May 26, 2008

470 years ago
1538

World events
Protestant reformer John Calvin and his followers were expelled from Geneva, Switzerland. Mr. Calvin lived in exile in Strasbourg, France for the next three years.

190 years ago
1818

Died on this date
Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly, 56. Russian military officer and politician. Prince Michael was a Field Marshal in the Imperial Russian Army who was best known for his military reforms and leadership during the 1812 invasion of Russia by French forces commanded by Napoleon Bonaparte. Prince Michael was Governor-General of Finland from 1809-1810. He died while on a visit to Germany.

Manuel Rodríguez Erdoíza, 33. Chilean guerrilla leader. Mr. Rodríguez opposed Spanish rule of Chile, and is regarded as one of the founders of modern Chile. He was assassinated in Til-Til by soliders after being imprisoned on the order of Supreme Director Bernardo O'Higgins, who was largely blamed for the assassination.

140 years ago
1868

Died on this date
Michael Barrett, 26 or 27. Irish nationalist. A Fenian, Mr. Barrett was convicted for his role in the bombing of Clerkenwell prison in December 1867. A bomb was placed in a wheelbarrow outside the prison in an attempt to blow a hole in the wall so that Fenian criminal Richard O’Sullivan-Burke could escape. The bomb was more powerful than expected, and 12 people from the neighbourhood were killed, and over 50 injured. Mr. Barrett was accused of laying the explosive charge in the wheelbarrow. Mr. Barrett was executed outside the walls of Newgate Prison in what turned out to be the last public hanging in Britain. A crowd of 2,000 booed, cheered, and sang Rule Britannia and Champagne Charlie as the trap was sprung. Those were definitely the good old days.

Canadiana
The design of the Great Seal of Canada, with the arms of the four provinces was approved by royal warrant of Queen Victoria.

Politics and government
After previously failing, by one vote, to convict President Andrew Johnson on the 11th article of impeachment, the United States Senate failed by the same margin (35-19) to convict President Johnson on articles 2 and 3. At this point the Senate voted to adjourn the impeachment trial without considering the remaining articles. When President Johnson received the news, he broke into tears. 10 of 11 articles concerned the Tenure and Army Appropriations Acts; the last article claimed that President Johnson had attempted to undermine the Congress.

125 years ago
1883

Died on this date
Abd al-Qadir, 74. Algerian scholar and military leader. Mr. al-Qadir led a number of guerrilla revolts against French colonial rule in the 1830s and 1840s, but eventually had to surrender to superior force. After being exiled to France, Mr. al-Qadir was freed on condition that he not cause further trouble in Algeria. Eventually he made his way to Damascus, devoting himself to Islamic theology and philosophy. In 1860 Mr. al-Qadir saved the lives of large numbers of Christians who were under attack from Druze warriors in Damascus. The French government gave him the Grand Cross of the Légion d'honneur, and Abraham Lincoln sent him several guns in honour of his chivalry. Abd al-Qadir remains a national hero in Algeria.

120 years ago
1888

Baseball
With flawless fielding and 3 hits‚ Hardie Richardson of the Detroit Wolverines starred in a 9-8 win over the Chicago White Stockings. His last hit was a game-winning home run in the 9th inning.

110 years ago
1898

Law
The Judicial Committee of the Imperial Privy Council ruled in London that the government of Canada had sole power to regulate Canada's ocean fisheries.

100 years ago
1908

Born on this date
Eugen Kapp. Estonian composer. Mr. Kapp taught at the Tallinn Conservatory, and was known for his seven operas. He died on October 29, 1996 at the age of 88.

Died on this date
Mirzā Ghulām Ahmad, 73. Indian religious leader. Mr. Ghulam Ahmad founded the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam, claiming to be the promised the promised Messiah and Mahdi, in the likeness of Jesus, and a subordinate prophet within Islam. He denied that Jesus died on the cross, but rather survived crucifixion and went on to die a natural death. Mr. Ghulam Ahmad opposed the use of jihad (holy war) to spread Islam. He died of dysentery, having already acquired 400,000 followers. The Ahmadiyya Movement currently has an estimated 10 million-20 million adherents.

Oil
The first major oil strike in the Middle East took place as Canadian engineers working for British entrepreneur William Knox D'Arcy hit a gusher in Masjid-i-Suleiman in present-day Iran. The rights to the resource were quickly acquired by the Anglo-Persian Oil Company.

90 years ago
1918

Baseball
In a Sunday game before 14,000 fans at Griffith Stadium in Washington‚ the Nationals and Detroit Tigers replayed a 2-2 16-inning tie that had opened their series on May 24. The Nationals, behind the pitching of Walter Johnson, won 4-0‚ allowing 4 hits in 9 innings and extending his scoreless inning streak to 40 and improving his 1918 record to 7-4. The Big Train also had a single‚ triple and a walk in 3 plate appearances‚ to raise his batting average to .323.

The Philadelphia Phillies scored all their runs in the 8th inning to defeat the Cincinnati Reds 4-3 at Redland Field.

80 years ago
1928

Died on this date
Joseph R. Reid. U.S. aviator. Mr. Reid, a reserve air mail pilot, was killed in a plane crash near Richmond, Virginia.

Diplomacy
Japan pledged the United States "most cordial cooperation" in an anti-war treaty.

Education
The 5th U.S. National Oratorical Contest was on in Washington, D.C. by James R. Moore, 17, of Somerset Connecticut. Second was Elliott Norquist, 18, of Kansas City; third was Charles J. Olson, 16, of Worcester, Massachusetts.

Track and field
55 of the 274 entrants who had left Los Angeles on March 4 in a foot race across the United States arrived in New York City. The winner was Andrew Payne of Oklahoma; the runner-up was John Salo of Passaic, New Jersey.

Soccer
The World Cup came into being when Jules Rimet, president of FIFA, soccer's world congress and ruling body, persuaded it to organize a new competition, open to all member nations, beginning in 1930. The Jules Rimet Trophy is given today to each championship team.

70 years ago
1938

Politics and government
The United States House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) began its first session. The committee's chairman was Martin Dies (Democrat--Texas).

75 years ago
1933

Died on this date
Jimmie Rodgers, 35. U.S. musician and songwriter. "The Singing Brakeman" was the first country music star, and is often called "The Father of Country Music." He was also known as "The Blue Yodeler" for such songs as Blue Yodel and Blue Yodel No. 9. Other notable songs of his included Mississippi Delta Blues and Blue Yodel No. 8 (Mule Skinner Blues). Mr. Rodgers battled tuberculosis for years, and died just two days after making his last recordings.

Baseball
Philadelphia Phillies’ outfielder Chuck Klein hit for the cycle for the second time in his career‚ but the Phillies lost to the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 in 14 innings.

70 years ago
1938

Politics and government
The United States House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) began its first session. The committee's chairman was Martin Dies (Democrat--Texas).

70 years ago
1948

Died on this date
Torsten Bergström, 51. Swedish actor. Mr. Bergström was best known as a stage actor with several companies in Stockholm, but also appeared in 32 movies from 1919 until his death.

War
The Arab League in Amman rejected the United Nations Security Council' appeal for a truce in Palestine.

Politics and government
The Herenigde Nasionale Party (Reunited National Party), led by Daniel François Malan, combined with the Afrikaner Party to defeat the governing Union Party of Prime Minister Jan Smuts in the South African general election, with Field Marshal Smuts losing his seat in Standerton, Transvaal. The HNP won 70 of the 153 seats in the House of Assembly, an increase of 27 seats from the most recent election in 1943. The Afrikaner Party, led by Nicolaas Havenga, took 9 seats. The Union Party won 65 seats, a decline of 24 from 1943. The Labour Party, led by John Christie, took 6 seats, and there were three independent candidates elected. The Union Party lost despite taking 49.18% of the vote to 37.70% for the HNP. The UP believed racial integration was inevitable, while the HNP favoured strict segregation, resulting in the implementation of apartheid later in the year.

The Finnish cabinet crisis was resolved when President Juho Paasikivi named leftist Eino Kilpi to replace Yrjo Leino as interior minister, and appointed Communist Hertta Kuusinen as minister without portfolio. Communist leaders cancelled a general strike called on May 22, at the start of the crisis.

Defense
The U.S. Congress passed Public Law 80-557, which permanently established the Civil Air Patrol as an auxiliary of the United States Air Force.

Law
Oklahoma and New Mexico Apaches filed a claim for $8 million against the U.S. government, charging that the tribe had been imprisoned by the Army in Florida, Alabama, and Oklahoma from 1886-1913 and that Apache lands in New Mexico had been given to whites in 1877.

50 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): All I Have to Do is Dream/Claudette--The Everly Brothers (Best Seller--3rd week at #1); All I Have to Do is Dream--The Everly Brothers (Disc Jockey--2nd week at #1; Top 100--2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Del Wertz, 69. U.S. football and baseball player. Dwight Lyman Moody Wertz played football with four teams in the Ohio League from 1912-1914 and was a shortstop with the Buffalo Buffeds of the Federal League in 1914, with no plate appearances, 1 run, and 1 putout in 3 games.

War
French naval forces under Admiral Philippe-Marie Auboyneau put into Algerian ports as a demonstration of support for the Algerian insurrection.

Defense
Four U.S. transports landed in Beirut with tank parts and other equipment for Lebanese forces.

The U.S. Navy atomic submarine USS Skipjack was launched at Groton, Connecticut.

Politics and government
The Venezuelan cabinet of Rear Admiral Wolfgang Larrazabel resigned.

Television
The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee approved a bill granting up to $1 million to each state for educational television facilities.

Transportation
The U.S. Senate passed and sent to President Dwight D. Eisenhower a bill authorizing $10 million to complete the 3,200-mile Inter-American Highway, from the U.S.-Mexican border to Panama.

Baseball
Murry Dickson pitched brilliantly in relief for the Kansas City Athletics and clouted his third career major league home run, a game-ending clout leading off the bottom of the 10th inning, to beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 before 3,833 fans at Municipal Stadium in Kansas City. The veteran pitched 6 2/3 innings of shutout ball, allowing 4 hits and no bases on balls, with 5 strikeouts. Bert Hamric struck out as a pinch hitter for the Orioles in the 6th inning in the 10th and last game of his 2-year major league career.

Eddie Mathews led off the bottom of the 8th inning with a home run to break a 3-3 tie as the Milwaukee Braves edged the Chicago Cubs 4-3 before 16,217 fans at County Stadium in Milwaukee. Frank Torre opened the scoring in the bottom of the 4th inning with a 3-run homer for the Braves.

40 years ago
1968

At the movies
Boom!, directed by Joseph Losey and starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Noel Coward, Joanna Shimkus, and Michael Dunn, opened in theatres.



Died on this date
Doc Ayers, 77. U.S. baseball pitcher. Yancey Wyatt Ayers played with the Washington Nationals (1913-1919) and Detroit Tigers (1919-1921), compiling a record of 64-78 with an earned run average of 2.84 in 299 games, and batted .171 with no home runs and 23 runs batted in. He threw a spitball, and was one of 17 pitchers who was allowed to keep using it after it was outlawed in 1920. Mr. Ayers died five days after his 77th birthday.

Chippy Gaw, 76. U.S. baseball pitcher. George Joseph Gaw played in 6 games with the Chicago Cubs in 1920, posting a record of 1-1 with an earned run average of 4.85, and batting .250 (1 for 4). He was 105-96 in 10 seasons in the minor leagues from 1911-1921.

Little Willie John, 30. U.S. rhythm and blues singer. William Edward John was best known for recording the original version of Fever in 1956, which hit #24 on the Billboard pop singles chart, and #1 on the rhythm and blues chart. Other hits of his included Talk to Me, Talk to Me (#20, 1958) and Sleep (#13, 1960). Mr. John was convicted of manslaughter after a fatal stabbing following a show in Seattle, and died of a heart attack at Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996.

War
The 320th North Vietnamese Division crossed the Demilitarized Zone to attack the allies at Dongha, according to charges made by U.S. Ambassador-at-Large Averell Harriman at the Paris peace talks five days later.

Europeana
Traffic in Iceland changed overnight from driving on the left side of the road to driving on the right side.

Disasters
The Brazilian cargo ship Fernaodias sank 90 miles from Salvador, Brazil; three of 24 aboard were missing.

Golf
Bob Lunn won the Memphis Open with a score of 268. First prize money was $20,000.

Baseball
The New York Yankees swept a doubleheader from the Chicago White Sox before 23,966 fans at Yankee Stadium, winning 5-1 behind Mel Stottlemyre and scoring 6 runs in the 1st inning while taking the second game 7-6‚ with Bill Monboquette the winning pitcher. In the opener‚ Chicago pitcher Gary Peters batted sixth in the order, ahead of catcher Duane Josephson, shortstop Luis Aparicio, and second baseman Tim Cullen. Mr. Peters went 0 for 2, as the White Sox managed just 4 hits. Tom Tresh and Bobby Cox hit home runs for the Yankees in the first game, and Joe Pepitone homered twice for the Yankees in the second game. For Mr. Cox, his homer was his first in the major leagues. Ellie Rodriguez made his major league debut behind the plate for New York in the first game, batting 0 for 3, with 4 putouts and an assist when he threw out Ken Berry trying to steal second base in the 1st inning.



Andy Etchebarren hit a 2 run home run and Curt Motton drove in 3 runs with a double to help the Baltimore Orioles defeat the Washington Senators 8-7 before 22,344 fans at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Fred Valentine hit a solo homer for Washington in the 4th inning and Frank Howard hit his 19th home run of the season, a 3-run blast in the 7th.

Harmon Killebrew led off the bottom of the 9th inning with a home run to tie the score, and 2 outs later, Ted Uhlaender hit a solo home run to give the Minnesota Twins a 5-4 win over the Boston Red Sox before 15,964 fans at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington.

After a Jack Aker pitch hit Detroit's Jim Northrup on the batting helmet in the 6th inning‚ a 15-minute fight erupted before 14,587 fans at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mr. Aker suffered five spike wounds on his right leg, a swollen lip, a cut forehead and a black eye in the brawl and was taken to hospital‚ while a woman in the stands suffered a broken cheekbone when hit by a ball thrown by a Detroit player, after he had been hit by a cup of beer. The Athletics won 7-6 when pinch hitter Rene Lachemann singled home pinch runner Catfish Hunter with 1 out in the bottom of the 10th.

The Philadelphia Phillies scored 3 runs in each of the 1st, 5th, and 9th innings to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 9-3 before 42,446 fans at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. The Phillies opened the scoring when Tony Gonzalez and Johnny Callison led off with singles and Dick Allen followed with a 3-run home run. Woodie Fryman pitched a 10-hit complete game victory, not allowing an earned run.

Willie Stargell led off the top of the 8th inning with a double and scored on a single by Roberto Clemente to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 9-8 lead over the Cincinnati Reds before 9,672 fans at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, but after the Reds made a pitching change and Mr. Clemente stole second base, the game was called after a 54-minute rain delay, with the score reverting to the previous inning, wiping out the statistics in the 8th inning, ending the game in an 8-8 tie. The Pirates trailed 7-2 before scoring 6 runs in the 6th.

Don Drysdale tied a National League record with his fourth straight shutout as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Houston Astros 5-0 before 21,493 fans at the Astrodome. It was Mr. Drysdale's 5th win of the year, all shutouts. He also drove in the first run of the game with a single in the 4th inning, and singled and scored the last run in the 9th.

30 years ago
1978

Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Rivers of Babylon--Boney M. (6th week at #1)

#1 single in France (IFOP): How Deep is Your Love--Bee Gees (6th week at #1)

At the movies
Big Wednesday, directed and co-written by John Milius, and starring Jan-Michael Vincent, William Katt, and Gary Busey, opened in theatres.

Diplomacy
At the United Nations General Assembly special session on disarmament, Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko responded to U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale, saying that the U.S.S.R. was prepared to discuss "substantial" nuclear arms reductions when the SALT II treaty was concluded.

Politics and government
The elections board of the Dominican Republic declared official the results of the May 16 elections, which sent President Joaquin Balaguer down to defeat. Mr. Balaguer and the army, under pressure from the United States, promised to respect the results.

Journalism
It was disclosed that Egyptian President Anwar Sadat had called home 30 Egyptian journalists living abroad to face charges that they had been working "against the national objectives of the Egyptian people."

Abominations
Legalized casino gambling began in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the U.S.A.’s first legal casino outside of Nevada.

Baseball
The St. Louis Cardinals traded pitcher Eric Rasmussen to the San Diego Padres for outfielder George Hendrick. Mr. Rasmussen was 2-5 with an earned run average of 4.20 in 10 games with the Cardinals in 1978, while Mr. Hendrick was batting .243 with 3 home runs and 8 runs batted in in 33 games with the Padres in 1978.

Pinch hitter Jim Spencer hit a grand slam with 1 out in the bottom of the 7th inning to provide the New York Yankees with all their runs as they edged the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 before 24,171 fans at Yankee Stadium. John Mayberry hit a pair of solo homers for the Blue Jays.

Dwight Evans hit a pair of home runs and Jim Rice hit his 16th homer of the season to lead the Boston Red Sox to a 6-3 win over the Detroit Tigers before 33,431 fans at Fenway Park in Boston. Bill Lee went all the way for his 7th win of the year‚ and his 91st as a Red Sox.

Larry Parrish led off the top of the 7th inning with a home run to open the scoring, but Manny Sanguillen responded with a 2-run homer in the bottom of the inning as the Pittsburgh Pirates edged the Montreal Expos 2-1 before 8,816 fans at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. John Candelaria allowed 6 hits and 1 earned run in 7 2/3 innings to win the pitchers' duel over Steve Rogers, who pitched a 4-hit complete game.

Silvio Martinez‚ making his last start for the Springfield Redbirds of the AAA American Association before joining the St. Louis Cardinals‚ pitched a no-hitter to beat the Omaha Royals 4-0.

25 years ago
1983

World events
U.S. President Ronald Reagan said that the previous day’s killing of Lt. Cdr. Albert Schaufelberger, deputy commander of the U.S. Military Group, would not deter the U.S. from supporting the Salvadoran government against leftist guerrillas.

Society
Margaret Bush Wilson, chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), reversed her decision of six days earlier, and reinstated Benjamin Hooks as the NAACP’s executive director. The reversal was apparently made under pressure from other directors.

Disasters
An earthquake and tidal wave on the western coast of Honshu, in Japan, killed at least 81 people. The quake measured 7.7 on the Richter scale.

20 years ago
1988

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Eloise--Tino Casal (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Got to Be Certain--Kylie Minogue

War
The Sandanista government of Nicaragua and the Contra rebels began three days of meetings in Managua. The Contras proposed to lay down their arms if the Sandanistas would declare a general amnesty, remove the police and army from Sandanista control, establish an independent judiciary, guarantee free speech, permit non-governmental television channels, and help prepare for a constituent assembly.

Defense
A condition supported by United States Senate Majority Leader Robert Byrd (Democrat--West Virginia) was attached to the intermediate-range nuclear forces (INF) treaty. The condition established a constitutional Senate authority over the treaty’s interpretation.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Boston 3 @ Edmonton 6 (Edmonton won best-of-seven series 4-0)

Wayne Gretzky's powerplay goal at 9:44 of the 2nd period gave the Oilers a 4-2 lead over the Bruins at Northlands Coliseum, and proved to be the winner as the Oilers won their fourth Stanley Cup championship in the past five years. It turned out to be Mr. Gretzky's last game in an Edmonton uniform after 10 years with the Oilers; he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings on August 9, 1988.

Basketball
NBA
Eastern Conference
Finals
Detroit 115 @ Boston 119 (Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)

10 years ago
1998

Diplomacy
In London, Emperor Akihito of Japan spoke of his "deep sorrow and pain" over the suffering inflicted by his country during World War II, but did not apologize for the treatment of prisoners of war. Earlier, former prisoners of war, angry over Japan’s refusal to offer a full apology and compensation for the suffering inflicted on them, had turned their backs on Emperor Akihito and whistled the wartime anthem Colonel Bogey as he rode with the Queen in a royal carriage down The Mall.

Society
The first "National Sorry Day" was held in Australia, and reconciliation events were held nationally, and attended by over a million people.

Law
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Ellis Island - historic gateway for millions of immigrants - was mainly in New Jersey, not New York.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Western Conference
Finals
Detroit 1 @ Dallas 3 (Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)