November 2, 2020

610 years ago
1410

War
The Peace of Bicêtre suspended hostilities in the Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War.

550 years ago
1470

Born on this date
Edward V. King of England, 1483. Edward V acceded to the throne on April 9, 1483 upon the death of his father Edward IV. He was deposed on June 25 by his uncle and Lord Protector the Duke of Gloucester, who took the throne as King Richard III. Edward V and his younger brother Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York were sent to the "inner apartments" of the Tower of London, and gradually disappeared from public view. Edward V was 12 when he and his brother were presumably murdered circa June-July 1483. King Richard III has popularly been accused of ordering the murders, but his guilt has been disputed.

225 years ago
1795

Born on this date
James K. Polk. 11th President of the United States, 1845-1849. Mr. Polk, a Democrat, represented Tennessee's 6th District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1825-1839, serving as Speaker of the House from 1835-1839. He was Governor of Tennessee from 1839-1841, and was elected President of the United States in 1844. Mr. Polk served just one term as President, but he fulfilled all of his campaign promises, something which no president has done since. The major accomplishments of the United States during Mr. Polk's administration included winning the war with Mexico and acquiring the state of California. He did not seek re-election, and died on June 15, 1849 at the age of 53, just three months after leaving office. The cause of death was officially listed as "diarrhea."

Politics and government
The French Directory, a five-man revolutionary government, was created.

160 years ago
1860

Born on this date
Soapy Smith, 37. U.S. criminal. Jefferson Randolph Smith II was a native of Georgia who was best known for his organized criminal operations in Denver and Creede, Colorado, and Skagway, Alaska. The scam that earned him his nickname was the "prize soap racket," in which he would wrap dollar bills around a few bars of soap, and entice customers to buy soap to see if they could buy soap bars with bill around them. The only winners were Mr. Smith's shills, dispersed among the crowd. He moved to Skagway (then spelled Skaguay) when the gold rush hit Alaska in 1897, and ran a fake telegraph office. Mr. Smith was killed in a shootout with vigilantes on the wharf at Juneau on July 8, 1898 at the age of 37; he remains a legendary figure in Skagway.

140 years ago
1880

Politics and government
Republican Party candidate James A. Garfield defeated Democratic Party candidate Winfield S. Hancock in the U.S. presidential election by 214 electoral votes to 155. Mr. Garfield narrowly won the popular vote, with 4,454,416 (48.5%) to 4,444,952 (48.1%) for Mr. Hancock.

125 years ago
1895

Football
CRU
ORFU
Finals
Queen's University 2 @ University of Toronto 19 (First game of 2-game, total points series)

100 years ago
1920

Born on this date
Bill Mazer. Ukrainian-born U.S. sportscaster and journalist. Mr. Mazer, a native of Kiev, emigrated to the United States with his family as an infant. He was a sportscaster in Buffalo from 1947-1964 and then worked in New York City until 2001, where his work included commentary on CBS telecasts of National Hockey League games in the late 1960s and early '70s. Mr. Mazer was known for his knowledge of sports trivia, and compiled several books on the subject. He died on October 23, 2013, 10 days before his 93rd birthday.

On the radio
In what is often cited as the birth of radio newscasting in the United States, Pittsburgh station KDKA broadcast the national election returns as they came in over the wire. The audience consisted of those who had crystal sets.

Politics and government
United States Senator and Republican Party presidential candidate Warren G. Harding won a landslide victory over Democratic Party candidate James M. Cox in the U.S. presidential election. Mr. Harding won 404 electoral votes to 127 for Mr. Cox. Mr. Harding also won an overwhelming victory in the popular vote, with 16.15 million (60.4%) to 9.15 million (34.2%) for Mr. Cox. Socialist candidate Eugene V. Debs received 919,799 votes, but no electoral votes. Mr. Debs was campaigning from prison, where he had resided for more than two years since being jailed by the administration of President Woodrow Wilson for opposing the U.S.A.'s involvement in World War I.

90 years ago
1930

Died on this date
Viggo Jensen, 56. Danish athlete. Mr. Jensen participated in various events at the 1896 Olympic Games in Athens, winning a gold medal in the two-hand lift and a silver medal in the one-hand lift weightlifting events, and a bronze medal in the free rifle shooting competition. He also participated in the gymnastics and rope-climbing competitions.

80 years ago
1940

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Only Forever--Bing Crosby with John Scott Trotter and his Orchestra (3rd week at #1)

War
The Battle of Elaia-Kalamas began between Greek and Italian forces in Greece. British and Greek flyers bombed the Albanian capital of Tirana. According to unconfirmed reports from Bucharest, the U.S.S.R. had massed 31 divisions (558,000 men) and mechanized equipment in Bessarabia and northern Bukovina. U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt said that his foreign policy was to keep the U.S. out of war and give all possible material aid to the nations that resisted aggression.

Defense
Alexander P. Seversky obtained a patent for a new type of pursuit plane having a tricycle landing gear, four propellers, a sealed cabin, an engine in the rear, and mounting six machine guns and one cannon.

Aviation
G.T. Baker, president of National Airlines, flew a Lockheed-Lodestar plane with five passengers from Burbank, California to Jacksonville, Florida in 9 hours, 29 minutes, 30 1/2 seconds, claiming a transcontinental speed record for transport planes with passengers.

World events
Mexican rebels and their leaders, including the self-styled slayer of Pancho Villa, surrendered in the state of Chihuahua, ending all rebellious activities, according to an official military announcement.

Football
CRU
IRFU
Ottawa (4-1) 7 @ Montreal (1-4) 4
Toronto (3-2) 0 @ Hamilton (2-3) 5

WIFU
Finals
Winnipeg 7 @ Calgary 0 (Winnipeg led best-of-three series 1-0)

Art Stevenson scored the game's only touchdown. Greg Kabat converted and punted for a single. Fewer than 3,000 fans braved cold temperatures at Mewata Stadium.

Canadian university
Hardy Cup
Saskatchewan 5 @ Alberta 27 (1st game of 2-game total points series)

Don Johnson led the Golden Bears with 3 touchdowns, with Lloyd Grisdale and Bud Foley scoring a touchdown each in their win over the Huskies on a snow-covered field before 1,500 fans at Varsity Stadium in Edmonton. Norm McCallum added 1 convert, and the Golden Bears scored a single when Ed Lewis and Jack Flavin combined to rouge Jim Miley. Skipper Hall scored the Saskatchewan touchdown in the 3rd quarter.

75 years ago
1945

At the movies
Confidential Agent, directed by Herman Shumlin, and starring Charles Boyer and Lauren Bacall, opened in theatres in New York City (see video).



Bugambilia, co-written and directed by Emilio Fernández, and starring Dolores del Rio, Pedro Armendáriz, Julio Villarreal, and Alberto Galán, opened in theatres in Mexico.



Died on this date
Hélène de Pourtalès, 77. U.S.-born Swiss yachtswoman. Countess de Pourtalès, born Helen Barbey, married Hermann Alexander, Count von Pourtalès in 1891. She represented Switzerland in the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris, winning a gold medal in the 1-2 ton first race and a silver medal in the 1-2 ton second race.

Thyra, 65. Princess of Denmark and Iceland. Princess Thyra was the sixth child and third daughter of Frederick VIII of Denmark and his wife Princess Louise of Sweden and Norway. Princess Thyra never married or had children.

Abominations
42 members of the Dachau concentration camp staff were indicted in Nuremberg for trial on November 15 for war crimes.

War
The Chinese government in Chungking reported that 20,000 Communists were attacking Kwisui, capital of the province of Suiyuan.

Diplomacy
The 43-party central committee of the Korean provisional parliament, meeting in Seoul, called on the United Nations to end the U.S.A.-U.S.S.R. division of Korea and to grant the nation independence.

The Belgian government published the official German version of Belgian King Leopold III's conversation with German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler in November 1940, saying the two men agreed on linking their countries' fortunes.

U.S. Secretary of State James Byrnes directed the U.S. embassy in Rio de Janeiro to carry on normal relations with the new Brazilian government of President Jose Linhares, as official recognition was extended.

Politics and government
British Colonial Secretary George Hall announced the resignation of Viscount Gort as high commissioner for Palestine and Transjordan because of ill health.

U.S. Army General George Kenney, commander of the Far East Air Forces, asked for U.S. Senate approval of a bill to merge the armed forces.

Economics and finance
Cuban President Ramon Grau San Martin placed the 1946 national budget at a record high of $163,880,000.

Labour
The U.S. National War Labor Board returned 1,000 pending disputes to the parties concerned for further collective bargaining, thus clearing its dockets.

About 18,000 members of the Textile Workers Union in 21 New England textile mills went on strike for a union shop and wage increase.

United Auto Workers of America airline mechanics voted to end their two-week strike against American Export Airlines and return to work November 3.

70 years ago
1950

At the movies
Undercover Girl, directed by Joseph Pevney, and starring Alexis Smith, Scott Brady, and Richard Egan, opened in theatres.



Died on this date
George Bernard Shaw, 94. U.K. author, playwright, and critic. Mr. Shaw was the most prominent dramatist of his generation, with plays such as Man and Superman (1902); Pygmalion (1912); and Saint Joan (1923). He used his plays to express his political views; he was a Fabian socialist in the late 19th and early 20th century, but later praised dictators. Mr. Shaw won an Academy Award for his screenplay adaptation for Pygmalion (1938), and was awarded the 1925 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his work which is marked by both idealism and humanity, its stimulating satire often being infused with a singular poetic beauty."

Baseball
Jim Konstanty, who had appeared in 74 games as a relief pitcher with the Philadelphia Phillies before starting the first game of the World Series, was named the National League’s Most Valuable Player. He was 16-7 with a 2.66 earned run average, leading the NL with 22 saves in helping the Phillies win their first pennant in 35 years and only the second in their history.

60 years ago
1960

Died on this date
Dimitri Mitropoulos, 64. Greek-born conductor and composer. Mr. Mitropoulos wrote pieces for orchestra and solo works for piano, but was better known as a conductor. He was principal conductor of the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra (1937-1949); and co-conductor (1949-1951) and sole music director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra (1951-1958); and principal conductor of the Metropolitan Opera in New York (1954-1960). Mr. Mitropoulos championed modern music, and recorded extensively with Columbia Records. He died of heart failure.

Theatre
Tom Patterson opened the National Theatre School of Canada/École nationale de théâtre du Canada in a Canadian Legion hall at 1191 Mountain Street in Montreal.

Literature
In the trial R v Penguin Books Ltd, British publisher Penguin Books was acquitted of obscenity for the publication of the novel Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence.

Football
CFL
WIFU
Semi-Finals
Calgary 7 @ Edmonton 30 (First game of 2-game total points series)

Cowboy Woodruff caught a pass from Jackie Parker for a 37-yard touchdown to open the scoring and returned the 2nd-half kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown to lead the Eskimos to victory at Clarke Stadium. Johnny Bright and Normie Kwong rushed for touchdowns as the Eskimos built a 20-0 halftime lead. Tommy-Joe Coffey was successful on 3 of 4 convert attempts and added a field goal. Calgary’s touchdown came on a pass from Joe Kapp to Bill McKenna. Mr. Parker was presented with the first annual Canada Packers trophy as the Eskimos’ most popular player, voted on by fans at the games.



Baseball
Roger Maris of the New York Yankees was named the American League’s Most Valuable Player, edging teammate Mickey Mantle 225-222 in the voting. Mr. Maris batted .283 with 39 home runs in 136 games, leading the AL in runs batted in (112) and slugging (.581). Mr. Mantle hit .275 in 153 games, leading the league with 40 home runs and 119 runs, battin gin 94 runs. According to baseball historian and statistics guru Bill James, Mr. Mantle should have won. Only Joe DiMaggio’s win over Ted Williams in 1947 was closer.

George Weiss, who had recently turned 66, resigned as general manager of the New York Yankees in accord with the new policy of owners Dan Topping and Del Webb that mandated a retirement age of 65. He had assumed the position of general manager following the 1947 season.

50 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): (They Long to Be) Close to You--Carpenters (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): The Lovers of the World (男の世界)--Jerry Wallace (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): In the Summertime--Mungo Jerry (5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Richard Cushing, 75. U.S. clergyman. Cardinal Cushing was Roman Catholic Archbishop of Boston (1944-1970), and was made a cardinal in 1958. He was a confidante of the Kennedy family, and was successful in building bridges with non-Catholics. Cardinal Cushing retired as Archbishop of Boston a month before his death from cancer.

Pierre Veyron, 67. French auto racing driver. Mr. Veyron was a Grand Prix driver from 1933-1953; he and Jean-Pierre Wimille won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1939.

Diplomacy
Delegates from the U.S.A. and U.S.S.R. resumed the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks in Helsinki.

Defense
Canada announced further bans on sales of weapons to South Africa.

Transportation
The Pierre Laporte Bridge opened to traffic alongside the old Quebec Bridge, connecting Autoroute 20, the Trans-Canada Highway, to Quebec City and Autoroute 40, and Autoroute 73, northwards towards the Saguenay. Originally supposed to be called the Pont Frontenac (Frontenac Bridge), it was renamed in honour of Quebec Vice-Premier Pierre Laporte, who was kidnapped by FLQ terrorist on October 10, 1970 and murdered on October 17 as construction of the bridge was nearing completion.

Football
NFL
Cincinnati (1-6) 10 @ Pittsburgh (3-4) 21

Baseball
Nippon Series
Yomiuri Giants 2 @ Lotte Orions 6 (Yomiuri won best-of-seven series 4-1)

40 years ago
1980

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Master Blaster (Jammin')--Stevie Wonder

#1 single in Switzerland: Master Blaster (Jammin')--Stevie Wonder

Abominations
Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe announced that his government might have to seize farms owned by productive white people and give them to unproductive Negroes without paying compensation to the owners.

Science
Two U.S. Navy scientists--Herbert Uberall and Guillermo Gaunaurd--announced a new technique for using radar or sonar to identify a distant object. It provided a mathematical way to learn about the shape and composition of an object by reflected, radio, sound, or other types of waves. In its military use, the technique could tell the difference between an enemy soldier and a decoy. In non-military applications, it could possibly be used to tell whether an underground pool contained oil or water, or whether a mass in the brain was fluid or tumour.

Football
CFL
Toronto (6-10) 16 @ Hamilton (8-7-1) 23
Saskatchewan (2-14) 10 @ Calgary (9-7) 37
Winnipeg (10-6) 17 @ British Columbia (8-7-1) 43

Gord Paterson, playing his first game since breaking an arm in pre-season, caught 6 passes for 88 yards and 2 touchdowns before an Ivor Wynne Stadium crowd of 30,479 to help the Tiger-Cats clinch first place in the Eastern Football Conference for the first time in 8 years. Hamilton quarterback Dave Marler completed just 10 of 23 passes for 136 yards and 3 interceptions, but completed the touchdown passes to Mr. Paterson and used the running game effectively, as Obie Graves carried 29 times for 144 yards. The only Toronto touchdown came early in the 2nd quarter when Billy Hardee returned a Bernie Ruoff punt 88 yards. Zenon Andrusyshyn converted and added 3 field goals. The Tiger-Cats held the Argonauts to 9 first downs and 116 yards net offense. Toronto quarterback Mark Jackson completed 13 of 24 passes for just 111 yards. The loss eliminated the Argonauts from playoff contention for the third straight season, and the sixth time in the last 7 years.



The Stampeders trailed the Roughriders 10-8 late in the 2nd quarter, but rallied for 29 straight points as they clinched the third and final playoff spot in the Western Football Conference before 31,979 fans at McMahon Stadium. James Sykes rushed 21 times for 90 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown run that put the Stampeders ahead to stay with 27 seconds remaining in the 2nd quarter. Willie Burden carried 5 times for 31 yards and a touchdown, while Ken Johnson completed 11 of 22 passes for 252 yards and touchdowns of 50 yards to Willie Armstead and 16 yards to Tom Forzani. Mr. Armstead led all receivers with 158 yards on 4 receptions. J.T. Hay added 4 converts and 3 field goals, and Mike McTague punted for 3 singles. Saskatchewan quarterback Joe Barnes completed just 13 of 32 passes for 138 yards and 2 interceptions. One of his completions went for a 7-yard touchdown to Dwight Edwards early in the 2nd quarter. Bob Macoritti, playing what turned out to be the last game of his 6-year CFL career, converted and added a field goal.

The British Columbia Lions became the first Western team to finish the season with a winning record while missing the playoffs. B.C. quarterback Mike Nott, playing his last CFL game, had his best game, completing 17 of 20 passes for 338 yards and touchdowns of 64 yards to Tyron Gray, 7 yards to Al Charuk, and 29 yards to Mr. Charuk. Larry Key rushed 21 times for 155 yards and a touchdown, and John Henry White carried 10 times for 52 yards and a touchdown, and Don Taylor added 57 yards on 8 carries. The Lions amassed 31 first downs and 623 yards net offense, including 285 yards rushing. Lui Passaglia added 5 converts and 2 field goals, and the B.C. defense recorded a safety touch when Winnipeg running back Mark Bragagnolo was tackled in his own end zone. Dieter Brock started at quarterback for the Blue Bombers and completed 6 of 8 passes for 73 yards, giving him 304 completions in 514 pass attempts for the season. These totals surpassed the records posted by Peter Liske of the Calgary Stampeders in 1967, and Mr. Brock was removed from the game at this point and relieved by rookie Jim Krohn, who had yet to see any meaningful playing time during the season. Mr. Krohn completed 10 of 17 passes for 140 yards and a touchdown to Ian Mofford, but also threw 4 interceptions. Mr. Krohn rushed 32 yards for a touchdown in the 3rd quarter. Trevor Kennerd kicked 2 converts and a field goal. Mike Richardson, in his only CFL game, led the Blue Bombers with 47 yards on 11 rushes and caught 1 pass for 16. B.C. tight end Harry Holt led all receivers with 159 yards on 6 receptions. "Neon Leon" Bright, playing the final game of his 4-year CFL career with the Lions, returned 3 punts for 88 yards and 1 kickoff for 20. Only 16,676 fans attended the game at Empire Stadium in Vancouver. The loss meant nothing to the Blue Bombers, who had clinched second place; it was just the second loss in their last 10 games.

Baseball
Nippon Series
Hiroshima Toyo Carp 8 @ Kintetsu Buffaloes 3 (Hiroshima won best-of-seven series 4-3)

30 years ago
1990

Television
British Satellite Broadcasting and Sky Television plc merged to form BSkyB as a result of heavy losses.

Economics and finance
The United States Labor Department reported that unemployment had held steady at 5.7% in October, but that the number of payroll jobs had declined by 68,000. The Commerce Department reported that the index of leading economic indicators had fallen 0.8% in September.

25 years ago
1995

Hit parade
#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Gangsta's Paradise--Coolio featuring L.V.

#1 single in Denmark (Nielsen Music Control & IFPI): Tør du la' vær'?--Timm & Gordon (4th week at #1)

Crime
Former South African Defence Minister General Magnus Malan and 10 other former senior military officers were charged with murdering 13 black people in 1987 as part of a conspiracy to create war between the African National Congress (ANC) and the Zulu Inkhata Freedom Party.

Business
A U.S. jury hit Canadian funeral services firm Loewen Group Inc. with $500 million in damages in nuisance civil dispute, leading to the near-collapse of the company.

Baseball
Joe Torre, former manager of the New York Mets, Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals, was named manager of the New York Yankees, replacing Buck Showalter. The Yankees had finished second in the American League East Division in 1995 with a record of 79-65, losing 3 games to 2 to the Seattle Mariners in the AL Division Series.

20 years ago
2000

Died on this date
Eva Morris, 114. U.K. woman. The world’s oldest woman, who attributed her longevity to consumption of whiskey and boiled onions, died six days before her 115th birthday.

Robert Cormier, 75. U.S. journalist and author. Mr. Cormier, a lifelong resident of Massachusetts, wrote for the Fitchburg Sentinel for many years, but was best known for his pessimistic novels for teenagers. His best-known novels were The Chocolate War (1974) and I Am the Cheese (1977). Mr. Cormier died of complications from a blood clot.

Space
The Soyuz TM-31 spacecraft carrying the three-man crew of U.S. Navy Captain William Shepherd and Russian cosmonauts Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev docked with the International Space Station, beginning mission Expedition 1, with Capt. Shepherd as Commander. Less than an hour later they entered the station and began their duties as the station’s first crew. They were to perform maintenance work and remain aboard until February 2001.

Terrorism
A bomb exploded in an outdoor market in West Jerusalem, killing two people and resulting in a delay of a truce between Israeli and Palestinian authorities.

Scandal
Television stations in Maine reported that Texas Governor and Republican Party U.S. presidential candidate George W. Bush had pleaded guilty in 1976 to driving under the influence of alcohol, had paid a $150 fine, and had temporarily lost the right to drive in Maine. Mr. Bush acknowledged the truth of the report.

Disasters
Two 14-year-olds died on "Take Our Kids to Work Day" when the utility vehicle they were driving crashed into a parked truck at the John Deere plant in Welland, Ontario.

Chess
Gary Kasparov’s reign as world champion ended after 15 years when he offered a draw to challenger Vladimir Kramnik in their 15th game, giving Mr. Kramnik the half-point needed to ensure victory. Mr. Kasparov’s only previous notable defeat had been against a computer in 1997.

Baseball
Former Toronto Blue Jays’ catcher and current Blue Jays’ broadcaster Buck Martinez was named the team’s manager, replacing Jim Fregosi. The Blue Jays finished third in the American League East Division in 2000 with a record of 83-79.

10 years ago
2010

Died on this date
Clyde King, 86. U.S. baseball pitcher, coach, and manager. Mr. King played with the Brooklyn Dodgers (1944–1945, 1947–1948, 1951–1952) and Cincinnati Redlegs (1953), compiling a record of 32-25 with an earned run average of 4.14 in 200 games. He was 59-42 with a 3.84 ERA in 182 games in 7 seasons in the minor leagues (1944-1955). Mr. King managed several high-level minor league teams and coached with the Cincinnati Reds (1959) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1965-1967), and then managed the San Francisco Giants (1969-1970) and Atlanta Braves (1974-1975). He spent his later years with the New York Yankees, managing the team for the last 62 games of 1985, finishing his major league managerial career with a record of 234-229, and becoming the only man to manage (outside of All-Star Games) Willie Mays and Hank Aaron. Mr. King performed various functions with the Yankees from 1976 until his death, including serving as the team's general manager (1985-1986).

Politics and government
The Republican Party gained 6 seats in U.S. Senate elections, reducing the Democratic Party's majority to 51-47, with 2 independents who caucused wit the Democrats. The Republicans regained control of the House of Representatives, gaining 63 seats from the Democrats to take a 242-193 majority. In gubernatorial elections, Republicans gained 6 seats at the expense of the Democrats.



Baseball
Nippon Series
Chunichi Dragons 1 @ Chiba Lotte Marines 7 (Chiba led best-of-seven series 2-1)