Tuesday 30 June 2015

June 30, 2015

230 years ago
1785


Died on this date
James Oglethorpe, 88
. U.K. military officer and politician. Mr. Oglethorpe was a general who fought with Holy Roman Empire forces in the Austro-Turkish War (1716-1718) before returning to England. A Tory, he represented Haslemere in the House of Commons (1722-1754). As chairman of the Gaols Committee in 1729, he recommended creating a buffer colony in British North America between the Carolinas and Florida, to be settled by those released from debtors' prisons. Mr. Oglethorpe thus founded Georgia, serving as its first Governor (1732-1743). He returned to England after an unsuccessful siege of St. Augustine, Florida, was unsuccessful in leading British troops in the Jacobite rising of 1745, and served undercover in the Prussian Army during the Seven Years' War.

210 years ago
1805


Americana
The United States Congress organized the Michigan Territory.

125 years ago
1890


Born on this date
Paul Boffa
. Prime Minister of Malta, 1947-1950. Sir Paul joined the Labour Party in 1923, and became the party's leader in 1927. When the Labour Party won the 1947 general election, Sir Paul served as Prime Minister until Labour lost the 1950 election, and kept his seat in parliament until his retirement in 1955. Sir Paul died on July 6, 1962, six days after his 72nd birthday.

Died on this date
Samuel Parkman Tuckerman, 71
. U.S. composer. Mr. Tuckerman was an Episcopal Church organist who composed sacred music, dividing his time between the United States and England.

110 years ago
1905


Science
The German journal Annalen der Physik published the article On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies by Albert Einstein, in which he introduced his theory of special relativity.

100 years ago
1915


Born on this date
Roberto Ortiz
. Cuban-born baseball player. Mr. Ortiz was an outfielder with the Washington Nationals (1941-1944, 1949-1950) and Philadelphia Athletics (1950), batting .255 with 8 home runs and 78 runs batted in in 213 games. He hit .296 with 50 homers in 732 games in 8 seasons in the minor leagues (1939-1942, 1951-1954), and hit at least 7 home runs in at least 120 games in 7 seasons in the Mexican League (1945-1948, 1952-1956). Mr. Ortiz had a 35-game hitting streak in 1948, which stood as the Mexican League record until 2000. He died in Miami on September 15, 1971 at the age of 56.

80 years ago
1935


Baseball
The Detroit Tigers swept a doubleheader from the St. Louis Browns at Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis by scores of 18-1 and 11-6. Detroit leadoff hitter Pete Fox had 3 hits, including a grand slam, scored 4 runs, and drove in 6 in the first game. He followed that with 5 hits, 4 runs, and 4 RBIs in the second game. Schoolboy Rowe and General Crowder were the respective winning pitchers.

Hal Lee batted 4 for 5 with 2 triples, 2 runs, and 3 runs batted in as the Boston Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 9-3 in the first game of a doubleheader at Braves Field. Syl Johnson won his 8th straight game as the Phillies won the second game 15-5.

The Philadelphia Athletics hit 4 consecutive singles with none out in the bottom of the 9th to score 2 runs to defeat the Boston Red Sox 10-9 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. The Red Sox had scored 4 runs in the top of the 9th to take a 9-8 lead.

75 years ago
1940


Politics and government
The government of France moved from Bordeaux to Clermont-Ferrand.

Protest
German decrees published in Paris provided the death penalty for any act of violence against the occupying German forces.

70 years ago
1945


Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): It Could Happen to You--Bing Crosby; Dinah Shore (1st month at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Sentimental Journey--Les Brown and his Orchestra (vocal chorus by Doris Day) (Best Seller--6th week at #1; Airplay--3rd week at #1; Juke Box--3rd week at #1; Honor Roll of Hits--5th week at #1)

War
American patrols completed their occupation of Kume Island, westernmost of the Okinawa group. Chinese troops captured he burning city of Luchow in the province of Kwangsi.

World events
A Tokyo broadcast said that the Japanese had changed the name of Anham, French Indochina to Vietnam.

Diplomacy
Chinese Premier T.V. Soong arrived in Moscow to confer with Soviet dictator Josef Stalin.

Politics and government
Clinton Anderson, Lewis Schwellenbach, Thomas Clark, and Robert Hannegan were sworn in respectively as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture; Secretary of Labor; Attorney General; and Postmaster General. U.S. President Harry Truman nominated James Byrnes to be Secretary of State to replace Edward Stettinius, who had resigned in order to head the U.S. delegation to the United Nations.

U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities member John Rankin (Democrat--Mississippi) charged that Hollywood "is the greatest hotbed of subversive activities" in the United States.

Labour
The U.S. Senate passed the bill to continue the Fair Employment Practices Commission, allocating it $250,000.

60 years ago
1955


Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Ganz Paris träumt von der Liebe--Caterina Valente (4th month at #1)

50 years ago
1965


At the movies
Tickle Me, starring Elvis Presley, Julie Adams, and Jocelyn Lane, opened in theatres.



Died on this date
William Dudley Pelley, 75
. U.S. writer and political activist. Mr. Pelley was a journalist and writer of novels, short stories, and screenplays, who claimed to have a near-death experience in 1928 in which he saw God and Jesus Christ and received a commission to undertake the spiritual transformation of America. His travels in Russia as a correspondent during the Russian Civil War had left him with a hatred of Communism, and the beginning of the Depression in 1929 and Adolf Hitler's rise to power in Germany in 1933 led Mr. Pelley to create the Silver Legion of America, also known as "Silver Shirts," an extremist organization whose ideology included anti-Semitism, isolationism, pyramidology, and British Israelism. Mr. Pelley founded the Christian Party and ran as its candidate for President of the United States in 1936. Mr. Pelley's criticism of the U.S. administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, especially in the aftermath of the December 7, 1941 attack by Japanese forces on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, led to charges of high treason and sedition against Mr. Pelley. The Silver Legion disappeared into obscurity as Mr. Pelley was imprisoned until being granted parole in 1952. Mr. Pelley became increasingly obscure as the years went on, and was almost completely forgotten by the time of his death.

Music
The Beatles continued their European tour with a concert at Palais des Expositions in Nice.

Football
NFL
Atlanta was awarded a franchise, with Rankin Smith as owner, to begin play in the 1966 season.

40 years ago
1975


Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): January--Pilot (6th week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Kakkoman Boogie / Minato no Yoko Yokohama Yokosuka--Down Town Boogie Woogie Band (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Bella Sin Alma--Richard Cocciante (2nd week at #1)

On television today
Summer of '75, on CBC

This daytime talk show ran during the summer in the time slot formerly occupied by Elwood Glover's Luncheon Date, which had broadcast its last program three days earlier. In honour of International Women's Year, Summer of '75 was hosted by various women for a week at a time, with actress Jayne Eastwood hosting the first week.

Died on this date
Charles Roberts, 22
. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Roberts was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1970, but began his professional career with the Chicago White Sox' farm team in the Rookie classification Gulf Coast League in 1971, playing 1 game with them before playing 8 games with the St. Louis Cardinals' team in the same league; both teams were based in Bradenton, Florida. He started 6 of his 9 games, posting a record of 0-3 with an earned run average of 2.93, with 34 strikeouts in 43 innings, and batting .214 with a double and a run batted in. Mr. Roberts played just once after that, appearing with the St. Petersburg Cardinals of the Class A Florida State League in 1973, and striking out the only 2 batters he faced. Mr. Roberts was shot to death at the home of a relative in Seattle.

Boxing
Muhammad Ali (48-2) retained his world heavyweight title with a unanimous 15-round decision over Joe Bugner (51-7-1) before a crowd estimated at 22,000 at Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Hours after the fight, Mr. Ali, former world champion Joe Frazier, and promoter Don King appeared at a press conference to announce that the two fighters would meet on October 1 for what Mr. Ali was already calling the "thrilla in Manila."



Carlos Monzon (84-3-9) retained his world middleweight title with a technical knockout of Tony Licata (49-2-3) at 2:43 of the 10th round at Madison Square Garden in New York. On the same card, Victor Galindez (38-6-4) retained his World Boxing Association world light heavyweight title with a unanimous 15-round decision over Jorge Victor Ahumada (41-7-2). It was Mr. Galindez's fourth victory in five fights against Mr. Ahumada.





Baseball
The Atlanta Braves purchased pitcher Bruce Dal Canton from the Kansas City Royals, with the transaction to be completed later. He was 0-2 with an earned run average of 15.00 in 4 games with Kansas City in 1975.

The California Angels released catcher Tom Egan, ending his career. Mr. Egan was batting .229 with no home runs and 3 runs batted in in 28 games with the Angels in 1975. In 11 major league seasons with the Angels and Chicago White Sox, Mr. Egan batted .200 with 22 home runs and 91 runs batted in in 373 games.

The Cleveland Indians signed first baseman and catcher Bill Sudakis, a week after he had been released by the California Angels; to make room for him, the Indians released first baseman Tom McCraw and signed him as a coach. Mr. Sudakis had batted just .121 with 1 home run and 6 runs batted in in 30 games with the Angels in 1975. Mr. McCraw was batting .275 with 2 homers and 5 RBIs in 23 games.

The Portland Mavericks defeated the Bellingham Dodgers 8-3 in a Northwest League game before 16,464 fans at Civic Stadium in Portland, which was believed to be a record crowd for a Class A game.

30 years ago
1985


Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): That Ole Devil Called Love--Alison Moyet (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in France (SNEP): Éthiopie--Chanteurs sans Frontières (6th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: 19--Paul Hardcastle (3rd week at #1)

Died on this date
Haruo Remeliik, 52
. 1st President of Palau, 1981-1985. Mr. Remeliik was President of the Republic of Palau until he was shot to death in the driveway of his home by an unknown assailant. Vice President Thomas Remengesau briefly replaced him as acting President.

Terrorism
All 39 captives from the hijacked TWA Flight 847 being held by the Shia Muslim Amal in Lebanon were released after almost three weeks of captivity, after intervention by Syrian President Hafez al-Assad.

25 years ago
1990


Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): All I Wanna Do is Make Love to You--Heart (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Un' Estate Italiana--Edoardo Bennato; Gianna Nannini (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Infinity (1990's... Time for the Guru)--Guru Josh (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Flanders (Ultratop 50): What's a Woman?--Vaya Con Dios (6th week at #1)

#1 single in France (SNEP): Maldòn--Zouk Machine (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (CIN): Sacrifice/Healing Hands--Elton John (2nd week at #1)

Netherlands Top 10 (De Nederlandse Top 40)
1 What's a Woman?--Vaya Con Dios (2nd week at #1)
2 Still Got the Blues (For You)--Gary Moore
3 Dirty Cash--Adventures of Stevie V
4 At this Moment/Emozioni--Marco Borsato
5 Saxuality--Candy Dulfer
6 I Promised Myself--Nick Kamen
7 Ooops Up--Snap!
8 Paint it Black--The Rolling Stones
9 Back by Dope Demand--King Bee
10 Hijo de la Luna--Mecano

Singles entering the chart were Way Down Now by World Party (#25); Step by Step by New Kids on the Block (#27); Take Your Time by Mantronix featuring Wondress (#28); It Must Have Been Love by Roxette (#29); and Mooi was die Tijd by Corry Konings (#37).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 Step by Step--New Kids on the Block
2 It Must Have Been Love--Roxette
3 Poison--Bell Biv DeVoe
4 Do You Remember?--Phil Collins
5 Hold On--Wilson Phillips
6 Hold On--En Vogue
7 Ready Or Not--After 7
8 I'll Be Your Shelter--Taylor Dayne
9 She Ain't Worth It--Glenn Medeiros featuring Bobby Brown
10 Cradle of Love--Billy Idol

Singles entering the chart were Hanky Panky by Madonna (#40); Have You Seen Her by M.C. Hammer (#63); Jerk Out by the Time (#65); Love and Emotion by Stevie B (#70); Release Me by Wilson Phillips (#76); Cuts Both Ways by Gloria Estefan (#83); Close to You by Maxi Priest (#87); Tic-Tac-Toe by Kyper (#91); Do Me! by Bell Biv DeVoe (#92); Come Back to Me by Janet Jackson (#93); I'm Never Gonna Give You Up by the Brat Pack (#94); and A Dreams a Dream by Soul II Soul (#95).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Step By Step--New Kids on the Block (2nd week at #1)
2 It Must Have Been Love--Roxette
3 Poison--Bell Biv DeVoe
4 Do You Remember?--Phil Collins
5 Ready Or Not--After 7
6 Hold On--Wilson Phillips
7 Hold On--En Vogue
8 I’ll Be Your Shelter--Taylor Dayne
9 Vogue--Madonna
10 U Can’t Touch This--M.C. Hammer

Singles entering the chart were Release Me by Wilson Phillips (#54); Jerk Out by the Time (#57); The Girl I Used to Know by Brother Beyond (#59); Have You Seen Her by M.C. Hammer (#63); Cuts Both Ways by Gloria Estefan (#67); We're All in the Same Gang by West Coast Rap All-Stars (#72); Talk to Me by Anita Baker (#76); and I Melt with You by Modern English (#85).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Vogue--Madonna (3rd week at #1)
2 It Must Have Been Love--Roxette
3 Do You Remember?--Phil Collins
4 All I Wanna Do is Make Love to You--Heart
5 Hold On--Wilson Phillips
6 Baby It's Tonight--Jude Cole
7 Step by Step--New Kids on the Block
8 Dangerous Times--Sue Medley
9 Children of the Night--Richard Marx
10 Cradle of Love--Billy Idol

Singles entering the chart were Child of the Wild Blue Yonder by John Hiatt (#67); Haunted Heart by Alias (#75); Your Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night by Robert Plant (#80); Walk on the Wild Side by Layman Twaist (#82); I Didn't Want to Need You by Heart (#83); 'Cause Cheap is How I Feel by Cowboy Junkies (#88); Bang On by Sheree (#89); Hanky Panky by Madonna (#92); Through the Test of Time by Patti Austin (#97); and Licence to Love by Andy Curran (#98).

Diplomacy
South African Communist terrorist Nelson Mandela ended his tour of the United States after visiting New York; Washington; Atlanta; Miami; Detroit; Los Angeles; and Oakland.

Law
Chief Justice Brian Dickson retired from the Supreme Court of Canada; he joined the Court in 1973, and replaced Bora Laskin as Chief Justice in 1984.

Baseball
The New York Yankees, who had lost 1-0 to the Chicago White Sox the previous day, scored 4 runs in the top of the 1st inning and went on to beat the White Sox 10-7 before 38,078 fans at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Jim Leyritz hit 2 home runs and a single for the Yankees, who outhit the White Sox 16-14. Sammy Sosa homered and tripled for Chicago.

20 years ago
1995


Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Se på mej--Jan Johansen (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Boom Boom Boom--The Outhere Brothers

At the movies
Apollo 13, directed by Ron Howard and starring Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, and Ed Harris, opened in theatres.



Died on this date
Gale Gordon, 89
. U.S. actor. Mr. Gordon, born Charles Thomas Aldrich, Jr., was a popular character actor in radio from the 1930s through the 1950s before achieving success in television. He played Madison High School principal Osgood Conklin on the radio (1948-1957) and television (1952-1956) comedy series Our Miss Brooks. He was probably best known for his roles in support of Lucille Ball in the television comedy series The Lucy Show (1963-1968) and Here's Lucy (1968-1974), and also appeared in Life with Lucy (1986).

Georgy Beregovoy, 74. U.S.S.R. cosmonaut. Lieutenant General Beregovoy became the oldest man yet to go into space when, at the age of 47, he flew the Soyuz 3 mission from October 26-30, 1968.

Phyllis Hyman, 45. U.S. singer and actress. Miss Hyman was a jazz singer who had some success on the rhythm and blues charts with several albums and singles from the late 1970s through the early 1990s. She also appeared in several movies and Broadway musicals. Miss Hyman committed suicide with an overdose of pills, six days before her 46th birthday.

Politics and government
Russian President Boris Yeltsin dismissed three of his cabinet ministers for their alleged failures in connection with the crisis in the town of Budyonnovsk, where Chechen rebels had taken almost 2,000 hostages in a hospital, agreeing on June 19 to free them as part of the beginning of peace talks.

Football
CFL
Hamilton (1-0) 37 @ Saskatchewan (0-1) 16
Baltimore (0-1) 34 @ British Columbia (1-0) 37

Anthony Calvillo, playing his first game in a Hamilton uniform, completed touchdown passes of 17 yards to Earl Winfield and 73 yards to Kalin Hall, and handed off to Mr. Hall an Lee Knight for touchdowns as the Tiger-Cats beat the Roughriders before 23,396 fans at Taylor Field in Regina.

Cory Philpot rushed 2 yards for his third touchdown of the game with 15 seconds remaining in regulation time to give the Lions their win over the Stallions before 23,999 fans at B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver in a rematch of the 1994 Grey Cup teams.

10 years ago
2005


Abominations
Spain legalized sodomite/lesbian marriage.

Football
CFL
Edmonton (2-0) 27 @ Winnipeg (0-2) 8

Mike Bradley rushed 60 yards for a touchdown in the 1st quarter and Ricky Ray completed a team-record 105-yard touchdown pass to Jason Tucker early in the 3rd quarter as the Eskimos defeated the Blue Bombers before 22,087 fans at Canad Inns Stadium. Mr. Ray completed 28 of 40 passes for 469 yards, and added a 19-yard TD pass to Mookie Mitchell with 2:10 remaining in the game.

Monday 29 June 2015

June 29, 2015

130 years ago
1885

Baseball

In an American Association game, Guy Hecker went the distance, striking out 8 batters in 13 innings while batting 3 for 6 and scoring the winning run as the Louisville Colonels edged the Pittsburgh Alleghenys 4-3 at Recreation Park in Pittsburgh.

120 years ago
1895


Died on this date
Thomas Henry Huxley, 70
. U.K. biologist. Professor Huxley was regarded as perhaps the best comparative anatomist of his time, but was best known as the premier public advocate of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, earning him the nickname "Darwin's Bulldog." He was credited with coining the term "agnosticism" in 1889. Prof. Huxley died of a heart attack after contracting influenza and pneumonia.

Floriano Peixoto, 56. 2nd President of Brazil, 1891-1894. Marshal Peixoto, nicknamed "The Iron Marshal," served in the Paraguayan War, and served as President of Mato Grosso Province (1884-1885) and Minister of War (1890-1891) before taking office as Vice President in February 1891. He acceded to the presidency in November 1891 upon the resignation of President Deodoro da Fonseca. Marshal Peixoto ran a centralized and authoritarian regime, and had to deal with several military rebellions. He resigned the presidency in November 1894, and died from cirrhosis of the liver.

100 years ago
1915


Edmontonia
The North Saskatchewan River flood of 1915 became the worst flood in Edmonton's history, causing at least $500,000 in damage and leaving 200 people homeless.

Boxing
Sam McVey (54-9-5) won a 12-round decision over Sam Langford (94-10-2) at Atlas Athletic Association in Boston to win a share of the world "colored" heavyweight title.

90 years ago
1925


Diplomacy
King George V opened Canada House, the new headquarters for the Canadian High Commission, in London's Trafalgar Square.

80 years ago
1935


Died on this date
Jack O'Neill, 62
. Irish-born U.S. baseball player. One of four brothers who played in the major leagues, Mr. O'Neill was a catcher with the St. Louis Cardinals (1902-1903); Chicago Cubs (1904-1905); and Boston Beaneaters (1906), batting .196 with 1 home run and 74 runs batted in 303 games.

75 years ago
1940


Died on this date
Paul Klee, 60
. Swiss artist. Mr. Klee's paintings reflected expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. He died of scleroderma.

Diplomacy
Mexico presented the United States government with $1 million as partial payment for American lands expropriated since August 30, 1927.

Politics and government
Hassan Sabry Pasha formed a coalition cabinet in Egypt which included all parties except the Waldists.

U.S. Senator Edwin Johnson (Democrat--Colorado) said that only fellow Senator Burton K. Wheeler (Democrat--Montana) could defeat Republican candidate Wendell Willkie in the 1940 election for President of the United States.

Law
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Alien Registration Act, providing for compulsory registration and fingerprinting of all aliens.

U.S. President Roosevelt signed a law granting the U.S. Supreme Court the authority to prescribe rules of pleading, practice, and procedure with respect to criminal cases in the district courts.

Energy
Westinghouse Laboratories announced the discovery that gamma rays could release energy from uranium.

Track and field
Cornelius Warmerdam set a world record of 15 feet 1 1/8 inches (4.60 metres) in the pole vault at the U.S. National Amateur Athletic Union meet in Fresno, California.

70 years ago
1945


War
U.S. bombers attacked the Japanese naval base at Sasebo on the island of Kyushu. The port of Shiogama was closed by mines dropped from the air.

Abominations
Carpathian Ruthenia was annexed by the U.S.S.R. as the result of an agreement signed with Czechoslovakia.

The Panamanian cabinet approved a break in relations with Spain, effective for as long as Spain was governed by the regime of Generalissimo Francisco Franco.

Defense
Acting U.S. Secretary of State Joseph Grew revealed that the United States had leased bases in Newfoundland in June 1941 for 99 years.

Politics and government
After failing to agree on a list of ministers for the new Indian cabinet, the All-India Congress and Moslem League notified British Viceroy Viscount Wavell to recess the Simla Conference until July 14, 1945.

Chinese Communists approved the visit of a seven-member non-partisan commission to Yenan for the purpose of discussing Communist-Nationalist differences.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed and sent to the Senate President Harry Truman's presidential succession bill.

Economics and finance
The U.S. Office of Price Administration said that used 1942 automobiles could be sold on an unrationed basis beginning July 2, 1945.

50 years ago
1965


Died on this date
Eric Backman, 69
. Swedish runner. Mr. Backman was a long-distance runner who won a silver medal in the individual cross country event and bronze medals in the cross-country team, 3,000-metre team, and 5,000-metre events.

Scandal
Quebec Chief Justice Frédéric Dorion issued a report showing official bribery to free a suspected drug smuggler. The report led to the resignation of federal Justice Minister Guy Favreau.

40 years ago
1975


Died on this date
Tim Buckley, 28
. U.S. musician. Mr. Buckley was a singer-songwriter who experimented with various styles of music, which tended to result in him having a cult following rather than a popular following. His albums included Goodbye and Hello (1967) and Happy Sad (1968). Mr. Buckley died of a heroin overdose.

Technology
Steve Wozniak tested his first prototype of the Apple I computer.

30 years ago
1985


Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (FIMI): A View to a Kill--Duran Duran

#1 single in Flanders (Ultratop 50): 19--Paul Hardcastle (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): 19--Paul Hardcastle

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Frankie--Sister Sledge

#1 single in the U.K.: Frankie--Sister Sledge

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Heaven--Bryan Adams (2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Sussudio--Phil Collins
2 Heaven--Bryan Adams
3 A View to a Kill--Duran Duran
4 Everybody Wants to Rule the World--Tears for Fears
5 Raspberry Beret--Prince and the Revolution
6 In My House--Mary Jane Girls
7 Angel--Madonna
8 Suddenly--Billy Ocean
9 Things Can Only Get Better--Howard Jones
10 Would I Lie to You?--Eurythmics

Singles entering the chart were The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and the News (#42); Summer of '69 by Bryan Adams (#55); St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion) by John Parr (#78); and Tired of Being Blonde by Carly Simon (#83). The Power of Love was from the movie Back to the Future (1985). St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion) was the title song of the movie.

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 A View to a Kill--Duran Duran
2 Everybody Wants to Rule the World--Tears for Fears
3 Walking On Sunshine--Katrina and the Waves
4 Black Cars--Gino Vannelli
5 Axel F--Harold Faltermeyer
6 Would I Lie to You?--Eurythmics
7 Suddenly--Billy Ocean
8 Angel--Madonna
9 Things Can Only Get Better--Howard Jones
10 Sussudio--Phil Collins

Singles entering the chart were The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and the News (#68); Like a Surgeon by "Weird Al" Yankovic (#72); Road to Nowhere by the Talking Heads (#88); Tight Connection to My Heart (Has Anybody Seen My Love) by Bob Dylan (#93); Summer of '69 by Bryan Adams (#95); Little by Little by Robert Plant (#96); Freeway of Love by Aretha Franklin (#97); People are People by Depeche Mode (#98); and Exception of Love by the Truth (#99).

Popular culture
Vancouver, British Columbia businessman Jim Pattison paid $2.229,000 for a yellow Rolls-Royce formerly owned by the Beatles.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Ottawa (1-3) 14 @ Hamilton (1-3) 33

1985 marked the last year in which CFL teams each played 4 pre-season games. In 1986 the pre-season was shortened to 2 games, while the regular season was extended from 16 to 18 games.

25 years ago
1990


Died on this date
Irving Wallace, 74
. U.S. writer. Mr. Wallace wrote novels such as The Chapman Report (1960); The Prize (1962); and The Word (1972), and collaborated with his son David Wallechinsky on three volumes of The People's Almanac (1975-1981) and with his daughter Amy Wallace and Mr. Wallechinsky on three volumes of The Book of Lists (1977-1983).

Diplomacy
The Lithuanian parliament agreed to suspend its declaration of independence for 100 days in exchange for an agreement by the Soviet government to negotiate on the issue and end economic sanctions.

Politics and government
Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa said that he would work with Parti Quebecois leader Jacques Parizeau to establish a non-partisan commission to consider Quebec's political future in the wake of the recent collapse of the Meech Lake Canadian constitutional accord.

Scandal
Progressive Conservative member of Parliament Gilles Bernier (Beauce) and former PC MP Richard Grise (Chambly) were charged by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police with two counts of fraud and breach of trust in connection with two contracts, whereby they hired each other's relatives for bogus jobs. Mr. Bernier was acquitted in April 1994, while Mr. Grise pled guilty to two counts of breach of trust and was fined $5,000.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Ottawa (1-0) 26 @ Saskatchewan (0-2) 23

Baseball
Dave Stewart pitched the first no-hitter at SkyDome in Toronto as the Oakland Athletics blanked the Toronto Blue Jays 5-0 before 49,817 fans.



The second no-hitter of the day was pitched by Fernando Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-0 before 38,583 fans at Dodger Stadium. With a runner on base and 1 out in the 9th inning, Pedro Guerrero of the Cardinals hit a grounder up the middle; Mr. Valenzuela reached out with his glove and deflected the ball to shortstop Alfredo Griffin, who started a double play to end the game. It was the first time since the double no-hitter pitched by Fred Toney of the Cincinnati Reds and Hippo Vaughn of the Chicago Cubs on May 2, 1917 that two no-hitters had been pitched in the major leagues on the same day.



Ron Kittle led off the bottom of the 2nd inning with his 14th home run of the season, providing all the scoring as the Chicago White Sox edged the New York Yankees 1-0 before 30,137 fans at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Winning pitcher Jack McDowell allowed 4 hits in 7 innings to get the win, while Bobby Thigpen pitched the 9th inning to get his 26th save of the season. Losing pitcher Chuck Cary allowed 6 hits and 1 earned run in 7+ innings. It was the first major league game for New York designated hitter Kevin Maas, who had a single in 3 at bats.

20 years ago
1995


Hit parade
#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Scatman's World--Scatman John

Died on this date
Lana Turner, 74
. U.S. actress. Miss Turner, born Julia Jean Turner, was a popular star of the 1940s and '50s in such movies as The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946); The Bad and the Beautiful (1952); Peyton Place (1957); and Imitation of Life (1959). Her tempestuous private life hit a low point in 1958 when her 14-year-old daughter Cheryl Crane killed Miss Turner's lover, mobster Johnny Stompanato, when Mr. Stompanato was apparently attacking Miss Turner. The killing was ruled a justifiable homicide.

Music
This blogger was in attendance as the Beach Boys performed the first concert ever held at Edmonton's new, as yet unnamed baseball park. The concert took place after the Edmonton Trappers defeated the Calgary Cannons 4-1 in a Pacific Coast League game. Unfortunately, the show was a disappointment. The band played behind second base, making it difficult to see them from the stands. A guitar amplifier blew out during one of the songs, and the songs consisted almost entirely of just the standard package of hits, although they did perform the title song of their 1992 album Summer in Paradise.

Space
The U.S. space shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-71, and the Russian space station Mir docked, forming the largest man-made satellite ever to orbit the Earth.



Journalism
The New York Times and the Washington Post both said that they were considering publishing the manifesto of the Unabomber, who had already killed 3 people and injured 22 others with bombs sent through the mail. The Times, on June 28, and the Post, on June 29, had received copies of the Unabomber's 35,000-word manuscript titled Industrial Society and its Future, in which he attacked technological advances and called the Industrial Revolution a disaster for humans. The terrorist threatened to continue his attacks unless his manuscript was published.

Economics and finance
The United States Senate and House of Representatives approved a plan that projected $894 billion in reductions of projected spending increases and $245 billion in tax cuts over seven years.

Disasters
The Sampoong Department Store collapsed in the Seocho District of Seoul, killing 501 and injuring 937.

Football
CFL
Memphis (0-1) 18 @ Calgary (1-0) 24

Mark McLoughlin kicked 5 field goals and converted a 3-yard touchdown pass from Doug Flutie to Dave Sapunjis as the Stampeders defeated the Mad Dogs before 25,071 fans at McMahon Stadium in the first regular season game for the expansion Memphis club, and the first game as a CFL head coach for Pepper Rodgers. The Mad Dogs' first touchdown came on a 50-yard pass from Damon Allen to Joe Horn.

Sunday 28 June 2015

June 28, 2015

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, James Remnant!

150 years ago
1865


Defense
The Army of the Potomac was disbanded.

125 years ago
1890

Born on this date
Ken Williams
. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Williams was an outfielder in the major leagues from 1915-1929, spending 10 years (1918-1927) with the St. Louis Browns. His best season was 1922, when he hit .332 and led the American League in home runs (39); runs batted in (155); and total bases (367), was second in slugging average (.627), home run percentage (6.7) and stolen bases (37), and third in runs (128). From 1921-1927 Mr. Williams was near the top of the American League in home runs, home run percentage, and slugging average. In 1925 he led the AL with a slugging average of .613. Ken Williams died on January 22, 1959 at the age of 68.

120 years ago
1895


Central Americana
El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua formed the Greater Republic of Central America.

Law
The U.S. Court of Private Land Claims rules James Reavis' claim to Barony of Arizona was "wholly fictitious and fraudulent."

100 years ago
1915


Born on this date
Honeyboy Edwards
. U.S. musician. David Edwards was a Delta blues singer-songwriter and guitarist who performed and recorded on his own and with artists such as Robert Johnson, Charley Patton, Tommy Johnson, and Johnny Shines in a career spanning eight decades, and was given a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010. He died of congestive heart failure at his home in Chicago on August 29, 2011 at the age of 96, six weeks after announcing his retirement, and hours before he was scheduled to give a performance. 80 years ago
1935


Golf
Alf Perry won the British Open at Muirfield in Scotland with a 5-uner-par score of 283, 4 strokes ahead of Alf Padgham. First prize money was £100.

75 years ago
1940


Died on this date
Italo Balbo, 44
. Italian politician. Mr. Balbo was a Fascist leader who served as Marshal of the Air Force in the regime of Duce Benito Mussolini, and was Governor General of Libya from 1933-1940. He was killed by friendly fire while attempting to land at Tobruk, Libya.

War
The Japanese military mission arrived in Indochina and demanded the right to supply Japanese forces in China by way of the French railroad. French General Eugene Mittelhauser ordered cessation of hostilities by troops under his command in Syria.

World events
Romania ceded Bessarabia (current-day Moldova) to the U.S.S.R. after facing an ultimatum. Soviet troops marched into the areas to occupy them.

Diplomacy
The United Kingdom officially recognized General Charles de Gaulle as "leader of all free Frenchmen, wherever they may be."

The Japanese government demanded that the Netherlands East Indies permit an increased Japanese economic role.

Politics and government
The Republican National Convention at Philadelphia Convention Hall nominated New York lawyer Wendell Willkie as the Republican Party's candidate for President of the United States in the November 1940 election. Mr. Willkie was nominated at 1 A.M. on the sixth ballot, taking 654 votes to 318 for U.S. Senator Robert Taft (Ohio). That night, the convention's closing session nominated U.S. Senator Charles McNary (Oregon) on the first ballot as Mr. Willkie's vice presidential running mate.





Defense
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill making it a crime to encourage insubordination or disloyalty among the military, or to distribute literature toward that end.

Economics and finance
The New York Federal Reserve Bank established a Foreign Property Control division to scrutinize the volume of securities pouring into the United States from Europe.

70 years ago
1945


War
U.S. Army General Douglas MacArthur announced the liberation of the Philippine island of Luzon at 6:30 A.M., 5 months and 19 days after the beginning of its invasion by U.S. forces.

Politics and government
Poland's Soviet-allied Provisional Government of National Unity was formed.

The United States War Department designated General Mark Clark as head of the U.S. forces that would occupy Austria.

Protest
A day-long strike of students was reported in Argentina.

Energy
The U.S. Office of Scientific and Research Development was established by executive order to direct the development of atomic energy.

Communications
American Telephone & Telegraph announced plans to install a mobile radio-telephone system in motor vehicles and principal cities which would enable citizens to have two-way communications similar to walkie-talkies.

Economics and finance
U.S. War Manpower Commission Commissioner Paul McNutt estimated that employment in munitions plants had declined by 600,000 between March 15-June 1945 and that unemployment in the industry would increase to 1,800,000 by June 1946.

60 years ago
1955


At the movies
Not as a Stranger, produced and directed by Stanley Kramer, and starring Olivia de Havilland, Robert Mitchum, Frank Sinatra, Gloria Grahame, and Broderick Crawford, opened in theatres.



50 years ago
1965


Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Poupée De Cire, Poupée De Son--France Gall (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Crying In The Chapel--Elvis Presley

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 L-O-N-E-L-Y--Bobby Vinton
2 A Walk in the Black Forest--Horst Jankowski and his Orchestra
3 Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte--Patti Page
4 Wonderful World--Herman's Hermits
5 What Do You Want with Me--Chad & Jeremy
6 Voodoo Woman--Bobby Goldsboro
7 Bring it on Home to Me--The Animals
8 Cara, Mia--Jay & the Americans
9 Tossin' and Turnin'--The Guess Who
10 Catch the Wind--Donovan

Singles entering the chart were Yes, I'm Ready by Barbara Mason (#36); What's New Pussycat? by Tom Jones (#37); Marie by the Bachelors (#38); Set Me Free by the Kinks (#39); and Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows by Lesley Gore (#40).

Died on this date
Red Nichols, 60
. U.S. bandleader. Ernest Loring Nichols was a cornetist who recorded prolifically in the 1920s and '30s with his band Red Nichols and his Five Pennies, as well as recording under other names. He was leading a revived version of the Five Pennies in an engagement at the Mint Hotel in Las Vegas when he died of a heart attack in his hotel room.

Music
The album Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) by the Beach Boys was released on Capitol Records.

The Beatles continued their European tour with two shows at Teatro Adriano in Rome.

Politics and government
Gyula Kallai took office as Prime Minister in Hungary, but Janos Kadar still led the Hungarian Communist Party.

Communications
U.S. President Lyndon Johnson called European capitals to inaugurate intercontinental telephone service via the "Early Bird" communications satellite.

Transportation
Ontario Premier John Robarts opened the Trans-Canada Highway from Fort Frances east to Atikokan.

Boxing
Former U.S. Olympic trials heavyweight champion Buster Mathis (1-0) made his professional debut, scoring a technical knockout of Bob Maynard (1-3) in the 2nd round of their scheduled 6-round bout at Paul Sauve Arena in Montreal.

40 years ago
1975


Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (Hit Parade Italia): Tornerò--I Santo California

#1 single in the Netherlands (Veronica Top 40): If You Go--Barry & Eileen

#1 single in the U.K.: I'm Not in Love--10 C.C.

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Love Will Keep Us Together--The Captain & Tennille (2nd week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Love Will Keep Us Together--The Captain & Tennille
2 Wildfire--Michael Murphey
3 Love Won't Let Me Wait--Major Harris
4 When Will I Be Loved--Linda Ronstadt
5 I'm Not Lisa--Jessi Colter
6 Listen to What the Man Said--Wings
7 The Hustle--Van McCoy & the Soul City Symphony
8 Thank God I'm a Country Boy--John Denver
9 Magic--Pilot
10 Only Women--Alice Cooper

Singles entering the chart were Oh Me, Oh My (Dreams in My Arms) by Al Green (#77); Bluebird by Helen Reddy (#78); Send in the Clowns by Judy Collins (#82); Touch the Hand by Conway Twitty (#85); 7-6-5-4-3-2-1 (Blow Your Whistle) by the Gary Toms Empire (#91); How Sweet it Is (To Be Loved by You) by James Taylor (#92); Get Down Tonight by K.C. and the Sunshine Band (#93); Third Rate Romance by Amazing Rhythm Aces (#95); Fame by David Bowie (#97); Chocolate City by Parliament (#99); and Rendezvous by the Hudson Brothers (#100).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Wildfire--Michael Murphey
2 Love Will Keep Us Together--The Captain & Tennille
3 Hey You--Bachman-Turner Overdrive
4 Only Women--Alice Cooper
5 I'm Not Lisa--Jessi Colter
6 Old Days--Chicago
7 When Will I Be Loved--Linda Ronstadt
8 The Hustle--Van McCoy & the Soul City Symphony
9 The Last Farewell--Roger Whittaker
10 Listen to What the Man Said--Wings

Singles entering the chart were Sexy by MFSB (#82); Disco Queen by Hot Chocolate (#86); Just a Little Bit of You by Michael Jackson (#88); Everytime I Touch You by Charlie Rich (#89); I've Been Hurt (So Many Times) by Carla Whitney (#92); Sweet Emotion by Aerosmith (#93); At Seventeen by Janis Ian (#94); You Make Me Want to Be by Dan Hill (#95); Feelin' That Glow by Roberta Flack (#96); Morning Beautiful by Tony Orlando and Dawn (#97); Mary Ann by Andy Kim (#98); Do it in the Name of Love by Ben E. King (#99); and Look at Me by the Moments (#100).

Winnipeg's Top 30 (CKRC)
1 Sister Golden Hair--America (5th week at #1)
2 Magic--Pilot
3 Love Will Keep Us Together--The Captain & Tennille
4 Thank God I'm a Country Boy--John Denver
5 Hey You--Bachman-Turner Overdrive
6 Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me)--The Doobie Brothers
7 When Will I Be Loved--Linda Ronstadt
8 Listen to What the Man Said--Wings
9 Bad Time--Grand Funk
10 Wildfire--Michael Murphey
11 Only Women--Alice Cooper
12 Old Days--Chicago
13 Hit the Road Jack--Stampeders
14 I'm Not in Love--10 C.C.
15 Pinball Wizard--Elton John (LP track)
16 I Don't Like to Sleep Alone--Paul Anka
17 It's All Down to Goodnight Vienna--Ringo Starr
18 Killer Queen--Queen
19 Midnight Blue--Melissa Manchester
20 How Long--Ace
21 Love Won't Let Me Wait--Major Harris
22 I'm on Fire--Dwight Twilley Band
23 One of These Nights--The Eagles
24 The Hustle--Van McCoy & the Soul City Symphony
25 Jackie Blue--The Ozark Mountain Daredevils
26 Black Friday--Steely Dan
27 I'm Not Lisa--Jessi Colter
28 I Know What You Need--A Foot in Coldwater
29 Please Mr. Please--Olivia Newton-John
30 Shining Star--Earth, Wind & Fire

Died on this date
Rod Serling, 50
. U.S. writer. Mr. Serling was one of the most famous writers during the "Golden Age" of television in the 1950s. He was best known as the host and principal writer of the series The Twilight Zone (1959-1964), for which he won two of his six Emmy Awards. He won an Emmy for Requiem for a Heavyweight (1956), one of the best dramas in television history. Mr. Serling's last notable role was as host and sometime writer on Rod Serling's Night Gallery (1970-1973). He died of a heart attack.

Serge Reding, 33. Belgian weightlifter. Mr. Reding won the silver medal in the +90 kilogram class at the 1968 Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City, and silver medals in three world championships from 1969-1974. He died of a heart attack in Manila.

Music
Tim Buckley concluded a tour with a concert in Dallas before a sellout crowd of 1,800.

Baseball
Tony Conigliaro hit a home run in his first at bat with the Pawtucket Red Sox of the International League after being demoted from the Boston Red Sox.

30 years ago
1985


Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): 19--Paul Hardcastle (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Live is Life--Opus (5th week at #1)

Died on this date
Herb Schumm, 42
. Canadian football player. Mr. Schumm was a guard with the Edmonton Eskimos (1963-1965) and Calgary Stampeders (1966-1973). He played in the Grey Cup games of 1968, 1970, and 1971, playing on the winning side in 1971. Mr. Schumm scored the only point of his CFL career on September 3, 1973, when he concluded a punting exchange on the last play of the Labour Day game against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers by punting the ball 40 yards into the end zone to give the Stampeders a 25-24 win. He was the younger brother of Howie Schumm, a linebacker with the Eskimos (1959-1972) and Stampeders (1969). Herb Schumm died in Calgary of an undisclosed illness.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Montreal (4-0) 9 @ Toronto (2-2) 8
British Columbia (3-1) 21 @ Saskatchewan (2-2) 3
Edmonton (1-3) 34 @ Calgary (2-2) 33

Chris Woods caught 3 touchdown passes for the Eskimos as they edged the Stampeders at McMahon Stadium, and his last one, late in the game, gave the Eskimos their first pre-season win in two years.

25 years ago
1990


Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Put 'Em Under Pressure--The Republic of Ireland Football Squad (5th week at #1)

Abominations
Michel Legere, Mayor of Hull, Quebec, said that a visit from Queen Elizabeth II was not appropriate so soon after the collapse of the Meech Lake constitutional accord: "We don’t want her here, but it’s nothing personal. When the Queen visits, she represents Canada, and she represents the refusal of the distinct society."

Health
Canadian Health Minister Perrin Beatty announced a $112-million national AIDS strategy, to stop transmission, search for a cure, and treat sufferers. It also included a national registry, an AIDS secretariat, and education programs.

Scandal
The prosecution presented its key piece of evidence at the trial of Washington, D.C. Mayor Marion Barry--a videotape apparently showing Mr. Barry smoking crack in a room at the Vista International Hotel in Washington. The defense contended that the tape supported the entrapment defense.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Hamilton (0-1) 19 @ Toronto (1-0) 60
Edmonton (0-1) 23 @ British Columbia (1-0) 24

20 years ago
1995


Education
This blogger was at Eastwood Junior High School in Edmonton representing the northern Alberta branch of the Monarchist League of Canada, presenting the Monarchist League Award of $25 to the "Year 8 student who has demonstrated significant academic improvements, excellent citizenship and is involved in school activities." This year's winner was Donald Whiskeyjack.

Scandal
Webster Hubbell, a close friend of U.S. President Bill Clinton and former associate attorney general in the U.S. Justice Department, was sentenced to 21 months in prison for tax evasion and mail fraud, and ordered to pay $135,000 in restitution. Documents submitted at the sentencing hearing showed that Mr. Hubbell had defrauded the Rose Law Firm in Little Rock, Arkansas and 15 of its clients of $482,410 and had failed to pay $143,747 in taxes on the embezzled money.

Economics and finance
Hours before 100% tariffs on imports of Japanese luxury cars to the United States were to go into effect, the two countries reached an agreement whereby the major Japanese auto manufacturers announced that they would buy more parts from the U.S. and other countries and increase production at U.S. plants in return for the U.S. dropping its plan to impose the tariffs. The Japanese auto firms agreed to import $6 billion in parts within two years. The Japanese government said that it would make it easier for U.S. manufacturers of auto parts to sell replacement parts in Japanese repair shops, and it endorsed an increase in the number of Japanese dealerships that would sell American cars.

Football
CFL
Winnipeg (0-1) 15 @ Ottawa (1-0) 25

10 years ago
2005


Died on this date
Michael P. Murphy, 29
. U.S. military officer. Lieutenant Murphy was a U.S. Navy SEAL who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in Afghanistan. He, along with fellow SEALs Danny Dietz and Matthew Axelson, were killed while fighting Taliban forces, and 16 U.S. Special Operations Forces soldiers were killed when their helicopter was shot down while trying to rescue them.

Saturday 27 June 2015

June 27, 2015

150 years ago
1865


Born on this date
John Monash
. Australian military officer and engineer. General Sir John was a civil engineer who played a major role in introducing reinforced concrete to Australian engineering practice. He joined the militia in 1884, and advanced through the ranks of the Australian Army until he was given a field command in World War I, first in the Gallipoli campaign against the Ottoman Empire in 1915, and then in France on the Western Front in 1916. Gen. Sir John led Australian and American forces to victories from August-October 1918, and earned a reputation as the smartest Allied general in the war. He worked in civilian positions after war, and was regarded as the greatest living Australian until his death from a heart attack on October 8, 1931 at the age of 66.

130 years ago
1885


Born on this date
Guilhermina Suggia
. Portuguese musician. Miss Suggia was a classical cellist who performed internationally for more than 30 years. She died of cancer on July 30, 1950 at the age of 85.

125 years ago
1890


Boxing
George Dixon (11-1-9) of Canada won the vacant world bantamweight title, knocking out Nunc Wallace (6-3) in the 19th round of a scheduled 30-round bout at New Pelican Club Gym in London.

120 years ago
1895


Transportation
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's Royal Blue train, the first U.S. passenger train to use electric locomotives, made its inaugural run of from Washington, D.C., to New York City.

110 years ago
1905


Protest
Russian sailors started a mutiny aboard the battleship Potemkin, denouncing the crimes of autocracy, demanding liberty and an end to war.

80 years ago
1935


Politics and government
The Liberals, led by Allison Dysart, captured 43 of 48 seats in the Legislative Assembly in the New Brunswick provincial election, defeating the incumbent Conservatives under Premier Leonard Tilley.

75 years ago
1940


Literature
Mrs. Antonia Riasanovsky received the $10,000 Atlantic Novel Award for The Family.

War
General Charles de Gaulle announced that a French volunteer legion would be formed in Britain.

Diplomacy
German radio reports said that the German government had no interest in the Soviet demands on Romania.

Politics and government
King Farouk of Egypt asked Hassan Sabry Pasha to form a new cabinet.

Defense
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Donald Nelson to supervise all government purchases of war supplies and to coordinate U.S. and U.K. defense needs.

70 years ago
1945


Died on this date
Emil Hácha, 72
. 3rd President of Czechoslovakia, 1938-1939; State President of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, 1939-1945. Dr. Hácha served as Deputy President of the Supreme Administrative Court of the Republic of Czechoslovakia from 1919-1925, and became President of the Court upon the death of Ferdinand Pantůček. He became a member of the Legislative Council, and succeeded Edvard Beneš as President of Czechoslovakia after the Munich Agreement in the fall of 1938. Dr. Hácha met with German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler at the Reich Chancellery in Berlin on March 15, 1939, as Mr. Hitler was about to order his troops to invade Czechoslovakia. Mr. Hitler and other German politicians present threatened Mr. Hácha so strongly that he suffered a heart attack, and under duress signed away his country's sovereignty to German occupation. Dr. Hácha was allowed to remain in office as State President of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, enacting Nazi-like laws and replacing Parliament with the National Partnership in 1941. After Reinhard Heydrich replaced Konstantin von Neurath as Deputy Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, Dr. Hácha was merely a puppet in office until Prague was liberated by the Soviet Red Army on May 9, 1945. He was arrested four days later and transferred immediately to Pankrác Prison, where he died under suspicious circumstances.

Radio
To make FM free from interference, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission ordered frequency modulation broadcasting changed from between 42-50 megacycles to between 88-106.20 megacycles, of which the segment from 88-92 megacycles would be for non-commercial educational FM.

War
Radio reports from Tokyo said that all Japanese communications had been put under government control to prepare against an invasion.

Politics and government
The Simla Conference in India adjourned until June 29 after a conflict of views between the All-India Congress and the Moslem League over the makeup of India's cabinet.

U.S. President Harry Truman accepted the resignation of Secretary of State Edward Stettinius and appointed him as chairman of the U.S. delegation to the United Nations. Mr. Stettinius expressed hope that the United States would be the first nation to ratify the United Nations Charter.

Society
Georgia Governor Ellis Arnall announced his opposition to the U.S. Fair Employment Practices Commission as "unworkable," adding, "We in the South do not believe in social equality with the Negro."

60 years ago
1955


On television tonight
Sherlock Holmes, starring Ronald Howard and H. Marion Crawford
Tonight's episode: The Case of the Royal Murder



Died on this date
Harry Agganis, 26
. U.S. baseball and football player. "The Golden Greek," a native of Lynn, Massachusetts, was a star quarterback with Boston University (1949, 1951-1952), and was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 1952. He opted instead for a professional career in baseball, and made the Boston Red Sox as a first baseman in 1954. Mr. Agganis got off to a good start, but declined during the second half of his rookie season, batting .251 with 11 home runs and 57 runs batted in in 132 games. Norm Zauchin won the starting job at first base to begin the 1955 season, but Mr. Agganis quickly regained the position. After batting 5 for 10 in a doubleheader on May 15, Mr. Agganis took ill with heavy coughing and pain in his side, and was diagnosed with pneumonia. He briefly returned to the lineup, playing on June 1 and 2, but took ill again and was hospitalized. As Mr. Agganis was being lifted from his bed, a blood clot broke free from his calf and went to his lung, creating a pulmonary embolism, killing him almost immediately. At the time of his death, Mr. Agganis was on the voluntary retired list (there as no disabled list in baseball then), and was batting .313 with no homers and 10 RBIs in 25 games in 1955. For his major league career, Mr. Agganis batted .261 with 11 homers and 67 RBIs in 157 games; he was 8 for 18 (.444) in his last 4 games, when he was already seriously ill.

50 years ago
1965


Music
The Beatles continued their European tour with two shows at Teatro Adriano in Rome.

40 years ago
1975


Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Yesterday Was Just the Beginning of My Life--Mark Williams

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Paloma Blanca--George Baker Selection (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Only You Can--Fox

On television today
Elwood Glover's Luncheon Date, on CBC

This was the last broadcast of the long-running daytime talk show, which had begun on radio in 1956 before moving to television in 1963.

Canadiana
Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau opened the National Historic Park at L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland, at the tip of Great Northern Peninsula; the park contained evidence, found in 1961, of a Viking landing in North America.

Energy
West Germany agreed to supply Brazil with a complete nuclear power industry by 1990.

Crime
Detroit Tigers' manager Ralph Houk allegedly assaulted Baltimore Evening Sun reporter Phil Hersh in reprisal for an article that appeared in that day's paper alleging that Mr. Houk had addressed his players at a team meeting the previous night and told them that their "situation was hopeless." Mr. Hersh, 28, said that he received word that Mr. Houk wanted to see him before the game between the Tigers and Baltimore Orioles that night. He claimed that he entered Mr. Houk's office, admitted that he had written the article, and that Mr. Houk had ordered him out of the room. Mr. Hersh claimed that Mr. Houk then prevented him from leaving and dragged him by the back of the neck through the Tigers' clubhouse--where about 15 players and coaches were sitting--and slapped his face at least three times and ordered him to apologize to the team. Mr. Houk turned himself in at a Baltimore police station the following day. Trial was set for September 24, 1975, the next time the Tigers were scheduled to play in Baltimore.

Baseball
The Baltimore Orioles scored 2 runs in the bottom of the 7th inning and held on to edge the Detroit Tigers 3-2 before 8,748 fans at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Ross Grimsley pitched a 5-hit complete game victory to improve his record for 1975 to 4-9.

The Chicago White Sox scored 2 runs in each of the 8th and 9th innings to overcome a 3-0 deficit and defeat the Kansas City Royals 4-3 before 12,191 fans at White Sox Park. The winning run scored with 2 out in the bottom of the 9th when, with runners on first and second bases, Steve Mingori entered the game as a relief pitcher for Kansas City, and pinch hitter Bill Stein hit a ground ball to first baseman Tony Solaita, who flipped to Mr. Mingori covering first base for what should have been the third out. Mr. Mingori dropped the ball, allowing Bob Coluccio, who had reached third base on the ground ball, to score.

The Oakland Athletics broke open a close game by scoring 7 runs in the top of the 9th inning as they beat the California Angels 12-4 before 17,473 fans at Anaheim Stadium. The last 6 Oakland runs were unearned, resulting from 2 errors by California third baseman Dave Chalk.

Dan Driessen hit a 3-run home run off Danny Frisella with 1 out in the bottom of the 11th inning to give the Cincinnati Reds a 5-2 win over the San Diego Padres before 31,076 fans at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.

The Montreal Expos and St. Louis Cardinals split a doubleheader before 20,089 fans at Jarry Park in Montreal. In the first game, Bob Gibson pitched his best game of the season, allowing 5 hits and 6 bases on balls, but just 2 runs--both earned--in 6+ innings, as the Cardinals won 6-4. Mr. Gibson, who improved his 1975 record to 2-6, singled in a run in the bottom of the 5th and came around to score a run of his own. In the second game, 2 St. Louis errors in the bottom of the 7th inning allowed Pepe Mangual to score the winning run as the Expos won 5-4. Ted Sizemore hit his second home run in the last three games--and only the 15th of his major league career--for St. Louis.

30 years ago
1985


Hit parade
Canada's Top 30
1 A View to a Kill--Duran Duran
2 Angel--Madonna
3 Would I Lie to You?--Eurythmics
4 Raspberry Beret--Prince and the Revolution
5 Black Cars--Gino Vannelli
6 Everybody Wants to Rule the World--Tears for Fears
7 Sussudio--Phil Collins
8 The Search is Over--Survivor
9 If You Love Somebody Set Them Free--Sting
10 The Goonies 'R Good Enough--Cyndi Lauper
11 Never Surrender--Corey Hart
12 Strange Animal--Gowan
13 In My House--Mary Jane Girls
14 Axel F--Harold Faltermeyer
15 Tough Alkl Over--John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band
16 Into the Groove--Madonna
17 Crazy in the Night--Kim Carnes
18 Everytime You Go Away--Paul Young
19 Walk of Life--Dire Straits
20 Things Can Only Get Better--Howard Jones
21 Walking on Sunshine--Katrina and the Waves
22 Sentimental Street--Night Ranger
23 Voices Carry--'Til Tuesday
24 Glory Days--Bruce Springsteen
25 Smuggler's Blues--Glenn Frey
26 Cannonball--Supertramp
27 The Power of Love--Huey Lewis and the News
28 Go to Pieces--Paul Janz
29 Getcha Back--The Beach Boys
30 Possession Obsession--Daryl Hall John Oates

Americana
Route 66, running from Chicago to Santa Monica, California, was decertified, a victim of the Interstate Highway System. This blogger has travelled along a short stretch of Route 66, in Missouri.

25 years ago
1990


Hit parade
#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Om--Niklas Strömstedt (2nd week at #1)

Space
The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration reported that an improper curvature in one or both mirrors in the $1.5-billion Hubble Space Telescope was preventing rays of light from meeting at a sharp focus at the cameras. The defect appeared to preclude any search for black holes and quasars, and might also jeopardize a calculation of the size of the universe. A camera could be sent up in three years to correct for the flaw, but the mirrors, which had not been tested together on the ground for reasons of cost, could not be replaced, NASA said.

Canadiana
Queen Elizabeth II arrived in Calgary to start a five-day Canadian tour.

Politics and government
The Canadian Parliament adjourned for summer, but not before establishing a new Department of Forestry and the Canadian Space Agency; the Departmnent of Industry, Science and Technology replaced the Ministry of Regional Industrial Expansion.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department reported that leading economic indicators had risen 0.8% in May.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Winnipeg (1-1) 10 @ Calgary (1-0) 29

20 years ago
1995


Space
The U.S. space shuttle Atlantis lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida to begin mission STS-71, the 100th U.S. manned space mission. The seven-member launching crew, commanded by Robert "Hoot" Gibson, included two women and two Russians. The shuttle's mission was to dock with the Russian space station Mir.



Business
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police granted an exclusive marketing license to its likeness and image to the Walt Disney Company, who would pay the RCMP royalties and control copyright infringement.

10 years ago
2005


Died on this date
Shelby Foote, 88
. U.S. historian. Mr. Foote was best known for The Civil War: A Narrative, published in three volumes from 1958-1974.

Crime
"BTK" serial killer Dennis Rader pled guilty to 10 murders that had spread fear in and near Wichita, Kansas from 1974-1991.

Friday 26 June 2015

June 26, 2015

Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Beth Stover!

275 years ago
1740


War
A combined force of Spanish, free Negroes, and allied Indians defeated a British garrison in the Battle of Fort Mose near St. Augustine, Florida during the War of Jenkins' Ear.

125 years ago
1890

Baseball

The Philadelphia Quakers scored 14 runs in the 6th inning as they whipped the Buffalo Bisons 30-12 in a Players League game at Olympic Park in Buffalo. The Bisons made 10 errors; as a result, only 6 of the runs against losing pitcher Lady Baldwin were earned.

90 years ago
1925


At the movies
The Gold Rush, produced, directed, written by, and starring Charlie Chaplin, opened in theatres.

Technology
In Toronto, Ted Rogers invented the alternating-current tube which allowed for plug-in batteryless radios; the RB call sign of his Toronto radio station CFRB means "Rogers Batteryless."

Golf
Jim Barnes won the British Open at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland with a four-round score of 300, 1 stroke ahead of Archie Compston and Ted Ray. First prize money was £75.

75 years ago
1940


Diplomacy
Under the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the U.S.S.R. presented an ultimatum to Romania requiring it to cede Bessarabia and the northern part of Bukovina to the Soviet Union.

In a personal message to U.S.S.R. dictator Josef Stalin, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill warned of the dangers to the Soviet Union of German hegemony in Europe.

Politics and government
General Auguste Nogues, French commander in North Africa, announced that Moroccan forces would support the French regime in Vichy.

The Republican National Convention at Philadelphia Convention Hall adopted a platform calling for U.S. non-intervention in foreign wars.

Economics and finance
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt approved a graduated excess war profits tax, ranging from 10%-75%.

The U.S. Export-Import Bank extended a $20 million loan to Argentina.

70 years ago
1945


War
A force of 510 U.S. Superfortresses and 148 fighter escorts attacked industrial targets on Japan's Honshu and Shikoku islands, including the cities of Nagoya and Osaka.

Diplomacy
The United Nations Charter was signed by 50 countries at the United Nations Conference on International Organization in San Francisco.

Economics and finance
The United States Congress approved retention of 3c first-class postage for another two years.

Law
The United States Justice Department said that 12 of the 24 German-American Bundists freed by the Supreme Court would now be held as dangerous enemy aliens.

60 years ago
1955


Politics and government
At the Congress of the People in Kliptown, the South African Congress Alliance--consisting of the African National Congress (ANC); South African Indian Congress; Coloured People's Congress; South African Congress of Trade Unions (SACTU); and Congress of Democrats--adopted the Freedom Charter, whose principles included a non-racial South Africa.

50 years ago
1965


Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Crying in the Chapel--Elvis Presley (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in France: La Danse de Zorba--Mikis Theodorakis

#1 single in Italy (FIMI): Un anno d'amore--Mina (13th week at #1)

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Heute male ich dein Bild, Cindy Lou--Drafi Deutscher (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): Ticket to Ride--The Beatles (8th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Crying in the Chapel--Elvis Presley (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Mr. Tambourine Man--The Byrds

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)--The Four Tops (2nd week at #1)
2 Mr. Tambourine Man--The Byrds
3 Wooly Bully--Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
4 Crying in the Chapel--Elvis Presley
5 Wonderful World--Herman's Hermits
6 (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction--The Rolling Stones
7 For Your Love--The Yardbirds
8 Help Me, Rhonda--The Beach Boys
9 Back in My Arms Again--The Supremes
10 Yes, I'm Ready--Barbara Mason

Singles entering the chart were I Like it Like That by the Dave Clark Five (#59); Sitting in the Park by Billy Stewart (#79); Forget Domani, with versions by Frank Sinatra and Connie Francis (#81); My Man by Barbra Streisand (#86); Theme from "A Summer Place" by the Lettermen (#88); Take Me Back by Little Anthony and the Imperials (#89); Long Live Love by Sandie Shaw (#92); Silver Threads and Golden Needles by Jody Miller (#96); Nobody Knows What's Goin' On (In My Mind But Me) by the Chiffons (#97); From a Window by Chad & Jeremy (#99); and Moon Over Naples by Bert Kaempfert and his Orchestra (#100).

Music
The Beatles continued their European tour with two shows at Palazzo dello Sport in Genoa.

40 years ago
1975


Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): The Proud One--The Osmonds

Died on this date
Josemaría Escrivá, 73
. Spanish Roman Catholic clergyman. Mr. Escrivá was a priest who in 1928 founded Opus Dei, a secretive and controversial order of laypeople and priests dedicated to the teaching that everyone is called to holiness and that ordinary life is a path to sanctity. Mr. Escrivá was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2002.

Jack Coler; Ronald Williams. U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents; Joe Stuntz. U.S. Indian activist. Agents Coler and Williams were killed in a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, with Mr. Stuntz, an American Indian Movement member, being fatally shot after the deaths of the FBI agents. AIM activist Leonard Peltier was later convicted of the murders in a controversial trial.

Music
As part of his Welcome to My Nightmare tour, Alice Cooper performed before a crowd of 16,000 at Edmonton Coliseum, but had to end the show early, as he was still in pain from cracked ribs and a head injury suffered in an accidental fall from the stage suring his show in Vancouver four days earlier. Suzi Quatro was the opening act.

Law
The Supreme Court of Canada upheld a Prince Edward Island law banning non-residents from owning more than 4 hectares of land.

Baseball
The Pittsburgh Pirates released veteran pitcher Sam McDowell. "Sudden Sam" compiled a record of 141-134 with the Cleveland Indians (1961-1971); San Francisco Giants (1972-1973); New York Yankees (1973-1974); and Pittsburgh Pirates (1975), with an earned run average of 3.17 in 425 games. He led the American League in strikeouts five times in six years from 1965-1970, and led the AL in 1965 with an ERA of 2.18. Injuries and a drinking problem curtailed Mr. McDowell's career in his last four seasons. With the Pirates, he was 2-1 with a 2.86 ERA in 14 games.

Rennie Stennett hit a 3-run home run with 1 out in the bottom of the 9th inning to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 5-2 win over the Chicago Cubs before 10,393 fans at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. John Candelaria pitched a complete game for the win, allowing 5 hits and 2 earned runs, while striking out 13.

The St. Louis Cardinals scored all their runs in the 8th inning--2 on Ted Sizemore's first home run of the season--as they beat the Montreal Expos 4-3 before 11,173 fans at Jarry Park in Montreal.

Ed Halicki pitched a 5-hit shutout and had a hit of his own in winning a pitchers' duel over Andy Messersmith as the San Francisco Giants blanked the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-0 before 6,989 fans at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Willie Montanez doubled home Von Joshua and Bobby Murcer in the 1st inning to account for all the scoring.

Bill Melton hit a grand slam in the 8th inning as the Chicago White Sox beat the Texas Rangers 8-3 before 7,681 fans at White Sox Park. Despite giving up 7 earned runs, losing pitcher Ferguson Jenkins pitched a complete game.

Fred Lynn had a single and a triple, scored 2 runs and drove in 3, and Carlton Fisk hit his first home run in over a year as the Boston Red Sox beat the New York Yankees 6-1 before 34,293 fans at Fenway Park in Boston. Mr. Fisk's homer was his first since June 17, 1974, 11 days before he suffered a season-ending knee injury; his return was further delayed by a broken arm suffered when hit by a pitch in a spring training game in March 1975. Luis Tiant pitched a 7-hit complete game and struck out 8 to improve his record for the year to 11-6.

George Brett batted 4 for 4 with a double, 2 runs, a run batted in, and a stolen base, and Fred Patek hit his first home run of the season as the Kansas City Royals defeated the California Angels 7-1 before 6,449 fans at Anaheim Stadium. Marty Pattin allowed 9 hits and no bases on balls in pitching a complete game victory.

The Tacoma Twins of the Pacific Coast League defeated their parent club, the Minnesota Twins, 11-7 in an exhibition game before 4,254 rain-soaked fans in Tacoma. Randy Bass and Bob Gorinski hit home runs for Tacoma, while Steve Brye homered for Minnesota. Relief pitcher Rocky Stone was credited with the win.

Roger Freed hit a 3-run home run in the 1st inning and homered in the 10th for the winning run as the Monterrey Sultans edged the Poza Rica Oilers 7-6 in a Mexican League game.

30 years ago
1985


Baseball
Wilbur Snapp, organist at home games of the Clearwater Phillies of the Florida State League, was ejected by the first base umpire for playing "Three Blind Mice" after a disputed call.

25 years ago
1990


Hit parade
#1 single in Finland (Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland): Sydän tyhjää lyö--Eppu Normaali

Diplomacy
South African terrorist Nelson Mandela addressed the United States Congress, thanking the U.S. for imposing sanctions against the South African government, and urging that they be maintained until "irreversible" reforms were established. Some members boycotted the speech, objecting, in part, to Mr. Mandela’s refusal to criticize fellow thugs Yasser Arafat, Fidel Castro, and Muammar Gaddafi, all of whom supported his cause.



Politics and government
Four more Quebec Members of Parliament--Louis Plamondon (Progressive Conservative--Richelieu); Benoit Tremblay (PC--Rosemount); Nic Leblanc (PC--Longeueil); and Jean Lapierre (Liberal--Shefford) announced that they were leaving their parties to work exclusively for Quebec interests in the House of Commons, bringing to seven the number of MP s who had defected in the aftermath of the failure of the Meech Lake Canadian constitutional accord. The four new independent MP s predicted that more would follow them to join a "Quebec first" party led by former PC cabinet minister Lucien Bouchard, who had quit the government in May. In Montreal, Jacques Parizeau and Mr. Bouchard discussed creating a federal Quebec separatist party. A Parti Quebecois poll conducted in his Montreal riding said that 66% would support any candidate backed by Mr. Bouchard.

Martial Asselin was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Quebec, succeeding Gilles Lamontagne.

Law
Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney appointed Antonio Lamer as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, replacing the retiring Brian Dickson.

Canadian Justice Minister Kim Campbell introduced gun control legislation banning automatic assault weapons, with a five-year jail term to anyone convicted of converting a weapon to automatic fire.

The United States Senate voted 58-42 in favour of an amendment to the Constitution that would ban desecration of the American flag, but the total was short of the 2/3 majority required for the approval of an amendment.

Scandal
In Toronto, Justice Charles Dubin released his 638-page report on drug use in sport. Calling the situation a "moral crisis," he recommended cutting funding to Canadian athletes exposed as users of banned drugs.

Economics and finance
U.S. President George Bush, who had campaigned for president in 1988 against raising taxes, issued a statement in which he listed "tax revenue increases" as one of the necessary components of any plan to reduce the nation’s budget deficits. He indicated that a compromise with Congress on the budget was not possible without agreeing to some sort of revenue increase. Democratic party congressional leaders praised Mr. Bush’s flip-flop, but many Republicans were incensed. One letter, signed by more than half of the Republicans in the House of Representatives, called a tax increase "unacceptable."

20 years ago
1995


Hit parade
#1 single in Italy: The Colour Inside--Ti.Pi.Cal.

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Scatman's World--Scatman John

#1 single in Norway (VG-lista): '74–'75--The Connells (5th week at #1)

#1 single in Germany (Media Control): Mief!--Die Doofen

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?--Bryan Adams (5th week at #1)
2 Let Her Cry--Hootie & the Blowfish
3 December--Collective Soul
4 Water Runs Dry--Boyz II Men
5 Leave Virginia Alone--Rod Stewart
6 I Believe--Blessid Union of Souls
7 No More "I Love You's"--Annie Lennox
8 Secret Garden--Bruce Springsteen
9 Can't Stop Lovin' You--Van Halen
10 Lightning Crashes--Live

Singles entering the chart were Downtown by Neil Young (#70); Total Eclipse of the Heart by Nikki French (#76); Only Wanna Be with You by Hootie & the Blowfish (#82); Tell Me What I Think by Spirit of the West (#86); and Unloved by Jann Arden (#90).

World events
Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani deposed his father Khalifa bin Hamad al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar, in a bloodless coup.

Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak survived an assassination attempt in Addis Ababa. Mr. Mubarak was on his way to a summit meeting of the Organization of African Unity when gunmen in a jeep, joined by comrades on rooftops and on the street, fired at his limousine with automatic weapons. Mr. Mubarak was not injured, but two Ethiopian police officers and two of the assailants were killed, and others were wounded. Terrorists seeking to overthrow Mr. Mubarak and establish an Islamic state in Egypt were suspected in the attack.

Politics and government
Progressive Conservative leader Mike Harris sworn in as Premier of Ontario, replacing Bob Rae of the New Democratic Party. The PCs had won 82 out of 130 seats in the legislature in the provincial election on June 8. Mr. Harris's cabinet of 19 was the smallest in Ontario in 30 years.

U.S. Representative Greg Laughlin (Texas) switched his association from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party, after Republican leaders promised to create a seat on the Ways and Means Committee for him. Mr. Laughlin, a conservative, said that his philosophy could not be found "in the agenda of the House Democratic leadership." Also in Texas, 18 state and local Democratic officeholders joined the Republican Party.

Wednesday 24 June 2015

June 25, 2015

180 years ago
1835


Died on this date
Antoine-Jean Gros, 64
. French artist. Baron Gros was a neoclassicist painter who obtained the patronage of Napoleon Bonaparte, and painted pictures of Napoleon, historical scenes, and portraits. His later paintings were considered unfashionable when Romanticism increased in popularity, and he committed suicide by drowning himself in the Seine River in Meudon, a suburb of Paris.

175 years ago
1840


Canadiana
Quebec and Montreal were both given city charters.

160 years ago
1855


Transportation
The Great Western Railroad put its steamers Canada and America into service from Hamilton, Ontario to Oswego, New York, with a route to New York City and the Erie Canal.

130 years ago
1885


Born on this date
Roy Henry
. Canadian insurance executive. This blogger's maternal grandfather ran Roy Henry Insurance for many years. After retiring, he became the first historian of the Edmonton Eskimos football club. He died on January 14, 1969 at the age of 83, and is still missed.

Baseball
The Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Athletics 21-14 at Washington Park in Brooklyn, as 10 Brooklyn players had at least 2 hits each. Trolley Dodger third baseman George Pinckney batted 6 for 6, while Philadelphia shortstop George Strief had 4 triples and a double.

100 years ago
1915


Born on this date
"Whipper" Billy Watson
. Canadian wrestler. Mr. Watson, born William Potts in East York, Ontario, was a main attraction at Maple Leaf Wrestling in Toronto from 1940-1971, frequently holding the British Empire heavyweight title, and briefly holding the world title in 1947 and 1956. He also wrestled in St. Louis in the 1940s and '50s, joined the National Wrestling Alliance in 1955, and bought the Seattle territory. Mr. Watson was forced to retire from wrestling after suffering a serious knee injury in a car accident. He devoted himself to charity work, especially with Easter Seals. Mr. Watson retired to Florida, where he died on February 4, 1990 at the age of 74.

90 years ago
1925


Politics and government
The Conservative Party, led by Edgar Nelson Rhodes, won the Nova Scotia provincial election taking 40 of 43 seats in the legislative assembly, ending 42 years of Liberal government. The Liberal Party, led by Premier Ernest Armstrong, was reduced to 3 seats, and Mr. Armstrong was defeated in his riding of Shelburne County. In the 1920 election, the Liberals had won 29 seats and the Conservatives 3. The Conservatives captured 60.9% of the vote in 1925, to 36.3% for the Liberals.

80 years ago
1935


Diplomacy
The U.S.S.R. and Colombia established diplomatic relations.

Boxing
Joe Louis (20-0) scored a technical knockout over former world heavyweight champion Primo Carnera (81-8) at 2:32 of the 6th round at Yankee Stadium in New York. The "Brown Bomber" knocked the "Ambling Alp" down 3 times and had him draped helplessly over the top rope when referee Arthur Donovan stopped the fight.



75 years ago
1940


On the radio



War
The Royal Canadian Navy destroyer HMCS Fraser was sunk in collision off France. Shortly after midnight, the cease-fire took effect in France, and France declared a day of national mourning.

Diplomacy
League of Nations Secretary General Joseph Avenol instructed the remaining 89 League employees to resign.

Japan said that it would not permit any foreign power interference in East Asia, including Indochina and Netherlands East Indies.

Politics and government
The United Kingdom granted India and Burma the right to govern themselves as a step toward dominion status.

Delegates to the Republican National Convention at Philadelphia Convention Hall forced changes in the party platform, making it more isolationist. Former U.S. President Herbert Hoover addressed the convention, charging that current President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal economic policies had been disastrous, and appealing to the delegates to make Mr. Hoover the Republican Party's 1940 candidate for President of the United States.

Economics and finance
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the tax bill raising the national debt to $49 billion and adding 2.2 million people to the tax rolls.

U.S. President Roosevelt signed a bill permitting the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to purchase stock of Federal Home Loan Banks.

70 years ago
1945


Hit parade
U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Sentimental Journey--Les Brown and his Orchestra (vocal chorus by Doris Day) (4th week at #1)
--Hal McIntyre and his Orchestra
--The Merry Macs
2 There! I've Said it Again--Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra (vocal refrain by Vaughn Monroe and the Norton Sisters)
--Jimmy Dorsey and his Orchestra
3 Bell Bottom Trousers--Tony Pastor and his Orchestra
--Kay Kyser and his Orchestra
--Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
--Louis Prima and his Orchestra
4 Laura--Johnnie Johnston
--Woody Herman and his Orchestra
--Freddy Martin and his Orchestra
--Dick Haymes
5 You Belong to My Heart--Bing Crosby and Xavier Cugat and his Orchestra
--Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra
6 Caldonia--Woody Herman and his Orchestra
--Louis Jordan and the Tympany Five
--Erskine Hawkins and his Orchestra
7 Dream--The Pied Pipers
--Frank Sinatra
--Freddy Martin and his Orchestra
8 The More I See You--Dick Haymes
--Harry James and his Orchestra
9 My Dreams are Getting Better All the Time--Les Brown and his Orchestra (vocal chorus by Doris Day)
--Johnny Long and his Orchestra and Dick Robertson
--Phil Moore Four
10 Candy--Johnny Mercer, Jo Stafford and the Pied Pipers with Paul Weston and His Orchestra
--Dinah Shore
--Johnny Long and his Orchestra and Dick Robertson

Singles entering the chart were Chopin's Polonaise by Carmen Cavallaro and his Orchestra (#20); I Wish (#25)/Put Another Chair at the Table (#36) by the Mills Brothers; If I Loved You by Perry Como (#28); Counting the Days (#35)/Missouri Waltz (#42) by Frankie Carle and his Orchestra; All at Once, with versions by Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra; and Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians (#37); Gotta Be This or That by Benny Goodman and his Orchestra (#38); and Oh, Brother! by Harry James and his Orchestra (#45). If I Loved You was a version of a song originally from the musical play Carousel (1945).

War
U.S. naval units made their first foray past the Kuril Islands into the Sea of Okhotsk north of Japan, sinking three Japanese ships. In the pincer movement in the Cayagan Valley on Luzon in the Philippines, the U.S. 37th Infantry Division reached to within 11 miles of the 11th Airborne Group.

Diplomacy
The last plenary session of the United Nations Conference on International Organization in San Francisco met, and members received the final draft of the United Nations Charter.

Politics and government
The Simla Conference opened to consider British proposals for revising India's government.

The U.S.S.R. reported that the German Communist Party issued a manifesto in Berlin that barred a soviet system for the Reich and asked for a coalition parliamentary government and development of private enterprise and the profit system.

Economics and finance
The American Bankers' Association reversed its previous stand and endorsed the Bretton Woods monetary proposals.

A U.S. Emergency Appeals Court in Washington, D.C. ruled that Office of Price Administration ceiling rents for luxury apartments in New York City were too low, but upheld ceilings for substandard and medium-size dwellings.

Labour
The Independent Truck Drivers Union ordered its 6,000 striking members in Chicago to return to work since present "facts" made it "impossible to gain anything by this unprovoked...walkout."

60 years ago
1955


Born on this date
Happy Birthday, Gail McGonigal!

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Melody of Love--The Four Aces; Billy Vaughn and his Orchestra (5th week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Mirror): Unchained Melody--Al Hibbler (3rd week at #1)

#1 singles in the U.S.A. (Billboard): Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White--Perez Prado and his Orchestra (Best Seller--9th week at #1; Disc Jockey--5th week at #1; Jukebox--4th week at #1)

U.S. top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Unchained Melody--Les Baxter and his Orchestra (5th week at #1)
--Al Hibbler
--Roy Hamilton
2 Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White--Perez Prado and his Orchestra
--Alan Dale
3 (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock--Bill Haley and his Comets
4 Something's Gotta Give--The McGuire Sisters
--Sammy Davis, Jr.
5 The Ballad of Davy Crockett--Bill Hayes
--Fess Parker
--Tennessee Ernie Ford
6 Dance with Me Henry (Wallflower)--Georgia Gibbs
7 A Blossom Fell--Nat "King" Cole
8 Honey-Babe--Art Mooney and his Orchestra
9 Learnin' the Blues--Frank Sinatra
10 Whatever Lola Wants--Sarah Vaughan

Singles entering the chart were Sweet and Gentle by Georgia Gibbs (#16, charting with the version by Alan Dale); Hummingbird, with versions by Les Paul and Mary Ford, Frankie Laine, and the Chordettes (#36); The House of Blue Lights by Chuck Miller (#37); The Popcorn Song by Cliffie Stone and his Orchestra (#39); Good and Lonesome by Kay Starr (#40); Mama Rosa (#42)/Domani (Tomorrow) (#45) by Julius LaRosa; The Blues from Kiss Me Deadly (I’d Rather Have The Blues) by Nat "King" Cole (#46); and The Kentuckian Song, with versions by the Hilltoppers and Eddy Arnold with Hugo Winterhalter and his Orchestra (#48). The Blues from Kiss Me Deadly (I’d Rather Have The Blues) was the B-side (or maybe the A-side) of My One Sin, charting at #25, and was a version of the theme from the movie Kiss Me Deadly (1955). The Kentuckian Song was the title song of the movie; the version by Mr. Arnold and Mr. Winterhalter and his Orchestra was the B-side of The Cattle Call, charting at #35.

50 years ago
1965


Hit parade
Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Wonderful World--Herman's Hermits (2nd week at #1)
2 Crying in the Chapel--Elvis Presley
3 Mr. Tambourine Man--The Byrds
4 Cara, Mia--Jay & the Americans
5 (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction--The Rolling Stones
6 Help Me, Rhonda--The Beach Boys
7 Here Comes the Night--Them
8 I'm Henry VIII, I Am--Herman's Hermits
9 (Such An) Easy Question--Elvis Presley
10 Voodoo Woman--Bobby Goldsboro
Pick hit of the week: I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better--The Byrds
New this week: On My Word--Cliff Richard
It's Gonna Be Fine--Glenn Yarbrough
Theme from "Harlow" (Lonely Girl)--Bobby Vinton
I'll Never Get Over You--The Everly Brothers
Walk with a Winner--Gene McDaniels

Theme from "Harlow" (Lonely Girl) was from the movie.

Diplomacy
The British Commonwealth Prime Ministers Conference in London concluded with the establishment of the Vietnam Peace Mission, headed by U.K. Prime Minister Harold Wilson.

Hockey
NHL
Meeting in New York, the owners of the six National Hockey League teams gave themselves the power to grant six new franchises for the 1967-68 season at an admission price of $2 million each.

40 years ago
1975


At the movies
Cooley High, directed by Michael Schultz, and starring Glynn Turman and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, opened in theatres.



Died on this date
Benny Bass, 70
. Ukrainian-born U.S. boxer. Mr. Bass won the vacant world featherweight title with a 10-round decision over Red Chapman on September 9, 1927, but lost it to Tony Canzoneri in a split decision on February 10, 1928. Mr. Bass won the New York State Athletic Commission world super featherweight (junior lightweight) title on December 20, 1929 with a knockout of Tod Morgan 51 seconds into the 2nd round. Mr. Bass lost the title to Kid Chocolate on July 15, 1931 on a knockout with 2 seconds remaining in the 7th round. In a professional career spanning 1919-1940, Mr. Bass posted a record of 191-41-9-2.

Africana
The People's Republic of Mozambique, formerly Portuguese East Africa, became an independent nation with Samora M. Machel as President.

Politics and government
Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of internal emergency, allowing her to rule by decree, suspend elections, and curb civil liberties.

Baseball
The Chicago Cubs released veteran relief pitcher Bob Locker. Mr. Locker had been in the major leagues since 1965 and had joined the Cubs after the 1972 season in a trade with the Oakland Athletics. He was traded back to the Athletics after the 1973 season, but missed the entire 1974 season with an injury, and was traded back to the Cubs. Mr. Locker was 0-1 with an earned run average of 4.91 in 22 games with the Cubs in 1975.

The Houston Astros lent outfielder Mike Easler, currently with the Iowa Oaks of the AAA American Association, to the Tulsa Oilers, the American Association affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. Mr. Easler had batted 0 for 5 in 5 games with Houston in 1975, and was batting .296 with 9 home runs and 28 runs batted in for Iowa.

The Montreal Expos set a team record for runs in an inning, scoring 10 in the bottom of the 7th as they came back from a 4-2 deficit to defeat the Chicago Cubs 12-6 before 9,680 fans at Jarry Park in Montreal in the Wednesday Expos Baseball telecast on CBC. Pat Scanlan entered the game as a pinch hitter for starting pitcher Dennis Blair in the bottom of the 7th inning, and batted twice in the inning.

The Cincinnati Reds turned 5 double plays as they blanked the Atlanta Braves 2-0 before 8,117 fans at Atlanta Stadium. Tom Carroll allowed just 3 hits in 8+ innings in improving his 1975 record to 2-0; Will McEnaney relieved him and induced the Braves to hit into their fifth double play. Losing pitcher Carl Morton pitched a complete game, allowing 6 hits and 2 earned runs.

The Philadelphia Phillies trailed 6-0 after 2 1/2 innings but came back to edge the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-6 in 13 innings before 34,171 fans at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Jay Johnstone scored the winning run when Pittsburgh relief pitcher Dave Giusti walked Mike Scmidt with the bases loaded with 1 out in the bottom of the 13th inning.

Triples by Thurman Munson in the 7th inning and Walt Williams in the 9th led to runs as the New York Yankees edged the Baltimore Orioles 2-1 before 18,601 fans at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Sparky Lyle, the third New York pitcher of the game, pitched 1 2/3 hitless and scoreless innings to get the win, while Jim Palmer allowed just 4 hits and 2 earned runs in pitching a complete game, dropping to 12-4 for the season.

Frank Duffy batted 3 for 3 with 2 runs, a run batted in, and a stolen base, and Alan Ashby hit a 2-run home run as the Cleveland Indians withstood a late rally to defeat the Boston Red Sox 8-5 before 20,849 fans at Fenway Park. Roric Harrison pitched 8 2/3 innings to get his first win since being acquired by Cleveland on June 7 in a trade with the Atlanta Braves. The Red Sox rallied for 3 runs in the bottom of the 9th, with Denny Doyle driving in the last 2 on a single off relief pitcher Tom Buskey.

George Scott hit 2 solo home runs, providing his team's last 2 runs of the game, to help the Milwaukee Brewers defeat the Detroit Tigers 7-6 before 12,681 fans at County Stadium in Milwaukee. Mr. Scott hit his homers off Ike Brookens, who allowed 3 hits, 3 bases on balls, and 2 earned runs in 4 2/3 innings of relief in his third and last major league game.

Frank White, who entered the game as a defensive replacement at shortstop in the 10th inning, hit a grand slam in the top of the 12th as the Kansas City Royals defeated the California Angels 6-2 before 7,674 fans at Anaheim Stadium. Steve Busby pitched all 12 innings for Kansas City, allowing 12 hits and 1 earned run. Frank Tanana pitched the first 9 innings for California, allowing 11 hits and 2 earned runs, while striking out 8. Luis Quintana pitched the final 3 innings and took the loss.

The Denver Bears sent 16 men to the plate and scored 11 runs on 12 hits in the 1st inning on their way to an 18-9 win over the Wichita Aeros in an American Association game. Tony LaRussa hit for the cycle for the Bears and drove in 3 runs; Jim Lyttle had 4 hits and 3 RBIs; and Mike Buskey added 2 triples and 3 RBIs for Denver. The Aeros had 13 hits off Denver pitchers Steve Dunning and Rich Hinton.

30 years ago
1985


Died on this date
Morris Mason, 31
. U.S. criminal. Mr. Mason was executed in the electric chair at Richmond State Penitentiary in Virginia for the 1978 murder of Margaret Hand, 71. He had also pleaded guilty to assaulting two teenage sisters the day after murdering Ms. Hand.

Terrorism
13 people were arrested in connection with a suspected Irish Republican Army bombing campaign uncovered by British police two days earlier.

25 years ago
1990


Hit parade
#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Taiyō no Komachi Angel (太陽のKomachi Angel)--B'z

#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): Verdammt, Ich Lieb' Dich--Matthias Reim (6th week at #1)

Died on this date
Ezio Faraone, 33
. Canadian policeman. Mr. Faraone was a constable with Edmonton Police Service. He was with a Tactical Team Unit looking for the getaway car after a bank robbery by Albert Foulston and Jerry Crews, and spotted the car. Constable Faraone saw Mr. Foulston in the front seat and went over to the car, only to be fatally shot by Mr. Crews, who was hiding in the back seat. Constable Faraone was the first Edmonton policeman to be murdered on duty since 1919.

Diplomacy
South African terrorist Nelson Mandela met with U.S. President George Bush at the White House. Mr. Bush urged all parties in South Africa to renounce violence, but Mr. Mandela refused to make that commitment.

World events
Chinese dissidents Fang Lizhi, a physicist, and his wife Li Shuxian left China and flew to London aboard a U.S. Air Force plane. The couple had entered the United States embassy in Beijing in June 1989 to avoid being seized by Chinese authorities in the wake of the aborted uprising against the Communist regime. The Chinese government accused the couple of helping incite the pro-democracy movement. In a statement issued as they left, they admitted opposing elements of the Chinese constitution and agreed not to participate in "activities whose motive lies in opposing China." Mr. Fang was to become affiliated with Cambridge University.

20 years ago
1995


Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Scream--Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Austria (Ö3): Shut Up (and Sleep with Me)--Sin with Sebastian (6th week at #1)

#1 single in Switzerland: Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)--Scatman John (9th week at #1)

Died on this date
Ernest Walton, 91
. Irish physicist. Dr. Walton was awarded the 1951 Nobel Prize in physics with John Cockroft "for their pioneer work on the transmutation of atomic nuclei by artificially accelerated atomic particles"--popularly known as "splitting the atom."

Warren Burger, 87. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, 1969-1986. Chief Justice Burger delivered the Minnesota delegation for Dwight D. Eisenhower at the 1952 Republican National convention, and was rewarded by being appointed Assistant Attorney General when Gen. Eisenhower became U.S. President. Mr. Burger was appointed by President Eisenhower to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 1956, and served on that court until he accepted President Richard Nixon's nomination to succeed the retiring Earl Warren as Chief Justice. As Chief Justice, he took liberal positions on some issues and conservative positions on others, and was reportedly regarded within the court as a poor leader. Chief Justice Burger retired from the Supreme Court in 1986.

10 years ago
2005


Died on this date
John Fiedler, 80
. U.S. actor. Mr. Fiedler was short, bald, wore glasses, and had a distinctive high voice, which made him a recognizable character actor in numerous movies, television programs, and cartoons. He was perhaps best known for providing the voive of Piglet in various Winnie the Pooh cartoons.

Politics and government
Hardline Tehran Mayor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner of Iran's presidential runoff election.

Football
CFL
British Columbia (1-0) 27 @ Toronto (0-1) 20
Winnipeg (0-1) 15 @ Saskatchewan (1-0) 42