April 23, 2011

1,300 years ago
711

Died on this date
Childebert III, 31-33 (?). King of the Franks, 694-711. Childebert III "the Just" acceded to the throne upon the death of his elder brother Clovis IV. King Childebert was succeeded on the throne by his son Dagobert III.

1,140 years ago
871

Died on this date
Æthelred. King of Wessex, 865-871. Æthelred, the fourth of five sons of King Æthelwulf, acceded to the throne upon the death of his elder brother Æthelberht. He had to deal with the invasion of the Viking Great Army, and his forces lost three of four battles in the early months of 871. King Æthelred died shortly after Easter, and was succeeded by his youngest brother Alfred the Great.

870 years ago
1141

Born on this date
Malcolm IV. King of Scots, 1153-1165. Malcolm Canmore was the eldest son of Earl Henry, who was the son of King David I. When Earl Henry died in 1152, Malcolm became the heir to the throne, and succeeded his grandfather. He was known for his religious zeal and interest in knighthood and warfare, but, like his father, suffered from poor health. His death on December 9, 1165 at the age of 24 may have been the result of Paget's disease. Malcolm IV died without heirs and was succeeded by his brother William I.

490 years ago
1521

War
The forces of King Charles I of Spain defeated the Comuneros in the Battle of Villalar.

390 years ago
1621

Born on this date
William Penn. English military officer and politician. Sir William was an admiral in the Royal Navy who fought on the side of Parliament in the First English Civil War, but was also in contact with the Royalists before the Restoration. He represented Weymouth and Melcombe Regis in the Convention Parliament (1660) and the Cavalier Parliament from 1661 until his death on September 16, 1670 at the age of 49. Sir William was owed money by the Crown, but his son William accepted the grant of land in the American colonies in lieu of the money, and founded Pennsylvania.

350 years ago
1661

Britannica
Charles II was crowned King of England, Scotland and Ireland at Westminster Abbey in London.

220 years ago
1791

Born on this date
James Buchanan. 15th President of the United States of America, 1857-1861. Mr. Buchanan, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, held various offices in a political and diplomatic career lasting almost 50 years. He was elected President of the United States in 1856, but proved ineffective in fulfilling his promises and dealing with the threatened secession from the Union of Southern states, and declined to run for re-election. Mr. Buchanan died on June 1, 1868 at the age of 77. He predicted the day before his death that history would vindicate him, but he was mistaken; historians have consistently ranked Mr. Buchanan among the worst American Presidents.

160 years ago
1851

Communications
The Province of Canada's Post office issued Sandford Fleming's three-pence Beaver stamp, the Province's first regular postage stamp and one of the world’s earliest examples of a pictorial stamp. It was part of a series with a 6-penny Prince Albert stamp (issued May 12) and a 12-penny Queen Victoria (issued June 14).

150 years ago
1861

Born on this date
John Peltz. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Peltz was an outfielder with the Indianapolis Hoosiers (1884); Baltimore Orioles (1888); Brooklyn Gladiators (1890); Syracuse Stars (1890); and Toledo Maumees (1890), batting .224 with 4 home runs in 230 games. He played more than 550 games in 9 seasons in the minor leagues (1885-1893), and died on February 27, 1906 at the age of 44.

Edmund Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby. U.K. military officer. Field Marshal Allenby was best known for leading the British Empire's Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the conquest of Palestine against Ottoman forces during World War I in 1917 and 1918. He served as British High Commissioner in Egypt and Sudan from 1919-1925, and died on May 14, 1936, three weeks after his 75th birthday.

120 years ago
1891

Born on this date
Sergei Prokofiev. Russian composer. Mr. Prokofiev was one of the most prominent composers of the 20th century; his works included seven completed operas, seven symphonies, and eight ballets. He died on March 5, 1953 at the age of 61.

War
Balmacedist (Liberal Democratic Party) torpedo boats Almirante Lynch and Almirante Condell sank the Congressional armored frigate Blanco Encalada in the Battle of Caledera Bay, an engagement in the Chilean Civil War.

100 years ago
1911

Born on this date
Ronald Neame. U.K. movie director, producer, cinematographer, and screenwriter. Mr. Neame began his career as a cinematographer, and was nominated for an Academy Award for One of Our Aircraft is Missing (1942). He was associated with director David Lean as producer and screenwriter, and shared Oscar nominations for the screenplays of Brief Encounter (1945) and Great Expectations (1946). Mr. Neame directed movies such as Tunes of Glory (1960) and The Poseidon Adventure (1972). He died on June 16, 2010 at the age of 99 from complications of a broken leg.

75 years ago
1936

Born on this date
Roy Orbison. U.S. singer and songwriter. One of this blogger's favourite singers, the "Big O" had a minor hit on Sun records in 1956 with Ooby Dooby, but it wasn't until Only the Lonely reached #2 in the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1960 (and #1 in the U.K.) that he made it big. At a time when men weren't supposed to cry or show emotion over lost love, Mr. Orbison became very popular, especially with red-blooded heterosexual men, representing those of us who lose or don't get the girl. His hit singles included Running Scared (U.S. #1; U.K. #9, 1961); Crying (U.S. #2, 1961); Dream Baby (U.S. #4; U.K. #2, 1962); In Dreams (U.S. #7; U.K. #6, 1963); It's Over (U.S. #9; U.K. #1, 1964); and Pretty Woman (U.S. #1; U.K. #1, 1964). Mr. Orbison was as popular in Britain as in America, and headlined a British tour with the Beatles in 1963. The deaths of his first wife, Claudette (in a motorcycle crash in 1966) and two of his sons (in a fire at his Tennessee home in 1968 while Mr. Orbison was on the road) combined with a creative decline, and Mr. Orbison's popularity slipped badly. By the late 1980s, Mr. Orbison's career was on the upswing; many of the most popular artists of the time performed with him in a tribute concert in Los Angeles in 1987 which was released on video, and later on record,under the title Roy Orbison: A Black and White Night. In 1988 he was recruited to become one of the Traveling Wilbury's and performed on their Volume One album and their debut single Handle With Care (U.S. #45; Canada #3), while also recording a new album. Mr. Orbison died of a heart attack on December 6, 1988 at the age of 52. You Got It, the debut single from his new album, Mystery Girl, was released in January 1989, reaching #12 in the U.S. and #1 in Canada. The album was released in February and sold well. This blogger's favourite Roy Orbison song is Ride Away, from 1965.

70 years ago
1941

War
Germany admitted that the British rear guard in Greece was still holding the pass at Thermopylae. Waves of German bombers pounded Greek ports and waiting evacuation ships. A Japanese Army spokesman in Shanghai stated that all of the Chinese province of Chekiang south of Shanghai had been occupied by Japanese troops. At an America First Committee meeting in New York, Charles Lindbergh delivered a speech in opposition to American involvement in World War II.

Defense
New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, chairman of the American section of the Canada-U.S. Joint Defense Board, said that the two countries planned to defend their shores 1,000 miles into the Atlantic Ocean. U.S. Navy Secretary Frank Knox announced that 20 of the Navy's "mosquito" boats were being shipped to Britain under the Lend-Lease program.

The Argentine Senate approved a defense bill authorizing the expenditure of 646 million pesos.

Politics and government
The death of a Senator who was a supporter of the government gave Labour a 36-35 edge in the Australian Senate.

Scandal
Former U.S. Ambassador to France William C. Bullitt presented President Franklin D. Roosevelt with evidence that Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles had made homosexual overtures to two railroad porters in September 1940. Mr. Bullitt, who disliked Mr. Welles and was his rival within the State Department, demanded that Mr. Roosevelt dismiss Mr. Welles. Mr. Roosevelt refused, and instead dismissed Mr. Bullitt from the State Department.

Protest
The American Youth Congress claimed 500,000 as the number of students taking part in peace rallies and "strikes" at many colleges throughout the United States.

Journalism
The Boston Evening Transcript announced that it would cease publication on April 30, 1941 after almost 111 years because of insufficient funds.

Health
Professor Russell Wilder of the Mayo Foundation reported that two-thirds of Americans suffered from serious malnutrition because of improper diet lacking in vitamins, minerals, and proteins.

Education
The New York Board of Education voted against a resolution to require teachers and clerks in the school system to state under oath whether they were or are members of the Communist, Nazi, or Fascist parties.

Labour
Michigan Governor Murray Van Wagoner named a three-man mediation committee to try to settle the dispute between General Motors and the United Auto Workers.

Soft coal mine operators in the southern United States broke off negotiations with the United Mine Workers of America for the second time.

60 years ago
1951

On television tonight
Lights Out, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Fonceville Curse, starring Patric Knowles, Rosalind Ivan, Alma Lawton, and Donald Morrison



Died on this date
Charles G. Dawes, 85. 30th Vice President of the United States, 1925-1929. Mr. Dawes, a Republican, was Vice President under President Calvin Coolidge. He was awarded a share of the 1925 Nobel Peace Prize "for the Dawes Plan for German reparations which was seen as having provided the economic underpinning of the Locarno Pact of 1925." Mr. Dawes was also an amateur composer of music, and his Melody in A Major (1912) became a popular instrumental piece, and became a popular hit song under the title It's All in the Game after lyrics were written by Carl Sigman in 1951.

Jules Berry, 68. French actor. Mr. Berry, born Marie Louis Jules Paufichet, appeared in several dozen plays and more than 90 movies in a career spanning more than 40 years. His films included Le Crime de Monsieur Lange (The Crime of Monsieur Lange) (1936) and Les Visiteurs du Soir (The Devil's Envoys) (1942). Mr. Berry died of a heart attackdef caused by treatment for rheumatism.

Married on this date
U.S. war hero and actor Audie Murphy and airline stewardess Pamela Archer in Dallas.

Literature
Return to Paradise, James A. Michener's second book about the South Pacific, was published in New York by Random House.

War
South Africa announced that it would withdraw its forces from Korea if if the United Nations command invaded China.

Communications
In Charlotte, North Carolina, Associated Press installed the first teletypesetter circuit operated by a news agency.

Journalism
Associated Press bureau chief William N. Oatis was arrested for espionage by the Communist government of Czechoslovakia. Deprived of sleep and subjected to continuous interrogation for 42 hours, he signed a statement confessing to the charge of espionage.

Defense
Washington Post columnist Drew Pearson reported the development of an atomic cannon which would go into production for the U.S. Army in three to five months.

Politics and government
The day after the resignation of Labour Minister Aneurin Bevan, Board of Trade President Harold Wilson resigned from the cabinet of British Prime Minister Clement Attlee.

The U.S. Subversive Activities Control Board began hearings in Washington to determine whether the Communist Party must register as a Soviet-controlled agency under the 1950 Internal Security Act.

Africana
Maiali, who had ruled the Balobedu tribe in South Africa for 53 years, defied tribal tradition by refusing to commit suicide by taking poison on her 80th birthday.

40 years ago
1971

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): The Pushbike Song--The Mixtures (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): (I Never Promised You a) Rose Garden--Lynn Anderson (2nd week at #1)

South Africa's Top 10 (Springbok Radio)
1 A Summer Prayer for Peace--The Archies (4th week at #1)
2 Home--Dave Mills
3 Have You Ever Seen the Rain--Creedence Clearwater Revival
4 Knock Three Times--Dawn
5 What is Life--George Harrison
6 Silver Moon--Michael Nesmith & the First National Band
7 She’s a Lady--Tom Jones
8 My Sweet Lord--George Harrison
9 Understanding--Peanutbutter Conspiracy
10 Pushbike Song--The Mixtures

Singles entering the chart were Put Your Hand in the Hand by Alan Garrity (#19); and Theme from Love Story by Francis Lai and his Orchestra (#20).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 Joy to the World--Three Dog Night
2 I Am...I Said--Neil Diamond
3 Another Day--Paul McCartney
4 I was Wondering--The Poppy Family
5 Chick-A-Boom (Don't Ya Jes' Love It)--Daddy Dewdrop
6 A Country Boy Named Willy--Spring
7 Timothy--The Buoys
8 Oh What a Feeling--Crowbar
9 If--Bread
10 Friends/Honey Roll--Elton John

Singles entering the chart were It Takes Time by Anne Murray (#24); Superstar by Murray Head with the Trinidad Singers (#27); Toast and Marmalade for Tea by Tin Tin (#28); Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian) by the Raiders (#29); and Lucky Man by Emerson, Lake & Palmer (#30).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKVN)
1 Joy to the World--Three Dog Night
2 A Country Boy Named Willy--Spring
3 Power to the People--John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
4 Broken/Albert Flasher--The Guess Who
5 Another Day/Oh Woman, Oh Why--Paul McCartney
6 Lucky Man--Emerson, Lake & Palmer
7 I was Wondering--The Poppy Family
8 Friends--Elton John
9 Sweet Mary--Argent
10 One Toke Over the Line--Brewer and Shipley

Singles entering the chart were Chick-A-Boom (Don't Ya Jes' Love It) by Daddy Dewdrop (#11); Brown Sugar by the Rolling Stones (#24); Me and You and a Dog Named Boo by Lobo (#27); and Lay it Down by Lonnie Mack (#30).

Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Where Evil Grows--The Poppy Family
2 I Am...I Said--Neil Diamond
3 Jodie--Joey Gregorash
4 She’s a Lady--Tom Jones
5 A Country Boy Named Willy--Spring
6 Friends--Elton John
7 Tillicum--Syrinx
8 Hats Off to the Stranger--Lighthouse
9 Joy to the World--Three Dog Night
10 Woodstock--Matthews’ Southern Comfort

Music
The album Sticky Fingers by the Rolling Stones was released, the first to be issued on their own Rolling Stones label.

Abominations
The Pakistan Army and Razakar collaborators massacred approximately 3,000 Hindu emigrants in the Jathibhanga area of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).

Baseball
Ken Singleton singled home Tommie Agee from second base with 2 out in the top of the 12th inning to break a 6-6 tie as the New York Mets edged the Chicago Cubs 7-6 before 8,418 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Mr. Singleton hit his first home run of the season, a 2-run blast off Ken Holtzman, in the 4th inning. Chicago first baseman Hal Breeden led off the bottom of the 6th inning with his first major league home run, and his only homer in a Chicago uniform. Nolan Ryan (1-0), the fifth and last New York pitcher, pitched 2 scoreless innings to get the win. Charlie Williams relieved New York starting pitcher Jerry Koosman and allowed 4 hits and 2 runs--both earned--in 2.2 innings, walking 1 batter and striking out none, striking out in both his plate appearances in his first major league game.

30 years ago
1981

Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 12 (CHED)
1 Morning Train (Nine to Five)--Sheena Easton
2 Kiss on My List--Daryl Hall & John Oates
3 Take it on the Run--REO Speedwagon
4 Angel of the Morning--Juice Newton
5 Ain’t Even Done with the Night--John Cougar
6 While You See a Chance--Steve Winwood
7 Turning Japanese--The Vapors
8 Her Town Too--James Taylor and J.D. Souther
9 Crying--Don McLean
10 Another One Rides the Bus--"Weird Al" Yankovic
11 Rapture--Blondie
12 High School Confidential--Rough Trade

Died on this date
Josep Pla, 84. Spanish journalist. Josep Pla i Casadevall, a native of Catalonia, was a member of the Catalan Parliament as a member of the Lliga Regionalista (Regionalist League) (1921-1924) before being expelled by Spanish dictator Primo Rivera and living in exile for several years. He returned to Madrid when the Republic of Spain was proclaimed in 1931, and wrote features about Parliament for the next five years. Mr. Pla abandoned Madrid several years before the beginning of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, and spent most of the rest of his life abroad in various countries, becoming known for his travel books. He eventually returned to Catalonia, where he died.

Politics and government
The Canadian House of Commons approved the final draft of Canada's proposed new constitution.

Baseball
PCL
Tacoma 11 @ Edmonton 9

This was the Trappers’ first loss at Renfrew Park.

25 years ago
1986

Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Dover-Calais--Style (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Harold Arlen, 81. U.S. songwriter. Mr. Arlen, born Hyman Arluck, wrote the music for over 500 songs, including such standards as Get Happy; Stormy Weather; and Blues in the Night. He and lyricist E.Y. Harburg won the Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song for Over the Rainbow, from The Wizard of Oz (1939).

Otto Preminger, 80. Austro-Hungarian-born U.S. movie director. Mr. Preminger first achieved major success with the film noir drama Laura (1944), but was best known for directing movies that challenged Hollywood taboos and censorship. His films included Forever Amber (1947); The Moon is Blue (1953); The Man with the Golden Arm (1955); and Anatomy of a Murder (1959). He also acted in several movies, most notably Stalag 17 (1953).

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Division Finals
Montreal 1 @ Hartford 2 (OT) (Best-of-seven series tied 2-2)
Washington 5 @ New York Rangers 6 (OT) (Best-of-seven series tied 2-2)

20 years ago
1991

Adventure
31-year-old French yachtsman Christophe Auguin won the 27,000-mile, eight-month-long BOC solo race around the world aboard the 60-foot-long sailboat Groupe Sceta. Mr. Auguin’s closest rival, Alain Gautier, stalled just 212 miles from the finish.

Labour
Quebec Treasury Board President Daniel Johnson persuaded provincial civil servants to take a six-month pay freeze.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Division Finals
Boston 2 @ Montreal 6 (Best-of-seven series tied 2-2)
Pittsburgh 3 @ Washington 1 (Pittsburgh led best-of-seven series 3-1)

Baseball
The Philadelphia Phillies, who had started the season with a record of 4-9, fired Nick Leyva as manager and replaced him with Jim Fregosi. Mr. Fregosi’s debut as Philadelphia manager was a 2-1 loss to the New York Mets before 20,187 fans at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

10 years ago
2001

Crime
Jane Andrews, a former personal assistant to the Duchess of York, went on trial for the murder of her boyfriend.