March 31 1492 - King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain issued the Alhambra edict expelling Jews who were unwilling to convert to Christianity. 1776 - Abigail Adams wrote to her husband John that women were determined to foment a rebellion if the new Declaration of Independence failed to guarantee their rights. 1779 - Russia and Turkey signed a treaty concerning military action in Crimea. 1831 - Quebec and Montreal were incorporated as cities. 1854 - The U.S. government signed the Treaty of Kanagawa with Japan. The act opened the ports of Shimoda and Hakotade to American trade. 1862 - Skirmishing between Rebels and Union forces took place at Island 10 on the Mississippi River. 1870 - In Perth Amboy, NJ, Thomas Munday Peterson became the first black to vote in the U.S. 1880 - Wabash, IN, became the first town to be completely illuminated with electric light. 1889 - In Paris, the Eiffel Tower officially opened. 1900 - The W.E. Roach Company was the first automobile company to put an advertisement in a national magazine. The magazine was the Saturday Evening Post. 1900 - In France, the National Assembly passed a law reducing the workday for women and children to 11 hours. 1901 - In Russia, the Czar lashed out at Socialist-Revolutionaries with the arrests of 72 people and the seizing of two printing presses. 1902 - In Tennessee, 22 coal miners were killed by an explosion. 1904 - In India, hundreds of Tibetans were slaughtered by the British. 1905 - Kaiser Wilhelm arrived in Tangier proclaiming to support for an independent state of Morocco. 1906 - The Conference on Moroccan Reforms in Algerciras ended after two months with France and Germany in agreement. 1906 - The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States was founded to set rules in amateur sports. The organization became the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 1910. 1908 - 250,000 coal miners in Indianapolis, IN, went on strike to await a wage adjustment. 1909 - Serbia accepted Austrian control over Bosnia-Herzegovina. 1917 - The U.S. purchased and took possession of the Virgin Islands from Denmark for $25 million. 1918 - For the first time in the U.S., Daylight Saving Time went into effect. 1921 - Great Britain declared a state of emergency because of the thousands of coal miners on strike. 1923 - In New York City, the first U.S. dance marathon was held. Alma Cummings set a new world record of 27 hours. 1932 - The Ford Motor Co. debuted its V-8 engine. 1933 - The U.S. Congress authorized the Civilian Conservation Corps to relieve rampant unemployment. 1933 - The Soperton News in Georgia became the first newspaper to publish using a pine pulp paper. 1939 - Britain and France agreed to support Poland if Germany threatened invasion. 1940 - La Guardia airport in New York officially opened to the public. 1941 - Germany began a counter offensive in North Africa. 1945 - The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams opened on Broadway. 1946 - Monarchists won the elections in Greece. 1947 - John L. Lewis called a strike in sympathy for the miners killed in an explosion in Centralia, IL, on March 25, 1947. 1948 - The Soviets in Germany began controlling the Western trains headed toward Berlin. 1949 - Winston Churchill declared that the A-bomb was the only thing that kept the U.S.S.R. from taking over Europe. 1949 - Newfoundland entered the Canadian confederation as its 10th province. 1958 - The U.S. Navy formed the atomic submarine division. 1959 - The Dalai Lama (Lhama Dhondrub, Tenzin Gyatso) began exile by crossing the border into India where he was granted political asylum. Gyatso was the 14th Daila Lama. 1960 - The South African government declared a state of emergency after demonstrations lead to the death of more than 50 Africans. 1966 - An estimated 200,000 anti-war demonstrators march in New York City. (New York) 1966 - The Soviet Union launched Luna 10, which became the first spacecraft to enter a lunar orbit. 1967 - U.S. President Lyndon Johnson signed the Consular Treaty, the first bi-lateral pact with the Soviet Union since the Bolshevik Revolution. 1970 - The U.S. forces in Vietnam down a MIG-21, it was the first since September 1968. 1976 - The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that Karen Anne Quinlan could be disconnected from a respirator. Quinlan remained comatose until 1985 when she died. 1980 - U.S. President Carter deregulated the banking industry. 1981 - In Bangkok, Thailand, four of five Indonesian terrorists were killed after hijacking an airplane on March 28. 1985 - ABC-TV aired the 200th episode of The Love Boat. 1986 - 167 people died when a Mexicana Airlines Boeing 727 crashed in Los Angeles. 1987 - HBO (Home Box Office) earned its first Oscar for Down and Out in America. 1989 - Canada and France signed a fishing rights pact. 1991 - Albania offered a multi-party election for the first time in 50 years. Incumbent President Ramiz Alia won. 1991 - Iraqi forces recaptured the northern city of Kirkuk from Kurdish guerillas. 1993 - Brandon Lee was killed accidentally while filming a movie. 1994 - Nature magazine announced that a complete skull of Australppithecus afarensis had been found in Ethiopia. The finding is of humankinds earliest ancestor. 1998 - U.N. Security Council imposed arms embargo on Yugoslavia. 1998 - Buddy Hackett received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 1998 - For the first time in U.S. history the federal governments detailed financial statement was released. This occurred under the Clinton administration. 1999 - Three U.S. soldiers were captured by Yugoslav soldiers three miles from the Yugoslav border in Macedonia. 1999 - Fabio was hit in the face by a bird during a promotional ride of a new roller coaster at the Busch Gardens theme park in Williamsburg, VA. Fabio received a one-inch cut across his nose. 2000 - In Uganda, officials set the number of deaths linked to a doomsday religious cult, the Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments, at more than 900. In Kanungu, a March 17 fire at the cults church killed more than 530 and authorities subsequently found mass graves at various sites linked to the cult. 2004 - Air America Radio launched five stations around the U.S. 2004 - Google Inc. announced that it would be introducing a free e-mail service called Gmail. Music History 1684 - Composer Francesco Durante was born. 1732 - Composer Franz Joseph Haydn was born. He is known for helping to develop the Classical style. 1901 - Anton Dvoraks opera Rusalka premiered in Russia. 1943 - Oklahoma! by Rodgers and Hammerstein debuted on Broadway. The original title was Away We Go. 1958 - Chuck Berrys Johnny B. Goode was released. 1967 - Jimi Hendrix began his first British tour with Cat Stevens. 1982 - The Doobie Brothers announced their break-up. 1987 - Princes Sign O The Times LP was released in the U.S. 1989 - Guns N Roses released their single Patience. 1992 - Human touch and Lucky Day, both by Bruce Springsteen were released. 1995 - A former Led Zeppelin fan was arrested for trying to stab Jimmy Page at a Page and Robert Plant concert. 1995 - Selena was killed by the president of her fan club, Yolanda Saldivar. Saldivar had been fired for embezzlement. 1998 - The first Celebration of Female Artists Awards took place at The Grosvenor House in London. 1998 - The video for Good Times, the only movie to star Sonny & Cher, hit stores. The video included an unreleased version of I Got You Babe. The movie was made in 1967. 1999 - It was announced that tickets for the Cranberries forthcoming U.S. tour would only be sold via the Internet at cranberries. Birthdays Rene Descartes 1596 - Philosopher, I think, therefore I am Andrew Marvell 1621 - Poet Nikolai Gogol 1809 - Playwright, novelist Edward Fitzgerald 1809 - Author Robert Wilhelm Bunsen 1811 Mary Chestnut 1823 - Author Sir Dugald Clerk 1854 Jack Johnson 1878 - Boxer, author Henry Morgan 1915 - Comedian Tommy Bolt 1918 - Golfer Richard Kiley 1922 - Actor (The Thorn Birds) Leo Buscaglia 1924 Cesar Chavez 1927 - Labor leader, founder of National Farm Workers Association William Daniels 1927 - Actor (St. Elsewher, voice of KITT on Knight Rider) Gordie (Gordon) Howe 1928 - Hockey player (Detroit Red Wings, Hartford Whalers) Lefty (William Orville) Frizzell 1928 - Country musician Liz Claiborne 1929 - Fashion designer Miller Barber 1931 - Golfer John Jakes 1932 - Author (California, In the Big Country) John D. Loudermilk 1934 - Country singer and songwriter Shirley Jones 1934 - Singer, Actress (The Partridge Family) Richard Chamberlain 1934 - Actor (The Bourne Identity) Billy Hicke 1938 - Hockey player (Montreal Canadiens, NY Rangers, Minnesota Rangers, Baltimore Clippers, Oakland Seals, California Golden Seals, Pittsburgh Penguins) Herb Alpert 1935 - Musician Christopher Walken 1943 - Actor (The Deerhunter, Pulp Fiction) Rod Allen 1944 - Musician (The Fortunes) Gabe Kaplan 1945 - Actor (Welcome Back Kotter), comedian Al Nichol 1946 - Musician (The Turtles) Al Gore 1948 - U.S. Vice President under President Bill Clinton Rhea Perlman 1948 - Actress (Cheers), comedian Mick Ralphs 1948 - Musician (Bad Company, Mott the Hoople) Ed Marinaro 1950 - Football player (Minnesota Vikings), Actor (Hill Street Blues) Sean Hopper 1953 - Musician (Huey Lewis and The News) Marc McClure 1957 - Actor (Freak Friday) Angus Young 1959 - Guitar player (AC/DC) William McNamara 1965 - Actor Pavel Bure 1971 - Hockey player Ewen McGregor 1971 - Actor (Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Moulin Rouge) Today in Disaster History 1986 - In Mexico, 167 people died when a Mexicana Airlines Boeing 727 crashed in a remote mountainous region. 2006 - In western Iran, serveral earthquakes and aftershocks killed at least 66 people and injured another 1,200. Today in Sports History 1906 - The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States was founded to set rules in amateur sports. The organization became the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 1910. 1923 - King Clancy (Ottawa Senators) played all six positions in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals. He played goalie for 2 minutes while Clint Benedict served a penalty. 1931 - Knute Rockne died in a plane crash. 1968 - Seattle chose the nickname Pilots for their new AL franchise. 1972 - The Major League Baseball Players Association voted to go on strike on April 1. 1973 - Muhammad Ali wore a $10000 robe with The Peoples Champion inscribed on it. Ali lost the fight to Ken Norton. Elvis Presley had given the robe to Ali on January 2, 1971. 1990 - Joe Sakic became the youngest person in NHL history to score 100 points in a season. He was also the first to do so with a last-place team. 1991 - Brett Hull (St. Louis Blues) recorded his 86th goal of the season. It was the third best total in NHL history. 1992 - Cotton Fitzsimmons (Phoenix Suns) became the sixth coach in NBA history to get 800 career wins. 1997 - Martina Hingis, 16 years old, became the youngest womens tennis player to reach the world number-one mark. 1998 - The Tampa Bay Devil Rays and the Arizona Diamondbacks debuted in the major league. 1998 - Pokey Reese (Cincinnati Reds) tied a major league record when he had four errors on opening day. 2003 - Former U.S. President George H.W. Bush threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the season opener between the Cincinnati Reds and the Pittsburgh Pirates. 2004 - NFL owners adopted a 15-yard penalty for excessive celebrations. The penalty was added to the fines previously in place for choreographed and multiplayer celebrations. Also, if the infraction was flagrant the player would be ejected. The previous day the owners had instituted a modified instant replay system for five years.
Posted on: Mon, 31 Mar 2014 20:51:58 +0000