February 10, 2020

180 years ago
1840

Married on this date
Queen Victoria of Great Britain married Prince Albert of Saxe Coburg-Gotha at the Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace in London.

130 years ago
1890

Born on this date
Boris Pasternak. Russian author and poet. Mr. Pasternak was best known for his novel Doctor Zhivago (1957) and his collection of poems, My Sister, Life (1917). Doctor Zhivago was smuggled out of the Soviet Union and first published in Milan in an Italian translation in 1957, and Mr. Pasternak was awarded the 1958 Nobel Prize in Literature in 1958 "for his important achievement both in contemporary lyrical poetry and in the field of the great Russian epic tradition." Mr. Pasternak was denounced by U.S.S.R. authorities and threatened with deportation, but the Soviet authorities backed off in the face of international criticism. Mr. Pasternak died on May 30, 1960 at the age of 70.

110 years ago
1910

Politics and government
Voting, which had begun on January 15, concluded in the the British general election, resulting in a hung Parliament. The governing Liberals of Prime Minister H.H. Asquith won 274 of 625 seats--a loss of 123 from before the election--but still had the largest number of seats. The Conservative-Liberal Unionist coalition, led by former Prime Minister Arthur Balfour, took 272 seats, an increase of 116. The Irish Parliamentary Party dropped from 82 seats to 71, while the Labour Party increased its total from 29 to 40, and the All-for_Ireland Party won 8 seats in its first election. The election resulted from the Conservative-dominated House of Lords' rejection of the "People's Budget" of 1909.

Born on this date
Dominique Pire. Belgian clergyman. Father Pire was a Roman Catholic Dominican friar who was awarded the 1958 Nobel Peace Prize for his work as "...Leader of the relief organization for refugees "L'Europe du Coeur au Service du Monde."" He died on January 30, 1969, 11 days before his 59th birthday, of complications following surgery.

100 years ago
1920

Born on this date
Alex Comfort. U.K. physician. Dr. Comfort wrote many books of fiction and non-fiction, but was best known for his manual The Joy of Sex (1972). He supported numerous worthless causes, and died on March 26, 2000 at the age of 80, almost a decade after suffering a severe cerebral hemorrhage.

José Manuel Castañón. Spanish author. Mr. Castañón was a novelist who initially supported the Spanish regime of Generalissimo Francisco Franco, but later opposed the regime, and lived in exile in Venezuela from 1957-1977. His best-known work was Moletu-Voleva (1956). Mr. Castañón died on June 6, 2001 at the age of 81.

Neva Patterson. U.S. actress. Miss Patterson appeared in plays, movies, and television programs from the late 1940s to the early 1990s. Her movies included An Affair to Remember (1957) and The Buddy Holly Story (1978). Miss Patterson died of complications from a broken hip on December 14, 2010 at the age of 90.

Died on this date
Henry Strangways, 87. U.K.-born Australian politician. Mr. Strangways was a lawyer who moved to South Australia in 1857. He represented Encounter Bay (1858-1862) and West Torrens (1862-1871) in the South Australian House of Assembly, serving as Attorney General (1860-1861) and Premier of South Australia (1868-1870). Mr. Strangways returned to England in 1871, resigned his seat in Australia, and lived at his family estate in Somerset for the rest of his life, although he continued to take an interest in South Australia.

Europeana
Lieutenant General Józef Haller de Hallenburg performed a symbolic wedding of Poland to the sea, celebrating restitution of Polish access to open sea.

Baseball
The major leagues outlawed doctored pitches, including the spitball, the shine ball and the emery ball, in order to bring more hitting into the game. The Brooklyn Dodgers' Burleigh Grimes and 16 others who used the forbidden pitches were allowed to do so for the rest of their careers under a grandfather clause.

90 years ago
1930

World events
The Việt Nam Quốc Dân Đảng (Vietnamese Nationalist Party) launched the failed Yên Bái mutiny in the hope of overthrowing the French protectorate over Vietnam.

80 years ago
1940

At the movies
Puss Gets the Boot, the first Tom and Jerry cartoon, opened in theatres.

Diplomacy
U.S. Ambassador to France William Bullitt arrived in Baltimore on his way to Washington to discuss the European war situation with U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The World Jewish Congress convened in Washington.

Politics and government
The French Chamber of Deputies backed the government's conduct of the war against Germany.

New Zealand Labour Minister P.C. Webb was appointed Minister of Manpower to organize the entire national service.

U.S. Postmaster General James Farley announced that he was a candidate for the Democratic Party nomination for President of the United States in the November 1940 election.

Economics and finance
U.S. Senator Arthur Vandenberg (Republican--Michigan) called for an end to reciprocal trade agreements because they were detrimental to farmers.

Labour
United Mine Workers of America President John L. Lewis proposed a labour peace in which the Congress of Industrial Organizations would join the American Federation of Labor.

75 years ago
1945

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Don't Fence Me In--Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters with Vic Schoen and his Orchestra (Best Seller--8th week at #1; Airplay--3rd week at #1); Rum and Coca-Cola--The Andrews Sisters with Vic Schoen and his Orchestra (Best Seller--1st week at #1; Juke Box--1st week at #1)

Died on this date
Anacleto Díaz, 66. Filipino jurist. Mr. Díaz was an Associate Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court from 1933-1941. He and his sons were among 300 men herded by Japanese soldiers into a corner in Manila and massacred by machine gun-fire.

Theatre
The plays Carmen Jones and One Touch of Venus closed on Broadway in New York City.

War
After German forces blasted open the flood gates of the main Roer River dam at Schwammenauel, Americans took control of it. Soviet forces captured the East Prussian port of Elbing.

Defense
Poles in London presented a list of 29 proposals to the U.S.A. and U.K. for amending the Dumbarton Oaks world security program, including the denial of veto rights in aggression cases and enlargement of the security council to 15 members.

Economics and finance
U.S. government officials warned that meat may virtually disappear from civilian markets by mid-summer of 1945.

U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's special assistant Samual Rosenman arrived in London with his advisers to study the economic problems of the liberated countries and the occupation of Germany.

Disasters
An earthquake described as "fairly severe" struck the main Japanese island of Honshu. Among the cities affected were Tokyo and Yokohama. Damage was not reported, but American sources estimated that it was extensive.

70 years ago
1950

Died on this date
Marcel Mauss, 77. French sociologist and anthropologist. Professor Mauss, the nephew of sociology founder Émile Durkheim, was a tremendous influence upon Claude Lévi-Strauss, the founder of structural anthropology. Prof. Mauss founded several institutions, and was chair of the Sociology department at the Collège de France from 1931 until his death. His best-known work, Essai sur le Don (The Gift) (1925), served as the foundation of social theories of reciprocity and gift exchange.

Divorced on this date
U.S. movie director John Huston was divorced from actress Evelyn Keyes in Juarez, Mexico.

War
The U.S.A. protested to the Chinese Nationalist government that its air raids on Shanghai were causing heavy damage to American property. Communist sources reported that air raids had killed or injured 1,000 Shanghai residents.

Crime
Physicist Klaus Fuchs admitted in a signed statement introduced in a London court that he had passed on atomic information to the U.S.S.R. for seven years because he was devoted to Communism.

Defense
The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission said that it would continue to accept U.K. security clearance of British scientists for access to U.S. nuclear information despite the Klaus Fuchs spy case.

Scandal
U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy (Republican--Wisconsin) said, during a half-hour stopover at Stapleton air field in Denver, that the U.S. State Department knew the names of its 57 employees who were Communists. Later, in Salt Lake City, he declined to reveal any names to newsmen, and said he would show the list to Secretary of State Dean Acheson if Mr. Acheson would telephone him and "show his sincerity by having a presidential order revoked, at least insofar as the 57 are concerned. It would be a vast waste of effort to give Acheson the names, then have him deny they are Communists when we cannot get the records." The presidential order prohibited government departments from turning over loyalty records to congressional committees.

Religion
After meeting with apostolic nuncio Archbishop Antoniutti, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Montreal Joseph Charbonneau asked Pope Pius XII to remove him from office, ostensibly for health reasons. Archbishop Charbonneau was known for opposing the Union Nationale government of Quebec Premier Maurice Duplessis on various issues; most notably, Archbishop Charbonneau had supported the workers in the asbestos strike in 1949. Archbishop Charbonneau's resignation was accepted, and he was succeeded as Archbishop of Montreal by Paul-Émile Léger.

Baseball
The Cleveland Indians released pitcher Satchel Paige, 43. Mr. Paige was 4-7 with an earned run average of 3.04 and 4 saves in 31 games with the Indians in 1949.

50 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Kvällstoppen): Monia--Peter Holm

#1 single in Switzerland (Swiss Hitparade): Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye--Steam (2nd week at #1)

War
High officials in Amman confirmed that a Pakistani infantry regiment was in Jordan. The Jordanian government also reasserted orders banning the carrying of arms in public by Palestinian commandos. The directive, which also banned demonstrations, unauthorized publications, all political party activity, and called for a surrender of weapons and explosives, was criticized by Al Fatah, largest of the 10 Palestinian commando groups operating in Jordan, as a U.S.-supported move to disarm the guerrillas to ease a settlement with Israel. Three days of clashes between King Hussein’s troops and the commandos began near Amman.

U.S. Defense Secretary Melvin Laird began a three-day visit to South Vietnam to discuss further U.S. troop withdrawals with American commanders.

Terrorism
One Israeli was killed and 23 wounded by three Arabs in an attack on a bus and passenger lounge at the Munich airport. Asaf Dayan, the son of Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan, was unhurt in the attack, but Israeli actress Hanna Meron lost a leg.

World events
Israel decided to allow Jews to settle in the West Bank city of Hebron. Israel and Egypt were negotiating autonomy for Arabs on the West Bank when Israel made the decision to allow the Jewish settlement.

Environment
U.S. President Richard Nixon asked Congress to pass 37 measures for control of water and air pollution, disposal of solid wastes, and expansion of parklands and public recreation areas. Not all of the requested measures were new, but observers were struck by the immense authority the President would give to the federal government to enforce the anti-pollution effort. He requested $4 billion for the federal share of a proposed $10-billion plan for building municipal waste-treatment plants.

Disasters
At least 39 skiers in a student chalet at the Alpine resort of Val d’Isere were killed and 37 injured in what was believed to be the worst avalanche in French history.

40 years ago
1980

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)--Pink Floyd

#1 single in Switzerland: Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)--Pink Floyd (2nd week at #1)

Politics and government
U.S. President Jimmy Carter won the Maine caucuses in the contest for the Democratic Party presidential nomination, taking 46% of the vote to 40% for U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy (Massachusetts). California Governor Jerry Brown had 13%.

Hockey
NHL
Edmonton 2 Winnipeg 2

30 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): Love Shack--The B-52's (8th week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Un' Estate Italiana--Edoardo Bennato; Gianna Nannini

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Pump Up the Jam--Technotronic (6th week at #1)

#1 single in Flanders (Ultratop 50): Daar Gaat Ze--Clouseau

#1 single in France (SNEP): Les Valses de Vienne--François Feldman (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (CIN): Nothing Compares 2 U--Sinéad O'Connor (2nd week at #1)

Netherlands Top 10 (De Nederlandse Top 40)
1 Me So Horny--The 2 Live Crew (2nd week at #1)
2 Got to Get--Rob 'n' Raz featuring Leila K
3 Get a Life--Soul II Soul
4 Get Into It--Tony Scott
5 Words--The Christians
6 Get Up! (Before the Night is Over)--Technotronic
7 Nothing Compares 2 U--Sinéad O'Connor
8 I Wish it Would Rain Down--Phil Collins
9 Whatcha' Gonna Do with My Lovin'--Inner City
10 In Private--Dusty Springfield

Singles entering the chart were King Kong Five by Mano Negra (#27); Wij Doen Zelf Straks Het Licht Wel Uit by Sus-5 (#32); Welcome to the Terror Dome by Public Enemy (#33); Spin That Wheel by Hi Tek 3 featuring Ya Kid K (#35); Look Away by Chicago (#36); and We Almost Got it Together by Tanita Tikaram (#37).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 Opposites Attract--Paula Abdul (Duet with the Wild Pair)
2 Two to Make it Right--Seduction
3 Downtown Train--Rod Stewart
4 Janie's Got a Gun--Aerosmith
5 How am I Supposed to Live Without You--Michael Bolton
6 What Kind of Man Would I Be?--Chicago
7 Dangerous--Roxette
8 I Remember You--Skid Row
9 Escapade--Janet Jackson
10 All or Nothing--Milli Vanilli

Singles entering the chart were All My Life by Linda Ronstadt (featuring Aaron Neville (#47); Don't Wanna Fall in Love by Jane Child (#75); Almost Hear You Sigh by the Rolling Stones (#84); Heart of Stone by Cher (#92); I Wanna Be Rich by Calloway (#93); and You're the Voice by John Farnham (#97).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Opposites Attract--Paula Abdul (Duet with the Wild Pair)
2 How am I Supposed to Live Without You--Michael Bolton
3 Downtown Train--Rod Stewart
4 Two to Make it Right--Seduction
5 Janie's Got a Gun--Aerosmith
6 Free Fallin'--Tom Petty
7 I Remember You--Skid Row
8 Just Between You and Me--Lou Gramm
9 Pump Up the Jam--Technotronic featuring Felly
10 Everything--Jody Watley

Singles entering the chart were Love Me for Life by Stevie B (#70); I Wish it Would Rain Down by Phil Collins (#72); Almost Hear You Sigh by the Rolling Stones (#78); I Wanna Be Rich by Calloway (#81); That's What I Like by Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers (#82); 1-2-3 by the Chimes (#86); Don't Wanna Fall in Love by Jane Child (#87); and You're the Only Woman by Brat Pack (#89).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Downtown Train--Rod Stewart
2 Just Between You and Me--Lou Gramm
3 Another Day in Paradise--Phil Collins
4 Janie's Got a Gun--Aerosmith
5 Free Fallin'--Tom Petty
6 Pump Up the Jam--Technotronic featuring Felly
7 Peace in Our Time--Eddie Money
8 How am I Supposed to Live Without You--Michael Bolton
9 What Kind of Man Would I Be?--Chicago
10 Opposites Attract--Paula Abdul (Duet with the Wild Pair)

Singles entering the chart were Lover of Mine by Alannah Myles (#79); Summer Rain by Belinda Carlisle (#80); Personal Jesus by Depeche Mode (#83); Keep it Together by Madonna (#85); Here and Now by Luther Vandross (#87); Figure of Eight by Paul McCartney (#90); and The Last Thing by Cutting Crew (#93).

Diplomacy
West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl met with U.S.S.R. President Mikhail Gorbachev met in Moscow. Afterward, Mr. Kohl said that Soviet leaders supported "the right of the German people alone" to choose their form of relationship.

25 years ago
1995

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Tears Don't Lie--Mark 'Oh

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Think Twice--Celine Dion (4th week at #1)

Died on this date
Arthur Miller, 89. U.S. playwright. Mr. Miller was best known for the plays All My Sons (1947); Death of a Salesman (1949); and The Crucible (1953). He was married to actress Marilyn Monroe from 1956-1960, and wrote the screenplay for The Misfits (1961), Miss Monroe's last completed film. Mr. Miller's marriage to Miss Monroe served as the basis for his play After the Fall (1964), which, with Incident at Vichy (1964) and other later works, failed to capture the acclaim of his earlier works.

Britannica
Clarence House announced that Prince Charles would marry his long-time lover Camilla Parker Bowles.

Defense
North Korea boasted publicly for the first time that it possessed nuclear weapons.

Economics and finance
The United States Labor Department reported that prices charged by producers for finished goods had risen 0.3% in January.

20 years ago
2000

Died on this date
Jim Varney, 50. U.S. actor and comedian. Mr. Varney played the comic character Ernest P. Worrell in a series of television commercials in the 1980s, as well as in several movies and the television series Hey Vern, It's Ernest! (1988), for which he won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series. Mr. Varney played Jed Clampett in the movie The Beverly Hillbillies (1993), and provided the voice of Slinky Dog in Toy Story (1995) and Toy Story 2 (1999). Mr. Varney was a smoker, and died of lung cancer.

War
Russian forces began attacking Chechen rebel strongholds in the mountains from the air.

World events
The Irish Republican Army issued another statement asserting its commitment to disarmament.

Terrorism
Four days after an Afghan jetliner carrying more than 180 people had been hijacked shortly after takeoff from Kabul, and three days after it landed in London, the hijackers released the last of their hostages.

Politics and government
Lois Hole, a well-known horticulturist from St. Albert, was installed as Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, succeeding Bud Olson.

Two days after finishing third in the Delaware primary, publisher Steve Forbes withdrew from the contest for the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States. In two unsuccessful campaigns, Mr. Forbes had spent nearly $70 million of his own money.

10 years ago
2010

Died on this date
Fred Schaus, 84. U.S. basketball player and coach. Mr. Schaus was a forward at the University of West Virginia (1946-49), making All-American in his final season. He played for the Fort Wayne Pistons (1949-53) and New York Knickerbockers (1953-54), scoring 4,070 points (12.2 per game) in 334 regular season games and 11.8 points per game in 21 playoff games. Mr. Schaus was a second-team All-Star in his rookie season, and played in the NBA All-Star Game a year later. He returned to the University of West Virginia to coach the Mountaineers (1954-60), compiling a record of 127-26, and leading the American team to a gold medal at the Pan American Games in 1959. Mr. Schaus became the first coach of the Los Angeles Lakers after their move from Minneapolis in 1960, leading them through the 1966-67 season and compiling a record of 315-245, with a playoff record of 33-38. He coached the Lakers to Western Division titles in 1962, 1963, 1965, and 1966, but they always lost to the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. After seven seasons as coach, Mr. Schaus became the Lakers' general manager, serving through the 1971-72 season and leaving after they won their first NBA championship since 1954. He coached the Purdue University Boilermakers (1972-78), compiling a record of 65-35 and leading them to the National Invitation Tournament title in 1974. Mr. Schaus spent his last years back in West Virginia.

Charlie Wilson, 76. U.S. politician. Mr. Wilson, a Democrat, served in the United States Navy from 1956-1960, achieving the rank of lieutenant. He sat in the Texas House of Representatives (1961-1967) and Senate (1967-1973) before entering federal politics, representing Texas' 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives (1973-1997). He was liberal on social issues while being hawkish on gun rights and national security, and was best known for acting behind the scenes in leading Congress to support the Central Intelligence Agency's covert Operation Cyclone, supplying military equipment to the Afghan Mujahideen during the Soviet–Afghan War in the 1980s. Mr. Wilson's actions inspired the book (2003) and movie (2007) Charlie Wilson's War. He was nicknamed "Good Time Charlie" because of his flamboyant private life, which included womanizing, heavy drinking, and alleged use of illegal drugs. Mr. Wilson quit drinking after leaving politics, and died of a heart attack, more than two years after receiving a heart transplant.