees (#76); I Like It by Dina (#85); Hangin' Tough by New Kids on the Block (#87); Once Bitten, Twice Shy by Great White (#89); Don't Look Back by Fine Young Cannibals (#91); Need a Little Taste of Love by the Doobie Brothers (#93); Shipwrecked at the Stable Door by Bruce Cockburn (#95); In My Eyes by Stevie B (#97); and That's the Way by Katrina and the Waves (#99). Don't Look Back and its B-side, As Hard as it Is, were from the movie Tin Men (1987).

Television
The Halifax-based cable station CBC Newsworld began broadcasting, being shown throughout Canada.

Baseball
The Minnesota Twins traded the previous year’s Cy Young Award winner, Frank Viola, to the New York Mets for five players: pitchers Rick Aguilera; David West; Tim Drummond; Kevin Tapani; and a player to be named later (pitcher Jack Savage). Mr. Viola was 8-12 with an earned run average of 3.79 in 24 games with the Twins in 1989, after going 24-7 in 1988. Mr. Aguilera was 6-6 with a 2.34 ERA in 36 games with New York in 1989; Mr. Drummond was 5-1 with a 3.27 ERA in 8 games with the Tidewater Tides of the AAA International League; Mr. Tapani was 0-0 with a 3.68 ERA in 3 games with the Mets and 7-5 with an ERA of 3.47 in 17 games with the Tides in 1989; and Mr. Savage, who wasn't assigned to the Twins until October 16, ended the 1989 season with a record of 3-2 and an ERA of 3.59 and 1 save in 33 games with Tidewater.

25 years ago
1994

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: I Swear--All-4-One (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): Eins, zwei, polizei--Mo-Do (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: I Swear--All-4-One

#1 single in the U.K. (Chart Information Network): Love is All Around--Wet Wet Wet (10th week at #1)

World events
200 U.S. military personnel arrived to open the airport in the Rwandan capital of Kigali.

20 years ago
1999

Died on this date
Henry Sawyer, 80. U.S. lawyer and politician. Mr. Sawyer was known for successfully arguing for minorities in "establishment of religion"cases such as Abington School District v. Schempp (1963) and Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971). He was originally a Republican, but switched his allegiance to the Democratic Party in the late 1940s and served on Philadelphia's City Council from 1955-1959. Mr. Sawyer died of lung cancer, two months after the death of his wife.

Space
18 months after its launch, the U.S. unmanned lunar orbiting spacecraft Lunar Prospector, part of the Discovery Program, was deliberately crashed into a crater near the lunar south pole after the presence of water ice was successfully detected.



Baseball
The Chicago Cubs scored 7 runs in the 1st inning en rout to a 17-10 win over the New York Mets before 39,431 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Steroid Sammy Sosa hit his major league-leading 39th and 40th home runs of the season to lead the Chicago attack, while Jose Hernandez drove in 5 runs and Gary Gaetti added his 11th career grand slam. Robin Ventura went 4 for 5, with 2 home runs, a double, and 6 RBIs to lead the New York offense.

The Cleveland Indians scored 6 runs in the 4th inning and 5 in the 7th as they beat the Chicago White Sox 13-10 before 43,209 fans at Jacobs Field in Cleveland. Cleveland second baseman Roberto Alomar drove in 5 runs with a pair of home runs.

10 years ago
2009

Died on this date
Harry Alan Towers, 88. U.K. radio, television, and film producer and writer. Mr. Towers produced and wrote syndicated radio series such as The Lives of Harry Lime and The Black Museum in the 1950s, and then moved into television, pioneering made-for-television movies and producing series such as Armchair Theatre for the British network ITV. Mr. Towers began producing and writing screenplays for movies in the 1960s. Many of his films were based on the works of Sax Rohmer--including five Fu Manchu movies--and Agatha Christie. He produced three different screen versions of And Then There Were None, each set in a different locale. Mr. Towers became involved in scandal in 1961 when he and girlfriend Mariella Novotny were charged with operating a vice ring from a New York hotel. Mr. Towers jumped bail and returned to Europe, while Miss Novotny claimed that he was operating as a Soviet agent, providing compromising information on various individuals to the U.S.S.R. Mr. Towers settled in Toronto in 1973 and became a Canadian citizen; the charges against him in the United States were dropped in 1980 after he paid a fine for jumping bail.

Labour
Toronto City Council voted to end a 39-day strike with its unionized inside and outside workers.

Football
CFL
British Columbia (1-4) 18 @ Hamilton (3-2) 30