June 21, 2015

710 years ago
1305

Died on this date
Wenceslaus II, 33. King of Bohemia (1278-1305); King of Poland (1300-1305). Wenceslaus II acceded to the throne of Bohemia upon the death of his father Ottokar II, and became Duke of Krakَw in 1291 when it was ceded to him by High Duke of Poland Przemysł II. Przemysł II was crowned King of Poland in 1295, and Wenceslaus succeeded him on that throne. King Wenceslaus died, likely from tuberculosis, and was succeeded on his thrones by his son Wenceslaus III.

170 years ago
1845

Born on this date
Samuel Griffith. Chief Justice of Australia, 1903-1919. Sir Samuel, a native of Wales, moved with his family to Queensland at the age of 8. He was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly (1872-1893), serving as Premier of Queensland (1883-1888, 1890-1893). Sir Samuel was known as a supporter of organized labour in his first term as Prime Minister, but in his second term, his government used the military to suppress a shearers' strike. Sir Samuel resigned from political office in order to serve as Chief Justice of Queenlsand (1893-1903), drafting the state's criminal code. He then became the first Chief Justice of Australia, sitting on about 950 reported cases, and retiring two years after suffering a stroke. Sir Samuel died on August 9, 1920 at the age of 75.

125 years ago
1890

Born on this date
Frank S. Land. U.S. businessman. Mr. Land was a restaurateur in Kansas City, Missouri who became known as the founder, in 1919, of the Masonic youth organization Order of DeMolay. He died on November 8, 1959 at the age of 69.

Baseball
Silver King of the Chicago Pirates pitched 8 innings of no-hit ball but gave up a run on an error, and the Pirates lost 1-0 to the Brooklyn Wonders at South Side Park in Chicago. The Pirates batted first, and the Wonders didn’t come to bat in the bottom of the 9th inning. It was the only no-hitter pitched in the Players League, and the only no-hitter in major league history pitched with the mound 51 feet 6 inches from home plate. In the other major leagues, the pitcher’s mound was then 50 feet from home plate; the distance is now 60 feet, 6 inches.

Harvard University defeated Yale University 4-3 before more than 10,000--the largest ever at a collegiate game--in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

100 years ago
1915

Born on this date
César Basa. Filipino military aviator. Lieutenant Basa was shot down in a battle against numerically superior Japanese forces on December 12, 1941 at the age of 26, and was the first Filipino fighter pilot to be killed in World War II; he was awarded a posthumous Silver Star.

Law
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Guinn v. United States that Oklahoma and Maryland laws providing for grandfather clause exemptions to literacy tests were unconstitutional, contrary to the Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which barred prohibition against voting on the basis of race. The laws had been used to disenfranchise Negro voters.

75 years ago
1940

At the movies
Charlie Chan's Murder Cruise, starring Sidney Toler, Victor Sen Yung, Lionel Atwill, and Leo G. Carroll, opened in theatres.



Died on this date
Smedley Butler, 58. U.S. military officer. Major General Butler served with the United States Marine Corps in the Spanish-American War, the Philippines, Mexico, Central America, Haiti, China, and in World War I. He won the Medal of Honor twice and was the most decorated Marine in history at the time of his death. Maj. Gen. Butler made headlines with accusations that prominent businessmen had tried to recruit him as part of a coup to topple U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. In his later years, Maj. Gen. Butler became a prominent critic of American military actions, with a speech later published as the booklet War is a Racket (1935). He died of cancer.

War
Italy began an unsuccessful invasion of France. New York City District Attorney Thomas Dewey, a candidate for the 1940 Republican Party nomination for President of the United States, charged in a nationwide radio broadcast that President Franklin D. Roosevelt was plotting U.S. entry into the European war in order to hide his own failures.

Politics and government
Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone took office as Governor General of Canada; he succeeded John Buchan, Lord Tweedsmuir, who had died in office on February 11, 1940.

King Carol II of Romania assumed dictatorial powers.

For the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia, opening three days hence, the Republican National Committee rejected the seating of a South Carolina delegation headed by Joseph Tolbert, that supported U.S. Senator Robert Taft (Ohio) as the party's candidate for President of the United States in the November 1940 election.

Associated Press reported that U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt had 707½ pledged delegates to the Democratic National Convention, giving him a wide lead over Vice President John Nance "Cactus Jack" Garner and Postmaster General James Farley in the contest for the 1940 Democratic Party presidential nomination.

Americana
The United States Senate passed and sent to the House of Representatives a bill granting American citizenship to residents of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Exploration
Henry Larsen set sail from Vancouver, British Columbia on the Royal Canadian Mounted Police patrol vessel St. Roch, intending to reach Halifax via the Northwest Passage.

Defense
In separate statements, the U.S. National Editorial Association and the U.S. Junior Chamber of Commerce endorsed universal military training.

Disasters
Geologist Halbert Gillette told the American Association for the Advancement of Science convention in Seattle that the worst droughts in 2,000 years were about to start, based on his study of rock strata.

Baseball
Sid Hudson of the Washington Nationals came within 3 outs of a no-hitter, but gave up a bloop double to Rip Radcliff to begin the 9th inning. Mr. Hudson settled for a 1-hit 1-0 shutout over the St. Louis Browns before 12,804 fans at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis in a game that was over in 1 hour and 47 minutes. Vern Kennedy pitched a complete game for the Browns, allowing 10 hits and 1 earned run.

Red Rolfe batted 5 for 6 and Charlie Keller was 4 for 6 as the New York Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers 12-7 before 11,717 fans at Briggs Stadium in Detroit.

The Brooklyn Dodgers allowed 5 runs in the last 3 innings, but held on to defeat the Pittsburgh Pirates 10-8 before 6,106 fans at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn.

70 years ago
1945

War
The Battle of Okinawa ended when the organized resistance of Imperial Japanese Army forces collapsed in the Mabuni area on the southern tip of the main island. Australian troops landed on the northern head of Brunei Bay, Borneo and gained control of both sides of the entrance to the bay.

World events
The United Kingdom stated that Moscow radio had reported that 12 of the 16 accused Polish underground leaders on trial in Moscow had been found guilty and given prison sentences ranging from 4 months-10 years.

The government of Guatemala exiled 19 people and held 30 under arrest without explanation.

Diplomacy
The United Nations Conference on International Organization in San Francisco chose London as the interim location for the world organization.

The governments of Lebanon and Syria announced an agreement on policy for winning independence that included elimination of all French personnel.

Politics and government
Ferruccio Parri formed a new Italian cabinet and was sworn in as Prime Minister by Crown Prince Humbert in Rome.

The U.S. Senate confirmed Claude Rickard as Rural Electrification Administration Administrator.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department estimated that American businessmen planned to spend a record high of $4.5 billion for plants and equipment in the next fiscal year.

Labour
An equal pay bill to protect female workers from wage discrimination when World War II was over was introduced in the United States Senate.

An American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations jurisdictional dispute idles 21,000 workers at Packard Motors and 1,400 at Ford Motor Company's River Rouge plant.

U.S. motion picture producers and the Screen Actors Guild concluded contract talks, increasing salaries for day workers to $35; freelance players to $115 weekly; and stock contracts to $60 weekly.

60 years ago
1955

At the movies
The Shrike, directed by José Ferrer, and starring Mr. Ferrer, June Allyson, and Joy Page, opened in theatres in Japan.



50 years ago
1965

Hit parade
#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Poupée De Cire, Poupée De Son--France Gall (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Long Live Love--Sandie Shaw (2nd week at #1)

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 For Your Love--The Yardbirds
2 L-O-N-E-L-Y--Bobby Vinton
3 Over the Rainbow--Billy Thorpe
4 Last Chance to Turn Around--Gene Pitney
5 Wonderful World--Herman's Hermits
6 Laurie--Dickey Lee
7 Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte--Patti Page
8 What Do You Want with Me--Chad & Jeremy
9 Voodoo Woman--Bobby Goldsboro
10 A Walk in the Black Forest--Horst Jankowski and his Orchestra

Singles entering the chart were I'm Henry VIII, I Am by Herman's Hermits (#19); You Really Know How to Hurt a Guy by Jan & Dean (#27); Little Lonely One by Tom Jones (#28); (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by the Rolling Stones (#29); It's Just a Little Bit Too Late by Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders (#30); Lipstick Traces by the O'Jays (#31); Where are You Now by Jackie Trent (#32); I Like it Like That by the Dave Clark Five (#33); From the Bottom of My Heart (I Love You) by the Moody Blues (#34); When a Boy Falls in Love by Sam Cooke (#35); Little Liar by Terry Black (#36); Watermelon Man by Gloria Lynne (#37); Operator by Brenda Holloway (#38); (Such An) Easy Question by Elvis Presley (#39); and (My Girl) Sloopy by Little Caesar and the Consuls (#40).

Economics and finance
U.S. President Lyndon Johnson signed an excise tax reduction bill, urging manufacturers and retailers to lower prices.

40 years ago
1975

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy (Hit Parade Italia): Piange il telefono--Domenico Modugno (8th week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (Veronica Top 40): Girls--Moments & Whatnauts (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in the U.K.: Whispering Grass--Windsor Davies and Don Estelle (3rd week at #1)

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

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

Singles entering the chart were Mornin' Beautiful by Tony Orlando and Dawn (#71); Feel Like Makin' Love by Bad Company (#83); Could it Be Magic by Barry Manilow (#85); Ballroom Blitz by Sweet (#88); At Seventeen by Janis Ian (#89); Holdin' on to Yesterday by Ambrosia (#94); Fallin' in Love by Hamilton, Joe Frank and Reynolds (#95); El Bimbo by Bimbo Jet (#96); Somethin' 'Bout You Baby I Like by Trini Lopez (#97); and Wonderful Baby by Don McLean (#100).

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Love Will Keep Us Together--The Captain & Tennille
2 Hey You--Bachman-Turner Overdrive
3 Bad Time--Grand Funk
4 Thank God I'm a Country Boy--John Denver
5 Only Women--Alice Cooper
6 Wildfire--Michael Murphey
7 I'm Not Lisa--Jessi Colter
8 Old Days--Chicago
9 When Will I Be Loved--Linda Ronstadt
10 The Last Farewell--Roger Whittaker

Singles entering the chart were Make the World Go Away by Donny and Marie Osmond (#80); Me and Mrs. Jones by Ron Banks and the Dramatics (#87); Hello Central (Give Me Dr. Music) by the Hans Staymer Band (#88); Rockin' Chair by Gwen McCrae (#90); Slippery When Wet by the Commodores (#91); Dance She Said by Brussel Sprout (#93); Wasted Days and Wasted Nights by Freddy Fender (#94); Hurt by the Manhattans (#95); Burnin' Thing by Mac Davis (#96); It's All Down to Goodnight Vienna by Ringo Starr (#97); Wooden Heart by Bobby Vinton (#98); I Dreamed Last Night by Justin Hayward and John Lodge (#99); and Long Haired Country Boy by the Charlie Daniels Band (#100).

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

On television tonight
On the Evidence, hosted by Ken Haslam, on CBC

This was the first broadcast of the courtroom series, using real judges, lawyers, and court officials, which ran on Saturday nights during the summer of 1975.

Baseball
The Pittsburgh Pirates allowed 3 runs in the bottom of the 1st inning but came back with 3 in the 7th and 4 in the 9th to beat the New York Mets 7-3 before 31,640 fans at Shea Stadium in New York. Bruce Kison started on the mound for the Pirates and allowed 3 earned runs on 3 hits and 2 bases on balls in failing to retire a batter before being relieved by Sam McDowell, who allowed just 2 hits and no runs in 4 innings.

Fred Norman singled for his first hit of the season and scored the winning run as the Cincinnati Reds edged the Houston Astros 7-6 in 14 innings before 24,317 fans at the Astrodome. Mr. Norman, normally a starting pitcher, pitched 3 innings of hitless and scoreless relief to get the win. Clay Carroll, normally a reliever, started for the Reds, allowing 5 hits and 4 runs--all earned--in 6 innings.

Pat Dobson pitched a 7-hit complete game to win the pitchers' duel over Mickey Lolich, who allowed 10 hits in going the distance, as the New York Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers 4-1 before 19,780 fans at Tiger Stadium. Rich Coggins, purchased by the Yankees from the Montreal Expos' organization the previous day, made his first appearance in a New York uniform, entering the game in the 7th inning as a pinch runner for designated hitter Bobby Bonds, who led off the inning with a triple. Mr. Coggins scored what proved to be the deciding run on a sacrifice fly by Chris Chambliss, and lined out to Detroit third baseman Aurelio Rodriguez for the final out of the 8th inning.



Jim Palmer pitched a 5-hit shutout as the Baltimore Orioles scored all their runs in the first inning and blanked the Boston Red Sox 3-0 before 12,210 fans at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore in a game that was over in 1 hour and 58 minutes.

The Milwaukee Brewers scored 5 runs in the top of the 8th inning and held off a 4-run rally in the bottom of the 8th to defeat the Cleveland Indians 11-9 before 11,417 fans at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland.

Frank Tanana set an American League single--game record for lefthanded pitchers with 17 strikeouts as the California Angels beat the Texas Rangers 4-2 in the first game of a twi-night doubleheader before 19,424 fans at Anaheim Stadium. Mr. Tanana allowed 9 hits and no bases on balls. The Rangers scored a run in the top of the 9th inning to win the second game 6-5.

Steve Busby pitched a 5-hit complete game to improve his 1975 record to 10-5 as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Oakland Athletics 4-1 before 11,505 fans at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Losing pitcher Ken Holtzman also pitched a complete game, allowing 7 hits and 2 earned runs.

Tom Norton pitched a no-hitter and Bob Gorinski hit a home run in the top of the 5th inning for the game's only run as the Tacoma Twins edged the Hawaii Islanders 1-0 in a Pacific Coast League game before 4,293 fans at Honolulu Stadium. Mr. Norton allowed an amazing 11 bases on balls, while striking out 8 and suffering a finger blister. Losing pitcher Jim Shellenback allowed just 4 hits in pitching a complete game.

30 years ago
1985

Hit parade
#1 single in West Germany (Media Control): 19--Paul Hardcastle (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Sweden (Topplistan): Live is Life--Opus (4th week at #1)

At the movies
Cocoon, directed by Ron Howard, and starring Don Ameche, Wilford Brimley, and Hume Cronyn, opened in theatres.



Died on this date
Hector Boyardee, 87. Italian-born American chef. Mr. Boyardee, born Ettore Boiardi, founded the Chef Boy-Ar-Dee spaghetti products company in 1928.

Tage Erlander, 84. Prime Minister of Sweden, 1946-1969. Mr. Erlander, a Social Democrat, was first elected to Parliament in 1932, and held several cabinet posts until succeeding Per Albin Hansson as party leader and Prime Minister upon Mr. Hansson's death in 1946. Mr. Erlander implemented welfare state policies while managing to keep taxes low. He built a strong armed forces while maintaning a defense policy of neutrality. Mr. Erlander resigned in October 1969, and was succeeded as Prime Minister by Olaf Palme. Mr. Erlander died of pneumonia and heart failure, eight days after his 84th birthday.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Hamilton (0-3) 13 @ Montreal (3-0) 32
Saskatchewan (2-1) 28 @ Calgary (2-1) 31
Winnipeg (1-2) 28 @ British Columbia (2-1) 18

Baseball
The Minnesota Twins, in last place in the American League West Division with a record of 27-35, fired manager Billy Gardner and replaced him with Baltimore Orioles’ pitching coach Ray Miller.

25 years ago
1990

Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Put 'Em Under Pressure--The Republic of Ireland Football Squad (4th week at #1)

Died on this date
June Christy, 64. U.S. singer. Miss Christy, born Shirley Luster, achieved success with the Stan Kenton Orchestra from 1945 through the 1950s, and had success as a solo artist in the 1950s.

Abominations
South African Communist terrorist Nelson Mandela continued his visit to New York City as he was feted by rallies in Harlem and at Yankee Stadium.

Diplomacy
The Palestine Liberation Organization’s executive committee reacted against U.S. President’s decision to break off diplomatic dialogue with the PLO by complaining that the U.S. had not responded in a similar way to "Israeli crimes against Palestinians."

Politics and government
The United States House of Representatives voted 254-177 in favour of a constitutional amendment to ban desecration of the American flag, but this fell far short of the 2/3 required for the approval of an amendment.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department reported that the estimate of the growth of the gross national product, on an annual basis, for the first quarter of 1990 had been revised upward from 1.3% to 1.9%, the second-lowest growth rate reported in the last 30 months.

Disasters
An earthquake recorded as high as 7.7 on the Richter scale struck Iran, destroying or damaging more than 100 communities. Within six days an estimated 40,000 people had been killed and 60,000 injured.

20 years ago
1995

Politics and government
The Russian Duma voted 241-72 in favour of a motion of non-confidence in the government. There was considerable discontent with the Russian government's agreement to negotiate with rebels in Chechnya, who were holding 2,000 people hostage at a hospital in the town of Budyonnovsk.

The New Democratic Party, led by Premier Roy Romanow, won a reduced majority of seats in the legislature in the Saskatchewan provincial election. The NDP won 42 of 58 seats, down from 54 of 66 seats going into the election. The Liberals, led by Lynda Haverstock, increased their total from 2 seats to 11, and became the official opposition, while the Progressive Conservatives, led by Bill Boyd, dropped from 10 seats to 5.

Economics and finance
The United States Commerce Department reported that the trade deficit had risen to $11.37 billion in April, the highest figure since the new way of computing it had begun in January 1992.

10 years ago
2005

Died on this date
Jaime Sin, 76. Filipino clergyman. Cardinal Sin was Roman Catholic Archbishop of Manila from 1974-2003, and joined the College of Cardinals in 1976. He was known for his involvement in the movements to topple the regimes of Presidents Ferdinand Marcos in 1986 and Joseph Estrada in 2001.

Crime
Edgar Ray Killen, who had previously been acquitted for the 1964 murders in Mississippi of civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Mickey Schwerner, was convicted of manslaughter, 41 years to the day after the crime, and a year after the case had been reopened.

Basketball
NBA
Finals
Detroit 95 @ San Antonio 86 (Best-of-seven series tied 3-3)

Rip Hamilton scored 23 points as the Pistons defeated the Spurs before 18,797 fans at SBC Center. Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili each scored 21 points for San Antonio, and Mr. Duncan grabbed 15 rebounds.